A tale of two cities…
All eyes are on Chicago, and the record school closures taking place in that city. But this is a drama being played out in cities across the country, including my own, as “right-sizing”, the Broad way, takes over. By now, many would have (or should have) heard that in Chicago, the projected savings have disappeared (or didn’t exist in the first place), and in the face of massive protests, the mayor has thrown $55M to a classic “Edifice complex “ (my husband’s term for hubristic public works projects). Public will has been ignored, and the press has been muzzled.Now we come home to Sacramento. Once again, projected savings – questionable; public will – ignored; press inquiries – we’ll get back to you…much later; last, but not least, reality-based decision-making – completely absent. Let me share the sad tale of woe that has befallen my district (and to a greater degree, at least 50 teachers). When schools close or their enrollment declines, teachers lose their position (not their job, but the school they are assigned to). This can happen to teachers that have plenty of seniority, especially in the case of school closures. There were a large number of teachers looking for new positions because of my districts decision to “right-size” (with seven schools that’s over 10% of the elementary schools in the district). The way