In the News

Teach for America suffered its second setback in three weeks at the state level when the Minnesota Board of Teaching voted Friday to deny a group license variance for the teacher trainee organization, a request it has granted for the past four years.

The board’s 8-2 vote means that individual districts and principals will need to fill out applications for a variance from the normal requirement that a teacher be licensed. The board consists mostly of teachers and other educators appointed by the governor.

Eden Prairie schools are paving the way in Minnesota in Latino and Asian student performance, according to the Minnesota Campaign for Achievement Now School and District Report Cards (MinnCAN).

The organization recently announced that five schools in the Eden Prairie Public School District are top-performing public schools for Latino and Asian student performance. Out of the 9,744 students in the district, 23 percent represent minority students who are set to close the achievement gap.

Congress is debating what’s next for the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and No Child Left Behind.

Minnesota was privileged to receive a waiver from No Child Left Behind, granting us flexibilities toward every child having access to a great public school. Our schools need flexibility to do what they do best: teach kids. But we also need to hold the system accountable.

An education advocacy group says that Shakopee High School is among the top 10 public schools in the state in Asian student performance.

MinnCAN (Minnesota Campaign for Achievement Now) released “report cards” on various student achievement marks and rated the Shakopee school 10th in the category for Asian student performance.