Wednesday, May 08, 2013

Education spokesman answers critic's charge that budget could hinder rural children and schools

Education researcher Caitlin Howley orpined for the Daily Yonder that President Obama's proposed budget favors urban children and could be harmful to rural children. John White, deputy assistant secretary for rural outreach for the Department of Education, has responded, calling her "analysis fairly narrow and incomplete," reports Diette Courrégé Casey for Education Week.

White said Howley's piece, excerpted on The Rural Blog, only referenced parts of his proposal, leaving out key elements that could help rural children, "such as initiatives in preschool education, college affordability, school safety, and K-12 reforms," reports Casey.

White responded to each of Howley's claims about programs and funding, identifying areas he felt her information was incorrect or she missed key points, and he also pointed to programs she failed to mention, such as the Race to the Top District competition, whose winner is "serving more than 20 rural districts in Kentucky and accounts for more than 40 percent of all districts benefiting from the competition," White told Casey. (Read more)

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