Laura Chapman: Aaron Churchill, Minister of Misinformation for Privatization in Ohio
The munificently-funded Thomas B. Fordham Institute, based in D.C., controls Educatuon Policy, graduation requirements, curriculum, and testing in Ohio. Mr. Fordham, for whom the institute is named, had no known interest in education, but his namesake is part of the rightwing ALEC nexus, where contempt for public schools, hatred for unions, contempt for gun control and environmental regulation are reflexive.
Laura Chapman, who lives in Ohio, writes:
This numbers game is routinely pushed by the Ohio arm of Thomas B. Fordham Institute/Foundation. Oped’s written by employees at criticize the Fordham routinely criticize teacher unions for pointing out the debilitating affects of poverty on students. In a typical rhetorical move, the Fordham “expert” will find one exceptional school with an “A” rating of the state report card rigged to ensure few schools are rated A. Then when you read in detail, you will see that the most exceptional thing about this school is really rare. The same principal has been there for 18 years, lives in the community, and has an uncommon level of trust from her community, the teachers, and students. Test scores were a byproduct of that not the aim of her work as an educator.
In Ohio, the writer most responsible for this misleading journalism and “research” is Aaron Churchill, the CONTINUE READING: Laura Chapman: Aaron Churchill, Minister of Misinformation for Privatization in Ohio | Diane Ravitch's blog
The Trump/DeVos budget proposal for fiscal year 2021, released Feb. 10, would slash education funding by $6.1 billion—8.4 percent—compared to the amount Congress provided this year. Other budget lowlights include cutting and replacing key education programs with a block grant, robbing public schools of resources with yet another voucher scheme, and ending public service loan forgiveness. 
If the Trump administration gets its way, NEA state affiliates will soon be subject to 60-year-old regulations that until now have applied only to private sector unions. Alice O’Brien, NEA’s general counsel, explains how a proposed U.S. Department of Labor rule would force state affiliates to focus on complex, burdensome financial reporting requirements instead of fulfilling their core mission: advocating for students and educators. 
The Senate is expected to vote later this month on a House-passed resolution to undo the latest misguided policy of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos: making it more difficult for students defrauded by unscrupulous colleges to cancel their federal student loan debt. Scheduled to take effect July 1, 2020, DeVos’ new “borrower defense rule” would put the burden of proof on students, impose unreasonable time limits, and end automatic loan relief for students whose colleges close before they graduate. Veterans, older students, students of color, students with disabilities, and students who are the first in their families to attend college are among those most likely to be affected. 
