South Bronx Blogger On Radio Tuesday, 6:35 - 7:20 AM

SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL

I'm Appearing Live in Studio Tomorrow Morning on WFAS-AM 1230 - WFAS 1230 AM is a small radio station in White Plains, NY. Tomorrow I will be appearing live, in studio on the Bob Marrone Show at 6:35 AM until about 7:20...
Live streaming: http://player.listenlive.co/26541

I don't have to tell you his story, which he chronicles in full at his blog.

Joel Klein Mentor Gets 3-Year Prison Term Over Misuse of Funds

Exclusive photo taken the other day by Ed Notes Joel Klein surveillance team

Thomas Middelhoff, Ex-Chief of Bertelsmann, Gets 3-Year Prison Term Over Misuse of Funds ... The court in Essen on Friday found Mr. Middelhoff guilty of 27 counts of embezzlement, involving a total of 800,000 euros, or about $996,000, and three counts of tax evasion. ...NY Times

Mr. Klein became chairman and chief executive of Bertelsmann Inc., the corporate-services arm of the German media giant, in January 2001. His departure, friends said, is unrelated to the ouster over the weekend of Thomas Middelhoff, the parent company's chairman and chief executive. Mr. Middelhoff had recruited Mr. Klein to the company after meeting him at a dinner party at the home of the powerful Washington lawyer Vernon Jordan.
Mr. Klein has told friends that he was restless as a corporate executive and was eager to return to public service.... NY Times, July 30, 2002, upon Klein becoming Chancellor.

When Middelhoff took his fall as Bertelsman chief, Klein was dumped too - and Bloomberg saved his career.

Perdido St has an interesting piece - NYCDOE Getting Rid Of Joel Klein's $95 Million Dollar Computer System Boondoggle

I always used to day that one day Joel Klein would one day be doing a perp walk in cuffs and bag over his head. Well, it hasn't happened - yet. But seeing Middlehoff, who hired uncle Joel after he left the Justice Dept. take this fall, there is always hope.

Here's an interesting note from a Aug. 1999 piece in the Observor:

Judging by the turnout for his 46th-birthday party, Bertelsmann A.G.’s chief executive, Thomas Middelhoff, has successfully tunneled his way into America’s media landscape. What a strange, brief trip it’s been. Seven months ago, Mr. Middelhoff ascended to the top spot of the world’s third-largest media conglomerate, a sprawling empire based in Gütersloh, Germany, that produces books, music, TV shows, magazines and newspapers, as well as maintaining a strong foothold in e-commerce and other on-line services. It is a company familiar to few laypeople despite a presence in more than 50 countries. And yet there he was, on Friday, May 14, in the private Bellecour Room at the Upper East Side restaurant Daniel, being feted by Peter Olson, chief executive of Random House Inc., and a cast of 31 other media lights.
Who was there? Most notably, Joel I. Klein, the 53-year-old Assistant Attorney General who heads the Justice Department’s antitrust division and who is spearheading the Government’s antitrust case against Microsoft Corporation.... http://observer.com/1999/06/federal-antitrust-official-has-some-nice-bertelsmann-birthday-cake/

Joel is just following the American way - use government service to enrich yourself and your friends.

Here's another story on Middelhoff's fall:
Former Bertelsmann boss sent to jail for embezzlement

On Friday, Mr. Middelhoff’s plunge from the top of the European business world ended with a hard landing when a German judge sentenced him to three years in prison for embezzlement and tax evasion. Despite his plans to appeal, the incarceration began immediately. The judge ruled that there was a risk Mr. Middelhoff might flee and ordered him held at least until another hearing some time in the coming week. Mr. Middelhoff, 61, was accused of misuse of corporate funds by, among other things, taking private trips on chartered aircraft while serving as chief executive of Arcandor, a German department store retailer that had hired him to try to restore profitability. Arcandor, whose Karstadt department stores are a familiar sight in German cities, later filed the German equivalent of bankruptcy, though many stores continue to operate under new ownership.

Damn Yankees at the Rockaway Theatre Co - Photos

As always, a great show. Music/dance numbers were a smash. Either I didn't catch Katherine Robinson in previous plays or I must have been dead. She was terrific as Lola. "Better than Gwen Verdon" said my friend.... David Bellel

It was great seeing David Bellel last night.
We were sold out last night and are this afternoon and not many tickets left for the 4 shows next weekend (Fri night, Sat. matinee (3PM) and eve (8PM) and Sunday matinee closing. So come on down. I have a miniscule role with one line. We stand in line outside the theater saying goodbye to the audience and one guy told me, "you big ham." So I must have made the most of it.

Here are some photos I took Friday night from the booth where I was taping the show between running down for my walkons.

 The wives complain about husbands distracted by baseball

The devil - John Panepinto and (old) Joe - David Risley

The shower scene - all hands above the wall, please

Dana Panepinto (red blouse) blows us away - here in Shoeless Joe From Hannibal Mo.

The always awesome Katherine Robinson

More

And more

Still some tickets left

Former Colleague Comments on David Fanning, Principal of A. Philip Randolph HS

DOUBLE STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS AND SUPERVISORS MUST GO BEFORE PEOPLE WILL HAVE TRUST IN THOSE RUNNING THINGS.

I taught with Fanning... biggest, laziest piece of shit ever... did nothing, taught nothing, knew nothing, perfect candidate for principal.... Former colleague

We've gotten a number of hits on our recent post Exposing A. Philip Randolph High School Hack Principal David Fanning

- and the above comment came in from someone who taught in the same school -

What an impact when a slug of a colleague who teachers had disdain for ends up running a school - the cynicism of teachers only grows - which by the why one of the building blocks of ed deform is to get rid of increasingly cynical teachers who after a few years get the message.

One of my correspondents promises some more juicy items - like  - "I'll get you stories of his not so subtle anti-semitism."

Here is a link to a NY Post article on Fanning's failure to act in this case- which was pointed out in our initial column - that he covers dangerous incidents. If a teacher doesn't report something they get hung out to dry.

DOUBLE STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS AND SUPERVISORS MUST GO BEFORE PEOPLE WILL HAVE TRUST IN THOSE RUNNING THINGS.

School didn’t call cops after teen shot in the face with BB gun

http://nypost.com/2013/11/25/school-didnt-call-cops-after-teen-shot-in-the-face-with-bb-gun/

Help say No thanks! to another Moskowitz charter school in Disrict 1 on the Lower East Side

From ed activists on the lower east side:

I'd be grateful if you can help us- 

The Success Academy Charter School chain is targeting District 1 ( East Village/LES) to open a new charter school. These privately managed schools do not serve the highest needs students, taking resources away from our local public schools that do.

The head of the charter school chain, Eva Moskowitz, just sent a letter to the SUNY Trustees (the charter authorizer who approves these "schools-on paper" in Albany) that  claims over 2000 signatures in support of SACS NYC1, which was approved for D2 but moved to D1.

Currently we have about 1000 signatures on a counter petition and need your help to surpass Eva's paid canvassers' efforts.

Please please please sign if you have not already (and thanks if you have)!

Please also consider passing the link below on for signatures by residents of  NYC, (esp. downtown Manhattan) if you can.

Thanks to everyone who has signed and passed this petition on already! We greatly appreciate your support.

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/no-need-for-success-academy?source=c.em&r_by=11493424

Here is a fact sheet to help you understand more about the negative impact of privately-managed education corporations (charter schools) on public education.

Video: Another Brick in Ohio - No More Common Core!

Published on Oct 26, 2014

A project by the Anti-Common Core Club made possible by Matthew Goforth and Frank Yanno. Please Support the Anti-Common Core Club at https://www.facebook.com/groups/AntiC... and buy a T-Shirt http://teespring.com/anti-common-core....

http://youtu.be/qUoC7_fW1j4

CTU House of Delegates Endorses Garcia for Mayor, Shunning Fioretti

Here is a report from Chicago teacher Jim Vail, an internal critic of CORE and the CTU leadership. We reported the other day on the breaking situation (Chicago Teacher Union Update - Where Does ISO Stand? George Schmidt and Lee Sustar in Socialist Worker).

Someone in MORE said: Schmidt and Sustar threw Karen Lewis under the bus. I am trying to keep myself to hearing from all sides on this, though from what I can tell the CTU and CORE leadership people have not responded other than to issue calls for unity. Reminds me of the UFT critiques of ed notes and other oppositionists - keep it in house, etc. I even get that in MORE too - don't air dirty laundry in public.

To catch you up. Fioretti has always supported the current CTU in every way - and some think that after Karen Lewis pulled out of the mayoral race, represents the best chance to defeat Rahm Emanuel or finish 2nd and force a head to head runoff. But in what looks like playing racial politics, the CTU leadership came up with their own candidate at the relative last minute. A Latino who might play better they seem to think in minority communities even though he is so far behind Fioretti in terms of getting signatures to get on the ballot -- and in fact wouldn't have a chance without the efforts of the CTU. If they had followed normal democratic procedures, people might have lived with it. But when it looked like strong-armed measures, there has been a reaction.

I got to hang with Jim Vail at the AFT convention in Seattle in 2010 and in Detroit in 2012. But Jim was off the slate for the last convention and has been critical. Here is his latest report on the CTU DA last week which endorsed Chuy by a 2-1 margin.
I'll follow up later with stuff from George Schmidt who plays a similar role in Chicago as I do here - except he is much more politically astute and also is a real reporter. Some of this stuff is just so sad.

http://secondcityteachers.blogspot.com/2014/11/ctu-endorses-chuy.html

CTU Endorses Chuy!

House of Delegates Votes to Endorse Chuy!

By Jim Vail

The Chicago Teachers Union delegates voted to endorse Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia for Mayor.

According to delegates present who spoke to Second City Teachers after the meeting Wednesday, Nov. 5, the debate was spirited, with many questioning the process.

The question for several was - who is "Chuy" Garcia, and why was this process being rushed?

Delegate and pension trustee Jay Rehak proposed a counter resolution to postpone an endorsement until all the petitions were collected and the candidates were on the ballot, a high school delegate told Second City.

This resolution was voted down, he said.

The CTU political director Stacy Gates made the argument that Garcia can win the general election against current mayor Rahm Emanuel, who's negative rating is quite high after infuriating the black community by closing a record 50 schools a year ago, the delegates said.

Union officials also evoked the image of Garcia as a progressive friend of the CTU who worked to help elect Harold Washington as mayor of the city many years ago. 

The fact of the matter is, Garcia is the floor leader for Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, a liberal wing of the democratic machine.

The CTU pulled its punches tonight to show the Chicago machine they can bring home the bacon and get the teachers to endorse a liberal, though mostly unknown, Cook County machine candidate.

The union was able to get a majority of delegates in about a 2 to 1 margin to vote in favor of the Garcia endorsement, delegates told Second City News. 

There were several Core activists who spoke in favor of Garcia, while no convincing argument was made to support Alderman Bob Fioretti, who has been a declared mayoral candidate and staunch teachers union supporter for many years, the delegate said.

One delegate estimated about 3 delegates spoke in favor of Garcia, for every one that called to postpone the endorsement.

Second City Teachers called it.

Chuy Garcia is endorsed by the delegates, a done deal before it even happened? That's certainly what we think when it comes to living in a managed democracy where the choices are vetted before anyone has a chance to understand what they are really voting for.

Opening this Friday at the Rockaway Theatre Company - Damn Yankees

The Washington Senators have heart -

I have a few walk-ons and one line. Next - Hamlet.
- I'm not in this scene - too old to be on the baseball team.
I wonder why so many teachers are involved in the RTC - and in community theater productions in general - maybe a place to be creative, given the general rigidity of the teaching environment.

Shows this Friday, Saturday eve and Sunday matinee at 3. Next weekend the same, with an additional Sat. matinee. (718) 374-6400. http://www.rockawaytheatrecompany.org/ticket-reservation-section/.

Some of the kids in the show - I'm too old for this pic too

Here are some of my columns in The Wave on the show.

To be published Nov. 14 at www.rockawave.com
Memo From the RTC: Damn Yankees Diary
By Norm Scott

Tuesday, November 11
Hell Week began last night at the Rockaway Theatre Company in prep for opening night of “Damn Yankees” this Friday. That means a grueling week of late night rehearsals for the entire cast, including the young kids and teens. I find it hard to imagine how all the people who work full-time jobs, many of whom have to travel from Brooklyn and mainland Queens, manage to handle the load. The enthusiasm was still pouring out even at 11:30PM, even from people with tiny roles. I don’t think it is just love of theater but love of the process of theater. I have a miniscule role, which affords me the opportunity to observe almost every aspect of the process – and I can’t get enough of it. The tech stuff – moving scenery smoothly from scene to scene and how coordinated all of this has to be through the masterful hand of stage manager Nora Meyers is fascinating. After Nora makes her first appearance less than two weeks before opening, so many aspects of the show begin to come together. Some first-timers involved with the RTC may have been scratching their heads even a week before opening asking, “How are we going to be ready?” But by late Thursday night of Hell Week things will be working as whip is snapped by the production team of Director John Gilleece, Producer Susan Jasper, Musical Director Richard Louis-Pierre, Lighting Director Andrew Woodbridge – wait ‘till you see the special effects – and Choreographer Nicola DePierro – who actually managed to get me to dance in “How to Succeed…”

The band made its first appearance last night and the rough spots still must be worked out. The show has some great musical numbers – like “You Gotta Have Heart” and “What Lola Wants, Lola Gets” and as usual, actors with great voices at the RTC deliver. As a matter of fact, there is so much demand coming from talented people who want to perform at the RTC, John Gilleece felt the need to double cast for the key roles of the devil and Lola. John wants to expose RTC theater goers to a constant influx of new talent. Newcomers Erika Brito and Michael Whelan join RTC regulars John Panepinto and Katherine Robinson. So, you’ll all have to see the show twice as each performer brings their own style to the performances. This weekend, John plays the devil while Katherine will be performing at the Friday and Saturday night performances, with Erica doing the Sunday matinee.

I will be in all 7 performances, working like the devil to remember my one line – the devil asks me for the score and I say “4-3, Washington.” I’m tempted to change it to, “4-3, Republican Senators.”

Read Norm’s other column, School Scope, “Ferry Follies” and his devil of a blog ednotesonline.org.

=====
Here is my Oct. 24 column on Damn Yankees when I wasn't aware Erika Brito was sharing the role with Katherine.

Those Darn Yankees

By Norm Scott

Katherine Robinson is playing the role of the seductress Lola in RTC’s upcoming Damn Yankees. Having just returned from 10 days of perfect weather in Sicily, I totally missed what was happening in the sports world and there were some surprises.

So I write this as the World Series is about to start in a few hours between Kansas City and San Francisco. Anyone seen a sign of our local teams anywhere near the playoffs this year? Well, no worries. You can catch the Yankees at the Post Theater in Fort Tilden in the upcoming Rockaway Theatre Production of Damn Yankees.

As he often does, Director John Gilleece has a cast of thousands, including yours truly with a walkon as a sports reporter.
My dream is to wear a “Lindsey Nelson” (the late Mets announcer), a loud-as-you-can-get sport jacket.
John even managed to rope in RTC Master Builder Tony Homsey to also play a sportswriter.
I was on Tony’s set-building crew as we put together the dugout and the stands and we chewed the fat while chewing tobacco and talking about our motivation for the role.
I imagine most people know the basic story. How a Washington Senators (first in war, first in peace and last in the American league) fan and Yankee hater Joe Boyd/Hardy sells his soul to the devil for a chance to beat the Yankees. I firmly believe the people running the teams that beat out the Yankees did just that this year.
Have you seen Buck Showalter since Baltimore lost to Kansas City? The devil (Mr. Applegate) uses seductress Lola, who will be played in most performances by the stunning Katherine Robinson, to lure Joe into temptation.
Who wouldn’t be lured into temptation by Katherine?
Whatever Lola wants, Lola gets and she wants you all to come see her on one of these dates: Nov. 14, 15, 21, and 22, at 8:00 p.m. Matinees: Nov. 16, 22, 23 at 3:00 p.m.
You can call the RTC at 718-374- 6400 or visit the website at www.rockawaytheatrecompany.org.

[Slimebag] CUOMO HAD A SECRET DEAL WITH REPUBLICANS - DUHHH!

The state’s most powerful Republican secretly worked for months to help Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo win re-election — in exchange for Cuomo’s promise not to aid Senate Democrats in their Long Island races, a top New York GOP leader has charged.... http://nypost.com/2014/11/10/cuomo-had-a-secret-re-election-pact-with-republicans/

As someone commented on the MORE listserve:
I CONTINUE TO BE AMAZED AT THE NAIVETE OF THE WFP.

The unions and Cuomo have buried the Working Families Party. Progressive need to go elsewhere.
 

Nov. 10, 2014 Exposing A. Philip Randolph High School Hack Principal David Fanning

Happy teachers make for happy students and a safe teaching environment makes for a safe learning environment. It is too bad Carmen Farina is not paying attention to a cascade of principals who are undermining the teaching and learning conditions in so many schools. I get stories every single day and have a backlog of posts on a number of schools.

Even experienced chapter leaders are under assault by principals clearly trained in tactics of divide and conquer - they isolate certain people and woo others. All while the UFT dithers and provides few weapons and support and barebones training. What is funny that because I get so many reports on these principals I can see the pattern of behavior and can advise people - the UFT does not teach this pattern of behavior and help people format a broad array of responses -- which includes a political response - but more on this aspect in future posts.

Would you want to work for a guy who clearly has a stick up his ass

One key charge against Fanning is that he covers up incidents to make the school look clean and oppresses staff members who would report. Nothing reported, nothing fixed.

Here is a composite report from various sources on principal David Fanning and the school.

A. Philip Randolph High School was recently ranked by The Daily News as one of the best public schools in New York City.
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/best-high-schools-new-york-top-60-institutions-article-1.1973796

This comes as a shock to anyone who attends the school, works there, or reads the news.  How can a school with three harassment and/or discrimination lawsuits filed against the school in the past two years--the first years of David Fanning's appointment as principal--be the best of anything?  

According to the latest Learning Environment Survey, only about 40% of teachers feel safe at APRHS.
http://schools.nyc.gov/OA/SchoolReports/2013-14/Survey_2014_M540.pdf

That's understandable when you consider that the principal is so negligent about safety that he didn't even seek medical attention for a student who was shot in the face with a bb gun in the classroom last year.  

http://nypost.com/2013/11/25/school-didnt-call-cops-after-teen-shot-in-the-face-with-bb-gun/

According to The Daily News, APRHS touts an array of advanced classes.  Talk to anyone from the school and you'll soon learn that all these supposed advanced classes are not offered.  Or at least certainly not recently or all in one year.  In the course of one year, students' agreement responses to the Learning Environment survey question, "My school offers a wide enough variety of programs, classes and activities to keep me interested in school" dropped nearly twenty percentage points.  Where is this supposed array of classes?

 

And, again, it's not just the lack of a variety of classes.  There is a lack of safety and mutual respect.  This isn't just about teachers like Sonia Burke and Monte Kuhr, both of whom have filed lawsuits against the DoE regarding their poor treatment at APRHS.

http://nypost.com/2014/03/16/teacher-colleagues-made-fun-of-my-dress-lawsuit/
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/teacher-heart-condition-sues-city-claiming-principal-students-bad-heart-article-1.474987.

This is also, of course, about the students.  A glance at insideschools.com should give you an idea.
http://insideschools.org/component/schools/school/259

"This is honestly the worst school in the city. I've been here for 4 years. Don't listen to what the "Student Government" person is saying, he's sugarcoating it. The school has a bunch of incidents all the time which are covered up all the time. There was a fire in the bathroom and wasn't reported, which smoke was all over the 2nd floor the school reported it as a false alarm. They also had a classroom whose boards where set on fire and the school called the janitors to put it out. Seriously if you love your kid, don't send them here. There is some staff that I absolutely love, Ramirez, Calcano, Lacera, Ross, Stone, Dermott, but that's it."
"The staircases smell like weed. Students go to school high. Students have sex in staircases. Students cut ALL THE TIME. Students are EXTREMELY rude. The classes get disrupted all the time. There are ALWAYS physical fights (At least once a week!). Not to mention the pranks that are far dangerous.

 

Because of this environment, it is almost impossible for any student to not follow these same steps. Many students have admitted that they started caring less about school once they enrolled to APRCHS. Even though the students can succeed academically (if they try to ignore the craziness), the behavior in this school isn't acceptable. It isn't a school where I would want MY child to attend."

"I don't recommend this school to anyone. I have been in this school for 2 years already and I absolutely hate it. I was really excited about it at first, but it's not a good learning environment for your kid. The staircases smell like weed, there are always students skipping class in the hallways, many students disrupt the class, and much more. There's also no respect towards teachers or students. A few weeks ago I was in my math class and a student had thrown a water balloon at my teacher. There was also the situation when a student had disrupted a class to shoot a student who was sitting in class doing his work. There was even a report on it.http://nypost.com/2013/11/25/s...

 The students are absolutely out of control. They "twerk" most of the time. There is dealing of drugs going on. They are extremely rude to the adults. Due to the behavior of this school, I'm afraid that colleges might look at my grades and think that I only have good grades because I look good in front of those awful students.There are, of course, some very good students. But the majority of the students do not care about school and go to school to waste our time and theirs."

The student from the first comment makes a very good point.  "The school has a bunch of incidents all the time which are covered up all the time."  Indeed, this appears to be the case.  How else could APRHS rank as one of the best high schools in NYC?  Maybe the principal, David Fanning, got his covering up degree when he was an AP of Organization at Brooklyn Tech.  Anyone remember this?  http://www.nycsci.org/reports/11-20%20brooklyntech%20rpt.pdf

The scandal at Brooklyn Tech about administration not reporting violence and robberies.

 

It appears Fanning comes from violence cover-up central.  If it's not reported it didn't happen, right?  

 

MORE Manhattan Local Organizing: District 1/2 Teacher/School Workers Meetup - Friday Nov. 14, 4PM

While some people complain about the MORE monthly meetings (at times me included) I tell them these local meetings are the key to building a grassroots rank and file movement in the UFT. In the school neighborhoods after school. And I have urged MOREistas to not just make these events about happy hours but to engage in discussion as a group, not as people talking at a bar.

District 1&2 Teacher/School Workers Meetup
Friday, November 14 @ 4:00pm
Houston Hall
222 W Houston
1 train to Houston or ACEFBD to W4th Street

Let's get together this November to catch up, connect, and schmooze! We'll share our visions, challenges, and goals for the upcoming months:

UFT contract & our schools
Charter schools invading our district
High stakes testing
What's on YOUR mind?
Drinks & discussion.
You can just show up!

Suggestions? Questions? Want to let us know you're coming?
Contact John Antush: 917-734-3907 (call or text) or johnantush@gmail.com

Personal Health: The Eyes Have It

 The recent NY Times series on the elderly falling and suffering long-term permanent damage was scary and a wake-up call to us old folk - I'm just months away from turning 70. And of course the fairly sudden illnesses and deaths of Loretta and Gene Prisco last year just 8 months apart at the age of 71 still leaves us in shock.

The Times articles raised the balance issue, which is one reason I take rigorous hot (Bikram) yoga classes, where you have to lock your knee and stand on one leg for up to a minute. (My mother's fall and broken hip put her in the hospital where she got pneumonia and never got out.) They recommend standing on one leg while brushing your teeth.

From my fairly robust dad up to the end, who died over 2 years ago at 94, I learned from his problems with teeth (he didn't take good care and all of them were pulled when he was 92) and eyes (wet macular degeneration that made him legally blind) and ears - pretty deaf - that these are 3 simple areas to take care of.

I've been doing the teeth thing pretty religiously for the past 5 years with a local dentist - who doesn't take the UFT plan but I'm putting people I trust and like over money.

This past Thursday my wife and I trekked into the city to see our current eye doctor on 61st and Park Av to get checked out. My wife found him for her double cataract operation almost 3 years ago through research on the web and recommendations and I began using him too. The verdict? All is well - no macular or glaucoma and no change in vision from last time.

What I'm wearing to the MORE meeting

Afterwards we checked out Bloomingdales where you can't buy anything for less than $300 and then to a French restaurant on 63rd and Lex for a great lunch. The weather was raw and I was real sleepy so we headed back to Rockaway without seeing our planned movie. Life is touch for us retirees.

As for ears? As I head into the monthly MORE meeting I'm thinking a bit of deafness would not be the worst thing.

MORE Goes to Philly

Big shout out to Mindy, Alexandra, Jia and Karen who will be representing MORE today at a convention being coordinated by our brothers and sisters of WE caucus of the Philly Teachers Fed.
http://www.workingeducators.org/first_annual_convention

We all recognize the terrible attacks public educators  are facing in Philly and anything we can do to support them we will. Solidarity to our union family!

They will be missed at today's MORE meeting.

Angst Rages Over Cuomo/Charter Allies Attack on Public School System

RBE at Perdido Street and others like NYC Educator -  Hamlet and Randi and Buffalo teacher Sean Crowley (Teachers Union Leaders Sell Out Members Because They've Got No Skin In The Game) and at B-LoEdScene have been targeting the UFT/NYSUT/AFT capitulation with a focus on Randi. I left this comment:

If the entire school system was charterized but Unity still gets its cut they will be Ok with that. That's the difference between the Republicans and Dems. The former want the union abolished. The latter want to partner with the union to manage the members away from militant action. So Cuomo won't have to remove collective bargaining rights like Scott Walker - the UFT has in effect done that for him.

The question is what to do about it other than complain. People have been asking me how do you build a mass movement. I don't have an easy answer - but--

One crucial item that is often missing in opposition groups:
Thinking like organizers - get names and numbers and figure out a way to get a local/regional meeting because organizing on a city-wide basis with a once a month meeting really is not enough to get anywhere.

Successful mass organizing efforts in the past - especially in teacher unions - often involved the hiring of effective full-time organizers -- see Al Shanker c. 1959 - and some think he was brought into teaching years before with that in mind.

The ATR situation offers some interesting opportunities as they can be roving bands of organizers. But most do not have that mentality. I've only had contact with maybe 2 or 3 ATRs who go into schools with an organizing mentality. One guy in the Bronx did a lot of  work getting out info on MORE.

At the upcoming ATR meeting on Nov 11 they should address this issue.

Cuomo's "Victory" May Cost Him His Presidential Hopes

Governor Andrew Cuomo is being blamed for staggering Democratic Party losses in the House of Representatives.
Despite the Governor fundraising upwards of $45 million for his own reelection campaign and finishing with many millions still in the bank, his beleaguered fellow Democrats received minimal financial support from the Governor — and top party operatives in Washington, DC are rumored to be irate... A full quarter of all Democratic Party losses in the House last night occurred in New York, where corruption allegations stemming from the now disgraced Moreland Commission consumed the political discourse and suppressed voter turnout (especially among Democrats) to the lowest level since FDR was elected Governor in 1930. ... The Buffalo Chronicle

It couldn't happen to a nicer guy. Cuomo with his charter lobby backing will engage in open warfare on the teachers while a passive union lies down in the road. As the mayhem of a rain of charters goes on we can at least enjoy a few moments of this kind of thing.

Cuomo burned bridges w/ House Dems & blamed for staggering 1/4 of all House losses w/ lowest turnout since 1930 http://go.shr.lc/1E9zQMt

Cuomo blamed for loss of House Dems

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Matthew Ricchiazzi in Congress, NY Governor // 1 Comment

Chicago Teacher Union Update - Where Does ISO Stand? George Schmidt in Substance and Lee Sustar in Socialist Worker

The last-minute decision by Karen Lewis and a handful of Chicago Teachers Union staff members to "endorse" the candidacy of Jesus "Chuy" Garcia during the three days prior to the CTU LEAD dinner on Halloween night has caused the biggest split in five years inside both the union and the CORE (Caucus Of Rank-and-file Educators) which won union power in June 2010.  ... Lee Sustar, Socialist Worker

Now that a faction of the leadership of the union has surrendered its last pretexts at transparency and democracy.... George Schmidt on the Chicago Teachers Union 

For the union to back Garcia, however, the CTU constitution requires the political action committee/legislative committee [1] (PAC/Leg) to first propose any endorsements before they are passed along to the union's executive board, which must approve the recommendation before it goes to the next House of Delegates meeting....The PAC/LEG committee did hold several meetings, but was unable to issue a decision on endorsement until after the October 31 union dinner. Now, the executive board has recommended an endorsement to be taken up at the House of Delegates. But Garcia's appearance at the LEAD event pre-empted the process.....Lee Sustar, Socialist Worker

From the earliest days of MORE there have been concerns over the role the International Socialist - ISO - would play within MORE - to such an extent that there was much debate within ICE 3 years ago as to whether the get involved in the first place. And recent events in MORE have brought some of these issues to the surface, ie - to what extent can ISO control the agenda of MORE? But more (lots more) on this angle in the future.

I present the above and below in the context of what is going in the Chicago TU, where ISO also has some key people involved, most notably, VP Jesse Sharkey, who is now acting president while Karen Lewis recovers from her illness and Nate Goldbaum who is the chairperson of CORE --  Sharkey (see photo below) and the rest of the CTU leadership seem to have taken the CTU down a road of alliance with the Democratic Party hack division as the lesser of 2 evils - by endorsing some awful Democratic politicians - who lost anyway - see Substance - Paul Vallas cost Pat Quinn the election.

While it is not clear on the role Sharkey has played in these decisions (one would assume that as one of the 4 officers he played a major role), they certainly seem counter to positions ISO has taken on electoral politics over the years, especially towards the Democratic Party. But this year, ISO and MORE member Brian Jones was tapped to run for Lt. Governor by the Green Party, pushing a very strong education program - and they got a nice 5% of the vote -- a start towards building a 3rd choice for progressives.

So I was wondering how ISO would/could square the Chicago and NY stories - and when I put that question out on the MORE discussion listserve there was no response.

Now we have an article (below) from Lee Sustar, one of the respected voices in ISO, who I've sat with in the press section of the last 3 AFT conventions and always find his take knowledgeable and illuminating. There were rumors he was writing a book on the CORE/Chicago TU that was going to fall into the general ISO ideological line of "all praise to the CTU and CORE". I did hope Lee would not fall into the ideological line we hear from ISO here in NYC that the Chicago story was mostly social justice and left leadership while downplaying the angle that CORE struck a note with their defense of teachers.  The book seems to be on hold and some of my sources are pointing to a rethinking of the CTU situation on the part of Lee and some ISO people - due to what is being reported by both George Schmidt and by Lee below.

CTU House of Delegates to meet Nov. 5... Political controversy flares up in the CTU - 

republished from Substance and Socialist Worker: http://socialistworker.org/2014/11/05/controversy-flares-in-the-ctu

Lee Sustar - November 05, 2014

[George Schmidt - Editor's Note: The following article originally appeared at Socialist Worker and is reprinted here at substancenews.net with permission of the author. For those who wish to consult the original article and additional analysis by the same writer, go to: http://socialistworker.org/2014/11/05/controversy-flares-in-the-ctu]

Political controversy flares up in the CTU

The last-minute decision by Karen Lewis and a handful of Chicago Teachers Union staff members to "endorse" the candidacy of Jesus "Chuy" Garcia during the three days prior to the CTU LEAD dinner on Halloween night has caused the biggest split in five years inside both the union and the CORE (Caucus Of Rank-and-file Educators) which won union power in June 2010. The "Chuy" push came so late that a special extra program had to be published giving biographies of the night's speakers. Despite the probably ability of the Garcia supporters to win a slim majority in the union's House of Delegates to their agenda, the factionalism and manipulation that has been going on inside CTU since October 27 is explosive and backfiring within the union's rank and file. Substance photo by Sharon Schmidt.Lee Sustar looks at the issues surrounding a debate in the Chicago Teachers Union about endorsing a candidate for the upcoming mayor's race. November 5, 2014
DELEGATES OF the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) are expected to decide November 5 on whether to endorse an electoral challenge to Mayor Rahm Emanuel in the February mayoral election.
The push to support Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, a Cook County Commissioner and longtime Chicago politician, comes amid controversy over how it came about--in a videotaped statement from CTU President Karen Lewis at the union's annual political dinner, known as LEAD, on October 31. Lewis has taken a leave of absence because of a serious illness, and Vice President Jesse Sharkey has assumed the president's duties according to the CTU's constitution.
Lewis, after undergoing major surgery, has remained politically active and pressed for Garcia's endorsement. For the union to back Garcia, however, the CTU constitution requires the political action committee/legislative committee [1] (PAC/Leg) to first propose any endorsements before they are passed along to the union's executive board, which must approve the recommendation before it goes to the next House of Delegates meeting.
The PAC/LEG committee did hold several meetings, but was unable to issue a decision on endorsement until after the October 31 union dinner. Now, the executive board has recommended an endorsement to be taken up at the House of Delegates. But Garcia's appearance at the LEAD event pre-empted the process.
LEWIS' HIGH-profile individual support for Garcia captured headlines because she was preparing to run for mayor herself before she fell ill--and opinion polls showed she had a shot at beating Emanuel, despite the mayor's $8 million-plus campaign fund. She clearly hopes to transfer her support to Garcia. But as the independent teacher publication Substance News reported [2], her personal endorsement of Garcia raised hackles among CTU members.

 
While under observation in preparation for the Day Of The Dead, Illinois governor Pat Quinn (second from left above) shared something droll with Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey (second from right) while Illinois Federation of Teachers President Dan Montgomery (right) smiled on. This picture was from the LEAD dinner, four days before Quinn lost to Bruce Rauner in the November 4 election. Substance photo by Sharon Schmidt.For one thing, as Substance pointed out, the public embrace of Garcia at the CTU's highest-profile political event came before the union had considered other challengers to Emanuel--mostly prominently, Alderman Bob Fioretti, who supported the CTU's 2012 strike and its campaign to save public schools from closure.
Second, the rush to back Garcia sidelined those who want to raise broader questions about the union's support for Democratic politicians following the CTU's endorsement of Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn last month [3].
Quinn, who lost his re-election race yesterday, is a one-time reformer turned union-basher [4]. He's spent the last few years overseeing legislation to "fix" public workers' pensions by slashing benefits. Adding insult to injury, Quinn chose as his running mate this time around Paul Vallas, who in the 1990s ushered in the era of school "reform" as CEO of the Chicago Public Schools.
But because Quinn's opponent in the race was the billionaire Republican investor Bruce Rauner, the union--by a majority vote in the House of Delegates on a proposal from the executive board--supported Quinn in a classic "lesser evil" calculation. Indeed, Quinn was the advertised keynote speaker at the CTU dinner until he was bumped by Garcia.
The other point of controversy is simply the importance that the CTU has placed on union democracy as an alternative to backroom deals--from its officers, who won election in 2010 as part of the Caucus of Rank-and-File Educators (CORE) reform slate, through to the rank and file.
In 2011, when Lewis negotiated an agreement to support Senate Bill 7, a law making it difficult for the union to strike, CORE members on the executive board and in the House of Delegates led a successful effort to withdraw the union's support for the agreement. And the CTU's successful 2012 strike didn't end until after delegates had delayed ratifying the agreement until after members held picket-line meetings to discuss the deal and instruct the delegates whether or not to vote for ratification.
THE DEBATE about Garcia highlights larger questions about how the CTU will approach the February 24 election.
A Karen Lewis run for mayor had the potential to mobilize an independent, labor-based campaign against the local political establishment--which is entirely Democratic--and their big business backers. Lewis' popularity in working-class Chicago comes not from connections to wealthy patrons, but her role in leading a strike that challenged the business and political powerbrokers.
Some of Lewis' statements and actions as her campaign began to take shape raised concerns about just how independent it would be [5]. Those are even more pressing with Chuy Garcia, a veteran of the Chicago Democratic Party.
The son of Mexican immigrants, Garcia has roots in Chicago's 1970s activist left. He was a close ally of Mexican-American organizer Rudy Lozano, who was murdered in what activists believe was a political assassination. He filled Lozano's shoes by winning election as an alderman in 1986 as an ally of Harold Washington, the city's first African American mayor. Garcia retained ties to labor and the left, sometimes appearing at left-wing political events.
As a founder of the Little Village Development Corp. (now Enlaces), Garcia helped knit together a rising Mexican-American middle class in the 1980s and 1990s by helping businesses secure loans to create the second-most important business district in the city after downtown.
After serving two terms as a state senator, Garcia was targeted by Mayor Richard M. Daley, whose Hispanic Democratic Organization ran pro-Daley hack against him. After losing the election, Garcia continued to develop his political networks, chairing the Woods Fund, a foundation that makes grants to community groups.
Gradually, Garcia rose in Democratic circles and shifted into the political mainstream--at odds with Daley, who saw him as a threat, but at home with the liberal wing of the party. When the Cook County Board became mired in corruption scandals, and with Daley set to retire, the door was open for Garcia to run for the Cook County Board to represent a district that includes parts of Chicago, as well as heavily Latino suburban towns.
"Garcia isn't a Democratic machine guy, but he is definitely a politician," said Jorge Mujica, a socialist candidate for alderman in the February elections [6]. And being a Democratic politician in the aftermath of the Great Recession means backing austerity. As a Cook County commissioner, Garcia has been the floor leader for Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, herself a former alderman and liberal with roots in the city's African American community.
Since her election in 2010, Preckwinkle has been hammering unions with demands for concessions [7]. She also pushed for legislation to gut county workers' pensions--the measure failed [8] when Republicans in the state legislature decided it didn't cut deeply enough. The Chicago Civic Federation, a business-backed, union-hating, austerity-pushing group, has hailed Preckwinkle's austerity budgets [9].
As a close Preckwinkle ally, Garcia helped to implement this agenda. In a speech to college students made shortly after he announced his candidacy, he made this into a badge of honor [10]: "We inherited a deficit of $479 million, which is not chump change. I believe that we demonstrate through our actions that we can live within our means."
THERE'S LITTLE reason to expect that Garcia would take a different approach as mayor of Chicago, which faces its own looming pension shortfall [11] after decades of underfunding, as a result of a tax structure that soaks workers and the poor while favoring the big financial and real estate interests.
And while Garcia criticized Emanuel for closing 49 public schools in spring 2013, he hasn't committed to reopening them--nor to freezing and rolling back the proliferation of charter schools that have drained public school funding and downsized the teaching workforce.
While Garcia indicated at the CTU dinner that he supports an elected school board--a deal-breaker issue for Chicago teachers and education justice activists who continue to fight Emanuel on the question--the candidate hasn't made that a focal point for his nascent campaign.
Many CTU members, determined to get rid of their arch-enemy Rahm Emanuel, may conclude that Garcia is a candidate who should be supported, despite the drawbacks. But by promoting Garcia before the union's deliberative bodies had a chance to debate his history and make a formal decision, the union risks endorsing another supposedly pro-labor Democrat who goes on to shaft teachers, just as Pat Quinn did.
A handful of independent campaigns for alderman--including some CTU members--are attempting to put forward an alternative to the Democratic establishment. The CTU, like labor unions everywhere, will be far better served by endorsing genuinely independent campaigns that fight for the interests of working people.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Published by the International Socialist Organization.
Material on this the Socialist Worker Web site is licensed by SocialistWorker.org, under a Creative Commons (by-nc-nd 3.0) [12] license, except for articles that are republished with permission. Readers are welcome to share and use material belonging to this site for non-commercial purposes, as long as they are attributed to the author and SocialistWorker.org.
NOTES:
[1] http://www.ctunet.com/grievances/CONSTITUTION-and-BYLAWS-11-12-10.pdf?1294855346
[2] http://www.substancenews.net/articles.php?page=5296§ion=Article
[3] http://socialistworker.org/2014/10/08/from-enemy-to-lesser-evil
[4] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/05/illinois-pension-law-sign_n_4393614.html
[5] http://socialistworker.org/2014/09/22/which-way-will-lewis-run
[6] http://socialistworker.org//www.votemujica.org/
[7] http://www.afscme31.org/news/cook-county-employees-send-messag2e-to-preckwinkle
[8] http://politics.suntimes.com/article/springfield/preckwinkle-throws-towel-county-pension-reform-plan/fri-05302014-1029pm
[9] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/26/cook-county-budget-proposal_n_2024950.html
[10] http://www.chicagotalks.org/2014/10/jesus-chuy-garcia-at-university-of-illinois-chicago/
[11] http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/15/us-usa-chicago-budget-idUSKCN0I42NI20141015
[12] http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0

Politico: Teachers unions take huge beating - Will They EVER Move Into the Real World?

Just before 4 a.m., Weingarten retweeted an optimistic take on the Torlakson lead: “I do believe we have saved public educ in Calif!” But with a significant number of ballots yet to be counted in Los Angeles, which polls had identified as a Tuck stronghold, no one was calling the race. And even a Torlakson win was likely to be scant consolation to labor in the big picture.... Stephanie Simon, Politico

Well, whoop-de-doo. Praise be to our savior - Torlakson? This is not an article by an ed deform hack journalist but by Stephanie Simon - straight arrow and skeptical of ed deform. Hope she takes a hard look at the undemocratic teacher unions lining up with a failed Democratic Party.

Teachers unions had repeatedly predicted that their get-out-the-vote effort, cranked up this cycle with renewed intensity, would push Democrats over the top in battleground states. Union members by the thousands devoted their evenings to phone banks and their weekends to door-to-door canvassing. They sent hundreds of thousands of handwritten cards urging allies to vote. And they confidently predicted that their status as teachers would help them persuade undecided voters to support Democrats pledging more funding for public schools.

Oops.

The US is ruled by ruthless elite which seeks to privatize public services and reduce the mass of the population to a compliant low wage labor force. This elite now controls both major parties. Its education policy is governed by both objectives.... Mark Naison

POLITICO: Teachers Unions Take Huge Beating

Teachers unions take huge beating

By STEPHANIE SIMON

Teachers unions framed this election as a referendum on their vision for public education.

Their vision was thumped.

Tens of millions in advertising portraying Republican governors as reckless ideologues who sold out kids’ futures to give tax breaks to the wealthy failed to move voters in Florida, Wisconsin, Michigan, Kansas or Maine.

Unions and their allies sought to use education as a wedge issue in Senate races, too, from North Carolina to Arkansas to Iowa to Colorado. They lost every one.

And in one of the toughest blows, organized labor failed to protect Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn in his tough fight for a second term. He lost to Republican Bruce Rauner, who has made no secret of his disdain for “union bosses,” his desire to rein in the teachers unions or his determination to overhaul public education by expanding charter schools and subsidizing private-school tuition through a targeted voucher program.

There were two bright spots for teachers unions: As expected, they succeeded in ousting Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett. And as of early Wednesday, incumbent state Superintendent Tom Torlakson held a lead in California.

In the Political Minefield - Schmidt With Disturbing Reports From Chicago Teachers Union

George Schmidt reports in Substance over the political missteps of the leadership of the CTU, including an end run around the democratic process. I'll be posting more of his stuff. Check out the comments at the end of the article - http://www.substancenews.net/articles.php?page=5296&section=Article

November 5, 2014: Chicago Teachers Union to face most explosive House of Delegates meeting since the months before the Chicago Teachers Strike of 2012

George N Schmidt - November 03, 2014
Having already surrendered a good deal of its political credibility by the work that was done at the annual LEAD dinner on October 31, 2014, the leadership of the Chicago Teachers Union is facing a major debate on November 5, 2014, when its 800-member House of Delegates meets. The behind-closed-doors decision by a handful of members of the staff of the Chicago Teachers Union to engineer what I've been reporting as a coup d'etat on behalf of the mayoral candidacy of Cook County Commissioner Jesus Chuy Garcia has backfired in an almost unprecedented way, resulting in the union's facing some of the most serious challenges in its recent history as the union delegates assemble for their monthly meeting on November 5, 2014,

[Teachersunite] /// Friday: Happy Hour FUNdraiser! /// + RJ Meetup Updates

If you heard This American Life's "Is This Working?” episode last week, check out TU Director Sally Lee’s piece in Huffington Post: “Learning Our Place” < http://huff.to/1EdA7zU > 

and then Come kick off our Fall FUNdraiser!

Help schools practice transformative justice* and end the suspensions that increase students’ chances of dropping out or being incarcerated

Fall HAPPY HOUR FUNdraiser

Friday, November 7th

5 to 8pm

at Dive Bar

732 Amsterdam Ave @ 96th Street

1/2/3/B/C to 96th

$15 for a sweet Teachers Unite wristband = happy hour prices all evening!

All are welcome (21+) 

Let us know you’re coming!

RSVP: anna@teachersunite.net

Or on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/1ylFnhD

Can’t make it? 

Donate to our Full Court Press Against #SchoolPushout here:

< teachersunite.causevox.com >

* Transformative justice is a philosophy that looks at what harm was done, and focuses on how to best repair that harm by giving the victim of the conflict and the community in which the conflict happened a voice and a role in the process of achieving justice.

Flyer attached

_______________________________________________

And join us at

 Restorative Justice Meetups & Workshops

 in Queens, Manhattan, and Brooklyn next month! 

Info & Flyers below...

Queens Restorative Justice Meetup

Wednesday, November 12th
4:30 to 6pm 

Hosted by Voyages Preparatory High School

45-10 94th Street in Elmhurst

7 to 90th Street / M/R to Elmhurst Ave

 Please RSVP: anna@teachersunite.net
All are welcome—school staff, students, parents, community members—& food will be provided!
Flyer attached.
 

_______________________________________________

Manhattan Restorative Justice Meetup

*****POSTPONED! NEW DATE COMING SOON*****

Hosted by Lower Manhattan Community Middle School

_______________________________________________

Brooklyn Restorative Justice Meetup 

Thursday, November 20th
4:30 to 6pm 
Hosted by Brooklyn Frontiers High School
112 Schermerhorn Street

2/3/4/5 to Borough Hall |A/C/F/N/R to Jay St. MetroTech | G to Hoyt Schermerhorn
 

 Please RSVP: anna@teachersunite.net
All are welcome—school staff, students, parents, community members—& food will be provided!
Flyer attached.

_______________________________________________

and don’t forget: 

Media & Storytelling Meetup!

Come build a community of educators committed to principled storytelling, 

share media tools and skills, and contribute to story-based campaigns for social justice.

Thursday, November 13th

5-7pm

@ Teachers Unite 

90 John Street, Suite 308

in Lower Manhattan

2/3/4/5/J/Z/A/C to Fulton

Please rspv: anna@teachersunite.net

Flyer attached

_______________________________________________

Anna Bean

Campaign Coordinator

Teachers Unite

90 John St., Suite 308

New York, NY 10038

646-707-4006

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