Tennessee’s TFA Commissioner of Education Kevin Huffman ordered the Metro Nashville school board to grant a charter to a school run by Arizona-based Great Hearts. The School board voted no. It voted no four times. It said the school wanted to locate in a neighborhood where it would draw mainly from well-to-do white families; the board wanted assurance that the school would serve a diverse enrollment. Great Hearts expects families to make a “voluntary” contribution of $1200-1500 upfront.
Huffman retaliated by cutting state funding to the Nashville schools by $3.4 million in the middle of the term. It’s his way or the highway. What a lesson for the children of Tennessee.
Here is the notice that the board released to all its employees today.
Today, the Tennessee Department of Education withheld nearly $3.4 million from our October BEP funding. We want employees to have accurate information on the matter and our statement is pasted below for your information.
Meredith Libbey
Special Communications Assistant to the Director
Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools
——————————————————————————
Metro Schools Statement on BEP Funds Withheld
October 15, 2012
We were disappointed to learn around noon today that the Tennessee Department of Education has refused to reconsider its decision to withhold nearly $3.4 million in taxpayer funding designated for the education of more than 81,000 students in Metro Nashville Public Schools. The funding is 10 percent of the state’s annual “non-instructional” funding for Nashville’s children.
The elected representatives of the people in the state legislature developed the Basic Education Program funding plan to ensure schools are adequately funded. BEP is a funding program, not a spending plan, and these funds are used for a number of services that directly affect students and classrooms.
We are concerned about the effect of this reduction and how we will address this shortfall in the middle of the school year. We intend to be good stewards of the public money and to make thoughtful, deliberate decisions in an effort to minimize the penalty’s effect on the children in our schools.
The $3.4 million reduction is significant and raises concerns about how the amount was determined and whether it is consistent with other penalties assessed by the state. Tennessee law does not address penalties in this situation.
The district continues its work on behalf of Nashville’s children and families and, contrary to some media reports, there is no hiring freeze. The district has the means to meet its current financial obligations and the Board of Education will determine where to make the budget reductions by the end of the fiscal year.
–MNPS–
Diane Ravitch's blog 
How can this be legal/constitutional? How can an ed commish tell a local school board what to do? These folks have taken over the country at every level it seems….
Reblogged this on Transparent Christina and commented:
ring a bell anyone?
yes, sounds like Silverman has friends in Tenn. Local control is being gutted at every level – from funding to installing arbitrary board members. Disgusting.
Don’t you just love it when our leaders have such a high regard for the will of the people and democratic process!
I feel as if we are in a spider web, and the harder w struggle, the more tightly caught up we become. But I have to believe that stealth and secrecy was always their way to move forward, and the outcry eventually will mean they can’t carry out their get-rich schemes.
Daniel I have no idea if it is legal or not but we are sure to find out as there will be law suits filled over this insane punishment. Our Education Commissioner is former TFA and the ex husband of Michelle Rhee. It is no surprise to anyone here that he was infuriated that his agenda was stopped in it’s tracks by our locally elected school board. What is truly stunning is that he has the full support of our Governor on this. Even after emails were discovered that indicated Mr. Huffman had been planning to strong arm Great Hearts’ entry into Nashville long before our board denied the application. We now have 81,000 students that will lose 3.4 million dollars in funding because Mr. Huffman did not get his way.
Wait, what????? Kevin Huffman and Michelle Rhee were married?
Okay, its time for me to go to bed.
And he has custody of their two daughters. I wonder why they’re not residing with Mayor Kevin in Sacramento
This is why. Who wants a pedophile around two little girls?
Click to access Phoenix_Police.source.prod_affiliate.4.pdf
LOL!! There must be something either in the pre-nup or divorce papers that say she can pull his chain all those miles away. Imagine if he took an opposite point of view and worked to enhance public education?? That would put a dent in Michelle’s plans.
Unfortunately, there are pols in Nashville who are trying to push through this charter by lying to the parents. Hopefully the parents will do their own investigation and see through this scam. That is why the government wants to overcrowd classrooms in all public schools, so the middle class will look at charters as a better alternative.
I fear for my little niece who will be attending public school next year in Tennessee.
This really pisses me off.
I propose we have a virtual “bake sale” to raise money for Nashville schools! Huffman is a bully and a jackass.
Here’s a piece Huffman wrote for the Washington Post before Haslam named him Commissioner of Education in TN. His unabashed love for charters is evident from the start: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/01/AR2010010101416.html.
He begins the article extolling the two TFAers, who through “sheer force of will,” established the after-school tutoring program in the Rio Grande Valley that burgeoned into IDEA College Prep charter school–now a group of charters in the region. Outside of quoting the principal, who credits making kids feel “part of something special,” Huffman provides no explanation for IDEA’s success.
From there he trots out PISA stats to argue the dire condition of American education. The solutions? Merit pay, giving more authority to principals for hiring decisions, holding education program’s “accountable for their graduates’ performance,” firing the worst teachers, and empowering parents (parent trigger? vouchers?). Along the way he pats Arne Duncan on the back and contends “it is self-defeating to tolerate policies that impede assessment or inhibit innovation.” No, surely we wouldn’t want to impede assessment. Over a decade of maniacal testing has worked wonders for improving education,
after all.
So what approaches exactly did IDEA use to boost students’ academic/testing performance? Huffman doesn’t say. Did the school employ the solutions he suggests will cure all that ails public education? Ditto. Any substantial research supporting Huffman’s prescriptions? Crickets.
This is what happens when one is indoctrinated by TFA. Even with a year or two in the classroom, they refuse to take off their blinders. To do so will forfeit the perks they receive under this program. And even more than that, the see this program and agenda as a stepping stone to something bigger in the field of education. And they are right! Look at how many TFAs are now conducting policy across the USA and making a nice salary doing it. It’s a slap in the face to teachers everywhere.
I can’t think of another profession in which someone with only two-three years experience–even some wunderkind–can ascend to a position of authority.
I know. It makes me want to kick myself for not thinking about my own version of TFA decades ago. Of course it would be geared to realistic reforms that would enhance public schools, not destroy them.
Students first? I think not. Bullies first.
Perhaps Michelle Rhee doesn’t have custody of their daughters is because her current husband was charged with sexual harassment of a student at the charter school he directed before he became mayor of Sacramento. Interestingly, Rhee was on the board of the charter school, and when the charges were revealed she volunteered to take charge and cover up the problem. This was reported in the Sacramento Bee.
Sorry to post this here but Antony Cody’s email didn’t work for me, came back undelivered. Here’s my letter to the President:
Dear President Obama,
I am a retired art teacher. For most of my career I dealt with the perception from some of my colleagues and the public that my subject matter was marginal and frivolous. That wasn’t true of course. Art is an invaluable component of a whole education and I’m certain the faculty of the school where you send your daughters would agree. Art teaches a content, a vocabulary, and a history that allows us to experience and participate in beauty and grace. I’m sure you’d agree that it SHOULD
be part of every child’s education.
Given that, why is it that you and your administration supports so many “educational reforms” that make it impossible for all children in our great country to take art classes in public school? Many dollars have been diverted to private charters, to high stakes testing and to evaluations based on these tests leaving little or no money for a consistent and cogent education in the arts.
I am beyond disappointed with your education policies and am slipping into despair. It seems privileged children deserve art and others who are less privileged do not. When I voted for you in 2008 I never thought that this would be the case.
Please reconsider what your policies are doing to children, teachers and public schools. Please support public schools, children, teachers and the arts for every student. There are some weeks left before the election that you could use to do this.
Respectfully,
Shirely Ende-Saxe
Please sign my petition! http://www.change.org/petitions/tennessee-department-of-education-stop-them-from-withholding-3-4-million-in-funding Thank you!