Author Archives: Irene Sterling
Out of the mouths of babes…
Last night the Paterson Board of Education and the community members wrestled with the latest version of Paterson’s school transformation plan. Of the more than three hours of comment and debate, the contribution of the children stands out for me. Faced … Continue reading
Is ALEC in our future?
Hello, ALEC. No, not a person. A conservative think tank whose legislative agenda for education includes vouchers, the expansion of charters, tax breaks for home-schoolers and private companies building and running schools. Want to know more about ALEC? Here’s the … Continue reading
Read your minutes!
Last night we shared PEF’s latest edition of the Educated Voters Guide to the School Board Elections with the School Board members. As usual, the Commissioners immediately turned to our report on their attendance. And as usual, they were surprised … Continue reading
Focus on outcomes for children
I agree with Acting Commissioner Cerf on education funding, it’s not just about the money. After that, we part company. For me the question is: how do we get all our children to graduation with skills to make a good … Continue reading
Would twice as much income make an educational difference?
Do you know that families with children made nearly twice as much income in Passaic County than in Paterson? The new census shows that the median income [the mid point: half make more; half make less] for a Paterson family with children was … Continue reading
How many NJ kids in private schools? Check this map.
There is so much debate on education issues, sometimes an interesting tool gets lost. Take today’s story on NJ Spotlight about private school participation in NJ. It’s lost behind the stories about charters and teacher tenure. Click here to go … Continue reading
New year, old issue: vouchers
Happy New Year! I wish the best for you as 2012 begins. I also wish that we would stop trying to “fix” our Paterson schools with smoke and mirrors. There are all sorts of reasons to oppose the voucher legislation … Continue reading
Call to Action: Paterson Reads!
Do you know that children who do not read on grade level by the end of third grade are likely to drop out? As early as 9 years old, some kids are on a path to a life of poverty and hardship. … Continue reading
Paterson Kids Count Full Report
How are the children? Stuggling. We all know that. However, Paterson Kids Count shows us a detailed, rounded picture of our children’s conditions over the past five years. For us at PEF, the critical point is the low literacy achievement by … Continue reading
Help Paterson children with Donors Choose
I love putting a smile on children’s faces. Their joy in simple things is so uplifting. Yesterday, on Halloween, we took pop-up cards to Napier Academy/School 4′s middle school students. Their smiles spread from ear to ear. Today, we have … Continue reading