Is Your Child’s School Prepared for a Pandemic Health Threat?

Once considered society’s role models, today’s teachers have been caught in a media frenzy of scandalous and questionable behavior. Parents and community members are voicing their justified concerns regarding how public schools evaluate their employees.

While the national statistics regarding teachers and their potential criminal connections are still vague, many cities and school districts have begun implementing their investigations of public school workers. For example, as WTAE Pittsburgh News reports, recent 2007 investigations uncovered a list of criminal convictions in various teachers’ files, including charges of stalking, theft, and assault, among other crimes. Subsequently, more leaders are debating how to evaluate each public school employee’s credentials, integrity, and background more effectively.

Are Schools Engaging in Effective Background Checks?

While all public schools are required to conduct background checks on newly hired teachers, most do not continue to randomly check a teacher’s criminal file once they are added to the school’s payroll system. As a result, some teachers may enter their careers without any record, yet they may commit unnoticed crimes while working for the school.

Adding to this concern, as WTAE News further reveals, many teacher candidates can pass a basic background check – even if their record posts convictions of crimes such as assault, theft, and fraud! Among the 135 teachers with criminal records in Pittsburgh Public Schools, investigators discovered that some of the more severe charges were incidents ranging from possession of heroin and crack to embezzlement charges totaling $7,000. One local

In this in-depth article, we dive into the ongoing clashes between parents and school boards surrounding the allocation of educational budgets in public schools. As educational funding becomes an increasingly contentious issue, it sparks impassioned debates and heightens tensions within local communities.

Explore the underlying factors driving these conflicts as we shed light on the differing perspectives of parents and school boards. Discover the priorities and concerns on both sides, from parents advocating for enhanced resources in specific areas such as special education, extracurricular activities, or classroom technology, to school boards grappling with the challenge of balancing limited resources across various educational needs.

Investigate how these battles impact the educational landscape, as decisions on budget allocations have far-reaching consequences for student opportunities, teacher support, and overall school performance. Delve into the role of advocacy groups, community engagement, and government policies in shaping the outcome of these budgetary struggles.

School boards are typically responsible for making the final financial and budgetary decisions for their schools and districts. However, in an increasing trend, many community members are expressing outrage over some of these budgetary choices.

Opponents to board-based educational decisions argue that board members have been far removed from the classroom setting and are out of touch with the real problems of their local schools. In addition, fueled by the recessionary setbacks, community members are fighting for more rights in their local district’s decision-making processes.

Fighting for a Voice

As the Los Angeles Daily News reports, the

Faced with the rising concern regarding teen drug and substance abuse, the Supreme Court granted public schools the legal permission to administer random drug tests for student-athletes in 2002. Since this decision, public schools have contemplated expanding the drug testing scope into their entire student population.

According to USA Today, in the 2005 to 2006 academic year alone, 373 public schools received federal funds for drug testing, which was quite a surge in response compared to the mere 79 public schools just two years prior.

With the rising implementation of drug tests for student-athletes, advocates for drug testing assert that schools should now expand their screening. As the legal barriers that oppose public school drug tests have been overturned, more schools are contemplating the opportunity to expand their drug testing parameters. This shift in policy has some parents, students, and academic leaders concerned about student rights. Can public schools randomly screen their students for drugs without invading a student’s privacy rights?

Drug Testing in Public Schools

While the number of schools randomly testing student-athletes for drug use is rising, the total number of participating public schools only amounts to a rather tiny percentage, with just 28,000 public schools screening students for drugs. Many public schools, as USA Today further reveals, have been reluctant to pursue drug testing policies and actions out of a fear of violating state-mandated rights and laws.

In contrast, advocates for drug testing assert that students can be tested without being unreasonably

As advanced math programs and higher elective courses are being slashed with public school budget cuts, many parents are concerned that the reduced programs will not provide enough support for their math-minded kids.

Most public schools, especially middle and high schools, allow younger students to move beyond their grade level if their math skills are advanced. Subsequently, in light of funding cuts, some students are realizing that they have exceeded all of the higher level program requirements provided by their school. Ultimately, parents are seeking to find answers and new opportunities for their advanced students who can benefit from more challenging math courses.

Public Schools and Math Performance

While there are many math-minded students who desire more demanding and complex courses, studies show that most average-level students are continuing to struggle in the standard public school math programs. As the American Education Finance Association explores, nearly one-third of the country’s college freshman are reportedly unprepared for their college level math requirements. Expanding on this, some local community colleges and universities have even demanded more successful math preparation classes from their public schools.

For example, as the Maryland Gazette states, their local Frederick Community College has requested that nearby high schools focus on more college-prep math. As the Gazette reveals, the number of freshmen who have been required to take remedial math courses upon entering FCC has continued to rise for the past five years. With this data, educators at both the high