2005

PUB DEF Weekly is pleased to announce it is now hosting a blog for Peter Down's informative St. Louis Schools Watch.The URL is http://slswatch.pubdef.net and it will be updated often, so check it regularly.This continues…

According to the AP, Vince Schoemehl said in his letter of resignation that he always had intended to serve just one year on the school board. If that is true, that was probably information he…

A new textbook committee began meeting October 17 to evaulate social studies textbooks for middle school. As of October 12, district administrators were still looking for parents to sit on the committee, but as one…

Peter Downs, publisher of St. Louis Schools Watch and a parent of SLPS students, will be announcing his candidacy for a seat on the St. Louis School Board on Saturday, Dec. 10.Downs' supporters hope the…

There was no comeback in the cards for former alderman Tom Bauer. The not-too-long-ago recalled Bauer was unsuccessful in his attempt to get his old job back yesterday when more than half of the voters…

Future of Gifted Education, Magnet Schools in DoubtBy Peter DownsNovember 22, 2005 –– Last Friday, David Welch, director of gifted education programs for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, gave representatives from metropolitan…

In case you missed it, below is an op-ed by Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and Mel Martinez (R-FL) on comprehensive immigration reform. The op-ed ran in today’s (Dec-15) Wall Street Journal, Page A18.Like millions of…

October 24, 2005 -- The Washington Post reports that Phoenix-based New Times Media, the nation's largest publisher of alternative weekly newspapers (including the Riverfront Times), is buying the owner of the Village Voice and its…

November 9, 2005 -- St. Louis Schools Watch has a redesigned blog. Stories from the newsletter published by Peter Downs, parent and former school board candidate, can now be seen online at www.SLSWatch.PUBDEF.net

Here's the right-leaning National Review's John J. Miller's assessment of the Talent/McCaskill Senate race:The Democrats didn’t recruit their best candidate to challenge GOP senator Jim Talent -- that probably would have been secretary of state…