‘Coronavirus Capitalism’ Is Coming for Public Schools
Watch out Seattle
Amid the pandemic, superintendents are gaining the power to sell out public education for private gain.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, public schools in Seattle have closed for the remainder of the school year. But before that decision was made, the local school board gave away one of the public’s most critical needs in a crisis—democratic oversight of the district leader’s contract agreements and other expenditures.
“During moments of cataclysmic change, the previously unthinkable suddenly becomes reality.”
Relinquishing the public’s right to scrutinize how its money is being spent has become common in school districts across the country, as democratically elected officials facing an emergency have loosened, to varying degrees, the reins controlling how school leaders conduct business.
In a time of crisis and chaos, either real or manufactured, some consider it an opportunity to take greater control and change policies in a significant manner. As Naomi Klein said about the coronavirus and its effects on the United States:
“I’ve spent two decades studying the transformations that take place under the cover of disaster. I’ve learned that one thing we can count on is this: During moments of cataclysmic change, the previously unthinkable suddenly becomes reality.”
In Detroit, when Robert Bobb was made an emergency CONTINUE READING: ‘Coronavirus Capitalism’ Is Coming for Public Schools – Seattle Education
