Tennessee: Gov. Lee Fumes About Voucher Failure, But Parents and Educators Celebrate

By dianeravitch
April 26, 2024 //
6

Governor Bill Lee of Tennessee made school vouchers his top priority but the issue died in the Legislature despite its Republican supermajority. He will bring the issue back next year. He’s hoping for universal vouchers, where every student in the state is eligible for a voucher but opponents call his plan a subsidy for the wealthy who already are attending private schools.

In eastern Tennessee, and very likely across the entire state, parents and educators heaved a huge sigh of relief.

Dustin Park is a parent of kids who go to school in Maryville. He’s opposed to the universal school voucher plan because he said it excludes students with disabilities.

“The only thing that protects kids with disabilities is that federal law,” Parks said. “A bedrock of our public schools is that they accept everybody.”

The school district he sends his children to supports his stance. 

“We continue to maintain our belief that public funds should not be diverted to private entities, and taxpayers should not be required to subsidize private schools that are not held to the same standards of accountability and inclusivity as public schools,” said Mike Winstead, Director of Maryville City Schools. “If the Education Freedom Scholarship Act passed, it would have been harmful to the very students and vulnerable populations it maintained to assist.”

Dave Gorman is a teacher at Knox County Schools and also said he’s not sure lawmakers will listen to their constituents.

“We also have seen enough dirty dealings,” Gorman said. “We’ll never forget when Jason Zachary was the deciding vote to bring vouchers to a couple of cities in the state a few years ago — when it looked like it was about to die and he changed his vote.”

Knox County Schools provided the following statement about the proposal failing.

“As we have stated before, our attention has and will continue to stay focused on our students and providing them with a high-quality education. We are confident that our families will continue to choose KCS regardless of what happens at the state level.” 

Several school districts across East Tennessee also said they also are pleased a school voucher plan would not pass this session…

Kelly Johnson, Director of Clinton City Schools

“Elected officials are responsible for listening to their constituents, not answering to outside special interest groups. We know Governor Lee plans to bring it back next year. It is my hope that the citizens of TN remain vigilant in celebrating the many successes of public schools.”

The billionaire funded outside special interest groups will be back next year. Parents and educators should vote to replace those who want to undermine public schools.

Categories Accountability, Education Industry, Failure, Privatization, Tennessee, Vouchers

Network for Public Education Ranked One of Nation’s Most Influential Education Organizations!

By dianeravitch
April 26, 2024 //
2

A group of scholars at Indiana University led by Christopher Lubienski developed a methodology for ranking organizations and individuals in the field of education.

It was disheartening to see that nine of the ten most influential organizations advocate for school privatization, for charter schools and vouchers. It was also disheartening to see that these nine organizations have revenues in the millions of dollars each year. They are heavily funded by rightwing organizations and billionaires.

It was exciting, however, to see that #3 on the list of the 10 most influential organizations was the Network for Public Education!

It also was the organization with the smallest budget!

Wow! Standing up for public schools without billionaire $$$!
Categories Corporate Reformers, Education Industry, Education Reform, Funding, Media, Privatization, Research, School Choice, Supporting public schools

Haaretz: Hamas Releases a Hostage Video from Gaza

By dianeravitch
April 25, 2024 //
19

American media covers the pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, but ignores the protests in Israel, usually led by the families of the hostages who were seized on October 7. Rescuing the hostages was one of the main goals of the Israeli invasion of Gaza, but that goal has taken a back seat to the other goal—eliminating Hamas. Prime Minister Netanyahu seems determined to pursue the destruction of Hamas, but the brutality of the invasion guarantees the emergence of new terrorists.

Yesterday, Hamas released a video featuring one of the hostages. Such videos must be seen with the understanding that the hostage is in captivity and is not free to say what he wants. Yet his plea to rescue the hostages is heartfelt. Many of the hostages, he says, have already died. Some were killed by Israeli bombs, some by the negligence or brutality of their captors.

And yet this young man’s voice must be heard. This terrible, violent, vengeful war must end. The killing must stop. The only solution is a two-state solution. Despite Hamas’ determination to eradicate the state of Israel, Israel will survive.

The only way the war will end is through pressure by other nations on the combatants and negotiations.

The fact that Israel was protected from Iran’s massive bombardment of drones and missiles by not only the U.S., the UK, and France, but by Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and other Arab nations suggests hope for a new Middle East. There is a new longing for peace, stability, and regional cooperation. This new world can’t emerge until the violence ends.

This is an excerpt from Haaretz, a valuable source of news in Israel:

Harsh Goldberg-Polin was seriously wounded in Hamas’ attack at the Nova festival on October 7, and appears in the video with an amputated arm. Hundreds of protesters march in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in what they’re calling a ‘rage demonstration’ prompted by the video’s release.

Hamas released a video on Wednesday showing Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin who was kidnapped to Gaza on October 7 – the first sign of life from his time in captivity. 

Goldberg-Polin had attended the Nova festival at Kibbutz Re’im with friends and sought refuge in a shelter when Hamas stormed the outdoor rave. He sustained serious wounds and is seen in the video with an amputated arm.

He was born in California to Rachel and Jon and moved to Israel in 2008. He celebrated his 24th birthday four days before he was kidnapped. 

Shortly after the video was released, hundreds of protesters, including friends of Goldberg-Polin, marched towards the prime minister’s residence in Jerusalem, lit a bonfire, and called for his release. At least two protesters were arrested. Police deployed skunk water against demonstrators blocking streets.

The video, approved for release by Goldberg-Polin’s family, begins with Goldberg-Polin introducing himself and recounting his abduction. “I went out to have fun with my friends, and instead, I found myself fighting for my life with severe wounds all over my body after trying to shield myself and others because there was no one to protect us that day,” he said.

He addressed the prime minister, saying, “Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli government, you should be ashamed for abandoning me and thousands of citizens on that day. You should be ashamed. For almost 200 days, we’re here, and all the IDF’s attempts to rescue us have failed.” 

Goldberg-Polin further stated that “Air Force bombings killed around 70 hostages like me, and you should be ashamed that every deal that comes to the table, you and your government reject. Don’t you want to end this nightmare already?”

“Benjamin Netanyahu and members of the government, while you sit and celebrate holidays with your families, think of us, the hostages who are still here, in hell beneath the ground. Without water, without food, without sunlight, without the medical treatment I so desperately need,” Goldberg-Polin added. 

“I demand from you, Prime Minister, and your government and cabinet: Every day we’re here is another day you abandon us, another day you allow our blood to be shed. Do what’s expected of you already, and bring us home now. Or is that too much for you? It’s time to clear out your offices, and go home,” he said.Open gallery view

In the end of the video, Goldberg-Polin addressed his family, saying: “One last thing, and most importantly: Mom, Dad, Libby, and Orly, I love you very much and miss you terribly, and I think of you every day I’m here. I know you’re doing everything possible to get me home as soon as possible. I need you to stay strong for me and keep fighting until each one of the hostages comes home safely. I expect and hope to be with you soon, after all this is over. I won’t be here anymore, but I hope I’ve given you some peace of mind this holiday.”

Categories Cruelty, International

Bill Kristol: Reject the Mob, Every Mob

By dianeravitch
April 25, 2024 //
89

Bill Kristol is a Never Trumper who writes for The Bulwark. He reminds me of my conservative roots. I have always feared mobs. Once mobs form, it’s impossible to know what direction they will take and who is leading them. In the few times in my life that I inadvertently found myself stuck in a mob, I was terrified and got out as quickly as I could. There is something about a mob that is fundamentally in opposition to rationalism and the democratic temperament. Disagree with me if you wish, but please, be civil.

Kristol writes:

The AP reports on this week’s spring breakdown: 

Columbia canceled in-person classes, dozens of protesters were arrested at New York University and Yale, and the gates to Harvard Yard were closed to the public Monday as some of the most prestigious U.S. universities sought to defuse campus tensions over Israel’s war with Hamas.

More than 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators who had camped out on Columbia’s green were arrested last week, and similar encampments have sprouted up at universities around the country as schools struggle with where to draw the line between allowing free expression while maintaining safe and inclusive campuses.

At New York University, an encampment set up by students swelled to hundreds of protesters throughout the day Monday. The school said it warned the crowd to leave, then called in the police after the scene became disorderly and the university said it learned of reports of “intimidating chants and several antisemitic incidents.” Shortly after 8:30 p.m., officers began making arrests.

Here’s a tweet from Jay Nordlinger that’s stuck with me: “There is scarcely anything in this world more terrifying than a mob. It is, frankly, pretty much at the root of my politics: this anti-mob feeling. Madisonian conservatism (or Madisonian liberalism, if you like) has struck me as right from a young age. Popular passions can kill.”

As we say on Twitter: 💯. Or even 💯💯.

Mobs can kill. They can also destroy the fabric of a civic order. They can disfigure the politics of a liberal, representative democracy. And so a healthy society will deter, will tamp down, will reject as much as possible mob action and mob spirit.

Now it’s of course true that there will always be elements of mob spirit in our politics, in our life. Some of the spirit of the mob runs, one might say, through each human soul.

A sound society suppresses that spirit to some extent. And since it can’t be altogether suppressed, a healthy social order also channels it, so it can be indulged and released harmlessly. A liberal democracy can have lots of sports fans.

But of course being a “fan” is the civilized version of being a fanatic.

Even in a healthy society, resistance to fanaticism is always fragile. And once fanaticism is unleashed, once the mob is empowered, it is hard to restore order and civility and decency.

Which is one reason thoughtful defenders of democracy have always feared demagogues, have sought to thwart their emergence, and have opposed them when they do rise.

Demagogues who can stoke mob spirit are dangerous. The problem with Donald Trump isn’t simply his policies, or his personal character. It’s his willingness, or rather his eagerness, to stoke the spirit of the mob. Trump’s posts on Truth Social condition some among us to the mob spirit as much as the hateful chants at Columbia or Yale condition others. MAGA is an expression of mob spirit. The campus encampments are manifestations of mob spirit.

And mob spirit is always nearer at hand than those with a sunny view of human nature would like. The lynch mobs in the South often consisted of respectable citizens, pillars of their communities. Many Berliners who participated in Kristallnacht went back to their normal office and jobs the next day.

So I’m with Jay on this. It seems simple, but it’s important: Be anti-mob. Because resisting and combating mob spirit is central to our political and social well-being.

And not just when that spirit is on the other side politically. Indeed, it’s more important to resist the mob when it claims to be acting for purposes you agree with.

Yes, it’s true that the consequences of the mob spirit taking over one of our two major political parties are greater than those of the mob spirit erupting on some elite college campuses. But lesser evils are still evil, and they can grow into greater ones. And history also suggests that indulging the mob spirit on one side soon enough empowers it on another. The mob spirit must be resisted across the board.

Resisting the mob isn’t all it takes to establish a sound society or a healthy politics. But it’s a necessary start. 

—William Kristol

Categories Democracy, Discipline, Disruption, Ethics, Extremism, Freedom of Speech, Higher Education

Carol Burris on the Wisdom Rick Hess Gleans from Uber Drivers

By dianeravitch
April 25, 2024 //
23

Years ago, there was buzz about New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman’s tendency to quote taxi drivers to capture the view of the “man on the street.” Carol Burris, executive director of the Network for public Education, has recently noticed that Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute has a similar journalistic gambit. He picks up policy clues from Uber drivers.

She writes:

It seems like Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), a think tank that loves all things school choice, has an extraordinary gift for bringing out the inner Betsy DeVos in every Uber Driver he meets.

 Recently, the Hessian Uber adventure was a story about how his Uber driver hates student loan forgiveness. Yes, of course, that must be true. An Uber driver would be absolutely furious if they or their brother, son, or daughter had some help with their crushing student debt. Everyone knows that Uber drivers only hang with the 2%.

 When I call an Uber, I never get the same driver, but Rick gets repeats. Just a few months ago, that same driver picked up Rick and gave him an earful about the Newton, Massachusetts, teacher strike. For the second time, she even let Rick take her picture in the rearview mirror and put it in Ed Next. 

 However, that Uber driver is not nearly as outraged as the teacher-bashing Uber driver Rick met in 2018. She was even willing to throw her own teacher husband under the bus (or should I say, cab). And Rick got it all down, along with her picture.

 Please don’t confuse that Uber driver with the very well-informed driver Rick met in 2016 who told Rick that “reformers used to take great joy in seeing traditional school districts pilloried by John Stossel …”  Now that is one interesting Uber driver. I never heard of John Stossel. All of this pillory talk was part of a deeper conversation about Jon Oliver’s very funny show criticizing charter schools. This Uber driver defended public schools, but by the end of the ride, Rick had set him straight.

 I don’t take Ubers. I prefer yellow cabs. We talk about traffic, the weather, or the price of gas. These Uber rides must be absolutely exhausting for poor Rick. Maybe next time, he should call a Lyft. 

 

 

Categories Education Reform

Iowa Increases Funding for Vouchers, Expands Eligibility

By dianeravitch
April 25, 2024 //
7

Iowa was once respected for the quality of its public schools. Now the Republican elected officials are tearing down the state’s public schools. They launched a voucher program, and they are now expanding it, at the expense of public schools.

There are some things we know for sure about voucher programs after three decades of experience. First, the actual cost always outstrips the projected cost. Two, whatever the eligibility requirements are in the first year, they will be stripped away so that eventually all students will be eligible for vouchers. Third, vouchers may be initially targeted to needy groups, like students with disabilities, but there is no assurance that these children will be admitted to voucher schools. Fourth, most students who apply for and use vouchers are already enrolled in private and religious schools. Fifth, students who transfer from public schools to voucher schools will fall behind academically. Sixth, many voucher schools will discriminate on any grounds—keeping out children because of their religion or because they are LGBT or because they are simply “not what the school wants.”

In voucher schools, schools choose, not families or students.

Ty Harding of Iowa Starting Line reports on the growing program in Iowa.

Iowa has committed nearly $180 million in taxpayer funds to support private school tuition in the 2024-25 school year, which is almost $50 million more than the initial Iowa Legislative Service Agency (LSA) projections.

Initially, the LSA projected Iowa would spend $106.9 million in the first year of Gov. Kim Reynolds’ private school voucher program—called Students First Education Savings Accounts—and $132.3 million in the second year.

However, the first year of the program cost Iowa taxpayers nearly $128 million. The Iowa Legislature allocated $179.2 million to the program for the upcoming fiscal year, according to the state’s recently approved general fund.

These amounts are only expected to increase as restrictions on who can participate in the program are rolled back.

The first year restricted access to students with a household income at or below 300% of the federal poverty guideline, but that restriction will be raised to 400% ($124,800 for a family of four) in the 2024-25 school year, before being phased out entirely in the 2025-26 school year.

Each voucher recipient will receive $7,826 in taxpayer funds to help cover private school tuition in the 2024-25 school year (the amount changes each year based on the state’s per-pupil funding). Predicated on this year’s budgeted amount, the state expects at least 22,897 students to receive a voucher. 

Another big change for the upcoming 2024-25 year is that public school districts will directly lose money due to voucher program. 

State funding for public schools is primarily based on enrollment weighting and state cost per pupil. Before the voucher law, districts still received those funds from the state even for students who lived in the district but did not attend a public school. Going forward, districts will no longer receive those dollars.

Please open the link to finish reading.

This article in the Gazette shows the negative effects of vouchers on Iowa City, a school district with some 14,400 students. Property taxes are going up, the teaching staff will shrink by attrition, and an elementary school will be closed. The vast majority of students will be harmed by a program that subsidizes the few.

Categories Budget Cuts, Education Industry, Iowa, Privatization, Republicans, Vouchers

Tune in! I Discuss “Slaying Goliath” Tomorrow with Tim Slekar

By dianeravitch
April 24, 2024 //
3

Tim Slekar is a fearless warrior for public schools, teachers, and students. I will be talking to him about Slaying Goliath and the struggle to protect public schools from the depredations of billionaires and zealots.

This Thursday on Civic Media: Dive Back into “Slaying Goliath” with Diane Ravitch

Grab your pencils—BustEDpencils is gearing up for a no-holds-barred revival of Diane Ravitch’s game-changing book, *Slaying Goliath*, live this Thursday on Civic Media. 

Launched into a world on the brink of a pandemic, *Slaying Goliath* hit the shelves with a mission: to arm the defenders of public education against the Goliaths of privatization. But then, COVID-19 overshadowed everything. Despite that, the battles Diane described haven’t paused—they’ve intensified. And this Thursday, we’re bringing these crucial discussions back to the forefront with Diane herself.

This Thursday at 7pm EST on BustEDpencils, we’re not just revisiting a book; we’re reigniting a movement. Diane will dissect the current threats to public education and highlight how *Slaying Goliath* still maps the path to victory for our schools. This isn’t just about reflection—it’s about action.

**It’s time to get real. It’s time to get loud. It’s time to tune in this Thursday at 7 PM EST on Civic Media.**

If you believe that without a robust public education system our democracy is in jeopardy, then join us. Listen in, call in (855-752-4842), and let’s get fired up. We’ve got a fight to win, and Diane Ravitch is leading the charge.

Mark your calendars and fire up Civic Media this Thursday at 7pm Central. 

Categories Billionaires, Budget Cuts, Censorship, Charter Schools, Closing schools, Corporate Reform, Courage, Cruelty, Dark Money, Democracy, Disruption, Education Industry, Ethics, Extremism, For-Profit, Fraud, Injustice, Privatization, Propaganda, Resistance, School Choice, Separation of church and state, State Takeover, Supporting public schools, Teachers, Unions, Vouchers

Watch Julian Vasquez Heilig Testify About Charter Schools to Congressional Committee

By dianeravitch
April 24, 2024 //
9

Dr. Julian Vasquez Heilig is a noted scholar of charter schools, with experience as a parent of a charter school student and board member of a charter school. He is Provost and Vice-President for Academic Affairs at Western Michigan University. And, he is a founding board member of the Network for public Education!

Recently, Dr. Heilig testified before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. He explained that the research on charters shows that they are no more successful than public schools, they close frequently, they have high teacher turnover, and they promote segregation. In addition, they exacerbate the problems of the public schools by choosing the students they want and diverting resources.

Dr. Heilig called for more accountability for charters and the need for democratic oversight.

The Republican majority of the Committee called three witnesses. The Democrats were allowed only one, and they chose Dr. Heilig.

They chose well. His testimony is succinct and excellent.

Categories Accountability, Charter Schools, Corporate Reform, Education Industry, Network for Public Education, Privatization, Research, School Choice, Segregation

Tennessee: Legislators Pass Bill to Arm Teachers Despite Opposition by Teachers and Parents

By dianeravitch
April 24, 2024 //
15

America has had a large number of shootings over the past decades. Whenever there is a massacre of students, the public gets angry and mourns the horrific event. Politicians react along partisan lines. Democrats call for gun control; Republicans want to arm teachers and school staff.

Since the Supreme Court has decisively ruled against most gun restrictions, the Republicans have had the upper hand.

In Tennessee, the Republican-dominated legislature passed a bill yesterday to arm teachers and other school staff. This was a response to a deadly shooting at a private Christian school. Parents at that school gathered signatures against the bill, but the legislators didn’t listen.

The New York Times reported:

Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill on Tuesday to allow teachers and other school staff members to carry concealed handguns on school campuses. The measure, if it becomes law, would require those carrying guns to go through training and to have the approval of school officials, but parents and most other school employees would not be notified.

The bill is one of the most significant pieces of public safety legislation to advance in Tennessee after a shooting just over a year ago at a private Christian school in Nashville left three students and three staff members dead. The attack galvanized parents at the school and many others in Tennessee — including the state’s Republican governor — to demand action that could prevent similar violence.

But many of them believed that restricting access to guns was the solution, and critics of the legislation have argued that bringing more weapons onto school campuses would not improve safety and could even amplify the danger facing students.

Protesters opposed to the bill packed the House chamber and the corridors of the Capitol on Tuesday, carrying signs that said, “Kids Deserve More!” and “Have You Lost Your Ever-Loving Minds?”

The demonstrators echoed fears that have been raised since the legislation was proposed.

“I ask that you don’t put our children’s lives at risk by putting more and more guns in schools,” State Senator London Lamar, a Democrat from Memphis, said during a debate this month as she cradled her infant son. “It is really hard,” she added, “even as a new mom, to stand here and have to be composed on a piece of legislation that I know puts my son’s life at risk…”

The bill significantly expands the current law, which mostly limits the carrying of firearms to law enforcement officers employed at a public school or to school resource officers.

The new legislation would broaden that permission to school staff members who have an enhanced handgun carry permit and who have the approval of their principal, district director and leaders of relevant local law enforcement agencies. The measure also imposes confidentiality rules around the disclosure of who is carrying a concealed handgun.

The staff member must also complete 40 hours of school policing training, undergo a background check, submit fingerprints to state and federal authorities, and submit a psychological certification from a licensed health provider. The handgun cannot be carried in auditoriums or stadiums during school events; during disciplinary or tenure meetings; or in a clinic.

Roughly half of U.S. states allow teachers or other school employees with concealed carry permits to have firearms on campus, according to Giffords, the research group led by the former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was herself among 19 people shot during a meeting she was having with constituents in 2011. (Six people were killed.)

Categories Guns in Schools, Parents, Republicans, Tennessee

Florida: Politician Loses Appeal to Make Her Home Tax-Exempt

By dianeravitch
April 23, 2024 //
6

This is what may be the finest example of chutzpah thus far in the year 2024.

The story was written by my favorite education journalists in Florida, Leslie Postal and Annie Martin. They specialize in exposing scams.

A state legislator sought permission to make her home tax-exempt, claiming it was part of Central Christian University, whose campus is elsewhere. The “university” has 15 students. Until last year, Rep. Amesty was the university’s vice-president; her father, who lives in the home, is the president. Her request was denied.

The Orlando Sentinel reported:

The small university run by Rep. Carolina Amesty’s family lost its bid Monday to make the $1.6 million home where she lived during her first campaign exempt from property taxes.

The school had sought an educational exemption on the five-bedroom pool home near Windermere where Amesty, an Orlando-area Republican, lived with her parents until last year.

Central Christian University filed for the exemption in 2023 while it was delinquent on its prior year’s taxes. At the time, Amesty was the university’s vice president.

A special magistrate ruled in November that Central Christian had not shown the home in an upscale golf course development was anything but a private family residence for Amesty’s parents and recommended Orange County deny the sought-after tax exemption…

Amesty, who is running for reelection this year, has been the subject of two Orlando Sentinel investigations, the first involving the unpaid taxes on the home and unpaid utility bills on a shuttered restaurant she owns.

The second story, published last month, showed five men who said they’d never worked for her family’s small, unaccredited university were listed as faculty members in catalogs the school submitted to the Florida Department of Education. Amesty also notarized an employment form indicating that a veteran educator worked there, but the man said he never signed the form.

During her first campaign for the Florida House, Amesty frequently touted her role at Central Christian, although she is no longer an employee there, her attorney told the Sentinel earlier this year.

At the November hearing before the magistrate,  Amesty and other Central Christian officials argued that the house should be exempt because Amesty’s father resides there and uses it for some university business.

They compared the home to the presidents’ houses at Rollins College and the University of Miami.

But the magistrate said there was no evidence Central Christian, which last summer told the state it had 15 students, used the 5,400-square-foot home for university activities…

The testimony at the hearing, the magistrate wrote, “did not support that the Property was regularly or frequently made available to students or faculty for classes, meetings or workshops, or that students or faculty regularly visited or made use of the Property.”

Central Christian late last year paid its delinquent 2022 property taxes, which totaled more than $18,000, according to the Orange County Property Appraiser’s website.

The school also paid its 2023 tax bill, which was about $25,000, the website shows.

Categories Florida, Humor
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