Wednesday, January 27, 2021
About
About the Media Bullpen
America’s future, its short and long term viability, is wholly dependent on how we educate our children.
The Media Bullpen is a dynamic, virtual newsroom that covers the news and the news of education. It’s a sophisticated and unique technological environment that allows everyone to get in the game on the greatest discussions of our day. To understand those discussions, we need great information and reporting on all the issues relating to education—all the time.
Each day nearly 500 stories—and sometimes many more—are produced in the media about education, but they often lack the context for the public to get engaged.
The Bullpen reporters—the umpires—react and respond in real time to the press as it rolls out its coverage in print, online or broadcast, at the local, state or national levels. They score the coverage using the metaphors of that favorite American pastime, baseball. Articles are given strike outs, pop flies, singles, doubles, triples, and home runs, reflecting a particular story’s objectivity, proper context, its exploration of data, and search for accuracy.
In so doing, the Media Bullpen provides a critical eye to help the public better understand the complexity of the issues being reported.
More than anything else, the Bullpen allows readers to be their own umpires. A full suite of social media applications allows readers to get engaged by sharing the Bullpen’s content with friends, family, other media outlets, activists, and school leaders. Readers can help to make education great only by demanding greater education reporting.
The Media Bullpen is an entirely separate, editorially independent division of the Center for Education Reform, and the strategic evolution of its pioneering and well-known media relations and news monitoring work.
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By having your own account, you can quickly browse information of most importance to you and see the top trends in education reporting. Plus:
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Plus, by joining the Media Bullpen, you can create your own personalized news feed daily by issue, state, region, and more, and it will be delivered to you as often as you ask.
The Media Bullpen. Because education is no longer a spectator sport.
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- Opinion: If You Want Unity, Defend Scholarships for Poor Kids
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Jan 27, 9:27 AM, Wall Street Journal:
I welcome President Biden’s calls for unity and his pledge to renew our hurting country, but I hope his administration doesn’t tear down a program that has brought hope to thousands of African-American children in the District of >
- Miguel Cardona: What to know about Biden's education secretary pick (CER in the news)
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Jan 25, 9:05 AM, Fox News:
President Biden has tapped Miguel Cardona to lead the Education Department, and he'll soon have the chance to make his case for the job before the Senate during a confirmation hearing.
- Digital Equity, Cybersecurity Are Key Concerns In Ed Tech (CER in the news)
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Jan 22, 9:00 AM, Government Technology:
The COVID-19 pandemic and the push to virtual learning has highlighted existing inequities in access to technology and connectivity, as well as underlined cybersecurity gaps in education.
- #FundFamilies (Not Failure); New Effort Reflects Consensus On Schooling (CER in the news)
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Jan 27, 9:29 AM, Published Reporter:
With ongoing school closures, city and labor officials fighting reopening, reports of traumatic mental health challenges, and students falling further behind, data confirms what parents have been saying for months: kids are losing ground.
- Study of Rural Schools Suggests Class Can Continue Even Where Coronavirus Infection Rates Are High
-
Jan 27, 9:26 AM, US News & World Report:
The first report to look exclusively at rural schools offers some evidence that in-person school is possible with community coronavirus transmission rates as high as 40%.
- Don't Call It A Comeback: School Districts That Never Opened Are Having Trouble Now
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Jan 27, 9:24 AM, NPR:
The terrible and mounting toll of the pandemic has caused positions to harden on both sides of the reopening debate. For districts that pledged in the summer or fall to reopen when coronavirus numbers got better, there are many cases where >
- The Teachers Unions vs. COVID Microschooling
-
Jan 27, 9:19 AM, American Thinker:
Union leaders complain about opportunity gaps, but then do everything they can to limit opportunity. While the teachers themselves generally adjust and do all they can for the kids entrusted to them, their unions focus on politics. The >
- Editorial: Biden’s education secretary nominee is the right choice to lead on school reopenings
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Jan 27, 9:17 AM:
Miguel Cardona has the requisite sensitivity and proven expertise to guide schools through the coronavirus pandemic.
- Measuring the Impact of the Coronavirus on Teachers, Students and Schools
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Jan 26, 9:17 AM, US News & World Report:
Education officials are assessing and untangling all the ways schools have been reporting data and making decisions and filtering them into common metrics and a usable format.<
- Biden signals support for CTU’s COVID-19 safety concerns as top union chief briefs White House
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Jan 26, 9:15 AM, Chicago Sun-Times :
President Joe Biden on Monday waded into the Chicago Teachers Union’s standoff with City Hall over reopening schools, indicating support for teachers’ COVID-19 safety concerns after, the Sun-Times has learned, White House senior staffers >
- Review & Outlook: Chicago Teachers Union vs. Biden
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Jan 26, 9:14 AM, Wall Street Journal:
Mr. Biden wants Congress to appropriate another $130 billion to help schools re-open with no requirement that they do. As the CTU has again shown, the real obstacle to getting kids back into classrooms is self-serving unions.
- Editorial: Extend window of opportunity for new public charter schools
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Jan 25, 8:05 AM, The Seattle Times :
If state lawmakers truly value equity in education, they should eschew knee-jerk political opposition to public charter schools and extend the authorizing window for new ones.
- Left out of referendums, Indiana charter schools push for more funding
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Jan 12, 8:01 AM, Chalkbeat Indiana:
Charter schools enroll about 44,000 Indiana children, including nearly 20% of Indianapolis public school students. But the schools miss out on about $3,300 per student in local funding because they don’t get the property tax money that >
- Sen. Eddie Melton, Gary council pitches ban on charter schools
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Jan 7, 7:43 AM, NWI Times:
Members of the city's Common Council have signaled they plan to formally support a ban on new charter schools citywide as the Gary Community School Corp. attempts to right its finances and boost enrollment.
- Md. teachers’ union pushes back on Hogan’s call to return to in-person classes
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Jan 27, 9:09 AM, WTOP:
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said last week that he wants students back in the classroom by March 1. Now, Maryland’s teachers’ union is pushing back on that start date, calling it arbitrary.
- Massachusetts teachers slam drop in vaccine priority, say they feel like ‘pawns’ in a game
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Jan 27, 9:01 AM, Boston Herald:
Teachers unions in Massachusetts are pushing back on the state’s updated vaccine administration plan, saying it delays vaccinations for educators, slowing down the safe return to in-person learning.
- Newly formed California-wide parent group turns up the pressure to reopen schools
-
Jan 27, 8:48 AM, EdSource:
State officials should push harder for safety measures that could allow schools to reopen, parent group says
- Chicago Public Schools suspends in-person learning as possible teachers strike looms
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Jan 27, 8:45 AM, Washington Post:
Chicago Public Schools suspended in-person learning Wednesday affecting more than 3,200 prekindergarten and special-education students after teachers planned to defy district orders to return to classrooms once negotiations broke down late >
- Several new online learning programs will live on after the pandemic
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Jan 27, 8:35 AM, ID Ed News:
At least a handful of Idaho school districts from Boise to Blackfoot plan to keep their fledgling online learning programs going after the coronavirus pandemic ends.
- Montgomery school board votes against startup charter application
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Jan 27, 8:08 AM, Montgomery Advertiser:
A charter school hoping to open a career academy in north Montgomery in 2022 had its application denied because of finance concerns by the Montgomery County Board of Education during a special called meeting Tuesday night.
- Want to apply to Newark charter schools? New policy requires proof you’re a resident
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Jan 27, 8:04 AM, NJ Spotlight:
Newark is tightening restrictions on applying to charter schools. Now, families must prove they live in the city before applying, and some have even received home visits to verify their addresses.
- KS lawmakers considers expanding private school scholarships
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Jan 27, 7:59 AM, Kansas City Star:
It provides tax credits for donations to private school scholarships for low-income students at the 100 lowest-performing elementary schools in the state.
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- Massachusetts teachers slam drop in vaccine priority, say they feel like ‘pawns’ in a game
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Jan 27, 9:01 AM, Boston Herald:
Teachers unions in Massachusetts are pushing back on the state’s updated vaccine administration plan, saying it delays vaccinations for educators, slowing down the safe return to in-person learning.
- Want to apply to Newark charter schools? New policy requires proof you’re a resident
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Jan 27, 8:04 AM, NJ Spotlight:
Newark is tightening restrictions on applying to charter schools. Now, families must prove they live in the city before applying, and some have even received home visits to verify their addresses.
- Commentary: Celebrating school choice in Maine amid the pandemic
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Jan 27, 6:04 AM, Press Herald:
Families’ education struggles are made tougher by state caps on the number of public charter schools and enrollment in virtual charters.
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- Chicago Public Schools suspends in-person learning as possible teachers strike looms
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Jan 27, 8:45 AM, Washington Post:
Chicago Public Schools suspended in-person learning Wednesday affecting more than 3,200 prekindergarten and special-education students after teachers planned to defy district orders to return to classrooms once negotiations broke down late >
- KS lawmakers considers expanding private school scholarships
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Jan 27, 7:59 AM, Kansas City Star:
It provides tax credits for donations to private school scholarships for low-income students at the 100 lowest-performing elementary schools in the state.
- Iowa lawmakers moving forward with controversial school bills
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Jan 27, 7:37 AM, KCCI:
The Iowa House Education Committee passed two controversial GOP-sponsored education bills Tuesday night; one would prevent schools with voluntary diversity plans from preventing open enrollment, while the other would require districts to >
-
- Md. teachers’ union pushes back on Hogan’s call to return to in-person classes
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Jan 27, 9:09 AM, WTOP:
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said last week that he wants students back in the classroom by March 1. Now, Maryland’s teachers’ union is pushing back on that start date, calling it arbitrary.
- Montgomery school board votes against startup charter application
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Jan 27, 8:08 AM, Montgomery Advertiser:
A charter school hoping to open a career academy in north Montgomery in 2022 had its application denied because of finance concerns by the Montgomery County Board of Education during a special called meeting Tuesday night.
- School vouchers could expand again under Florida Senate plan, add options for parents
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Jan 27, 7:47 AM, Miami Herald:
Florida Senate Republican leaders are set to push sweeping legislation this year that could bring what many advocates consider to be the holy grail in the school-choice movement: education savings accounts for students.
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- Newly formed California-wide parent group turns up the pressure to reopen schools
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Jan 27, 8:48 AM, EdSource:
State officials should push harder for safety measures that could allow schools to reopen, parent group says
- Several new online learning programs will live on after the pandemic
-
Jan 27, 8:35 AM, ID Ed News:
At least a handful of Idaho school districts from Boise to Blackfoot plan to keep their fledgling online learning programs going after the coronavirus pandemic ends.
- California Public Schools Suffer Record Enrollment Drop
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Jan 27, 7:56 AM, Capitol Public Radio:
California’s K-12 public-school enrollment has precipitously declined during the pandemic, dropping by a record 155,000 students, according to new state projections.
- Sen. Eddie Melton, Gary council pitches ban on charter schools
-
Jan 7, 7:43 AM, NWI Times:
Members of the city's Common Council have signaled they plan to formally support a ban on new charter schools citywide as the Gary Community School Corp. attempts to right its finances and boost enrollment.
- Letter: Parent seeks legislation for school choice
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Dec 17, 6:38 AM, Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Therefore, we appeal to our legislators and beg you provide help. Please pass school choice. Our children's education, and mental and physical health are too important. We need help and so do many Virginia residents who are paying for >
- Op-ed: CPS’ charter schools offer a lesson in flexibility during the pandemic
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Dec 15, 7:41 AM, Chicago Tribune:
Take North Lawndale College Prep, for instance. Located in one of Chicago’s most underserved neighborhoods, NLCP uses a community-based educational model that prioritizes close communication with families and a keen awareness of its >
- Chicago Public Schools suspends in-person learning as possible teachers strike looms
-
Jan 27, 8:45 AM, Washington Post:
Chicago Public Schools suspended in-person learning Wednesday affecting more than 3,200 prekindergarten and special-education students after teachers planned to defy district orders to return to classrooms once negotiations broke down late >
- Montgomery school board votes against startup charter application
-
Jan 27, 8:08 AM, Montgomery Advertiser:
A charter school hoping to open a career academy in north Montgomery in 2022 had its application denied because of finance concerns by the Montgomery County Board of Education during a special called meeting Tuesday night.
- Commentary: Lessons Learned From Reopening a School During COVID-19
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Jan 27, 7:23 AM, US News & World Report:
A Mississippi charter school’s decision to offer in-person learning hinged heavily on a desire for equity. Its experience offers insight for others looking to do the same.
- CPS halts in-person learning for students already back as teachers strike looms; district still aims to open elementary schools Monday
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Jan 27, 6:45 AM, Chicago Tribune:
Chicago Public Schools will halt in-person classes Wednesday as the city makes a last push to reach a deal with its teachers union to reopen schools for elementary students on Monday.
- St. Louis Public Schools could lose $17.4 million under proposed change in funding formula
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Jan 27, 6:38 AM, St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
A proposal in the Missouri House could shift millions of dollars from public schools to charter schools.
- Editorial: To get vaccine priority, teachers should agree to return to the classroom
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Jan 26, 8:59 AM, Los Angeles Times:
The number of coronavirus cases is inching down, a positive if tenuous sign. So are hospitalization rates, including at intensive care units. As sloppy as the vaccination rollout has been, thousands of doses are administered every day. And >
- Teachers need COVID-19 vaccine before L.A. schools can reopen, Beutner says
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Jan 26, 8:57 AM:
Reopening Los Angeles campuses for students in kindergarten through 12th grade will require the vaccination of teachers and other staff, says L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner. The teachers union is going a step further, saying >
- 'Stop harming kids': Students, parents protest after union blocks Montclair school reopening
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Jan 26, 8:54 AM, The Record:
Students and parents gathered outside Edgemont Elementary school Monday morning for the first time since school went all-virtual last March. But the kids, carrying posters that said, "I miss my teachers and school;" "Stop harming kids;" >
- Opinion: If You Want Unity, Defend Scholarships for Poor Kids
-
Jan 27, 9:27 AM, Wall Street Journal:
I welcome President Biden’s calls for unity and his pledge to renew our hurting country, but I hope his administration doesn’t tear down a program that has brought hope to thousands of African-American children in the District of >
- Miguel Cardona: What to know about Biden's education secretary pick (CER in the news)
-
Jan 25, 9:05 AM, Fox News:
President Biden has tapped Miguel Cardona to lead the Education Department, and he'll soon have the chance to make his case for the job before the Senate during a confirmation hearing.
- Editorial: Extend window of opportunity for new public charter schools
-
Jan 25, 8:05 AM, The Seattle Times :
If state lawmakers truly value equity in education, they should eschew knee-jerk political opposition to public charter schools and extend the authorizing window for new ones.
- #FundFamilies (Not Failure); New Effort Reflects Consensus On Schooling (CER in the news)
-
Jan 27, 9:29 AM, Published Reporter:
With ongoing school closures, city and labor officials fighting reopening, reports of traumatic mental health challenges, and students falling further behind, data confirms what parents have been saying for months: kids are losing ground.
- Study of Rural Schools Suggests Class Can Continue Even Where Coronavirus Infection Rates Are High
-
Jan 27, 9:26 AM, US News & World Report:
The first report to look exclusively at rural schools offers some evidence that in-person school is possible with community coronavirus transmission rates as high as 40%.
- Don't Call It A Comeback: School Districts That Never Opened Are Having Trouble Now
-
Jan 27, 9:24 AM, NPR:
The terrible and mounting toll of the pandemic has caused positions to harden on both sides of the reopening debate. For districts that pledged in the summer or fall to reopen when coronavirus numbers got better, there are many cases where >
- The Teachers Unions vs. COVID Microschooling
-
Jan 27, 9:19 AM, American Thinker:
Union leaders complain about opportunity gaps, but then do everything they can to limit opportunity. While the teachers themselves generally adjust and do all they can for the kids entrusted to them, their unions focus on politics. The >
- Editorial: Biden’s education secretary nominee is the right choice to lead on school reopenings
-
Jan 27, 9:17 AM:
Miguel Cardona has the requisite sensitivity and proven expertise to guide schools through the coronavirus pandemic.
- Md. teachers’ union pushes back on Hogan’s call to return to in-person classes
-
Jan 27, 9:09 AM, WTOP:
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said last week that he wants students back in the classroom by March 1. Now, Maryland’s teachers’ union is pushing back on that start date, calling it arbitrary.
- Massachusetts teachers slam drop in vaccine priority, say they feel like ‘pawns’ in a game
-
Jan 27, 9:01 AM, Boston Herald:
Teachers unions in Massachusetts are pushing back on the state’s updated vaccine administration plan, saying it delays vaccinations for educators, slowing down the safe return to in-person learning.
- Newly formed California-wide parent group turns up the pressure to reopen schools
-
Jan 27, 8:48 AM, EdSource:
State officials should push harder for safety measures that could allow schools to reopen, parent group says
- Opinion: If You Want Unity, Defend Scholarships for Poor Kids
-
Jan 27, 9:27 AM, Wall Street Journal:
I welcome President Biden’s calls for unity and his pledge to renew our hurting country, but I hope his administration doesn’t tear down a program that has brought hope to thousands of African-American children in the District of >
- Miguel Cardona: What to know about Biden's education secretary pick (CER in the news)
-
Jan 25, 9:05 AM, Fox News:
President Biden has tapped Miguel Cardona to lead the Education Department, and he'll soon have the chance to make his case for the job before the Senate during a confirmation hearing.
- Editorial: Extend window of opportunity for new public charter schools
-
Jan 25, 8:05 AM, The Seattle Times :
If state lawmakers truly value equity in education, they should eschew knee-jerk political opposition to public charter schools and extend the authorizing window for new ones.
- #FundFamilies (Not Failure); New Effort Reflects Consensus On Schooling (CER in the news)
-
Jan 27, 9:29 AM, Published Reporter:
With ongoing school closures, city and labor officials fighting reopening, reports of traumatic mental health challenges, and students falling further behind, data confirms what parents have been saying for months: kids are losing ground.
- Study of Rural Schools Suggests Class Can Continue Even Where Coronavirus Infection Rates Are High
-
Jan 27, 9:26 AM, US News & World Report:
The first report to look exclusively at rural schools offers some evidence that in-person school is possible with community coronavirus transmission rates as high as 40%.
- Don't Call It A Comeback: School Districts That Never Opened Are Having Trouble Now
-
Jan 27, 9:24 AM, NPR:
The terrible and mounting toll of the pandemic has caused positions to harden on both sides of the reopening debate. For districts that pledged in the summer or fall to reopen when coronavirus numbers got better, there are many cases where >
- The Teachers Unions vs. COVID Microschooling
-
Jan 27, 9:19 AM, American Thinker:
Union leaders complain about opportunity gaps, but then do everything they can to limit opportunity. While the teachers themselves generally adjust and do all they can for the kids entrusted to them, their unions focus on politics. The >
- Editorial: Biden’s education secretary nominee is the right choice to lead on school reopenings
-
Jan 27, 9:17 AM:
Miguel Cardona has the requisite sensitivity and proven expertise to guide schools through the coronavirus pandemic.
- Md. teachers’ union pushes back on Hogan’s call to return to in-person classes
-
Jan 27, 9:09 AM, WTOP:
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said last week that he wants students back in the classroom by March 1. Now, Maryland’s teachers’ union is pushing back on that start date, calling it arbitrary.
- Massachusetts teachers slam drop in vaccine priority, say they feel like ‘pawns’ in a game
-
Jan 27, 9:01 AM, Boston Herald:
Teachers unions in Massachusetts are pushing back on the state’s updated vaccine administration plan, saying it delays vaccinations for educators, slowing down the safe return to in-person learning.
- Newly formed California-wide parent group turns up the pressure to reopen schools
-
Jan 27, 8:48 AM, EdSource:
State officials should push harder for safety measures that could allow schools to reopen, parent group says