Ed Notes Online

Friday, August 5, 2022

Mayor Adams Ed Budget Crisis - City takes multiple hit(s) in court, Successful Rally at Foley Sq, UFT Officialdom makes token showing

Chaos, chaos, and more chaos due to the Adams/Banks school admin. Let's drive more people away from the public schools and create the drive more more charters.

Rally Aug 4, Lies, Lies and More Lies - Adams/Banks School Chaos Makes us wish for DeBlasio - NYC DOE Budget Cut Fight Back - Rallies, Surveys

Breaking - 10:45 AM - Aug. 5, 2022 -- Judge rules do-over for city council vote on school budget cuts.

41 of 50 Council members signed a letter that they regretted their vote and were not told about the impact of these cuts. Many have since said they were misled by DOE who insisted that only unfilled position would be eliminated as a result, but now we know that at least 700 teachers have been excessed.

Oh, where to begin? The court case? The rally beforehand? The tepid UFT support ?- they sent a dozen staffers with little blue signs -- there were more MOREs there - Imagine - the UFT/Unity leadership should have been able to send a message to Adams by putting thousands on the streets. This crowd is not due to the actions of the UFT but if the teacher rank and file, parents and community.

leonie haimson
@leoniehaimson
The City is effing nuts -- pretending they won the case. Ignored Judge's request for language for prelim injunction; instead they will consider modifying budget in Nov., but even then might have to make more cuts to move money around! Ignore reality & maybe it'll go away? Bizarro

Here is Leonie's account of the win in court yesterday.

What a morning!  First there a huge rally at Foley Square, with parents, teachers and advocates inveighing against the grotesque budget cuts to schools.  Tamara Tucker, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit against these cuts, spoke first, and her photo at the microphone is above.
Tamara and I left the rally at about 9:40 AM, and quickly walked over to the courtroom at the NY State Supreme Court, 80 Centre St., room 308 so as not to miss our chance to witness the oral arguments in the case before Judge Frank.  The courtroom was already half full, mostly with reporters and city attorneys, and soon would fill up completely before the hearing started.
Among the parents I noticed aside from Tamara were Tom Shepherd and Kaliris Salas-Ramirez, two PEP members, and NeQuan McLean, CEC16 President.  Tom and NeQuan had also provided us with affidavits about how the public process in adopting the budget had been contrary to what’s required by state law.

Read it all at:https://nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com/2022/08/nyc-parents-teachers-and-kids-win-in.html

UFT Middle School VP Rich Mantel

The judge's ruling means that last years budget stays in place until the city council votes a new education budget except the DOE can add to the budget for dyslexia program or from federal funds.

Lawyers put in their proposals to judge

Enter

DaniThe judge had given them the evening to propose language and considerations for his final edict today

Enter

Daniel

City lawyers acted like they had won and wanted judge to do their own plan

It means that the 2022 budget is effective until a new budget properly goes through PEP AND CITY

Enter

Daniel

That will likely mean an expedited deal between Mayor and CC with a lot more funding then the votes

Enter

Daniel

Good afternoon -- It's Friday, Aug. 5

I'm not big on going to rallies and demos, but yesterday I was pissed off enough at the actions of the pathetic Adams/Banks admin re the cuts to schools that I woke up early enough to catch an 8:15 ferry into the city on a very hot day for old folks like me. But I was so glad I did.

There is no question that Leonie Haimson was a major driver in putting this lawsuit together with AQE and other groups. The UFT? Hangers on. They put no or no skin in the game. I saw a bunch of staffers there. Here is a UFT VP who looks pained at hearing a MORE member speak.

Is Rich Mantel giving Jia the evil eye?
Maybe it's the sun.

But let's look at the positive side. Still looking. No, actually, the street action, court case and social media response shows you can fight city hall.

There are two interesting factors working here. The City Council and the Panel for Educational Policy, both of which need to be involved in the school budget. We know Adams has loaded the PEP with pro charter slime. The Council voted overwhelmingly for the cuts and Judge Frank, who also ruled for us in the MulgrewCare case, is forcing a do-over.

A few of us tried to find the court after the rally but heard it was full so I headed back to Rockaway, catching the 12:15 ferry back. It was worth it because of the people I knew and got to hang out with a bit. I spent some time with one of my favorite oppo people who shall remain nameless since there are many in the UFT who do not love her. I do. One of the most interesting people I've come across recently. As I always say, being active has opened up many contacts and friendships - a guy my age get the chance to hang out a bit with people half and a third my age. Not a bad gig.

Did I report on the Galaxy fiasco where Banks cancelled and then uncancelled access when principals started screaming? I think I did: Adams/Banks School Chaos Makes us wish for DeBlasio

Just a few examples of Adams incompetencies

NYC plans to end school-based COVID testing program this fall, source says ,” by Chalkbeat’s Alex Zimmerman
How Adams' pals — and a favorite dining spot — link him to one of the state's top tax delinquents , by POLITICO’s Joe Anuta: A restaurateur with deep ties to two of Mayor Eric Adams’ close friends — and a connection to one of his favorite midtown haunts — is among the state’s top tax delinquents with an outstanding tab of more than $1 million.
Comptroller: At least half of NYC cooling centers were listed as closed during weekend of July heatwave ,” by Gothamist’s Elizabeth Kim

Here are two articles from Politico and the NY Times:

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"A Black Agenda Radio commentary by Glen Ford

What media call "philanthropy" for the public schools are actually seed monies to establish a private "market" in publicly-financed education - an enterprise worth trillions if successfully penetrated by corporate America. Cory Booker, one of the "New Black Leaders" financed by the filthy rich, is key to creating a "nationwide corporate-managed schools network paid for by public funds but run by private managers.

"Ed Reformers" want to cash in on public education and to control its content and outcome, not improve it. Provide great education? Baby boomers had as close as this country has ever gotten to it when we were growing up. The Ed Reform Movement has no interest in seeing such a well-educated, democratically astute population ever again.

http://blackagendareport.com/content/cory-booker-clear-and-present-threat-public-education

History of the UFT Pre-Weingarten Years

This award-winning series of articles by Jack Schierenbeck originally appeared in the New York Teacher in 1996 and 1997.

Naturally, from a certain point of view. But, despite certain biases, Schierenbeck, a great guy, was one of the best NY Teacher reporters so this is worth reading. Jack suffered a debilitating stroke many years ago (I used to get secret donations to ed notes from him through a 3rd source.)

This chapter looks interesting:

Class struggles: The UFT story, part 3

“The schism in the union over radical politics [is] a major reason for stalling the growth of a teacher union for decades.” Revolutionary politics and ideology take center stage, as the original Teachers Union becomes a battlefield, pitting leftist against leftist and splitting the union.

Clarence Taylor's "Reds at the Blackboard" focused on the old Teachers Union which disbanded in 1964 after suffering from anti-left attacks.

Of course for another view, check out the review at New Politics of the Kahlenberg Bio on Shanker by Vera Pavone and me: Albert Shanker: Ruthless Neocon

Effective Union Organizing

A video series put together by Jason Mann from the British Columbia Federation of Teachers about social media and how to use it for effective union organizing.

The first series was called New Media For Union Activists Roadmap and it's still available on-line at:
http://www.newmediabootcamp.ca/welcome/
I watched some of them and need to rewatch as they are loaded with information.

The second series started last week and it's called "Online Campaigning for Union Activists"

You can sign up for this free series at :
http://act.bcfed.ca/online-campaigning-for-union-activists/

You Don't Have A Choice - Join the Revolt

Ex-Harlem Success Teacher Comments on Eva the Diva

Ex-HSA Teacher has left a new comment on your post "Fear and Loathing at Evil's Harlem Success Empire ...":

I am a former Harlem Success teacher. Not many people who work/worked for her like her very much. I once made the comment that she is very nice when I first was hired. Two of her closest colleague responded immediately almost in unison, "Eve is not nice!" Over time I realized that there was a lot of political games going on. Another colleague once said to me that he was tired of "being part of a political campaign." Sending out 15,000 applications for only 400 seats in a school is reprehensible. The money that paid for those mass mailings could have paid the yearly salary of another teacher not to mention the heartache of all those parents who applied but did not get a spot. She does good work trying to give disadvantaged students a quality public school education but at a great cost to staff AND the school's educational budget! school budget.

Davis Guggenheim Compared to Riefenstahl

“Waiting for Superman" is the second most intellectually dishonest piece of documentary work I have seen. It is surpassed only by Leni Riefenstahl's "Triumph of the Will," the pro-Hitler propaganda classic, in that regard. Uses personal narratives of adorable children to create narrative suspense that overrides public policy discussion with pure emotion in unscrupulous attack on teachers and their unions, among others

Timothy Tyson
Professor of African American Studies and History
Duke University

How Teaching Experience Makes a Difference

Even as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Michelle Rhee and others around the nation are arguing for experienced teachers to be laid off regardless of seniority, every single study shows teaching experience matters. In fact, the only two observable factors that have been found consistently to lead to higher student achievement are class size and teacher experience, so that it’s ironic that these same individuals are trying to undermine both.
- Leonie Haimson on Parents Across America web site

Full article with charts here.

Weingarten/Gates Foundation announce drone-driven teacher evaluation

According to a press release issued by the Gates Foundation, the AFT and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, these three have entered a ground-breaking partnership to evaluate teachers utilizing the drone technology that has revolutionized warfare in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. A bird-size device floats up to 400 feet above a classroom and instantly beams live video of teachers in action to agents at desks at Teacher Quality Inspection Stations established by the AFT and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.

When asked if the drones were authorized to drop bombs on teachers who exhibit inadequacy, Chester E. Finn, Jr., president of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, replied, "Don't be ridiculous. Gates money puts other methods at our disposal."

Randi Weingarten, president of the 1.5-million-member American Federation of Teachers said the powerful union has signed on to the drone project...

More at Substance

The Real Reason Behind Push for Standardized Tests: It's All About the Adults

On standardized testing in our schools

A must read article about the standardized test industry.
Written by an insider who has worked as a test scorer, the article outlines a multinational industry based on an army of temporary workers paid by the piece at $0.30 to $0.70 per test, translated in the need to grade 40 tests per hour to make a $12 salary. The article goes on to show how the companies gauge the grading "results" based on the need to ensure new contracts to continue profiting off of our youth. The original article is from Monthly Review. Here it is on Schools Matter blog.

http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2010/12/on-growing-use-of-corporate-test.html

Parallels between America today and Germany in the 1920's and early 30's

"Resentment and obstruction are all the right wing in America have to peddle. Their policies are utterly discredited. Their ideology - even by its own standards - is a sham. They are so bereft of leaders, their de facto leader is a former drug addicted, thrice-divorced radio talk show host. That is literally the best they can muster. But they have built a national franchise inciting the downwardly mobile to blame the government, not the right, for their problems, exactly as Hitler did in the 1920s."

The US Is Facing a Weimar Moment

Published on Sunday, March 15, 2009 by CommonDreams.org

Chicago View of Unity/UFT on Charters

After many meetings and debates, the Chicago delegation succeeded in working with the New York United Federation of Teachers, Local 2 (UFT) to push the AFT to take stronger stands on charter school accountability and school closings — though many delegates from Chicago would have liked the language to have been even stronger.

Generally speaking, the New York delegation represented organizing charters as the best model for handling their role in reshaping unions, despite the fact that according to many reports few charter schools in New York have been organized as is the case in Chicago. This logic is the same touted by the Progressive Caucus of the AFT. The few that have been organized are a part of the UFT local though they have separate contracts negotiated with the help of UFT. The Chicago delegation reflection the mindset that allowing new charters to continue to proliferate while attempting to organize existing charters is an end game in which public schools and the union lose.

Jen Johnson, CTU, Local 1 in Substance

Ed Notes Greatest Hits: HSA Rally and Founding of GEM

SEE MY VIDEO ON HARLEM SUCCESS RALLY 2009:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEp7rg_L5JI

Angel Gonzalez and I attended that rally and used the footage to promote our conference on Mar. 28, 2009, which is where the concept of a group like GEM emerged. Until then we had basically been a committee of ICE working with the NYCORE high stakes testing group. The actions of Eva and crew helped spawn GEM. Mommie Dearest!!

I have more video somewhere. I was hoping to get Leni Riefenstahl to edit it but she died. We would have called it "Triumph of the Hedge Fund Operators."

Ed Notes Extended

Friday, August 5, 2022