Leonie Smackdown Redux- Updated

UPDATED Sunday, Sept. 19, 11:30pm

See Leonie's account of the meeting at NYC Parent blog.

My debate with Shael Suransky of DOE

As many people have asked for it, she posted her powerpoint here, part 1 and part II. If you would like Leonie to present it to your organization, please email her at classsizematters@gmail.com.

The email exchange between Lindsey, the very testy VP for PR at NY Law School, and Leonie.

See my post game video interview with Leonie on you tube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSg8myiMhR4]

 

Original posting, Thurs Sept. 16:
I wrote late last night about the New York Law School event featuring Class Size Matters' Leonie Haimson and the NYC Department of Education's Chief Accountability Officer Shael Suransky. But it was late and this piece, Leonie Haimson KO's Tweed in a Knockdown, didn't do justice to Leonie's spectacular work in  laying waste to the ed deform movement and BloomKlein as she took a wrecking ball and kept smashing it into their faces - boom, one blow after another until the virtual Tweed was not left standing.

Poor Suransky. He tried his best to defend Tweed but if this room semi-filled (more on this later) law students were a jury, BloomKlein would have been sent to the hangman's tree.

UFT/AFT Sidebar
How a one woman operation can accomplish such a feat while a hundred million dollar (or is it two hundred?) union operation flails helplessly does make people scratch their heads. But not me since I view the UFT/AFT as a virtual arm of the ed deform movement - whether they agree philosophically or not they take the position that it is here and they have to work within the framework. Thus my comparing them to the mentality of Vichy. (See UFT/AFT: Think Like Vichy)

 Ahhh, that felt good. Back to our program.
 As you all know, I am not a reporter and my scatterbrain mentality makes it hard for me to take notes, plus I can never read my own handwriting - think it's time for an Ipad? But here is what I have until I coral Leonie to do a voice over her presentation - and I should point out that she had to rush through it in her 15 minutes so a lot was skipped. One witness came over and suggested we do it as a series.

The symposium was titled "NCLB and the Effects of high stakes accountability systems (NYC and elsewhere)". I thought it interesting that Tweed was even willing to send one of their top people to get in the same arena with Leonie but maybe it is a sign of their desperate attempts to spin their side of the story after this summer's testing fiasco. It wasn't that Shael is not competent to defend them (I wish he were on our side) but that he has so little he can defend. However, he does seem to drink the Kool-aid.

His presentation went after Leonie and people were so wowed there was little he could do. He pointed to his experience at Morris HS where he claimed they graduated only 70 kids out of a cohort of 700 - when I challenged him later on this 10% grad rate he hedged, saying that some kids went to other schools and came up with a 25% figure. He claims that the 4 new schools, one of which he ran, had 75-80% grad rates with the same type of kids. Sorry, I don't believe it. That rivals Michelle Rhee's claims she performed miracles, raising her class' reading from 10% to 90% in a year. No don't get me wrong here. I do believe we can reverse the numbers. But Real Reformers (our new code name) know what it will take - smaller teaching groups to start - but I won't do the drill again.

Leonie talked about how the high stakes testing game has so totally distorted education. She laid waste the Tweed's report card system, how schools that got F's one year got A's the next, quoting Aaron Pallas, "A monkey could do a better job by randomly picking schools."

She devastated the value added approach, pointing to research that showed how the same teachers measured on student performance on different tests could turn up as the best on one and the worst on another. (See new Sean Corcoran study - link on my sidebar.) How high school grad rates were distorted by the pressure on teachers to mark up on Regents exams and credit recovery. And oh, those discharge rates. Campbell's Law in action.

Leonie went into the data that shows that lower class size is one of the 4 measures proven to have an effect on student performance - an obvious fact to anyone who spent time in the classroom. (Where does Suransky who says he was a teacher stand on this?)

She repeatedly returned to Campbell's Law: 

"The more any quantitative social indicator is used for social decision-making, the more subject it will be to corruption pressures and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social processes it is intended to monitor."^[1]

Yes, give people incentives to cheat based on rewards (bonus pay) and punishment (closing schools, loss of jobs) and people will do what it takes to assure high scores.

When asked later what was her prescription for the ills of schools? Reduce class size and do what it would take to cut the attrition rate of teachers - these are related, of course.

One very interesting interchange took place between Leonie and Shael over a question about how the international standing of the US has fallen. Shael fell into this trap by talking about the higher standing of European schools - how teachers are so much more respected than here.

Duhhhh! European teachers have some of the strongest teachers unions in the world. Maybe that has something to do with how they are respected while also calling out our own AFT/UFT as bearing a major share of the blame for the lack of respect in the US.

In Finland he said, the top quarter of college grads went into teaching while in the US it is more like the bottom third.

Leonie pounced. Finland is the highest performing nation in the world. No high stakes testing at all, though there are some tests.

And how about those teacher unions there? Think that has an impact on luring the top college grads into the profession as opposed to the US where the lure is to go into finance so you too could take part in destroying the economy?


After burn: NY Law Mopes
I won't go into it in depth because we finally got in. But the PR person from the Law School and the NY Law School Assistant Dean were some of the nastiest people we have met.

When I arrived I was surprised to see Lisa Donlan there as I thought she was still in Paris. But she had flown in the night before – there is dedication to the cause. She told me we would not be allowed in without reservations, which we didn't know we needed. Worse of all Lisa said, when she asked if there was room could we come in, she received a firm "no." That this event was for students and they expected it to be filled. And besides,  they ordered pizza. "I won't eat," I chimed in (but I managed to sneak a slice later - na, na, na, na, na, na.)

[This section updated and clarified]
I tried to get in as press and was told I needed a reservation. Just them someone without a reservation came up and said he was with Tweed and was there at Suransky's request. He was Deputy Press Secretary Matt Mittenthal and he seemed like a nice guy but got caught in my tirade once it was clear he would be allowed in. I raised a ruckus: if Tweed can have someone come why can't Leonie have people even if they don't have reservations? I was at my most obnoxious and during our interchanges I was threatened numerous times - "leave this lobby immediately," the PR person screamed at me. More than once (I had tried to take a picture of the sign at the entrance that talked about justice). I told her to call security and I would go kicking and screaming, taping all the way. Matt told me that if other press was upstairs he would argue to get me in (yes, there are some likable people at Tweed even with my pal David Cantor gone.)

Anyway, as more and more of Leonie's people arrived, few with reservations, the Law School people got more and more nervous, finally relenting and saying they would count seats and let us in. So we got in. And the joke is the place was half empty. Lisa did a chair count and came up with these numbers give or take a few: 62 attendees, 46 empty seats at around 1:30 (the numbers varied as people came and went). 16 of these were FOL - Friends of Leonie. Poor Shael only had a few friends, including one of my faves - James Merriman, uber charter school pusher. I love to tweak Merriman. "How did that Perkins/Smikle thing work out?" "Incumbency" he harumphed. He later told Leonie that Sam Hoyt was winning big in Buffalo as a sign of the charter school lobby influence. See Leonie's comment on this in Postscript below.


Did Tweed make demands?
We have info that the Law school was contacted by the DOE to keep press out. NY 1's Lindsey Christ was told she could not tape and was apparently not happy and didn't show (Leonie posted emails between Lindsey and NY Law that upset these mopes no end - I'm getting a feeling she won't be asked back.)

I heard through someone connected to the Law School who was present and not happy with the way we were being treated by the Law School officials that Kathleen Grimm had told them that Leonie was advertising the event as a smackdown - not true as Gotham's Elizabeth Green had done that - and the press should be kept out. NY Law people seemed so nervous we wondered whether there is some funding coming from Bloomberg.


Postscript from Leonie 
Hoyt is a big favorite of the charter school lobby and beneficiary of the hedge hog dollars. He outspent his rival by 4-1 and only is ahead by 250 votes out of more than 10,000 cast.  His opponent wants a recount. Bloomberg gave Hoyt big $, and he was one of DFER’s Hot List. He also briefly subscribed to this list serv, for reasons I could never figure out.

Hoyt Wins, But Golombek Wants A Recount 

http://www.wgrz.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=86801&catid=13

Postscript 2: After the event I walked Leonie home and interviewed her in her garden for our film. I'm heading for the city now to cover the Diane Ravitch/Eva Moskowitz panel at The Economist event at Chelsea Piers. If I can get a few sound bites from Diane for the film that would be awesome.

Leonie Haimson KO's Tweed in a Knockdown

I have rarely felt sympathy for BloomKlein. But the bludgeoning they took from Leonie Haimson at NY Law School where she appeared with the DOE's Chief Accountability Officer Shael Suransky almost made me feel sorry for them. Almost. Her amazing Powerpoint presentation was not directed at Suransky who seems to be well-liked and personality wise is an enormous improvement over his predecessor Jim Liebman (Suransky at least can claim some creds based on real teaching - he claims- in a NYC middle school) but took apart the entire ed deform program, point by point.

 Value added? POW!

Merit pay? SLAM:

Class size as one of the few true ed reform solutions? WHAP!

I was sitting next to Lisa Donlan and she kept saying, "Did you get that?" I missed so much but was trying to write as much down as I could during Leonie's 15 minutes. Now I have to get her to do an audio over her PowerPoint and put it up on the web. It could become a classic ed deform rebuttal.

The reaction of the people who organized the event at the Law School was curiouser and curiouser.
Terming the event a "Smackdown" by Gotham's Elizabeth Green probably didn't help. Leonie invited her thousands of friends to come and observe but most of them were working in and out of schools. We counted 16 that did show and 3 for the other side. I have a longer tale to tell about the press ban and the incredibly nasty PR person and Dean we encountered - the extent they threatened to call security on me - at least twice. I was bucking for a 3rd time when they finally let us in. We have hints of DOE interference to try to keep this from getting out to the public, but more about that in a follow-up.

ATRs: Many Called, Few Chosen

From an ATR's horses mouth. What a great inside illustration of not only the lack of respect from the DOE but also of their incompetence at even running an event like this.

A “mandatory recruitment fair” (or was it a futility festival?) was held in the main room of the Grand Prospect Ballroom in Brooklyn on September 14.  Teachers were initially directly to report at 10 o’clock in the morning.  Email messages went out the day before changing the time to 1:00.  Although the second floor ballroom is large, teachers weren’t permitted to enter until after one o’clock.  Some didn’t get in until around 2:00.  Teachers who arrived in the morning had to stand around waiting for more than three hours before going upstairs to the interview tables.

The DOE used a first floor lounge and restaurant as waiting rooms.  These side rooms were stuffed far beyond their room capacity (which is listed on the ballroom’s website as 320 persons).

Teachers were advised in the email messages that no lunch would be provided.  For those arriving in the afternoon there was not even water.  One teacher was stopped from entering the Skylight Room where administrators were being served a range of beverages by waiters in black jackets.  A handler in a monogrammed jacket told the teacher there wasn’t anything available for interviewees.  Asked what his position was the man explained that he was employed by a private company (a DOE “partner”) hired to provide logistics for the job fair.   Apparently these logistics didn’t include providing water for the hundreds of cattle call participants.  After a standoff of several minutes a Ballroom waiter brought the teacher a glass of water from the off-limits room.  Teachers typically seemed to be seeing about 3-4 vacancies in their licence area.  Some fewer.  Some found none.

Throwaway line:  Many of the participants were dressed like they would hope to be treated:  professional or at least semi-professional.  However, scores of others were more in keeping with the shabby reality.

Follow-Up

Pakter on Callaghan: UFT Canned Its Conscience When It Fired Jim Callaghan

DOE to ATRs: Jump Off a Cliff

Angel Gonzalez and I went over to the big ATR job fair for Staten Island and Brooklyn ATRs (Absentee Teacher Reserves for the uninitiated) held in Park Slope to hand out the just published Grassroots Education Movement (GEMNYC) newsletter.

So we discovered some fun facts. The meeting was mandatory. Some notices said 10-4. A follow-up said to report at 1pm. Those who reported at 10 were made to sit around until 1pm and then had to line up to be registered one by one. Hundreds of people were there to be interviewed for jobs. We hear that some people weren't notified and if they didn't show look for Tweed to leak some leaky statistics to the NY Post or Wall St. Journal about how people refused to look for jobs.

Even if they are "hired" they are still at-will employees subject the the whims of principals. Their position is so precarious they have to do anything in the hope of staying on. I know one ATR who tells people she will move their cars during her preps and lunchtime just to curry favor.

Angel and I talked to them about forming an ATR committee to put pressure on the UFT to relieve the situation. They seemed receptive to a rally in November to commemorate the one held 2 years ago, the threat of which forced the UFT and Tweed to try to undercut it with a deal - still a lousy one but one that doesn't charge the school for the cost of the ATR - that expires on Dec. 1. Even if they get a job under this deal they can be released at the end of the school year if they didn't wash the floors with a toothbrush to the principal's satisfaction.

The funniest response came from an ATR who refused to take out newsletter, proclaiming he was in Unity Caucus. "They screwed you too," we shouted. But I guess those free trips to Seattle were worth it.

Actually, the funniest response came from the UFT's Ann Rosen who has to schlep over from UFT headquarters for the event. Usually we are on friendly terms but when Angel and I joked that this is all her fault she got a bit testy telling us how she worked her ass off for these people. I pointed out she was making a pretty nice salary for working her ass off and the alternative was going back to teaching. Here is what she makes for working her ass off:

Here are some comments from yesterday's blog post
Mid Day Snack: The Great ATR Musical Chair Swap Game

Once again the blame is placed upon the teachers who due to no fault of their own are left dangling in the wind. The contract is clear, excessed staff shall be placed into vacancies within license with district. The UFT should be filing an immediate cease and desist Article 78 on behalf of the atr's. Let the Dept and Klein explain this to voters and parents as class size rise throughout the city.

I am not a math person, but this just doesn't add up. The DOE cuts budgets, teachers get excessed, but the DOE is still paying for them, but won't put them in schools, class sizes rise, the DOE saves no money anyway... ???? Why not just place the ATRs in schools (especially given testgate, schools could use an extra teacher for intervention, given that generally schools lost at least one position -depending on individual principal decisons- due to cuts). The placed ATRs would not come out of school-based budgets. The ATRs would be 'working', and kids would benefit. If the ATR is a "bad teacher" they are subject to the same rating system as everyone else and can be given a U and go through due process. The DOE could always offter an 'opt out' to principals who do not want to deal w/ 'hiring' someone not of their choosing. Done and Done. Instead the DOE is using this issue to paint teachers as sucking the life out of taxpayers and doing harm or at least neglegence to children. UFT: Do your job and tell the proper narrative to the citizens of our city. Push for ATRs to be placed in their licensed positions in a school. With the extreme rise in class sizes across the city, the budget cuts, and testgate... there is more than enough political capital to spend on this issue, if you (the uft) really wanted to solve it in a way that benefits children and teachers.

AfterBurn
I still have to post the election results- Fenty/Rhee lost, Perkins won BIG. But I have to go see Leonie debate a Tweed lug and naybe get to tape it.

In the meantime if you don't read Reality Based Educator you are missing some of the best political commentary from a teacher perspective (yes, RBE teaches in NYC).

Perdido Street School

Bill Perkins Beats Charter School Stooge: 76%-24%

And then our pal NYC Educator takes Evan and Sydney to task in his usual fabulous manner. Teamed with his cohort Miss Eyre who used a cannon on them the other day, this amounts to a dismemberment.

NYC Educator

Who Funds Ex-Educators 4 Excellence?

 

Waiting For Superman Challenged by Teachers in San Francisco: An insult to teachers and students

Before I get to this report, I wanted to give you an update on our own actions here in NYC in response to the film – at least what I am at liberty to say right now. GEM (Grassroots Education Movement) is moving ahead on our own film – The Inconvenient Truth About Waiting for Superman – which we hope to have completed by the end of October. Hopefully the trailer will be finished in time for the Superman release next week. We will debut it here on Ed Notes. We are also working on some songs around the theme of the "Will the Real Reformers Please Stand Up" and might even perform it in various locations and meetings. We will be looking for volunteers to join in so start gargling. We may even have instruments. If you are planning to see the film it is opening in LA and NYC on Friday, Sept. 24 and will be showing at the Lincoln Square cinemas near Lincoln Center. I can write the rave reviews from the anti-union press right now. Some of us are going that night so we can produce a fact sheet to refute the inconvenient truths for our movie. Email me for details if you want to join us.

An insult to teachers and students

September 14, 2010

A NUMBER of members of Educators for a Democratic Union (EDU) and a few leaders from our union, United Educators of San Francisco (UESF), attended the advanced screening of Davis Guggenheim's Waiting for Superman.

We were there to pass out some leaflets and challenge the director of the movie, who would be speaking at the end.

What about the movie?

Yikes! Let me try and summarize: The problems with public education is bad teachers, the tenure that protects them and the unions that protect tenure. The problem is not funding, because plenty of money has been thrown at schools to succeed. The solution is charters. Also, there is some criticism of "tracking," which is probably the only part of the movie I agreed with.

That's about it. When Guggenheim took questions afterward, he opened with the fact that he was a "friend of public education," that he liked unions, and that he was not saying charters were the answer.

The problem was that the entire thrust of his movie contradicted that. It was crazy.

UESF leaders and EDUers were able to get questions out to him that challenged the frame of his movie: Why are you attacking unions? Why don't you mention funding? Or the larger political questions facing the country?

Guggenheim was mostly patronizing, saying that he couldn't include "everything." Regarding unions, he said he was in a union (the Director's Guild) and he supported unions and the protections they provide. Presumably, he is for protections for everyone except teachers. He also called himself a leftist, saying that believed in social justice...after bashing unions and teachers.

I stuck around afterward to invite Guggenheim to come to Mission High School and actually see how public education works to serve our neediest students. I also told him that I was disappointed by his attack on unions, which had been the only protection many of us had this year when the budget ax came swinging down.

I overheard him talking to an aide saying "Wow! This was a tough crowd." She replied, "Well, it is San Francisco."

I was surprised by this, because he had only fielded four or five questions at most. We hadn't even started!

Finally, for a movie titled Waiting for Superman in which "Superman" is supposed to be a great teacher (white and male, I guess), this movie did not contain a single interview with a teacher. It had a grainy camera inside a class which showed teachers reading a newspaper. It showed clips from School of Rock and the Simpsons but no teachers

Who was interviewed? Principals of charters, D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee and, of course, Bill Gates' ugly mug was all over the movie.

My final question to Mr. Guggenheim is, if you are really "Waiting for Superman" why do you spend so much time in your movie interviewing Lex Luthor?

Andy Libson, San Francisco

http://socialistworker.org/2010/09/14/insult-to-teachers-and-students

The Late, Late Show: Playing My Cards in The Odd Couple

I was offered a part in the upcoming Rockaway Theatre Company production of The Odd Couple which will be running over 3 weekends in December. I auditioned on a lark since I am taking acting classes there just for fun. I tried out for the wise guy Speed and Roy the accountant. But they offered me Vinnie, the whiney, hen-pecked whimpy guy. They must have seen this as typecasting though I strongly protest the type ---uh, just a minute---What honey? Take out the trash? And then clean the house? After I go shopping or before?

Sorry, gotta go.

After burn
In last year's acting class I got a chance to be anything but a whimp. We all had to do monologues. An audience was invited and this was the first time I performed live. I was given a perfect piece -  Eric Bogossian's Talk Radio where the host goes on a rant directed towards the radio audience.  The radio show, based in Cleveland, was scheduled to go national the next night and the calls were beyond stupid. What a wonderful way to get it all out of your system even though it was around 7 minutes and I had a hell of a time remembering the lines - which is obvious at certain points. I nailed those lines in the last rehearsal shortly before. I shamelessly put the rant up on you tube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=torbrnEM0ms

UPDATE on Perkins/Smikle - PERKINS WINNING BIG - Charter school lobby goes down in flames

Last Update Sept. 14, 11:30pm
Perkins well over 70%. Reports coming in from victory party. Wish I were there.

Sept 14 - 2:30 pm
Report from Perkins/Smikle Harlem Battleground: Vote for Basil the Plant

A correspondent reports:

I'm in Harlem canvassing for Bill Perkins with other parents. You have to see Basil Smickle's canvassers, he hired crack heads to canvass for him by wearing Vote for Basil t-shirts!!!! LOL. I'm not joking, he is paying them $200-$300 a day. Come see for yourself. That's a great use of the charter lobby money.

People might end up writing in Basil Paterson, David's dad when they see the Basil shirts. Or just the plant.

Just in - don't know if it will work. Direct audio from the Perkins/Smickle battle. Hear how they are getting paid - cash off the books.

Drat - didn't upload.

Mid Day Snack: The Great ATR Musical Chair Swap Game

Reposted and Updated Sept. 14, 1PM

As the Brooklyn and Staten Island ATRs are entering the Grand Prospect Hall just about now (see below) we have reports coming in about ATRs being sent hither and fro. High school ATRs being sent to middle schools. Middle school ATRs being sent to elementary or high schools. Elementary ATRs being sent to middle schools.

The best stories are the ones from ATRs who are sent en masse out of one school and are replaced by a whole batch of ATRs from somewhere else. Reports are coming in of 40-60% turnover of total staff at some schools. Is this Tweed mismanagement or intentional use of chaos disruption theory?

Angel and I are heading over to Grand Prospect Hall to talk to ATRs as they come out about organizing an ATR committee to plan a rally of ATRs at Tweed in November. The least they will get out of it will be another UFT wine and cheese diversion.


Brooklyn/Staten Island ATRs Invited to Heavenly Event

Dear Colleague,

This email serves as a follow up to the notice already given to you by your current principal in regards to the mandatory New York City Department of Education recruitment fair being held tomorrow, Tuesday, September 14^th at 1pm.   You are receiving this email because based on current records, you are a teacher who was originally excessed from a school in either Brooklyn or Staten Island, and you are currently a part of the Absence Teacher Reserve (ATR) Pool.
If you received this email but have not received a letter from your principal, please contact your principal immediately to confirm your status.  If you are no longer a part of the ATR pool, please forward an email from your principal confirming as such to thsc@schools.nyc.gov .  Fair information is as follows: 

Brooklyn and Staten Island Excess Teacher Recruitment Fair
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Grand Prospect Hall
263 Prospect Ave, Brooklyn, N.Y 11215 

The fair will be held from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM and teachers must check in no later than 1:00 PM. You should plan to report to your assigned school at the start of the school day and then travel to the fair; your school where you are currently assigned as an ATR will be notified of your absence and you will be provided with documentation of your attendance at the recruitment fair.  

Lunch will not be served at the fair, but you are entitled to the contracted amount of time for lunch on your own before the fair. You will be expected to stay until the end of the school day and encouraged to stay until the end of the event at 4:00PM. 

Best Regards,

Teacher Hiring Support Center

NYC Department of Education

 (718) 935-5280

thsc@schools.nyc.gov

Staff from the Former Island Academy at Rikers Island Need Your Help

Dear Friends,

During the 2009-2010 school  year our school paid The Comer Institute a reported $35,000 for a comprehensive report wherein teachers were interviewed extensively.

This comprehensive report discussed and analyzed the various aspects of Island Academy. The administration had promised on several occasions throughout the process that after a brief review by District 79 administration, the entire contents of this report would be available to staff. The document has been completed and sent to Island Academy’s administration, but District 79 refused to share it with staff.

The school administration disagrees with the report claiming that “It undermines the rationale for closing the school.” The report can be requested per the Freedom of Information Act from the DOE at  foil@schools.nyc.gov.


The title of the report is "Contextual Analysis for Austin H. MacCormick - Island Academy, Rikers Island, June 29, 2010."


We encourage everyone to request the report so that the DOE will release it. Thanks for your help in this matter.

Very truly,

Don Murphy

Former Chapter Leader, Island Academy at Rikers Island

The Late Show: Jamaica HS Staff Member Pays Tribute to Eterno

We 9% dissenters are proud to have supported closing school Jamaica HS Chapter Leader James Eterno for president against MulGarten. Questions have been raised at the ICE blog about whether the deal between the DOE and the UFT to allow a school into Jamaica in spite of the UFT law suit that could have stopped it was in any way retaliation. I don't usually hold with conspiracy theories as the MulGarten team have shown they are willing to eat even their own.

But if you want an insight into the kind of gut work James has done at the school, read a tribute from a staff member who left this comment on the ICE blog:

Why was Jamaica singled out for destruction? I think the main goal is union-busting and making an example of a powerful chapter. As chapter chairman, you conducted yourself with lawyerly professionalism and integrity. You know the rules and the contract and stand loyally at the side of every staff person, popular or not. Whatever problems we as a staff had with students or with politicians, I was always proud to work in your school. You kept us united, as united as an opinionated staff can be, and focused on our goals and methodology for enabling students have conditions under which they could best learn. Everyone respected you and your systematic way of standing up for our rights individually and as a school. 

Remember on one issue how 50 of us went to the Queens Office and packed a conference room to show our stand? It was powerful adn effective. We won that issue. I wonder if that made us more of a thorn in the side of the BOE/DOE. Post hoc ergo procter hoc? Perhaps that aroused the ire of the bean-counters who wish us to always genuflect at their dicta.

So it could be that the DOE's determination to destroy Jamaica HS is simply one more event in the ruthless union-busting crusade of the Business world's invasion of our hapless schools. They are creating New Schools that meet their requirements: administrators with no experience, no independence for teachers to maintain their professionalism without fear of peremptory dismissal, staffing with largely new teachers who can be easily excessed and fired, focus on numbers numbers numbers, just like they bean counters learned in business school.

So, James, it could be that the DOE sees you as I do, as a Fearless Leader, capable and beyond corruption. Their determination to bust our chapter could ultimately be their highest tragic compliment to us and to you.

So I sign off with love, respect, appreciation and the highest regard. I wish the best to you and to Camille and your child. Thank you. I will always be, like the rest of our staff, proud to have worked with you. Maybe some of us took you for granted, but I never did. We were all fortunate to work with you.

Sincerely yours,

Judith Pfeffer
 

By the way, Seung Ok from another closing school, Maxwell Vocational in Brooklyn, wrote a maginificent piece that is getting nationwide recognition and it may appear in the Washington Post blogs today. He was excessed and is now teaching at another school. He has worked with GEM at various times during the last year. I posted his piece at Ed Notes last week:

The story of Maxwell HS should be a canary in the mines of what’s to come for the rest of the city – Seung Ok on Fighting Closure: A Report from William H. Maxwell HS (CTE):

She's Coming For The Ed Deformers - and MulGarten Too

UPDATED: Sept. 14, 2am:

The ed deform press promotes Evan Stone and Sydney Morris and their bogus "alternative to the UFT" - see the Wall St. Journal headliner today

Teachers Break Union Ranks

They claim to have 700 supporters but they will prove to have zero presence in the long run.

The Journal's Barbara Martinez writes hopefully:

"While that's a pittance compared with the nearly 80,000 teachers under the UFT, her nascent movement may represent the seeds of a growing population of teachers who are breaking ranks with the traditional tenets of unionism."

Sure, Barbara, keep praying. Already Evan and Sydney have left teaching:


"This school year, Ms. Morris and Mr. Stone took a break from teaching and are instead working on building up their organization, including identifying "school captains" at the city's schools—much like the UFT has a "chapter leader" at every public school."

That should enhance their creds with real teachers as they see Evan and Sydney getting hedge hog type funding. I can't wait to see these "school captains."

[UPDATE: See Ms Eyre's brilliant piece on Evan and Sydney now running at NYC Educator. Educators 4 Actually Being Educators].

The Real Reformers stand up
The press ignores a fairly recent current within the UFT that represents the same generation of teachers as Evan and Sydney as represented by groups like NYCORE (2000 members on the listserve) and Teachers Unite which also has lots of people signed up. And GEM has managed to attract some real young activists who make Evan and Sydney look like the joke they are.

Now these people are virulently pro-union and anti Ed Deform while they call for a more progressive system of education reform. They don't buy the pablum that if you just work 24 hours a day you will accomplish Michelle Rhee like miracles. They call for real reforms like reduction in class size and increased resources. And they are totally opposed to charter school co-locations. They are the people working on a response to "Waiting for Superman" and other exciting projects.

But there's another wrinkle. While Evan and Sydney are presenting themselves as not anti union but as offering an alternative to the UFT, the real reformers are also showing a willingness to be critical of the MulGarten type of Unity Caucus leadership. Evan and Sydney want to destroy the UFT. The Real Reformers not only want to reform the schools, but the union too. They seek to build a democratic union that would support a democratically run public education system.

Oh yeah. They are uniformly superb teachers at the top of their game, amongst the most respected in their schools. 

If you didn't read the Michael Mulgrew "Welcome Back" letter I posted yesterday that was reworked to express what is really going on, go forth immediately and read it:

Welcome to the new school year … Remix

To me the most important thing about the Remix is that it was written by one of the new Real Reformers, a still young teacher who not very long ago had a different view of the UFT. The teacher began teaching in NYC right out of college 10 years ago (thus spending the bulk of the career under BloomKlein).  Just a short time ago this teacher would argue that addressing UFT related issues in terms of the actions of the leadership was not worth putting time and effort into.

I wrote in the into to the Remix that the Mulgrew letter had stirred a hornets next and the Remix is the result. If more teachers of this generation become hornets and start nesting together, a serious opposition within the UFT might yet emerge.

If you are a fan of the Stieg Larsson novels with its unique heroine, I can't help thinking that the Remix author may be representative of what I will call the Lisbeth Salander generation of teachers. Smart and tough, taking no crap from anyone. And capable of reaching out to parents and community and to other teachers. I've seen some of them with long careers ahead stand up and openly challenge BloomKlein time and again. If they get organized and turn their sights on BloomKlein and MulGarten - and Sydney and Evan's phony movement  - there will be more than a few hornet stings to go around.

Today's Links From Susan Ohanian

Susan does all the work and we just spread the word. She takes a swipe at a piece by Pedro Noguera, who all too  many people consider a saint, with the comment below. Well, if I had read Noguera with his criticism of TFA and other points about RTTT without Susan's insight, I might have said "good stuff." Read on and reap. And maybe weep too. 

Schools vs. Slogans

This is the inaugural essay in a new series of bimonthly pieces on the politics of education byNation editorial board member Pedro Noguera. 
This piece, which is curiously "soft" on Obama/Duncan, reflects the reluctance of progressives to make an out-and-out assault on the Obama/Duncan policy. Instead of offering analysis of how this administration is tied to a corrupt corporate plan to deprofessionalize teachers, to force a nationalized curriculum into the schools, to further segregate the rich from the poor, and so on, Noguera posits his criticism around "failure to use sound research" for its "policy direction."
This suggestion that the "right research" will put Obama/Duncan on the right path would be laughable if it weren't so disingenuous.  Rather than suggesting that Obama/Duncan choose different schools as models for "scaling up," Noguera would do well to read Richard Rothstein. If raising test scores is our goal, then get the lead out, fix kids' teeth, and give them an iron fortified breakfast. No matter how many fourth graders pass the standardized test, it won't increase the minimum wage.

Mathematician's Lament is a MUST read. It gets to the core of what education-- 

in all subjects--is about. 

And does this with such grace and wit
Krashen's letter to Time Magazine is also a MUST read because he  

provides a deft summary  

of the issue that you can--and must--use in your own letters.
A belated  thank you to the contributor in Sanger, CA. 
Susan
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The Overscheduled Child
Jeannette Catsoulis
New York Times
2010-09-10
http://susanohanian.org/show_atrocities.php?id=9459
Kudos to the NY Times for reviewing Race to Nowhere, a must-see film.
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A Mathematician's Lament
Paul Lockhart
2010-09-11
http://susanohanian.org/show_commentary.php?id=837
This is MUST READ.
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Food Sovereignty . . . and Education Sovereignty Too
R. G. Davis, with Ohanian comments 
2010-09-04
http://susanohanian.org/show_commentary.php?id=836
R. G. Davis is on the mark and his commentary on food sovereignty  

offers strong parallels with the way so-called education activists divert  

people from doing something to change the crisis we face in the schools.  

I urge you to read this one.
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To the editor
Stephen Krashen
Time Magazine
2009-09-11
http://susanohanian.org/show_letter.php?id=1261
As the media keeps reporting those claims that roll off Standardisto tongues, 

we must be grateful to Stephen Krashen, who doesn't let them get away with it.
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Fighting Closure: A Report from William H. Maxwell HS
Seung OK
Ed Notes Online
2010-09-10
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=753
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Outsiders get a view of Memphis City Schools' vision
Jane Roberts
Commercial Appeal
2010-09-11
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=752
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Marked absent: Many Oregon students will do without music and art classes
Kimberly Melton
The Oregonian
2010-10-06
http://susanohanian.org/outrage_fetch.php?id=751
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Who gets to speaks about what schools need? Race to the Top and   

the Bill Gates Connection
Susan Ohanian
Extra!
2010-09-08
http://susanohanian.org/show_research.php?id=366
Here is an article about who gets quoted in the press.
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Incredibly Sexy Standards Developer Dies, Smothered by Dictionaries
staff
The Eggplant
2010-09-05
http://susanohanian.org/show_nclb_news.php?id=833
Not quite a standard obituary.
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The neoliberal bait-and-switch
David Sirota
syndicated column
2010-09-10
http://susanohanian.org/show_nclb_atrocities.php?id=4051
Sirota takes a stab at exposing the Great Education Myth promulgated by  

neoliberals.
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Schools vs. Slogans
Pedro Noguera
The Nation
2010-09-27
http://susanohanian.org/show_nclb_atrocities.php?id=4050
This suggestion that the right research will put Obama/Duncan on the  

right path would be laughable if it weren't so disingenuous.
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What Passes for School Reform: Value-AddedTeacher Evaluation and  

Other Absurdities
Alfie Kohn
Huffington Post
2010-09-09
http://susanohanian.org/show_nclb_atrocities.php?id=0
Alfie calls LA Times and Newsweek unconscionable. And more. 

Welcome to the new school year … Remix

 Having just finished the first two of Stieg Larsson "The Girl..." trilogy and about to start "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest" the piece below made me think that we could start our own series. It seems UFT President Michael Mulgrew's "Welcome Back to School" letter has kicked some kind of hornet's nest with a number of teachers.

We're keeping the teacher, who has had little concern about challenging BloomKlein publicly, anonymous to hold the Unity hounds away from the door.

Welcome to the new school year … Remix

For those of you who did not see it, or read it, UFT President Michael Mulgrew sent out a “Welcome Back” letter to members this week.  In it, he shamelessly spins the spineless acts of our union over the last year. 

With the kind of manipulative, pull-at-your-heart-strings propaganda we have come to expect from the ed deform whores; Michael Mulgrew proves once again our union is far more interested in protecting their seat at the table, than protecting our children and our profession.  It is time for a different kind of leadership, one that is not content to lick up the crumbs in order to preserve their power, but rather one that sets the table and serves the meal.

Here in bold is what Michael Mulgrew left out of his letter…

Dear colleagues,

On behalf of my fellow officers and the entire UFT staff (yes it is true we vacation, drive cars with parking spaces, and expense meals on your dues dime), I want to wish you the very best of luck this school year (you sure are going to need it since there are 2,000 fewer of you, but 18,000 more kids and millions in lost budget dollars). Your dedication and passion for making children’s lives better and improving the profession are the foundation of all that we do (bow down and let me pat you on the head). We know that budget cuts, larger class sizes, excessing and the lack of support from the DOE are major concerns in many schools as are the struggling economy and the endless attacks from the “blame the teacher” crowd.  But we also know that the commitment of our membership has made us strong, and working together we will navigate through the many challenges ahead (fear not, we will work to get you that overdue 2% raise that doesn’t even cover your cost of living expenses and we will do so by ceding even more of our voice in education policy while we give away even more of your protections, time and resources. As for ATRs, don't make any long-term plans). 

There is much to be excited about and thankful for (hey, at least you have a job) as we begin this school year, including several recent well-earned victories (even though we cowered after we won them) and smart, forward-thinking agreements (even though these agreements will do little to better the lives of children or our profession). Among them: We secured millions in additional federal funding (money that will never actually reach your schools and classrooms), which will help offset some future budget cuts (because the DOE continues to spend untold wasted millions on their obsession with accountability and testing rather than an investment in real reform). We blocked efforts to go after career teachers through misguided legislation (but agreed to an evaluation system that will tie your worth as a teacher to misleading, misguided and punitive high stakes testing). Teacher’s Choice funds, which were slated for elimination, were saved thanks to the hard work of our political team and volunteers (even though that $110 will not even cover your costs for paper and pencils). We reached a landmark agreement with the city to shut down the so-called "rubber rooms" (so teachers that have been persecuted by often times incompetent and vindictive administrative leadership, will be forced to work in the PR world of the DOE) and put a faster, fairer hearing process in place (faster maybe, but the DOE doesn’t know how to be fair). A new and more objective evaluation system will be on the way once we negotiate it, and we made sure it will include a true teacher improvement plan and limit the emphasis on standardized tests (even though at least 20% of this system will be tied to those very tests).  Crucial charter school reforms were passed that improve access for all students, including ELLs and those with special needs, and drive out for-profits who are pocketing millions in taxpayer funds (btw, teachers in co-located schools, go talk to those TFAers who now teach in your old classrooms and will take more and more of our public school resources, and unionize them please; I know they’ll be gone in two years, but the union dues will keep rolling in). And thanks to our legal action, the DOE was forced to comply with the state’s governance law (shhh, I know we sold out after we won this case and allowed the DOE to not only shrink to virtually nothing the freshman classes of the 19 schools targeted for closure and further allowed them to open new small schools and charter schools in their buildings, even allowing the sitting of one school in our own UFT building, but why hold the DOE accountable to the law, which we proved they violated, accountability is only for the little people like you).

We would not have achieved any of this without the efforts of so many thousands of UFT members who worked with parents in their own communities to raise public awareness on issues and lobby their elected officials (with little to no help and resources from your union organization, keep it up, so we can keep licking the crumbs off the table). From phone banks and leafleting to rallies and demonstrations, UFT members were out in force all across the five boroughs, fighting for their schools and their profession. We also owe a great deal of thanks to the many parents, organizations and elected officials who were willing to stand up and stand with us as partners on our many campaigns (even though we have far too often in our history fed into the divide and conquer mentality of the ed deformers and haven’t done nearly enough to work with parents and community).

No one needs reminding that we will again face many challenges this year. We cannot and will not capitulate to the political agendas of those who don't support educators, school staff or public education (even though we already have, but we’ll get tough, no really, I promise). We must continue to stand up for our students, parents and school communities, and set the agenda ourselves (our vision is coming soon, really, I promise). This is our time to take back our profession (see, I’m tough).  We must also continue to take on the Department of Education, which all too often refuses to take responsibility for its mismanagement of the system (I know many of you think there is an intentional undermining of our public education system at work here, but that is just conspiracy stuff, these guys don’t want to dismantle public education, they just want to replace half of your schools with charters and have you work more for a lot less). And the union will once again do all in its power to ensure that members are treated as the professionals that they are, and that they get the support and guidance they need and deserve (i.e. little to no professional development, micro-management, fewer resources with even greater expectations, narrowed curriculum, excessive focus on testing and no true salary increase).

Perseverance, commitment and unity (you like my double entendre here!? Don’t go thinking what happened with Chicago and CORE will happen here, Unity all the way baby) will help us stand apart from others. We are here for you (if it suits us), only a phone call or an e-mail away, and the newly redesigned UFT website is packed with important information as well (please go and read more of my propaganda blather).

Again, thank you for all that you do (keep doing more with less).

Sincerely,

Michael Mulgrew

On Superman, Race To Nowhere, and Other Stuff

Dear Stuffers - or Stuffed if you happen to be an ATR - and Stiffed too,

As usual, Friday was a busy day at Ed Notes Central. With wife, who retired from her 3 day a week job last February, now joining the weekly Friday MahJong festivities, I am free to roam all over the city.

We had a production meeting at 3pm at a Greek restaurant on W. 4th and 6th Ave scheduled to discuss our new film in response to the Waiting for Superman hedge hog extravaganza coming up in 2 weeks, followed by attending the opening of Race To Nowhere, a sort of antidote to the Superman film, though not quite. (See review in the Times.)

First up was a pickup of the new Indypendent "Back to School Issue" (Download the pdf - upper right hand corner: http://www.indypendent.org/) . at their offices on Broadway and Bleecker.

I wasn't driving in on a Friday afternoon so I bought a backpack. Oy! GEM ordered 1500 copies for distribution. That's 15 bundles of 100 each. These suckers are 20 pages each packed full of goodies. The intention was to put them in a shopping cart the Indy people would loan us to wheel across town to 6th Ave. and then wheel back to return. But it only held 6 bundles. My colleague had a brilliant solution: Take a cab. I almost gagged. But it made sense. We were helped down by Liz from Indy who hailed us a cab - young and pretty works well in this town.

So we showed up at Karavas with 700 copies. Another GEM committee meeting was just breaking up and we loaded as many onto the backs of the people who were leaving and divided the rest  amongst those who were staying for the film production meeting. I still have to go back and get 800 more on Monday. If you want some for your schools contact me at normsco@gmail.com. The Indy people will be at the Sept. 22 chapter leader meeting to hand some out.

Well, anyway, the production meeting was full of fun and frolic over some beer and Greek platter food. I will be talking more about the film in upcoming updates and you might even be able to get involved in some of our activities to promote the film (email me offline if interested in a heads up.)

And then it was onto the IFC for Race to Nowhere (lots of good stuff at the web site and check out the trailer), shown in one of the smaller venues but with stadium seating - not a great idea for an older guy like me who just had some beer and Greek food. But the movie kept me awake. The story is about the pressure kids are feeling over their total lives being scheduled and tested. Lots of anti-testing stuff there and anti homework too. Interesting ideas for discussion and totally counter to the ed deform agenda. But for a Debbie Meier admiring teacher who wanted to teach in a progressive open classroom environment but never could, I eat up this stuff. I ruefully remember the day I gave up the idea after being convinced kids had to be driven to succeed. Well, it was my school culture and certainly infests the charter school movement with their "scholars."

As Steve Koss says, check out the Obama daughters school website - Sidwell Friends - or the Chicago U Lab school where they used to go - and see what the Obamas want for their kids but not for all the others that are being pushed by the ed deform agenda.

After the film we got to chat with some of the people involved. A group of Columbia U students were there and we made contact. I gave out Ed Notes cards and one of them said she read the blog. How cool! She said she really liked the satire. I didn't have the heart to tell her that what she thinks is satire is really just ed deformers being ed deformers and BloomKlein being BloomKlein.

Will Smickle be smiling after Tuesday primary?

Let's hope not. Harlem State Senator Bill Perkins is being punished by the Hedge Hogs for calling for more oversight of charters. Note below that Gotham Schools financial backer Ken Hirsch chipped in. And Governor Patterson endorsed Smickle. The charter school lobby has become one of the major threats to public education in this nation and the Perkins/Smickle primary is the epicenter.

I usually don't get involved with politicians but since last summer when I went up with GEM to defend PS 123 and other Harlem schools from the Evil Moskowitz invasions, I began to run into Perkins' people. Then Perkins' assistants (all of whom were incredibly impressive) started meeting with some of the GEM and CPE people in weekly meetings and he stopped by to chat quite often.

I filmed most of his charter school hearings in March and was actually the last speaker at 9pm. If there is one politician you contribute to, Bill Perkins should be the one. I may even go up there on Tuesday to see if I can help out.

Upper West Side (Manhattan for non-New Yorkers) parent activist Noah Gotbaum will be hosting an event for Perkins at his apartment tomorrow (Sunday). See below.

One of our sources sent this in:

Perkins also publicly said Paterson should resign after it was revealed that he called the girlfriend of his aide to talk her out of filing domestic violence charges. 

Paterson, Wright and many in the Harlem establishment were angry at Perkins for saying Paterson should not have interfered or worse yet cover up a possible domestic violence crime.

Smikle is desperate. After he loses on Tuesday, he should put in an application to start a charter. Zero investment, guaranteed revenue source and he'll make more money.  Be interesting to see if all his funders will be as supportive when he tries to sit at their table and have a slice of their charter pie.

Charter lobby last hour contributions to Smikle.  Petry's wife and Gotham Schools funder, Ken Hirsh. I guess they'll be contributing even more money in the next few days so that Smikle can pay off Wright, democratic clubs and other politicians after he loses on Tuesday.

Keith Wright is a Harlem Dem leader who is supporting Smickle.

A81115	FRIENDS OF BASIL SMIKLE FOR NEW YORK STATE SENATE	09-SEP-10	KAREN PETRY 260 W. 72ND ST. NEW YORK, NY 10023	$3,000.00
A81115	FRIENDS OF BASIL SMIKLE FOR NEW YORK STATE SENATE	09-SEP-10	KENNETH HIRSH 114 W. 13TH ST. NEW YORK, NY 10011	$2,500.00

Articles published Friday re Perkins/Smikle race and others funded by the charter lobby.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/11/nyregion/11charter.html

http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/Albany/20100911/204/3361

 

TO ALL OF THE INCREDIBLE LISTSERVE EDUCATION WARRIORS: PLEASE JOIN US THIS SUNDAY AND/OR CONSIDER MAKING A DONATION ON THE LINK BELOW IF YOU CAN’T BE THERE. THANKS!  NOAH

Dear Friend,

This coming Sunday, September 12 I will be hosting a fundraising brunch at my home for our State Senator, Bill Perkins.  Bill Perkins has been a great State Senator; one who never backs down in his fight for basic justice, equality and helping those who need it most.  Bill has been especially effective in the area of education, fighting against school overcrowding, consistently promoting increased parental rights, and constantly reminding the City and State education authorities that ALL of our kids deserve a great education – including English Language Learners, transitional and homeless kids, kids with Special Needs, the 97% of our kids who don’t attend charter schools.  In the face of fierce opposition from the Charter School lobby – who are the primary funders of Bill’s opponent - Bill effectively led the fight for increased transparency and oversight for all of our schools, and for a level playing field and fair resource allocation for our public schools.

Bill also led the fight in the State Senate for the law to reform our public authorities like the MTA, and to take their operations out of the shadows, making sure their finances are scrutinized and that they are serving the people. He sponsored the new clean air law to reduce the sulfur content of home heating oil that will make it easier for New Yorkers with respiratory conditions to breathe, and it will help reduce acid rain. And Bill Perkins has been a voice for change in Albany – immediately calling for the ouster of Hiram Monserrate and working to bring new leadership following last summer’s Senate gridlock. You can find out more at his web site www.BillPerkins.org.

Bill Perkins has put together a broad based grassroots campaign that has earned the support of leaders like Jerry Nadler, Scott Stringer, Danny O’Donnell, Linda Rosenthal, Bill Thompson, Bob Jackson, Inez Dickens and important groups representing environmentalists, tenants, parents, the disabled, health care workers, teachers and leading voices for reform.

I hope you will join me Sunday for an informal bagel brunch -- two days before this Tuesday’s primary -- and help to make sure Bill has what he needs to get his message out in these crucial final days.  Here are the details:

Sunday, September 12, 2010,  12 – 2 pm

At the home of Noah E Gotbaum, 27 West 86^th Street, #7A (Between Central Park West and Columbus)

To RSVP and donate: http://www.billperkins.org/events/Gotbaum

 

Thanks so much!  Hope to see you on Sunday.  And if you can’t make it I hope you will consider making a donation.

All best,

Noah

Parent Richard Barr says:

For lots of years I organized the lobbying trips to the City and State electeds who represented School District 3 for our Presidents' Council.  Bill, as a Councilmember and then a Senator, always listened carefully, (as some others also did) but beyond that, engaged us in dialogue and offered opinions about how we might be effective in advocating for our issues, and attended District meetings in school auditoriums, sometimes arguing with the District Sup't. when he thought a school he represented was being treated unfairly.  (Back in the good old days when District offices had some decision-making authority).  His level of engagement seemed genuine and often went beyond that of many of his peers.

Afterburn
Riddle of the day:
Why does Smickle wake up in the middle of the night screaming EEP, EEP, EEP?

The story of Maxwell HS should be a canary in the mines of what’s to come for the rest of the city – Seung Ok on Fighting Closure: A Report from William H. Maxwell HS (CTE):

Seung is one of the founding members of the Grassroots Education Movement (GEMNYC). He put a lot of effort into trying to organize the school last year, reaching out to parents and students. Seung, a 12 year teacher, was excessed from Maxwell last week.

Fighting Closure: A Report from William H. Maxwell HS  (CTE)

      The legacy of Mayor Bloomberg and his reforms on education may very well be a footnote vilifying the extent of damage impacted on a generation of students in New York City.  The story of Maxwell HS should be a canary in the mines of what’s to come for the rest of the city. Situated in East New York, Brooklyn - arguably one of the most difficult neighborhoods to learn and teach in – the school proudly ran vocational programs that actually placed students in viable careers.

      The students in the optics program ran a free eyeglass clinic for all the students and staff in the building.  Anyone who needed to replace their glasses came with their prescription or old frame. The students measured the lenses, cut new lenses, fitted them into new frames – and instead of paying 200 dollars, one received a new pair of glasses free of charge.  Not only were students learning a valuable professional skill, but they were helping those in a community who may desperately need a new pair of glasses.

      The students in the cosmetology program were not the most academically minded.  If you remember the musical Grease, beauty school may not attract the next generation of Nobel peace prize winners.  But that program was doing something that very few schools can claim – keeping struggling kids interested and motivated to come to school.  The attendance of cosmetology students were among the highest at Maxwell.  These same students that might otherwise shun a high school degree, could be seen hard at work in the barbering and nail technology labs.  They would attend academic classes with their mannequin heads in hand and struggle through tough courses so they could continue what they loved to do.

     Our health care students boasted of having the New York State president of the Health Occupations Students of America – a national student organization. Through internships in hospitals and instruction under a practicing physical therapist – our students have enrolled in medical and nursing programs throughout New York.

    Just as in the case of Jamaica High School, all these programs are being abandoned by Mayor Bloomberg.  Since our freshmen enrollment is down to 60 students – 30 teachers had to be excessed.  At one point there were 300 students slated for our school, until the city violated the spirit of the judge’s ruling and sent out reselection letters to these students “in case” the city won the appeal.  Our excessed cosmetology teacher is being replaced with a wood shop teacher from another school.  There are not enough vision students to keep up the program.  What was once a legitimate career alternative and stepping stone to college is now on the brink of vanishing.

    Ironically, the mantra always touted by the mayor’s DOE is, “putting children first”.  By not hearing the pleas of the students, parents and teachers in these “failing schools”, the mayor is putting his ego first.  He has said as much in his radio program – where he denigrated the desires of parents to keep these schools open.  The  mayor’s seems intent on breaking the teacher’s union, and if that means putting the 1 million plus students in harms way, disenfranchising parents and their voices, and vilifying thousands of dedicated teachers – so be it.  If the reformers win, it will be a pyrrhic victory – and history will show, there were will be very few winners to show for it.