News about the Best and the Brightest

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1. rratto says:

   August 6, 2012 at 11:05 am

   More proof that both Dems and Reps have chosen to split the spoils of this faux education reform movement.

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2. schoolgal says:

   August 6, 2012 at 11:11 am

   Well congrats to the happy couple. With the bank connection and the political connection, young Mr. Dean should do very well helping to destroy the public school system. I am sure he is in contact with Joe Biden’s brother for ways to improve his bottom line.

   But can we blame all these new ivy league grads for choosing this path? It’s difficult to find good jobs in the fields of law and finance. And the charter industry is booming. Not only do they find wealthy investors, they get a huge chuck of change from the federal government. Yes, our tax dollars are behind this movement. And all political parties are on board because ALEC can buy those votes. So privatizing schools is a win-win for politicians, ivy league grads, and millionaires. Not so much for our students according to the studies that show public schools do better than charters.. Soon these charters will have to take in special ed and ELL students. They will not be allowed to counsel out students not making the grade. So they will either cheat their way to success or fire teachers. And the NYTimes editorials will turn a blind eye.

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   • Kathy1 says:

     August 6, 2012 at 1:59 pm

     How wonderful to know that they helped, for at least two years, bring school reform to New Orleans and the charter schools after Katrina. Best wishes to them both!

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3. Not blended learning is a micro-reach strategy for privatizers... says:

   August 6, 2012 at 11:23 am

   Jo Anderson now works with Duncan, but had been Exec Dir of the Illinois Ed Assoc.

   His son runs Chicago’s TFA. This may have proved heIpful when IL SB7 was negotiated, and the IEA split with the CTU.

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   • Duane Swacker says:

     August 6, 2012 at 1:23 pm

     So many players and so much incestuousness.

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4. Reader says:

   August 6, 2012 at 1:26 pm

   Where does it say that Mr. Dean “runs charter schools?” The website for the organization seems to indicate that this organization essentially runs a detailed student government/student council program for urban schools (albeit they do seem to target charters).

   Additionally- as all the “anti-reformers” would appreciate- the Student Leardership Project website points out how low KIPP alumni’s college completion rates are and highlights poverty as the leading cause of poor performance and drop outs.

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5. MOMwithAbrain says:

   August 6, 2012 at 1:39 pm

   I’m confused. Why do you think the National players can fix public ed?? The very people who destroy it, you expect to fix it? These are politicians, they are NOT educators.
   The sooner you realize that politicians care about their re-elections, donors and self-interests, the sooner you can figure out how to accomplish your goals.
   I assume you’ve been around elected officials before and know that they no almost NOTHING about public education. So if they are clueless (and they are) why on earth would anyone expect them to know how to fix the mess they created?

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6. Grace Valentine says:

   August 6, 2012 at 1:57 pm

   New Mexico education news, anyone? Thank you Diane for your letter to the Public Education Dept., and to Matt Corwin for reporting on the targeting of teachers and unions.

   Are there any of NM teachers who might consider sharing stories and seeking redress as a group? The stories I’ve heard from teachers I know are scary, but no one dares to say anything.

   I brought a Human Rights discrimination case at the state level, and was told by the EEOC that since I worked for the government I could not expect protection from discrimination and loss of employment, current and future. In any job. See why the fear?

   Thank you for reading.

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7. JS says:

   August 6, 2012 at 2:56 pm

   Reader, the Student Leadership Project website is concerned with urban CHARTER schools. The first sentence of almost every paragraph emphasizes that they’re focused on urban charter schools.

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8. Reader says:

   August 6, 2012 at 3:13 pm

   JS- which is why I noted that his orgnization focuses on students in charter schools (and part of the reason why as indicated on the website is that charter school students aren’t performing well in college). I simply wanted to note that Mr. Dean doesn’t “run charter schools” as Ms. Ravitch implied.

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9. Arthur Goldstein says:

   August 6, 2012 at 3:15 pm

   Certainly more money in that than in teaching actual kids.

   Ironic that we actual teachers are so often vilified for our supposed greed.

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10. susannunes says:

    August 6, 2012 at 4:33 pm

    Howard Dean never was a real Democrat anyway; in fact, he had contempt for liberals. Just like our current president.

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