Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.:
Fred All Week Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher
Jo Anderson, who prior to the election of President Obama served as Executive Director of the Illinois Education Association, has left his position as Senior Advisor to Education Secretary Arne Duncan. He has returned to the IEA as Co-Executive Director of the IEA’s Consortium for Education Change, an organization that brings boards of education, administrators and IEA members together on various
Mark Stefanik. Uncommon core.
- Mark Stefanik is a frequent contributor to this blog. He is a veteran middle school Language Arts teacher. Rubrics, assessments, and goals. Oh, my. Standards, objectives, and tests. Oh, my. Pensions and data and lies. Oh, my. I have a feeling we’re not in Education anymore. Instead, we’re off to greet the future on the yellow brick road of Alignment. When was the last time an Institute Day did
Jay Rehak. Fixing our fund begins with a guaranteed source of revenue.
— Jay C. Rehak, president, Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund Board of Trustees, English teacher, Whitney M. Young Magnet High School, wrote this to the Chicago Tribune. Illinois Senate President John Cullerton’s “How to save Chicago teachers’ pensions” (Commentary, Feb. 10) noted with alarm the $613 million pension obligation Chicago Public Schools owes to the 63,000 members of the Chicago Teachers’
Keeping Retirement Weird.
What a week! Down to the University of Illinois Chicago to rally with the striking faculty. Up to Evanston for our soup kitchen and half a cola table outside pension thief Robyn Gabel’s district office. Down to Springfield for the Chicago pension rally. All between gym time, uke with the kids, blogging, drawing and closely following the Canadian – U.S. hockey matches. Actually, you can leave ou
Four questions for IEA RA delegate Jerry Mulvihill.
Are you a delegate to the IEA Representative Assembly? Yes. This year and for the past 10 years. You plan to introduce a New Business Item concerning Common Core? Yes. It is my intention to introduce a New Business Item that directs the IEA Leadership to withdraw its support of the Common Core. Have you been impacted as a classroom teacher by CCSS? Yes. Immensely. The biggest impact with regard
Who was State Representative Mitchell voting for and representing when he voted to cut our pensions?
Christian Mitchell is the incumbent House member in the 26th State Representative District. He is being challenged by former Kenwood Oakland Community Organization (KOCO) Executive Director Jay Travis. Recent revelations have uncovered that State Representative Christian Mitchell (26th District) is a high-level employee for an influential lobbying and public affairs firm with strong ties to convic
Who is 26th District Representative Christian Mitchell was working and voting for when he voted to cut pensions?
Christian Mitchell is the incumbent House member in the 26th State Representative District. He is being challenged by former Kenwood Oakland Community Organization (KOCO) Executive Director Jay Travis. Recent revelations have uncovered that State Representative Christian Mitchell (26th District) is a high-level employee for an influential lobbying and public affairs firm with strong ties to convi
YESTERDAY
Life in Rahm’s Chicago. But don’t believe the hype. There is no art.
Rahm is so busted. As part of its arts education plan, for example, the “Arts Abstract 2012-2015” states the first goal of its the CPS District Arts Policy is to “make arts a core subject by dedicating 120 minutes of arts instruction per week for elementary schools.” The plan goes on to set “minimum staffing requirements in the arts at once certified full-time employee per school, or an improved
Running for Retired NEA Representative Assembly delegate ain’t beanbag. And I’ll post this again.
“Politics ain’t beanbag,” Chicago Mayor Harold Washington used to say. And it’s should not be a spectator sport. On the list of political activities being a candidate for NEA RA retired delegate is pretty far down on the list. But, since I am a critic of the current leadership, they don’t make it easy. Unlike local elections, to get elected as a Retired Delegate I have to run state-wide. A lot of
Dennis Van Roekel’s call for Common Core course correction.
The response to NEA President Dennis Van Roekel’s call for a course correction in the implementation of Common Core State Standards has been all over the ideological map. This might be expected when DVR in his statement took a swipe at “the detractors from the left and the right who oppose the standards.” As if those with a vision of what good schools and good teaching should look like are someho
Glen Brown. The Arizona pension ruling and what it means for Illinois.
- Glen Brown is a teacher and expert on public pension law. “The Arizona Supreme Court says the Legislature can’t cut cost-of-living increases promised to state retirees. The ruling released Thursday [February 20] comes in a case brought after the Legislature cut the increases in 2011 for retirees in the state plan for judges and elected officials. A Superior Court judge ruled in favor of reti
FEB 20
Breaking: The AZ Supreme Court rules legislature cannot “diminish or impair” public pensions.
Today the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that the Arizona legislature could not cut constitutionally guaranteed public employee pensions. The Arizona Constitution contains a clause that bars “diminishing or impairing” public retirement benefits. Guess which state has constitutional language almost identical to Arizona. Go ahead. Guess. Read the news article here.
Exclusive guest blogger. Jay Travis on the March 18th primary is a fight for the future of our schools.
- Jhatayn “Jay” Travis. Jay Travis is running against Christian Mitchell in the March 18 Democratic Primary for the Illinois 26th District. She has been endorsed to date by the Chicago Teachers Union, Citizen Action Illinois, AFSCME, Illinois Federation of Teachers, Illinois Education Association, Northside Democracy for America, SEIU Local 73. Jay lives in Kenwood, where she helps take care of
NEA’s Van Roekel isn’t listening to the Common Core critics. But admits a “course correction” is needed.
Talk to teachers as I do every day and they will tell you that Common Core is a disaster. This is true whether you ask a teacher in an urban, suburban or rural district. But the leaders of both the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association have stayed the course in supporting this mess. More or less. Last year they began to admit that the testing component was problem
Ten minute drawing. Glen Brown asked Lisa Madigan a question yesterday.
Glen Brown asked LIsa Madigan a question yesterday.
Shazzam! The Dillard letter shows up at my door.
Two hours after posting about the mysterious Dillard letter resigning from Illinois Chairman of the American Legislative Exchange Council, it arrived from Dillard’s office in my email The letter is a stun nigh rejection of all that ALEC stands for and the anti-union work Dillard has engaged in these past years. Kidding. It just says he didn’t have enough time to do ALEC’s work and run for governor
I just want to read Dillard’s ALEC letter.
Senator Kirk Dillard’s Capitol office yesterday. When the IEA endorsed Senator Kirk Dillard for governor in the Illinois primary I brought up the fact that he was Illinois Chairman of the American Legislative Exchange Council. ALEC is a notorious union busting group of corporate interests and mainly Republican politicians. ALEC literally writes the anti-union, anti-public school, stand-your-gro
FEB 19
Jay Travis on the bus to Springfield for teacher pensions.
Walking into the Capitol building for the rally against Chicago public employee pension cuts I ran into Jay Travis, candidate for the 26th district State Representative seat in Springfield. A pension stalwart, Jay said she rode the bus with CTU members. Her opponent voted for Senate Bill 1. Any other questions. Here is her statement about todays pension lobby effort and rally in the rotunda of th
Photo essay. Chicago in the house. Springfield today.
“They closed my school. They want me to teach science without a science room. Now they want to take my pension.”
Bruce Rauner: “I talk to Arne all the time.”
The Republican debate last night wasn’t all talk about Dan Rutherford’s crotch grabbing. In fact, nobody mentioned it. I would have mentioned it if I had been in the debate. But maybe that’s why I’m not a Republican. If somebody I know goes around grabbing guys’ crotches, I will mention it. There was a guy I knew in high school who did that. His gym locker was right next to mine and the guy had r
John Dillon. It’s a tough time to be in a public union in Illinois.
- John Dillon blogs at Pension Vocabulary. It’s a tough time to be in a public union in Illinois these daysThe primaries are coming up quickly, and we are sidelined…without anyone in the race. Without anyone to advocate for the working class, or the middle class. It wasn’t always this way. Public unions in Illinois were able to influence and affect political outcomes. Legislators wanted to rep
FEB 18
Soup kitchen and half a cola draws attention to pension theft.
I’m just back from the Evanston district office of State Representative Robyn Gabel. Gabel is one of the Democratic politicians in our state that votes consistently, even enthusiastically some say, for pension theft. Teachers, both active members of IEA and retired members of the Skokie Organization of Retired Educators, a north suburban chapter of IEA Retired, held a mock soup kitchen and served
The CTU is not looking kindly on a 4th year extension of the contract.
Catalyst is reporting that the Chicago Teachers Union is not looking kindly on a 4th year extension to the current contract. CTU VP Jesse Sharkey: “If both sides wanted to do an extra year, we could. If both sides wanted to do an extra four years, we could,” Sharkey said. “But there’s a name for that, and it’s called bargaining a new contract. I think it’s extremely unlikely that our members are g
University of Illinois at Chicago faculty on strike. Photos from today’s picket line.
“ “Wait. Don’t show me smiling. I’m mad!”
Kirk Dillard and ALEC. Stand Your Ground wasn’t about education?
ALEC’s Stand Your Ground bill and Trayvon Martin. I totally understand why many of my teacher colleagues are so terrified by Bruce Rauner that they will hold their nose and pull a Republican ballot and vote for someone like Kirk Dillard. I won’t. But I understand why many will. It won’t be enough to elect Dillard. Rauner will be running against Quinn in November. But that’s a discussion for ano
FEB 17
Todd Mertz. IEA endorses Dillard for Governor. A desperate move.
- Todd Mertz is a teacher, union and political activist. Friends and Colleagues Illinois teachers and administrators have taken too many blows in the last couple of years. We can’t afford another. The passage of SB7 in April of 2011 was a blow to Illinois teachers’ job security, attacking both tenure and seniority. It also diminished collective bargaining rights. It also tied teacher evaluations
Tom Tully. “I for one am 100% behind the Dillard endorsement.”
Teacher and NEA Director Tom Tully. - Tom Tully is a teacher and member of the Board of Directors of the National Education Association. He notes that he is speaking for himself and not for the IEA or NEA. After some discussion with Tom about the Dillard endorsement, I offered him the opportunity to be a guest blogger and promised I would post it without comment. The following is my personal o
Dillard resigned from ALEC in October. Did he tell ALEC?
I received word today that the IEA has a letter from Republican State Senator Kirk Dillard saying he resigned from ALEC in October. That’s October 2013. Just four months ago. Does ALEC know? He’s still on the ALEC website as Illinois Chairman. But it’s tough keeping those websites current. Do a Google search for any public announcement that he resigned and you come up bupkis. I asked IEA Director
From the CTU: The Great Pension Caper.
From the Chicago Teachers Union: CHICAGO – The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) today released a report examining the true impact of pension cuts on the public sector workers living in our city’s neighborhoods. Three of the top four employers in Chicago are the City itself, the Chicago Public Schools and Cook County. These three entities employ over 90,000 people, all of whom depend on public pension
Some IEA – Rauner history. A history of being pragmatic.
. The Illinois Education Association and the Illinois Retired Teachers Association have a long and rocky history together. But since I have become active in both, I have argued for reconciliation and common efforts where our interests converge. And respect for each other where there are differences. I am kicking myself this morning. Be careful what you ask for. The IRTA will be joining the IEA in
Retired Teachers Association pours more of our money down the black hole of the Kirk Dillard campaign.
There is no question that Bruce Rauner would make a terrible governor. The sad truth of the matter is that we will not elect a good governor in November. None is running. We will elect a very bad one because very bad candidates are running. Our chance to elect a good governor passed when the state’s labor leaders sat on their hands this past couple of years. They could have been organizing a pro-
FEB 16
A teacher’s common core. “In my classroom, I teach compassion, sharing, and cooperation,” she wrote.
My friend and devoted reader Bill Ayers send this along: Much of the work that teachers do is difficult to measure, and it would be a grave mistake to seek to quantify every aspect of teaching performance with dubious “value-added” digital reporting-driven metrics. A kindergarten teacher in South Hadley, Massachusetts conveyed this to fellow teachers and administrators through her social media p
Sunday reads.
Lyndon Johnson was a casualty of Vietnam? Talk about your revisionist history. You won’t find his name on that black wall in DC. Those men and women were the casualties. And thousands more Vietnamese. In prison for the crime of being poor. We are CoMo sexuals. ALEC’s stand-your-ground law. Another racial murderer beats the rap. More of Toni Berrios’ photo shopped campaign dirty tricks. The shi
What will the people think of us if we tell them lies?
In a post on the IEA’s Kirk Dillard endorsement, Glen Brown comments and quotes from something I wrote: “It’s a plan that will fail. In the 2010 Republican Primary there were about 750,000 voters in Illinois. We can expect roughly the same in March. Rauner is polling at 40% – 20 points more than Bill Brady who is in second place. Dillard is last, polling at 11% or somewhere between 70 and 90 thous
FEB 15
Keeping retirement weird. Heading for Springfield on Wednesday.
I’m still shaking my head over the IEA endorsement of Kirk Dillard for governor. Dillard is the Illinois Chairman of the American Legislative Exchange Council, the leading anti-union organization in the state. He’s Bruce Rauner without the cash. Or the multiple home addresses. And the IEA’s quarter million dollars of member PAC contributions may seem a lot to you, but it won’t mean a drop in th
FEB 14
Glen Brown. Choosing Dillard is a sad state of affairs
- Glen Brown “…According to [IEA President Cinda] Klickna, who spent more than 30 years as a high school English teacher, ‘Senator Dillard has consistently shown that he values the expertise and opinions of Illinois’ public education employees. Senator Dillard supports our fight for adequate funding for public education, and he stood up to tremendous pressure and voted against the unfair and unco
Even for Chicago politics, Toni Berrios hits a new low. The Regular Democrats have crossed the line.
I got this postcard in the mail yesterday. Toni Berrios, daughter of Chicago Democratic Party Chairman, is sending us postcards claiming our candidate, Will Guzzardi is a pervert, child predator or protector of both. She is backed by the money and precinct workers of State Party Chairman Michael Madigan. This election isn’t about pensions, schools or tax policy. The Regular Democrats have turne
I’ll be back at my alma mater next Tuesday. This time I’ll join faculty on the picket line.
. It has been a few years since I have been at UIC. Back in the day I would was driving a taxi to pay the bills. Plus I could park it for a class and then get over to Humboldt Park to pick up the kid from the baby sitter. The thing is, I wasn’t the only one. UIC is an urban school. Few students live on campus. There was always talk about it having an “urban mission.” But if there was an urban mis
The ALEC letter and Kirk Dillard.
Sen. Kirk Dillard speaks at the “Defend Marriage Lobby Day” held in the rotunda of the state Capitol in Springfield, Ill., Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2013. Earlier today I posted about the IEA endorsement of State Senator Kirk Dillard in the Republican primary election for Illinois Governor. In that post I pointed out that Dillard is State Chairman of ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council.
IEA endorses Illinois state chairman of ALEC for governor.
Today the Illinois Education Association will announce its endorsement of Kirk Dillard in the Republican primary for governor of Illinois. Kirk Dillard is a current Republican Illinois State Senator who voted no on Senate Bill 1 – pension theft. But aside from that, Dillard is a right-wing Republican, who has opportunistically shifted further and further right since the IEA endorsed him along w