I was born 81 years ago in St. Joseph’s Hospital in Houston, Texas, at 12:01 am.

Eighty is the new 60. No, the new 50. Or 40.

I am third of eight children.

My mother was born in Bessarabia and came to this country when she was 9 years old. She was a very proud graduate of the Houston public schools. My grandfather in Houston was a tailor. My father grew up in Savannah. He was a mischievous boy, I hear, and he dropped out of high school.

I attended Houston public schools from kindergarten through high school graduation. I then had the good fortune to be accepted to Wellesley College, which changed my life.

I will spare you the rest of my story. I am one-third of the way through a memoir, and I will turn to that after the publication in January of Slaying Goliath. 

If you share my values about the importance of public schools, the necessity of being good citizens, the recognition that all children need good nutrition, good health, play and a rich education, I think you will love the new book. It is unlike anything I have written in the past. It is a story of the heroes of the Resistance, the individuals and groups who have fought to stop the privatization of their public schools, to block insane federal mandates, and to demand that they get the resources they need to become far better than they are now.

If you want to say “Happy Birthday,” please send a donation to NPE Action.

That is the part of NPE that is involved in raising consciousness and building the resistance to privatization.

We are making a difference.

The elite disrupters of public schools are on the run, thanks to the dedication and persistence of the Resistance. Students, parents, teachers, retired teachers, principals, the millions who owe a debt of gratitude to their community’s public schools and want to see them thrive.

Thank you.

Diane