Federal authorities are investigating Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett and a $20.5 million contract the district awarded on a no-bid basis to a training academy that formerly employed her, sources said.The CPS inspector general’s office began an investigation into the contract with north suburban-based SUPES Academy and Byrd-Bennett’s relationship to the company in 2013, a source said. The U.S. attorney’s office then started its own probe, and a grand jury has been reviewing evidence for at least a year, the source said.CPS officials have discussed the possibility of appointing an interim CEO depending on the outcome of the investigation, a source said. Byrd-Bennett, who was appointed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel in October 2012, attended a regularly scheduled meeting at CPS headquarters Wednesday and remains in her post.Read the rest of the story at the Chicago Tribune

GWEN IFILL: Next: the struggle to draw college graduates back to the classroom.

by Akane OtaniFactory jobs dwindled over the last several decades, and instead of low-skill, low wage service work filling the void left by manufacturing’s decline, a new report shows that college-educated workers have taken over a much bigger share of the economy. While the makeup of the labor force has changed, the shift has not been from a manufacturing-driven economy to one underpinned by legions of people in dead-end fast-food jobs. Rather, the country’s economic value is now largely propped up by college graduates.For the report, published Monday by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, Georgetown’s Anthony Carnevale and Stephen Rose analyzed several sets of government data to show that job opportunities for college-educated workers have grown, and college graduates produce more than half of the country’s economic value. From 1967 to 2007, the share of high-skill management and professional jobs rose 14 percent, and that those jobs represent 35 percent of all U.S. jobs. Over the same period, opportunities for low-skill workers declined 10 percent. These low-skill labor roles, such as fast-food server, retail worker, and dishwasher, now make up only 29 percent of jobs.  Read the rest of the story on Bloomberg.com.

The Senate’s overhaul of No Child Left Behind offers flexibility but retains heavy standardized testing that limits true teaching.

by Maureen SullivanSenator Marco Rubio of Florida today becomes the third freshman senator to enter the field for the Republican presidential nomination. Over the past few years he has opposed Common Core curriculum standards and advocated for educational vouchers, a federal corporate income tax credit and an overhaul of the college student loan industry.Speaking at Miami’s Freedom Tower, he said, “All parents deserve to choose the education that’s right for their children.” These are some of his other views:College Degrees:Not everyone should be forced to get a four-year degree in order to find a job. There are millions of good-paying jobs out there and we should allow people to have access to skills they need in a cost-effective way. In the 21st century some of the best jobs require more than high school–traditional high school–but less than four years of college.Read the rest of the story on Forbes.com.

BATs Congratulate Hillary ClintonThe Badass Teachers Association would like to congratulate you on your recent announcement to run for president.  The Badass Teachers Association is an education activist organization that is nationwide. Currently, we are 55,000 strong with chapters in every state.  We are organizing on the ground to change the conversation back to what public education should be, about children and their future.  We have far reaching capability on Twitter, via our website, our blog, and Pinterest.Our organization was founded in June of 2013.  We fight for strong public education for all children and for teacher autonomy in the classroom. We are a group that refuses to take the blame for our government’s inability to address child poverty and its impact on how children perform in school. We fight, on a daily basis, the efforts of big money to privatize our schools and use our children as market capital.We have been reviewing the history of your educational platform with interest in anticipation of your announcement.   Read the rest of the letter at Badass Teachers Association