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“Issue school-by-school performance report cards to parents and the public. Use the results of this report card to hold schools accountable–rewards for those performing on an exceptional basis and sanctions for low performing schools.”  Murphy Commission (Policy Foundation project), 1998   (October 3, 2011) Five Arkansas school districts that earned the top ‘A’ grade in four […]

(October 1, 2011) Most Arkansas charters1 meet or exceed standards in a state report that assigns a numerical grade to K-12 public schools but four are named as “approaching the standards alert” set by PA 35 of 2003.   Fifteen charters exceed standards (levels 5 or 4) and another seven meet standards (level 3).  Four received the […]

  (October 1, 2011) The Little Rock School District, the state’s largest, has half of the failing schools in the first state education report required by a 2003 law that requires a numerical grade for Arkansas K-12 public schools.   The Little Rock schools “in need of immediate improvement” are the district’s Accelerated Learning Program, […]

“Nonfarm payroll employment was unchanged (0) in August, and the unemployment rate held at 9.1 percent.”  (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)   (September 2, 2011) Today’s monthly BLS report noting zero employment growth last month provides further evidence that the economy remains mired in a weak recovery.   Three key economic indicators (GDP, payroll employment, industrial […]

(September 2011) The municipal government claimed its plan would expand broadband, a telecommunications process providing greater bandwidth.  The idea was to provide universal coverage to all residents.    Ten years later, residents in the city of 112,488 have broadband, and a debt obligation of nearly $40 million, more than $1,300 for every business and home residence. Fortunately for […]

(July 2011) Total national payroll employment growth in the current and preceding expansion are the weakest in the postwar era due to Manufacturing losses that started under former President Bill Clinton.    Employment has grown less than half of one percent (0.40)1 since June 2009 when the last recession ended.2  Employment was lower in November 2003 two years after […]

(July 15, 2011) U.S. and Arkansas payroll employment has increased slightly since the recession’s end two years ago, though few sectors are growing.   The following U.S. employment sectors have expanded since June 2009:   ∙         Education & Health Services                                 +749,000 ∙         Professional & Business Services                        +724,000 ∙         Mining                                                                     +100,000 ∙        Other Services                                                         +75,000 ∙         Trade, Transportation & […]

(July 2011) The education reform ideas of Dr. Milton Friedman (1912-2006), the 1976 Nobel Economics laureate will be the topic of a July 29 forum hosted by the Policy Foundation at the Faulkner County Library (1900 Tyler) in Conway.   Dr. Friedman, a 1928 graduate of Rahway, N.J. Public High School, later earned economics degrees […]

“Fiscal management is as important as academics in evaluating any school district’s performance.”  Arkansas Policy Foundation report, “A performance analysis of the Little Rock School District” (May 2000)   (May 2011) Eleven years ago this month the Policy Foundation published a report on the Little Rock School District that found “10 years of rising revenues and […]

(May 2011) One year ago, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimated “the creation of a national high-risk insurance pool will result in roughly 375,000 people gaining coverage in 2010, increasing national health spending by $4 billion.”  But the number of enrollees totaled only 12,437 on Feb. 1, including only 147 in Arkansas.   […]