Parents of students at a Colorado charter school filed a federal lawsuit claiming infringement of the atudents’ First Amendment rights after the principal suspended the entire high school for refusing to recite the school pledge.
“Students at Victory Preparatory Academy said their First Amendment rights were violated, last year on September 28, during a school assembly. According to the lawsuit, after standing and reciting the United States Pledge of Allegiance, the students chose not to participate in the school’s own pledge in protest of “certain VPA ( Victory Preparatory Academy) policies and practices” which they elaborated on in a letter given to the school’s Chief Executive Officer Ron Jajdelski.”
Charters can treat their “scholars” in an authoritarian way when they are in elementary school, but high school students won’t be bullied.
Peter Greene checked into this story and concluded that the charter was at war with the First Amendment. He has more detail and explains why the students refused to recite the school pledge. He also says this is an example of a charter operator who believes he is exempt from the laws known to every other school administrator.
http://curmudgucation.blogspot.com/2018/11/co-charter-battles-first-amendment.html
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I can only guess, but I’d bet most of them objected to the part that says
“One nation….invisible, for which we stand.”
I know that was the part I always objected to.
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Oops, I see that they didn’t object to the us pledge. Just their own xchool’s
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The students didn’t object to the “Pledge of Allegiance.” They objected to pledging allegiance to their school and what it stands for.
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The “Victory Preparatory Academy”……HUH?
What “victory” is this charter school prepping its kids for? A “victory” of standardized nonsense testing over good teaching and common sense? Some hoped and dreamed for “victory” of Trumpism? What a mess!
Of special note is the language used when the school tried to crack down on the whole situation, including writing a threatening note to the Flores family: “Your actions created an unsafe situation…” the school wrote.
Yup, it’s always some alleged “unsafe situation” that gives the authorities the feeling they can crack down on our civil liberties.
All I can say is, God help this country if there is another terrorist attack of 9-11 proportions. God help us, for many, many reasons, including how our Constitution could be trashed next.
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Get therapy before you hurt someone.
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Concerned….WHAT??? Are you “concerned” for our public schools? For our nation? Or, are you one of the “concerned” creators of the Preparing for the Final Victory Academy? I don’t get it. But, then again, two years in, I still don’t get how so many people could have voted for Trump…. how his approval rating right now is anywhere above 2%……
That’s a REAL concern.
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Sorry, JohnOgozalek doesn’t need any therapy. I stand with him. Our country is having severe problems. Do you really think that someone observant enough to understand that needs therapy?
Do you support Trump and DeVos?
“God help this country…”
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I think Concerned must have wandered in from one of those comment threads at The Hill, Politico, etc, where”get therapy” is a standard insult in the name-calling exchanges that pass for discussion. You’ll have to better here, friend!
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Chief Executive Officer Ron Jajdelski. Not fit to run any school.
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“journalists can’t be banned just because they say things you don’t like.” The Orange One still hasn’t learned this.
“The students said they were protesting “a lack of school spirit and a lack of opportunity.”
Why are parents keeping their children in this rotten school? I’d be infuriated at having all 120 students being thrown out of school and the police being called…followed by a threat of being arrested if they didn’t take their child home.
Amateurs have no business playing at running schools.
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Now that Colorado has a dyed in the wool charter operator as Governor, expect to see more such schools.
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This is bullying and abuse to the max. That school pledge is ridiculous and a form of brainwashing and control.
This is Colorado: https://chalkbeat.org/posts/co/2018/05/31/how-education-reform-became-a-wedge-issue-among-colorado-democrats-this-election-year/
No wonder this new STUPID…grit.
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Once again proving that their are no bad public school students, only bad public schools, and their are no bad charter schools, only bad charter school students. Call the child catcher!
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Oy! He should have to do community service and take a public high school civics class.
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First, the principal should sue the students. Second, he should get Jared Polis to pass a law that charter schools get a thousand dollar bonus for every student they suspend. Third, taxpayer supplied suspension sympathy cards from Polis’ card company to all students.
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I believe his parents started an online greeting card company and sold it for $500 million.
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Someone lost control of the situation then simply lost what was left of their dignity.
Obviously this Principal needs some classroom experience. Bravo to the students for standing their ground. I hope they enjoyed their “day off”.
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The “CEO”‘s treatment of the Flores family sets a new low for “counseling out.”
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This sounds like something The Onion would have written years ago. (How sad it is true &, in the age of charter schools, was “normalized.”)
Until now,,,such as the recent (Noble Charter School & others) student rebellions.
Also reminds me of a Fake School News (truly, it was called Fake School News & it was–at that time, satirical) blogpost from Mr.Teachbad (how I miss him!), a D.C. teacher. It tells the story of the principal who wants to replace–not his staff–but his entire student body, because the did so poorly on “standardized” tests.
I’ll have to find it so you all can read it: it’s hysterical!
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