Not Exactly a Cut But Delayed School Payments Have a Cost [Capitol Notes, 3/18/11]: Among the budget-related bills approved by the Legislature March 16 was one that postpones $5.2 billion in state payments to public schools.

Baron: Hidden costs of deferrals [Thoughts on Public Education, 3/18/11]: I’m still in the hole to my teenage son for a little over $100. I promised him $25 for every A on his report card, with a $50 bonus for straight As. Oh sure, I gave him some of it; I‘m not a complete deadbeat. But I deferred the rest.

School district’s refusal to provide allergic student with a nut free environment did not constitute an actionable threat of violence or harm under California law [National School Boards Association, 3/17/11]: A federal district court in California has dismissed a claim brought by the parents of a student with a nut allergy alleging that the school district's refusal to provide the student with a nut free environment at school was an actionable threat of violence or harm under the state's civil code. Read the NSBA’s Legal Clips summary: Read the Memorandum Decision in McCue v. South Fork Union Elementary School (2/7/11, E.D. California)

Fensterwald: Robles-Wong lawyers reframe case [Educated Guess, 3/17/11]: Having had their complaints rejected the first time, two groups of plaintiffs are hoping an Alameda County Superior Court judge will look more kindly on revised arguments to have the state’s method and levels of public school funding ruled unconstitutional.

U.S. Is Urged to Raise Teachers’ Status [New York Times, 3/16/11]: To improve its public schools, the United States should raise the status of the teaching profession by recruiting more qualified candidates, training them better and paying them more, according to a new report on comparative educational systems. Read the report.