College of Education at The University of Texas at Austin ranked 13th by U.S. News & World Report; 4th Among Public Universities

The College of Education at UT Austin

I have been a tenured faculty member at The University of Texas at Austin's College of Education for 15 years now and have been at the college for almost 20 years. I reside in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction where I teach and research in the STEM Education Program. In the time I've been at UT I have brought in about $17 million in external funding for research and have published extensively as well as made presentations at national and international conferences. Rankings need to be approached carefully. That being said, I am both happy and proud to report the 2020 rankings by US News and World Report.  

The College of Education at The University of Texas at Austin ranks 13^th overall in U.S. News & World Report’s latest rankings of graduate programs in education, and is 4^th among public institutions. The college ranks 6^th overall and 3^rd among public institutions in research expenditures, with $51.3 million. 

“Our rankings underscore the college’s ongoing commitment to preparing educators and leaders to address the most pressing challenges in education and health. The rankings are a reflection of the college’s reach and the dedication of our faculty, staff, students, and community partners to transform research and practice to ensure that children, individuals, families, schools, and communities thrive,” says Charles Martinez, Jr., dean of the College of Education.  
   
Rankings are one indicator of excellence. Recruitment and retention of outstanding faculty continue to be a top priority as the college enhances graduate and undergraduate programs and secures funded research.

Five of the college's departments, programs, and specialty areas have earned places among top 10 institutions: 

• Administration/Supervision: 5^th overall and 2^nd among public universities, tied with Michigan State
• Educational Psychology: 5^th overall and 3^rd among public universities, up two places from last year
• Special Education: 5^th overall and 4^th among public universities, up two places from last year
• Curriculum and Instruction: 7^th overall and 4^th among public universities, up one place from last year
• Secondary Education: 10^th overall and 7^th among public universities, tied with University of California–Los Angeles

66.5% of Hoboken City District students Do Not Meet or Exceed Expectations on Statewide Assessments in Mathematics- 56.5% of Students Do Meet English/Language Arts

Memorial Day Parade 2019- Hoboken, NJ 

The School Performance Reports reflect the NJDOE's extensive efforts to engage with parents, students, and school communities and share the information that is most valuable in providing a picture of overall school performance. Communities are encouraged to use these reports to learn more, start conversations, and engage. 

Hoboken, NJ 2019

For the 2017-18 New Jersey Performance Report, the Hoboken School District continues its lackluster performance in academic achievement. Previously, I reported on individual schools and how they performed in English Language and in Mathematics. In this short but informative post, we synthesize this data and present a district wide report. I include the spreadsheet and data which includes data for each of the Hoboken Public Schools (note, Brandt is not included because there were no tested grades in 2017-18. 

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2017-18 NJDOE Performance Report
Combined Data for Hoboken City School District 

Results indicated that in English/Language Arts, 56.48% of Hoboken City District students "met or exceeded expectations on statewide assessments." This indicates roughly 43.5% of Hoboken City District students "did not met or exceed expectations on statewide assessments in English/Language Arts."

Results indicate that in Mathematics, 33.46% of Hoboken City District students "met or exceeded expectations on statewide assessments." This indicates roughly 66.5% of Hoboken City District students "did not met or exceed expectations on statewide assessments in Mathematics."

Scooter Roll Out Pilot Week in Hoboken, NJ 

Science says parents of successful kids have these 23 things in common

Science says parents of successful kids have these 23 things in common

1. They tend to make their kids do chores.

2. They tend to teach their kids social skills.

3. They tend to have high expectations.

4. They tend to have healthy relationships with each other.

5. They've usually attained higher educational levels.

6. They tend to teach their kids math early on.

7. They tend to develop a relationship with their kids.

8. They're often less stressed.

9. They tend to value effort over avoiding failure.

10. The moms tend to work.

11. They tend to have a higher socioeconomic status.

12. They are more often "authoritative" than "authoritarian" or "permissive."

13. They tend to teach "grit."

14. They tend to apply behavioral control, not psychological control.

15. They tend to understand the importance of good nutrition and eating habits.

16. They tend to give their kids bias-proof names.

17. When they do face conflict, they tend to fight fair in front of their kids.

18. They tend to let their children fail.

19. They usually don't let their kids watch too much TV.

20. They tend to let their kids make decisions.

21. They tend to teach their kids self-control.

22. They tend to pay attention to their children.

23. The parents tend to take parental leave.

Details: https://www.businessinsider.com/how-parents-set-their-kids-up-for-success-2016-4?utm_source=feedburner&amp%3Butm_medium=referral&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A%20businessinsider%20(Business%20Insider)&utm_content=FeedBurner%20user%20view

Hoboken Aerial--

Credits: 

DroneFanatic

Published on Jul 10, 2018, Hoboken, NJ.

Music : Frank Sinatra - This Town ( remix ) Contact : WNY@Me.com

2019-20 Hoboken City Schools ASSA Report- Observations and Discussion - Why Do Non-Low Income Families Leave?

Calabro School- Hoboken, NJ 

Every year all school districts submit data to the New Jersey Department of Education for inclusion for a report known as the Application for State School Aid (ASSA). This report is also sometimes referred to as the "October 15th Report" since the data submitted-- by directions from the NJDOE-- is for enrollment numbers as of October 15th of the school year. So, data collected as of October 15, 2018 becomes the data for the 2019-20 Application for State School Aid (ASSA).  The report includes a great deal of information such as number of students on roll in the traditional as well as charter schools (by Grade not by School), Full Day PreK-3YR and Full Day PreK-4YR enrollment, number of resident students, number of low income students, number of students in the "Choice Program" and much other useful data. Anyone wishing the actual report, please contact me-- I will be happy to send it to you. 

One analysis that I think is useful is the presentation of Hoboken City School District (traditional public school) enrollment by grade (K-12) on one axis and the percentage of low income and non low income on a secondary axis. This gives us a more global sense of student enrollment in the district across all grades as well as the changing demographics of the district from kindergarten to high school graduation. For consistency across years, I use Categories (02-14) on the ASSA report. I omit Special Education from the analysis because these students are only reported by grade band (Elementary, Middle, High) and not by individual grade. According to the 2019-20 ASSA Report there are 177 Special Education students in Elementary, 45 Special Education students in Middle, and 44 Special Education students in High. 

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Data: 2019-20 ASSA Report- Hoboken School District 

Observation 1: Enrollment in the 4th grade (125 students) is less than half of the enrollment in kindergarten (276 students). Why do over half of the families in Hoboken pull their children our of the traditional public schools by 4th grade? 

Observation 2: In kindergarten, over 80% of students are non-low income. By 6th grade this percentage falls to 36% and by graduation, only 25% of students are non-low income. Why can't the district keep non-low income students? 

Observation 3: Grades 9, 10, 11, and 12 enrollment (high school) is around 375 students. Nearly all "Choice" students are enrolled in these same grades. This indicates that if it were not for the addition of "Choice" students coming from out of town, the total student enrollment of Hoboken High School would be around 217 students. 

Observation 4: Despite over 80% of students coming from non-low income families in kindergarten, by the time high school graduation rolls around 75% of students come from families qualifying as low income. Why can't the Hoboken School District retain non-low income families? (this is a disturbing trend for the past decade or for the entire time that the Kids First/"Reform" group have been in control of the Hoboken School District). 

Observation 5: Enrollment is not "going through the roof" in the Hoboken City School District. There is some slight increase in PREK but many of these families are leaving the Hoboken public schools before enrolling in kindergarten and more leave during each grade up to the 4th grade. K-12 district enrollment has been fairly consistent and shows little/no upward trend at all. If fact, there is a slight downward trend. 

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Recent K-12 student enrollment: Hoboken City School District 

Observation 6: This may be one reason why families who have an option leave the Hoboken Public School: CLICK HERE An analysis by researchers at Stanford University shows clearly that the Hoboken Public Schools have the lowest growth rate in Hudson county, among the lowest growth rates in New Jersey, and among the lowest growth rates in the nation. It seems that parents who have options concerning their child's education are leveraging them. 

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2019-20 ASSA Report- Hoboken City School District 

Closing Calabro School is Unnecessary- Letter to the Editor of the Hudson Reporter (April 30, 2019)

The following is a recent letter to the editor at the Hoboken Reporter. It concerns the possibility of closing the doors of Calabro School. As I have pointed out previously, Calabro is the highest performing school not only among all of Hoboken's traditional public schools but also the highest performing public school in the entire city of Hoboken. 

It is puzzling and bewildering to me why a school district and Board leadership so entangled with poor performing schools that have not improved in over a decade would choose to shut down the one school that is performing at elevated levels not only in the city but statewide. If money is the problem, all the Board of Education and the Superintendent need to do is simply add the additional money into the budget. If the amount exceeds 2% from last year, the budget would come up for a public vote. Let the good people of Hoboken decide on the school budget in order to save Calabro. Instead, the Board of Education acts as if it is handcuffed from going over the 2% cap. This is not true. The 2% cap simply means if a district keeps their budget at 2% or under from the previous year, the school budget does not need to be publicly voted upon. -Dr. Petrosino 

Note: Calabro School recently scored in the 96.39 percentile among all New Jersey Public Schools (traditional public and charter). This is the highest academic scoring school in all of Hoboken based on NJDOE criteria. 

Students from Calabro School- Hoboken, NJ 

Dear Editor:

Superintendent Dr. Christine Johnson is recommending Calabro close and send teachers/kids to Brandt, based on budgetary/space concerns to add preschool classes. I have two happy Calabro kids. Evicting our community is unnecessary.
Our kids are thriving/successful, in community and on paper. We should be celebrated, not evicted.
Per the 2018-2019 district budget, Wallace is currently overcapacity, costing $13,271/pupil vs. $16,066 at capacity. Calabro costs $16,658/pupil at capacity, is currently under capacity, costing more. Connors is the most expensive at $17,944. Why not move some Wallace or Connors kids to Calabro?
Gaining a stage/rooftop playground sound great. However, Calabro is 400 ft. from Church Square Park’s grass/trees, and I can see/hear my kids just fine at assemblies.
Our kids will be better off? That questions why I send my kids there to begin with. If you feel your child is better off elsewhere, go. No hard feelings. Really. Do you have to close my kids’ school on your way out?
It’s just a building? Tell that to anyone forced from their home.
Kids will leave: joining a sibling at a charter school, move from Hoboken, public school closer to home.

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We met with Mayor Bhalla, who said he chooses charter schools because his family values choice. So do we. Wish we had it, that deadline’s passed.
Our kids will learn from the closure and adapting? True. However, I have other lessons for them. When a governing body accepts public responses, we can resist proposals. It’s okay to speak up, ask questions, research, openly disagree with positions. Change is possible.

Parents have agreed on these points. These are not my own words, but ours:
1. We object to B.O.E.’s proposed plan to close the district’s highest performing elementary school and displace our children, especially at this late date.
2. The timing of the plan’s communication – removed our abilities to seek other education options, betrayed a lack of transparency, and demonstrates lack of foresight/long-term strategy.
3. We believe the B.O.E. has not fully considered alternative solutions to meet the city’s Pre-K and budgeting needs without closing Calabro.
4. We question the city’s long-term plan for providing space/facilities to meet Hoboken’s education needs.

We propose the following: maintain status quo, not sacrifice the district’s highest performing school. If, indeed there is no other place to add pre-K classrooms, the BOE considers alternative solutions to defray dual problems of pre-K space/budget cuts facing the district. Eliminate special Calabro classrooms, keep special classes (art, music, science, foreign language) in homerooms, freeing up four classrooms for Pre-K.

To save money, move Passport to Learning to Brandt, return to the district providing aftercare, serve lunch via satellite, and share school nurse/administrative staff. Calabro families need at the very least one year to plan for such a change.

Kara Cohen

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You can contact your members of the Hoboken Board of Education at the following addresses:

Sharyn Angley
President
sangley@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Thomas Kluepfel
Vice President
tkluepfel@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Malani Cademartori
Board Member
mcademartori@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Sheillah Dallara
Board Member
sdallara@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Alex De La Torre
Board Member
adelatorre@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Jennifer Evans
Board Member
jevans@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Chetali Khanna
Board Member
ckhanna@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Ailene McGuirk
Board Member
amcguirk@hoboken.k12.nj.us

Melanie Tekirian
Board Member
mtekirian@hoboken.k12.nj.us 

Black Panther, Movies Under the Stars, and Cultural Affairs...taken from Social Media

The following post was taken from social media. It explains the offense recently taken by a number of people who were stunned by the fact that there will be only one movie shown this summer in the public housing complex on Jackson Street in Hoboken (a.k.a. "the projects") and that the one movie that will be shown will be "Black Panther"-- a popular movie released earlier this year. What should be done? First, more movies "under the stars" should be shown at the Mama Johnson Field during the Summer of 2019 (how about 1 a month or every other week?) AND the movies can be both popular and diverse. This was perhaps a good natured and good hearted attempt-- but it can be done better. I encourage you to read the following post... -Dr. Petrosino 

Repost: Jawwaad Sabur and I were looking at the list of summer movies put out by the city of Hoboken and found ourselves downright offended. If you are familiar with Hoboken, you can probably see why immediately. If not, let me explain to you the ignorance of our fine "cultural affairs" department.

There is a low income housing project on the west side of town, at 4th & Jackson Sts. Less than 3% of our total population is African American. There is one movie on the below list that has a predominately black cast. Guess where that one movie is being shown? And guess how many other movies are being shown at that field? Zero.

What kind of message does this send to you? Jay and I are appalled. A million questions came up, including:

Hoboken, do you not want the black people to come to the pier where all the white families watch their movies? Or do you think that all the black people in town only live in the projects? Are you piloting a new program of showing movies on the west side of town? If so, why are you only showing one movie this summer and why did you choose Black Panther as that movie? Marvel spans all races and demographics, so is this your attempt to draw more white people to the west side? Or do you think that black people are the only ones who are interested in a movie with a black superhero? Even if these families do live only in the projects - which is the most racist assumption of all - do you find them unable or unwilling to come to Hoboken's beautiful pier? Or do you think you're providing a convenience by screening the film in their backyard? If so, why do you feel that's the only movie they'd be interested in seeing?

Does anyone else agree that this feels misguided and wrong?

Either way, my husband and I will be there to watch Black Panther, but I find this whole incident embarrassing and unseemly. We can and should do better.

Mama Johnson Field- Hoboken, NJ