A Democratic Representative from New Orleans, who is black, wants a moratorium on charters until there is an audit of their performance. A Republican State Senator who heads the Senate Education Committee, who is white, was outraged.
In a session already marred by short tempers, two lawmakers Thursday engaged in a heated racial exchange over a bill that would impose a moratorium on charter schools.
The verbal fisticuffs, which quickly became the talk of the State Capitol, took place between Sen. Conrad Appel, R-Metairie, a veteran member of the Senate Education Committee, and Democratic New Orleans Rep. Joseph Bouie, the former head of the Legislative Black Caucus, who was testifying before the panel.
Bouie complained that charter schools badly need scrutiny, and that African American students were suffering as a result of the charter school “experiment.”
“This is the big elephant in the room,” Bouie said. “It appears the only place the benign neglect occurs is a majority African American district.”
Moments later Appel fired back.
“Sir, let me tell you something. You are so far off base with your racial comments. It’s disgusting,” he told Bouie.
The senator said he was tired of hearing similar comments year after year.
“If there is a bunch of kids out of work that are 24 years old, it is because the goddamned city does not produce jobs for those kids,” Appel, said, a reference to New Orleans.
Bouie said a recent study by Tulane University concluded there are 24,000 people ages 16-24 out of work in New Orleans. “They were youngsters who came through the experiment, charter schools,” he said.
Bouie said most public school students in New Orleans are African American. “And that is true, Sen. Appel, whether you like it or not,” he said.
At one point Appel dubbed Bouie’s comments “all b.s., all b.s. I’ve got to go….”
The ugly exchange flared up during a lengthy discussion of Senate Bill 292, which is sponsored by Sen. Regina Barrow, D-Baton Rouge. Bouie, a member of the House Education Committee, accompanied Barrow to tout the merits of the proposal.
Faced with hostility from charter advocates, Barrow withdrew her bill, which would have audited existing charters.
Rep. Bouie said in an interview that most of the charters in New Orleans are “failing schools.” Barrow said that most of the charters in the state are rated C, D, or F.
So long as no one wants to know why charter schools are performing so poorly, the hoax will continue. That will satisfy the charter advocates, but it won’t help the students.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
“If there is a bunch of kids out of work that are 24 years old, it is because the goddamned city does not produce jobs for those kids,” Appel, said, a reference to New Orleans.
Bouie said a recent study by Tulane University concluded there are 24,000 people ages 16-24 out of work in New Orleans. “They were youngsters who came through the experiment, charter schools,” he said.”
The “skills gap” was always an ed reform theory, never a fact. They sold it as a fact but it’s not.
It’s really disheartening to listen to the US Congress reciting “the skills gap” over and over again.
Do they read anything? Do any of their own thinking? If a collection of CEO’s and economists announce something, that doesn’t make it true. They all glommed onto the “skills gap” like lemmings because it’s convenient for them- all problems can be blamed on public schools.
Of course, that doesn’t really work anymore- because as this rep points out New Orleans doesn’t have any public schools.
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BEST question: Do they do their own thinking? Clearly not.
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“Faced with hostility from Charter advocates, Barrow withdrew her bill” . That says everything. She is being threatened for exposing the crime. I wonder what that hostility may be? Someone has something on this woman….keep digging deeper.
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Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Education and commented:
Put another nail in the coffin of Charter schools. The more stories that come out like this then sooner people will realize that charters schools are not the “miracle” that people want them to be.
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Ed reformers were really excited yesterday because the same 15 people who designed US ed reform have now designed ed reform in Puerto Rico:
“Among the proposals is a private school voucher program, capped at 3 percent of total student enrollment by a Senate amendment, and charter schools, capped at 10 percent of public schools. The government is also working to break its unitary education department into seven regions to increase local autonomy, and to establish a per-pupil spending formula.
In January, Rosselló released a fiscal plan that would close 300 public schools and reduce education spending by $300 million. Last year, officials shuttered nearly 200 public schools amid a financial crisis that’s left the island’s bankrupt government with $123 billion in debt and pension obligations.”
Read the coverage. It’s amazing. It offers NO benefit to public school families. In fact, it’s a laundry list of cuts and sacrifices and grim belt-tightening for PUBLIC schools along with lavish subsidies for charters and private schools.
Once again ed reform simply did not SEE public school families when designing a scheme.
Public school families could demand better. There’s no reason they have to accept governance from a “movement’ that offers them absolutely no benefit, no plus side, but instead treats their children and schools as the designated last priority.
We could elect people who value public schools. There are enough of us to do that.
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We should be thankful for New Orleans. It’s the ed reform dream, realized. Unlike in DC and Cleveland and the rest they can’t blame everything on public schools there.
When DeVos was asked about PUBLIC schools in Michigan, true to form she ignored the question and instead spoke of charters. She doesn’t value Michigan public schools enough to mention them.
Guess what the problem is in Michigan? Too many public schools. That’s her answer. If 20 years of ed reform harmed the public education system in MI the answer is more ed reform.
They can’t do that in New Orleans. They got the whole ideological wish list there.
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Here’s another, more detailed report on the “debate”: https://www.bayoubrief.com/2018/03/23/you-cant-change-the-facts-unless-youre-the-senate-education-committee/
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Thank goodness for reputable people like Bouie. The charter charade will continue to ignore poor results and expand as long as politicians can collect from the charter lobby. It is going to take the minority community and other concerned citizens to call for a moratorium as per the NAACP’s position paper. Results do not matter; moving public money into private pockets does. Privatization is a gigantic “pay to play” scheme. It will take active resistance to stop the hostile takeover of public education in many cities like New Orleans.
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“The senator said later that Bouie was trying to draw a link between unemployment among black youngsters with the failings of charter schools.
“The simple fact is there are not jobs being created in New Orleans,” Appel said.”
Quoting from the Advocate article.
Most of the those in favor of charters are perfectly willing to blame the public schools for the failure of the students. But when the charter rules the day, the same logic is rejected on the basis that it is the community that is at fault. Well, which is it? The same logic follows test scores. The reform that pushed the ASD on Memphis departed mumbling about the effects of poverty on learning, old news to anyone involved in teaching.
I am tempted to suggest that what is good for the goose is good for the gander, but this is not true. Economic expansion, education, and the rise from poverty might have a relationship, but you cannot see it in test scores or unemployment data. There are far too many other factors that contrubute to the picture.
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There is a great deal of money to be made off of poverty. These charter schools are not in upscale zip codes because white folks wouldn’t want them there. They are in the hearts of neighborhoods that need the best teachers and the most resources. This racist sham has been going on for decades and it will continue because there is no political will to stop it. Without and education the world is shut to you, the white majority in charge want to ensure that not only is the door shut but padlocked as well. Racism and profit go hand and hand. Look at the bottom line of these phony education foundations Board members, CEO’s of charters are laughing all the way to the bank.
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Re: Sen. Conrad Appel, R-Metairie,
Of what is he so afraid?
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