Take EWA's Online Community Survey

The Education Writers Association plans to build a professional online community to serve as a meeting place for those interested in education issues and journalism. EWA values your input as it develops this new resource. Please take a few moments to complete a brief survey.

EWA Introduces New Blog

EWA is pleased to introduce Ed Beat, a new staff-written blog that will take note of developments on the education beat and suggest angles for reporters covering them. We'll highlight interesting stories, point out obstacles to good reporting, and draw attention to useful sources of information. Got ideas for coverage? E-mail us at edbeat@ewa.org. 

Freelance Database

EWA's freelance database has been updated and is now searchable. Click here to see freelance writers or enter yourself in our database

Tracking Education Stimulus Spending District by District in 7 States

The U.S. Department of Education's inspector general recently audited seven states to assess how well they were overseeing school districts' use of stimulus money, and found that most needed more internal controls. On EWA's Edmoney.org website, we have just released a district-by-district breakdown of stimulus grants awarded to those seven states: California, Illinois, Indiana, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas. Check out the data, and while you're at it, add links to stories about stimulus spending in those states and their school districts. It's easy!

Examining the Evidence

Participants were  "Examining the Evidence" at EWA's 63rd annual meeting in San Francisco. . The conference examined issues supporting the US Department of Education's "Race to the Top,"  as well as focused on how colleges are taking responsibility for student success. Reporters blogged about the conference for EWA and you can see reporting on the sessions and other materials from the meeting here.  Boston Globe reporter Bob Hohler won the top prize in the National Awards for Education Reporting for his seven – part series “Failing Our Athletes: The Sad State of Sports in Boston Public Schools.”  You can also see other contest winners who were honored at this year's meeting.

18 states and DC Qualify in Round Two for Race to Top
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the 19 finalists for more than $3 billion in funding.

EWA's Online Community Survey
Give EWA feedback on starting our new online community.

EWA board member to helm non-profit educational foundation
EWA board member Marie Groark has been named the new executive director of the independent, non-profit Get Schooled Foundation.

Campus Coverage Project

EWA, Investigative Reporters and Editors and the Student Press Law Center have collaborated to train college journalists in investigative skills and explore questions about college completion.

EWA Freelance Writer/Editor Database
EWA is collecting contact information for a new freelance writer/editor database.

EWA Announces New Directions
EWA will shift from a traditional membership organization to an open community, embracing a wider net of people concerned about the quality of education information.

Economy Forces States to Scale Back Scholarship Programs
Ever since elementary school, Bonnie Slocum knew that if she kept her grades up, her home state of Nevada would reward her by paying $10,000 toward college tuition.In Nevada and across the country, the weak economy is forcing many states to cut back their merit-based scholarship programs. Caralee Adams, Education Week, July 27, 2010

D.C. and Md. named 'Race to the Top' finalists; rest of Obama's education agenda stagnatesWhile states are moving at warp speed to overhaul public schools, President Obama's education agenda is hitting a wall in Congress. Nick Anderson, Washington Post, July 27, 2010

Despite states' efforts, measures to protect students from predators sometimes fail
For nearly three decades, Kevin Ricks exploited gaps in a system that is supposed to keep sexual predators out of the classroom.He landed teaching jobs at one school after another -- public and private, urban and rural, domestic and foreign -- despite mounting evidence of his troubling personal relationships with male students. Michael Alison Chandler, Washington Post, July 26, 2010

The Harlem Children's Zone, Promise Neighborhoods and the Broader, Bolder Approach to Education
The Brookings Institution releases a  report on the Harlem School Zone and its effectiveness. You can also read Geoffrey Canada's response to the Brookings report here. The Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings, July 23, 2010