Quick Reads | The G Bitch Spot

Quick Reads | The G Bitch Spot:

Quick Reads

by G Bitch

Ones that make salient points that may be ignored, or never seen, by most, especially in our top-down state education system with the absolute complicity of mainstream local press in that so-called system.

First, though I read it second, and is only a few days old, comes John White Appointed Chief of Louisiana Schools, Sean Cavanagh, January 11, 2012 at Education Week’s State EdWatch blog:

“Improving our educational system will require bold leadership and innovative ideas,” [LA governor Bobby] Jindal said in a statement, “such as empowering parents with more choices, rewarding highly effective teachers, and giving our schools the flexibility to pursue the most effective reforms for students in their communities. John is just the type of passionate, competent, and

Would You Keep Going to Work if You Stopped Getting Paid? | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights

Would You Keep Going to Work if You Stopped Getting Paid? | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights:

Would You Keep Going to Work if You Stopped Getting Paid?

by obriena

Educators in Pennsylvania’s Chester Upland School District were forced to make that very difficult decision recently, when the district announced that without an infusion of new cash from the state, it would not be able to make payroll starting January 18.

But members of the Chester Upland Education Association and the Chester Upland Education Support Personnel Association have vowed to keep schools running as long as they can. These educators and education support personnel have passed a resolution vowing to stay on the job for as long as they are individually able, even if the district fails to pay them in the near future.

Why? Commitment to students. As elementary school teacher Sara Feguson said in The Philadelphia Inquirer,

"It's alarming. It's disturbing. But we are adults; we will make a way. The students don't have any contingency plan. They need to be educated, so we intend to be on the job."

read more

GOP House Leader Tom Cross: Give tax money to Sears and CME. Freeze employee wages. « Fred Klonsky

GOP House Leader Tom Cross: Give tax money to Sears and CME. Freeze employee wages. « Fred Klonsky:

GOP House Leader Tom Cross: Give tax money to Sears and CME. Freeze employee wages.

by Fred Klonsky

GOP House Leader Tom Cross, who along with Mike Madigan, Governor Quinn and Rahm Emanuel got the massive tax breaks for Sears and the CME, demanded wage freezes for state employees.

The State Journal Register:

Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration should push for a wage freeze in upcoming

RheeFirst! » The art of talking simplistically: Rhee talks ed reform and poverty

RheeFirst! » The art of talking simplistically: Rhee talks ed reform and poverty:

The art of talking simplistically: Rhee talks ed reform and poverty

by admin

Note: Rhee has perfected the art of simplistic thinking, shorn of nuances and packaged in bumper sticker prose. See below, for example.

And watch this video by D.C. parents and teachers that contradict her simplisms.

From this interview by Ida Lieszkovszky for State Impact Ohio.
“Q: One of our listeners wants to know what impact on a student’s success or failure in school does their home environment and socio-economic status have? Or do you think that a student’s success or failure in school is entirely the teacher’s responsibility?

A: A kid’s success in school is not entirely contingent upon any one factor; it’s actually both. When you have

Rhee spin on defeat of her Ohio anti-collective bargaining bill– the people contradicted themselves

by admin

From this interview by Ida Lieszkovszky for State Impact Ohio.
“Do you think your reform efforts will be successful here in Ohio, where in November we saw a pretty resounding defeat of Issue 2 by voters?

Rhee: Unfortunately, what happened with the collective bargaining piece is that a lot of different things got mixed in together and I don’t think the defeat of SB 5 at all represents people’s desire to maintain the status quo in

DIVERSE Education Headlines

Higher Education Headlines:

Policy Study Touts the Expertise, Experience of Minority-Serving Schools

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

A new policy brief issued this week by the Institute for Higher Education Policy says Minority Serving Institutions should be seen as “experts in the education of low-income, first generation and under-represented students.” in News

Commentary: CollegeFish.org Helps Net Students for Senior College

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society has for the past three years spent over $2 million to design an interactive web-based platform called CollegeFish.org to help community college students. in News

Michigan Democrats Developing College Grant Plan

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Democrats in the Michigan Senate said Wednesday they’re developing a proposal that would allow Michigan high school graduates to get grants of up to roughly $9,500 a year for attending college. in News

Seattle University’s Korematsu Center Seeks Social Justice

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

As a director of the Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality, Lorraine Bannai, along with other scholar-activists, help faculty and researchers empower socially disadvantaged populations. in News

Educator Takes On Teachers Unions

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Addressing parents directly from the vantage point of an insider, Dr. Steve Perry details an insightful and frightening view of the state of the American public school system in new book. in News

California Community College Leaders Call for Overhaul

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

California community college leaders have signed off on major policy changes aimed at boosting graduation and transfer rates in the 112-campus system, despite concerns the measures could hurt disadvantaged students. in News

Strength in Adversity

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Seton Hall President A. Gabriel Esteban works to build communities on and off campus. in News

Commentary: Sweep Around Your Own Front Door

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

HBCUs have designed compelling complete college initiatives, which are comprehensive, social, culturally based, experiential and personal for addressing the needs of their students, writes the president of Tennessee State University. in News

More Financial Aid for College Athletes Sought

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

An advocacy group is pushing a “bill of rights” for student-athletes aimed at increasing financial assistance to college players. in News

Ga. Regents Approve College Merger of Eight Public Colleges

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

The mergers will reduce administrative costs at the institutions and help the university system absorb some of the $1 billion in state funding cuts that have been made in the last four years, officials said. in News

Study: Two-thirds of College Students Surveyed Say They Lack Civic Engagement Skills and Awareness

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Higher education leaders are expected to join the Obama administration to issue a “call to action” for civic learning and democratic engagement to be a more prominent part of the college experience. in News

Commentary: Online Courses Can Be Used to Boost Minority Numbers in STEM fields

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Widespread web-based delivery of STEM content and instruction may help to connect traditional and nontraditional minority college students and K-12 students from urban, rural, or suburban communities. in News

More Minnesota High Schoolers Try for College Credit

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Study author Joe Nathan of the Center for School Change at Macalester College said college admissions officers look for students who have taken those difficult classes. in News

Bridging the Gap

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Minnesota Higher Education Institutions Strive To Embrace, Understand Somali Students. in News

Consumer Appointment May Help Students, Advocates Say

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

Higher education groups back President Obama’s selection of Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which may help limit unscrupulous student loan practices. in News

La. Gov. Bobby Jindal Opposes Proposal To Cap TOPS Grants

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

The Governance Commission suggested a restructuring of TOPS, to give all students a flat grant amount, capped at the same level for everyone, rather than tied to the cost of tuition at an individual school. in News

Forgotten Chapters of Civil Rights

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

As we prepare to celebrate on Jan. 16 the first Martin Luther King Jr. Day since the opening of the national memorial in his honor, our thoughts turn to civil rights and the great strides toward progress that his work made possible. in News

St. Cloud State Seeks to Overcome Legacy of Intolerance

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

St. Cloud State University has struggled for years to overcome entrenched racism on campus and in the surrounding community. in News

Court Rules Berkeley Not Obligated To Reinstate Fired Professor

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

The University of California, Berkeley, doesn’t have to reinstate a former untenured Native American faculty member although a jury awarded her retaliation damages, a California Court of Appeal has ruled. in News

Lawmaker: Eight Georgia Campuses Could Merge Into Four

Latest articles - 3 minutes ago

A University System of Georgia proposal would merge eight college campuses across the state into four to save money, a state lawmaker said Wednesday. in News

Jersey Jazzman: "Pay Teachers More, But Until We Do..."

Jersey Jazzman: "Pay Teachers More, But Until We Do...":

"Pay Teachers More, But Until We Do..."

by Duke

We need a name for a certain species of education "reformer." The characteristics of this particular animal are:

• He believes we really need to pay teachers more.
• He has no plan for how to raise the revenues to pay teachers more.
• Until he figures out how to pay teachers more, he thinks we need to fire bad teachers immediately. And replace them with good teachers, who will be paid with...
• Uh...

For an excellent example of this reformy creature's thinking, let's check in with education tourist Nick Kristof:

This latest study should elevate the issue on the national agenda, because it not only

Money From Donors, iPads for Free: How Is it That Teach For America's Struggling Corps Are Broke? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher

Money From Donors, iPads for Free: How Is it That Teach For America's Struggling Corps Are Broke? - Living in Dialogue - Education Week Teacher:

Money From Donors, iPads for Free: How Is it That Teach For America's Struggling Corps Are Broke?

By Anthony Cody on January 13, 2012 11:18 AM

Guest post by Barbara Torre Veltri, Ed. D.

The season of giving might be behind us, but non-profits continue to target donors. Teach For America, Inc., attracts major contributions, but TFA teachers (often referred to as corp members) are raising questions about where the money is being spent. Many TFA teachers take out hefty loans to cover their living expenses as they get trained and begin their placements. These loans must be repaid within thirty days if the teachers leave the program for any reason.

Philanthropists, corporate donors and foundations view Teach For America's as worthy of significant financial support (Ravitch, 2010). The non-profit register, Guide Star, lists TFA as a "public charity."

The Heckscher Foundation for Children notes on it's web site, "We continue to support Teach for America (TFA), whose mission is to eliminate educational inequity by harnessing the talents of our nation's most promising future leaders." Teach For America's Board Members include

Schools As Collateral Damage: The Price We Pay For A Decade Of Tweed’s Failed Policies | Edwize

Schools As Collateral Damage: The Price We Pay For A Decade Of Tweed’s Failed Policies | Edwize:

Schools As Collateral Damage: The Price We Pay For A Decade Of Tweed’s Failed Policies

by Leo Casey

Much like the brief torrential rain which drenched New Yorkers on Thursday morning, Mayor Bloomberg’s Thursday afternoon State of the City Address received a deluge of media attention. Today, the print and electronic media feature talk of his jeremiad against the UFT, of his attempted resurrection of ‘market reforms’ such as merit pay which have been discredited even in ‘reform’ circles, as study after study has shown them ineffective, and of his claims that he will introduce a new evaluation system by fiat. Tellingly, nowhere will you read an account of what the Mayor’s proposed imposition of closure under the Turn-Around model would mean for the PLA schools, were he to be successful in implementing it.

Consider what is happening to just a few of the PLA schools. Note that we use here the performance data that,

Seeking the Essence of Unitarian-Universalism | Lefty Parent

Seeking the Essence of Unitarian-Universalism | Lefty Parent:

Seeking the Essence of Unitarian-Universalism

by Cooper Zale

In her blog piece “Love is More Important than Freedom”, Unitarian-Universalist minister Victoria Weinstein writes…

It has come time for Unitarian Universalists to admit that we have honored free thought over love as an institutional commitment, and to consider the possibility that our obsession with personal freedom of belief has caused our organizations spiritual harm. We have developed a congregational culture that honors intellectual dominance over love and tenderness. We are brilliantly conversant when voicing opinion, but do not know how to engage each other as vulnerable persons in need of hope, grace and healing, leaving it to the self-identified victims in our congregations to motivate and