Monday, April 25, 2011

Daily Kos: Today will help determine the future of public education in America

Daily Kos: Today will help determine the future of public education in America
"It's being marketed as a solution to save public schools, but the big donors are tied to right-wing think tanks that openly advocate, and strategize, the end of public education. How can vouchers improve public schools if the people mobilizing the movement intend to eradicate public education? Regardless of your personal stance on "school choice," it's important to know who is behind the voucher movement and the agenda they don't share with the public or advertise in their media campaigns." - Rachel Tabachnick

Eric Prince has become widely known as founder of the private mercenary army formerly known as Blackwater. Prince's sister, Betsy DeVos, is leading an astroturfing war on public schools. Last Thursday, April 21, Indiana passed a DeVos astroturf entity-backed, sweeping voucher bill. Indiana was part of a national pattern. As early as tomorrow the Pennsylvania state

Public schools: Is California's middle class heading for the exits? - Inside Bay Area

Public schools: Is California's middle class heading for the exits? - Inside Bay Area

Public schools: Is California's middle class heading for the exits?

By Sharon Noguchi snoguchi@mercurynews.com

It's the hot topic outside the kindergarten room, at fund-raising tables and after morning drop-off. Parents are asking: How much more can California lop off public education before they bolt for private schools?

For public schools, 2011-12 could be a turning point.

In recent years schools have endured incremental cuts and annual angst over uncertainty. But with dramatic reductions to the school year, program and staffing expected, many families are contemplating a deposit on a private school slot.

Local private schools report this spring that inquiries and enrollment are up, and even one school that closed several years ago, Calvary Christian Academy in San Jose, plans to reopen in August.

Bellarmine College Preparatory received a record 1,000-plus applications, most for its 400-member freshman class. Several other schools estimated that inquiries and applications are up 25 percent. That includes Valley Christian, which hopes to increase enrollment 5 percent annually for the next few years, Admissions Director Scott Wessling said.

At St. Andrew's Episcopal School in Saratoga, inquiries and applications are up 40 percent over last year, Head of

Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 2)

Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 2)

From Guest Blogger Rachel Tabachnick, Talk to Action: Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 2)

Continued from Section 1. Re-posted with permission from Talk to Action in three sections. Read section 3.

Students First?

Students First PAC, a 527 created to promote vouchers in Pennsylvania, was established on March 10, 2010 by Joe Watkins. On the Students First website Watkins describes himself “as an aide to a president of the United States and as a pastor of a church,” but he doesn’t mention that the president was George W. Bush. Nor does the bio mention Watkins’ lobbying and investment fund resume, his appearances on MSNBC, CNN, and Fox as a Republican strategists, or being featured in a Citizens United advertisement attacking Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential campaign. The website does nothing to give away it’s right-wing backing or their extreme agendas, unless you happen to be familiar with the generic-sounding foundations listed as supporting the bills.

Students First shares the name of the network founded by Michelle Rhee, former D.C. school superintendent and a star in the documentary Waiting for Superman, who has been described by some as the Sarah Palin of education because of the unusual media attention. She has now shocked some of her more progressive fans by joining forces with Florida Governor Rick Scott who is promoting a Vouchers-for- All bill. The Pennsylvania Students First organization is actually an affiliate of American Federation for Children(AFC), chaired by Betsy DeVos, as it states on the website. A donation to Students First PAC was received from Joel Greenberg, a board member of AFC, on the date the PAC was formed.Approximately 5 million dollars from Greenberg, a co-founder of Susquehanna



From Guest Blogger Rachel Tabachnick, Talk to Action: Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 3)

Continued from Section 1 and Section 2. Re-posted with permission from Talk to Action in three sections. This is section 3.

Targeting Pennsylvania Public Schools

The Family Research Council website features a speech given in 1999 by Hubert Morken, a Pat Robertson biographer and Regent University professor. Titled “The Naked Public School: Religion, Education and Character in the Aftermath of Columbine,” Morken describes the alliances and outreach efforts to African Americans in Pennsylvania,

“The leadership dimension of education reform is the most exciting of all today. For example, for decades, school choice went nowhere as long as it was perceived as a Catholic issue. Evangelical Protestants who prevented this reform now join with Catholics to promote it, and these religious

From Guest Blogger Rachel Tabachnick, Talk to Action: Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 1)

Finding A Needle in A Stack of Needles: A Solution to the Racial Achievement Gap | The Jose Vilson

Finding A Needle in A Stack of Needles: A Solution to the Racial Achievement Gap | The Jose Vilson

Finding A Needle in A Stack of Needles: A Solution to the Racial Achievement Gap

In the category of “Yes, That Makes Complete Sense,” David Kirp of The LA Times reported that scientists have figured out a 1-hour “fix” for our most disadvantaged students: encourage them while they do it. Combined with the latest article from The New York Times regarding Jump Math, this piece almost made me smack the screen. These articles are fortunate I’m typing on my Mac. Anyone who’s had any exposure to students without a

Grover Norquist Claims Tom Coburn ‘Lied His Way’ Into Office - E.D. Kain - American Times - Forbes

Grover Norquist Claims Tom Coburn ‘Lied His Way’ Into Office - E.D. Kain - American Times - Forbes

Grover Norquist Claims Tom Coburn ‘Lied His Way’ Into Office

Apr. 25 2011 - 6:26 pm | 0 views | 0 recommendations | 0 comments

Tom Coburn is a serious fiscal conservative from Oklahoma. Grover Norquist is an anti-tax evangelist whose special interest group, Americans for Tax Reform, has all but captured the tax and revenue policy apparatus of the Republican Party. The two have been clashing for years, andnow this:

“I think if you go back and look at the commission’s report, what we were talking about is getting significant dynamic effects by taking away tax credits, lowering the tax rate and having an economic increase that will actually increase the revenues to the federal government,” Coburn said. When asked by host David

Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 1)

Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 1)

From Guest Blogger Rachel Tabachnick, Talk to Action: Voucher Advocate Betsy DeVos, Right-Wing Think Tanks Behind Koch-Style Attack on PA Public Schools (Section 1)

Re-posted with permission from Talk to Action in three sections. Read section 2 and section 3.

The DeVos family crusade to eradicate public education has targeted Pennsylvania, and a voucher bill may come to a vote in the PA Senate as early as Tuesday [TOMORROW]. It’s being marketed as a solution to save public schools, but the big donors are tied to right-wing think tanks that openly advocate, and strategize, the end of public education. How can vouchers improve public schools if the people mobilizing the movement intend to eradicate public education? Regardless of your personal stance on “school choice,” it’s important to know who is behind the voucher movement and the agenda they don’t share with the public or advertise in their media campaigns.

A new wave of school voucher bills is sweeping the nation, which would allow public education funds to be used in private or parochial schools. As with past waves of voucher initiatives, these new bills are largely promoted

Big Education Ape: 4-25-11 PM Please tell me MONDAY is Over Edition

Big Education Ape: Ed News Now

Big Education Ape: Ed News Now

nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com - An article in the NY Times magazine two weeks ago, on April 10 , about Middle School 223 in the Bronx, written by Jonathan Mahler, contained the following passage describing student achievement gai...

leoniehaimson
bigeducationape.blogspot.com - Commentary: A scandal that can't be ignored | Philadelphia Public School NotebookCommentary: A scandal that can't be ignoredby Helen GymRecent revelations about the role of School Reform Commission...

coopmike48
dailykos.com - "It's being marketed as a solution to save public schools, but the big donors are tied to right-wing think tanks that openly advocate, and strategize, the end of public education. How can vouchers...

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paulhkarrer.com - Dear President Obama: I mean this with all respect. I’m on my knees here, and there’s a knife in my back, and the prints on it kinda match yours. I think you don’t get it. Your Race to the Top is k...

DianeRavitch
blog.eduflack.com - Nearly a decade ago, a new organization of chief state school officers was charting new ground. The Education Leaders Council (ELC) was THE hip group to belong to. NCLB was the freshly minted law...

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mikeklonsky Josh Anderson TFA Dir has an efficiency model of teaching in mind3 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite

bigeducationape.blogspot.com - Recall organizers question Denver Elections Division findings, vow to continue fight | DeFENSERecall organizers question Denver Elections Division findings, vow to continue fightby analystBelow is ...

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bigeducationape.blogspot.com - Equity and Excellence, Part One « InterACTEquity and Excellence, Part Oneby David B. CohenOn Thursday, April 21, 2011, I delivered prepared remarks for a meeting of the U.S. Department of Education...

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bigeducationape.blogspot.com - Texas Freedom Network: Proposed Instructional Materials Put Science Education, Public Schools at Risk in TexasProposed Instructional Materials Put Science Education, Public Schools at Risk in Texas...

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bigeducationape.blogspot.com - NYC Public School Parents: The NY Times issues a correction, too little and too late.The NY Times issues a correction, too little and too late.by Leonie HaimsonAn article in the NY Times magazine t...

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stager.tv - I’m an optimist by nature. That’s why I awake each day thinking I can make the world a better place for children despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. For years I believed that public educ...

tbfurman
parentsacrossamerica.org - Apr 25, 2011 pureparents To every thing, turn, turn, turn… Catalyst Notebook reports that the Renaissance Schools Fund – which is about to “turnaround” its brand name and call itself “New Schools f...

leoniehaimson
theatlanticwire.com - Today's New York Times prominently features "The Guantanamo Files," a synthesis of "700 classified military documents" obtained by WikiLeaks, about the Cuba prison's current and former inmates. It'...

mikeklonsky
huffingtonpost.com - An Al Jazeera journalist was held at Guantanamo Bay for six years partially so he could be interrogated about the network, according to one of the files on the prison released by WikiLeaks and news...

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blogs.forbes.com - Mar. 4 2011 - 2:46 pm | 23 views | 0 recommendations | In what may be the result of one of the great political miscalculations of our time, Scott Walker’s popularity in his home state is fast going...

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bigeducationape.blogspot.com - Kochtopus: Right-wing Network of Money, Power, and Influence | Dailycensored.comKochtopus: Right-wing Network of Money, Power, and InfluenceWritten by HurricaneDeanBusiness, Daily Journal (Opinion)...

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gothamschools.org - by Elizabeth Green The New Yorker imagines Charlie Sheen as schools chancellor and Cathie Black on TV. (Russo) Duncan: Federal CTE support will depend on students’ success beyond high school. (Hech...

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baycitizen.org - Some of the world’s best surfers will descend on Ocean Beach this fall for the first major surfing contest held in San Francisco in more than a decade. The surfing brand Rip Curl announced that its...

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democurmudgeon.blogspot.com - Now’s the time to stay clear of Brat Fest this year, and send a regretful message to Johnsville Sausage, that protecting worker rights is just as important as any charitable cause. To do whatever i...

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huffingtonpost.com - I can be a lazy slug retreating to my bed when it rains (okay, also maybe when it's below 65 degrees or Valentine's Day). Really any excuse will do. So an invitation to visit the unveiling of The F...

coopmike48
sacramentopress.com - Most of us might think there’s more to life than school, but at the same time, there’s more to learn while you’re in school. I know because from experience, I’ve been in school my whole li...

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blogs.forbes.com - Apr. 24 2011 - 12:15 pm | 1 views | 0 recommendations | It may be both the peak of paranoia and the ultimate insult to those who showed their mettle on the day of - and the days that followed – th...

mikeklonsky
hispanicallyspeakingnews.com - Published at 3:30 pm, April 25, 2011 Photo Credits: Pro-Immigration Mayor Michael Bloomberg This Sunday, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was a guest on “Fox News Sunday” where he once again e...

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camajorityreport.com - Steven Maviglio Sadly, this survey demonstrates that Californians are being misled about public employee pensions by special interests seeking to undermine the middle class. California public emplo...

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news.yahoo.com - By LISA LEFF, Associated Press Lisa Leff, Associated Press – 22 mins ago SAN FRANCISCO – The sponsors of California's same-sex marriage ban say the recent disclosure by the federal judge who struck...

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balloon-juice.com - by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian mistermix Dumbledore The many shortcomings of Galtian superhero school superintendents like Michelle Rhee are well-documented, but part of the reason that we get thi...

tbfurman