Quick Hits (1.4.12)

Taking up the testing challenge. Remember the uproar caused by the Florida school board member, who took – and failed – state tests last month? Remember, too, Diane Ravitch’s challenge to everyone else (take the test and share your results publicly)? Well, Kathleen Porter-Magee answered that challenge – and had a very different result. (Thomas B. Fordham Institute)

GIVE back. A group of high-schoolers in Virginia have teamed up to provide a free tutoring and mentoring program, called GIVE, for elementary students in their area on the weekends. Various two-hour sessions are available on Saturdays and Sundays for low-income children who need homework help. (Washington Post)

Budget casualties. Full-time nurses are in place at fewer than half of the nation’s public schools and often split their time between schools, which is detrimental to students with disabilities or other illnesses that need monitoring. One nurse in North Carolina is the sole nurse serving four schools. (NPR)

For students’ sake. Some community college officials in North Carolina have decided not to offer a federal loan program because they don’t want students to rack up debts they can’t later pay back. (Community College Spotlight)