Texas Commissioner of Education Mike Morath has threatened to take over the state’s largest school district—Houston Independent School District—because one high school has persistently received low test scores. That school—Wheatley High School—enrolls high proportions of students who are low-income (88%) and in need of special education (19%), but Morath doesn’t care.
Morath sent similar letters to three other districts.
This is nuts. Using its test-score based rating system, the state has rated Houston a B+ district. Yet the state commissioner wants to oust the elected board because one school has low scores!
Remember when Republicans were the champions of local control. Those days are gone. Republicans are now the champions of privatization and autocracy.
Morath is not an educator. He earned his undergraduate degree in business administration, then became a software developer, then a businessman and an investor. He was elected to the Dallas ISD school board, where he advocated turning the entire district into a”home-rule charter system,” a dream of privatizers like billionaire John Arnold.
How do Texans feel about Governor Gregg Abbott and Commissioner Morath taking control of any district that they target?
How do Texans feel about giving up their independence to state politicians and bureaucrats who don’t have a clue about how to improve schools?
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Morath is a privatization pawn. Taking over the Houston schools is a horrible idea. This approach has always been a disaster, and it never works. Privatization is not good for most students and communities as it essentially invites a bunch of profit seeking carpetbaggers into a community to drain their key public asset, public education. A much more logical response is to put the schools in question on an improvement plan which includes additional supports, smaller classes and more resources. Parents and community members in Houston should fight this absurd, draconian idea. They should mobilize and confront the politicians. We need to stop appointing unqualified business people to lead schools. They do not know what is best for students or communities.
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As we saw with Ito and others at MIT, these types know what is best for their own bank accounts.
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Been saying we have never left the Plantation Model. I am wrong.
We are STILL in the “Colonial Model” where one group, the rich and entitled, REIGNS.
I looked up the provider for these terrible tests. Is it Pearson, the British company?
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Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Education and commented:
Morath is Betsy lite. He has similar goals and objectives. Just another non-educator thinking he know what is best for education. Abbott was a fool for appointing him in the first place. The way republicans treat education is beginning to hurt them at the polls. This constant philosophy of thinking we can cut taxes and then still meet minimum standards for needed programs.
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Every step the SOB’s take to privatize the public sector brings the United States closer to a bloody Civil War … if we the people let them get away with it. Our only defense to avoid a bloody Civil War is to turn out and vote against them in every election even the primaries if we still have primaries.
Once the party primaries are gone, who approves of the candidates that run for the general elections, those same SOB’s of course, not voters.
It is obvious that the privatizers want to cut the people out of the decision-making process.
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Leave education to the educators! If you allow Charter Schools or any other sort of privatization then at least play by ALL the SAME rules we must follow. Then let’s see how well you do!
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