NH Dept of Education – Granite Grok

NH Commissioner of Education Frank Edleblut2 - NH Dept of Ed pic

When Our Children Prosper, We All Prosper

Both before, during, and now post-pandemic, the Department of Education remains committed to supporting our children and our schools. This support extends beyond the traditional classroom and aims to reach a vast array of students, educational facilities, and learning environments. Support for our public schools does not mean that one does not support our non-public … Read more

Frank Edelblut at the Belknap County Republicans

Belknap County Republican Committee – Parts 2 & 3 of NH Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut’s address

by Skip

Continuing on from NH Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut’s address to the Belknap County Republicans, here is the rest of the address: Part 2: Part 3: And next is the 5 part Q&A session – it is clear that the Republicans in Belknap County want to know how to pushback on the … Read more

BCRC – Parts 3, 4, & 5 of the Q&A session after NH Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut’s address

by Skip

And the last in the series of GraniteGrok covering NH Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut’s address to the Belknap County Republican Committee this past Wednesday: Q&A Part 3: Q&A Part 4: Q&A Part 5:

BCRC – Parts 1 & 2 of the Q&A session after NH Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut’s address

by Skip

Folks know that GraniteGrok is at the tip of the spear against what is going on in the various School Districts around the State. Both Ann Marie and I are putting up a lot of posts on a number of the SAUs that have decided that they don’t have to Follow The Law and also … Read more

First Four New Hampshire School Districts Announce Creation of Learning Pods

by Op-Ed

CONCORD, NH: The New Hampshire Department of Education announced today the first four School District Recovering Bright Futures Learning Pods grants.

Long-Awaited Public Charter School Grant Competition Announced

by Op-Ed

Concord, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Education is excited to announce the start of the 2020-2021 federal charter school grant competition, which provides competitive grant funds to start new public chartered schools, as well as replicate and expand existing high-quality public chartered schools.

The NH Dept of Ed Wants “Increasing Equitable Access” – About That…

by Skip

Got this Presser from the NH Dept of Education. Actually, I get a lot of them (don’t know if I get them all). At first blush I just went through it and then one word caught my eye: Equitable.

Another Democrat Thinks the Elites Should Tell the Little People What they Must Do

by Jim Kofalt

On Tuesday, the NH Department of Education released a Back-to-School Guidance document, which provides information and guidelines regarding COVID-19 for school districts throughout the state. The plan, and the Democrats’ response to it, illustrates one of the fundamental differences between our two political parties.

Setting Realistic Expectations for School Reopening

by Op-Ed

Following a challenging and unique spring, school officials across New Hampshire are working hard through the summer to prepare schools to reopen this fall. Last week, the School Transition, Reopening, and Redesign Taskforce (STRRT) submitted high-level recommendations to the Department of Education and the Governor.

Op-Ed – Applying lessons of remote instruction when we go back to school

by Op-Ed

I recently spoke to a pair of high school juniors with very different perspectives on remote instruction.

Leslie (not her real name) was committed to keeping a strict schedule when schools shifted to remote instruction in April.

A New Path to Careers for NH High School Students

by Op-Ed

When we talk about students who are not succeeding in our current education system, we often say that they “slipped through the cracks.” Well, what if we filled in those cracks so that students could move seamlessly from high school to college to the workforce?

Learn Everywhere is latest step in redesigning NH education

by Op-Ed

by Fred Bramante (former chairman of the State Board of Education) | The State Board of Education recently approved rules implementing the Learn Everywhere program proposed by Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut and created by the Legislature last year. These rules are scheduled for a vote on final approval by the Joint Legislative Committee on Administrative … Read more

Press: New Hampshire State Board of Education Approves Learn Everywhere Rules

by Op-Ed

Contact: Grant Bosse | CONCORD- Today, the State Board of Education voted 4-3 in favor of draft rules implementing the Learn Everywhere program. The innovative education initiative would allow New Hampshire public school students to earn credit toward graduation for accredited learning outside of the classroom. In 2018, the Legislative approved and Gov. Chris Sununu … Read more

parent-child-shadow-silhouette School choice for NH

Study: Only 25 Percent Of NH School Funding Follows The Child

by Op-Ed

NH Department of Education – Officials: Foundation for Excellence in Education student-centered study shows need to focus on learners, promote innovation CONCORD, NH – A recent report released by a national education foundation focused on the hallmarks of student-centered funding reveal the importance of transitioning New Hampshire to a model that accounts for the characteristics … Read more

S.A.F.E. Alert System Is Free For NH Parents And Educators

by Op-Ed

NH Dept of Education Commissioner of Education encourages every school district to implement alert system called for in 2018 school safety preparedness report CONCORD, NH – Schools and parents around New Hampshire now have a free app they can download to improve communication between educators and families in case of emergencies. Ping4, a New Hampshire-based … Read more

EDUCATION: Common Core (National Standards): Follow Them Or Expect Better?

by Ann Marie Banfield

As public schools in New Hampshire begin the process of aligning curriculum to the new Common Core (National) Standards, parents should take the time to know what this means for their children.

The National Governors Association (NGA) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) together formed the Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI) to develop a set of academic standards. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) is a set of learning standards in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics. These standards replaced existing state standards in these subject areas.

To be fair, the old New Hampshire state education standards were some of the poorest academic standards in the country. Unfortunately, under the new CCSS, we will not see much academic improvement, while at the same time we are embracing some truly troubling “reforms.”

Contrary to the claims of the CCSS public relations machine, experts have uncovered the following about Common Core:

The Common Core only allows States to make changes to the standards by a factor of up to 15 percent. Therefore, if a parent or state official identifies a problem with the CCS, to whom do they appeal? It is unclear who governs these standards, and it seems as though the people of New Hampshire now have to lobby the NGA and CCSSO in Washington, DC in order to make changes necessary to respond to the needs of New Hampshire children.