Parent Revolution’ pushes bad charter school rhetoric
Even among Oklahoma City residents, not that many outsiders venture into the neighborhood around F.D. Moon Elementary School. My three incredibly satisfying decades of educational and mentoring relationships with poor children of color began with students at the old Moon Middle School and the basketball courts at the Foster Center.
But, two years ago, I was stunned to find a local church sanctuary full of corporate school reformers from Adelanto, Calif., who were pushing market-driven plans for taking over Moon and other Oklahoma City schools. They were from the “Parent Revolution,” using a “parent trigger” to close traditional public schools and replace them with charters.
These Californians seemed sincere about wanting to help some children. I don’t know what to say about the “Billionaire Boys Club,” which funds them and the mass takeovers of neighborhood schools across the nation. Financed by the Gates, Walton and Broad foundations, these competition-driven “reformers” are well-armed with the best scorched-earth political spin that the elites can buy. Their videos promised “transformational” change, rescuing students from the OKCPS and the teachers’ unions.
Parent Revolution harms communities
The Parent Revolution’s public relations soundbites were demonstrably false. They had taken over a traditional public school, turning it into a charter school, and, in doing so, they ripped its community apart.
For years across the country, parents fought parents. According to the investigative reporter Yasha Levine who covered the Adelanto charter school fight, “At times, locals say, the ‘Parent Revolution’ volunteers’ tactics were so heavy-handed in gathering signatures that they crossed the line into harassment and intimidation.”
Now, the Adelanto-based Desert Trails Preparatory Academy’s charter has been non-renewed. The San Bernardino Sun reports, “The district had offered instead to work collaboratively with Desert Trails … but Desert Trails repeatedly declined those offers.”
Parent Revolution comes to OKC
As is true across the nation, “venture philanthropists” quietly descended on Oklahoma City, peddling their theories. They seek to “blow up” local school boards, unions, education schools and other institutions that they condemn for only producing incremental gains in student performance. They want to kick down the old education barn in the faith that “disruptive innovation” will replace it with a new type of school — to be identified later.
Meanwhile, some would impose a behaviorist “No Excuses” pedagogy, while others would make big bucks from the often-criticized but highly profitable online learning industry. If these outsiders had their way, some Oklahoma City students would find themselves in 'Parent Revolution' pushes bad charter school rhetoric - NonDoc:
Beware of AstroTurf Ed Reformers
Astroturf lobbying refers to political organizations or campaigns that appear to be made up of grassroots activists but are actually organized and run by corporate interests seeking to further their own agendas. Such groups are often typified by innocent-sounding names that have been chosen specifically to disguise the group's true backers
