How schools can prevent trauma during emergency exercises Ken Trump The emotionally charged climates following the tragic attack in Parkland, Florida are understandable, but making knee-jerk decisions with a “do something, do anything, do it now” mantra can lead to high-risk, high-liability actions. Read more>> Collect school payments with speed Sponsored by MySchoolBucks by Heartland School Solutions Ever wonder how much easier it would be get parents to pay from your district's website, emails or social media posts? Learn more about how Pay Express can easily collect school-related payments from the places parents visit most. Read more>> Good leaders make good schools The New York Times When you learn about successful principals, you keep coming back to the character traits they embody and spread: energy, trustworthiness, honesty, optimism, determination. We went through a period when we believed you could change institutions without first changing the character of the people in them. But we were wrong. Read more>> 3 key steps to jumpstart your journey to innovation Sponsored by Pearson Online & Blended Learning More districts than ever are developing their own online schools to meet the needs of students— whether they’re niche charter, full-time online or blended schools. What educational goals are they meeting, and what resources and curriculum will they need to achieve these objectives? Read more>> The ripple effect of the West Virginia teachers' victory The Atlantic West Virginia lawmakers at last reached a deal to raise teachers’ salaries by 5 percent and look into policy solutions for the striking educators’ other demands. Even though the walkout is over, observers suspect that it has jump-started a national movement that could have lasting implications for the country’s schools. Read more>> Creating school board financial reports in minutes Sponsored by Forecast5 Analytics, Inc. Financial systems for school districts are great tools to accurately record revenue and expense transactions. But, as anyone who is charged with creating monthly reports can tell you, that’s where their ease-of-use ends. It typically takes hours—or even days—of work to manually extract the right data. Read more>> Sincerity of the children's motives CNN Still, what may be most remarkable—and promising—about these new teenage activists is not what separates them from one another, but what binds them together. They are browner, greener and queerer than any American generation before them. And when they stick up for themselves, they are sticking up for one another Read more>> Realizing the promise of interim assessments Sponsored by Measured Progress Interim assessments can have a powerful impact on instruction and learning. However, not all interims are created equal. If they’re not well-designed and fully aligned to standards, the assessment will not give school leaders credible information about student progress. What makes an assessment effective? Read more>> Long-term school suspensions should be last resort The Free Lance-Star Although suspensions and expulsions should indeed be the last resort, educators need to know that the community supports them whenever this option for students who cannot or will not obey school rules becomes necessary. But reducing out-of-school suspensions does not mean that educators can or should ignore or tolerate unacceptable behavior. Read more>> | 