UPDATE: more Connecticut taxpayer money to out-of-state “education reform” consultants + $1 million in public funds for Bridgeport BOE Chair’s family - without a vote - Wait, What?

$1 million in public funds for Bridgeport BOE Chair’s family - without a vote - Wait, What?:

Oh look, there goes more Connecticut taxpayer money to out-of-state “education reform” consultants

by jonpelto

Eighteen months ago, on January 5, 2012, Governor Malloy’s sponsored an Education Reform Workshop at Central Connecticut State University.  During the first breakout session there was a panel discussion focused on the issue of “Low-Performing Schools and Districts.”  The panel was moderated by Justin Cohen, President of the School Turnaround Group at Mass Insight Education company.

A few weeks later, Mass Insight Education’s Justin Cohen returned to Connecticut to submit testimony in support of Governor Malloy’s education reform bill, Senate Bill 24.  Cohen wrote,   “To dramatically and systemically improve our nation’s failing schools, comprehensive state turnaround initiatives, like the Commissioner’s Network included in Senate Bill 24, must be pursued as part of a spectrum of interventions. As the President of the School Turnaround Group at Mass Insight Education, I applaud the Connecticut State Senate for its consideration of Senate Bill 24 and strongly support its passage.”

Cohen added, “Senate Bill 24 creates part of the structure and authority necessary for the 

$1 million in public funds for Bridgeport BOE Chair’s family – without a vote

by jonpelto

The last agenda item at this week’s Bridgeport Board of Education meeting was entitled “School Readiness Grant Program, Priority School Districts, July 2013 – June 2014”.

According to the agenda and board packet, the Board of Education was being asked, as it has for more than a decade, to authorize the City of Bridgeport to submit a grant application for federal and state funds to run the City’s early childhood education and day-care slots.  This time the grant totaled just over $11.4 million for the next two years.

However, what made this year different is that a major controversy surfaced because over $1 million a year of those funds are targeted for daycare facilities owned and operated by the family of the Chairman of the Board of Education, Kenneth Moales.

In what could only be called a bizarre move, when the Board reached the daycare agenda item, rather than confront the conflict of interest that is facing Moales, Chairman Moales and the other 4 members of the Bridgeport Board of Education who are aligned with Mayor Bill Finch simply adjourned the meeting, claiming that they had discovered that no vote