The ICK Factor: People Who Run Charter Schools and Tweedies Look Alike

So I spent the evening at yet another phony baloney charter school hearing.  Every single charter school leader and the henchmen and women behind them look alike, walk the same way - or scurry like little rats clutching their Blackberries. And the hordes of Tweedies there to run the meeting and supposedly be neutral look just like them.

I'm really getting sick of them because they all have the same script:
Charter schools bus in loads of people wearing tee-shirts and make sure to get them there an hour early to stand in line so they can get first dibs on signing up to speak with their little scripts that will be sure to talk about how they grew up in the neighborhood, attended public schools, believe in choice, brag about how their kids love school and reading.

And the public schools trying to fight back. The IS 303 crew met in front of the schools and marched over to Lincoln HS for the meeting. Quite a spirited march.

This case is a doozy. IS 303, as I reported yesterday (Rally at IS 303 Today and March to Lincoln HS to Oppose Co-Location of Coney Island Prep Charter School), is being invaded by Coney Island Prep (CIP - as in CIP from the fountain of public funding.) IS 303 already has 3 schools - IS 303, Rachel Carson HS and a Dist. 75 program. So why not add a 4th school which wants to expand from 5-12 over time? We heard all the same old lying crap from the CIPers and Tweedies and your basic sleazy local politician.

A building is not a school.
This is only temporary - we have our own building just waiting for them but it is delayed.
All your schools are great but we need more.
choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice, choice
Our kids are from the neighborhood.

I won't bore you with the rest of the list. I have lots of tape with great stuff from a former student and Julia Daniely and will post a follow-up.

Deputy Chancellor Marc Sternberg was in charge of the event. The first time I saw him up close and he reminds me of John White - sort of beginning to look like him, with the same air of superiority and arrogance. Sneaking looks at his Blackberry - until I filmed him and he hid it. Grimacing when people from both sides fought it out verbally, trying to drown each other out, making like he really cared about the chaos he and his Tweedy pals have brought to the public schools.

I really came away not liking this guy, sort of akin to how I felt when I saw Santiago Taveras interact with the CEC 14 meeting I taped on Feb. 28. The announcement that he was leaving came during the meeting and I'll have more to say and show you on this guy who actually staked his integrity on the fact that he believed the PEP and DOE actually listen to the voices of parents. (I have a half hour video up on this meeting - Voices of Parents, Teachers and Principals at Feb....
FYI- Taveras is taking a job with a DOE vender - how corporate of him. See: follow up to question re conflict of interest rules re Santiago Taveras and other DOE employees

I feel the same about Sternberg just watching his body language. Another possibly former good guy who turned to the dark side. They are all Darth Vaders.

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