Archives for category: Jindal, Bobby
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Do Conservatives Care about the Constitution?

By dianeravitch
December 23, 2012 //
26

A stunning editorial in the Statesman, a Louisiana publication, raises an important question about Governor Jindal’s voucher program: Why do conservatives remind everyone about the importance of adhering faithfully to the literal meaning of the state constitution except when they choose not to?

The Jindal voucher plan is funded by the Minimum Foundation Funding dedicated specifically in the state constitution to “public elementary and secondary schools.” Private and religious schools do not fit that definition. There is no loophole. They are not public.

A state judge (a Republican, by the way) struck down the funding for vouchers a few weeks ago, declaring that it violated the plain language of the state constitution.

But, say Jindal’s defenders, “it’s for the children.” Who cares about the constitution when the children “need” to attend a private or religious school using money that is taken away from public schools? Why be so picky about the literal meaning of the words?

One conservative quoted here says that since the state is using the same public funding for charter schools, which are not really public schools, why not bend the constitution a bit more to fit those private and religious schools in too?

A good question, and an argument that could be used to argue (in his words) that charter schools are also private and should not take money away from the minimum budget dedicated to public schools.

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote many years ago that “a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds,” but the very least conservatives could do is be consistent with their fundamental belief that the constitution means what it says. In the case of the Louisiana constitution, there is no wiggle room, no room for ambiguity.

Categories Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana, Vouchers

A Radical Right-Wing Idea: The A La Carte School

By dianeravitch
December 7, 2012 //
43

Stephanie Simon of Reuters continues to be the most industrious investigative education journalist in the nation.

Here she reveals the outline of the free-market model of school, where students learn what they want, where they want, when they want, and pay for it with taxpayer dollars.

She calls it “a la carte” schooling.

It eliminates public schools as we have known them. It opens the door to private, for-profit vendors and anyone who hangs out a shingle.

Remember the old Hollywood movies where Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland said, “Hey, kids, let’s put on a show?”

Now, it’s “Hey, kids, let’s open a school and make money.”

Categories ALEC, Education Industry, For-Profit, Idaho, Jindal, Bobby, Michigan, On-Line Education, Vouchers

Brookings Institution to Host Governor Bobby Jindal

By dianeravitch
December 7, 2012 //
23

Readers of the blog may recall that I was asked to resign my non-paid affiliation with the Brookings Institution last June because I was “inactive.”

When I read this morning that Brookings will be hosting an event where the keynote speaker will be Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, I realized the institution had changed very considerably from the time that I worked there in the mid-1990s.

In my view, Bobby Jindal is leading an extremist rightwing crusade to dismantle public education in Louisiana as well as the teaching profession. He is clearing the path for for-profit vendors of online virtual schools that are known to produce a poor quality of education. He pushed through a voucher program that enables children to go to religious schools that teach creationism.

I note in the invitation below that Brookings, under the leadership of Grover Whitehurst, who worked in the George W. Bush administration, how has an “Education Choice and Competition Index.”

In my view, based on four decades of study, competition and choice have produced no benefit to America’s children. I prefer the Finnish way, where the nation’s social and education policy concentrates on improving the lives of children and families while strengthening the education profession and supporting an equitable public education system.

That view will not be heard at this conference, and I fear, will no longer be represented at the Brookings Institution.

► Brookings.edu December 7, 2012
Brookings
Brown Center on Education Policy
Dear Friend,I would like to invite you to join us at Brookings on Tuesday, December 11 where I will be hosting an event to mark the release of the annual Brown Center on Education Policy’s 2012 Education Choice and Competition Index. The index ranks and analyzes more than 100 of the largest school districts in America on their extent of school choice and competition. Not only are we looking forward to announcing the winning district at this event but we are also honored to have Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana as a keynote speaker.Governor Jindal will deliver an address offering his reflections on education reform in his state and the nation in the context of school choice and competition, which will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience.

For more information or to register, visit the event page.

To register to attend the event click here.

To register to watch the live webcast of the event click here.

Also, you can follow the conversation on Twitter using the hashtag #choiceindex.

Thank you,

Grover J. “Russ” Whitehurst
Director, Brown Center on Education Policy
Categories Jindal, Bobby

Gates Assists Jindal “Reforms”

By dianeravitch
December 4, 2012 //
16

The Jindal reforms of 2012 are among the most hostile to teachers of any legislation passed in recent years. Under the terms of the law, every teacher’s job hinges on student test scores, which count for 50% of the teacher’s evaluation.

As readers of this blog know, the Jindal reforms are hostile not only to teachers but to public education, in that more than half the students in the state are eligible for vouchers, and dozens if not hundreds of charters will open, draining resources from public education.

Why would anyone outside the fringes of the far-right facilitate this bold attack on a democratic institution?

The Gates Foundation has just awarded $300,000 to Jefferson Parish to assist in implementing test-based accountability for teachers.

When I met with a very high-ranking official of the Gates Foundation last year, he insisted that the foundation was not supportive of high-stakes testing. I think there is a disconnect here. The foundation is helping a district implement a law that promises to fire teachers based on the test scores of their students.

The same is true in Florida, where a Republican legislature passed legislation that stripped away all job protections from teachers and tied their future to test scores. Hillsborough County in Florida is one of the Gates Foundation’s major teacher evaluation sites.

I wonder: how many years must we wait before we see “a great teacher” in every classroom in those sites that take the advice of the Gates Foundation?

Categories Gates Foundation, Bill Gates, Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana, Teacher Evaluations, Testing

Louisiana Judge Rules Voucher Program Unconstitutional

By dianeravitch
November 30, 2012 //
11

A Louisiana judge ruled against the state’s new voucher program, agreeing with the plaintiffs that it violated the state constitution by diverting public funds to private schools.

The state will appeal.

The attorney for the Louisiana Federation of Teachers explains here why the teachers are suing to block Governor Jindal’s Act 2.

It’s not because the law is “illegal,” but because it expressly violates the state constitution.

It’s not because it spends public money for vouchers but because it takes money expressly reserved for public elementary and secondary schools and gives it to private, religious and online schools, as well as post-secondary institutions, that are clearly not public elementary and secondary schools.

By Larry Samuel, LFT General Counsel

It’s time to set the record straight…and correct the inaccurate media reports as to what our Act 2 lawsuit is all about.

First, we are not claiming that the Act is “illegal.” We are claiming that it is unconstitutional. There is a difference. The constitution is the supreme law. Without it, the legislature has no power. The Constitution contains requirements that must be met.

Second, we are not challenging the use of “taxpayer money” for vouchers. Taxpayer money has been used for vouchers for 4 years in Louisiana, and we never challenged it. Why are we lodging this challenge? Because the source of the money are funds contained in the Minimum Foundation Program. Why does this matter? Because Article VIII, Section 13(b) of the Constitution states that the formula “shall be used to determine the cost of a minimum foundation program of education in all public elementary and secondary schools as well as to equitably allocate the funds to parish and city school systems.”

MFP money is going to online course providers, many of which are private (not public), out of state, and are by no stretch of the imagination “ elementary and secondary public school systems.” MFP money is going to post-secondary schools, which is clearly prohibited. Money is going to private and sectarian schools.

Also, local funds are being allocated to online course providers, post-secondary schools, and non-public schools. These are funds that voters approved at the ballot box, that specifically state that the funds shall be used for public elementary and secondary schools. The Constitution prohibits these local funds from going to private schools.

Third, in this lawsuit we are not challenging whether as a matter of policy, taxpayer money should or should not go to private schools. We fought that battle in the legislature (which is the appropriate place to raise policy issues) and we lost. This lawsuit challenges whether the constitution allows MFP money to be allocated to persons and entities that aren’t public elementary and secondary school systems.

Fourth, this lawsuit has nothing to do with a religious challenge to vouchers. We have not raised the issue of whether voucher money going to religious schools is a violation of constitutional “separation of church and state” mandates.

We are asking the Court to rule whether the MFP Resolution is a matter that is “intended to have the force and effect of law,” and if so, whether Act 2 violates other provisions in the Constitution, such as:

The provision in the Louisiana Constitution that states that matters “intended to have the force and effect of law” must be filed in the legislature prior to a fixed deadline. We contend that because the legislature missed the deadline, the law has no force and effect.

The provision in the Louisiana Constitution that states that matters “intended to have the force and effect of law” must be considered in the legislature prior to a fixed deadline. We contend that because the legislature missed the deadline, the law has no force and effect.

The provision in the Constitution that states that matters “intended to have the effect of law” must receive a majority vote of the elected members of the House (which would be 53 votes). The MFP Resolution received 53 votes. Thus, it never passed.

The provision in the Louisiana Constitution that requires a bill to have a “single object.” This provision is important because it recognizes that when a legislator casts a vote on a bill, he or she should not be faced with the dilemma of having to vote either for or against a bill that has many objects to it. We contend that the Bill that became Act 2 has a multitude of objects.
The lawsuit asks the Court to rule solely on Constitutional matters. Not policy matters. Some call us the “Coalition of the Status Quo.” We prefer to be called the “Protectors of the Constitution.”

Categories Budget Cuts, Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana, On-Line Education, Vouchers

Judge Halts Voucher Program Temporarily

By dianeravitch
November 28, 2012 //
2

A Federal judge in Louisiana put a halt to the state voucher program and the new teacher hiring laws in one parish, saying they was likely to undercut the desegregation program.

The State Department of Education will appeal. TFA Commissioner John White believes that choice and privatization matter more than desegregation.

Categories Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana, Segregation , Racial Isolation and Integration, Vouchers

Sad News from Louisiana

By dianeravitch
November 26, 2012 //
12

On Thanksgiving Day, I posted a tribute to the teachers of the year in Acadia Parish in Louisiana.

With Governor Bobby Jindal in charge and with a compliant state board and a compliant TFA state commissioner, Louisiana is ground zero for the privatization of public education in America.

Jindal has control of the state board mainly because of huge campaign contributions from out of state supporters of his rightwing agenda.

As part of its destruction of public education, the state has enacted punitive laws directed at teachers.

Their evaluations will be tied to test scores, and it will be easy to fire them. They have no job rights.

In response to my tribute to the teachers in Louisiana, I received the following comment. Please recall that prior to the enactment of No Child Left Behind and the implementation of Race to the Top, public schools were not closed because of test scores. They were considered a public service or a public good. Closing them down made no more sense than closing down and selling off a community’s public park. But now we just take for granted that schools are closed, against the will of the community, and no one can stop it from happening. This is outrageous and we must not forget that it is outrageous. It does nothing to help students or to improve education. It is only good as a battering ram to hurt public education and to help the privatizers.

The teacher writes:

As a 30-year educator in Louisiana public schools, I can tell you that your support means so much – now more than ever. I will forward this to all the teachers who work with me at Delmont Elementary. A week ago today we were informed that our school would be closed because of our failure to make AYP within a year. But we are still thankful on this day, because we know that even though our state and district don’t recognize our efforts, we have truly touched the lives of 450 dhildren and families; and they have touched ours.

Categories Education Industry, Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana, NCLB (No Child Left Behind), Privatization, Race to the Top, Teachers and Teaching, Testing

The Real Goal of Reformers: Re-Segregation?

By dianeravitch
October 25, 2012 //
33

Anthony Cody has a stunning article this week about what is happening in Louisiana.

The expansion of vouchers and charters will facilitate the re-segregation of the schools, he predicts.

Governor Jindal eliminated all funding for public libraries in his new budget.

The TFA Commissioner has put a young and unqualified TFA alum in charge of teacher evaluation.

The freight train of reform (aka privatization) is running full blast in that unfortunate state.

Arne Duncan will be there any day now to congratulate Governor Jindal on the progress made in “reforming” the schools.

And lots of thanks to the Gates Foundation, the Broad Foundation, the Walton Foundation, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Netflix founder Reed Hastings, and Teach for America for turning the clock back to 1950 and calling it “reform.”

Categories Broad Foundation, Budget Cuts, Charter Schools, Corporate Reformers, Duncan, Arne, Education Industry, Education Reform, For-Profit, Gates Foundation, Bill Gates, Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana, Privatization, Segregation , Racial Isolation and Integration, Vouchers

A Student Activist and a Hero of Public Education

By dianeravitch
October 25, 2012 //
32

Zack Koppelin is a hero of public education.

Zack is the first student to join the honor roll.

Zack is 17 years old. He opposes the use of public funds for voucher schools that teach creationism.

He is outspoken. He is fearless. He is smart. He is courageous.

He is a model for the adults who wring their hands and say, “what can we do?”

While Governor Bobby Jindal has been coddling the fundamentalists, Zack has stood up to them.

Jindal is prepared to destroy not only public education, but science education.

Zack says the Governor is wrong.

If every state had 100 students like Zack Koppelin, our nation would be a different place.

Here is today’s press release about his latest activism:

October 25, 2012

Contact:
Zack Kopplin
repealcreationism@gmail.com
 
Zack Kopplin, evolution activist to appear before the Louisiana State Board of Education to urge reforms to Louisiana’s creationist school voucher program.
Who: Louisiana State Board of Education and Zack Kopplin
What: Per the request of the Louisiana Federation of Teachers, the Louisiana State Board of Education will allow public comment on Louisiana’s tuition voucher program.  Science advocate Zack Kopplin will urge the removal of 20 schools he identified that are teaching creationism in the program.
When: Today, Thursday, October 25, 2012 AT 2:00 PM
Where: Louisiana Department of Education, Claiborne Building, Louisiana Purchase Room
The meeting will be streaming online at http://streaming.louisiana.gov/viewerportal/vmc/home.vp
Testimony, video, and background material are available upon request.
Categories Curriculum, Honor Roll, Jindal, Bobby, Vouchers

A Bad Week for John White, Jindal’s Superintendent: UPDATED LINK

By dianeravitch
October 24, 2012 //
4

A nice summary of a bad week for John White, who was hired to implement Governor Bobby Jindal’s plan to privatize public education in Louisiana.

The blogger has an apt title for the week, referring to a delightful children’s book: John White and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Week

Last spring, Jindal pushed through the legislature the nation’s most sweeping voucher plan, hoping to undermine public education.

The legislation encourages charters and enacts a teacher evaluation plan that is tied to test scores and extremely punitive.

If the voucher process is any indication, privatization will move ahead with minimal regulation or quality controls.

Louisiana enacted virtually every piece of ALEC legislation. You might say that the state is the poster child for ALEC.

The state is throwing open the door to for-profit entrepreneurs or anyone who wants a piece of the public schools’ minimum foundation budget

A federal judge will decide whether the state is diverting money that was supposed to support desegregation into the voucher program.

More than half the children in the state are eligible–about 450,000 students–but only 10,000 or so applied.

The schools they will attend are mainly religious, and some lack even the rudiments of a decent education, like a curriculum, classrooms, teachers–the little things like that.

And the Jindal charterization of the state has hardly begun.

White has a herculean task, doing what privatizers like to do: handing public money over to private interests with little if any oversight.

And lots of out-of-state money flowed into Louisiana to make sure that Jindal gained control of the state board so that Jindal got just the guy he wanted to do the dirty work, and all these privatization plans would move forward, along with new contracts for–what else–TFA.

Categories ALEC, Charter Schools, For-Profit, Jindal, Bobby, Louisiana, Privatization, Vouchers
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