The latest episode in the corporate takeover of public schools in New York City is playing out in Mayor Bloomberg's appointment of non-educator Cathleen Black to replace Joel Klein as the city's Chancellor of Education. Black is a magazine mogul and 20-year member of the board of directors of Coca Cola, a company under attack for its union-busting activities and its contribution to childhood obesity. She is a product of private schools; her kids attended boarding schools; and she has no experience in the public sector.
The secrecy of her appointment process has annoyed even those who support corporate leadership, leading to considerable opposition to Black from unions, parents, and educators, which is giving State Commissioner, David Steiner and his advisory panel pause.
Steiner's vision for school reform draws on a corporate model. I recently spoke on a panel on Long Island in which Dr. Steiner was the respondent. I lamented that it had become impolitic to mention John Dewey's name in public, so under attack were educators and Dewey's notions of democratic and experiential education. I expected and received the standard response that giving urban kids