July 25, 2012 
 
My name is David Pickens and I am the Executive Director of DC School Reform Now. The mission of DC School Reform Now is to educate, organize and advocate to build support for public education strategies that prepare kids to become college and career ready. I appreciate the opportunity to comment publically on the response of DCPS to the problem of truancy, and to participate in what I assume are in-depth conversations that have already occurred between Chairman Mendelson, his team and top leadership at DCPS, PCSB and OSSE.
 

The District of Columbia Area Writer's Project hosts "Teachers Teaching Teachers," a 5-week invitational summer institute for DC and Maryland public and charter school teachers. The program will run from June 25, 2012 through July 20, 2012. 
 
The institute, at Howard University - Main Campus, gives teachers the opportunity to study research, pose their own research questions, and write extensively. Participants will also receive six free semester hours of graduate credit from Howard University. 
 

The Urban Teacher Center is looking for applicants to a four-year, alternative teaching preparation program in Washington, DC. UTC cohorts go through a year-long residency, followed by a three-year teaching commitment in a high-need urban elementary, middle, or high school. In addition to receiving clinical experience, each resident also enrolls in a free Master's of Education program.
 

 
This Sunday, April 15, NBC's Education Nation On-the-Road tour kicks off in Denver, Colorado. Education Nation 2012 will stop in five cities across the country: Denver, San Francisco, Atlanta, Miami, and Aspen. At each stop, the NBC News team will host panels, events, and town hall meetings to discuss the challenges, potential solution, and innovations in education. 
 

DC School Reform Now is hosting weekly Middle School Application Support Workshops for 5th grade parents. The workshops are held from 5:00 -7:30 PM every Tuesday – Thursday starting February 28th through March 15th at the ARC, 1901 Mississippi Ave SE.
 
Workshops are free and open to all parents. DCSRN will assist in filling out applications and will provide calendars of key deadlines and open houses. DCSRN will also handle the mailing of the applications to ensure submission.

Good morning, my name is David Pickens, I am the Executive Director of DC School Reform Now.  DC School Reform Now’s mission is to educate, organize and advocate to build support for public education strategies that prepare kids to become college and career ready. I wanted to comment publically this morning on the Highly Effective Teacher Incentive Act as a concerned child advocate and an experienced leader at the school, district and non-profit levels.

On August 24th, 2011, DC School Reform Now was accepted to become a part of the Policy Innovators in Education (PIE) Network. DCSRN has been communicating with PIE over the last year and submitted an application to join the network earlier this summer.

DC School Reform Now is pleased to announce the recent hiring of Krista D’Amelio as Development and Project Manager.

In this position, Krista will work with the Executive Director to develop and sustain a diverse portfolio of both local and national funders. She will also support all of DC School Reform Now’s programmatic initiatives surrounding the High Quality Schools Campaign, communications and outreach.

For DCPS students K-12, school will begin on Monday, August 22nd. If you currently have a child in DCPS, you were mailed an enrollment packet in April. It is important that parents, use their enrollment packet or download enrollment forms, fill them out and turn them into their child’s school as soon as possible. You can also obtain enrollment forms directly from your child’s school.

DCPS has announced that as of July 15th, 2011 the Office of Family and Community Engagement (OFCE) will begin to refocus its work, hoping to strengthen their relationships and connections with families and community partners.

For more information, click here.

Are you interested in learnign more about education policy? The Department of Education is providing a great and free way to learn more.

Summer Seminars at Six: An Introduction to Education Policy