DONNA GORDON BLANKINSHIP

Associated Press Writer
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Gates Foundation gives $335M for teacher quality

Three school districts and a coalition of charter schools have agreed to be test kitchens for some radical ideas for improving teacher quality — from paying new teachers to spend another year practicing before getting their own class to letting student test scores affect teacher pay.

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American charities may not have a happy holiday

American charities have weathered a significant drop in giving this year, and while they're hoping for a holiday miracle, a recent survey shows they will probably see a decrease in year-end generosity.

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Wash. Supreme Court overturns school salary ruling

Variation in the way Washington teachers and other school staff are paid does not pose a constitutional problem, the Washington Supreme Court ruled on Thursday.

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Gates Foundation grants support unusual research

What do chewing gum, chocolate and malaria have to do with each other? Not much, unless you're a young scientist exploring unusual ways to think about world health.

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Bill Gates pushes for more attention on Africa

The world can make huge strides in reducing hunger and poverty by helping the world's poorest farmers become more productive, Microsoft Inc. co-founder Bill Gates said Thursday.

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Nonprofits team up to bring mammograms to the bank

Women in Nicaragua may soon get mammograms while they bank, thanks to the work of two Seattle nonprofit groups.

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Gates Foundation helps bring banking to the poor

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, best known for its work combating malaria, AIDS and other diseases, this week announced an effort to bring banking, including savings accounts, to the poor.

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Gates Foundation focuses on teacher quality

Ever since Americans sent their children to one-room schoolhouses, parents have known what makes a good school: an inspiring, organized, creative teacher. But researchers haven't been able to quantify what exactly makes a teacher effective and how to tie that to student achievement.

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Are charters schools a price of entry to reform?

Eleven states have said no to charter schools, one of the education reforms President Barack Obama backs. They may soon be paying a penalty for that choice.

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Parents pass the hat to make up for school cuts

Rachael Bouma calculated the cost of keeping rambunctious kindergartners under control at her son's school at exactly $227.

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Survey: Economic downturn leads to gang violence

Most people believe the economic downturn has led to more gang violence, according to a new national survey released Thursday.

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Economy sending students back home to college

A few months ago, Rebecca Gottlieb faced a difficult choice: continue on at her $50,000-a-year private school in Massachusetts, or leave her new friends and life and enroll at a cheaper school near home in Washington.

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Charitable foundations see endowments drop

U.S. foundations saw their investments drop by an average of 26 percent in 2008 amid the economic downturn and stock market collapse, but that hasn't slowed their charitable giving, a new survey has found.

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Economic downturn hits world's richest foundation

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation may be the world's richest charitable foundation, but that hardly shields them from the economic downturn.

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Teen survivor of genocide awaits US graduation

Two years ago, Candide Uwizeyimana could not speak a word of English. A survivor of the Rwandan genocide, she lost her family and later was separated from those who rescued her from an orphanage, fed and housed her and paid for her education.

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New CEO: Gates Foundation learns from experiments

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation spent billions of dollars exploring the idea that smaller high schools might result in higher graduation rates and better test scores. Instead, it found that the key to better education is not necessarily smaller schools but more effective teachers.

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Study of Gates Foundation shows global influence

A new study of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation illustrates its global reach with spending on health issues, but notes a need for accountability on whether the money is being spent in the most effective way.

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Gates Found. pledges $57M to overseas libraries

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will spend $57 million to improve Internet access at public libraries in Poland, Romania and Vietnam.

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Study: Seattle housing for alcoholics saves money

A program that gives homeless alcoholics a place to live and drink is saving taxpayers more than $4 million a year, according to a study released Tuesday.

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More bad news on campus: Scholarships drying up

Mike Westfall calls it the second wave of bad financial news on campus. First came a dramatic drop in university endowments. Now students and their parents are learning those same endowments are short of money for next year's college scholarships.

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Survey: More teens volunteer than work part time

American teens are setting an example for their parents through their volunteer work, according to a new poll by Harris Interactive.

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America's foundations step up aid in downturn

America's biggest charitable foundations are stepping up their giving to help the homeless and the hungry during the recession, according to a group that studies institutional giving.

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Gates Foundation to invest in community colleges

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation would like to encourage more 20-somethings to get a post-high school degree or certificate before starting a family.

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US foundations giving record amounts globally

U.S. charitable foundations gave money to international causes at record levels in 2007 and their contributions are likely to increase again this year, says a report by an organization that monitors philanthropy.

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Americans still giving, despite economic meltdown

As more Americans turn to charity amid worsening economic gloom, operators of food banks and other aid groups are relying on the surprisingly resilient generosity of their neighbors and finding that even when times are tough, people still give.

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