Parent Advocates - ParentAdvocates.org

Parent Advocates - ParentAdvocates.org

Joel Klein's Performance Review

The E-Accountability Foundation's review based on statements from parents, teachers, Regional supervisors, and other City employees and taxpayers from September 2002. Mr. Klein has no contract, but is an 'at will' employee of the City of New York. Rating: U; Recommendation: Resignation or Termination.
by Betsy Combier

We have been talking with parents, teachers, Principals, Regional personnel of the New York City Department of Education, the Office of Legal Services, retired Superintendents, Special Education evaluators and other personnel at all levels within the NYC DOE - yes, they are talking - and others who have worked for, presently work for, or are volunteers for the DOE, and we are horrified at the actions of Chancellor Joel Klein. Almost all of the people who have offered concrete proof of Joel Klein's actions have called us late at night, and they whisper into the telephone the information. As Mr. Klein does not have a contract and is an "At Will" employee of the Mayor, how can we hold him accountable for anything? By voting out Mayor Bloomberg.


We believe that Joel Klein should not continue as Chancellor of the nation's largest school system for the following reasons:


1. He listens to no one outside of his tight circle of friends, all of whom are earning huge salaries while our children are not given the services and resources they need to be challenged and to achieve their personal bests. He allows his staff to use taxpayer money for emergency equipment and sirens on their cars; he allowed Diana Lam's husband to obtain a job in a Bronx High School because he "doesn't second guess"; he allowed Deputy Chancellor Anthony Shorris to moonlight every thursday at Local 1199 for an additional $60,000 and stopped this illegal activity only when the press caught him, even as Mr. Shorris was telling City Council that there is no money to buy defibrillators for our schools, and New York City must violate the law for this reason; he stonewalls any request for information on anything, and buys curricula that penalizes the city, as he did in his decision to use Month-by-month phonics and establish the math curricula as TERC, CMP and Connected Math, or "fuzzy" math. See "Bruce Winokur, New York City Math Teacher, Fights Against the Fuzzy Math Folk, the Mayor and Chancellor"; and my daughter's cry for help when she was 9 years old: WHY TERC? Asks a 9 year old, Who Questions the Value of 'Fuzzy Math' For Her Future Academic Goals.


Every grievance sent to him by a parent is either never answered or answered by his Chief Counsel or someone at the