Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Why Did a UC Cop Draw His Gun Today? « Student Activism

Why Did a UC Cop Draw His Gun Today?

November 17, 2010 in Students

A University of California police officer drew his gun and pointed it at students protesting meeting of the UC regents this morning, and the UC San Francisco police chief’s explanation as to why doesn’t seem to hold water.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, UCSF police chief Pamela Roskowski told a press conference today that the officer drew his weapon after a protester took his baton and hit him on the head with it, but that claim appears to be contradicted by a video recording of the incident.

In the video, posted on the Chronicle‘s website, the officer lunges into a crowd which is surging toward him. With his baton held in both hands in front of him, he tussles briefly with one protester. For most of the scuffle, which lasts for less than five seconds, the baton is visible in his possession. As he breaks away from the protester he is clutching the baton in his left hand, and he only

NYC Public School Parents: Bloomberg Aides Critical of Poor Process - NY Times

Bloomberg Aides Critical of Poor Process - NY Times

The Times continues its exhaustive coverage of what they've called the "spectacle" of Cathie Black's candidacy for the chancellor's position. Thursday's story includes reports of dissatisfaction from within the administration itself:

Even within the Bloomberg administration, some aides are continuing to express dismay over a highly secretive search and hurried vetting process that was conducted without advice from top aides to the mayor, many of whom met Ms. Black for the first time minutes before she was introduced as the next chancellor.
A former top aide to Mr. Bloomberg said the mayor’s decision to circumvent his own advisers on such a major decision left some of them

Local News | Seattle School Board postpones decision on pulling 'Brave New World' | Seattle Times Newspaper

Seattle School Board postpones decision on pulling 'Brave New World'

A Native American mother of a Seattle Public Schools student appealed to the Seattle School Board Wednesday to remove the novel "Brave New World" from the district's list of approved books for language arts classes.

By Sean Collins Walsh

Seattle Times staff reporter

"We are assembled here today to take a stand against institutional racism," Sarah Sense-Wilson told board members at a special session before their regular meeting Wednesday evening.

Sense-Wilson, whose daughter read the 1932 classic in class at Nathan Hale High School last year, took issue with Aldous Huxley's numerous uses of the word "savage" and negative depictions of Native Americans.

The board ran out of time Wednesday and will schedule another session to deliberate and vote on the issue.

Kathleen Vasquez, who chaired a school-district committee that selected the 75 books on the approved list, told board members that racially charged language in "Brave New World" is satirical. She conceded that

Mayor’s Application for Waiver Calls Chancellor Choice ‘a Visionary’ - NYTimes.com

Mayor Seeks Waiver for Cathleen Black as Chancellor - NYTimes.com

Mayor’s Application for Waiver Calls Chancellor Choice ‘a Visionary’

By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ

Published: November 17, 2010

REPRINTS

By Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s account, there is little Cathleen P. Black has not done.

Chancellor Choice Begins Calling Skeptics (November 18, 2010)

She helped build the first skyscraper after Sept. 11. She established an internship program to bring more minorities into journalism. And she consistently made the list of the most powerful women in business.

In a six-page letter to state education officials on Wednesday, Mr. Bloomberg seemed intent on leaving no accomplishment unmentioned, even citing an award she received for volunteer work after Hurricane Katrina to help offset her lack of experience in education.

Under state law, the chancellor must hold a professional certificate in educational leadership and have at least three years of experience in schools. But the state allows waivers for “exceptionally qualified persons.”

In his letter, Mr. Bloomberg contended that Ms. Black met that threshold because her experience as a top executive at Hearst Magazines had taught her the skills of managing large and unwieldy organizations.

Eight years ago, in a similar letter written on behalf of the current schools chancellor, Joel I. Klein, Mr. Bloomberg praised

Mass. Latino political group selects new leader - Boston.com

Mass. Latino political group selects new leader

November 17, 2010

Text size – +

BOSTON—A former Bronx school teacher was tapped as the new leader of a political group that has trained a number of Latino candidates to run for office in Massachusetts, the group's board of directors announced Wednesday .

Alejandra St. Guillen was selected from a number of candidates as the new executive director of Oiste? and replaces long-time executive director and founder Giovanna Negretti, who stepped down in September.

The Mission Hill-born activist and former public school teacher takes over Oiste?, which means "have you heard?", as the 10-year-old group readies to train a number of more minority candidates seeking office across the state.

St. Guillen served as the group's program manager since 2008 and was an aide to former state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson. She taught sixth graders at a Bronx

Our Education System is Racist and You Are Complicit « Outside the Cave

Our Education System is Racist and You Are Complicit

by Stephen Lazar

If you are reading this, chances are you are complicit in the racist education system that exists in our country.

White people, do I have your attention now?

Now let’s define our terms. I use “racist” here to reference institutional racism, that is, any system where, REGARDLESS OF INTENT, there is a significant difference in outcomes between different racial groups. We white people don’t like to think of racism this way. As Peggy Mcintosh wrote, we whites are taught to only believe racism is the act of mean individuals. People who know better realize that racism is the true invisible hand of our society.

White people, dozens of you loved to comment in affirmation of my post disparaging Education Nation; not one of you chimed in on my post talking about the racism of tracking in the suburbs. Are we scared of something?

Here are the indisputable facts: 26% more white boys are proficient in reading than black boys in fourth grade; 32% more white boys are proficient in math in eighth. Black boys do worse than whites independent of class

Local News | Seattle School Board considers request to pull 'Brave New World' from curriculum | Seattle Times Newspaper

Seattle School Board considers request to pull 'Brave New World' from curriculum

A request by a Seattle parent to have the 1931 novel "Brave New World" removed from Seattle Public Schools' literature curricula will be considered — and possibly decided — Wednesday evening at a Seattle School Board meeting.

By Sean Collins Walsh

Seattle Times staff reporter

A request by a Seattle parent to have the 1931 novel "Brave New World" removed from Seattle Public Schools' literature curricula will be considered — and possibly decided — at a Seattle School Board meeting Wednesday evening.

Parent Sarah Sense-Wilson has persuaded Nathan Hale High School administrators to drop the distopian Aldous Huxley novel from its Language Arts class, which her daughter took last year. But she has not been as successful in her attempts to have the book removed from literature curricula districtwide.

Having been denied by Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson, Sense-Wilson will make her case this

Still Here, Still Alive, and Still Writing — The Jose Vilson

Still Here, Still Alive, and Still Writing

by Jose

Rodolfo Walsh

I‘ve had Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine on my bookshelf since Rachel Maddow recommended it about a year ago, but at the pace I read (and buy) books, I don’t get to many of them unless a divine spirit intervenes. Something did, and I pushed it up to the top of my list, fortunately. I haven’t finished it, but what an appropriate book for these times of deceit and corporatism (I know, I repeated myself).

I’m usually not a fan of taking entire chunks of books and giving them out to the public without prior consent (-wink wink-), but this whole excerpt inspired me so much, I’ve decided to share it with the rest of you. Please go

In SF Unified, 'Empire with a Moat' Protected Alleged Scheme - The Bay Citizen

In SF Unified, 'Empire with a Moat' Protected Alleged Scheme

Trish Bascom, a former San Francisco Unified School District associate superintendent, created a largely autonomous “empire” that enabled her to remain undetected for years as she allegedly funneled district money to herself and her colleagues, according to district officials and others familiar with the scheme. The Bay Citizen reported last week that Bascom, who headed the Student Support Services Department, is one of five SFUSD administrators under investigation by the San Francisco District Attorney’s office for allegedly directing district money from community organizations into their personal bank accounts. One of those organizations was Bay Area Community Resources, a non-profit organization that provides services to the district. Executive Director Martin Weinstein said

U.S. education chief: DPS 'arguably the worst' | freep.com | Detroit Free Press

U.S. education chief: DPS 'arguably the worst'

BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan dealt the Detroit Public Schools another verbal blow, calling the district “arguably the worst urban school district in the country now.”

Duncan made the remarks in response to a DPS-related question during a discussion today at the American Enterprise Institute Forum in Washington, D.C. The discussion was about the challenges associated with improving cost-effectiveness in K-12 education.

When asked his opinion of a DPS proposal to use federal Title I dollars for early childhood education diagnostics, Duncan said he wanted more of those funds spent on early childhood education and added that DPS is a district “where the education provided to those children has been devastatingly bad for far too long.”

Duncan did, however, say that he is a “fan” of DPS Emergency Financial Manager Robert

State Waiver Requested for Cathie Black, Mayor Bloomberg's Pick for Schools Chancellor - WSJ.com

Waiver Requested for Mayor's Schools Pick

By BARBARA MARTINEZ

Rob Bennett for The Wall Street Journal

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, right, has asked the state education commissioner for a waiver in order to appoint Cathie Black, center, as the next New York City schools chancellor.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg formally asked the state education commissioner for a waiver to appoint Cathie Black as the next schools chancellor, setting the stage for a high-stakes political nail-biter over the leadership of New York City's 1,600 schools.

David Steiner, the commissioner, now is a prickly position. He has to decide whether to ignore the calls of critics, who say Ms. Black is unqualified because she lacks education experience, or to deny Mr. Bloomberg's request and effectively eviscerate the most

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Wednesday, November 17, 2010