Why is the gap between Black students and White students widening on test scores, graduation rates and other academic areas? Experts and community leaders gathered last Thursday to discuss the causes and possible solutions to this lack of educational success.
"We are looking at the data and research to come up with a strategic plan to close the achievement gap," said Janet Hayakawa, achievement gap study manager for the Center for the Improvement of Student Learning.
As part of Washington State House Bill 2722 (HB 2722), a 15-member advisory committee was created to study the reasons behind the achievements gap ...

Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, the keynote speaker at the Seattle King County NAACP's 95th Anniversary Celebration, poses for a picture with youth speaker Isaiah Barnett, 10, Nov. 15 at Mount Zion Baptist Church.  After speaking to a full house at Mount Zion, Dyson also spoke at the NAACP Freedom Fund dinner reception afterwards at the Westin Hotel in downtown Seattle.
It may be 95 years old now, but the Seattle/King County NAACP has never been more vital ...

Business Seminars ...
Sound Transit Feedback ...
Flood Damage  ...
Financial Crisis Panel ...
Computer Recycling Benefit ...

Commissioners Debate Teens ...
Anti-Poverty Training ...
Bus Service Added ...
Portland NAACP Ceremonies ...
Coat Drive ...
Business Strategy event ...

What's happening for you in Seattle this week? Read here a day-by-day diary of free community events to fill your spare time. For a full calendar please click on "Read the complete article" below.…

What's happening for you in Portland this week? Read here a day-by-day diary of free community events to fill your spare time. For a full calendar please click on "Read the complete article" below.…

The Lions Eye Bank last weekend offered free screenings for glaucoma, blood pressure, diabetes, eyesight, and hearing. From left, Gerald Caldwell was the main organizer of the event and secretary of the Lloyd Lions Club; Art Pierce is getting his blood pressure checked by Bill Ruff. The event was sponsored by the Lloyd Lions Club, and was held at St. Philip the Deacon Church at Northeast Knott and Rodney streets.
Photo by Julie Keefe

It might have taken them 16 years to do it, but the Multnomah County Juvenile Services Division says it has finally reduced the overrepresentation of African American youth in detention before trial....

Months after launching a major new initiative on high school improvement, Portland school officials sat down recently to talk with The Skanner about their plans, their goals, and their long-term priorities.
This week, we report on what the officials had to say. Next week, we'll look at the potential downsides and obstacles to massive high school reform.
Portland Public Schools Superintendent Carole Smith says three priorities will guide every decision she makes:
Boosting academic achievement for all students;
Increasing fairness and equity throughout Portland's schools;
Building a sustainable school system that can cope with a projected loss...

Two years ago, you couldn't drive more than a mile in some parts of Portland without seeing half a dozen store fronts advertising easy, quick cash. All you had to do was pay 521 percent annual interest (APR) and the cash was yours. You had two weeks to pay it back, lest you be charged even more. Most couldn't.
In April 2006, Gov. Ted Kulongoski signed into law new regulations that limited loans to no more than a 150 percent APR and increased the amount of time you had to pay back the loan from two weeks to 31 days. ...