Carol Burris, who is now the executive director of the Network for Public Education, spent decades as a teacher and an administrator. She retired last year as principal of South Side High School in Rockville Center, New York. She helped to ignite the “principals’ revolt” against the state’s adoption of a test-based teacher and principal evaluation system; she and another Long Island principal, Sean Feeney, drafted a letter of protest that was eventually signed by nearly 5,000 principals across the state, about 40% of the total.
In this post, Burris explains what happened during John King’s time as State Commissioner of Education in New York, and how he alienated parents, teachers, and administrators. King was recently nominated by President Obama to serve as U.S. Secretary of Education.
Listening to others–especially parents and teachers–is not his strong point. More than anyone else, Duncan managed to ignite the massive opt out movement in New York last spring. He deserves credit for getting parents so riled up that one of every five eligible students refused the state tests, that is, about 220,000 children in grades 3 through 8.
Based on his record in New York, Burris predicts that we can expect more of the same from the Department of Education…or worse.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Education.
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Does anybody know who either Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders would put in charge of the Department of Education? Is there any hope in that?
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I’m pretty sure both Randi and Lily are angling hard for the job in Hillary’s administration. I still don’t really have a feel for which way Bernie would go with education.
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Lily? Sorry, I’m not sure who that is.
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Lily Eskelson Garcia. President of the NEA.
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Are her views any different from those held by Randi?
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Not substantially.
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Ouch. Are there any names out there which should be in the running? Outside of Diane Ravitch and Karen Lewis, I am really never sure where anyone stands.
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Mercedes Schneider (who blogs as deutsch29) would be my first choice for the job. Any number of other education bloggers would be great too – Diane, Peter Greene, Anthony Cody, Bruce Baker, Marc Weber, Emily Talmadge, Carol Burris, etc. – would be great too. I don’t know if any of them would actually want the job but the bigger problem at this point is that there is almost a complete media black-out against anyone who isn’t pro “reform”, so it would be hard to get any of them noticed and taken seriously (with the possible exception of Diane who does have a national reputation).
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I appreciate your list, but feel a growing sadness to think that we have not been grooming anyone specifically to take up this looking task. Can we still dream? It is only through the intentional appointment of those who see how corrupt NCLB and R2T have become that we have any hope at all.
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Education is more than a business, and merit-based evaluation system won’t help but drowns the innovation and passion.
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Could you define merit-based evaluation?
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I think Peter Greene has the right take on King – approve him for the position: http://curmudgucation.blogspot.com/2016/02/yes-make-king-secretary-of-ed.html#comment-form
If we can’t get someone who will actually work to improve the situation (and with Obama, we won’t), then it’s better to get someone who’s going to make it a whole lot worse because that gets people protesting. That theory is why I’m perversely proud of the people of Illinois for electing the absolutely horrible Rauner over the “lesser of two evils” Quinn. It’s also the same reason that, even if Bernie doesn’t get the Democratic nomination, I will not vote for Hillary.
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If you think Arne Duncan was bad, you ain’t seen nuthin’ yet.
He is loathe to acknowledge that inner city schools are overwhelmingly populated by minorities … students of color. To acknowledge that truth is too painful for many in the politically correct class … and so they fashioned a “reform” not just for distressed schools, but for every school in every state regardless of their success or not. It was a politically correct decision that was cowardly and short-changed the very schools that were in need of dire repair. It also guaranteed the failure of the entire reform effort.
King may seem resolute, but that’s not quite the reality. King carried the water for the reform crusaders … never allowing the discussions to drift into meaningful and substantive areas. King absorbed all of the genuine concern and professional skepticism of very legitimate questioners. He never let those concerns pass through his own firewall … and so, in venue after venue, parents and educators found themselves ignored and frustrated. In truth, the overly-charged educational atmosphere here in NYS is King’s real legacy.
He created this educational tsunami by his over-righteousness and by his irritating dismissiveness. The debris is everywhere.
The absurdity of Common Core will make this reform a case study in public policy weirdness.
If this reform were real it would have been bold enough to speak bluntly of the minority, inner-city realities … and then devote both resources and monies to long-over-due remedies. To promote this reform as a universal necessity was a fraud. Successful schools across this nation have no interest in responding to a reform that is so poorly premised. Nor do they have any desire to hand over local control in a manner promoted by King and other reform zealots. These reformers … King included … stirred a beast they assumed had passed into the ages: local parents.
Secretary Arne Duncan insulted them with his “suburban moms” comment … and King compounded that insult with his calculated snubbing of parents across the state.
Here’s a reality too few are ready to acknowledge.
John King is the real architect of the anti-Common Core movement in New York State. It was his abrasive and unresponsive demeanor that energized parents and concerned citizens from the Great Lakes to Long Island Sound.
It was King who brought about an unprecedented anti-reform ballot line in the last gubernatorial election.
It was King who inspired the very successful Opt-Out movement in this sate … resulting in more than 200,000 students boycotting the CC testing mania. It was John King who made this issue a central concern for this governor.
It was John King who forced the eyes of scrutiny on this reform by rocketing New York State’s anti-Common Core movement into the national spotlight.
King is hardly the successful reform agent some pronounce. In fact, John King may own a special place in modern American education as the failed zealot who who jostled a powerful force into a national rage.
But he’ll first have to out-nudge the current King of Loathe … Arne Duncan.
Never undersell John King. Just ask New Yorkers.
He’s worse than most can imagine.
p.s. Like every other know-it-all, he has his children schooled beyond the clutches of Common Core. Do as he says, not as he does.
Denis Ian
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Goldman Sachs preschool might not be as fabulous as we were told:
“Early-childhood education experts said that the results from Utah should have been viewed skeptically from the start, just based on the amount of money being spent on the program.
Ms. Van Gorder said the preschool that the bank had paid for cost $1,700 a year for every student, or barely enough to cover the cost of part-time day care. Some of the children Goldman paid for were sent not to preschool but to a local day care center or Y.M.C.A., according to Ms. Van Gorder.
The preschools that have been found, in previous research, to reduce the future need for special education usually cost four or five times what Goldman spent in Utah.”
Preschool on the cheap and Goldman makes a profit. Great deal for politicians and Goldman Sachs- not so good for preschoolers.
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Welcome to Utah. Education on the cheap. Some of the “preschools” are actually just subscriptions to online programs like ABC Mouse. Because being connected to a computer instead of human beings is what preschoolers need.
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And I am assuming that with Ken Weber as our new Commissioner of Education here in RI, we can expect similar things to go on here eventually.
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Yes, Ken Wagner is the other Sith Lord.
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Amen, Denis Ian.
But let’s also note that King served as Regent Chancellor Tisch’s punching bag–a buffer for her at forums where she remained silent (tranq’d out is more like it) while he took the fall for her insanely driven Core.
We owe her full credit for spurring parental outrage and opt-out. King, perhaps, should be pitied. He is being rewarded now for the extreme self-hatred he must bear for the public spectacle of his humiliation and spineless career.
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The word “hero” is sometimes overused these days. But this post proves once again why Carol Burris has been a hero to teachers, students and parents.
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I read Donald Trump has William Bennett advising him on education.
Now they’re just recycling the same 150 people over and over and over…:)
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Really? Well, that’s a blast from the past.
If Donnie was able to pull Bennett away from the slot machines, it must be because he got him comped.
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‘I do not believe there has been a violation of law, regulation or policy. I do not believe there has been a
violation of law, regulation or policy. I do not believe there has been a violation of law, regulation or policy.’
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In the absence of the ability to distinguish right from wrong, what else is King going to say?
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John,
How is it possible that the US Department of Education has no regulation or policy that prohibits staff–especially high ranking staff–from running two businesses on the side (er, “hobbies”) and paying Department employees to work in them (er, “teaching” them)?
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Please contact your U.S. senators and ask them to reject confirmation of John King for Secretary of Education.
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