Claims Of Age Discrimination At Graphic Communication High School Prevail

UPDATE 2 (Sept. 24) : Mggie Wallace sent an updated version of her letter.

UPDATE 1 : I received a phone call this morning from one of the plaintiffs confirming the story on Friday's court victory.

On July 13, Jeff Kaufman posted a story on the ICE blog about the age discrimination law suit at Graphic Arts HS (Manhattan) which finally went to a jury trial on Sept. 8 and led to a victory by 3 of the 7 teachers.

This comment was left on the ICE blog in July by one of the ultimate winners.

Dear Teachers,

I am a litigant in the Graphics Age Discrimination Suit. I would like to share that we are going to federal court Monday, September 8, 2008 for 10 business/school days.

Let me verify that we have paid dearly from our own pockets to get there. We are fortunate to have a creative and motivated triad of lawyers who will not get rich, nor will we, from a win. This is about justice and reputation, and our rights to teach as we have always enjoyed. It is also about getting fair pay and professional treatment for teachers who have studied and worked hard to earn senior tenure and status.

Support outside Judge Jed Rakoff's courthouse in Southern District would be a joy to behold. The era of Bloomberg/Klein/Resnic needs a serious challenge by educators with backbone.

Thank you, and best regards.

Diana Friedline

Congratulations to Diana and the other teachers who won. To those who didn't: fight on. The story of the teachers sent to the rubber room to cover for administrative failure is particularly disturbing. See a report from Maggie Wallace below.

Our interest is in the role the UFT played at the chapter level and at 52 Broadway. Kaufman reported in his July 13 post:

Back in 2005 forty-five teachers filed a complaint with the EEOC that the DOE had discriminated against them because they were over 40 years old. The Daily News reported the filing and Randi Weingarten announced at the time that "88% of teachers brought up on disciplinary charges in the last three years were over 40."

In July 2007 I wrote this:

Remember the supposed Age Discrimination suit? The entire purpose was to deflect people from taking action on their own. When people inquire about it with the UFT’s Sherry Boxer, she says she has no info and refers them to the EEOC. Call the EEOC and they tell you Sherry Boxer knows exactly what is going on. If you try to get added on the case, they say “NO Dice.” Of course, why would the UFT want hundreds and maybe thousands of people listed? The might actually win and then how would they explain it to Bloomberg?

I've heard various reports since then that the EEOC complaint went nowhere. There were lots of derogatory comments about the UFT related to the ICE posting of the story. Did the UFT play any role at all in the lawsuit? Or did the teachers pay out of their own pocket? Will the UFT now claim a share of the credit for the victory and parade the winners in front of a Delegate Assembly? That's exactly what they did when teachers at Brooklyn Tech won a suit. One of them told me he has to spend $50,000 out of his won pocket.

Here's what I hear about Patti Crispino, the UFT chapter leadership at Graphic Arts:

Unity Caucus loyalist and hack, known to be more concerned about keeping literature critical of the leadership out of teachers' mailboxes (witnesses confirm her doing this) than fighting for teachers' rights in the school. Known for high level of cooperation with the administration. Provided no help at all for these teachers. Often viewed as an agent of the principal. Crispino is an example of the Unity people your dues pay for to got to conventions and get union gigs galore.

I'm shocked, shocked to find out age discrimination is going on here

I first raised the age discrimination issue at a UFT Executive Board meeting in the fall of 2004 in a case at John Adams HS in Queens, where the administration targeted older teachers. A number of teachers at Adams felt the UFT was protecting the principal after the leadership killed a story in the NY Teacher.

A back story here is that this incident led to a series of events that resulted in Betsy Combier getting a job at the UFT as part of the rubber room SWAT team in exchange for not revealing certain information about a high level UFT official suspected in the John Adams cover up. But that's a story for another time.

The leadership acted like it was the first they had heard of age discrimination. At the Nov. 2004 Delegate Assembly a few days later, Michael Mendel mentioned it and asked people to contact the union. Again, feigning ignorance. Randi Weingarten even emailed me asking for names. Eventually they held that press conference in January 2005.

I felt it was the usual public relations stunt from the very beginning, with good reason.

The UFT reaction riled an insider at the UFT who sent me a package of news articles from a local paper in Bay Ridge from 2003 discussing an earlier age discrimination suit by teachers in District 20 (Bay Ridge) against Superintendent Vinnie Grippo that was totally ignored by the UFT. Later, I was contacted by some of the teachers who told me the UFT was not only uncooperative in assisting them with gathering information, but actually obstructive. So much for their "surprise" that there was age discrimination. UFT leaders are deciding who will play Captain Renault in the remake of Casablanca.


Maggie Wallace sent this report this morning:

September 21, 2008 (modified Sept. 24)

A jury of 7 found the New York City Department of Education and the principal of Graphic Communication High School in Manhattan, guilty of age discrimination in the case of three out of the seven teachers who brought the charges with federal court. Two of the teachers remain in the school organization. A third teacher was forced to retire 2 years ago.

Jerod Resnick, the principal of HSGCA, was found to have discriminated against Midge Maroni, 60, Diana Friedline,57, and Anthony Ferraro 71, teachers of English, Commercial Art and Design, respectively. Ferraro was forced to retire two years ago while Maroni and Friedline still work in the school.

Judge Jed Rakoff of the Southern District Federal Court located in downtown Manhattan concluded that the DOE and Principal Resnick may be liable for other types of discrimination. Other claims of wrongful termination, harassment and retaliation were dismissed because they were not “directly related” to age discrimination.

Judge Rakoff denied the claims of two Spanish teachers who have spent two years in the Teachers Reassignment Center (also known as the “Rubber Room”). The teachers were accused of wrongful actions related to Regents testing by Judith Silverman, an assistant principal who admitted her own responsibility for the failure in court. The teachers testfied that the school had not provided the department with the required testing materials.

While Silverman was not disciplined, the three tenured teachers who comprised the Spanish department were “reassigned” for failing to administer the oral portion of the Spanish Regents in January 2006. However, according to Rakoff, the evidence presented by the plaintiffs lawyers, although supportive of the teachers claims, was not “directly related to age discrimination.” Further evidence could indeed prove the DOE and the principal of HSGCA are liable for other discriminatory practices based on ethnicity or race. The members of the jury acknowledged that the educators who brought the lawsuit had indeed been submitted to unfair labor practices which pointed to “all kinds of discrimination.”

“My heart goes out to these two teachers”, said Judge Rakoff of the teachers who remain in the infamous “Rubber Room”. In recent past Principal Resnick has sent at least 9 other teachers to the DOE confinement center. His hostility against teachers have earned him the “bully principal” title by local newspaper including the United Federation of Teachers newspaper, The New York Teacher.

Elaine Jackson, a tenured teacher, was hired in 2004 by Resnick as an assistant principal for the English Department. Ms Jackson was soon replaced by a younger male administrator, one of the administrators accused of ageism by English teacher Midge Maroni.

Elaine Jackson was asked to leave the school by principal Resnick after a semester of harassment and retaliatory actions, because “things just didn’t work out between us.” Ms. Jackson was never paid as an assistant principal and was demoted to teacher status. She was forced to transfer to another school even though she was willing to stay at Graphics as a teacher.

Anthony Ferraro, an experienced senior teacher who was targeted by Resnick and several assistant principals, stated in the lawsuit that he was forced to leave the system (DOE). He testified that the ordeal caused him a great deal of anguish and anxiety, and made his daily life miserable.

During their testimony, Josefina Cruz and Gloria Chavez told the jury the school administration ignored the protocol, violated the rules of Regents testing by scheduling freshmen Spanish dominant students to take an advanced exam designed for Spanish learners.

The claimants said the school administration didn’t provide the Spanish teachers with the required materials to test the students, according to Regents requirements. . They further testified that according to the testing procedures, it was the responsibility of the regents coordinator, the assistant principal and the principal to distribute the materials. The claimants reported the testing violations to the New York State Board of Regents but none of the administrators responsible for the Regents’ violations at Graphics were disciplined. Instead, the Comission of Special Investigation (CSI) and Office of Special Investigation(OSI) both investigative arms of the New York City Department of Education conducted their own investigation based solely on the principal’s claims.

When questioned by Ambrose Wotorson, one of the plaintiffs’ lawyers, why Resnick’s school had been in the School Under Review Report (SURR) list for the six years he had been principal of Graphics he responded that the school was being investigated because of claims of Regents testing violations.

The trial which lasted two weeks, started September 8, 2008 and concluded on September 19, 2008 documented the ordeal of the 7 teachers who brought claims of discrimination before the court in 2006. One of the allegations claimed that Jerod Resnick rated at least 19 teachers unsatisfactory during the school year 2004-2005 so that he could make room for younger teachers. Most tenured teachers left the school and sought positions in other schools. retired or left the system. They were replaced by younger, untenured and unlicensed teachers.

The plaintiffs who were found to be discriminated against were awarded various sums of money. Other claims found not to be age related could still be discriminatory in nature and the DOE and Principal Resnick Could be liable for other discriminatory practice.

Here are some posts from the Ed Notes archives on age discrimination:

October 24, 2007
What happened to the Age Discrimination lawsuit?

The UFT has been making the rounds of the Reassignment Centers.
UFT Rep Jeff Huart was asked this question:

What happened to the Age Discrimination lawsuit?

Jeff Huart: The UFT is going forward with the lawsuit. People who believe they qualify should get their information in to the union.
Question: But information is out there that the UFT is not going forward with it.
Huart: The UFT is going forward with that one and the one for the people in the Reassignment Centers.
Question: Do teachers know about the general age discrimination lawsuit. Many teachers claim never to have heard about it.
Huart: District reps went to all the schools to tell about it.

How many schools do District Reps reach a week? Might as well use a milk carton and string to deliver the message. Not in the NY Teacher. Not in the UFT Weekly Updates to chapter leaders. Not a flyer handed out at the Delegate Assembly, or even an announcement to have senior teachers contact the union. But whispers from District Reps (those that are competent or awake). That's showing you are serious about age discrimination.

Remember: watch what they do, not what they say!


July 28, 2007

UFT: Masters of Deflection

The UFT response to teachers asking for help has been “Wait till September.” It could be a song:

Wait till September
We hope you won’t remember
Just how much you’ve been screw-ew-ed.

Even when people get some attention, they often don’t realize the UFT leadership tries to deflect people from taking action either on their own or even worse (for the leadership), in concert with others. It takes some people years to realize this. The goal is to stop anything from getting organized and if the threat is serious enough they may actually do something (or give the impression they are doing something.)

Remember the supposed Age Discrimination suit? The entire purpose was to deflect people from taking action on their own. When people inquire about it with the UFT’s Sherry Boxer, she says she has no info and refers them to the EEOC. Call the EEOC and they tell you Sherry Boxer knows exactly what is going on. If you try to get added on the case, they say “NO Dice.” Of course, why would the UFT want hundreds and maybe thousands of people listed? The might actually win and then how would they explain it to Bloomberg?

Well, I finally saw some tears flowing/Day of Infamy

Comments from ATR's posted on the ICE blog. The UFT is less than useless. More like toxic. I wish these anonymous commenters would at least identify the UFT officials publicly.

Many letters were given out at Tilden yesterday and today. Veteran teachers are all being assigned as ATR's to various locations. Since they all must appear on Monday, the number of teachers who got letters through out the week are all here today, Friday the 19th.

I can hear a teacher crying next door as I write this. If she wanted to leave Tilden, she would have asked for a seniority transfer years ago. She loves the kids in this community and wants to stay. She has over 20 years experience.

The locations are, well, to be blunt the locations that parents usually use the no child left behind act to get their kids away from. Seniority transfers used to allow you to pay your dues in a tougher school then move somewhere that the kids really think that the N word is really a bad word. Now it is the opposite. You work in a tough neighborhood for twenty years with dreams of finishing your career in that nice school near your home in the borough or place that you live in and as you walk out today past that new young teacher hired by a new school, you realize that you are on your way into the belly of the beast.

The place where that younger teacher should have been paying their dues at this very moment. I feel bad for the ones who voted no on the last contract. For the ones who voted yes and were dumb enough to tell me that you did? LOL seems appropriate.

A DAY OF INFAMY

Yesterday September 19th 2008 was a Day of Infamy. All the ATR's in my school and other schools got their new assignments. ATR"S are being sent to alternative schools, learning centers, mini schools, not places that senior teachers would normally go to.But since we were sold out by the UFT we have no choice. The plan as most people see it is to make us uncomfortable so that we will quit or retire or they will send us to the Sup's office on some type of phony insubordination charges.

And where is our union, Blowing Smoke" like the district rep did at our school yesterday. He just answers questions with double talk answers. Why did they call an emergency meeting yesterday at 2:15 this meeting should have been last week. The reps response was that they did not anticipate the DOE's action. Everyone else in the system knew that this was going to happen yesterday except the UFT.

ATR's wake up. The UFT sold us out.The time for a Class Action Case is now. Do not expect any help from the UFT, they created this whole situation with their lousy contracts.

Some teachers in my school are calling for a job action. That's one thing Randi is afraid of doing so it should be done. It was done in Philadelphia a few years ago and it worked. Lets work together and forget the UFT.

And a comment on this blog:

At South Shore on Friday, a notice was posted over the timeclock that all ATR's, with or without programs, had to report for a meeting with the principal at 2:15. Mind you, our day ends at 2:25. So all 20 ATR's gather and wait and wait and wait. (This after a really horrible day of anxiety and tears. Normally nice tempered friends were at each others' throats.) So we wait. And wait some more. Finally, after someone called downstairs, the principal and APO arrive with the dreaded pile of letters. Some ATR's had already left in anger since it was now OUR time.

There was a rumor that Charlie Turner, our union rep, would be there too but he was a no show. My envelope was one of the first and since I could deal with the tension no longer, I ran out opening my letter as I did so I have no idea what news others got or what the reaction was.

On my way out I ran into two former students who were so glad to see me but I couldn't talk for the lump in my throat. I never said goodbye to anyone but the wonderful safety agent at the front desk whose two daughters were in my AP classes a few years ago. South Shore is my neighborhood school; the kids there are my neighbors' kids. I had always intended to end my career there. And when none of us were able to get jobs at the 8 new schools upstairs, it was clear that we don't count for anything. I report Monday to a school I don't know, to administrators who will do whatever they like with me; I could be a classroom teacher out of license or a day to day sub or a much hated competitor for classes in license. After almost 20 years of excellent teaching, mentoring, etc., what a pathetic way to almost end a career. I wish I could just go away. Teaching is my identity and Bloomklein and the Randi and the union have destroyed my identity.

Ed Note: Ed Notes rates Charlie Turner as one of the lowest of the low Unity Caucus hacks. Having crawled out from under a rock, he must have returned from whence he came to avoid facing the music from an angry group of teachers, who have as much anger, if not more, towards the UFT.

Q&A on NYC Pensions

I remember hearing some bad stuff about how pensions and salaries were treated in NYC in the 30's. And we haev the example of the mid 70s' when salaries were frozen, schools closed, preps cut and there were 15,000 layoffs. Remember the current UFT contract assures no layoffs - unless there is a financial crisis. That is the source of the ATR situation. And if there are layoffs, will they find a way to get rid of ATR's or will the newer teachers be cut?

Anita asked a question on ICE-mail to Queens high school chapter leader Michael Fiorillo (see his suggested financial commentary web sites in the sidebar). (People could use some answers from the UFT.

The questions I have and I'm hearing from colleagues: is a TDA account insured? What about our pensions?? (Feel squeamish that we just don't know such basic facts.......)

Michael responds:

Hello Anita and Everybody,

To answer your questions as best I can, and please DO NOT base any personal decisions on what I'm about to say since I can be wrong, my understanding is that:

- If by "insured" you mean guaranteed by the federal government a la the FDIC, then Variable A is most certainly NOT insured.

- I am not familiar at all with Variable B, and cannot comment. It is said to be invested in the most secure and stable financial financial instruments, but what does that even mean in this climate?

- Frankly, with the caveat that I could be wrong, I have fears about the fixed fund, as well: it is certainly not insured by the FDIC, and if there is any kind of insurance it is through private entities (such as AIG , AMBAC and others). Not a comforting thought. I've been following this issue very closely for years now, and have worried about the safety of the fixed fund in a financial crisis. After all, at a time when banks were paying 2-3% on CD's, how was the fund able to provide an 8.25% return? My fear is that they could possibly have these toxic intstruments, which paid higher interest.

- As for the pension fund, the New York State constitution protects the pensions of all vested members. However, and realistically, how much comfort is that, when the Federal Reserve Bank itself is overextended? Unfortunately, the predators and parasites at the investment banks - the same people "investing" in charter schools, Teach for America and corporate school reform in general - have for years seen the pension funds as rubes to be fleeced.

What we are seeing is the direct result of thirty + years of income polarization based on the cannibalizing and outsourcing of the nation's real productive capacity; unfortunatley, because of the infinite greed of these sons of bitches, we will all reap the whirlwind.

I hope this "helps."

Best,
Michael Fiorillo (aka "Mr. Sunshine")

More Voices of ATR's

Comments from ATR's on the ICE blog

As an ATR I was looking to the UFT for help. But when the New York Teacher came in the mail on Sept. 12th there was not one story about the ATR situation in it. It was then I realized that we had all been sold out by the UFT. I called the UFT district office last week and John Settle got on the phone. He is a special rep who makes over $100,000 a year.All I got was double talk which is probably a requirement for getting his position. The best thing all 1,400 ATR's can do is file a class action suite against the UFT and the DOE, there is strength in numbers. I am sure that the UFT would not like it if we could find a way to withhold our dues to them. This would be a million and a half dollars a year. Why should we pay dues to them they are not representing us.

I am an ATR. My brothers have been NYPD cops for ten years. One taught H.S. and one was a para who finished his B.S. degree after becoming a member of the NYPD. He subs on his days off. They both married their college sweet hearts who both teach elementary school in Brooklyn. I have another brother who teaches special ed in Florida. My family, for some reason is full of teachers and police officers. In my opinion, years ago, your parents taught you that going to college would ensure that you became something other than a civil servant. I suppose it was Mom's way of saying that there are different rungs on the social ladder and that in her view, those who were educated seemed to have more in life than your average city worker. We saw it that way as well. This is why all of her children went to college. As the years went by, we noticed that the value of a degree seemed to diminish. I saw friends leaving teaching for jobs as firemen and police officers. I saw friends that went to law school become police officers instead of pursuing their dreams of being a lawyer. As we matured, we began to look at the benefits of the various fields of employment. I was somewhat surprised to see how many more benefits that your basic civil servant had in their contracts with the city than teachers do. Before I was an ATR, I was surprised when my sister in laws ran out of sick days as new teachers who had just given birth. They had to borrow sick days. I then realized that we do not have "paid" maternity leave. Should I point at a pregnant colleague's bulge and say that I hope they get better soon? When my sister in laws had their second child, they started losing days of pay. They had not caught up yet to their borrowed days. I once asked Randy in person why we do not have paid maternity leave and she said that it never goes through each time they ask for it. I doubt that she ever really makes it a union issue. When one of my sister in laws needed heart surgery right after giving birth, she went to 60% of her salary for six months. After six months, if she did not return to work, she would receive no pay. My brother was working every second job that he could to pay his mortgage. Other unions have unlimited sick and paid maternity leave. Most also have a heart fund. We do not in the UFT. Do we ever ask for it? We have no worker's compensation. When I was assaulted at work by a student, I had to pay every hospital and doctor co-pay and every physical therapy co-pay for the six months that I required it. The DOE will only reimburse up to $700 in co-pays for LOD injury unless it is an assault. Well, the student said that he was only joking around when he dove at me from behind and tackled me down to the ground. Eureka! Since he said that he was just playing around, I guess that it was an accident. So it cost me to be the victim of a crime at work. My brothers often ask me a few times before they understand the nuances. They ask things like, "So who got collared for assaulting you?" I just have to explain that I walk past the student every day at work and he laughs at me each time. That sort of, "You aint nothing sucker, I got over" sort of smirk. Why do I have to see this student again? What union would allow that? Other city jobs have a 20 year retirement. A teacher starting out now has at least four years of college before employment, the related expenses, and years of night school just to obtain the final certification for teaching. While in school, you learn that the time spent in college is called opportunity cost by an economist. Anytime that you are obligated to spend other than working is a lost opportunity to make money. Get it? Those first four or five years of school could have been the first few years of full time employment in another city job that has a 20 year retirement. You actually incur an expense (tuition) for those years of study as you also lose money and time towards retirement by not being employed. If Mom's advice were correct, the pay off would come when you acquire your degree. However, you find that you are making the same amount of salary as your friends who became city employees such as NYPD, Corrections, Transit, Sanitation, etc. You are surprised when they compare their contract talks with ours because of all of the sacrifice that we make before employment. You are more surprised when your friends have purchased homes years before you and that you paid $400,000 for the same semi-attached home as the one they paid $180,000 for only seven years earlier. So now you realize that while you sat in school, you were also losing money in future disposable income. Your mortgage payments are more than twice as much as theirs. Now, years later, they are retiring. Some have bachelors degrees that they obtained at night. They are starting second careers as teachers in places like Middletown N.J. and Long Island. That raises my eyebrows. Their mortgages were refinanced to 15 year rates at lower interest when you were just learning about buying a home. Their houses are paid off and were sold as a down payment on a big detached home in New Jersey. Their new mortgage is still lower than yours. You wonder who the smarter person actually is. If you start teaching at 22, you will work 33 years before you can receive retirement pay. You do the math for when it was 62. Some people answer that we have summers off and a shorter work day. I answer with, "How much work do you take home and how much time do you spend of your own time performing work that is related to your day job?" Does a sanitation worker take garbage home? Does a fireman have to clean trucks and stow hoses at home? It would be called over time pay in any other union. Your lawyer does work at home. It is called the bill that you receive that makes your jaw drop while looking at it wondering if he really put in that much work on your single case. They say their job is more dangerous. I ask them how many times that they were wrestling with a 19 year old that was trying to cut them with a box cutter at work. Zero for them, two for me. Some of them have asked me what was happening since they read that they were going to "Tear your school down and build another one." I laugh and have to explain it best to them. I tell them to imagine that they are a cop for 18 years. The NYPD brings four new units into your station house. They tell you that you are now called an Absent Patrolman Reserve AKA an APR. They tell you that you have a chance of being hired in one of the new units in the station house but that you then observe thereafter that hardly anyone is hired as part of the new staff. So, they tell you to start writing a resume and going around on your own time asking the commanding officer of each station house if you can work for him because you are better than the other candidates that are lined up outside. You then say, "Oh well, at least I am getting paid." You then read the paper and your Police commissioner and the Mayor is saying that you are not working hard enough to be a Patrolman in a new station house so they want to fire you after one year of not finding work on your own time. You then read that your own union has screamed, "Never!" about many issues that they gave to the city anyway in the long run. I then say that with 19 1/2 years, you find yourself laid off. They usually say thing like, "No way man, they can't do that!" Well, not to you with your union but to us, yes they can and perhaps will. A childhood friend was a teacher for 20 years. He was fired for allegedly being insubordinate to a regional superintendent. He swore at his hearing that the woman was a nut who was lying and making the whole thing up. She swore that he did act insubordinate in a hallway when she told him to go back in an office and to stop talking to a colleague in the halls. I suppose that asking the question, "I am sorry Mam, who exactly are you?" is a reason to lose everything that you ever worked for. He has been unemployed for a few years now as a teacher. When he walks into the UFT office, the reps there throw their hands up and say out loud, "Oh boy, he is here again?" They try to actually get up and shut their door. It causes him to get so upset that his voice goes up. They then start saying, "Sir, you are yelling at me again!" He can't understand how after her testimony, that the words of Joan Mahon-Powell are still considered truthful in his case. That the UFT acts like he is an annoyance. Does anyone need a reminder of who she was. Just Google her name. If a cop is accused of cursing at a high school student, if substantiated, would probably lead to the loss of a few vacation days. For us, you would have to go home and tell your kids that Daddy lost his teaching job because they believed a kid that lied and said that you cursed at them. Now, we will lose this house if I can't find work and you will have to move away from all of your friends. This is exactly what happened to my buddy who I mentioned above. For the both of us, making it out of the housing projects and having the money for college required four years in the military. I have never mentioned the things that I have done and seen in those years to anyone unless they are close to me. My comrades at the VFW post know by my facial expressions. They see the same look in the mirror at times. Experiencing so much pain and coming close to death several times just to have the money to go to school and become a teacher? When you think of that, it makes it even worse to think of those years as part of the total loss I would suffer if the UFT failed to represent me like they did for my buddy. It just amazes anyone who hears his story. Everyone except the UFT. This former Marine and former Army Green Beret and now former teacher is doing landscaping work right now to pay his bills and feed his kids. A 50 year old landscaper with two masters degrees and a veteran of two branches of the military. One would never figure that that six foot tall light skinned black man with the weed whacker outside your window-- who seems to be mumbling to himself is actually mumbling the words "Damn UFT." My sister in law asked me yesterday what exactly an ATR was. I sort of looked at her funny because they just brought a new school into her building. I told her that the union membership better start worrying about issues that are not affecting themselves before the DOE's divide and conquer strategy sees them out of a job with some last minute "minor" change to the next contract. Yesterday, while speaking with my sister in law, when I got to the part about how we as a union do not have the right to grieve a false allegation by a supervisor with the letter in your file clause and how we keep giving back benefits and time, my mother finally chimed in on the conversation. In her best Brooklyn Jewish mother accent she said, "Stop acting like a kevetch and be a mench. Stop crying about it already. I can't take it anymore. You should have been like your brothers and become a cop." I just gave her that quizzical look. "She then said, "Oy, if looks could kill." as she walked out of the kitchen exhaling in mock frustration.

Well, I finally saw some tears flowing. Many letters were given out at Tilden yesterday and today. Veteran teachers are all being assigned as ATR's to various locations. Since they all must appear on Monday, the number of teachers who got letters through out the week are all here today, Friday the 19th. I can hear a teacher crying next door as I write this. If she wanted to leave Tilden, she would have asked for a seniority transfer years ago. She loves the kids in this community and wants to stay. She has over 20 years experience. The locations are, well, to be blunt the locations that parents usually use the no child left behind act to get their kids away from. Seniority transfers used to allow you to pay your dues in a tougher school then move somewhere that the kids really think that the N word is really a bad word. Now it is the opposite. You work in a tough neighborhood for twenty years with dreams of finishing your career in that nice school near your home in the borough or place that you live in and as you walk out today past that new young teacher hired by a new school, you realize that you are on your way into the belly of the beast. The place where that younger teacher should have been paying their dues at this very moment. I feel bad for the ones who voted no on the last contract. For the ones who voted yes and were dumb enough to tell me that you did? LOL seems appropriate.

Let ATR Teachers Teach - Petition

More voices from ATR's. First, a petition from Marjorie Stamberg which hopefully people will reproduce and pass around their schools.

Then 2 anonymous ICE blog comments (these comments do more than anything to expose the true state of affairs, so keep 'em coming.) One from Tilden HS, which is slated to close, which exposes the total uselessness of the UFT, which it is increasingly obvious is looking for ways to make this problem go away. Are they or the DOE to be trusted on anything?

This is what Klein wanted from day one and the UFT helped hand it to him. His comment in Principal Weekly this week saying there are plenty of new teachers available (see my other post today) without saying that there is a body of experienced teachers, who through no fault of their own, are available, says it all.

Naturally we don't expect this of Klein, but the gullible, or complicit, press will follow the leader with the line that these people are not employable and look how much it is costing the DOE.

Hell, yes they are not employable when schools are charged for their salaries. But this is the bed Klein and Weingarten made and the press, if honest- ha, ha - should report it that way. Now with economic crisis upon us, watch the pressure build to get rid of ATR's. Remember the cataclysmic mid 70's when we lost 15,000 positions, but at least seniority made this process somewhat orderly. Now it will be a free for all.

Click on the image to enlarge. If you want a better copy, email me and I'll send you a pdf for your school at Normsco@gmail.com.

From Marjorie
The situation of teachers in the ATR pool is urgent. Obviously everyone is affected. With classrooms more overcrowded than ever, it is outrageous that some 1,400 teachers are being prevented from teaching. This is a direct result of the union's sellout of seniority transfers in the 2005 contract.

The union must act. Attached is a petition calling on the UFT to organize a mass citywide rally to demand that the ATRs be given positions before any new teachers are placed. I would like to ask colleagues to take this up in their schools and the various teacher groups that they participate in. Let's try to have a meeting of those interested in working on this, possibly next Friday, Sept. 26. Please get back to me with your feedback and information.

Marjorie


Anonymous on ICE blog
Grieve What! At Tilden they did the same thing last year. The Principal saved thousands and thousands of dollars by making many of us ATRs and then she gave us full schedules in our subject areas. We all went to our chapter leader at Tilden and told him what are you and the union doing about this, we would like to grieve. He told us the principal does not have the money to pay us in her budget. This is the only way she can keep the school running and us in the building. If we grieve it she will be forced to dismantle the classes and assign some of us to different subject areas. It other words she will give a Math teacher 2 math classes one English class one science class and one social studies class. That way there will not be 5 open math class were the teacher can grieve a right of return. Plus any other extra Ats will be moved from the building. So don't rock the boat. Not to mention that she could come in and give you a negative observation. Yea, then you can go grieve that like your going to win. You will lose at the first 2 steps and then when it is suppose to go to arbitration it will be turned by our union because they don't want to lose at that level. We asked him they file a class action grieve on behalf of all of us. He told us that he does not know if he can do this. He'll have to talk to Charles Turner and find out. The Chapter leader never got back to us on it. We are still waiting for an answer a year later. Now that they are going to ship us out after a year of teacher 5 classes in our subject area as Atrs, our chapter leader tells us we can't grieve anything, we are lowlife ATRs and have no rights. We most go where they send us and do what we are told if we want to get a pay check at the end of the week.


Anonymous on ICE blog
I have been an ATR for a year and last year I had a full program. Now everyday that I walk into the building I hear that we will be moved by Sept. 19th. School aides stop me in the hall and tell me that Sept. 19th will be our last day. I feel like I am living the movie "Dead Man Walking" and everyday that I go to work it's like I am walking my last mile. I called the union district office and got a special rep on the phone who makes $127,000 a year and he he couldn't answer any questions for me. Did you ever speak to a dope? He asked me why I didn't speak to my building UFT rep and I told him that I do not like sarcastic and demeaning remarks which he would only make in the building to me. He then said he would tell the district rep about this and he would call me. This was 3 days ago and I have still have not been called. Lets face it I think the union has written off ATR's.

Not Qualified for President? Try Lincoln

With all the talk of Obama's "lack" of qualifications, check out the Lincoln bio. Failed in a number of elections, he did serve only 2 years in the House of Representatives in the late 1840's where he took a very unpopular anti-war stand on Polk's war with Mexico.

He functioned as a lawyer and community organizer. Lincoln, coming from what was then considered the west, was viewed as very different and exotic. In many ways, his and Obama's career paths parallel each other, as do their temperaments. Just a bit of irony here.

Check out The History Place for a complete summary.

Other sources: Dorris Kearns Goodwin's wonderful "A Team of Rivals."

And Harold Holzer's fabulous "Lincoln at Cooper Union," a complete description of Lincoln's first trip east and the background surrounding his famous speech in the great hall there, which I got to see for the first time last Saturday night at Naomi Klein's (The Shock Doctrine) appearance there.

The more you know about Lincoln, the more fascinating he becomes. You can try to make the case that "qualifications" include life experiences in his case. Some might try to use that to make the case for Palin too. But compare the backgrounds of Lincoln, Obama and Palin and draw your own conclusions.

The Human Face of an ATR

UPDATED

This was posted as an amazing comment on the ICE blog and bears more exposure to counter the lies Klein and the NYC ed press help him spread about ATR's not looking for work. Why would this ex-Marine try again? NOTE - see the item below it from Joel Klein's Principal's Week and how if nudges people to choose new teachers without a mention that there is a large pool of ATR's.

I got a call from a highly rated high school. They did not have a position but needed an ATR to fill in for a sick teacher in my subject area. The teacher may be out for a year and if they did not return, I may be invited to interview for the job that I would cover.

I showed up at 7:00 A.M. to interview for a position as an ATR. That was pretty funny. I had on my best suit, a close shave, a buzz cut to hide my grey hair, a letter of recommendation from the former principal of this very high school, a resume, 13 years of teaching experience, copies of observations, etc. I even sucked my gut in the whole time.

I answered all of the usual questions reserved for new teachers. I came off as confident but not over bearing. The AP seemed happy and walked me around the school. He introduced me to the staff who started giving me hugs and asking how I had been in the last ten years. One of them swore that she did not remember me but she was also the one that used to accuse me of "sprinkling while tinkling" in the common bathroom and not cleaning off the toilet seat which I honestly denied doing and explained to her that I was a Marine and that I keep things Marine clean. In this business, I wondered if she would bad mouth me as the "Tinkler" after I departed.

He spoke about getting me keys then told me to go back to my school and wait for the word that I would be transferred to his school. When I got back to my school, security started screaming at me as I walked past them, "Sir! Sir!, where are you going? You need to sign in here!" I told them that it was me under this clean cut look. They all started laughing and calling other agents over to look at me. They were telling me that they never saw me looking so young and handsome. The jokes were flying.

I told them that times were tough so I had to hire a make over show to get me a new job as an ATR in a school that I already worked in ten years ago for one semester as a full time teacher.

I have not received word yet and it has been two weeks. No disrespect to the staff if they decided to go for the "younger looking" teacher but that seems to be the way things are going now. Such is life.

This is from this week's Principal Weekly, but not a word about ATR's.

New Teachers Available
All schools

Newly-hired, certified teachers are available for you to consider for instructional vacancies. To find out more about these candidates, most of whom are in shortage subject areas, you can contact the Office of Teacher Recruitment and Quality at (718) 935-4080 or contact your HR partner. You can also search and view resumes and essays of these and other qualified candidates using the New Teacher Finder.

Time for a Bailout ... of ATR's

"If the ATRs lose, the union is dead.... it might as well close up shop"

{SEE UPDATE BELOW FROM SOUTH SHORE HS}

It's bailout party time all over the place.

With the Absentee Teacher Reserve issue - as a result of closed schools and high salaried teachers not being hired by principals who can get 2 newbies for the price of one vet - it is time for the Department of Education to guarantee the salaries of these people instead of charging the individual school. Call it a bailout, so in vogue today. And so cheap compared to AIG and Bear Sterns and who knows what else? (WAMU anyone? My mattress is offering me some nice interest rates.)

In addition, every single ATR should have a job before one new teacher is hired.

Since these people are being paid to be subs and do coverages, at least allow schools to use them to create more classes where there is overcrowding. To do any less is insanity. But then again we are talking about Tweed.

The drumbeat is already starting to force these people out of the system with claims that they are not looking hard enough for jobs. In fact many have given up after getting zero responses once their salaries are known.

Rumors of negotiations and buyouts being offered are floating around. We just love the quote in the NY Post yesterday (see refs on the post previous to this) from a Tweedie that they are reluctant to offer a buyout because some people are hanging on who would retire otherwise. The DOE will probably hire Alvarez & Marsal to consult at $15 million for advise on how to turn the screws. Water boards can be installed in all schools with ATR's fairly cheaply.

And then there's the UFT, which signed all the contracts and defends the very system that created this mess in the first place. Will they, can they, pull some kind of deal which will screw ATR's? Probably not on the surface. But look deeply underneath to see the scum of any deal. You can bet there's lots of ugly stuff lurking.

UFT Unity hacks in the schools are claiming teachers will get to vote on any contract change.

Let me tell you how this "vote" will be conducted.

One morning, an emergency Delegate Assembly will be called for that afternoon. Presentations will be made at the meeting (details to follow, of course) and a vote will be rushed through. Will teachers get to vote in schools? Nahhh. This is really not a contract change, you know. Just a slight modification, so it doesn't have to go to the membership. Unity Caucus members who know this is wrong - will make every excuse in their minds to vote with the leadership.

It is my sense that the union is just as anxious as the DOE to get rid of ATR's - in the worst sense since they are the most disaffected and angry at the union. The leadership is placing its bet on the younger teachers who will not stay in the system long enough to see the light. As Under Assault pointed out the other day, check the NY Teacher for all the goodies for new teachers with barely a mention of the ATR situation. All teachers need to understand that entire schools can be turned into ATR's at the whim of the DOE by announcing it is closing.

One of the reasons for closing large high schools,where the UFT was stongest,was the undermining of the union at its root level. Game, set, match to BloomKlein, with Randi Weingarten serving as the handmaiden.

Ed Notes has been saying it for a long time: there's a lot of congruence (and collaboration) in purposes between Tweed and 52 Broadway.

Here is an email posted to ICE-mail by a teacher at Lafayette HS in Brooklyn, an historic school in the process of being closed which has left a pool of teachers without positions.

In light of today's news on the DOE's plans to lay off ATRs, call it whatever you want, some of us feel it should be a all-union issue, and that the principals should have to hire ATRs first, unless they can make a case that they need someone for a position that an existing ATR could not fill. The Unity line coming to us through our chapter reps seems to be, they can't lay off ATRs (who can believe that?!) and if they want to "buy out" ATRs, the union would have to vote on it first, so don't worry. Well, Randi & Co. can get a vote on just about anything they want. This is not a fight about a group of ATRs, but for seniority rights for union members. There will be hundreds of new " ATRs" every year. As one teacher said, if the ATRs lose, the union is dead, it might as well close up shop.

Comment on the ICE blog:

Don't forget South Shore High School. Ten or so of us are ATR's and sit in the Teachers Center (thank heaven we have it -- computers, a/c, good conversation) but the madness doesn't end there. Last week another 10 or so were declared excessed even though they have, and will continue to have programs, some full, some short. My guess is that the principal figured out how to milk the system since ATR salaries come from Central not out of her budget.

We were told that next week we will all (the ones sitting, that is) be shipped out to whatever schools need subs. I am horrified that I have no say in where I am sent, who I work for, etc. Why have I put in all those years, all that training, to have absolutely no say in my future? Even per diem subs have more say when they register with Subcentral.

Ed NOTE: From day one Klein wanted the right to ship teachers out to schools at his whim and despite union cries it would never happen, guess what? It has.

The Real Face of Ed Reform in NYC - Oops! or EEPs!

Want to see the real face of the "reform" movement in NYC? Try reading through some of these pieces without gagging. I'm not sure what's worse. What BloomKlein are doing or the happy face the UFT is putting on things.

The Full Horror of the ATR Situation in NYC
There's probably no issue that illustrates the BloomKlein commitment to pushing their ideology over education than the ATR (Absentee Teacher Reserve) situation. The open market concept, which the UFT has signed onto, has created a chaotic situation with every man and woman and school for themselves. Why hire 4000 new teachers when you have a reserve of over 1000 experienced teachers waiting for work? IDEOLOGY! That the UFT concurs - don't get me started.

Start off by reading Jamaica HS chapter leader James Eterno's account on the ICE blog of the conditions at his school, where there are overcrowded classes while Absentee Teacher Reserves are kept out of classrooms. James reviews the wonderful news the mouthpiece of the UFT, the NY Teacher, is reporting on the opening of the schools.

UFT Once Again Joins Happy Talk on School System

The same story is being played out all over the city where ATR's are kept out of classrooms while colleagues teach overcrowded classes.

At Lafayette high school:
There are 18 atrs at Lafayette HS plus 2 counselors and 3 paras w/o regular assignments.

At Tilden HS:
There are over 20+ ATR's at Tilden HS. All teaching duties have been taken away from us. The classes are crowded and an extra class was given to a health teacher on a per session basis. Our office was taken away and made into a book room just to make us feel uncomfortable and the locks were also changed. They told us we could move into another office which already had four teachers in it and was too small too begin with. We keep hearing that we be out of the school by Friday (9/19 and sent to another school as an ATR and ATR's from another school will take our place. Whose brilliant plan is this? And what is the UFT doing about this? They told me to go on the Mass Market Transfer. Brilliant!

A commenter said: These stories are insane.

Yoav Gonen in the NY Post confirms the dire ATR situation.


I can't locate the story about 38 kindergarten kids in a Staten Island classroom. And how about throwing standardized tests at those 5 year olds? Just collateral damage in the EEP reform movement.


It is almost impossible to keep up with the enormous body of work the prolific Leonie Haimson produces. One day, when someone writes the history of the BloomKlein stewardship of the NYC school system, if they don't shrink away in horror, will find some of this stuff incredibly useful. I'm including excerpts from each piece but make sure to click on the links for the full stories at Norm's Notes to get all the gory details.

BRONX SCHOOL CHILDREN 'LOST' IN THE SYSTEM

Congrats to Bronx BP Carrion for speaking the truth. Despite the widespread attempt to make it seem like there were few problems this year, the problems of overcrowding, lack of placements, and poor transportation appear rampant. According to his new report,

“...we have seen that there is a systemic problem in the way that the Department of Education approaches, and plans for the new school year. A systemic problem that has not gone away despite all the changes the Department has undertaken; a problem that if allowed to persist,will continue to leave countless New York families out in the cold, waiting for their children to receive the quality education they have been promised, and deserve."

Regents and State Ed demand real accountability from NYC DOE on Class Size!

Today, the State Education Department and the Regents announced that despite being provided with millions of dollars in additional state aid last year, dollars that should have been used to reduce class size, in nearly 54% of NYC schools, class sizes and/or student-teacher ratio increased. In seventy NYC schools that received $100,000 or more to specifically reduce class size, both class size and student-teacher ratio increased. Those seventy schools alone account for nearly $20 million in wasted funds.

Leonie Haimson Questions Jim Dwyer on F Grade at PS 8

Does this school report card have important information about the school, or is it merely an artifact of an absurd evaluation system?

The latter. In addition to all the other statistical problems – basing 85% of the grade on the results of two high stakes exams, with the gains/losses up to 80% random -- the tests themselves are not “equated” or aligned to make the sort of cross year comparisons that Liebman uses them for.

Check out eduwonkette – actually today’s EdWeek commentator is Aaron Pallas, prof. of sociology at Columbia Univ, named Skoolboy: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/eduwonkette/2008/09/let_the_spin_begin

Did I See Geoffrey Canada Endorse Excuses?

I'm watching the PBS program on education - slightly tainted by the funding sources at PBS - you know, Broad and the rest of the brood.

So the Harlem Children's Zone's Geoffrey Canada comes on and says he has a dental clinic on the premises. "How do we expect a child to learn if he has a toothache," Canada says? And if a family is falling apart an 8 year old is sure to be affected.

Duhhhhhhhh!

Exactly what the Broader, Bolder people have been saying in counter to the EEP's "No excuses." Before you know it, Canada will start talking about the positive impact of low class size.

Now where can I get ahold of about a thousand dental clinics? I wonder what we can get for Aris on Ebay?

DEEEEE- REGULATION!

Bloggers (Daily Howl, Chancellors New Clothes) have compared Wendy Kopp, Michelle Rhee, BloomKlein, Sharpton, all the EEPs and other education reform flim flam men and women with "The Music Man's" Harold Hill.

But they all pale in comparison to the man who eagerly signed on to their phony ed reform: Republican presidential candidate and likely next co-president of the United States, John McCain.

You see, according to McCain, the major problem in this country is too much regulation and he promises to DEEEEEEE-REGULATE. The poor financial institutions have been so limited by all that regulation, that they have not been able to make even worse loans. The American and world financial world is in meltdown because they don't have enough freedom.

Remember the good old days of the 1920's when they could do anything they wanted. When investment companies and banks intermingled and all sorts of abuses led to the dreaded D word. And I don't mean DEEEEEEE-REGULATION!

Now I was a history major and we actually studied the D-word. We learned there would never be another D-word because the banking industry was now REGULATED. Remember Glass-Steagall?

Established 1933- a very good year - and repealed 1999. Remmber the president who signed that repeal? He wasn't named Bush.

The poor dears in the banking industry joined the oil and other corporate powers and bought both parties. But McCain feels they still need more DEEEEEEEEEEE-REGULATION!

So today, we salute the American political world with a few words from Harold Hill with a few minor changes.

It starts with a capital D
And that rhymes with P
And that stands for "POOR"

Well, either you're closing your eyes
To a situation you do now wish to acknowledge
Or you are not aware of the caliber of disaster indicated
By the presence of a Palin in your community.

Ya got trouble, my friend, right here,
I say, trouble right here in D.C. City.

And it starts with T
And that rhymes with P
And that stands for PALIN

Oh, we've got trouble.
We're in terrible, terrible trouble.

Original lyrics here.

ICE-Mail Debate on McCain/Obama/Biden/Palin

Worth checking out some of the angst on the left. Comparisons to Germany in the early 30's are not crazy. I've been reading Alan Furst 1930's spy novels and Hilter was still considered a joke by many as late as 1938. Remember, he came to power due to economic dislocation. So don't laugh too hard at Bush followed by Palin. It can only get worse. I asked my mattress today how much interest it pays.

Posted at Norm's Notes.

Klein (Naomi) and Klein (Joel)

I finally got a glimpse of Naomi Klein, author of "The Shock Doctrine" at a panel discussion on the presidential election at Cooper Union Saturday night, where many NYC area activists, progressives, radicals, and those do-nothing community organizers gathered. Bet there were just a few coppers at Cooper lurking. I tried to smile often in case they wanted a clear picture.

The left is going crazy over Obama - and not positive crazy. People are extremely unhappy over his policies and especially his rightward drift over the past few months. How long before he starts to wear pant suits? However, where else can they go in this election? The answer is that some of the leading lights, while they will probably vote Obama because he is better than the alternative, do not view these elections as the end all and be all. Rather they look at things from the view of the level of activism and how that can force change outside the election process.

My immediate reaction is to say, "Good luck and good night" – in that order. But, darn, there's always that slight tug of optimism. Or why else would I even bother to stay involved in education? You see, I agree with the idea of creating an activist movement. But my small mammalian brain can only seem to narrow cast on the ed wavelength. And narrow cast even narrower on the union without getting too distracted.

But the UFT gets so boring so easily. Not facing the daily outrages that used to drive my anger and activism has an impact. Thank goodness for people like Under Assault, who today takes another shot at the UFT, this time focusing on the official propaganda tool, the NY Teacher.

Which brings me to Klein (Naomi), who is quickly becoming a legend for her clear thinking and analysis. And reporting too. Saturday night she was not too user friendly to Barack, stressing that he was more likely to continue Bush policies than McCain.

Huh?

Well, it seems Klein(Naomi) thinks that McCain is the real agent of change and after listing the Obama policies that line up with Bush, she pointed to the McCain claim that in the first 90 days they would remake government - mostly by eliminating it. Basically, we can see the irony being played out in front of us of the 90 days of The New Deal being dismantled 75 years later - in 90 days. That is the promise of the McCain campaign. Better eat your meat and get yer puddin' while you can because once they get rid of the FDA, FTA, etc. we will be "ptomaine nation."

That the forces backing Palin are in control of McCain and the Republican Party is increasingly clear, as he has become a total puppet so he can be president - with his strings being pulled. Not exactly a Manchurian candidate, but a puppet with the forces backing Palin pulling the strings.

Klein (Naomi) used her favorite word - "shock" to describe the tactic Palin/McCain will use.
I finally bought her book the other day and in the first few pages of reading about the 35 year war on progressives and liberals through the use of the shock doctrine, I was reminded of how Klein (Joel) and Bloomberg (Mike) used exactly that same philosophy to dismantle the NYC school system. There's more to it than I want to go into here, but those who have lived through multiple reorganizations and incompetence couldn't understand why a system in need of change would face the BloomKlein lunacy that has so shocked the system that my words to Klein (Joel) back in 2004 still echo in my mind - that the school systems of Kabul and Baghdad will recover sooner than the NYC school system. (I was later branded by Carmen Farina as having accused Klein of being worse than the Taliban. Hmmm!)

I really want to write more about the shock doctrine as I get further into the books. Today I was reminded by Under Assault about a piece done on that blog on this very idea back in January '08. So I'm going to shut up while you go over and read it.

http://underassault.blogspot.com/2008/01/shock-comparisons.html

Alaskan Women Reject Palin in Largest Protest in Alaskan History

Read the story of how threats and intimidation could not stop this protest of women in Alaska, along with pics at Daily Kos.

And do not miss the chilling, and not because it comes from Alaska, front page story on Palin in the Sunday NY Times.

We've said this before. Be scared. Be very scared.

But don't dare criticize her or be branded a "hater."

NYCDOE Office of Accountability Grows...and Grows...

....AND GROWS (Updated 10:30 AM)

Is Tweed a kudzu mutant?
What the face of EEP ed "reform" really looks like

What's another million that could have gone to the classroom? The "No Excusers" always find excuses not to cut class size. I echo Leonie. Gee, they're going to train 25 teachers to differentiate instruction - WITH 30 KIDS? And of course, teachers who somehow can't manage this will be vilified. Put any private school teacher where people pay $30 grand a year into this situation and check the results. (Talk to some of them and they roll their eyes.)

Want to beat the odds? Try JUST A FEW SCHOOLS with drastically lower class size. That so many apologists for EEP teacher bashing keep raising red herrings is a clear sign that they know we will that is the most effective way to reduce all kinds of gaps – well, maybe not the Grand Canyon, which will be closed before the Tweed credibility gap.

Tweed sure is reducing bureaucracy
Oh, and if you want to apply for a job in the Accountability Office, see the jobs available below. Wouldn't you just love to be a "Summative Assessments Product Manager"?


From Leonie Haimson to NYC EDNEWS Listserve:

Just as we’re struggling with overcrowded classes with insufficient resources, and a large number of District family advocates laid off, the Accountability office is continues to grow like a cancer that won’t stop.

Remember how there was supposedly a hiring freeze at Tweed to save money?

Newest finding: there’s a new ten person team at DOE, costing a million dollars, headed by a “director of knowledge management” in the Accountability office. Meanwhile, Jim Liebman is still heading the office while ostensibly full time teaching at Columbia. Wonder if he’s getting paid twice.

One of the projects they’re in charge of will supposedly “show teachers at 25 middle schools how to tailor their lessons for each student.”

How about beginning by cutting their class sizes? With classes of 30 or more, and a teaching load of up to 150 students, it’s a bit difficult to individualize instruction for every student.

Of course, that’s advice they refuse to listen to even though it doesn’t cost them a penny.

$1M SCHOOL 'THINK' LINK
By YOAV GONEN, Education Reporter, NY Post
September 11, 2008

The Department of Education is assembling a million-dollar team charged with getting schools to learn from one another how best to educate their students, The Post has learned.

The 10-person team will have a budget of more than $1 million and will be headed by a "director of knowledge management." The initiative will create a computerized "warehouse" that will allow schools to share ideas about organization, scheduling and other aspects of educating kids.

"It's just spreading out knowledge or learning or innovation horizontally from almost 1,500 schools to almost 1,500 other schools," said Jim Liebman, the DOE's chief of accountability. While much of the information-sharing will be done online, schools struggling with similar problems will also form real-life networks.

Education officials are planning to link poorly performing schools with a "beat-the-odds" school that has overcome similar hurdles, and they've started two related two-year pilot programs this year. One will help about 20 schools learn how to pinpoint concepts students are struggling with, and the other will show teachers at 25 middle schools how to tailor their lessons for each student.

Need a job?

Chancellor's Accountability Initiative

Analyst; Research and Policy Support (5182) $46,004 +
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 04/25/2008

Community District Assistant (4821) : $29,804+
New York, NY, US. - 11/05/2007

Community Superintendent (5344) Up to $170,000 Salary
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 06/09/2008

Data Analyst-Consultant (4504) $250.00 - $300.00 per day
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 09/14/2007
__

Deputy Director; Knowledge Management (5412) Salary: $95,000+
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 07/18/2008

Director of School Quality (5373) up to $170,000 Salary Commensurate with Experience
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 07/28/2008

Director; Knowledge Management (5389) ; Salary: $111,000 - $170,000
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 07/09/2008

Implementation Manager, KM Initiatives (5552) $65,120+
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 08/29/2008

Instructional Design Manager, KM Educator Support (5553) $65,120 +
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 08/29/2008

KM Domain Leader for Leadership & Organizational Management (5507) $111,000 - $170,000
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 08/11/2008

KM Domain Leader for Literacy; English Language Arts; & Social Studies (5508) $111,000 - $170,000
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 08/11/2008

KM Domain Leader for Mathematics & Science (5506) $111,000 - $170,000
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 08/08/2008

Senior Achievement Facilitator (2880) Up to $170,000
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 06/19/2008

Senior Analyst; Assessment (5346) $63,301+
NEW YORK, NY, US. - 06/11/2008

Summative Assessments Product Manager (5232) $81,000


UPDATE from Leonie:

More evidence of the unreliability of the school grades in the NY Times today.
Remember IS 89, that as one of the best schools in the country-- the only NYC middle school to do so-- and yet received an "D" ?
Or the "F" given to PS 35 in Staten Island, PS 35 - where more than 95% of students met standards in math and ELA?
Well, PS 8, most visited school in Brooklyn by top DOE officials -- who have repeatedly lauded it as one of the most improved schools in the entire city -- got an "F" in this year's report cards.
Experts say that year to year changes in average test scores at the school level are 34 to 80 percent random. And yet school grades are based 85% on these test scores.
I wrote an oped for the Daily News on this issue last year -- posted here:
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/11/07/2007-11-07_why_parents__teachers_should_reject_new_.html

The school grades were devised by Jim Liebman, a man with no expertise in education, testing or statistics, and who is still running the doE Accountability office full time despite also being full time Columbia law prof. He is spending hundreds of millions a year, and the office is still growing in leaps and bounds, despite budget cuts to other areas, including school supplies, special ed transportation, and many District family advocates who have been laid off. Instead, it is the entire Accountability office that deserves an "F" and should be cut, and Liebman and his other top staff should be sent back to school where they belong -- to take a basic course in statistics.

In Brooklyn, Low Grade for a School of Successes

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/12/education/12school.html?hp

NYCoRE Announcement--Plan book campaign in final stages!

With the new school year just beginning, we wanted to take a moment to update you on our campaign to promote Planning to Change the World, the social justice teacher’s plan book. We have sold more than 1,700 books nationwide, and orders are continuing to come in. We also received another great review on tolerance.org (http://www.tolerance.org/teach/current/event.jsp?ar=956).

Our campaign is winding down, so if you haven’t purchased your planner yet, please do so soon on http://www.lulu.com/content/2980186.

Please help us make one final push by spreading the word to your friends and colleagues. You can download a flier here (http://www.justiceplanbook.com/justiceplanbook/planning-to-change-the-world-flier) or you can email your colleagues and direct them to the plan book website, www.justiceplanbook.com.

A huge thank you to all those who participated in this campaign. You have helped put a wonderful resource in the hands of educators across the country and bring critical funds to both the New York Collective of Radical Educators and the Education for Liberation Network, supporting our efforts to achieve education justice.

Bree, NYCoRE and Tara, Education for Liberation Network

The Achievement Gap and Civil Rights

Is a dropping percentage of African-American teachers in urban areas contributing to THE DREADED ACHIEVEMENT GAP?

An article in the Philadelphia Daily News (posted at Norms Notes) states:

The percentage of African-American teachers is declining, and now stands at its lowest point in decades.

And students are suffering as a result, a growing body of research shows. One national organization found that increasing the percentage of black teachers is directly related to closing the so-called achievement gap - students of color lagging behind white peers.

Now, I'm always suspicious when I see the words "a growing body of research" without citing the actual study, as is the want for so many ideologues who talk about "studies" that debunk the benefits of low class size or how teacher quality is the most factor (without defining what the words "teacher quality" mean) or the 45 teachers used in a "major" study that claiming that Teach For America teachers outperform other teachers.

However, this throws an intriguing element on the table when the EEP Klein/Sharpton acolytes talk about the AG being "the civil rights issue of our time." Sure. Let's have a civil rights movement in education, but leave African-American teachers behind. Hmmm. Do we need a federal No African-American Teacher Left Behind? Let's see: NAATLB. Not bad. Just trying saying it 10 times real fast.


Teachers in NYC, led by my Independent Community of Educators colleague Sean Ahern, have been harping on this issue for years. Sean talks about the "whitening of the teacher staff." In NYC where numerous Teach for America recruits have entered the school system, it was pointed out to me the other day that TFA does not recruit at the City University of New York, where they might actually tap into a source of many students of color.

In fact, due to Sean and some other ICE'ers, ICE will be discussing the issue at this Friday's meeting (see the ICE blog for details if you want to come down and jump in.) Ed Notes has reported on the dramatic drop in the percentage of new hires of African-Americans (from 28% to 15%) in the BloomKlein years (here, here and the black educator blog.)

I support the concept of diversified teaching staffs. All kids should be exposed to teachers of different backgrounds. White kids should have enough black teachers so they don't come to see the world in a narrow framework. African-American kids should not see only white teachers. But does such exposure make a major difference academically?

I have never bought into the idea that having teachers of the same race has an enormous impact. My school had many African-American teachers and there did not seem to be much of a difference in terms of student performance, behavior, etc. Some were great teachers. Some not so great. About the same ratios as Hispanic and white teachers. But that was a very small sample.

There were entire districts (16 for instance in Bed-Stuy in Brooklyn) that under community control from 1968-2002 hired enormous numbers of Black teachers, to the extent that there were whispers that white teachers were not welcome in some schools. While there are many factors involved, the performance of students in District 16 was generally abysmal. And friends who taught in District 16 reported the same kinds of impact I saw in my school.

On a larger stage, while I don't have any figures, the Washington DC school system supposedly has a majority of black teachers and has been lambasted for poor performance. That adds an interesting (and surprisingly unreported) backdrop to the current attack on DC teachers and their union by Michelle Rhee and Mayor Fenty, who is black. Is there an undercurrent of an attack on civil rights going on - for teachers?

I'm open to hearing all points of view on this issue. Expect a spirited debate at the ICE meeting tomorrow. I think I'll wear a helmet.

Throwing BB’s at EEPs – With a Dollop of Common Sense

The following column will appear in The Wave on Sept. 19, a reworking of some of the material on this blog.

Note: Thanks to Tom Hoffman's comment for the heads up on misplacing the word "bigger" for "broader." An added redundant adjective ended up replacing the intended word. A good lesson for using spell/grammer check without proof reading. Can I get away with blaming a rushed deadline?



What lies between the Joel Klein/Al Sharpton Education Equality Project vision of education reform and the Broader, Bolder approach signed onto by many other education reform advocates?

EEP believes the solution to the buzz word of the century – read in a loud stentorian voice - THE DREADED ACHIEVEMENT GAP - is in a competitive, market based, narrow outcome oriented based on standardized tests system that punishes schools, teachers and kids or rewards them with incentives like merit pay. Create competition by turning whole chunks of school systems over to charter schools run by semi-public and private operations supported by money from outside the school system. EEP says bringing up other factors like class size, home life, behavior, and socio-economic status are just excuses and calls for a “no excuses” approach to education reform.

This is the reform model that is sweeping the urban landscape, in most cases led by a mayor who has been given dictatorial control over the school system. Klein and Sharpton led their troops to the Democratic and Republican conventions to attempt to influence both parties. John McCain signed up immediately.

This summer a counter group called the Broader, Bolder approach to ed reform counters with the idea that schools can't do it alone without significant investment in support services.

Broader, Bolder does not claim schools cannot be improved at all and also seems to sign on to some of the accountability themes of EEP, while calling for an expansion beyond narrow test scores of how schools are held accountable. Broader, Bolder's main themes are:

* Continue to pursue school improvement efforts (with a big component being reducing class size.)
* Increase investment in developmentally appropriate and high-quality early childhood, pre-school, and kindergarten education.

Common Sense, Rational Education Reform

This week, a 3rd group organized by two parent activists, has come on the scene. Calling itself "Common Sense Educational Reforms," it is led by New York based Leonie Haimson of “Class Size Matters” and Julie Woestehoff of the Chicago-based "Parents United for Responsible Education" (PURE). They wrote a letter to both presidential candidates outlining their vision for what could be called a rational approach to Ed reform based on common sense instead of ideological prescriptions upon which both EEP and BB seem to operate. Like, how much research is necessary to prove that lower class sizes, enjoyed by the wealthy, would have a positive impact on children, while also improving teacher quality?

The EEPs constantly downplay class size, arguing that there are not enough quality teachers to make a difference. CSER argues that teacher quality deteriorates in large classes no matter what the level of the teacher and lower class sizes would also serve to dam the attrition rate of teachers who often run off to the better working conditions of suburban schools.

CSER certainly comes down closer to the BB’s, calling for:
–Safe and uncrowded schools with more counselors.
–Smaller classes.
–Adequate resources and teacher support to assure that all students receive a rich, well-rounded curriculum including the arts, physical education and project-based learning in a curriculum connected to their own lives and culture, with progress evaluated by high-quality, appropriate assessment tools that are primarily classroom-based.
–More parental involvement. A high level of involved parents at the school level leads to better outcomes for students.

They enter the fray as major critics of the Klein/Sharpton EEP approach, claiming “the top- down, corporate approach to school governance currently used in cities throughout the country such as Chicago and New York has consistently and systematically worked to eliminate the ability of parents to have a real voice in decision-making and thus to be true partners at the school and district level.” I find it interesting that poorer urban parents are being denied the right to elect school boards and control school funding, a right enjoyed by the overwhelming majority of parents in this nation.

The NY Sun’s Elizabeth Green wrote about CSER this week:

They dismiss Mr. Klein's as offering only a beefed-up version of President Bush's unpopular No Child Left Behind law. Mr. Klein's prescriptions are "NCLB on steroids." They also reject charter schools, which are embraced by Mr. Klein and his supporters as a means of giving opportunities to poor children. The Common Sense group says charter schools actually further exacerbate income disparities by admitting only children who can do well at their schools and leaving the rest to flounder. Admission at charter schools is regulated by strict lotteries in New York, but the parents argue that only the savvy students apply to them, and they say that the schools encourage more troubled students to leave.

CSER has a new blog at: http://commonsensereforms.blogspot.com/


Separate and Unequal: When Parents Hire the Teachers

When I taught in Williamsburg, the PTA raised money, mostly through candy sales. They used the money to buy books for the library and reading programs. But the idea of buying extra teacher services? Why that would take a hell of a lot of money. This week, we read about the enormous amounts of money PTA’s in wealthy areas raise to buy all kinds of services that are beyond the realm of schools in poor areas. Major differences in spending per pupil in charter vs. public schools have also emerged, allowing charters to offer lower class sizes and other services.
What all this means is perpetuating a system of "separate and unequal” for the kids most in need.

Has "Liberal: Become a Dirty Word?

While liberalism in the sense of the New Deal is in retreat - witness the Democratic move to the center/right - most people are not aware of the intense criticism of liberals that comes from the left. In fact, liberalism - the Ameican version as opposed to the European model of Adam Smith - seems to be dead. When the NY Times is accused of being liberal or left, radicals have a good laugh. Arjun raises some interesting points.

Arjun Janah, a former NYC teacher, on liberalism

In this country, the term "liberal" has, since Reagan's time, been a pejorative. The right has achieved this by associating liberalism with real or perceived "liberal excess" -- with a permissive attitude of moral relativism that coddles criminals and errant children, ignores the rights of crime victims, parents and teachers, undermines legitimate authority, and refuses to accept responsibility. It has also successfully linked liberalism with "tax and spend" policies, bloated and oppressive big government, and with an affluent "liberal elite" associated with Washington, the big cities on the coasts, and Hollywood, that supports legislation that adversely affects working class Americans while drinking lattes, owning multiple homes and sending their own children to private, elite schools and colleges.

The distancing of much of the left in this country from its working class origins may have contributed to this, as also the peculiar increasing insularity of much of that working class as it grew more affluent. But one cannot discount the power of the propaganda campaign carried out by big business, its animus against unions and its success in brainwashing the public into pathological fears about "socialism" as a foreign evil, closely associated with the bogey of Communism, and threatening to the "American way of life". The size and geographical isolation of this country, and the strength of its economy, have also led to an indifference or ignorance about the affairs of even neighboring states, such as Mexico and Canada. This has fed this insularity in a vicious cycle.

The individualism, and the healthy skepticism about authority and government, that may have been part of this country's culture from the start, have thus been twisted into what may be a pathological fear of collective spirit and effort beyond the confines of one's church -- and of the legitimate uses of government for purposes other than defense.

This pathology has increased to the extent that most of the perceived "leftists" that remain among this country's legislators, government executives and media are mainly concentrated in a few cities and states, and would, by most other country's standards, be considered "center right". Indeed, that much-vilified bastion of liberalism, the New York Times, has yet, in my experience, to publish anything substantive in support of its own home city's union workers. And it has often been in the forefront, both editorially and in reportage, at the start of foreign wars, arguing the government's case. Iraq was no exception.

Nevertheless, in the Times, one still finds those who occasionally have the courage to defend traditional liberalism. In the article below, Bob Herbert rises to the defense of liberals, citing some of their notable achievements, such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and the advance of basic civil rights for minorities and women.

Arjun Janah

Read Herbert's column at Norms Notes right below Arjun.

Separate and Unequal: When Parents Hire the Teachers

Recent articles (NY Post) have pointed to the enormous disparity in the amount of money raised between Parent Associations in wealthy and poor areas of NYC. Read Leonie's full comments at the NYC PSP blog.

I talked to the Post reporter at length who was researching this practice, and pointed out to her that it was DOE's failure to provide reasonable class sizes that put NYC parents in this impossible situation- having to decide whether to raise money to hire assistant teachers, or move to the suburbs or transfer their kids to private schools, in an effort to ensure that their children do not suffer in substandard conditions of classes of 25, 30 or more.

Unfortunately, the editors cut my quote from the final article.

Manhattan PEP rep Patrick Sullivan wrote a blog pointing to how much higher per pupil spending was at charter schools. On the first day of school Leonie pointed to these differences in spending.

So what does it all amount to for those sterling advocates of the civil rights issue of our time (see John McCain say same in a major education policy speech today)?

SEPARATE AND UNEQUAL FOR THE KIDS MOST IN NEED



A NYC parent activist responded on the parent listserve:

...so much for the "Fair Student Funding formula" which we all know is anything but.

If these guys cared about equitable funding then the hard fought for CFE funds would be used to improve the conditions and resources of the schools with the historically most disadvantaged kids.

Instead the politically arrived at (by special interests) budget formula is aimed at union busting and punishing schools for hiring ands retaining experienced teachers.

PTA's in the wealthiest zip codes fund raise to supplant school staffing budgets because this administration only thinks charter schools should get to cap class size at reasonable numbers, leaving budget decisions (such as spending on art, music, phys ed and after school) totally up to individual principals.

This emperor has no clothes- only rhetoric.
Catchy buzz words and tons of PR do not accountability or transparency make.

Where is the data driving these decisions?
Where is the evidence that any of this never ending re-tooling and experimentation is effective?
Are graduation rates and college readiness, or any other meaningful measure of learning, actually improving?

How has mayoral control removed corruption, cronyism, political agendas or special interests?

It has only magnified the power of a very narrow ideological force by removing all mechanisms for dissent or even dialogue.

Essential public services like education are too important to be left in the hands of technocrats and lawyers.

We can not afford a winners and losers free market based approach to public education.

Use your vote today, if your are a registered Democrat, to support any candidate that is opposed to continuing mayoral control and the neo-liberal ideology that has driven " education reform" for our one million children for the past 7 years.

Lisa Donlan
CEC One ( LES/ East Village)

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