Supporters of public schools are fighting a proposal for a state takeover of the Rochester public school district in New York.
State takeovers have not worked anywhere. The Michigan Education Achievement Authority was a disaster and has closed down. The schools in the Achievement School District in Tennessee made zero gains as compared to similar schools not in the state district. Contrary to public relations, the New Orleans takeover district performs below the state average in one of the nation’s lowest performing states, and its “gains” relied on a mass exodus of poor kids who never returned and a mass influx of additional money from the federal government and foundations.
From Rochester: Please open the link and sign the petition to stop a state takeover.
No To Government Takeover of the Rochester City School District
LOCAL AND STATE POLITICIANS
Wealthy private interests and local and state politicians are working overtime to demonize, vilify, and discredit the Rochester City School District in order to create a pretext for a mayoral or state takeover of the public school system. They desperately want to create a siege mentality against the public school system.
Research and experience show that such measures are profoundly counterproductive and harm schools and the public interest.
Government takeovers of urban public school systems always reduce accountability and transparency, increase testing, leave schools worse off, and increase the number of charter schools.
There is an alternative!
The citizens of Rochester have the constitutional right to decide whether their school board is to be appointed or elected. It is not permissible for local or state politicians to ignore that constitutional right and to bypass the will of the citizens of Rochester and transfer many of powers of the school Board to wealthy private interests and their political representatives. Defend Public Education!
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I love New York!
This is because New York City is now filled to capacity with charters, but New York State has 99 charters available under the cap for private contractors to open schools outside of NYC. So the charter industry is looking to Rochester and elsewhere.
Who are the people and groups who want to do this takeover? Who is funding this campaign against the public schools?
I posted this a OEN, with this comment (which has embedded links to the posts here at Diane’s blog, where I get my posts. Also posted a link to the search field here, that takes us to all the articles that Diane posted on LEGISLATIVE CHICANERY.
I also postedd there, a link to my series on the same subject. https://www.opednews.com/Series/legislature-and-governorsL-by-Susan-Lee-Schwartz-150217-816.html
https://www.opednews.com/Quicklink/Rochester-New-York-Stude-in-Best_Web_OpEds-Diane-Ravitch_Money_Public-Education_Public-Schools-190307-585.html#comment727410
Recently Education Week posted a column claiming that charters and vouchers do not threaten public schools and that concern about privatization is vastly overblown.
Anthony Cody refutes that argument for complacency in this post.
There are 15,880 school systems in 50 states, and that make it easy for th ephor elite trend public education. Here are a few of my links to the utter destruction of public education.
Peter Greene paints an ugly picture of the dominant forces of privatization in Florida
Look at how it plays out In Texas: 2011, the Texas government cut $5.4 billion from the budget for public schools; thousands of teachers were laid off. Governor Greg Abbott, not known for his educational credentials, tweeted insults at the school board of the Houston Independent School District. The privatization buzzards are circling. The governor wants to take over the entire district, even though no one at the state government or the Texas Education Agency knows how to turn around a district or even a school.
More on Texas!
Tom Ultican tells a sad story about the takeover of the Dallas school board by the Dallas Chamber of Commerce and other wealthy elites, who don’t send their children to the public schools.
Two trustees of the Houston Independent School District strenuously object to the state’s plan to disrupt and takeover the district. It is no accident, they say, that such takeovers target predominantly black-and-brown districts. The state’s goal is to resegregate the district, while enriching charter chains that will swoop in to grab public schools.
As far as Houston is concerned, there are actually only four public schools on their “failure” list. There are also “failing” charters on the list that are not being mentioned because they are already privatized. State takeovers are no answers. They are generally a racist power move against communities of color.
Exactly right.
Failing charters should revert to the district. Instead they give them to another charter operator and start the clock again.
“Racist power move against communities of color”- wise assessment