D.C. Teachers' Union election will affect survival of Rhee's initiatives
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Discussion PolicySaturday, October 23, 2010; 11:37 AM
There's one election this political season in which D.C. residents - public school families in particular - have a major stake but no vote: for leadership of theWashington Teachers' Union.
Much of the public discussion about education reform this fall was dominated by the widely anticipatedresignation of Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee and presumptive mayor-elect Vincent C. Gray's willingness to sustain the initiatives she launched. But the survival of Rhee's agenda - especially for hiring, evaluating and firing teachers - will also be determined by those at the top of the 4,000-member union, which spent heavily to unseat her boss, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty.
George Parker, who signed the game-changing labor contract with Rhee that was approved by members in