Journey For Justice and Advancement Project File Title VI Complaints Against School Closures | Advancement Project

Journey For Justice and Advancement Project File Title VI Complaints Against School Closures | Advancement Project:

Journey For Justice and Advancement Project 

File Title VI Complaints Against School Closures

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On behalf of Journey for Justice organizations, Advancement Project filed three complaints under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination in use of federal funds, alleging discrimination in Newark, New Jersey; Chicago and New Orleans – each a city deeply impacted by school closures. The complaints, which detail the racially discriminatory impact of school closures and privatization on children of color, were filed with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, as well as with the U.S. Department of Justice.

• Cover Letter to Atty. General Eric Holder and Secretayr of Education Arnie Duncan (PDF)
• Newark, NJ Title VI Complaint (PDF)
• New Orleans, LA Title VI Complaint (PDF)
• Chicago, IL Title VI Complaint (PDF)
• Complaint Attachment: Sustainable School Transformation Proposal (PDF)
• Journey for Justice Alliance Report: Death By A Thousand Cuts: Racism, School Closures, and Public School Sabotage (PDF)

- See more at: http://www.advancementproject.org/pages/journey-for-justice-and-advancement-project-files-title-vi-complaints-again#sthash.3GfPcMUp.dpuf

D.C. officials allege improper diversion of charter funds - The Washington Post

D.C. officials allege improper diversion of charter funds - The Washington Post:

D.C. officials allege improper diversion of charter funds

Kent Amos, founder of one of the oldest and largest D.C. charter school networks, allegedly funneled millions of school dollars to a for-profit management company he owns, according to a complaint filed Monday by D.C. Attorney General Irvin B. Nathan.

Amos founded Community Academy Public Charter School as a nonprofit in 1998. About six years later, Amos founded a for-profit management company that received fees for services that “could have been performed, and in many cases was actually performed, by direct employees of the school,” according to the complaint.

 Amos and Community Academy officials did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment Monday afternoon.

Amos’s company — Community Action Partners and Charter School Management LLC — has received $13 million in school funds since 2004, including $4.4 million in 2011-12 and 2012-13, according to the complaint.

District officials argue that Amos violated nonprofit law, and the city is seeking to impose a constructive trust over all money that was “improperly distributed.” The D.C. officials allege improper diversion of charter funds - The Washington Post:

empathyeducates – New Orleans Nearing a ‘Privatized’ Public School System

empathyeducates – New Orleans Nearing a ‘Privatized’ Public School System:

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New Orleans Nearing a ‘Privatized’ Public School System

Students change classes during the first day of school at Landry-Walker High School on August 12, 2013. (Photo by Kathleen Flynn, Nola.com / The Times-Picayune)
Introductory Reflection by Raynard Sanders, Ed.D., Host of The New Orleans Imperative

In this week’s Louisiana Weekly’s article [see below] Journalist Kari Harden wrote an article about RSD move to a all charter school district.

In the article Kari Harden interviewed Leslie Jacobs and confronted her on the consistently low academic performance of RSD in the article she stated the following:

“Asked about the RSD’s persistently low rankings after close to nine years, Jacobs said that the question about the success of an all charter district doesn’t relate to performance, it instead relates to “system and governance.”

This unbelievable given Leslie Jacob’s annual and daily touting of the “unprecedented academic success” of the reforms post Hurricane Katrina on her web site, numerous interviews to the media and to conferences all over the country for the past 9 years.

The architect of ACT 35 and Mother of the Recovery School District is “finally” admitting to its academic failure!!

IT’S ABOUT TIME!

UNBELIEVABLE!!

New Orleans Nearing a ‘Privatized’ Public School System

By Kari Dequine Harden
 | Originally Published at The Louisiana Weekly. June 2, 2014

As the Recovery School District (RSD) shuts the doors on its remaining handful of traditional public schools, the start of the 2014 school year will usher in the nation’s first completely privatized public school district.

Every school the RSD took over following Hurricane Katrina and the passage of Act 35 — with the stated intent of “turning around,” was either closed or will be turned over—into the hands of private charter operators, creating the first all-charter district in the history of the United States.

For nearly nine years it has been on the backs of New Orleans’ children and communities that the “reformers” have conducted this grand experiment, the majority of whom have come from other parts of the country.

Now, as the “reform” train, (fueled by billionaire philanthropists and Wall Street investors), plows across thempathyeducates – New Orleans Nearing a ‘Privatized’ Public School System:

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 6-2-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit:

Report: Ppic Surveys School Policies On English Learners’ Classification

from California Institute for Federal Policy Research/California Capitol Hill Bulletin Volume 21, Bulletin 15 - http://www.calinst.org/bul2/b2115.shtml May 29, 2014  ::  In a recent report entitled “Pathways to Fluency: Examining the Link Between Language Reclassification Policies and Student Success,” the Public Policy Institute of California published its findings on a survey of school

by smf / 34min 

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 6-1-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: Bullying, Lack Of Counselors Are Barriers To Child Wellnnessby Carrie Marovich :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet http://bit.ly/1kmo5Mv MAY 27, 2014  ::  (Va.) One in five high school students in the U.S. was bullied last year, according to results from a new survey on student health and safety. But

by mike simpson / 21h 

empathyeducates – Florida League of Women Voters Blasts Charter School Movement

empathyeducates – Florida League of Women Voters Blasts Charter School Movement:

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Florida League of Women Voters Blasts Charter School Movement

By Jeffrey S. Solochek | Originally Published at Tampa Bay Times. Thursday, May 29, 2014 9:49am

Following a year of research, the Florida League of Women Voters issued a report this week that’s highly critical of the state’s charter school movement. Education “reform” critics, such as historian Diane Ravitch and AFT president Randi Weingarten, have begun passing around the document, calling it a “bombshell.”

In it, the League observes that Florida charters have a 20 percent closure rate because of financial problems or poor academic performance. Charter proponents have seen this as a good thing, as it weeds out the bad actors, and argue that the same should occur for traditional public schools. The League isn’t convinced.

The report notes that many state officials with power over charter schools also have vested interests in charters, including lawmakers Rep. Erik Fresen and Sen. John Legg. These political leaders have acknowledged their ties, but argued they have no legal conflict of interest.

The League also suggests that some charters run by for-profit management firms screen students and then drop those who are not successful. Leaders of the McKeel charter schools in Lakeland told the Ledger in 2010 that they could dismiss students who did not meet academic requirements.

“Charter schools could fill a niche in Florida’s educational spectrum, but for many, their biggest contribution may be to corporate bottom lines,” League president Deirdre Macnab said in a news release.

The group recommends actions such as limiting charter schools to fill unmet needs in local districts — primarily focusing on low-income families, and creating stronger local oversight of charters.

Rebuttals to the League of Women Voters report have not yet begun. They probably will soon. Read the full report here.

Schooling in the Ownership Society: SEC charges UNO with fraud. $37.5M from charter school 'investors"

Schooling in the Ownership Society: SEC charges UNO with fraud. $37.5M from charter school 'investors":

SEC charges UNO with fraud. $37.5M from charter school 'investors"

Once you get past all the rhetoric about "business models" and charters sharing "innovations" with traditional schools, you're left with this.

Everyone in Chicago knows that UNO is too big to jail. But that didn't stop the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday from filing a complaint against Juan Rangel's UNO cabal, charging the clout-heavy Chicago charter school operator defrauded investors in a $37.5 million bond offering by misleading them about conflicts of interest in giving construction contracts to companies run by relatives of an UNO official.

Only surprise here is that a charter school can even raise $37.5M from "investors." Really?

That's different, I suppose, from the $98M investment in UNO charters made by Schooling in the Ownership Society: SEC charges UNO with fraud. $37.5M from charter school 'investors":

Weekend Quotables

Maya Angelou on Race To The Top James Forman Jr.  Angelou kept coming back after that first fundraiser. For 17 years, even when her health was failing and she needed an oxygen tank nearby, she would get on the bus and log the miles from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to D.C. There were no inaugural throngs at our events. No television cameras, no glamour. Just a few kids whom most of the world had

2 by Mike Klonsky / 6h 

6-2-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District):

After all the noise, turnout for school board race is uncertain

After the sudden death of LA Unified school board member Marguerite LaMotte nearly six months ago, her District 1 constituents have rallied inside and outside district headquarters, demanding representation on the board. Some wanted an immediate appointment to fill her seat. Others called for a special election. The latter group won out and tomorrow, residents from southwest LA will get a chance t

2 by Vanessa Romo / 1h 

Johnson, McKenna in strong last dash for cash in school board race

Alex Johnson maintained his fundraising lead in the LA Unified School board race over front runner George McKenna, in the third and final reporting period before tomorrow’s primary election. Overall, Johnson, 33, an aide to County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, has outraised McKenna, 72, a retired administrator with a national profile, by about $100,000. But in the last 10 days both candidates had

20min 

Commentary: A plea to pass the ‘Student Need Index’

Dear Los Angeles Unified School Board: We are students who live in South Los Angeles and attend South L.A. High Schools. One of us wakes up early every morning to take two buses to attend Hamilton High School in West L.A. so that she can have access to academic opportunities – like extra A.P. courses, and strong college preparation – that aren’t offered at her neighborhood school. For the rest of

3 by Guest Contributor / 37min 

Morning Read: Suspension rates in LAUSD fall, raising questions

L.A. Unified suspension rates fall but some question accuracy In the heart of Watts, where violence in nearby housing projects can spill over onto campuses, two of the city’s toughest middle schools have long dealt with fights, drugs and even weapons. Administrators typically have handled these problems by suspending students. But this year Markham and Gompers middle schools have reported marked r

10min 

5-31-14 This Week in LA - School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District):Follow the money: last filing deadline today for LAUSD electionTonight is the final disclosure deadline for candidates running in the June 3 special election, to fill LA Unified’s District 1 board seat. “There should be updated numbers by midnight from all the candidates,” said a staff member at the City E

by mike simpson / 51min 

Understanding the Common Core: Resources from AR Ally | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity

Understanding the Common Core: Resources from AR Ally | National Opportunity to Learn Campaign | Education Reform for Equity and Opportunity:

Understanding the Common Core: Resources from AR Ally

Posted on: Friday May 23rd, 2014

The Common Core State Standards have been adopted by 44 states and the District of Columbia. To say they're contentious is to put it mildly. For various reasons, a nationwide backlash has taken hold and some states are reconsidering the standards.

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, a member of the Arkansas OTL Campaign, has released a short guide for parents to answer some of the biggest questions about the Common Core and its impact on their children's schools. For example, it explains how the standards were developed, how states plan to evaluate them, and the difference between "standards" and "curriculum."

Perhaps the biggest criticism of Common Core (and one we here at the OTL Campaign share) is that standards are only as good as the resources available to meet them. Higher standards like Common Core can be a good thing, but only when they're matched with the resources students, teachers and schools need to achieve those standards. Given the deep inequities in our nation's public schools, merely raising standards won't fix things. However, if the new standards are implemented with care and evaluated fairly, they could be a chance to identify and address the gaps in access to resources like adequate school funding, pre-k, Advanced Placement classes, highly trained teachers, etc.  

Read AACF's guide here, and view more Common Core resources for parents here.

An Inspiring Year of Student Organizing in Philadelphia

The Philadelphia Student Union, an OTL Campaign ally, has had an eventful school year organizing for educational justice in Philly and nationwide. Check out this recap of their great work this past year! The following post originally appeared on the Philadelphia Student Union (PSU) website and is reposted here with permission. PSU is an OTL Campaign ally. read more

by jocelyn / 2d 

Judith Browne Dianis Talks School Closures on Melissa Harris-Perry Show

Publication Date:  Fri, 2014-05-30 This May marks the 60th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision, but nationwide many students of color are still held back by an inequitable education system. In particularly, they are dispropotionately affected by the mass school closures that are taking place in cities across the country. On a recent episode of the Melissa Har

by jocelyn / 2d 

#EduElection: How Grassroots Voices Shaped NYC's Mayoral Election

A new issue of the The Annenberg's Institute's Voices in Urban Education chronicles how grassroots organizers in New York City championed a new vision for education reform and shaped the mayoral election that put  Bill de Blasio in office. It seems the tide might finally be turning in the fight for public education.  read more

by jocelyn / 2d 

Edcamp at The US DOE | My Island View

Edcamp at The US DOE | My Island View:

Edcamp at The US DOE

June 2, 2014 by Tom Whitby @tomwhitby

About a year ago Adam Bellow and I were discussing the possibility and the benefits of doing an Edcamp at the site of the United States Department of Education. Adam had just met with some members of the Department and I was in touch with many of them from the connected educator month committee on which I was serving. Our thought was to have an Edcamp take place in the Department of Ed and have all of the policy makers attend sessions with real, in-the-classroom educators to see, and feel their concerns as educators in regard to what is important in the classroom. We were thinking in terms of #Edcampwhitehouse.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the Edcamp model of professional development, a brief explanation may be in order. The Edcamp model is a grassroots movement for professional development. Educators assemble at a location with no set agenda for PD sessions. The day starts early with a provided breakfast while everyone collaborates. There is usually a large board with session times and room assignments for each session, but there are no session descriptions. That is what the breakfast collaboration is for. As educators’ discussions emerge and develop there are usually two types of participants, those who know about a subject, and those who want to know about a subject. Either type may put up that subject in a session slot. Both the experts and the novices then will have an opportunity to discuss the topic. Edcamps are more about discussion than presentations. The discussions involve classroom experiences both successful and unsuccessful. Each session provides a safe discussion for educators to explore their understanding of any education topic.

Both Adam and I thought that this is what the policy makers within the Department of Education need to hear. This is a great way to put educators into the national discussion of education, that so many educators feel has been hijacked by business people and politicians. So, with the help of some key Edcamp at The US DOE | My Island View:

6-2-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE:

Invoking “Oliver Rule (Expanded)” for Education Reform Debate

Invoking “Oliver Rule (Expanded)” for Education Reform Debate. via Invoking “Oliver Rule (Expanded)” for Education Reform Debate.

by plthomasedd / 2min hide  //  save

Education’S “Open Door” Policy Opened The Door For Corporate Ed Reformers

EDUCATION’S “OPEN DOOR” POLICY OPENED THE DOOR FOR CORPORATE ED REFORMERS.

2 by David Greene / 49min 

6-1-14 @ The Chalk Face

@ THE CHALK FACE: Maxine Greene, Released to a New LandscapeMaxine Greene, Released to a New Landscape. via Maxine Greene, Released to a New Landscape.Filed under: PAUL THOMAS: Becoming Radical1 by plthomasedd / 2h All Week 5-31-14 @ THE CHALK FACE@ THE CHALK FACE : All Week @ THE CHALK FACE Endgame: Disaster Capitalism, New Orleans, and the Charter ScamEndgame: Disaster Capitalism, New Orleans, a

by mike simpson / 9min 

6-2-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University):

Invoking “Oliver Rule (Expanded)” for Education Reform Debate

While it is becoming increasingly common and frustrating that the most perceptive views of political and public claims and policies come from satirical programs and their figure-heads (as I have noted recently), John Oliver’s skit about the current ways the mainstream media present the climate change debate can serve well how we proceed with the education reform debate. Oliver’s climate change deb

by plthomasedd / 1min 

6-1-14 the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University)

the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): Maxine Greene, Released to a New LandscapeThroughout my life as a student and career as a teacher, I have always been drawn to the philosophical; thus, my scholarly interests have leaned heavily toward educational philosophers such as Paulo Freire and Maxine Greene. In G

by mike simpson / 13min 

Interactive: See the state's best performing public schools - Data Center - The Sacramento Bee

Interactive: See the state's best performing public schools - Data Center - The Sacramento Bee:

Interactive: See the state's best performing public schools

Published: Friday, May. 30, 2014 - 3:39 pm

Last Modified: Monday, Jun. 2, 2014 - 8:23 am

When it comes to stellar performances on public school student tests, the Bay Area dominates.

California public schools take end-of-course tests each year. State officials mash those scores together using a complicated formula to create an API -- Academic Performance Index -- for each school. The maximum API rating is 1,000; the state average is 790.

A little more than 200 schools in the state have API scores of 950 or higher, according to new, weighted state education figures covering the last three years. Half are in the Bay Area. A third are around Los Angeles. Five are in Sacramento. Nearly all are in wealthy neighborhoods.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/05/30/6445416/interactive-see-the-states-best.html#mi_rss=Education#storylink=cpy

Learn About Tableau

Interactive: See the state's best performing public schools - Data Center - The Sacramento Bee http://bit.ly/1n4Fk50