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California: Teachers in Los Angeles and Oakland Preparing for Confrontation

By dianeravitch
December 16, 2018 //
9

Bill Raden of Capital & Main reports on potential strike developments in Los Angeles and Oakland.

Two California teachers unions, which are currently deadlocked in separate contract talks with their respective school districts, are on the verge of launching the West Coast’s biggest teacher walkout since 1989. What happens next will decide far more than fair wages for career educators. At stake are broader principles of equity, expressed as contract demands for smaller class sizes and less testing, the addition of sufficient health and social services staff, and an investment in community schooling and fair funding — aimed at restoring public education as a public good for all Californians, rather than as a private interest granted to the lucky few…

Meanwhile, an estimated 90 Oakland Unified teachers skipped classes December 10 in a one-day wildcat sickout to protest some of the state’s lowest teacher pay — against a backdrop of California’s fast-rising living costs. But a more fundamental grievance is with the $60 million that Oakland Unified must cut over the next two years. It has led superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammell to adopt a draconian district downsizing plan that could close up to 24 mostly low-income neighborhood public schools and coordinate the remainder of the 87-campus district with the city’s 34 charters on things like enrollment and transportation. The strategy has been likened to a “portfolio model,” the controversial template for privatized district governance that favors charter expansion at the expense of traditional public schools.

It also bears an uncanny resemblance to “Re-Imagine LAUSD,” the prematurely leaked but still mostly secret pet portfolio plan of L.A. Unified supe Austin Beutner — just one of the issues behind the takeover by 50 placard-carrying protesters at the L.A. school board meeting last Tuesday. Students, parents and teachers seized the floor and unfurled a banner of union-aligned demands: an end to random student searches; reductions in class sizes and testing; and the hiring of more health workers, community schools and per-pupil funding. For good measure, they also chanted down attempts by board president Mónica Garcia to restore order, a caterwaul that eventually drove Beutner and his board allies from the room…

If November’s blue wave means the tide has indeed turned against California’s market-driven ed reformers, grassroots activists aren’t resting on any laurels. That’s why they are circulating a petition launched by the Oakland Public Education Network (OPEN), asking Governor-elect Gavin Newsom to abide by four seemingly common sense hiring principles:

*No conflicts of business interests

*Education-related appointments must strictly mirror California’s 90/10 proportion of public-to-charter-school enrollments

*No more Betsy DeVoses guarding the regulatory henhouse (i.e., appoint only seasoned, public school-committed educators to the Advisory Commission on Charter Schools)

*Genuinely partner with the public schools community to uproot what OPEN considers the predatory incentives and equity barriers that it says are the legacy of California’s 25-year-long ed reform wrong turn.

Categories Accountability, California, Charter Schools, Education Industry, Los Angeles, Oakland, Privatization, Resistance, Teachers, Unions

Steven Singer: The Media Effort to Deflate the Teacher Revolt of Spring 2018

By dianeravitch
December 16, 2018 //
15

Steven Singer noticed a curious phenomenon: certain mainstream media outlets “The Atlantic” and “Education Week”) were intent on proving that the Teacher Revolt of Spring 2018 had fizzled out and that the cries of “We Will Remember in November” had fallen flat.

Since I’m writing a book that includes this topic, I noticed the same slant innlocal reporting: where were the teachers who ran for office? Why were so few elected?

What struck me was that teacher candidates ran as underfunded, unknown novices, often taking on experienced politicians. I was impressed that any of them won. The journalists seemed to think that if 2 or 3 won their races, that was a defeat. I didn’t see it that way. It was amazing that any was elected.

Steven lists a number of races where teachers’ votes made the difference. He could have added flipping the New Hampshire Legislature. Electing an educator, Kathy Hoffman, as State Superintendent in deep red Arizona, where she beat a former charter school operator. And the number of states where the anti-public school supermajority was broken (we are unlikely to hear much about vouchers in Texas for the next two years because of the blue wave in that state that broke the grip of righwingers in the legislator. The victory of Pro-public School Tony Thurmond over Charter School ally Marshall Tuck in the race for State Superintendent of Instruction in California, although Tuck’s campaign spent twice as much as Thurmond’s.

I wsxhoping that TIME would choose the Brave Teachers who fought for funding their schools as Person of the Year. But I was gratified to see that Time honored journalists who stood up for truth and facts.

A tough choice.

Thanks to Steven Singer for putting the victory of Brave Teachers in perspective.

Categories Accountability, Resistance, Teacher Pay, Teachers

Los Angeles: Our Public Schools Are Not for Sale!

By dianeravitch
December 4, 2018 //
4

This full-page ad appeared in the Los Angeles Times a few days ago. It was paid for by the United Teachers of Los Angeles.

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Categories Accountability, Billionaires, Broad Foundation, California, Charter Schools, Corporate Reformers, Education Reform, Los Angeles, Privatization, Resistance, Supporting public schools

How the Teacher Revolt Promoted the Blue Wave

By dianeravitch
November 28, 2018 //
8

In the immediate aftermath of the midterm elections, first reports asserted that the teachers’ revolt fizzled at the ballot box. So many teachers ran for the state legislature, they said, and only three or four or five won. But consider, the teachers who entered politics were novices, with no money, no experience, no name recognition. Congratulations to those who dared to enter the political arena! Don’t give up!

The Guardian has a very different take on the role of teachers in the recent election.

Midterms show educators have been swept into office in record numbers

A wave of pro-education energy, spurred by the April walkouts, led to election victories in Oklahoma, Arizona and Wisconsin

The Guardian writes:

A new wave of teachers’ strikes could soon hit US schools, with educators in Chicago and Los Angeles considering walkouts. And after the midterm elections, they will have stronger allies.

Across the country, in Arizona, Oklahoma and Wisconsin, teachers made huge gains in the midterm elections – a movement that grew out of the #RedforEd campaign that saw teachers protesting across the country to reverse years of conservative cuts to public education.

Last April, thousands of teachers across the state of Oklahoma went on strike; making increased funding for education and a seat at the table in education a priority. Now, educators have been swept in record numbers into office in Oklahoma. Earlier this month, 16 educators were elected to the Oklahoma state house; bringing the total number of educators in the state legislature to 25.

The wave of pro-education energy helped Kendra Horn become the first Democrat to be elected from Oklahoma’s fifth congressional district in 44 years and the first female Democratic representative to the House from Oklahoma.

Horn, 42, made education funding a central focus of her campaign and had many teachers going door-to-door on her behalf.

“We saw a greater involvement of teachers than ever before during this political process over the last six months when we moved from the walkout to the elections and teachers found their collective voice and they aren’t going anywhere,” said the Oklahoma Education Association vice-president, Katherine Bishop.

Carri Hicks, a fourth-grade teacher from Deer Valley in the suburbs of Oklahoma City, was one of those striking teachers elected to the state senate on 6 November; flipping a seat previously held by a Republican to the Democratic column.

Hicks said that she saw how the issue of education funding was able to win so many voters for the Democrats.

She said many voters had previously had trouble understanding the link between education cuts and the tax cuts the state gave to corporations and the oil and gas industry. That changed after the teachers’ strike.

“I feel like the walkout really brought those inequities to light and people were much more willing to have that conversation because they understood the magnitude,” said Hicks. “You know, finally, having a united front and coming together shed light on some dark places in our public education system and was powerful.”

In Arizona, where more than 70,000 teachers and their supporters marched on the state capitol in April, teachers made big gains at the ballot box; electing a former college educator, Kyrsten Sinema, as senator, defeating a ballot measure that would have expanded education vouchers in the state and making gains in the state legislature.

Teachers also helped elect 31-year-old school speech therapist Kathy Hoffman as Arizona state school superintendent, the first time in 25 years that a Democrat has held the office in Arizona.

Two years ago, after watching the Betsy DeVos confirmation as secretary of education, Hoffman, a member of the American Federation of Teachers, decided to run for Arizona schools superintendent. Hoffman used her network of teacher activists to defeat better-funded opponents, both Democratic and Republican.

Keep reading!

Categories Education Reform, Resistance, Teachers

Jeff Bryant: Voters Reject the Rightwing Push for School Privatization

By dianeravitch
November 24, 2018 //
13

Jeff Bryant reviews the victories for public education in the last elections.

The big victories were the overwhelming defeat of voucher legislation in Arizona and the Tony Thurmond’s election over the charter lobby’s candidate Marshall Tuck in the Califotnia race for state school superintendent, despite Tuck’s more than 2-1 funding advantage.

And there were many more victories, especially in governors’ races.

In gubernatorial races across the Midwest, Democrats ran and won with strong oppositional messages against school privatization.

In Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer won a governor’s seat formerly occupied by Rick Snyder after campaigning to “end the [Betsy] DeVos agenda in Michigan,” close for-profit charter schools in the state, and propose additional oversights for charters.

In Minnesota, Democratic challenger for an open governor’s seat Tim Walz, a former public high school geography teacher and football coach, pledged to block any proposed voucher programs. He won decisively.

In Illinois, Democratic challenger J.B. Pritzker defeated incumbent Republican Governor Bruce Rauner, while pledging to end the state’s education tax credit voucher program, which already diverts public tax dollars to pay for private school tuition for 5,600 students….

In what is perhaps the most startling of charter school turnarounds, midterm elections in New York took down a longstanding coalition of Republicans and Democrats in the state Senate who colluded with charter advocate Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo to expand these schools and keep them relatively regulation-free.

As New York City public school art teacher and citizen journalist Jake Jacobs reports for the Progressive, a faction of eight Democratic state senators calling themselves the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) had for years shared power and donors with Senate Republicans to work with Governor Cuomo in maintaining a “favored status” for charter schools in the state.

In September primaries, six grassroots-backed Democratic candidates ousted IDC members, and then, in turn, handily beat their Republican opponents in November. Despite being vastly outspent by the Republicans, the insurgent Democrats pressed their cases to stop charter schools from taking over space in public school buildings and to block attempts to lift the cap on the numbers of charters that can operate in the state. Most supported a moratorium on new charter schools proposed by the NAACP.

Because of victories by these insurgent Democrats, who will insist on more scrutiny of charter schools, Jacobs foresees “a new landscape” in the state legislature “where evidence and research matter more than Albany’s rampant ‘pay-for-play’ arrangements” that have given charters the upper hand.

Similarly, in red states where teacher rebellions have begun to turn the tables on the school privatization industry, public school advocates are seeing a transformed political landscape where resistance is not only possible but winnable.

After midterm elections in Arizona, “we will have the most balanced state legislature since the 1980s,” says Beth Lewis, “with roughly half of the legislators having declared full support for fully funded public schools.”

Categories Arizona, California, Charter Schools, Corporate Reformers, Education Industry, Education Reform, Michigan, New York, Privatization, Resistance

Indianapolis: The Resistance Pushes Back Against Corporate Reformers

By dianeravitch
November 19, 2018 //
8

Indianapolis has been a major target for the privatization movement. A group called The Mind Trust, funded by billionaire foundations, has led the effort to destroy public education, while presenting its motives as benign and admirable.

The corporate reform attack on Indianapolis was described vividly in this post by Jim Scheurich and Gayle Crosby.

Tom Ultican wrote about the destructive role of The Mind Trust in Indianapolis, which claims to be allied with the Democratic Party.

Locals, lacking the resources of the privatizes, have fought to save their public schools.

Here is a report on the recent elections from Dountonia Batts, an active member of the Network for Public Education:

Sending a clear message that the community is fed up with corporate reform, voters in Indianapolis ousted two incumbents on the Indianapolis Public School (IPS) Board, replacing them with opponents of the district’s corporate reform agenda.

First-time candidates Taria Slack and Susan Collins were backed by the IPS Community Coalition (the Indianapolis AROS Chapter) and the local teachers union and ran against incumbents backed by Stand for Children and the Mind Trust, a corporate reform institute. Slack and Collins are vowing to pressure the IPS administration to improve transparency, genuine community collaboration and engagement, and hold the administration accountable.

Indianapolis schools have been under persistent attack by corporate reformers over the past decade, with increasing numbers of charters and public school closings. The district—under the tutelage of the Mind Trust—has also created so-called “Innovation Schools,” which are IPS schools that are handed over to a charter management organization. Innovation Schools have complete autonomy, a school board that is not elected by the public, and receive public funds. Additionally, this structure allows charters under the IPS umbrella to take advantage of district-provided services such as transportation and special education services at no cost. This victory is proof that ordinary citizens can defeat big money. People power trumps money power. IPS Community Coalition is organized, prepared, and ready to reclaim our schools

Sincerely,

Dountonia S. Batts, J.D., M.B.A., N.S.A.

Categories Accountability, Charter Schools, Closing schools, Corporate Reformers, Education Industry, Education Reform, Indianapolis, Privatization, Resistance

Leonie Haimson: Why Brooklyn Students Protested Against Mark Zuckerberg’s Summit Platform

By dianeravitch
November 14, 2018 //
15

Leonie Haimson provides a comprehensive report on the context for the Brooklyn high school protest against the Chan-Zuckerberg tech program called Summit. As she says, this is a David-Goliath situation. The students are powerful!


Last week, on November 5, about 100 students at the Secondary School of Journalism in Brooklyn walked out of their schools to protest the Summit online program. This digital instruction program, funded by Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and Bill Gates, forces students to spend hours staring at computers, left at sea with little human interaction or help from their teachers, all in the name of “personalized learning.”

As one of the students, Mitchel Storman, said to Sue Edelman who reported on the protest in the NY Post, “I have seen lots of students playing games instead of working….Students can easily cheat on quizzes since they can just copy and paste the question into Google.”

Zenaiah Bonsu, Kelly Hernandez and Akila Robinson credit: Helayne Seidman
Senior Akila Robinson said she couldn’t even log onto Summit for nearly two months, while other classmates can’t or won’t use it. “The whole day, all we do is sit there.” A teacher said, “It’s a lot of reading on the computer, and that’s not good for the eyes. Kids complain. Some kids refuse to do it.”

Since Norm Scott wrote about the walkout on his blog, and Sue Edelman’s reporting in the NY Post, the story has been picked up elsewhere including Fast Company and Business Insider. The online program, which originated in the Summit chain of charter schools in California, and was further developed and expanded with millions of dollars from the Gates Foundation, Facebook and nowthe Chan Zuckerberg LLC, has now invaded up to 300 or so public schools, and is collecting a huge amount of personal data from thousands of students without their knowledge or consent or that of their parents.

I have been writing and questioning Summit for the past two years, and last year, met with Diane Tavenner, asked her all sorts of questions she never responded to, and toured her flagship charter school in Redwood City. My description of this visit is here.

Since then, parents in 15 states have reached out to me in huge distress about the negative impact of this program on their children. Many report that their children, who had previously done well in school, now say that they aren’t learning, that they feel constantly stressed, are beginning to hate school and want to drop out. Some parents have told me that they are now homeschooling their kids or have decided to sell their homes and move out of the district

Categories Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, New York City, Privacy, Resistance, Students

New York City: Education Department Restricts Summit Learning in Response to Student Protest

By dianeravitch
November 12, 2018 //
3

Norm Scott, retired teacher, blogger, videographer and resistance leader, reports on the success of the Brooklyn student protest against the Chan-Zuckerberg Summit Learning Program.

Norm begins:

Here is today’s ed notes post on the situation at SSJ on the John Jay Campus.

How amazing are the students? At the SLT meeting, at first I could see some of the parents rolling their eyes at some of the things we were saying as the principal is so smooth. But when Leonie hit them with the data being collected, the mood shifted and so did the principal who had at first refused to talk about it but then backed off and there was an at times intense debate. Sue Edelman was there too.

I think the way the meeting played out itself is a story – maybe a play. So much better than the Del Assembly.

Norm

Categories Education Reform, New York City, Resistance, Students, Technology

News from NPE Action: Our Allies in Indianapolis Captured Two of Three Seats on the School Board!

By dianeravitch
November 9, 2018 //
10

Congratulations to public school advocates in Indianapolis, who were vastly outspent by the “School Choice Trust” (Mind Trust and Stand for Children), yet still managed to win two out of three seats on the school board!

The Indianapolis story is here.

Vocal critics of the Indianapolis Public Schools administration looked poised to unseat two incumbents in Tuesday’s school board election. The results signal opposition to sweeping moves that have reshaped the district, such as high school closings and partnerships with charter school operators.

The race for the at-large seat remained close as the final votes were tallied Wednesday night, with retired IPS teacher Susan Collins taking 43.7 percent of votes over incumbent Mary Ann Sullivan, a former board president. Collins led by about 600 votes — Sullivan held 42.4 percent of the vote, and Joanna Krumel, another challenger, had about 14 percent.

Taria Slack, a federal worker, defeated incumbent Dorene Rodriguez Hoops with 59 percent of the vote to represent the northwest side of the district.

The third seat was won by a proponent of school choice, a policy usually associated with conservatives and opponents of public education.

Categories Charter Schools, Education Industry, Indianapolis, Parents, Privatization, Resistance, School Choice

Good Election News for Public Education from Texas

By dianeravitch
November 9, 2018 //
7

Beto O’Rourke lost his race against Ted Cruz, but became a national figure because of his charisma and upbeat goodwill. And he did something else: He helped many down-ballot candidates.

Public education was one of the beneficiaries.

According to the Texas Parent PAC, last Tuesday was “a very good night for public education in Texas!” The legislative candidates endorsed by the group went 42-13, defeating six incumbents who are hostile to public education for all Texans. Among the winners are 16 freshmen who will be seated in January. The only incumbent they lost – Dallas Republican Linda Koop – was beaten by liberal Democrat Ana-Maria Ramos, whose lead campaign issue was public education.

Texas Parent PAC emphasizes that support for public education is bipartisan.

Forty-two candidates endorsed by Texas Parent PAC won their general elections on November 6. It was a very good night for public education in Texas! Congratulations to these candidates and their campaign teams.

Texas Parent PAC helped the winning candidates in many ways, including campaign coaching, mailers, calling services, promotion via email and digital advertising, and funding to pay for TV and radio advertising, signs, canvassing, campaign staff, and more.

Thanks to all the generous Texas Parent PAC donors who made this possible!
Every election has unique drama, and the November 6 general election was no exception. For example:
Beto O’Rourke’s vigorous campaign for the U.S. Senate helped to generate record-breaking voter turnout. While he did not win, Beto’s campaign helped many down-ballot candidates to be successful.

Texas educators and public school supporters were extremely engaged in the election and voted in record numbers thanks to turnout efforts by the Texas Educators Vote coalition, Texans for Public Education, Association of Texas Professional Educators, Texas AFT, Texas State Teachers Association, Texas Classroom Teachers Association, United Educators Association, Pastors for Texas Children, Texas Parent PAC, Texas PTA, and many other groups. This energetic involvement bodes well for the future!

Two incumbent senators lost, which will help to change the dynamics in the Texas Senate. Former Burleson school board trustee Beverly Powell defeated Sen. Konni Burton, and Dallas attorney Nathan Johnson defeated Sen. Don Huffines. These were significant victories! In the Texas House, candidates endorsed by Texas Parent PAC defeated four incumbents: Vikki Goodwin (Rep. Paul Workman), Terry Meza (Rep. Rodney Anderson), Julie Johnson (Rep. Matt Rinaldi), and John H. Bucy III (Rep. Tony Dale).

A summary of the results for endorsed candidates is below. Unofficial primary election returns are at the Secretary of State web site and the Texas Tribune web site.

Endorsed First-Time Candidate Winners
SD 10—Beverly Powell, D-Burleson Web Site
SD 16—Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas Web Site
HD 4—Keith Bell, R-Forney Web Site
HD 8—Cody Harris, R-Palestine Web Site
HD 46—Sheryl Cole, D-Austin Web Site
HD 47—Vikki Goodwin, D-Austin Web Site
HD 52—James Talarico, D-Round Rock Web Site
HD 62—Reggie Smith, R-Van Alstyne Web Site
HD 105—Terry Meza, D-Irving Web Site
HD 113—Rhetta Bowers, D-Garland Web Site
HD 114—John Turner, D-Dallas Web Site
HD 115—Julie Johnson, D-Addison Web Site
HD 118—Leo Pacheco, D-San Antonio Web Site
HD 121—Steve Allison, R-San Antonio Web Site
HD 126—Sam Harless, R-Houston Web Site
HD 136—John H Bucy III, D-Round Rock Web Site

Endorsed Incumbents Re-Elected in the General Election
SD 31—Senator Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo Web Site
HD 3—Representative Cecil Bell, Jr., R-Magnolia Web Site
HD 10—Representative John Wray, R-Waxahachie Web Site
HD 14—Representative John Raney, R-Bryan Web Site
HD 16—Representative Will Metcalf, R-Conroe Web Site
HD 17—Representative John Cyrier, R-Lockhart Web Site
HD 18—Representative Ernest Bailes, R-Shepherd Web Site
HD 24—Representative Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood Web Site
HD 33—Representative Justin Holland, R-Rockwall Web Site
HD 34—Representative Abel Herrero, D-Robstown Web Site
HD 41—Representative Bobby Guerra, D-McAllen Web Site
HD 49—Representative Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin Web Site
HD 57—Representative Trent Ashby, R-Lufkin Web Site
HD 64—Representative Lynn Stucky, R-Denton Web Site
HD 71—Representative Stan Lambert, R-Abilene Web Site
HD 78—Representative Joe Moody, D-El Paso Web Site
HD 88—Representative Ken King, R-Canadian Web Site
HD 95—Representative Nicole Collier, D-Fort Worth Web Site
HD 99—Representative Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth Web Site
HD 101—Representative Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie Web Site
HD 117—Representative Philip Cortez, D-San Antonio Web Site
HD 125—Representative Justin Rodriguez, D-San Antonio Web Site
HD 127—Representative Dan Huberty, R-Houston Web Site
HD 137—Representative Gene Wu, D-Houston Web Site
HD 144—Representative Mary Ann Perez, D-Houston Web Site
HD 149—Representative Hubert Vo, D-Houston Web Site

Heartfelt thanks to the other endorsed candidates who campaigned very hard but unfortunately did not win. All were seeking political office to make a positive difference. They are Texas House candidates Joanna Cattanach, Alex Karjeker, Neal Katz, Michael Shawn Kelly, Adam Milasincic, Lorena Perez McGill, Steve Riddell and Texas Senate candidates Steven Kling, Rita Lucido, Mark Phariss, Kendall Scudder, and Meg Walsh.

We are grateful to State Representative Linda Koop for her two terms serving in the Texas House. Her many contributions made Texas a better state, and she will be greatly missed.

This was the first election cycle that Texas Parent PAC endorsed candidates running for statewide office. While Mike Collier and Scott Milder (Republican primary) did not win their races for Lieutenant Governor and Justin Nelson for Attorney General, they made public education an important issue in the election and helped down-ballot candidates to win.

With Texas parents, grandparents, and public school supporters working together on campaigns, we can elect even more advocates for Texas children. Let’s do it. It’s the American way.

Categories Education Reform, Parents, Resistance, Texas
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