During the first three years that nonprofit First State Educate has been at work in Delaware, it focused on finding school board candidates and supporting them in campaigns as a means to improve state education. While it remains the only state nonprofit to focus on building the capacity of school boards, the agency has begun to branch out. Now it: …
A state commission created this year to develop a more effective funding formula for Delaware public schools gathered Wednesday. But, the day was mainly a debriefing and dubbed a “professional learning day”, and the Public Education Funding Commission will have its first official meeting Thursday, per the agenda posted on the General Assembly website. Wednesday’s meeting was much of what …
The principal of an elementary school located on a military base said the tremendous culture and success of the school can sometimes go unnoticed by the public. “If you don’t have a military ID, you could not drive to our school,” said Jason Payne, principal of Major George S. Welch Elementary School, located on the Dover Air Force Base and …
A report from a national nonprofit focused on the wellbeing of America’s children confirms what most Delawareans have learned over the past couple of years: education in the First State is far from first. The Annie E. Casey Foundation’s 54-page report lists Delaware 45th in education – or sixth worst in the entire country. But, it highlights a lot of …
In a light year for school board races, 19 candidates are vying for eight open seats across eight of the state’s 19 school districts. This year’s election is Tuesday, May 14, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Last year, 43 candidates ran for 23 vacancies across 16 school districts. In 2022, 42 candidates competed for 19 open …
A few dozen parents of students, educators and concerned community members shared their frustrations with education in Delaware and hopes for the future during a town hall Wednesday night. The few students in the crowd received applause and praise from the crowd for caring enough to be involved in changing the status quo of a system still funded by an …
Education – what one legislator called the most important investment by the state – consumed Wednesday’s Joint Finance Committee hearing for a category that makes up about one-third of the state’s $6 billion budget. Appearing in the morning before the committee that decided how and where the state’s budget will be spent was The Redding Consortium and the Wilmington Learning …
Parents have eight days to submit applications if they wish to send their children to a school outside of their residential district or assigned school. Delaware is one of the 13 states in the country that allows families to apply for their children to attend any public school – district or charter – rather than sending them to the neighborhood …
A mounting sense of anticipation surrounds Tuesday’s release of a report making suggestions about how to improve Delaware’s school funding system to make state education more equitable. The assessment — which the state paid $700,000 for — was conducted by the national research firm American Institutes of Research. It sprange out of the settlement of a 2020 lawsuit that …
A paraprofessional/library specialist who opens the school library during lunches so students can have a space where they feel safe and cared for has been named Delaware’s 2024 Delaware Educational Support Professional of the Year. “The library has an open-door policy so students can take a break, check in or have someone listen to them,” said Sinead Ronan of Caesar …
