Turkish Delight?
Two Massachusetts charter schools import virtually all of their their teachers from Turkey using H1-B visas. Should this matter?
Did you know that the Turkish language has no word for “tenure”? Actually I have absolutely no idea whether that’s the case, but what is true is that so called “Turkish” schools, math and science charters dedicated to the pursuit of excellence and innovation, are sprouting faster than cells in a petri dish. Massachusetts is already home to two such charters: the Hampden Charter School of Science in Chicopee and the Pioneer Charter School of Science in Everett. Now the Massachusetts Board of Education is poised to give the thumbs up to two more Pioneer schools.The Massachusetts schools are part of a vast national network of Turkish-run charters inspired by powerful Turkish Imam and US resident Fethullah Gülen. The Gülen charters were the subject of an extensive 60 Minutes investigation last summer; the FBI and the Departments of Labor and Education are also investigating whether teachers brought over from Turkey to work at the charter schools are forced to kick back part of their salary to aid Gülen and his movement.
Which brings us back to Massachusetts. The principal of the Pioneer Charter School of Science, Barish Icin,
