For the first time in her eight-year tenure, the state schools superintendent is making the pre-legislative rounds with lawmakers.

“We want to hear your priorities going into the session,” Castillo says. “Let us know your goals, what things we should be aware of or looking at.”

The Portland Democrat ticks off a list, ending with a request about virtual schools, a source of controversy for three legislative sessions.

For the rest of the article, go to Oregon schools Superintendent Susan Castillo begins her third term with a new approach and an uncertain future

In April, Oregon became the first state to make Google Apps Education Edition available statewide. At the time, Steve Nelson, technology director of Oregon Virtual Schools, said that he expected about 50% of Oregon’s almost 200 school districts would choose to deploy Google Apps within 12 months.

A Google spokesperson said that in Iowa, where Google Apps has only been an option for about two months, 30% of districts and 40% of students are using Google Apps.

For the rest of the article, go to School districts around the country are warming to cloud-based services

This week, the Oregon Board of Education took a small step toward resolving one of the thorniest questions of the virtual schools movement: who decides whether a child can attend an online-only school?

In Oregon, education dollars follow the students. And this issue pits parent choice against school district stability.

Initially, each of six members of the state board suggested slightly different solutions. After nearly three hours of discussion, however, most board members said they would support parent choice but only if there was a cap on how many students could leave an individual school district.

For the rest of the article, go to Oregon Board of Education tackles parent choice and virtual schools