Today, Governor Bobby Jindal will attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of the La. 16 widening project in Denham Springs
Louisiana Education
The Data Quality Campaign (DQC) recently named Louisiana as one of six states in the nation having all 10 essential elements of a robust state longitudinal data system for education. Other states meeting the same criteria are Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida and Utah. This is the first year Louisiana has met all 10 requirements since the campaign was launched in 2005.
The aim of the DQC is to improve the quality, accessibility and use of data in education, specifically longitudinal data that is gathered on the same student from year to year. This data allows states and districts to follow the academic growth of individual students from Pre-K to 12th grade. It also allows states and districts to determine the value of specific programs and identify performance consistencies in schools and districts.
"As our state works to overcome the challenges facing public education in Louisiana, our ability to collect, analyze and report meaningful data helps inform our actions and determine whether our efforts are impacting student outcomes," said State Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek. "We need to be able to determine which programs are working, which ones are not, and where our resources are being used be! st."
When the survey was done in 2005, 2006, and 2007, the Department lacked one of DQC's 10 essential criteria. It did not provide for student-level college readiness test scores. This measurement, along with several other data collection elements, gives state education leaders the ability to pinpoint specific students who lack needed skills to progress to the next grade level or to succeed after high school. When the data indicates students require additional support, instructional staff can intervene with appropriate resources and assistance.
"We are pleased that we meet all of the DQC criteria for educational data systems," Pastorek continued. "But what is really central to us is that we're not just collecting information; we're using the data to benefit our students' academic achievement."
The education data rankings were part of the 2008 DQC Survey Results: State of the Nation's Data Systems released earlier this month. According to the findings, in 2005 no states reported having all 10 essential elements, but this year six states have them. Forty-eight states now have five or more of the 10 elements and 42 states, compared to 14 in 2005, have the data systems necessary to calculate the National Governors Association longitudinal graduation rate.
"Across the country, education systems are making great progress in collecting data and then interpreting and using it for meaningful change in education," said Board of Elementary and Secondary Education President Keith Guice. "For too long data has been viewed by many as numbers and parts of a whole not always correlated to academic achievement. In 21st century education, we know data allows us to set priorities, monitor progress and support our students and schools when and where they need it the most. This survey shows that Louisiana is at the forefront nationally in collecting and using the data necessary to reform public education."
The 10 essential elements of ! state da ta systems, as determined by DQC, are a unique student ID that connects data across key databases across years; student-level enrollment, demographic and program participation information; the ability to match individual students' test records year to year to measure growth; information on untested students and the reasons why they were not tested; a system to match teachers to students; student-level transcript information; student-level college readiness test scores; student-level graduation and dropout data; the ability to match student records between a state's Pre-K - 12 system and its higher education systems; and a state data audit system.
The Data Quality Campaign is funded in part by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and managed by the NationalCenter for Educational Achievement.
(DOE Press release)
Louisiana Government Meetings
interim committee meeting notice(s) as of January 5, 2009.
Total Safety, a maker of integrated safety services and solutions, announces it has acquired the assets of Wholesale Radio Rental, Inc. which provides portable communication devices for use in the petroleum, oil and gas and petrochemical industries.
“We are very pleased about the management team and skilled employees of Wholesale Radio Rental joining Total Safety. The addition of Wholesale’s team and assets allows us to expand on an existing service line and more strategically and effectively provide safety and communication solutions to industry,” said David E. Fanta, President and CEO, Total Safety.
For over 15 years, Wholesale Radio Rental has provided intrinsically safe portable communication systems to a wide variety of industries concentrating primarily in the energy sector. Applications include maintenance shutdowns, turnaround services and unit start-ups. Wholesale Radio Rental has four locations - Houston, TX, Sulphur, LA, Baton Rouge, LA, and Benicia, CA.
“Total Safety is the perfect partner for us,” said Jimmy Foret, owner, Wholesale Radio Rental. “Their commitment to safety and customer service is something we wholeheartedly believe in, and being part of such a dynamic team is something we look forward to. This will be a benefit to our customers and employees.”
Specific financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
NatchitochesPort
ADA-ES, Inc. today announced that its subsidiary Crowfoot Supply Company, LLC has started construction of a greenfield facility to process activated carbon (AC) at the Port of Natchitoches in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana. The facility, which will be capable of processing 8,000 lbs/hour of powdered AC, will encompass 40,000 sq. ft. for storage plus a materials processing center as well as loading and transfer capabilities for bulk bag, truck trailer and rail cars. The Natchitoches port location facilitates load out onto barges for high volume delivery requirements. State-of-the-art air pollution control equipment will be installed to assure environmental compliance.
In August, ADA-ES' subsidiary Red River Environmental Products, LLC began construction of the largest AC production plant in North America in Red River Parish, Louisiana, about 30 miles north of Natchitoches. This new storage and processing facility will complement the Red River production plant by enabling the Company to process and deliver AC produced by overseas third parties to customers prior to the Red River plant coming on line. The Natchitoches facility has easy access to rail and barge transportation and is scalable for additional long-term processing and storage capacity for this growing market.
Dr. Michael Durham, President and CEO of ADA-ES, commented, “This new facility reflects our continued commitment to provide clean coal technology to the power industry. We are very pleased to expand our investment in this resource-rich area of the country. The local government and community have been very supportive and we look forward to a long, rewarding working relationship with our neighbors.”
