Gov. Butch Otter has named a six-member working group to study how Idaho invests its land endowment, which raise millions a year for public schools and other endowment beneficiaries, including higher ed institutions. Idaho Secretary of State Ben Ysursa will chair the working group; other…
More comments from the panelists to the Idaho core standards forum: Stephanie Zimmerman: Common core standards were “not the best available. We should have done better.” She said, “The standards were already written by the time the teachers were brought in,” and said teachers were…
Five of the panelists responded to a question about whether the new Idaho core standards are constitutional. Among their comments: Tom Luna: “The U.N. did not play any role in developing these standards. I was there from Day 1. … We wanted to approve a…
From the Idaho core standards forum panelists: Bruce Cook of the Madison School District said his district had five-star schools without the new standards, and he believes their cost outweighs their benefits. “We’re worried that the standards might be too high, and the test definitely…
Members of the common core panel are mixed on the question of local control and the new academic standards for student achievement in math and English language arts. “We feel like our district’s hands are tied,” Bruce Cook of the Madison School District said. “We…
The panelists at the Idaho core standards forum: State schools Superintendent Tom Luna; Madison School District director for curriculum and staff development Bruce Cook; Stephanie Rice, an English teacher for grades 7-12 in Council; Dorothy Moon, president of Moon & Associates engineering and surveying in…
House Education Chairman Reed DeMordaunt, R-Eagle, told a full Lincoln Auditorium, “We asked the citizens of our state to submit their questions about the Idaho Common Core, and our citizens did not disappoint us. We received a great number of questions, and we were pleased…
The Lincoln Auditorium on the lower level of the state Capitol is filling quickly for this afternoon's joint meeting of the House and Senate education committees on the Idaho Core Standards. The session, which runs from 3-5 p.m., will feature a panel of experts and…
Legislation to have the state of Idaho take over primacy for permitting under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, or NPDES, was introduced this afternoon in the House Environment Committee at the request of the Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry. Idaho is now one…
A young man in a suit who just turned 21 a month ago is doing a job-shadow of Sen. Steven Thayn in the Idaho Senate this week – at the same time he’s running against one of Thayn’s colleagues, Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint. Christian Fioravant,…
Two new Idaho Fish & Game commissioners, Brad Corkill from North Idaho and Mark Doerr from the Magic Valley, have been unanimously approved by the Senate. Four Panhandle senators spoke in favor of Corkill’s confirmation, and three Magic Valley senators spoke in favor of Doerr’s,…
Responding to a question from Sen. Steve Vick, R-Dalton Gardens, BSU President Bob Kustra said 25 percent of Boise State’s students are now from out of state. “Boise State University has become a very popular place” for students from Seattle, Portland, the Bay Area, Southern…
Boise State University got $73.5 million from the state general fund in fiscal year 2002, when it had 18,431 students, BSU President Bob Kustra told legislative budget writers this morning; this year, in fiscal 2014, it’s getting $77.7 million, with 22,638 students enrolled and 3,757…
Idaho State University President Arthur Vailas told legislative budget writers today, “Basically the theme of my presentation is the success of the university, especially ours, is very much impacted by partnerships. … Our partnerships are extensive.” He highlighted partnerships with everyone from the National Science…
As education budget hearings continue this week, Lewis-Clark State College is first up this morning, with Idaho State University and Boise State University to follow. LCSC President Tony Fernandez told the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee that enrollment at the Lewiston college dipped about 4 percent this…
Little-known fact: When a school bus is decommissioned, state law requires that all school bus markings be “obliterated” and its paint color be changed, before it can run on state highways. A state trooper in Coeur d’Alene recently ticketed someone for not doing that. “It…
Idaho County Commissioner Jim Chmelik has filed paperwork with the state to challenge Lt. Gov. Brad Little in the GOP primary, Lewiston Tribune reporter Bill Spence reports; you can see his full post here. Chmelik, 53, is a second-term county commissioner and an outspoken advocate…
Not only does Idaho rank 49th in the nation for its number of doctors per capita, many of the state’s current doctors are expected to retire in the next few years, and the state, which has no medical school, is lagging on training new ones.…
Idaho is looking to raise resident hunting and fishing license fees for the first time since 2005, but the plan in the works from the Department of Fish & Game would give loyal hunters or anglers who buy a license every year a break: They…
Here's news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho insurance exchange officials don't know if the 20,000 people signed up for coverage effective Jan. 1 come from the ranks of the uninsured, or if they previously had insurance but switched to exchange…
House Speaker Scott Bedke, R-Oakley, shared some of his thought process and how he approaches the Legislature when he spoke at the Andrus Center today. “One thing that was drummed into us at my father’s table was that 99 percent of people - I can…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter said he has more than $700,000 in cash to wage a campaign against his Republican primary challenger, state Sen. Russ Fulcher. Otter filed his latest campaign report Tuesday, outlining…
Idaho Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Burdick congratulated the Legislature today for “wisely identifying two of the chronic problems that impact Idahoans and the judicial system,” by launching interim committees both to examine public defender reform and to conduct a criminal justice reinvestment project in…
A solid majority of teachers support the new Idaho Core Standards, according to a survey commissioned by a conservative group opposing the standards, reports Kevin Richert of Idaho Education News; you can read his full report here. The December survey of 402 teachers conducted by…
Idaho ranks 49th in the nation for its number of physicians per 100,000 residents, Dr. Mary Barinaga of the Idaho WWAMI program told legislative budget writers this morning. And Idaho’s doctors are aging: 25 percent are over age 60, and 86 percent are over age…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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