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Florida: Editorial Board of Sun-Sentinel Says Court Review of Vouchers Is Long Overdue

By dianeravitch
December 2, 2014 //
12

The Sun-Sentinel published an editorial calling on Florida’s courts to review the state’s rapidly growing voucher program, which now enrolls 69,000 students. Despite the fact that the state constitution bans spending public funds on religious schools, either “directly or indirectly,” most of the state’s voucher students attend religious schools. In 2012, the voters of Florida defeated a constitutional amendment that would have deleted the language banning the funding of religious schools. The vote was not close: the proposal failed by a margin of 58-42.

 

The voucher program started in 2002-03 with a limit of $50 million, targeting poor students. This year, the limit on the voucher program is $358 million. With a 25% increase allowed every year, the program may expend $904 million by 2018-19. It is no longer limited to poor students, but is available to families near the state’s median income of $62,000 for a family of four.

 

So how in the world is it legal or constitutional to pay for students to attend religious schools in a state explicitly prohibits expending public money for religious schools?

 

The editorial says:

 

The lawsuit rests on two points. The Florida Constitution bans the spending of public money “directly or indirectly” on religious schools. Diversion of corporate taxes owed to the state through a nonprofit called Step Up for Students and given to parents as vouchers, the plaintiffs argue, does not get around the constitutional ban.

 

Also, the Constitution requires that the state provide a “uniform” system of public schools. Florida Education Association Vice President Joanne McCall calls the voucher program a “parallel” system.” Voucher schools don’t have to give the FCAT or any of the other punitive tests that have so angered parents across the state. Voucher schools must give only a national achievement test.

 

John Kirtley, chairman of “Step Up for Students,” which is authorized to administer the voucher program, actively lobbies for voucher expansion (Step Up for Students receives many millions from the legislature for its role). And its leaders in turn give money to legislators to protect and expand the program.

 

The Sun-Sentinel writes:

 

Kirtley and his wife gave roughly $524,000 in the last election cycle, almost all of it to Republicans. Kirtley also is chairman of the Florida Federation for Children, which successfully targeted voucher critics with roughly $1.3 million in campaign contributions.

 

Voucher supporters portray critics as hostile to school choice for minorities. Whatever compelling anecdotes supporters use, however, there is no compelling evidence the program is succeeding. Example: If minorities are benefiting, why do black students score 20 points lower than white students on those tests?

 

No state has a bigger voucher system. Last year, Florida spent $286 million on just 2.7 percent of all students. Iowa spent $13.5 million on 2.6 percent of its students.

 

Florida is on the way to spending $1 billion on a program with questionable accountability that could be the start of an attempt to privatize public education.

 

Legal review of the voucher program is long overdue.

Categories Florida, Religion, Separation of church and state, Vouchers

Pearson Created the International PISA Test for 2015

By dianeravitch
December 2, 2014 //
47

Pearson conquers the world! It holds contracts for Commin Core testing, for textbooks and curriculum Ligned to the Common Core, it owns the GED and a program for assessing would-be teachers (the edTPA), and it owns online charters called Connections Academy. Students are likelier to get higher scores on Common Core tests created by Pearson if they use Pearson texts and curriculum. Have I forgotten anything?

 

In 2011, Pearson, the world’s largest education publishing company, won the contract to design the 2015 international assessment (PISA), the Program in International Student Assessment. This is the test that gives Secretary Duncan the opportunity to lambaste public schools and teachers every time the results are announced, without reference to the huge and growing income and wealth disparities that account for a large share of the test score gaps between haves and have-nots..

 

Pearson’s advisory panel includes Andreas Schleicher, the deputy director of the OECD in charge of PISA. It also includes Michael Barber (now chief education advisor to Pearson, formerly at McKinsey, also known as “Mr. Deliverology,” for his fervent belief in standards, testing and targets) and Eric Hanushek of the Hoover Institution, noted for his proposal that schools should use test scores to identify and “deselect” (fire) the bottom 5-10% of teachers on a regular basis to weed out “bad teachers.” These are the masters of the educational universe.

 

 

Categories International, Pearson, Testing

Time to Fight Duncan’s Power Grab over Teacher Education

By dianeravitch
December 2, 2014 //
33

This message was posted by a reader. Note that the states cited by Secretary Arne Duncan as exemplars are controlled by very conservative legislatures and governors, who have taken many steps to reduce the status of the teaching profession: Ohio, North Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana, and Florida. Note that he singles out for praise the “Relay Graduate School of Education,” staffed by current and former charter school teachers, not by scholars, researchers, or people holding doctorates. The stated curriculum of this “graduate school” includes no courses on cognitive development, psychometrics, urban sociology, or courses other than teaching for high test scores.

This is the reader’s comment:

Please excuse the long comment but I received this from the Council for Exceptional Children, Teacher Education Division. We need to flood the comments:

Dear TED Board:

After two years of anticipation, the Department of Education held a press
conference this afternoon to announce the release of the teacher preparation
regulations. Today, a variety of materials were posted on the website at
http://www.ed.gov/teacherprep, including the press release, fact sheet, and
detailed powerpoint presentation regarding the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) which has been sent to the Federal Register and will be published in the next several days. Also at this link is a draft of the NPRM which I have now printed (405 pages) but not yet read!

I listened in to the press conference this afternoon which featured Sec.
Duncan, Asst. Sec. Ted Mitchell, Jim Cibulka President of CAEP, Mari
Koerner, Dean of Education at Arizona State University and Governor Bill
Haslam of Tennessee. Tomorrow an audio link to the press conference will be available. Below is the press statement sent out by the Department of Education.

Comments on the proposed regs have been rolling in. Those supporting the
regs include outgoing ranking member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, George Miller, the Center for American Progress, Education Trust, Teach for America and Educators 4 Excellence. Those raising concerns about the regs so far include the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, The American Council on Education, the NEA and the AFT.
More dialogue is assured to follow.

The regs appear to be essentially the same as what was proposed at
negotiated rulemaking in 2012. This includes a mandate that every state
rate every preparation program and only the highest rated programs will be
eligibile to use TEACH grants. The metrics that must be used to determine
the ratings include: student learning outcomes, employment outcomes, new
teacher and employer feedback and accreditation by CAEP or state program
approval with specific requirements.

There is a 60 day public comment period for the regulations.

I will be sharing additional informatio n when it is available.

Happy reading and Happy Thanksgiving!

Let me know if you have questions.

Jane

U.S. Department of Education
Office of Communications & Outreach, Press Office
400 Maryland Ave., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20202

FOR RELEASE:
Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2014

Contact: Press Office
(202) 401-1576 or press@ed.gov

U.S. Department of Education Proposes Plan to Strengthen Teacher Preparation

New Rules Build on Reforms and Innovation Efforts to Ensure Educators are Classroom-Ready

The U.S. Department of Education today announced proposed regulations that help ensure teacher training programs are preparing educators who are ready to succeed in the classroom.

The proposal builds on the reforms and innovations already happening at the
state and program level across the country and by national organizations
like the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation and the
Council of Chief State School Officers. The new rule shifts the focus for
currently required sta te reporting on teacher preparation programs from
mostly inputs to outcomes – such as how graduates are doing in the classroom – while giving states much flexibility to determine how they will use the new measures and how program performance is measured.

“It has long been clear that as a nation, we could do a far better job of
preparing teachers for the classroom. It’s not just something that studies
show – I hear it in my conversations with teachers, principals and pare nts,”
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan said. “New teachers want to do a great
job for their kids, but often, they struggle at the beginning of their
careers and have to figure out too much for themselves. Teachers deserve
better, and our students do too. This proposal, along with our other key
initiatives in supporting flexibility, equity and leadership, will help get
us closer to President Obama’s goal of putting a great teacher in every
classroom, and especially in our high-need schools.”

The proposal would create transparency and create a much-needed feedback
loop among aspiring teachers, preparation programs, principals, schools and states. This information will help prospective educators choose effective programs to train in high-demand teaching fields, assist schools in identifying the most effective programs to recruit from, recognize
excellence t o build on best practices, and help programs target their
improvement efforts.

Specifically, the proposed regulations would refocus institutional data
reporting already required under federal law on meaningful data at the
program level, support states in developing systems that differentiate
programs by performance on outcomes, provide feedback to programs about graduates’ performance and satisfaction, and hold programs accountable for
how well they prepare teachers to succeed in today’s classrooms and
throughout their careers. In addition, by requiring data on new teacher
employment outcomes (placement and retention), it will shine a light on
high-need schools and fields and help facilitate a better match of supply
and demand.

Already, numerous states, institutions and other organizations are
demonstrating vital leadership in improving teacher p reparation. The
proposed rule aims to ensure that these innovative practices are taken to
scale and can be replicated in programs that are struggling.

For example:

* North Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio, Louisiana, and Florida were among
the first states to collect and report information about teacher preparation
programs and their graduates to the public.

*& nbsp; Delaware, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi and Rhode Island
all recently raised admissions requirements to get into teacher prep
programs.

* The University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s College of Education
benefited from data provided by Louisiana about the results their teachers were getting in the classroom. The University used the results to improve the university’s curriculum by including clinical experience and innovative coursework. And you know what happened? The performance of graduates improved.

* Colleges and universities across the country are also matching supply of teachers to the demand in the field.

* At the University of Texas at Austin, the program, UTeach, is
drawing undergraduates with STEM majors into teaching. Nearly 90 percent of the graduates from the UTeach Austin program become teachers, and about half teach in high-need schools. What’s more, roughly 80% of graduates who become teachers are retained after 5 years.

* Arizona State University and Urban Teacher Residencies United are
enriching the clinical experiences they provide, so their teacher candidates
can learn in real schools with the help of master teachers. Additionally,
these programs use the same teaching standards in preparation that teachers
will use on the job later. Eighty-five percent of Urban Teacher Residencies
graduates remain in the classroom after three years, compared to the 50
percent national average.

* Relay Graduate School of Education, founded by three charter
management organizations in New York City, measures and holds itself
accountable for both program graduate and employer satisfaction, as well as
requires that teachers meet high goals for student learning growth before
they can complete their degrees. Students of Relay teachers grew 1.3 years in reading performance in one year.

* Fayetteville State University in North Carolina incorporates the
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction competencies and standards as well as the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards into its curriculum for master’s degree students in education. Of its recent
graduates, 87 percent of new teachers met or exceeded expectations for
student learning growth, compared to the 75 percent state average.

“We know how important strong teaching is to students’ education and life outcomes – especially for our most vulnerable kids,” Duncan said. “Leaders
in this field are already moving in the direction of our proposal, and our
regulations try to align with their best thinking on how to prepare
effective educators who are ready to hit the ground running on day one. If
we are going to improve teaching and learning in America, we have to improve
the training and support that we give our teachers.”

Other changes in the proposed regulations include requiring performance data reporting at the program – rather than the institutional – level and requiring states to engage with a broad range of stakeholders – including teacher preparation programs, school leaders and teachers – in designing their systems. The proposal also changes eligibility for TEACH Grants
(teach-ats.ed.gov/ats/index.action) so that the money only goes to graduates
of programs rated effective or higher for at least two of the previous three
years. States must provide technical assistance to any teacher preparation
programs rated as low-performing.

The proposal would require states to report annually on the performance of
teacher preparation programs – including alternative certification programs- based on a combination of:

* Employment outcomes: New teacher placement and three-year
retention rates in high-need schools and in all schools.

* New teacher and employer feedback: Surveys on the effectiveness of preparation.

* Student learning outcomes: Impact of new teachers as measured by
student growth, teacher evaluation, or both.

* Assurance of specialized accreditation or evidence that a program
produces high-quality candidates.

The proposed regulations will undergo a 60-day comment period where the
public can submit suggestions. The final rule will be published in mid-2015.

A fact sheet on the proposed regulation can be found on http://www.ed.gov/teacherprep, along with a version of the draft regulations, which
will publish in Federal Register in coming days.

Categories Education Reform

Zephyr Teachout is Back!

By dianeravitch
December 2, 2014 //
13

During the gubernatorial campaign in Néw York, the Working Families Party planned to endorse law professor Zephyr Teachout to challenge Cuomo, but at the last minute Cuomo won their endorsement by promising to campaign for Democratic control of the State Senate. Isn’t that a strange promise from a Democratic governor? He immediately broke it, did not campaign for Democratic candidates, and Republicans held control of the State Senate.

Teachout–a complete unknown with no money–ran against Cuomo in the Democratic primary and won 1/3 of the vote. She did not endorse anyone in the general election.

Now she and the Working Families Party have teamed up to release a report that will blast Cuomo for his support of charter schools. Today “they plan to release a report entitled “Corruption in Education: The Hedge Fund Takeover of New York’s Schools.”

“Many of Cuomo’s top donors are funding the charter school lobby, Teachout charges, singling out in the report Carl Icahn, Paul Tudor Jones and Dan Loeb for pouring “more than $10 million into state lobbying and election campaigns since the beginning of 2014, with electrifying results.”

How refreshing to have a clear, independent, unbought prominent figure speak truth to power, fearlessly!

Categories Corporate Reformers, Cuomo, Andrew, New York

Debt-Collecting Agency Will Buy For-Profit Corinthian College Chain

By dianeravitch
December 2, 2014 //
8

One of the nation’s largest for-profit providers of college degrees has been sold, according to Inside Higher Ed, to a debt-collection agency.

 

The ECMC Group, a nonprofit organization that runs one of the largest student-loan guaranty agencies, announced Thursday that it will purchase 56 campuses from Corinthian Colleges, a crumbling, controversial for-profit chain.
ECMC will create a nonprofit subsidiary, called the Zenith Education Group, to run the campuses, which enroll more than 39,000 students. The sale price is $24 million, according to a corporate filing from Corinthian. After having absorbed more than half of Corinthian’s enrollment and assets, Zenith will operate the nation’s largest chain of nonprofit career-oriented campuses.
Corinthian’s Everest, Heald and Wyotech chains include 107 campuses, which in July enrolled 72,000 students and employed 12,000. The company has been attempting to sell 85 U.S. and 10 Canadian locations, while gradually closing 12 campuses.
The sale announced Thursday includes 53 Everest College and three WyoTech campuses (click here for list).
Corinthian had been teetering even before a 21-day freeze on federal aid payments pushed it over the edge earlier this year. The company, which is one of the sector’s largest, had been hit hard by slumping enrollment and revenue, as well as investigations, lawsuits and bad publicity.

 

The for-profit higher education industry has long been under investigation for defrauding students, but it survives nonetheless because it hires the top lobbyists in both parties to protect it against regulation. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa (who just retired) issued a scathing report on the industry in 2012 that unfortunately went nowhere. This story appeared in the New York Times:

 

“According to the [Harkin] report, which was posted online in advance, taxpayers spent $32 billion in the most recent year on companies that operate for-profit colleges, but the majority of students they enroll leave without a degree, half of those within four months.

 

“In this report, you will find overwhelming documentation of exorbitant tuition, aggressive recruiting practices, abysmal student outcomes, taxpayer dollars spent on marketing and pocketed as profit, and regulatory evasion and manipulation,” Mr. Harkin, an Iowa Democrat who is chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said in a statement on Sunday. “These practices are not the exception — they are the norm. They are systemic throughout the industry, with very few individual exceptions….

 

Over the last 15 years, enrollment and profits have skyrocketed in the industry. Until the 1990s, the sector was made up of small independent schools offering training in fields like air-conditioning repair and cosmetology. But from 1998 to 2008, enrollment more than tripled, to about 2.4 million students. Three-quarters are at colleges owned by huge publicly traded companies — and, more recently, private equity firms — offering a wide variety of programs.

 

Enrolling students, and getting their federal financial aid, is the heart of the business, and in 2010, the report found, the colleges studied had a total of 32,496 recruiters, compared with 3,512 career-services staff members.

 

Among the 30 companies, an average of 22.4 percent of revenue went to marketing and recruiting, 19.4 percent to profits and 17.7 percent to instruction.

 

Their chief executive officers were paid an average of $7.3 million, although Robert S. Silberman, the chief executive of Strayer Education, made $41 million in 2009, including stock options.

 

With the Department of Education seeking new regulations to ensure that for-profit programs provide training for “gainful employment,” the companies examined spent $8 million on lobbying in 2010, and another $8 million in the first nine months of 2011.

 

The bulk of the for-profit colleges’ revenue, more than 80 percent in most cases, comes from taxpayers. The report found that many for-profit colleges are working desperately to find new strategies to comply with the federal regulation that at least 10 percent of revenue must come from sources other than the Department of Education. Because veterans’ benefits count toward that 10 percent even though they come from the federal government, aggressive recruiting of students from the military has become the norm.

 

The amount of available federal student aid is large and growing. The Apollo Group, which operates the University of Phoenix, the largest for-profit college, got $1.2 billion in Pell grants in 2010-11, up from $24 million a decade earlier. Apollo got $210 million more in benefits under the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill. And yet two-thirds of Apollo’s associate-degree students leave before earning their degree….

 

On average, the Harkin report found, associate-degree and certificate programs at for-profit colleges cost about four times as much as those at community colleges and public universities.

 

And tuition decisions seem to be driven more by profit-seeking than instructional costs. An internal memo from the finance director of a Kaplan nursing program in Sacramento, for example, recommended an 8 percent increase in fees, saying that “with the new pricing, we can lose two students and still make the same profit.” Similarly, the chief financial officer at National American University wrote in an e-mail to executives that the university had not met its profit expectation for the summer quarter, so “as a result” it would need a midyear tuition increase.

 

Advocates for the for-profit higher education industry complained that their institutions were under attack solely for partisan reasons.

 

Given this background, one might expect that the U.S. Department of Education would vigorously oppose these for-profit institutions that cost so much and deliver so little to students. But, no, when Corinthian Colleges teetered close to bankruptcy, the U.S. DOE gave it a bridge loan to help the chain stay in business until a buyer for the distressed corporation emerged. More than half of the Corinthian chain of for-profit colleges has been purchased at a bargain basement price of $24 million by a debt-collection agency called ECMC (the Educational Credit Management Corporation). Corinthian was once valued at $3.4 billion. The negotiations were handled by Undersecretary of Education Ted Mitchell, who previously was CEO of NewSchools Venture Fund (which funds charter schools, charter chains, and education technology startups). Consumer advocates were upset that ECMC was taking over a chain of colleges, in light of the fact that it has no experience running educational institutions:

 

“A chorus of consumer and student advocacy groups said they had serious concerns about the sale. They expressed concern that the campuses would be run by an organization that has not previously managed academic institutions.
“ECMC has no experience running a college, let alone one of this scale, and is instead known for ruthless and abusive student loan operations,” the Institute for College Access and Success, known as TICAS, said in a statement. “With so many other colleges offering lower price, higher quality career education programs, it’s unclear why this agreement is in the interests of either students or taxpayers.”
Higher Ed Not Debt, a coalition of progressive organizations and unions that focuses on student loan issues, similarly took issue with ECMC’s “storied history of harshly preventing the discharge of students’ loans in bankruptcy.”
“While bailing out 56 schools, the sale treats the more than 30,000 students like financial assets,” Maggie Thompson, the group’s campaign manager, said in a statement. “All students should have the opportunity to opt-out of the sale and receive full refunds including full loan discharges of both federal and private loans.”
Durbin, the top-ranking Democratic Senator, has relentlessly criticized Corinthian in recent months. He did not directly praise or criticize Thursday’s agreement, saying only that the sale of the campuses “should focus on sparing the students who have been victimized and the taxpayers who continue to be on the hook.” 

 

This was an opportunity for the U.S. Department of Education to close down some of the lowest-performing colleges in the nation. This was an opportunity to take a stand against the entire for-profit sector. But the Department of Education structured a deal to save what should have been closed. A lost opportunity. But it does refute those critics from the for-profit sector who claim that their online institutions are unfairly targeted by Democrats.

Categories Education Industry, For-Profit, Higher Education, U.S. Department of Education

Please Support NPE on #GivingTuesday

By dianeravitch
December 2, 2014 //
5

The Network for Public Education needs your help today, December 2. We are running a national fundraiser on social media.

 

Learn more about NPE here.

 

The NPE exists to support public education as a cornerstone of our democracy, to elevate and defend the teaching profession, and to protect children against the abuses of high-stakes testing and data mining. We oppose the status quo of testing, school closings, and privatization. We advocate policies to improve public education, such as class size reduction, evaluation of teachers by peer review, no-stakes diagnostic testing, student privacy, and universal early childhood education.

 

We endorse candidates who support public education.

 

We are sustained by our friends, allies, and members. The money that we raise will be used to help pay for our annual conference, which will meet in Chicago on April 25-26. Please put the date on your calendar and plan to join us for an exciting event.

 

You can help us now by supporting the Network for Public Education’s ‪#‎Give2NPE on ‪#‎GivingTuesday fund raiser and Thunderclap!

 

Sign up on Thunderclap in just a couple of easy clicks with your Twitter account to maximize the message.

 

1. Please click on this Thunderclap link. http://t.co/fSY0vLKMgi

 

2. Scroll down to where it says “Support with Twitter”, click on it.

 

3. Then click “Add My Support”.

 

4. Click “Authorize App”

 

5. Be sure to leave the Thunderclap link embedded in the tweet!

 

Thunderclap will send out a message to all of your followers, but will never spam you or your followers.

 

Here are some sample tweets to send out:

 

#Give2NPE on #GivingTuesday! thndr.it/11EquMu To become a member or make a donation Click HERE: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/about-npe/become-a-member/

 

If you care about our public schools please #Give2NPE on #GivingTuesday Help us protect, preserve & strengthen them! https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/19878-give2npe-on-givingtuesday

 

WE ARE MANY. THERE IS POWER IN OUR NUMBERS. #Give2NPE on #GivingTuesday http://thunderclap.it/projects/19878 Donate here: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/about-npe/become-a-member/

 

TOGETHER WE WILL SAVE OUR SCHOOLS. #Give2NPE on #GivingTuesday http://thunderclap.it/projects/19878 Donate here: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/about-npe/become-a-member/

 

If you can afford to make a small donation to NPE: #Give2NPE on #GivingTuesday http://thunderclap.it/projects/19878 Donate here: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/about-npe/become-a-member/

 

Together we protect, preserve, strengthen public schools. #Give2NPE on #GivingTuesday http://thunderclap.it/projects/19878 Donate: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/about-npe/become-a-member/

 

If you want to make a gift to NPE, go to the website, where you can donate with a credit card or Paypal. Or you can send a check to:

 

Network for Public Education
P.O. Box 44200
Tucson, Az 85733

 

If you are a student, a parent, a teacher, an administrator, or a citizen who cares about the future of our democracy, please help us fight for you.

Categories Network for Public Education, Supporting public schools

Seattle Postscript: The Board Should Engage the Public

By dianeravitch
December 2, 2014 //
0

In an earlier post, I expressed the concern of parents in Seattle that the selection of a permanent superintendent was moving too quickly. Some parents, always suspicious that Bill Gates is trying to buy their schools, feared that he was involved in the rushed process. I regret that I cast aspersion on Dr. Larry Nyland, the interim superintendent who is under consideration for the post of permanent superintendent. I have it on excellent authority that he is an experienced educator of impeccable integrity. If the board slows down, listens to parents, and engages the public in this important decision, it will build trust and good will.

Here is a statement from Seattle parent leaders. They do not oppose Dr. Nyland. They want public engagement, which is a precondition for building trust.

Dear Seattle School Board Directors,

As strong advocates for family engagement, we are concerned about the timing and rushed nature to appoint Dr. Nyland permanently through 2017.
Our council board feels that a search for a Superintendent could provide other qualified candidates, however we also believe that providing consistent leadership and stability for staff and families also has value for our district at this time. When asked to provide support for a contract extension for Dr. Nyland as interim Superintendent, we agreed. Dr. Nyland’s commitment to stewardship and accountability of SPS resources, closing the opportunity gap, providing better customer service, and responding to parent concerns is encouraging. However, when appointing a permanent Superintendent these criteria and commitments should be fully assessed through a formal process.

SCPTSA did not realize the School Board would be voting on this action so quickly without providing time for families to engage. The specifics of the contract extension, specifically to make this a permanent appointment, and the process for hiring the Superintendent, were unknown even to us. Families have been led to believe that there would be a full and transparent search process for the appointment of a new Superintendent. Five days’ notice over a holiday weekend is simply not enough time.

The School Board should move at a more deliberate pace. This rushed action will likely perpetuate distrust of the School Board and the District. Rushed decisions continue to force parents to react instead of being able to engage effectively in their children’s education.

We ask the School Board to delay this vote to explain the decision process to parents and school communities and allow sufficient time for response. It is vital the School Board takes the proper time to confirm the right person is being hired as the permanent Superintendent of our schools.

Sincerely,

Seattle Council PTSA Board
Katherine Schomer, President
Cassandra Johnston, Vice President
Dianne Casper, Secretary
Jenny Young, Treasurer
Eden Mack, Advocacy/Legislative chair
Julie van Arcken, Central Area Director
Cecilia McCormick, Special Education Director
Annabel Quintero, South West Area Director

CC: PTA Board Leadership for all 82 PTA Local Units in Seattle

Categories Administrators, superintendents, Seattle, Washington State

Julian Vasquez Heilig: Secretary Arne Duncan Wins Contest for 2014!

By dianeravitch
December 1, 2014 //
8

On his blog “Cloaking Inequity,” Julian Vasquez Heilig conducts an annual poll seeking to identify the “Turkey of the Year.” This year’s winner, hands down, is Arne Duncan. This was an unusually impressive victory because in the listing of candidates, Duncan’s name appeared last. And better: he garnered a majority of the votes, even though there were several choices.

Categories Duncan, Arne, Humor

Controversial Charter School in Rochester Will Not Open in 2015

By dianeravitch
December 1, 2014 //
36

The Greater Works Charter School will not open next September due to the problematic (untrue) statements of its future CEO.

 

Greater Works Charter School will no longer open in Rochester in 2015, part of the continuing fallout over lies in the resume of its 22-year-old founder.

Ted Morris Jr. represented himself to the New York State Education Department as an precocious businessman and educational advisor with bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees earned mostly online. In fact, he has no college degrees and scant professional experience.

He resigned Nov. 25, the day most of the misrepresentations came to light and just a week after the school gained approval from the state Board of Regents. At that point, both Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch and Peter Kozik, who took over as the school’s trustee chairman in Morris’ wake, said the school would open as planned without him.

But a NYSED spokesman said Monday that the department had asked the board of trustees to rescind its application, and the trustees complied in a letter dated Nov. 29. They are also asking the Board of Regents to take back its approval.

 

The State Education explained its error by saying that it approves proposals, not individuals. What a lame excuse for their failure to do due diligence!

Categories Charter Schools

Chicago: Problems of Privatization of Custodial Services Make Principal “Terrified”

By dianeravitch
December 1, 2014 //
23

Clarice Berry, president of the Chicago Principals Association, told a hearing of the City Council Education Committee that she was “terrified” of what would happen when the snows began, given the general disorder and incompetence associated with privatization of custodial services in the public schools. The city administration awarded a $340 million contract to Aramark, which proceeded to lay off numerous custodians.

 

“Let’s talk about staffing. That is horrific. A school with 900 kids with one custodian in the daytime? We have to collect breakfast. I’ve got assistant principals who are emptying garbage. I ‘ve got all kinds of situations. You cannot run a school with 900, 1,000 or 1,300 kids with one custodian in the morning and one at night. Just last week, we were told some of custodial issues will be taken care of. However, going from one custodian to two or from one to 1.5 is not gonna fix the problem.”

 

Berry then zeroed in on a four-letter word that sends chills down the spines of Chicago politicians: S-N-O-W.

 

“I am terrified. We have not had our first major snow in Chicago. What do we do when we’ve got one custodian servicing 900 kids, 12 inches of snow outside, salt that needs to be thrown out, hallways that need to be mopped so people don’t slip, garbage to be taken out, lunch rooms to be cleaned, toilets to be washed out with one, 1 1/2 or two custodians?” Berry said.

 

“You need bodies in a school…That [equipment] is wonderful if you’ve got a one-story school. But how do you get many hundred-pound equipment up to the third-floor? Most of our schools don’t have elevators…There are no mops, no buckets in the schools anymore. And we keep hearing, `You don’t need those mops and buckets.’ You need `em if you can’t get the equipment to the third floor. You need to have more people in a building.”

Categories Chicago, Privatization
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