locker stock photo - Clay Duda, JJIE.org

Texas Educators May Soon Gain Access to Student’s Criminal Records

By |

A piece of Texas legislation that would provide educators with detailed information about a student’s criminal history is poised to become law. If passed the measure would provide teachers and school officials access to juvenile records that have traditionally been confidential in most states, according to an Associated Press story. Educators and juvenile advocates were at odds about the effectiveness of the new measure. Educators said teacher safety was paramount, but advocates feared revealing students' criminal information would undermine the work of the juvenile corrections system -– a framework that aims to allow youth who’s decision-making skills aren’t fully developed to move beyond early mistakes in life, according to the AP. While current Texas laws allow teachers to be informed verbally about a student’s criminal past, the new legislation would require law enforcement to relinquish “all pertinent details” about a young offender’s history to the school superintendent.

The Ambassadors’ Deep Bench, The Mothers Behind a Winning Team

By |

Stacey Strozier found her son lying in the street in a pool of blood. Sonya King prayed her baby wouldn’t get caught up with the wrong crowd. And Felecia Calhoun’s worried her son was a cocky kid who thought an education wasn’t all that important. The mothers of the L.E.A.D. Ambassadors -- an Atlanta inner-city baseball team that thrives of civic-minded goodness and specializes in sending its players to colleges on scholarships -- all have a story to tell. Having a story of adversity to tell is essentially a prerequisite of Ambassador founders, C.J. and Kelley Stewart.

The Redwood Education Grant Ensures Environmental Understanding With Kids

By |

The Save the Redwoods League is offering the Redwood Education Grant. The purpose of this Grant is to help kids to gain a deeper understanding of the redwood forests through both personal and educational experiences. The grant is aimed at those who inspire people to conserve the redwood forests. This grant funds projects that help offer a chance to help kids go to the redwood forests, to help connect it to diverse backgrounds so it can remain culturally relevant, to help teachers teach about it and to help share the resources of the forest. The Deadline is June 30, 2011.

Captain Planet Foundation Gives Kids The Power to Help Environment

By |

The power is yours with the Captain Planet Foundation. The Foundation offers the Captain Planet Environment Grants to help kids get hands-on with environmental projects. These grants encourage kids to work individually and together to help solve environmental problems in their neighborhoods and communities. The grant awards anywhere from $250 - $2,500. The Deadline for this grant is June 30, 2011.

Build A Bear Foundation Grant Gives a Hoot about Literacy and Education

By |

Build-A-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation builds a strong foundation for literacy and education. This grant provides support through summer reading programs, early childhood education programs and literacy programs for children with special needs. This grant is made possible through the sale of a special Build A Bear stuffed animal named Turner the Owl. With each purchase of Turner the Owl, 50 cents is donated to First Book, a non-profit that helps kids in need get new books. It also helps support other literacy programs throughout North America.

Best Buy Helps Give Best to Kids

By |

The Best Buy Children’s Foundation is offering the @15 Community Grants Program. This grant enables teens to thrive by helping them excel in school, engage in communities and develop life and leadership skills. The Foundation offers a number of grants ranging anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 to nonprofits that serve kids between the ages of 13-18. The deadline to apply for this grant is August 1, 2011.

Grant Improves Education for Kids

By |

Rockwell Collins Community Sponsorship Fund supports fundraising events and sponsorship opportunities. Rockwell Collins, an aerospace company, believes that strengthening the quality of education and providing opportunities for kids help give them the opportunity for a better future. The grant focuses its efforts on those that put an emphasis in math, science, engineering and technology as well as culture and the arts. The deadline for this grant is September 1, 2011.  

Grant To Support Kids Wanting to go to College

By |

The Lumina Foundation supports programs that benefit access to and help prepare kids for college. The goal is to focus on underserved populations, such as low-income students.  Lumina’s goal is to increase the rate of those in higher education rate in the United States to 60 percent. While the mission of the Lumina foundation is for access and success, the emphasis is on attainment of a degree.  

AT&T Offers Grant to Stop the Drop-outs

By |

 

AT&T is offering a grant to help stop high school kids from dropping out of school. Statistics indicate that one out of three public high school kids don’t graduate. The company's grant is focused on helping reduce this statistic and help inspire kids to want to graduate. The grant has a rolling deadline.

Gara LaMarche Says Time Is Right to End “Zero Tolerance” in Schools

By |

It is too early to know whether the current wave of school reforms will lead to lasting improvements in student achievement. But it is not too early to note that many of these reforms have a troubling consequence: a doubling-down on harsh, ineffective zero-tolerance discipline policies. All too often, the debate about school reform has wrongly emphasized pushing troubled children out of school, rather than making systemic improvements so that all students have the support they need to learn. For that reason, advocates nationwide are embracing efforts to improve school climate. School leaders are recognizing the ineffectiveness of zero tolerance.