Archives for category: Pennsylvania
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

TeacherBiz Reviews “Reign of Error”

By dianeravitch
October 4, 2013 //
11

Ani McHugh, who blogs as TeacherBiz, wrote about the book after she heard me speak in Philadelphia on September 16. She was impressed that despite my age, I still spoke with “the energy and passion of a much younger woman.” She doesn’t realize that 75 is the new 55.

She brings to her review the unique perspective of Philadelphia, a city under siege, trying to maintain a semblance of education despite massive budget cuts by the state, which takes no responsibility despite the clear language of the state constitution.

Philadelphia and Pennsylvania are home to many of the misdeeds described in the book. The collapse of public education in Chester-Upland, where the governor’s biggest campaign contributor opened a thriving charter. The proliferation of virtual charters. The failure of a privatization under Paul Vallas.

Philadelphia is in extremis. The state’s willingness to preserve free public education in that city will be a test of our society a test of our commitment to equality of educational opportunity.

 

Categories Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Reign of Error

Rhee Vs. Ravitch in Philadelphia

By dianeravitch
September 27, 2013 //
27

As it happened, Michelle Rhee and I nearly crossed paths in
Philadelphia. This
article describes our contrasting visions for the public
schools of Philadelphia. She spoke on September 16, in a panel that
included George Parker, the former head of the Washington Teachers
Union, who now works for Rhee, and Steve Perry, ex-CNN commentator.

Governor Tom Corbett cut $1 billion from the schools in 2011, while cutting corporate taxes. He later added back a small part of the cut, but he left many districts in terrible fiscal trouble.

Philadelphia public schools have a deficit of $300 million, and
thousands of staff have been laid off, including teachers, guidance
counselors, social workers, librarians, and many others. Bear in mind that the Philadelphia public schools have been under state control for more than a decade. During that time, Superintendent Paul Vallas launched the nation’s most sweeping privatization experiment, which failed, according to independent evaluations.

According to this article (and in an op-ed published in the Philadelphia
Inquirer), Rhee saw the fiscal crisis as an opportunity to
introduce performance pay. How that would close the budget deficit
was unclear.

In my presentation at the Philadelphia Free Library, I read the language of the state
constitution, which unequivocally assigns responsibility to the
state of Pennsylvania to support a thorough and efficient education
for every child. That is not the case today. Governor Tom Corbett
expects the state-controlled School Reform Commission to squeeze
savings out of the teachers’ contracts, cutting salaries, benefits,
and laying off more teachers. That is not the way to go.

Someday the children of Philadelphia will be the voters of Pennsylvania or
some other state. They must be educated to choose their leaders
wisely. Someday these children may sit on a jury where YOU will be
judged. Just hope that they have the wisdom, knowledge, and
compassion to judge you fairly. My view: The children of
Philadelphia are as worthy of a good education as the children in
the nearby suburbs. They need small classes, experienced teachers,
arts programs, well-maintained facilities, guidance counselors,
libraries staffed by librarians, up-to-date technology. They need
what the parents in the suburbans want for their children. And they
deserve nothing less.

Categories Education Reform, Merit pay, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Rhee, Michelle

Yinzercation: Our Pep Rally in Pittsburgh

By dianeravitch
September 19, 2013 //
3

Jessie Ramey, who writes Yinzercation, and Kipp Dawson, a union activist and teacher in the Pittsburgh public schools, invited me to come to their city. I had my first event there, and it was sensational! I will let Jessie describe it.

Let me add that I especially wanted to meet Kipp, because I learned that she worked as a coal miner for more than a decade. I imagined a burly woman, but she turned out to be tiny, but with a steely determination. The kind that enables a woman who is 5’1″ to carry a 50-pound pack on her back and persist, the kind that will fight for kids today.

 

Categories Pennsylvania, Reign of Error

Lessons from Pittsburgh

By dianeravitch
September 17, 2013 //
23

I had a wonderful inaugural event in my book tour in Pittsburgh. It was organized by parent activist Jessie Ramey, who writes the blog Yinzercation, and union activist Kipp Dawson. It was co-sponsored by seven local universities, the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers, and a galaxy of educational justice groups, including GPS (Great Pittsburgh Schools).

The audience included many elected officials, including the newly elected mayor, school board members, and Superintendent Linda Lane.

The event began with a long and fabulous set played on African drums by about 20 students, who seemed to range in age from 9-13 or so. They were great!

I spoke, then was followed by the Westinghouse high school marching band. They arrived with great vivacity, but their story was heartbreaking. This school, which produced a number of legendary jazz greats, has been decimated by budget cuts. The school’s jazz program was shut down years ago. Now the marching band has no instruments, and their uniforms are hand-md-downs. A speaker, Reverend Thornton, pleaded with the crowd, to make donations to help the band that has neither instruments nor uniforms nor a stable band director.

Anyone want to see the “crisis in American education”? Come see how the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is denying a thorough and efficient education to the children of Pittsburgh. Especially the children of color.

Categories Budget Cuts, Pennsylvania

Breaking News: Founder of Pennsylvania Cyber Charter Indicted

By dianeravitch
August 24, 2013 //
22

Nicholas Trombetta, founder of the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School, has been indicted by federal authorities on 11 fraud and tax charges.

Trombetta’s school is the largest cyber charter in the state and possibly the nation, with 10,000 students and annual revenues in excess of $100 million.

Prosecutors said that Trombetta had stolen nearly $1 million. He “is accused of creating entity after entity, ultimately controlling what prosecutors said was an intricate web of interlocking businesses whose purpose was to enrich himself, his sister and various associates.”

Trombetta’s attorney said he will plead not guilty.

“The indictment alleges that the former wrestling coach and school superintendent formed businesses that billed for doing no work; masked his control of a corporation by naming straw owners; hid income from the IRS; took $550,000 in kickbacks on a laptop computer contract with Virginia-based NCS Technologies Inc.; and even “caused” employees to make $40,000 in individual payments to his favored political candidates before reimbursing them through one of his companies.

Although no such charges have been filed, there is a federal statute that prohibits making campaign contributions in the name of another person, or what are referred to as “conduit political contributions.”

Prosecutors insisted they were not making any judgments about cyber charters, just about Mr. Trombetta’s financial dealings.

As we have learned from studies like the one conducted by CREDO and another by NEPC, cyber charters provide an inferior quality of education–high attrition rates, low graduation rates, low test scores.

But the money is really good for those who run the schools, so long as they don’t break the law.

Categories Charter Schools, On-Line Education, Pennsylvania

Best Quote of the Day

By dianeravitch
August 16, 2013 //
20

In a front page story in the New York Times about the budget crisis in Philadelphia, parent leader Helen Gym said this:

“The concept is just jaw-dropping,” said Helen Gym, who has three children in the city’s public schools. “Nobody is talking about what it takes to get a child educated. It’s just about what the lowest number is needed to get the bare minimum. That’s what we’re talking about here: the deliberate starvation of one of the nation’s biggest school districts.”

The story says that Philadelphia does not have an elected board but fails to explain that the city has been under state control for more than a decade. During that decade, also unmentioned in the story, Paul Vallas “saved” the schools.

Maybe Pennsylvania doesn’t want to pay for schools anymore. Maybe it just wants ill-tended buildings, large classes, no arts, nothing else. But lots of prisons.

Categories Budget Cuts, Parents, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

Why Is Pennsylvania Unable to Pay for Public Schools?

By dianeravitch
August 13, 2013 //
15

Pennsylvania has more cyber charters than any other state (16 at last count). It also has a large charter sector that performs no better than public schools. The Governor took $1 billion out of the public schools’ budget, and he is allowing the public schools of Philadelphia to die.

Here is a good explanation:

“We cannot afford four separate school systems

“Pennsylvanians must decide if we want to continue to support public education or if we will allow those who want to privatize education to prevail. Pennsylvania taxpayers are now supporting four separate school systems – our traditional community-based public schools, bricks and mortar charter schools, cyber-charter schools and private schools. We simply cannot afford it. The funding being diverted from our community-based public schools to charters and private schools is killing public education.

“Pennsylvania taxpayers are spending $946 million on bricks and mortar charter schools, 71 percent of which did not meet the federal Adequate Yearly Progress standard (AYP), $366 million on cyber-charters, none of which met AYP. The Education Improvement Tax Credit program is diverting another $200 million from public schools to support private schools.

“The Philadelphia public school crisis shows us the future for many public schools around the Commonwealth if we do not recommit to adequate funding for our school districts.”

http://www.hangerforgovernor.com/we_cannot_afford_four_separate_school_systems”

Categories Budget Cuts, Charter Schools, On-Line Education, Pennsylvania

Photo of the Day from Philadelphia Parents

By dianeravitch
August 11, 2013 //
13

Here it is.

A carefree governor paddling away while the children of Philadelphia lose arts, sports, computers, guidance counselors, librarians, books, etc.

Categories Parents, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

As Philadelphia Schools Die, Governor Corbett Goes Kayaking

By dianeravitch
August 11, 2013 //
4

This just in from a retired Pennsylvania school superintendent:

“Beyond Belief!

“On the August 9 front page of The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Philadelphia Superintendent of Schools makes a desperate last minute plea for adequate funding to give his city’s school children some semblance of equal educational opportunity.

“And the state and city leadership response is similar to the legend of Nero fiddling while Rome is burning.

“Pennsylvania governor Tom Corbett is pictured below the Philadelphia school crisis story in the same page one issue of The Philadelphia Inquirer taking a kayak trip, obviously Pennsylvania’s top political priority.

“The Pennsylvania legislature—the largest body of its kind in the USA— sleeps through this tragic episode in its comfortable (or is it racist?) belief that quality education for some of the state’s poorest children is not of their concern.

“The politically appointed School Reform Commission allegedly overseeing Philadelphia’s public schools continues down its clueless road of ineptitude.

“Elected Philadelphia city officials vehemently argue with each other about who is right and who is wrong about what to do while doing nothing.

“All of this is a national disgrace and should be the basis of a civil rights court lawsuit.

“Pathetic episodes of political incompetence are all too common these days in our nation. And this one has the potential to negatively impact the lives of many thousands of innocent children and the future of Philadelphia for years to come.”

Joseph P. Batory
Former Superintendent of Schools, Upper Darby, PA
Philadelphia, PA

Categories Budget Cuts, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

ALEC Has a Stranglehold on Pennsylvania Legislature

By dianeravitch
August 6, 2013 //
8

Jodi Hirsh of Pittsburgh writes that ALEC has forty members in the Pennsylvania legislature, and many hold key positions. ALEC is the voice of major corporations, who oppose any sort of government regulations.

She writes that:

“House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, Senate Judiciary Chair Stewart Greenleaf, and House State Government Chair Daryl Metcalfe, as well as the Republican chairs of the Health, Veterans’ Affairs, Educational, Game & Fisheries, Consumer Affairs, Ethics, Commerce, Labor & Industry, State Government, Education, and the Senate’s Law & Justice committees, have all been participants in the organization.”

She says that “If ALEC has its way, Pennsylvanians can look forward to losing paid sick days and minimum wages, forcing schools to teach climate denialism, repealing the capital gains and estate taxesto help the very wealthy, and privatizing education, Medicare, and Medicaid. What kind of state would Pennsylvania become if ALEC’s agenda were fully actualized? Not one that many of us would like to live in.”

ALEC is meeting Wednesday in Chicago for its 40th annual conference. Usually, its meetings are held in remote, luxurious resorts. Chicago is an odd choice for an organization that is at the epicenter of the attack on American public education and on unions, among other issues.

 

 

Categories ALEC, Pennsylvania
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »