Eastern States

School lunches have been getting a makeover in school districts across the country, but few have gone to the extraordinary step of Public School 244 in Flushing, New York. This school has done away with meat completely in its school lunch program, becoming the first vegetarian school cafeteria in the state and across the country. Surprisingly, students don’t seem to miss their chicken nuggets and “mystery meat Thursdays,” preferring the highly nutritious – and completely delicious – menu selections they can enjoy every school day.

Moving to a Meatless Menu

NBC News reports that P.S. 244 made the move to a meatless menu somewhat gradually. The school opened in 2008 and began serving a few vegetarian meals in the beginning, to see how students responded to the menu. School staff began noticing that many students were bringing vegetarian lunches, rather than purchasing the meaty fare at the cafeteria, and the move to meatless was born. Slowly, typical student lunches like chicken nuggets were replaced with entrees made up of tofu, beans and pasta.

P.S. 244 was the perfect school to begin such an experiment in Flushing. The large majority of students in the school are from either Asian or Hispanic descent, where rice and other vegetarian choices make up a large portion of the menu at home. The school’s head cook is also a vegetarian and parent at the school. To transition students to a similar menu at school was not exactly impossible.

It may be assumed that segregation is no longer a significant problem for public schools throughout the United States. However, a recent study found that segregation is still very much alive and well in Maryland public schools. Despite efforts at the end of the last century to desegregate schools in the state, recent data suggests the efforts have come up short in ensuring an equal education quality for all Maryland students.

Educational Disparity in Maryland

The new research, which was compiled by the Civil Rights Project at UCLA, found that black students in Maryland attend public schools that are nearly as segregated today as they were during the desegregation efforts of the 1980s. Afro reports that during the 2010-2011 school year, more than half of all the African-American students attended schools with a strong majority of minority students. In addition, those schools had a much higher percentage of low-income students than schools that white students in the state primarily attended.

This video describes how over 5,000 teachers and educators signed up to march along with students and community leaders to push for more school funding in Annapolis, Maryland.

This discrepancy can lead to a serious disparity in educational quality. Schools with a high percentage of low-income and minority students tend to receive fewer resources and less experienced teachers than other schools in the area. At the same

New York City Schools: High Opt-Outs For Standardized Tests

Standardized testing has become commonplace in schools nationwide, but not everyone believes in using testing to evaluate school and student performance. This year, several schools nationwide are seeing a higher-than-usual number of students opting out of the test protocol. One area that has been hit hard with opt-outs in recent weeks is New York City Public Schools. How will the higher number of opt-outs impact students choosing not to test and the schools where they are enrolled?

Some Students Say No to Tests

The Village Voice reports that test weeks this year are seeing fewer student participants in New York City. The publication cites reports of opt-outs at 22 schools throughout the boroughs, although the precise number of students opting out at each school is still unknown. It does appear that 33 students at the city’s Earth School have submitted their intentions to opt out of testing, which would comprise a significant percentage of the student body at that small school.

Parents and students are complaining of excessive stress caused by the standardized tests. They also question using valuable classroom time and resources to prepare for tests rather than quality instruction. Teachers are also protesting, stating that using standardized tests to evaluate teachers and schools is inappropriate and inaccurate.

The opt-outs in New York follow a decision by teachers at Garfield High School in Seattle, Washington, not to administer the tests

The cheating scandal recently rocked Atlanta Public Schools has moved up the coast to Philadelphia. This large school district has recently dismissed two school administrators amid serious cheating allegations. Those involved in the investigation into Philadelphia schools have suggested that the two dismissals may not be the end of what looks to be another widespread cheating problem that could impact teachers and administrators throughout the Philadelphia school system.

This video from CBS This Morning reports on four Philadelphia teachers and a principal being charged with a felony for allegedly doctoring state test results.

Principals: The First Casualties in Cheating Investigation

The Notebook reports that two principals in Philadelphia are the first to face dismissal amid cheating accusations. The principals surrendered their city credentials in lieu of discipline by the district. Barbara McCreery worked as the principal at Communication Technology High, a school in Southwest Philadelphia that saw an exponential jump in standardized test scores in 2010. McCreery had recently moved to Bok Technical High School, where she was recently removed from her position as principal due to the cheating allegations.

Lolo Marie O’Rourke, principal at Locke Elementary School in West Philadelphia during the time cheating allegedly occurred, was also stripped of her city credentials. O’Rourke is currently serving as the language arts supervisor in Trenton Public Schools in New Jersey, according to NJ.com.

In the traditional school, the curriculum is chosen by school board members and taught by faculty – usually standing in front of a classroom of students. Students can choose to engage in the lesson or not, but until now, they rarely have much say in what or how they learn. One high school in Massachusetts has set courses on a new learning adventure, where students choose the subjects and run the classroom as they see fit. Does it work? Let’s find out.

The Independent Project

Time recently reported on an innovative program taking place at Monument Mountain Regional High School in Massachusetts. The program, aptly dubbed the “Independent Project,” offers students a chance to determine how and what they study during school hours. The project was started by a student who became frustrated by seeing his friends lose interest in learning and stop trying to perform academically.

Sam Levin complained to his mother about the problem, who promptly suggested Levin start his own school. The high school student began with a garden on school property that was fully tended by students voluntarily. When Levin saw how readily students put forth effort on a project of their own, he decided to expand the garden concept to other aspects of the school experience.

This video discusses the student-driven concept of running Monument Mountain RHS in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

“I was seeing the