Showing posts with label Merryl Tisch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Merryl Tisch. Show all posts

Monday, May 1, 2023

Edited - NYCDOE PEP Forced a “Transfer School” to Swap Spaces with a Billionaire-Funded School by one vote - Tisch family Robinson

Tax filings show that from 2006 to 2018, the Tisch foundation gave nearly $50,000 to the Eagle Academy Foundation, where Banks was founder and then president and CEO.

 

UPDATE May 2  - Monday night the community was ignored by one vote and these kids are being evicted into a smaller space. 

Another assault on the poorest kids by the billionaire class with their little pet projects, even if their schools are technically not charters. The story I'm hearing is that most of the students at West Side HS live nearby on the west side. Some have children and their child care is near the school. The Tisch family has been anti-public education for decades with Meryl Tish being a Bloomberg agent of deform - and his next door neighbor. This Ann Tisch is her sister in law. Meryl Tisch daughter Jessica runs Sanitation Dept now.


Ed Notes has written about the Tish deformers for years, which I list at the bottom of this article.

Daniel Alicea covered the story on Talk Out of School on WBAI last night. He also talked to NYC Educator Arthur Goldstein.

Daniel's co-host Leonie Haimson has also been in the fight - also see her tweets below, but here is one about the corrupt relationships

Some West Side supporters question whether Andrew & Ann Tisch donations to Eagle Academy led by Banks until appointed as Chancellor is playing a role in DOE’s plans to evict students from their building in favor of school founded by Tisch

Great story by Liz Rosenberg on planned eviction of West Side High—one of the city’s first transfer schools for over-aged, under-credited HS schools – from their supportive home, which includes a day care center for the young children of the students, a GED program and a full-size gym to make room for the Young Women’s Leadership School, part of a selective chain of schools founded by Ann Tisch, wife of billionaire Jonathan Tisch.  

https://www.nycitynewsservice.com/2023/04/29/doe-wants-west-side-high-to-swap-sites-with-young-womens-leadership-school-of-east-harlem/

The Young Women’s Leadership Schools are a chain of district public schools, founded by Ann Tisch in 1996 https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/about/mission-and-vision/

 

MEDIA ADVISORY- MONDAY, MAY 1, 2023

Monday, October 26, 2015

Ding, Dong, Mulgrew Buddy Tisch is Leaving -

Hallelujah! --- Leonie Haimson


No noblesse oblige to kick around anymore. Too bad she seems to be leaving on her own terms--20 years too late. Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out. ... Fred Smith
ttp://m.timesunion.com/local/article/Regents-Chancellor-Merryl-Tisch-won-t-seek-6590479.php

Too bad we have to wait until March. I remember Mulgrew waxing poetic about how wonderful
Tisch was.

A few Ed Notes pieces on Tisch.

Ed Notes Online: Merryl Tisch: Might As Well Be a Crook

ednotesonline.blogspot.com/.../merryl-tisch-might-as-well-be-crook.html
Sep 22, 2013 - Merryl H. Tisch, announced a new program: 13 research fellows would be selected to advise the ... Unfortunately, our present leadership at the state level in NY is not that different. ..... 'Sorry, class, I'm late – again LOL.

Ed Notes Online: I'm Not a Crook

ednotesonline.blogspot.com/2009/04/im-not-crook.html
Apr 1, 2009 - I'm Not a Crook ... YES< HE IS A CROOK. ..... What Merryl Tisch Does Not Understand - I want to explain something in the most easy way I ...

Ed Notes Online: EEP, I'm Not a Crook Either

ednotesonline.blogspot.com/2009/04/eep-im-not-crook-either.html
Apr 2, 2009 - The money reportedly did not go directly to Sharpton but was channeled through ..... What Merryl Tisch Does Not Understand - I want to explain ...

And one from RBE:

When Will Merryl Tisch Be Investigated For Corruption?

perdidostreetschool.blogspot.com/.../when-will-merryl-tisch-be-investiga...
Nov 10, 2013 - The fact that his children do not go to public school when they live in one of ... I'm sure the newspapers and news outlets that are owned by Tisch family ... Silver's chief of staff married to the crook who Tisch appointed to run a ...



Monday, March 16, 2015

Tisch Must Go - Bill Cala to State Board of Regents

Chancellor Tisch has vehemently supported the policies of John King and demonstrated an uncomfortable alliance with the draconian policies of Governor Cuomo. She has been unapologetic, unresponsive and deaf to the public she serves. Her continued leadership of the board will signal defiance of the will of the educational community and an arrogance of unmeasured proportions... Bill Cala


One of my favorite people is Bill Cala, former acting Supt of Rochester schools and long-time, now retired, Supe in nearby Fairport. We met at an anti-high stakes testing conference organized by Susan Ohanian in Birmingham, Al over a decade ago. Bill should be running the State Ed Dept. --- if this were a rational world.
Dear Members of the New York State Board of Regents,

Over the past year, it should be apparent that the direction of education in New York is changing. Parents have raised their voices and are no longer willing to blindly accept the state and national agenda of testing and punishment to their children and their children's teachers. Parents have made it clear that they support their public schools and teachers and will no longer accept a rigid curriculum and testing regime.

Former commissioner King's management of curriculum, data, parents and the implementation of the common core (as well as the common core itself) surely precipitated his departure. Parents, teachers, school board members and the general populace demanded that the process of appointing members to the Board of Regents by the legislature dramatically change and that the process become more transparent. Those demands were so loud and deafening that the legislature had little choice but to listen. As a result, unprecedented turnover resulted. The most ardent supporter of John King was regent Robert Bennett. Throughout Bennett's term he has supported positions that have been at cross purposes with the wishes of parents and teachers. Before John King's departure, Bennett's praise for his policies were unwavering. In fact, when King resigned, Bennett was quoted as saying "...he is the best educator I have ever met." Quite curious that when interviewed for reappointment to the Board of Regents recently, the story changed. It became apparent that Mr. Bennett read the tea leaves and knew that support for John King would not secure reappointment. Fortunately the legislators paid attention and knew very well where he stands on the issues and this led to Mr. Bennett's withdrawal of his application. As you know, this was not the only incumbent who fell.

You all know the history and hopefully you all are aware of the movement for a more responsive government and a board of regents more receptive to the needs and desires of the people of the state of New York. The big question that remains is whether or not the new composition of the board will do "business as usual" or will this board respond to the outcry of parents and teachers. The most effective sign that the Regents are listening and care about the people they serve would be to elect a new chancellor.

Chancellor Tisch has vehemently supported the policies of John King and demonstrated an uncomfortable alliance with the draconian policies of Governor Cuomo. She has been unapologetic, unresponsive and deaf to the public she serves. Her continued leadership of the board will signal defiance of the will of the educational community and an arrogance of unmeasured proportions.

I trust that events of the recent weeks and months will bring a change of heart which subsequently will lead to a change of leadership so desperately needed in New York. Anything less will send a signal that the voices of communities across the state have been ignored.

Sincerely,

William C. Cala Ed.D.
Lifetime New York educator and child advocate
By the way- Bill and his wife Joanne run an amazing charity in Africa where they build schools and do other wonderful stuff. Check it out - http://www.joiningheartsandhands.org/aboutus.php - and DONATE!

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

The Life of Brian (NYC Principal De Vale): Brands Merryl Tisch Comments Disgraceful and Hypocritical

You seem to be running an affirmative action program for the rich and unqualified. Enough is enough! I have watched the rich and powerful, like yourself, profit off of the destruction of public education for the past twenty years.You  have used your position to allow patronage resulting in the rich and the friends of the rich to run roughshod over our schools for far too long. ... Brian De Vale, Principal PS 257K, letter to Tisch
You have to love Brian's letter to Tisch. I've had lots of fun over the years roiling Merryl Tisch, one of the most despicable people one can imagine. Read one of my many pieces on Tisch:

Merryl Tisch: Might As Well Be a Crook ...when she has a problem with her refrigerator she calls the head of G.E...

or this one -- Ed Notes Online: Is the Evil Meryl Tisch Even Eviler than Eva?


or this Ed Notes exclusive -- Ed Notes Online: Dishonor Among Thieves: Merryl Tisch May 15, 2011 -- Ed Notes has learned that the letter Governor Cuomo supposedly wrote to Merryl Tisch and the State Board of Regents calling for a change from weighing teacher evaluations based on state tests from 20 to 40% was in fact written by Tisch ...

Also check out our pal: Raginghorseblog
What is Meryl Tisch Really Saying Here ?

And Daniel Katz: Chancellor Merryl Tisch to Mayor Bill de Blasio: Drop Dead
 



I'll let the always great Brian De Vale, an ed notes reader, tell the tale of Tisch's duplicity, malfeasance, fill in the rest of the blanks ----------- - and oh, what has her family done to the NY Giants?

Subject: Hypocrite

Dear Regent Tisch,

I found your latest comments about expanding charter schools to be not only disgraceful but hypocritical.

Unlike you and your crowd,   my sons did attend their local public schools and graduated with High School diplomas from their local,  traditional PUBLIC schools.  To my knowledge your own children never attended public schools. I do not believe you ever even worked in public education either.  You are quoted in  today's Daily News as stating your desire to  "expand charter schools again", despite the fact that there are over 100 vacancies upstate and 28 remaining in NYC.  Enough is enough!

I have watched the rich and powerful, like yourself, profit off of the destruction of public education for the past twenty years.  This movement went into overdrive under the administration of your dear friend "Michael" and pal Joel Klein who I read in a  NY Times article that you not only know but also share Passover supper and go on double dates with.  How quaint, cozy and intimate, yet terribly sad for public education.  I even remember a news article quoting you before Bloomberg's immoral overturning of term limits as saying "I absolutely support Mayoral Control as long as  Michael is in charge".  No sense of impropriety there at all!  The private sector, hedge funds and billionaires all  profited handsomely under these policies and our traditional public schools have suffered greatly as a result.  Just look at the ARIS debacle and the 95 million dollars  that were taken out of public education to pay for lawyers, data consultants, computer contracts, etc.. at the expense of classroom teachers and direct services to children.  Your pal Joel is reported yesterday's papers to have been paid to manage this project through his new employer Amplify under fellow billionaire Rupert Murdoch.

None of the unqualified folks that you consistently  helped obtain waivers  to run the system over the past dozen years  (David Steiner, Cathy Black, Dennis Walcott, Harold Levy or Joel Klein) ever possessed the required certification to hold their positions. You seem to be running an affirmative action program for the rich and unqualified.  You  have used your position to allow  patronage resulting in the rich and the friends of the rich to run roughshod over our schools for far too long.  This is all too much.   I  have done some research , forgive me if any of my findings are inaccurate, but I believe that none of you sent your children to a public school nor ever  worked in a public school (Joel's 6 month attempt to get out of the draft not included) yet you all declare yourselves experts in "Education Policy".   That is akin to those armchair generals  Washington is full of who are always sending our soldiers off to war. They  want to work in Defense and Military "Policy" but have done everything possible to avoid ever having to pick up  a weapon to defend their nation.

Bloomberg threw a hissy fit when the prior charter school cap was lifted only two years ago, as part of the State's Race to the Top Application. He was upset that there was a "Saturation Clause" placed in the legislation.  Such a clause would have protected areas like my own in Bushwick-Williamsburg where Charters are out of control despite lack of demand. This is seen by our Community Education Council for what it is, a land grab! The C.E.C. has even passed resolutions calling for a moratorium on charter schools in our Community School District.  The Saturation Clause was  improperly removed and our community, like Harlem is now overrun with these unwanted entities.    Charter schools were designed to be innovative lab sites, NOT the alternative school system that the rich want to see flourish  in order to cut their tax bills due to the lack of job stability, unions and pension costs.  If you want more charter schools open them in your own zip code. Our C.E.C.  has said 'NO". You need respect parent voice.

Why don't you call it a day?  Step aside and let us have a new regent take over who has actually worked in and understands PUBLIC education (Dr. Lester Young, Dr. Betty Rosa or Dr. Kathleen Cashin are a few possibilities).  Someone not rich, not from nor connected to the upper east side would be a  breath of fresh air.    The policies you and your friends have let upon loose upon our schools  are destructive and wrong.   The insane charter policies that you, the Governor and  Dean Skelos push on NYC would never fly in the suburbs which is why there are over 100 charter spots open upstate.  The cap in NYC still has not been reached but you and your rich friends are salivating over a chance to open even more. Shame on you.  You were all for mayoral Control when your rich pal was in charge but now that a populist who actually sends his children to public schools is in charge you start putting roadblocks in his way.  The people of NYC have spoken -  loudly and clearly. They do not want any more micromanagement from your crowd.  Let Mayor de Blasio do his job and stop  trying to control him through the back door from Albany. Mayoral Control is a policy and though I personally disagree with it, it should not be implemented as "good for my friend Michael" and "bad if I don't like Mayor de Blasio's policies". Once again you show a hypocrisy in that you supported one policy for your pal and another for our new mayor.

I know you rarely, if ever, receive letters like this from educators currently employed in public education. That is only because of the fear that taking a stance against you and these wrong headed policies will result in professional retribution.   I have seen enough and know what I am up against:  you and your very powerful friends.  That said, I must speak truth to power as I watch my community continue to be decimated by your destructive agenda. I pray for a better day in PUBLIC education, free from the destructive policies of billionaire "philanthropists", do-gooders and policy wonks where communities and the mayor they elected are free to run their schools.


Brian De Vale

PARENT of PUBLIC SCHOOL GRADUATES

29 Year Veteran PUBLIC School Educator

Principal

P.S. 257 /

Chairman

Council of Supervisors and Administrators

Community School District #14

60 Cook Street

Brooklyn, NY 11206

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

The Slugs Are On the Run: Port Jefferson Teachers Association (PJSTA) President Beth Dimino shredded NYSED Commissioner John King, Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch, and New York State Senator John Flanagan

Too many people can now see what’s going on here.  That’s why nothing short of a full withdrawal from Race to the Top, the Common Core, and test based evaluations is acceptable.  Not waivers for special needs students.  Not a three year moratorium.  Only a full withdrawal from the entire agenda is acceptable.... Flanagan, who hid in his office two weeks ago when 1,000 people rallied outside, looked like he wanted to slither away and hide under a rock last night.  Don’t let his arrogance fool you.  He knows the days of shoo-in victories in his senate district are over.  He knows, that palling around with John King and taking big money from Michelle Rhee have now attached him to this agenda as much as anybody else.  He knows that next November he will have to answer for the child abuse that he has supported as the chairman of the New York State Senate’s Education Committee.  He knows now that he has awoken the mommies!... PJSTA
This stuff makes me salivate. You mean there ARE union leaders who stand up instead of seeking a little stool at the table?

http://thepjsta.org/2013/11/13/dimino-you-have-awoken-the-mommies/

Dimino: “You have awoken the mommies!”


In front of 900 in the Ward Melville High School auditorium, and several hundred more in the overflow cafeteria, PJSTA President Beth Dimino shredded NYSED Commissioner John King, Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch, and New York State Senator John Flanagan.  She first called out King for what his agenda is: child abuse.

Then she urged Tisch to fire King, citing the 350 letters she has collected supporting this stance.  Finally she warned Flanagan that he had “awoken the mommies” and that “The mommies in New York don’t abuse their children and they’re not going to let bullies do that either!”  She walked off to a rousing standing ovation.

Tisch later stated to the crowd, “I know you are passionate.  We hear you, we get it.”  But of course we know she doesn’t.  We know that as currently constituted, NYSED, the New York State Board of Regents, the state legislature, and the governor have no plans to abandon their abusive reform agenda.  Plutocrats like Tisch stand to make far too much money to abandon the agenda.  Instead they may make minor alterations that change very little.  They will claim these alterations are examples of them listening to parents, students, and educators.  Nobody will buy it.  Their agenda is now crystal clear.  Too many people can now see what’s going on here.  That’s why nothing short of a full withdrawal from Race to the Top, the Common Core, and test based evaluations is acceptable.  Not waivers for special needs students.  Not a three year moratorium.  Only a full withdrawal from the entire agenda is acceptable.
Community members like the ones who filled the auditorium last night can’t fire the puppet John King.  We also can’t fire puppet master Merryl Tisch.  But next November we can vote out John Flanagan.  We can vote out Andrew Cuomo.  Then we can let a new state government deal with Tisch.

Flanagan, who hid in his office two weeks ago when 1,000 people rallied outside, looked like he wanted to slither away and hide under a rock last night.  Don’t let his arrogance fool you.  He knows the days of shoo-in victories in his senate district are over.  He knows, that palling around with John King and taking big money from Michelle Rhee have now attached him to this agenda as much as anybody else.  He knows that next November he will have to answer for the child abuse that he has supported as the chairman of the New York State Senate’s Education Committee.  He knows now that he has awoken the mommies!

There was a slew of coverage of last night’s event.  Just a bit of it is below…

Video here: http://youtu.be/xQbjvy1iSH0

Fox NY’s coverage.
Newsday’s story.
News12′s coverage.
Perdido Street School’s story.
Diane Ravitch’s story.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Fred Smith On the Empress Tisch

What clear and astute observations... Loretta Prisco

Fred, thanks for this scathing and brilliant portrait. Helps me make sense of my visceral reaction of horror at her presentation. So much feigned reasonableness and caring. So little capacity for hearing the truth.... Jeff N
Yes, Fred- so right on! Let's not forget that the "flawed accountability system" she is replacing is one SHE is responsible for and defended.... Lisa D.
There are a lot of posts coming today(ala Ravitch) so duck. In the world of ed deform, there are not many people I despise more than Merryl Tisch. So how nice to see this.

Change the Stakes had a big crew testifying at the Flannigan hearings yesterday (details later).


Our man Fred Smith was there with some perfect comments on Merryl Antoinette.
Some observations about Chancellor Tisch's performance at the Education Committee hearing yesterday:


~ She thinks that being soft-spoken can disguise her haughtiness and pernicious policies. 


~ Tisch throws in a few spontaneous remarks that pass for wit to show that she's loose, the epitome of grace under fire and not totally rehearsed.  


~ Answers begin by identifying with the questioner ("Yes, I know because when I taught... I'm concerned about ELL kids. My family were immigrants too... Being poor is no fun.  I can remember a Tuesday when I forgot my wallet, my chauffeur had the day off and the maid was late....) Yes, I've walked many a mile in your Louboutains.


~ She has a fondness for setting up false choices in order to suggest bold leadership : We could have adopted the Common Core or remained with a system the failed to prepare our students for college.  (By the way, she apparently realized that graduates needed "remediating" at community colleges in 2010. Somehow the problem had eluded all the Regents and had even gone undiscovered by Her Regency for 14 years.) 


[Digression: Tisch's use of the word remediating smacked me between my ears. Sounded like irradiating.  Did someone say sterilizing?]


~ Anyway back to the dichotomies:  We could have taken the RTTT money or.... (fill in the blank).  We could have gone backward or forward, left or right, bad or worse and we chose knishes over cyanide.


~ When the Queen gets an unexpected question to which she cannot give a practiced response she will invariably begin her answer with the placeholder "So... followed by a repeat of the question.  So, you want to know why we didn't announce forums in New York City. In fact, that was part of our plan all along and we'll hold forums in all four or five boroughs.  If there were six boroughs, we'd schedule one there, too.)


~ Thank you for inviting me and giving me a chance to address these important concerns. There's no place I'd rather have been.


Such noblesse.  Thank you, Merryl Antoinette.

Fred Smith

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Merryl Tisch: Might As Well Be a Crook

...when she has a problem with her refrigerator she calls the head of G.E....

Merryl H. Tisch, announced a new program: 13 research fellows would be selected to advise the education commissioner and the 17-member board. The fellows would be paid as much as $189,000 each....Since the appointment of the fellows, public educators' trust in the in New York State Education Department has dwindled to nothing

EdWeek on insularity of Tisch, the Regents fellows, NYSED and those who control ed policy in this state.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/finding_common_ground/2013/09/how_public_is_the_public_school_system.html

How Public is the Public School System?
By Peter DeWitt on September 21, 2013 8:43 AM
When I was a teacher working in a small city school, the superintendent was married to the mayor of the city. Some of the board members worked for the mayor, and some of the school employees were related in some way to the superintendent. It was a good place to work, but it seemed like it was more of the superintendent's kingdom rather than a school district. When I spoke with my former colleagues I told them the story of the small city school kingdom and they couldn't believe that a school district like that existed. 

Unfortunately, our present leadership at the state level in NY is not that different. It seems as though most people at the top know one another, are related in some way, and those in the trenches can't help but feel frustrated. It seems like an insiders' system in which the connected and powerful run the show. And the public has very little input. 

The most powerful player of all is NY State Board of Regent Chancellor (since 2009) Merryl Tisch. A 2009 NY Times article that introduced her said, "Speaking to a group of Catholic educators in a conference room high above First Avenue, Merryl H. Tisch interrupted a dry barrage of bureaucratic references to attendance mandates and Title 2A with a seeming non sequitur."
 
The N.Y. Times article went on to say,
"When my refrigerator is broken, I don't call the service department," said Dr. Tisch, the newly elected chancellor of the New York State Board of Regents and, by marriage, part of one of New York's wealthiest families. "I call the head of G.E." 

Tisch's relationships are awe inspiring. In the same 2009 Times article, we learned that, "She has enjoyed a decades-long friendship with her Upper East Side neighbor Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. She has celebrated Passover Seders with Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein. She counts among her closest friends Iris Weinshall, the wife of Senator Charles E. Schumer."

Believe me, I understand that connections are important. Everyone has said at some point in their lives that getting a job is about, "who you know." However, I have always held the belief that public schools were community based and designed to be responsive to the public. 

But now we know there was very little public input into issues like evaluation and the adoption of the Common Core State Standards. Parents, teachers, students and educated professionals at the "ground level" are showing concern about the Common Core State Standards and the developmental appropriateness of them (Read here). 

It just seems that something troubling is happening now and decision making power is being shifted from local school boards to Albany. The connections at the top, and the control and money that they have, gives an oversized role to Ms. Tisch and her friends.

How Public is the Public School System?
A 2011 NY Times article (Winerip) stated,
"In December, the chancellor of the New York State Board of Regents,Merryl H. Tisch, announced a new program: 13 research fellows would be selected to advise the education commissioner and the 17-member board. The fellows would be paid as much as $189,000 each, in private money; to date, $4.5 million has been raised, including $1 million donated by Dr. Tisch, a member of one of New York's wealthiest families."

The same 2011 Times article went on to say,
"Public education has never been so divided, between those like Dr. Tisch, Commissioner John B. King Jr. and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg who support the Obama administration's signature Race to the Top initiative and its emphasis on standardized tests and charter schools; and dissenters on the board, who call it a Race to the Bottom and put their faith in teachers as well as traditional public schools. The Race to the Bottom folks warn that the supposedly free fellows come at a stiff political price."

There are two ways to look at the Fellows and donations that put them in place. One might see their appointment as needed help at a time of change, financed by generous donors. On the other hand, their appointment can be viewed as a gross attempt by Ms. Tisch to impose her will on the State Education Department and its policies. After all, when she has a problem with her refrigerator she calls the head of G.E.... 

Death Penalty for Public Schools?
In schools we have a shared decision-making process. The people who share in the decision may not agree with everything but they agree to what will be the strongest decision from the collective wisdom of everyone on the committee. It's not easy, and getting people who are typically on opposite sides of the fence is a difficult process. However, "at the end of the day", it's about making the best decision for all of the stakeholders in the school. 

Public school advocates are thankful for regents such as Kathleen Cashin, Roger Tilles, Betty Rosa, and former regent Saul Cohen because they speak up against the grain...when they get the opportunity. Winerip went on to write, "Saul B. Cohen, a former president of Queens College who retired in December after 18 years as a regent, is angry that the board was not consulted about selecting the fellows. "They're supposed to be advising us, but we had no role," he said."

Since the appointment of the fellows, public educators' trust in the in New York State Education Department has dwindled to nothing. Unfortunately, looking back at those articles makes me feel as though the public should have seen this coming, especially when we consider the recent comments by Governor Andrew Cuomo.
During a speech in Western N.Y. Governor Cuomo asked for a "A death penalty for failing schools, so to speak." Although he mentioned failing schools, Governor Cuomo has not been supportive of public schools for quite some time. Times Union (Albany) writer Fred Lebrun responded by writing,
"So who or what would the governor sacrifice with a death penalty for failing? The teachers and administrators? He's been beating that dog over public education ills across the state for two years now. Enough. It was insulting to begin with and is now just infuriating and grossly unfair. Andrew Cuomo has done more to demean public education and those who try to make it work than anyone in the history of the state."

What Needs to Change?
There was a time when I thought my experience in the small city school district was unique, and that no other school district in the state could be run as if it was a kingdom. I can now see that I was naïve because the state's public education system seems to be a kingdom that very few of us have access to.

I am not a conspiracy theorist, and I value the government, but I value a government that runs effectively. Over the past few years there has been an increase in testing, teacher and administrator evaluation are all tied to assessments that educators only see on the day of the test, and everything seems to be run top-down...and now they are facing a death penalty.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Carol Burris on Problems with APPR and the English Regents

Wouldst our union do a tenth of the work Carol is doing to expose the
Marching on NY State Ed Dept
bullshit from the crooks at the NY State Ed Department, the leaders of whom if justice is ever served, would be removed in handcuffs. Carol suggests writing them. My suggestion would be to go after them with pitchforks.


Please consider sharing this with principals, teachers, union reps and parents who would care about this.  So much of this is not known or understood.  It will be good to spread this with all who are effected by this plan.
Janine Sopp


Recently, Commissioner King imposed an APPR plan on New York City teachers. When you look at the plan, you see that the scoring band ranges for the first two categories( student growth), are dramatically different from those used this year. For example, this year's scoring bands for Ineffective range from 0-2. But NYC teachers will have an Ineffective range of 0-12. Likewise, this year Effective starts at 9, but for NYC teachers it will start at 15.

Why? Because the score band that is being used for APPR scores  has serious problems that cannot be addressed through negotiations. For example, if you get the rating of 'developing' in all three categories and the scores are on the low end of developing, you will be rated INEFFECTIVE overall.

Despite the fact that this is known to SED, they have yet to honestly address it or speak about it. What is the right thing to do? Have this year's APPR scores not count, and certainly not have scores shared with parents. It is yet to be seen if the NYC "fix" will even work.  I know this stuff can be hard to understand, (which is probably what SED is counting on), but this needs to come to light.


On another note, a South Side English teacher, Chris Webster, did a great job explaining how the passing and mastery cut scores for the ELA Regents were manipulated and wrote to John King about the problem. You can read his letter here:

A NYC assistant principal shows how this change made the ELA passing rate in his school dramatically drop

Is this preparation for next year's Common Core ELA exam?  The problems that are being caused by the so-called state reform agenda are staggering, as are the tax dollars being wasted. It is now officially summer, and you have a bit more time. Write to the Regents. Write to the legislature. Let them know what the first year of APPR was like. Let them know what testing is doing to your students. You can find all of the email addresses that you need on www.newyorkprincipals.org

If you send me your emails to the Regents, Commissioner, Governor etc, I will post them so that others can see them as well. 

Thanks 
Carol 
follow me on twitter @carolburris

Saturday, May 18, 2013

UFT Tilts to Thompson: Tisch, D'Amato, New Action Overjoyed, de Blasio branded as"Left" While SEIU Endorses him

 3-card monte scam
This [1199/SEIU de Blasio] endorsement is a direct slap to Thompson. The African American candidate getting all those rich white people to support him politically and financially doesn't get 1199's endorsement because those members know who Thompson will represent if he is elected mayor.   ... Reality Based Educator
Better dead than red .... UFT policy since inception, c. 1960
Until the past week I was betting on the UFT backing de Blasio given some reports from the inside. But recent days have seen a decided shift to Thompson so I'm willing to bet the farm based on certain smoke signals. Unless the SEIU endorsement makes the UFT hierarchy take a pause.

But if a UFT Thompson comes about look for an interesting battle between UFT and SEIU. (And where will DC37 come down?)

Peter Goodman's Ed in the Apple blog is a good bell-weather of where the UFT is heading, though you have to read between the lines.
De Blasio, also a public school parent, continued to attack Quinn, over her support for a third term, and called her the “Bloomberg Lite” candidate....
Yes. we all hate Quinn. And I know the UFT people like de Blasio. But here's the clincher.
Is DiBlasio too far to the left? Will he “turn off” the middle of the road voters? Will he mobilize the business community to make an all-out effort for Lhota? (Lhota is about at the same level as Bloomberg was at this time in 2001)
Left? The usual Unity hack scare tactic. ("Progressive" would not do, I guess.)

Is Goodman trying to frighten the members who might support de Blasio (remember the lack of support for Mark Green in 2001 that gave us 12 years of Bloomberg). As if the business community is not already supporting Lhota.

Don't forget that de Blasio is the only candidate to take on Moskowitz and the charter network head to head. The UFT is often too scaredy cat to go there. (They argue that criticizing charters will hurt their attempts to organize charter teachers -- interesting in that Karen Lewis slams charters and still organizes teachers with success and 80% of the teachers in an election where retirees don't vote chose Karen yesterday.)

Reality-Based Educator reporting at Perdido Street School:

De Blasio Gets 1199 SEIU Endorsement


Local 1199 SEIU, which represents 200,000 healthcare workers, will make the announcement official on Monday.

The decision -- which could provide de Blasio a surge of grassroots support -- is the most significant union endorsement yet in the race.

Officials at the union said that its 150-member executive board voted unanimously to support de Blasio -- the first time that has happened in any citywide race in more than 20 years. They also said they made their choice a month earlier than expected, with hopes it would prompt other unions to follow suit. This endorsement is a direct slap to Thompson. The African American candidate getting all those rich white people to support him politically and financially doesn't get 1199's endorsement because those members know who Thompson will represent if he is elected mayor. 
Back to Goodman, who has an entire paragraph with a brief bio of Thompson, including this attempt to sugarcoat a guy who ran one of the worst campaigns in history against Bloomberg in 2009.
 Time and time again he rapped the Bloomberg administration and in the strongest terms said he would hire an experienced educator as chancellor. The audience applauded as he criticized Tweed, policies made by a staff without much school experience, and, “not a lot of diversity.”
You mean rapping Bloomberg's policies is what got Bloomberg's next door neighbor and ed deformer supreme, Merryl Tisch, to be Thompson's campaign chairperson and D'Amato and his pals to support him with big money while Merryl's husband is backing Lhota?

Oh, give us a break. They're playing 3-card monte with us.

What about Thompson's time as President of the Board of Education before the fall? He was backed by Giuliani for President and during his tenure we saw the first case of a non educator getting a waiver to be Chancellor (Harold Levy), thus setting a precedent for the past 4 chancellors. NOW he wants an educator for Chancellor?

With many UFT members supporting de Blasio for what they see as a more progressive program (progressive = left in the old war hawk UFT), Goodman's comments opens up the whispering campaign UFT staffers and Unity hacks will be using to try to tame the members who support de Blasio, most of whom will ignore them anyway. Teachers who are clued in despise Tisch and her flunky John King. So go sell Thompson to them.

Only a big backlash internally -- watch the UFT Delegate Assembly this Wednesday for clear signs -- which Unity hacks get up to speak and whether they make the very same comments Goodman is making. Unity Caucus DA Speakers Bureau will be meeting a day or two before the DA to plot strategy. Message to Stuart Kaplan --- we'll be watching you.

I see the entire Thompson campaign with support from Merryl Tisch whose husband is supporting Lhota as a bogus campaign to put forth the weakest candidate so Lhota has a shot. Come on, D'Amato, even with his anti-Lhota comments?

Even anti-political people like me who believe every politician will sell us out may just vote de Blasio for spite. 

What a trio of support: the UFT, Tisch and D'Amato. Hello Mayor Lohta.

Here are some more signs of UFT for Thompson:
Tells you everything you need to know about what kind of mayor Bill Thompson will be.
  • Thompson is the only one written about in the update the UFT sends out:
http://www.uft.org/press-releases/mayoral-candidate-bill-thompson-outlin...
Mayoral candidate Bill Thompson gave a speech today outlining his vision for the city’s public schools and slamming Mayor Bloomberg’s education policies. Among the goals cited by Thompson, a former head of the Board of Education, were expanding the city’s prekindergarten programs and the number of Community Learning Schools, an initiative that was launched by the UFT.
See the movie opening next fall: Mark Green, Part 2.

And one more thing from Goodman's alternate reality:
I think the final endorsement will be driven by the “straw votes” at the borough meetings and the attitude of the delegates at the May 22nd meeting.
Sure, Peter, the vote of the people who attended the borough meetings, which probably look like a Unity Caucus Delegate Assembly, will decide.

Oh, and watch the walking dead in New Action, which actually crowed about how they endorsed Bill Thompson last time and attacked MORE for not doing so despite the fact that MORE didn't even exist, brag that it is their influence over Mulgrew due to their support that got the endorsement for Thompson.
New Action campaigning for Thompson


Friday, May 17, 2013

Hypocrisy and Protest Over Merryl Tisch Teachers College Award

There are activists in the educational community and TC alumni who are debating whether to call for a protest of the Merryl Tisch award at your graduation [May 21]. While there are different opinions on this topic, they are all asking if there will be a protest from the graduating students. They realize that you are entering teaching at a very difficult time and they admire your courage. They are hoping that as beginning teachers you can find small ways to protect both the children and our profession by protesting the horrible anti-child and anti-teacher policies pushed through with Race to the Top funding.  ... Professor Celia Oyler, Teachers College
This story has been brewing for weeks and I've been waiting for it all to flow before compiling links and comments. What to do at graduation? Disrupt? Silent protest? Some of our contacts in the grad school and TC alum have been debating the issue internally and so far no firm decision has been made.

Some TC grad students also took part in the AERA Arne Duncan demo in San Francisco recently. I know that some might be concerned about showing civility no matter what the outrage (When Davids Boo Goliaths Do They Lack Civility?) and I'm guessing from internal list serve comments that at most we may see a turning of backs as the award is being presented while an outside protest is still being discussed.

Change the Stakes posted:  NYS PARENTS SUPPORT TEACHERS COLLEGE  PROTEST AGAINST PRESIDENT SUSAN FUHRMAN AND CHANCELLOR MERRYL TISCH


There is a direct conflict of interest: as president of Teachers College, Susan Fuhrman also serves on the board of directors of Pearson PLC; she is paid a substantial sum of money each year and, through stock ownership, directly benefits from Pearson contracts.  One such contract is Pearson’s $32 million contract with the New York State Education Department as the vendor for grades 3-8 ELA and math tests. Surely Fuhrman’s tie to Pearson is an act of gross impropriety if not an illegal conflict of interest.... It was President Fuhrman’s decision to honor former TC alumna Merryl Tisch.
Teachers College is supposedly a progressive education institution, but is apparently run as a dictatorship by Susan Fuhrman. (There's lots of stuff floating around about her style coming out of the TC student and faculty ranks so any protest is not just about the Tisch award.)

Susan Ohanian points to the incestuous relationship between Pearson and NY State Ed, linking to comments from Fred Smith:
Here's another signal of how the public is being taken out of public education--which has become a field of schemes for private profiteers like Pearson. 
New York State Education  Department & Pearson Hold Hands to Call the Shots: Fred Smith - http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=1608
Diane Ravitch headlined: Teachers College to Honor Doyenne of High-Stakes Testing

It's not only about Tisch and high-stakes testing, it is also about her being one of the leading ed deformers running the State Board of Regents as a dictatorship. She decided on State Ed Commissioner David Steiner, who went down in infamy for granting Cathie Black her waiver and the current ed deform slug John King.

There are so many great commentaries emerging on this issue I can't keep up with all of them. Diane posted this powerful piece from a TC Prof: Professor Oyler: An Open Letter to My Students.
[Tisch's] actions while Chair of the New York State Board of Regents have wrought incredible damage upon our noble profession. Merryl Tisch has ushered through the Board of Regents many policies with which I vehemently disagree; these include: decoupling teacher certification and master’s degrees from university-based teacher education (approving Relay Graduate School of Education); allowing InBloom to collect and sell private data on each K-12 student in New York State schools; and requiring all school districts to tie teacher evaluation to Value Added Measures based on student test scores.... If I were at the graduation convocation, I would wear a sign on the back of my robe. It would probably say, “USING STUDENT TEST SCORES TO RATE TEACHERS DISHONORS US.... I couldn’t be silent. I would feel complicit; my silence would be condoning the award.... I cannot sit silently while teachers across this country are being viciously attacked and demeaned by the junk science of VAM..
How interesting that college professors like Dr. Oyler brand VAM junk science while our own union defends it.

Our pal Fred Smith and Change the Stakes colleague has a piece up at Schoolbook:
It is a dark day when Teachers College, a venerable institution of learning, engages in actions that are contrary to the values it has upheld and nurtured for more than a century but that day has arrived....
Its founding vision was to train teachers to work effectively with the children of New York City’s poor by understanding and furthering the many ways that children are capable of learning. Individual differences were respected, cherished. The words progressive and humanitarian were embraced by Teachers College.
Unfortunately, the unilateral decision by T.C. President Susan Fuhrman to honor New York Board of Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch next week at the school’s convocation defies this tradition. 
Fred goes on to eviscerate not only Tisch but Fuhrman:
Fuhrman has reportedly received almost $1 million in the form of stocks and fees (as “non-executive independent director) from Pearson, the state’s current test publisher. And closing the circle, Pearson not only has a five-year $32 million contract with the state to test 1.2 million students in grade 3 to 8 each year in reading and math. It has taken over gatekeeping programs that assess who is qualified to be a teacher and whether their performance as teachers is satisfactory. So T.C. trains the teachers, the state hires and evaluates them and Pearson thrives — monopoly style — on this neat arrangement.
Here's the link for the national teacher petition calling on TC to rescind the award for Merryl Tisch: http://petitions.moveon.org/s...

And the link from TC alum Carol Burris:
The letter of concern of alumni can be found here:
http://education4.org/re-imag...

While most people are not willing to go this far on the Tisch story I have no qualms and I have had many occasions to use the photo below. RBE did touch on this in Tisch And Teachers College

I wanted her to run for mayor because I wanted to find out more about her family's connections to K-12 Inc. and the for-profit education industry as well as the family history in the cigarette business.

Tisch Family Connections to K12 Board and Charter School

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Losers Merryl Tisch and John B. King: Principal Revolt Against State Ed Teacher Evals

These two jokers keep pushing but are facing a major revolt not by teachers but by their bosses. Even Fox has a report:


NYS Teacher Evaluation Controversy from Rockville Centre Schools on Vimeo.

http://edupln.com/video/nys-teacher-evaluation-controversy

List of Protesting Principals Tops 1,000 
Dec. 15, 2011, 11:42 a.m.By SchoolBookNearly a quarter of all principals in New York State have signed a letter objecting to New York State’s system of teacher evaluations.The letter, which was posted online, voices objections to a new state evaluation system that will rate teachers and principals based on student scores on standardized tests.The principals’ complaints include: The system has not been field tested; there are scores to rate only English and math teachers; state tests have repeatedly been shown to be unreliable.While more than 1,000 principals have now signed the letter, the numbers remain heavy on Long Island principals, where the protest started. Here are the numbers, as of Wednesday:Total 1,019 principals (22.4 percent of the 4,511 principals listed by the state). As of Dec. 11, the total was 902 statewide.Westchester 107Long island 507Rockland 32New York City 47


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More scandal at State Ed: Testing Firm Faces Inquiry on Free Trips for Officials 

For commentary:  Perdido Street School



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And here is some more commentary on Tisch from Reality-Based Educator:



She (Tisch) needs to be taken down.And then she ought to be taken to jail. 


reality-based educator has left a new comment on your post "Michael Winerip Lays Waste to NY State Ed Departme...": 
I have not seen Merry Merryl Tisch's name show up in the K12 Inc. articles that have surfaced lately - not in the Times article, not in the Wash Post article, not in Gail Collins' column on K12 and online ed. I even wrote Collins to say she should look into the Tisch connections so long as she is commenting on the political connections that the company has that enable it to finagle contracts. Never heard back from her, never saw her revisit the issue. I understand that the Tisch connection is through a subsidiary of K12 Inc. and the connection to Tisch is with her brother-in-law, not herself or her husband. Still, the thing stinks.
Somehow Merry Merryl never gets hammered in the press, even when she says stupid shit like state test results "have never, ever, ever exaggerated...” or the public hates teachers but will like them better when the new "objective" evaluation system is put into place...
http://perdidostreetschool.blogspot.com/2011/11/merryl-tisch-public-hates-teachers-but.html
She really is as bad as Eva on this stuff - a self-centered, accountability for others/no accountability for me demagogue.
Steiner was a putz, but it's clear Tisch put the knife into him and brought her man King to the NYSED to consolidate her power.
It would be nice to see Winerip take a look at how the state has done since Tisch has been there and have him ask her why she thinks all the problems are other people's fault, never her own.
She needs to be taken down.
And then she ought to be taken to jail. 



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