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New York: Parents Sue Cuomo to Release “Frozen” Funds for Neediest Schools

By dianeravitch
March 12, 2017 //
7

The Education Law Center is suing Governor Cuomo on behalf of parents at some of New York state’s neediest schools, seeking the release of $37 million the state owes these schools. :


PARENTS ASK NY APPEALS COURT TO RELEASE ILLEGALLY FROZEN SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT FUNDS

Parents of students in three public schools are asking a New York appeals court to immediately release over $37 million in improvement grant funds frozen a year ago by Governor Andrew Cuomo.

The latest request comes in a lawsuit filed by the parents charging the Cuomo Administration’s budget director, Robert Mujica, with violating the law when he refused to release grants previously appropriated by the Legislature to boost programs and services in twenty, high need schools across the state. Education Law Center represents the plaintiff parents and students.

On December 28, 2016, Judge Kimberly O’Connor in Albany found that the budget director exceeded his legal authority in withholding the grants and ordered the funds be immediately released to the NY State Education Department for distribution to support vital programs in the schools.

Governor Cuomo decided to appeal Judge O’Connor’s ruling last month. Under New York law, the appeal triggers an automatic stay of the order to release the funds. The parents are now asking the appeals court to lift the stay, citing the irreparable harm to students if the schools are unable to implement the programs supported by the grant funds.

“If the grant money is not released pending this appeal, hundreds of children in New York’s neediest schools will lose educational opportunities that they cannot regain,” said Wendy Lecker, ELC senior attorney. “Education is cumulative, so when students are deprived of the support needed for learning that not only limits their achievement this year, but impedes progress as they move to subsequent grades.”

In affidavits filed in support of the parents’ request to the appeals court, administrators from three of the schools deprived of the grant funds – Hackett Middle School in Albany, Roosevelt High School in Yonkers, and JHS 80 Mosholu Parkway Middle School in the Bronx – detailed the essential programs they can no longer provide without the grants. These include extended learning time, social work and counseling, family outreach, academic intervention and professional development. The programs were implemented in 2015-16 with the first year of grant funds, but are on hold since the Governor decided to withhold the second year of funding.

Numerous programs have been held up by the Governor’s action:

Hackett Middle School discontinued extended instructional time to provide students with additional academic assistance and professional development for teachers.

Roosevelt High School cut a literacy/math coach and parent coordinator; discontinued professional development opportunities for teachers; and eliminated or sharply curtailed weekend and after-school extended learning time, college visits and CTE pathways.

JHS 80 Mosholu Parkway Middle School could not implement any of its proposed programs, including mentoring for at-risk students, social workers and guidance counselors for their extended day program, and professional development for teachers.

The appropriation for the grants will lapse in March 2018. If the funds are not released pending the appeal, the schools may lose access to the remainder of the funds, permanently depriving students of the opportunity to benefit from the programs and services the grants were intended to support.

Education Law Center Press Contact:
Sharon Krengel
Policy and Outreach Director
skrengel@edlawcenter.org
973-624-1815, x 24

Categories Accountability, Funding, Inequity, Injustice, New York, New York City

New York Republican Leader Endorses DeVos, to Dismay of Parents and Educators

By dianeravitch
February 1, 2017 //
16

John Flanagan, majority leader of the Republican-controlled state senate in New York, endorsed Betsy DeVos, shocking parent leaders and educators. Flanagan showed himself to be an enemy of public schools.

State Sen. Flanagan Draws Heat for Supporting Trump’s Education Secretary Pick

Michael Hynes, superintendent of Patchogue-Medford Schools, said Flanagan’s support of DeVos is “reprehensible.”

“It shows his true colors, and clearly he does not care about public education,” said Hynes, who has been a leading critic of the reliance on standardized state test scores to measure student performance.

Jeanette Deutermann, a Common Core critic, leader of the Opt-Out movement on Long Island and member of the steering committee for the New York State Allies for Public Education, denounced Flanagan’s endorsement of DeVos.

“Anyone who watched those confirmation hearings or dipped even an inch into her background yet still supports her nomination is doing so under a delusional ego-driven political pretense and cares nothing for his young constituents in our Long Island public schools or their parents,” Deutermann told the Press.

“Marla Kilfoyle, social studies teacher at Oceanside High School and manager of teacher advocacy group Badass Teachers Association, said that Flanagan’s support for DeVos proved his lack of concern not only for the students of New York, but for the entire nation.

“John Flanagan has shown time and time again that he will put his own needs and wants before the families and children of New York State,” Kilfoyle told the Press. “To endorse a dangerously unqualified candidate like Betsy DeVos, who had no clue that [Individuals with Disabilities Education Act] was a federal law that states had to follow, who had no clue what the difference was between proficiency and growth, and who said that guns were okay in schools so we could shoot grizzly bears, only proves she is absolutely unqualified.”

DeVos had pushed for passage of Michigan’s first charter-school bill in 1993, which allowed public money to be used for semi-independent schools that operated outside of the regulations that govern more traditional public schools. Public and private funds poured into the charter initiatives, but there was virtually no transparency on how that money was spent. A Detroit Free Press investigation reported that students’ standardized-test scores at charter schools were no better than traditional public school scores.

“The report also found that lower-income students were “effectively segregated into poorer-performing schools, while the parents of more privileged students were better equipped to navigate the system.”

Categories Betsy DeVos, New York

New York: Elia Speaks Out, Says Detractors Must “Make a Case” Against Paladino

By dianeravitch
January 4, 2017 //
42

I posted a few minutes ago that New York Commissioner of Education MaryEllen Elia has been silent on the Carl Paladino issue.

 

But I just learned that she gave an interview and said she was waiting for his detractors to make a case against him.

 

It is not enough for Elia that Paladino made blatantly racist comments. She wants someone to explain to her why this is a problem.

 

This is what Paladino wrote to a local publication, ArtVoice, as his wishes for 2017. This was ArtVoice’s comment, followed by a statement from Paladino that the following remarks are not racist.

 

Carl’s remarks were in response to Artvoice queries: 1. “What would you most like to happen in 2017?” and 2. “What would you like to see go away in 2017?” Paladino’s answers were: 1. ” Obama catches mad cow disease after being caught having relations with a Herford. He dies before his trial and is buried in a cow pasture next to Valerie Jarret, who died weeks prior, after being convicted of sedition and treason, when a Jihady cell mate mistook her for being a nice person and decapitated her.” 2. “Michelle Obama. I’d like her to return to being a male and let loose in the outback of Zimbabwe where she lives comfortably in a cave with Maxie, the gorilla.”

 

Do you think those comments are racist?

 

Who will convince Elia that this is a problem? Paladino is a public official, not a private citizen.

Categories New York, Racism

Will New York Commissioner MaryEllen Elia Require Carl Paladino to Resign?

By dianeravitch
January 3, 2017 //
3

As has been widely reported, real estate developer Carl Paladino released a racist attack on President Obama, Michelle Obama, and the President’s close advisor Valerie Jarrett. He said vile things about them. He is not a private citizen. He is a member of the Buffalo (NY) school board. He is also a major supporter of charter schools.

 

The Buffalo school board has called on him to resign. He won’t resign. The only person who can force his to step down is the State Commissioner of Education MaryEllen Elia. Will she do it? No one knows.

 

If she does not demand his resignation, the New York State Board of Regents should order her to do so. She is an employee of the Regents. The Regents should not permit this abusive and racist man to remain on a school board as a public official.

 

Activists in Buffalo have launched a boycott of Paladino’s businesses, which includes several charter schools.

 

Please contact the members of the New York Board of Regents and urge them to remove this man. Their emails are in the link.

 

 

Categories Accountability, New York, Racism

Daniel Katz: Carl Paladino Must Go! Now.

By dianeravitch
December 30, 2016 //
11

Daniel Katz describes Carl Paladino’s many inappropriate remarks, crowned by his recent rant against President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and Obama advisor Valerie Jarrett. Paladino insists his remarks were not racist, but the only way to believe that is not to read the words he wrote.

 

He is a racist, by any definition of the term. He is also sexist and homophobic.

 

And he is an enthusiastic backer of charter schools, some of which rent space from his company.

 

Katz notes that none of the charter school cheerleaders have said peep about Paladino. He and his reputation make it hard to regurgitate the line that charter schools are “the civil rights issue of our time.”

Categories Charter Schools, New York, Racism

Buffalo School Board Tells Paladino to Resign Within 24 Hours

By dianeravitch
December 30, 2016 //
9

 

 

The Buffalo School Board voted to demand Carl Paladino resign within 24 hours or they would ask the New York Commissioner of Education to remove him. Paladino was co-chair of the Trump campaign in New York.

 

The board was outraged by Paladino’s vile racist remarks directed at President Obama and his wife, published last week in a local journal.

 

“Words matter, Mr. Paladino,” said Barbara Seals Nevergold, the president of the board.
The words in question came in response to a survey about hopes for 2017, sent to members of the Buffalo community by Artvoice, a local weekly newspaper.
In it, Mr. Paladino said he wished Mr. Obama would die of mad cow disease. He also wished Ms. Obama would “return to being a male and let loose in the outback of Zimbabwe where she lives comfortably in a cave with Maxie, the gorilla.” Mr. Paladino, a wealthy builder and political ally of President-elect Donald J. Trump, ran for governor in 2010 as the Republican nominee.

 

 

Categories New York, Racism

Buffalo School Board Asks Paladino to Resign

By dianeravitch
December 29, 2016 //
19

Carl Paladino released a disgusting racist statement expressing his hopes for 2017.

 

The Buffalo school board, of which he is a member, passed a resolution calling on him to resign. Paladino has already declared that he won’t resign.

 

It now falls to MaryEllen Elia, the State Commissioner of Education, to remove him for conduct unbecoming a public official.

 

Here is the resolution:

 

 

Resolution Regarding the Conduct of Board Member Carl Paladino

 

December 29, 2016

 

Submitted by Board Member Hope Jay

 

Whereas, in a December 23, 2016 edition of the publication Artvoice, School Board Member Carl Paladino made the following statements in response to the questions of “What would you most like to happen in 2017?” and “What would you like to see go away in 2017?”:

 

1. Obama catches mad cow disease after being caught having relations with a Hereford. He dies before his trial and is buried in a cow pasture next to Valerie Jarret, who died weeks prior, after being convicted of sedition and treason, when a Jihady cell mate mistook her for being a nice person and decapitated her.

 

2. Michelle Obama. I’d like her to return to being a male and let loose in the outback of Zimbabwe where she lives comfortably in a cave with Maxie, the gorilla.” And,

 

Whereas, Mr. Paladino acknowledged that he made these statements; And, Mr. Paladino is an elected official charged with the responsibility to represent children and families in a district comprised of over 70% Black, Brown, Asian, Immigrant and other minority students and families; And, Mr. Paladino took an oath to ensure that students are afforded an environment which is free from fear and respects diversity within the school district and the community and is subject to all district policies;

 

And,

Whereas, These unambiguously racist, morally repugnant, flagrantly disrespectful, inflammatory and inexcusable comments by Mr. Paladino have garnered both local, national, and
international attention that reflects negatively on the Buffalo Board of Education, the City of Buffalo and its leadership and its citizens, the State of New York, and every decent human being in America and abroad who has been shocked and offended by his words;

 

And,

Whereas, Mr. Paladino’s behavior has irrevocably impacted the work of the Buffalo Board of Education by negatively impacting the Buffalo City School District in its goal of safeguarding
the rights of all students in promoting a safe and healthy environment in which students are treated respectfully, by everyone, And, the inalienable right, guaranteed by the New York State Constitution and the Dignity for All Students Act, afforded to the children of the City of Buffalo to be provided an education free of discrimination and harassment;

 

And,

Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Buffalo Board of Education demands that Mr. Paladino immediately resign within 24 hours from his position with the Board. In the event that Mr.
Paladino declines to resign within 24 hours, the Board resolves that it shall retain outside legal counsel to file a 306 Petition with NYS Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia to pursue Mr. Paladino’s removal from the Buffalo Board of Education. Recommendations for outside counsel shall be made by the General Counsel.

 

 

President Barbara A. Nevergold, Theresa Harris-Tigg, Paulette Woods, Sharon Belton-Cottman, Jennifer Mecozzi, Hope R. Jay

Categories Accountability, New York, Racism

Regents Exploring Legal Means to Remove Buffalo School Board Member Palladino for Racist Remarks

By dianeravitch
December 27, 2016 //
39

When Carl Paladino, a billionaire real estate executive in Buffalo, New York, and a close ally of Trump, made outrageously racist and offensive remarks about President Obama and his wife, the national media paid attention. The Paladino story went viral. The State Board of Regents is now reviewing whether and how he may be removed from his elected office. One lawyer suggested that “conduct unbecoming a school board officer” might be grounds enough.

 

Paladino was unapologetic for his remarks. He said he will not resign. He said that he didn’t know his comments would be published. He did not explain how his comments were sent to a local website that invited his answers to specific questions.

 

 

 

 

Categories Accountability, New York, Racism

Local School Board in New York Opposes DeVos Nomination

By dianeravitch
December 23, 2016 //
7

The elected board of the Patchogue-Medford School District on Long Island in New York adopted the following resolution at its December meeting:

 

 

 

Whereas, the Board of Education of the Patchogue-Medford School District has been elected by the residents of the Patchogue-Medford Union Free School District to determine policy and approve programming for the students of the district, within the confines of both federal and state statutes governing education, and

 

Whereas, this Board of Education, on many occasions, has expressed its displeasure with the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act and the Every Student Succeeds Act, as well as the implementation of the Common Core and Annual Professional Performance Review and the high stakes testing which accompany these mandates, and

 

 

Whereas, the Board of Education wants all of our students, regardless of ability, background, race, or gender, to feel secure, focusing on the physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and relational growth of our students, and

 

Whereas, President-Elect Trump has called for the nomination of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education of the United States, a candidate apparently lacking any credentials as an educator, experience in the administration and management of public schools, demonstrating a pre-disposition towards and long-history of support for charter schools and school voucher programs, which by their very nature eviscerate free and appropriate public education for specific economic, social and racial groups, and

 

Whereas, Ms. DeVos has been at the forefront of the establishment of the Detroit charter school initiative, by all accounts an abject failure which hurt students and enriched the coffers of private companies, therefore be it

 
Resolved, that the Patchogue-Medford Board of Education hereby, based on this record, opposes the confirmation of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, and until such time as the incoming Trump administration presents a formal vision for the future of public education in the United States of America

 

and will continue to oppose such a nomination, and calls upon the incoming United States Senate to stand firm by opposing this nominee and affirming this serious need, and be it further

 
Resolved, that the Board of Education invites the president-elect, the nominee for secretary of education or representatives of the incoming education team to meet with them to conduct a forthright and meaningful discussion about the future of public education and their strategies to affect the necessary changes.

Categories Betsy DeVos, Charter Schools, Corporate Reformers, New York, Privatization

Gary Rubinstein Solves the Mystery of the Missing Regents’ Exam Scores for Eva Moskowitz’s Success Academy Students

By dianeravitch
December 14, 2016 //
15

Gary Rubinstein was curious about  how students in the Success Academy high school fared on the mandatory state Regents examinations. He called and called to state offices, but he got a run-around. Two days after he blogged about it, he learned the answer to his question: Success Academy, which is celebrated for producing high test scores, has an exemption from the state so its high school students do not have to take the Regents exams required of all others. (The only exception to the mandate is a group of small, project-based schools called The Consortium schools, who offer portfolio assessments instead of state tests; they received an exemption about 20 years ago.)

 

Eva Moskowitz, the CEO of the SA charter chain, receives millions of dollars from benefactors every year in recognition of the high test scores of her charters.

 

Success Academy has gotten so much attention (and money) for their high 3-8 test scores that it is only natural to wonder how the few older students they have in their schools have fared after 8th grade. One thing we know is that Success Academy eighth graders have not done well on the specialized high school entrance exam to gain admissions to one of the eight specialized high schools. They have had three cohorts of students take the entrance exam and the first two cohorts had no students gain admission and the third cohort had six students out of two hundred eligible gain admission to one of the eight specialized high schools.

 

Rubinstein found this very puzzling: Why would a school that prided itself on turning students into “little test-taking machines” avoid the Regents exams? He has a few theories about that. Read his post to find out what he believes explains this special case of avoiding the required tests.

Categories Accountability, Charter Schools, Harlem Success Academy, New York, New York City, Privatization, Testing
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