UPDATE: Faculty Association rejects Madigan’s SB1 + Tony at the Red Line Tap. | Fred Klonsky

Tony at the Red Line Tap. | Fred Klonsky:

University of Illinois Campus Faculty Association rejects Madigan’s SB1 and the We Are One/Cullerton SB2404.

by Fred Klonsky

From the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Campus Faculty Association:
The following resolutions were passed by the CFA Executive Committee on May 21, 2013 and posted at our website cfaillinois.org.
1. The Campus Faculty Association opposes the Cullerton and Madigan pension bills (SB2404, SB 1, respectively), and affirms the constitutionally protected right for all Illinois state employees and retirees to receive their full pension benefits. If either bill becomes law, the CFA supports litigation to challenge the constitutionality of the law.
2. The Campus Faculty Association opposes the recent legislation that will charge long-term state retirees for 

Tony at the Red Line Tap.

by Fred Klonsky

“Where you been, Klonsky?” said Marty.
“He fell into the black hole of school reform,” mumbled Tony.
“True that,” I replied. Turning to Marty, I asked, “Can I get a Paulaner Salvator Doppel Bock?”
Marty answered, “Can’t you always?”
“Did you get arrested yesterday?” asked Tony. “Or ticketed?”
“Neither. I was teaching my weekly class of kindergarten and first graders how to play You Are My Sunshine on the uke.”
“I love that song. My mother always sang that to me when I went to bed as a kid.”
I furrowed my brow. “It’s kind of hard for me to picture that.”
“Yes. Well. I need to talk to you about my theory about the mayor.”

Outside after the vote. No comment needed.

by Fred Klonsky

Photo credit: Sarah Jane Rhee/loveandstrugglephotos.com.

Angeles Amongst Us | Lily's Blackboard

Angeles Amongst Us | Lily's Blackboard:

Angeles Amongst Us

May 23rd, 2013 

by Lily.

“Take me instead. They’re just babies.”

That was the prayer of those babies’ teacher, Anna Canaday. When the Oklahoma tornado hit Plaza Towers Elementary School Monday, she and her colleague, Jessica Simonds, tried to get the kindergartners to shelter. There was no time. She shielded her babies with her body, saving them when a black Ford blew into the school hallway and fell on top of her. When rescuers removed the car, they found the two teachers badly hurt. The children were under them had minor scratches.

Anna was not alone in a spontaneous combustion of courage. So many others acted with no thought of their own safety – they only thought of their babies.They calmed frightened children so that they were able to march them into closets and bathrooms and under desks. They hugged them and comforted them. They loved them.

Second-grade teacher, Tammy Glasgow, led her babies into the bathroom. She held on to her babies and kept saying, “I love you. You know I love you.” The babies all kept saying, “I love you, too.” When it was all over, they looked up, and could see sky. The tornado had blown the roof off the bathroom. Tammy 

Our interview with John Merrow @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

@ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER:

“There is a Problem Here” – Journalist John Merrow

by freetoteach

“There is a problem here” (Houston, We have a problem)

John Merrow on what his wife’s response to the what is going on in this test driven, punish the teachers education deform. 

Thank you Shaun and Tim for bringing us some real journalism and journalist John Merrow on Rhee, DC and High Stakes Testing Testinghttp://www.blogtalkradio.com/chalkface/2013/05/23/special-episode-of-at-the-chalk-face-w-john-merrow

The investigation begins 

Our interview with John Merrow: Everything you need to know

by Chalk Face, PhD

Sorry to keep reminding everyone, but this story needs to continue getting coverage. It’s the lynchpin, I believe, to this entire iteration of “education reform” we are experiencing at present. Remember, 7PM EST, right here. Once we’ve heard from Mr. Merrow, we’ll take some calls. Now, here’s a link to a comprehensive PDF of Merrow’s entire […]

Innovator (n.)

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 51 minutes ago

Innovator (n.) – A person with no experience, expertise, education, or training in a field, but an abundance of ideas and an endless compulsion to share those ideas. See also entrepreneur.

I have a question for all of the media concerning #cpsclosings

Chalk Face, PhD at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 1 hour ago

So many questions about yesterday’s stunning example of disaster capitalism in Chicago. Remember when CTU went on strike in September and the media blamed the greedy teachers of harming the children? Yes, much pearl clutching ensued. Where is the media on this one? Who’s the real threat to “the children” in this case? Yeah, that’s what […]

Mayor Rahm Expands Corporate Footprint on Chicago Children and Parents

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 hours ago

Well, it worked like it was supposed to work: the mayor’s appointed stooges on the “Board of Education” voted to close 50 Chicago public schools to make way for corporate charter reform schools. Never mind that communities barely held together will lose their lifelines, never mind that violence is almost guaranteed to increase (as it […]

Nashville KIPP Caught Dumping Problem Students at Test Time

Jim Horn at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 2 hours ago

We have known for a long time that what former students refer to as the Kids in Prison Program (KIPP) has used various machinations to reach those high test scores–from menacing management styles, to constant test prep, longer hours, behavioral sterilization, burning through teachers who leave with mental and physical health problems, to dumping problem […]

Signs of the Coming Revolution in America’s Education System

freetoteach at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 13 hours ago

Alternet publishes “real” education news for those who still remember what a “real” education is. Signs of the Coming Revolution in America’s Education System The recent revolt against standardized tests as well as legislative concern over testing corruption are just some of the of the signs of an approaching education “revolution.” http://www.alternet.org/signs-coming-revolution-americas-education-system

NZ Government to introduce charter hospitals

Activism in paradise - Voices from down under at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 14 hours ago

Reposted from this brilliant NZ satirical website The Civilian. This beautifully captures the ideological nonsense behind charter schools. ————– These minimum wage surgeons may be unsure what to do next, but with enough private funding, the Government is confident they’ll figure it out. The National Government has today announced plans to introduce a number of […]

New Zealand’s national standards in education are not national or standard.

Activism in paradise - Voices from down under at @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER - 14 hours ago

By Allan Alach Reposted from The Daily Blog At the end of this month the New Zealand government will release the national standards data that will a) ‘prove’ that their education policies are ‘raising achievement’ and b) ‘prove’ that there is a wide variation of school effectiveness and that teachers’ performance is therefore deficient. All […]

Schooling in the Ownership Society: Maybe Pritzker left it in her other purse...

Schooling in the Ownership Society: Maybe Pritzker left it in her other purse...:

Maybe Pritzker left it in her other purse...

by Mike Klonsky

Obama's pick for Commerce Secretary and former Rahm-appointed Chicago school board member, Penny Pritzker"inadvertently ommitted" more than $80 million in reported income. Hey, mistakes happen. Been there, done that, says Sen. Jay Rockefeller, who was on the receiving end of a Pritzker "courtesy call" this week and who is almost as rich as Pritzker.

Emily Heil writes in the Washington Post:

That might sound like a lot of money, but it’s all relative. Pritzker, whose family founded the Hyatt hotel chain, is worth about $1.5 billion. So it’s easy to see how a few million — or 80 — could go missing. Maybe she left it in the other purse? 

According to Sun-Times columnist, Lynn Sweet:

Pritzker’s biggest hurdle toward confirmation will be Republicans grilling her on the major stain on her record, the 2001 failure of Superior Bank, a Hinsdale Savings and Loan, and tax avoidance 

JITU WEUSI- EDUCATION WARRIOR/BLACK CULTURAL ADVOCATE JOINS THE ANCESTORS Coalition for Public Education/Coalición por la Educación Pública:

Coalition for Public Education/Coalición por la Educación Pública: JITU WEUSI- EDUCATION WARRIOR/BLACK CULTURAL ADVOCATE JOINS THE ANCESTORS:

JITU WEUSI- EDUCATION WARRIOR/BLACK CULTURAL ADVOCATE JOINS THE ANCESTORS

by Black Educator

 Jitu Weusi

Our greatest THANK YOU to Brother Jitu Weusi is to continue battle on in the Struggle for Democracy and Neighborhood Control for our public schools that he had dedicated more than 50 years of his life to see come to victory.

Brother Jitu, you will be missed on the frontlines. But, your relentless and principled Fighting Spirit is within us who continue to try and uphold your Education Warrior Legacy!

Jitu Weusi-- Presente!

Sam Anderson
 ------------------

A Praise Poem for Brother Jitu From Sister Jaribu Hill

Brother Jitu was our Master Teacher. I am so saddened by his passing, but am comforted by the many lives he touched and the many lessons we all learned from him. As a cultural artist, I recall performing with Ngoma at the African Street Festival and at the East Cultural Center in Brooklyn.

Wow, what a serious solar sun shout heard all around when Big Black crossed over!!! I wrote this for him and to inspire us to walk in his light and make him proud!!!

Big Black! Big Black!!! We miss you already!!!
For Jitu Weusi

by Jaribu Hill

It’s after the end of the world. Don’t you know that yet?*
Over at Claver Place on the East side facing the Sun
We jammed to sounds swelling all up and down the block!

School Building Projects Funded - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education)

School Building Projects Funded - Year 2013 (CA Dept of Education):

State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Funding
for School Construction and Modernization Projects

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced today that the State Allocation Board (SAB) disbursed more than $519 million for 230 school construction and modernization projects across 92 school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools throughout the state.

"Our schools are community centerpieces and play a key role in preparing young people for the future," Torlakson said. "Local districts now have additional resources to bring to bear on constructing and rebuilding schools, which in turn creates jobs and improves our students' chances for success."

Torlakson's Schools of the Future Initiative (PDF) lays out the framework for "21st century learning" through the construction and modernization of school facilities, utilization of new technology, energy efficiency, and facilities for science and career technology education.

The State Superintendent is one of 10 members of the SAB, which meets monthly to allocate state matching funds for the construction of new classrooms, the modernization of existing schools, and other programs to improve learning environments, and adopts policies and regulations regarding SAB programs. The funds allocated by the SAB are from voter-approved general obligation bonds that cannot be used for school operational expenses.

For the complete list of allocations, go to the State Allocation Board's online agenda  (PDF), click on the "Action Items" tab, and see page 11.

# # # #

Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100

Park Ridge “tax watch dogs”? When it comes to administration bonus they go blind. | Fred Klonsky

Park Ridge “tax watch dogs”? When it comes to administration bonus they go blind. | Fred Klonsky:

Park Ridge “tax watch dogs”? When it comes to administration bonus they go blind.

by Fred Klonsky

Wealthy Park Ridge foot doctor Anthony Borrelli ran for the local school board a few years ago as arepresentative of the taxpayers. Dr. Daythan Paterno ran a few months ago and joined Borrelli on the board. Paterno was also supported by local Republican tax watch dogs.
Borrelli is now board president.
Dr. Paterno’s self-described outrageous wing-nut Twitter comments that I posted here a month or so ago have caused some buyers’ remorse among Park Ridge voters.
To Paterno’s credit, his wing-nutty views are said unapologetically.
But the hypocrisy of both Borrelli and Paterno was revealed by their votes at the last Park Ridge District 64

In less time than it takes to boil and egg.

by Fred Klonsky

 

Seattle Schools "Tentative" Calendar Released Seattle Schools Community Forum: Updates

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Updates:

Seattle Schools "Tentative" Calendar Released

by Melissa Westbrook

Not sure if this helps but from SPS:

Seattle Public Schools and the Seattle Education Association have agreed to key dates for next year’s school calendar, including:

• frst day of school: Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2013;
• winter break: two weeks, from Dec. 23, 2013, to Jan. 3, 2014;
• mid-winter break: Feb. 17-21, 2014, including the Presidents Day holiday;
• spring break: April 14-18, 2014; and
• last day of school: yet to be determined (June 18 or 19, 2014).

The calendar also builds in four snow make-up days, including Jan. 31, 2014, May 23, 2014, and the two days 

Seattle School Board Candidate Questions

by Melissa Westbrook

I'm reaching out to all the candidates for School Board and I'm thinking about what to ask.

Naturally, I will be asking most of the same basic questions to all the candidates but then, asking about what they would bring to the table.

What would you most want to ask a candidate?

Updates

by Melissa Westbrook

The district had what is called an "exit conference" yesterday from a regularly scheduled state audit.  Two items of note turned up.

For the FOURTH year, the district claimed more students than they could justify for the federal grant for Native American students.  According to the Times, they received about $6k more than they should.  The district has returned nearly $330k over the last 3 years to the feds.

Not good and really, truly - there is no excuse.  (I'm sure the district had one but I'm glad I was not there to hear it.)  And people wonder why the Native American parents are mistrustful of the district.

And, the district was questioned in the spending of federal grant money for preventing high school students from dropping out to the tune of about $490k.  The district got the grant in 2010 for about $12M over five years and apparently the questioned spending was not part of what was in the district's original application.

From a source at the meeting, I understand that Superintendent Banda said these are not good things but that 

CTA sides with Brown in debate over restructuring school finance SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources

SI&A Cabinet Report – News & Resources:

CTA sides with Brown in debate over restructuring school finance

 By Tom Chorneau

Thursday, May 23, 2013

In what may prove a decisive development in the looming struggle over rival plans for restructuring of school funding, the California Teachers Association moved Wednesday to give its support to Gov. Jerry Brown’s Local Control Funding Formula.

The endorsement came as part of a lobby-day at the Capitol for the 325,000-member teachers’ union – arguably the state’s single most influential voice on education issues.

But both in a morning news conference and in a press release later, CTA President Dean Vogel pointed to the overriding goal of the organization – convincing lawmakers and the Brown administration to restore as much of the $20 billion cut from schools during the recession.

“After years of drastic cuts, it is necessary for the future of our children and the future of California that money owed to students and public education begins to be restored,” emphasized Vogel. “Funding for California schools and colleges has been cut by more than $20 billion over the last four years. It’s time our students had a chance to focus on learning instead of facing threats of larger class sizes, fewer classes to choose from, higher tuition, and fewer 

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team:

Teacher victory in LAUSD board race may not bode well for superintendent

Education Headlines

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Salinas elementary teachers fret leadership void amid chief's sick leave

It has been nearly 18 months since the superintendent of the Salinas City Elementary School District began a battle with cancer, and some employees believe her frequent absences are taking a toll on the district's leadership.

Upland school board reviews suggestions on how district can save $9 million

The Upland Unified School District Board of Trustees on Wednesday were updated on the district's fiscal crisis as well as several ways to save a necessary $9 million in the next fiscal year.

Field upgrades at Temecula schools a priority

Thanks to local voters, the Temecula Valley Unified School District is beginning to pour about $35 million -- the first available chunk of the $165 million Measure Y bond measure approved last November -- into several facilities projects.

Witness: Yoga is inherently religious

The trial concerning the legality of a public-school yoga program in Encinitas continued Tuesday, with testimony from a religious scholar who said the curriculum remains religious despite efforts to strip away any spiritual elements.

Chief of San Lorenzo schools to retire

Dennis Byas was known for being frugal during his time as superintendent of schools, a characteristic that he took to heart. Byas, who announced his retirement this week, since 2009 has quietly refused to take his automatic 5 percent salary increase afforded to him in his contract each year, a fact discovered by this newspaper following a series of public records requests.

LAUSD must pay $1.4 million to girl sexually abused by classmate

Jurors say the LAUSD must pay a fourth-grade special needs student $1.4 million after she was sexually assaulted five times by a male classmate during an after-school program in Chatsworth.

Teacher victory in LAUSD board race may not bode well for superintendent

Teacher Monica Ratliff’s win of an open seat on L.A. Unified’s Board of Education Tuesday could provide some discomfort for the future of Superintendent John Deasy’s reform agenda.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Extension for Lodi Unified chief

Lodi Unified Superintendent Cathy Nichols-Washer received a contract extension Tuesday night, a deal that will restore a previous furlough-related pay cut and afford her early retirement benefits if she decides to take them in five years.

Showing expelled students way back

When Civic Pride was established, the purpose was to provide a Lincoln Unified alternative to programs for expelled students that are operated by the San Joaquin County Office of Education.

Pomona Unified school board approves science, technology charter school program

The Pomona Unified School District Board of Education on Tuesday night approved converting an existing elementary school into a charter school where the educational program will emphasize science and technology.

Shanker Blog » How Are Students Assigned To Teachers?

Shanker Blog » How Are Students Assigned To Teachers?:

How Are Students Assigned To Teachers?

by Matthew Di Carlo

Education researchers have paid a lot of attention to the sorting of teachers across schools. For example, it is well known that schools serving more low-income students tend to employ teachers who are, on average, less qualified (in terms of experience, degree, certification, etc.; also see here).
Far less well-researched, however, is the issue of sorting within schools – for example, whether teachers with certain characteristics are assigned to classes with different students than their colleagues in the same school. In addition to the obvious fact that which teachers are in front of which students every day is important, this question bears on a few major issues in education policy today. For example, there is evidence that teacher turnover is influenced by the characteristics of the students teachers teach, which means that classroom assignments might either exacerbate or mitigate mobility and attrition. In addition, teacher productivity measures such as value-added may be affected by the sorting of students into classes based on characteristics for which the models do not account, and a better understanding of the teacher/student matching process could help inform this issue.
A recent article, which was published in the journal Sociology of Education, sheds light on these topics with a 

Monica Ratliff's election to L.A. school board is 'huge upset' - latimes.com

Monica Ratliff's election to L.A. school board is 'huge upset' - latimes.com:

Monica Ratliff's election to L.A. school board is 'huge upset'

The fifth-grade teacher's low-budget effort defeats Antonio Sanchez, who had $2.2 million spent on his behalf and was endorsed by the mayor's reform coalition.

Monica Ratliff, a teacher at San Pedro Elementary School, received about 52% of the vote in Tuesday's District 6 school board election. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times / May 22, 2013)

By Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times

May 22, 2013, 11:14 p.m.

On its face, the election this week of a Los Angeles fifth-grade teacher to the Board of Education was a stunner. Monica Ratliff's low-budget effort included her boyfriend, a film school instructor, as her campaign manager. She had no paid staff and no meaningful help from her own politically active teachers union.

Her strategy to achieve some name recognition was to mail out refrigerator magnets, which cost $5,000 in scarce campaign funds. Ten to 20 faithful volunteers knocked on doors every weekend.

Her election night party? She jammed some 10 people into her one-bedroom apartment and then shooed them out at 11 p.m. — before the results were in — because she had to get up early to teach on Wednesday.

Her opponent, Antonio Sanchez, meanwhile, had more than $2.2 million spent on his behalf and an aggressive ground campaign of union volunteers and paid canvassers. He was endorsed by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's Coalition for School Reform, which received major donations from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and L.A. philanthropist Eli Broad, among others.

Political observers shook their heads Wednesday as they 

Let's Open the Doors Wider - Bridging Differences - Education Week

Let's Open the Doors Wider - Bridging Differences - Education Week:

Let's Open the Doors Wider

by Deborah Meier

Dear Michael,
You say, "The choice today is not between 100,000 Central Park Easts or Mission Hills and 100,000 test-prep factories. If it were, I'd pick Deborah Meier schools in a heartbeat. But let's face it: There aren't more than a handful of Deborah Meier schools out there ...."
One "minor" correction, there are far more than a handful of schools "like" mine, and during that short window of support in the 1980s and early 1990s, there were hundreds and the number was growing fast. But I'll save that for another exchange. You've come up with a proposal—an opt-out—that I might work on while we continue to quarrel over means and ends. (How about giving parents an opt-out, too?)
We're closer on this point than I'm comfortable with! It's perhaps a plan that, if implemented, would get us moving in a different direction—if we also don't insist that it solve all our schooling or economic problems! It would not make me more supportive of charters with boards that do not represent their constituents, or of vouchers, or evaluating teachers by student test scores, or trying to cut back—if not destroy—teacher unionism. Given all that, it sounds like a useful step that could help. And it might even give the "test prep factories" another choice.
Some years ago I wrote a chapter on "scaling up" for Part II of In Schools We Trust. I still agree with it. It summarized what I had learned about the short, lonely life of so many schools that were celebrated over the years for their breakthrough results. I was cocky enough to think we had finally gotten the answer, and we put together a proposal for a major experiment on behalf of accountability to our students, their families, and our 

UPDATE: Corporate Footprint on Chicago Children + Nashville KIPP Caught Dumping Problem Students – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER

Nashville KIPP Caught Dumping Problem Students at Test Time – @ THE CHALK FACE knows SCHOOLS MATTER:

Mayor Rahm Expands Corporate Footprint on Chicago Children and Parents

by Jim Horn

Well, it worked like it was supposed to work: the mayor’s appointed stooges on the “Board of Education” voted to close 50 Chicago public schools to make way for corporate charter reform schools.  Never mind that communities barely held together will lose their lifelines, never mind that violence is almost guaranteed to increase (as it did when Duncan shuttered schools), and never mind that many professional teachers will be replaced by uncertified white corporate missionaries.

But Mayor Rahm must accept the political repercussions for his callous acts.  Today starts the Voter Registration Drive in Chicago to make sure public school dictatorship ends there and that Rahm is sent back to Washington to become an official corporate lobbyist, rather than one on the public dole pretending to act in the public interest.  From NPR in Chicago:

. . . . The fight over school closings is part of a political showdown 

Nashville KIPP Caught Dumping Problem Students at Test Time

by Jim Horn

We have known for a long time that what is fondly recalled by former students as the Kids in Prison Program (KIPP) has used various machinations to reach those high test scores–from a menacing management styles, to constant test prep, longer hours, behavioral sterilization, burning through teachers who leave with mental and physical health problems, to dumping problem students and replacing them with high scorers-or not replacing them at all.   In what is truly unique to American media, here is a solid piece of TV reporting here from Nashville’s NBC affiliate on what has been happening for years but has never been reported, as far as I know:

 href=”http://www.wsmv.com” title=”WSMV Channel 4 “>WSMV Channel 4