In the News: CPS parents complain about robo calls | catalyst-chicago.org

In the News: CPS parents complain about robo calls | catalyst-chicago.org:

In the News: CPS parents complain about robo calls

• By: Cassandra West / June 13, 2012

 
IT IS A RULE: YOU CAN'T BE AGAINST PEOPLE AND FOR CORPORATIONS AND CALL YOURSELF A DEMOCRAT...EVER! 

In the wake of complaints from parents who suspected that CPS gave their phone numbers to Democrats for Education Reform, Education Reform Now Advocacy Director Jake Breymaier says the phone numbers were purchased from the Illinois Democratic County Chairmen’s Association.

The group’s automated phone calls, as well as radio ads that are still on the air, encouraged parents and others to text in to sign a petition urging CTU to put the brakes on strike talk until after a fact-finding panel has recommended a settlement between the union and the district. Breymaier says that so far, about 500 people have texted in their support.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced Tuesday afternoon that Back of the Yards High 

Daily Kos: We owe Bernie Sanders thanks -

Daily Kos: We owe Bernie Sanders thanks -:

We owe Bernie Sanders thanks -

by rss@dailykos.com (teacherken)

and now we have the evidence that the entire financial system needs to be totally reshaped.
Courtesy of Reader Supported News we have access to the list of 18 serious conflicts of interest between executives of financial institutions receiving bailouts from the Fed at the same time they sat on Fed boards.  One, Jeffrey Immelt, has been further rewarded by this administration putting him in a key position for its jobs initiative at the same time he is exporting jobs overseas.
I am providing the complete list released by Sanders below the fold.
Read it.
Get Angry.
And then lets figure out how in hell we 

Bill Maher on unions. « Fred Klonsky

Bill Maher on unions. « Fred Klonsky:

Bill Maher on unions.

by Fred Klonsky

Popout

The in box. “Mitch is nit-picking.”

Fred Klonsky at Fred Klonsky - 46 seconds ago

Fred, Mitch’s letter is nit-picking. The IEA leadership admittedly not only supported SB7 but claimed it as a model for all other unions to follow. If that’s not pressure, I don’t know what is. it was IEA spokesman Charlie McBarron who originally said that the SB7 deal, “puts kids first and will move education forward. [...]

Bill Maher on unions.

Fred Klonsky at Fred Klonsky - 4 minutes ago

Is Audrey Soglin a bully? The IEA General Counsel writes me a letter.

Fred Klonsky at Fred Klonsky - 1 hour ago

Fred, Hope you are doing well! While I have no desire to become a focus of your or anyone else’s blog, I felt it was important to send you a note about a recent posting on your blog, in which you made the following statement: “Then there’s IEA Executive Director Audrey Soglin and former IEA [...]

The 98%

Fred Klonsky at Fred Klonsky - 2 hours ago

The Jonah Edelman Rule: In order to get strike authorization the leadership of the Chicago Teachers Union (this rule only applies to Chicago) must receive 75% approval by all the members of the union. Edelman, of the corporate ed reform group Stand for Children, had his people study the data and decided that 75% was [...]

Jonah Edelman: “Oops.”

Fred Klonsky at Fred Klonsky - 1 day ago

Okay. Salt in the wound. But I can’t help myself. Here is the video of Stand For Children’s Jonah Edelman. “The union cannot strike in Chicago. They will never be able to muster the 75 percent threshold needed to strike.’’

Forget about your day job.

Fred Klonsky at Fred Klonsky - 1 day ago

When I first started teaching almost three decades ago, I received a phone call the day before my first day of school was to begin. It was George Shone, President of the Park Ridge Education Association. He was calling to tell me that the union had not yet reached an agreement with the school board. [...]

The CTU overwhelming yes vote is a stinging rebuke of Rahm and Brizard. But not only them.

Fred Klonsky at Fred Klonsky - 1 day ago

IEA Executive Director Audrey Soglin bullied the CTU leadership. But teachers don’t like bullies. After a weekend of unofficial reports, CTU President Karen Lewis officially announced the results Monday of the strike authorization vote taken last Wednesday through Friday. Not only did almost 90% of the CTU members vote yes. 73% percent of the members voted [...]

EVIL UNIONS DOMINATE THE STATE GOVERNMENT WORKFORCE IN ILLINOIS « Teachers Fight Back

EVIL UNIONS DOMINATE THE STATE GOVERNMENT WORKFORCE IN ILLINOIS « Teachers Fight Back:

EVIL UNIONS DOMINATE THE STATE GOVERNMENT WORKFORCE IN ILLINOIS

by alkleen

Oh no, the horror! The Chicago Tribune in its lead editorial today exposes the horrible fact that nearly 96 percent of the Illinois state government workforce is unionized. Not only that, but many of the other 4% are trying to join a union to avoid layoffs and or pay reductions.
The Tribune is demanding legislators do something about this terrible situation. The chutzpah of this paper is incredible. They are constantly berating unionized workers because they make a higher wage and better benefits than non unionized state workers and many other people.
Maybe if the Tribune would stop being such a hypocritical, union bashing, teacher bashing, working man bashing newspaper they might not be a complete business failure and  in bankruptcy.
Stop the hypocrisy, Tribune. You back a political candidate for president who is quoted as saying,” I’m not going 

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Reporter asks Rahm: Will your assault on CTU turn Chicago into another Wisconsin?

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Reporter asks Rahm: Will your assault on CTU turn Chicago into another Wisconsin?:

Reporter asks Rahm: Will your assault on CTU turn Chicago into another Wisconsin?

by Mike Klonsky

Rahm Emanuel at Tuesday's news conference at Cesar E. Chavez elementary school. (Scott Strazzante, Chicago Tribune )

Rahm's anti-union spin machine is spinning in reverse. Eventhough his pals now own the Sun-Timesand even with a big-bucks propaganda campaign bankrolled by corporate "reformers", nothing seems to be spinning the mayor's way.

S-T political reporter Fran Spielman, can't quite hide her disdain for Rahm's assault on the CTU.

Emanuel pushed for a change in state law that raised the strike authorization threshold to 75 percent, a benchmark so high, at least one education advocate [SFC's Jonah Edelman--mk] with ties to the mayor predicted that it could never be met. Instead, the Chicago Teachers Union roared 

Is Audrey Soglin a bully? The IEA General Counsel writes me a letter. « Fred Klonsky

Is Audrey Soglin a bully? The IEA General Counsel writes me a letter. « Fred Klonsky:

Is Audrey Soglin a bully? The IEA General Counsel writes me a letter.

by Fred Klonsky

Fred,
Hope you are doing well!   While I have no desire to become a focus of your or anyone else’s blog, I felt it was important to send you a note about a recent posting on your blog, in which you made the following statement: “Then there’s IEA Executive Director Audrey Soglin and former IEA President Ken Swanson. These two sad excuses for union leadership were sent to pressure the CTU into accepting the  Edelman language. They treated the newly elected reform president of the CTU like the new kid at school. They acted like bullies, plain and simple.”  As you know, Audrey and I were the primary IEA representatives who directly participated in the discussions which led to SB 7.  In particular, I was present for the discussion regarding the CTU strike authorization vote.  At no time, did Audrey, Ken (who wasn’t there for the discussion), me or anyone from IFT bully or otherwise pressure CTU President Karen Lewis to accept the strike authorization vote language.  She along with the other CTU representatives present, as well as its legal counsel, weighed the plusses and minuses regarding the issue and decided to accept it.  Both the IEA and IFT supported whatever the CTU believed was in its best interest.   Anyone who knows Karen clearly understands she is not a person who is susceptible to bullying.  Thanks.
 Mitch

Mitch,
Thanks for your good wishes. I am doing well and looking forward to my retirement and future activity as an IEA Retiree.
Although we don’t know each other well, I have nothing but respect for the work you have done for our Local over 

The Folly of Using Standards to Create High-Stakes Tests on Display in Florida | Scathing Purple Musings

The Folly of Using Standards to Create High-Stakes Tests on Display in Florida | Scathing Purple Musings:

The Folly of Using Standards to Create High-Stakes Tests on Display in Florida

by Bob Sikes

Northwest Florida Daily News reporter Katie Temmen isn’t letting go of a story on the  standardized test disaster that occurred in Okaloosa county.

Brad Berryman has always liked science.
He enjoyed chemistry class and thought he’d be well-prepared by the time his end-of-course exam rolled around.
He was wrong.
“When I walked into the classroom, my heart kind sank when I saw my teacher and how upset she 

Thumbs Up Thumbs Down: Organized Labor | United Opt Out National

Thumbs Up Thumbs Down: Organized Labor | United Opt Out National:

Thumbs Up Thumbs Down: Organized Labor

by admin

We live in an era when leaders in business and the media demand that schools function like businesses in a free market economy, competing for students and staff. Many such voices say that such corporate-style school reform is stymied by the teacher unions, which stand in the way of leaders who want unchecked power to assign, reward, punish, or remove their employees. Some academics blame the unions when student achievement remains stagnant. If scores are low, the critics say it must be because of the teachers’ contract, not because the district has a weak curriculum, or lacks resources, or has mediocre leadership. If some teachers are incompetent, it must be because of the contract, not because the district has a flawed system that allows for cronyism. These critics want to scrap the contract, throw away teachers’ legal protections, and bring teacher unions to their collective knees.”  John Roques      

This page is dedicated to the preservation of organized labor in 

Shanker Blog » Gender Pay Gaps And Educational Achievement Gaps

Shanker Blog » Gender Pay Gaps And Educational Achievement Gaps:

Gender Pay Gaps And Educational Achievement Gaps

by Matthew Di Carlo

There is currently an ongoing rhetorical war of sorts over the gender wage gap. One “side” makes the common argument that women earn around 75 cents on the male dollar (see here, for example).
Others assert that the gender gap is a myth, or that it is so small as to be unimportant.
Often, these types of exchanges are enough to exasperate the casual observer, and inspire claims such as “statistics can be made to say anything.” In truth, however, the controversy over the gender gap is a good example of how descriptive statistics, by themselves, say nothing. What matters is how they’re interpreted.
Moreover, the manner in which one must interpret various statistics on the gender gap applies almost perfectly to 

FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Wednesday, June 13, 2012

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team:

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

Education Headlines

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Norris superintendent to retire

Wallace "Wally" McCormick, 12-year superintendent of Norris School District -- one of the highest achieving districts in Kern County -- will retire at the end of July.

Thieves steal Linden High cherry crop

To the high school students, the 50 or more cherry trees and their bounty represent effort, diligence and hands-on experience. To thieves, it was an easy mark.

Teacher, janitor have relatives in power

The principal of San Ysidro Middle School has a relative on staff — his brother-in-law is a language arts and history teacher. The head of the San Ysidro School District’s maintenance department has a relative on staff — a grandson who’s a janitor. (He’s also the nephew of a school board member.)

Middle school incident sparks 'horrible questions'

A union representative at Bell Middle School in San Diego is working to rally support for an English teacher who recently had nine students suspended from his class. The seventh graders were suspended from one of Ed Johnson’s all-boys English classes in May. The incident has divided the staff and raised "horrible questions" among students, according to one teacher.

East San Jose parents assail 'intolerable' middle schools

With fewer than half of eighth-graders testing proficient in English and math, parents in two East San Jose school districts have declared a middle-school crisis and are pressing for opening new alternative and charter schools.

School year calendar runs into resistance

The hottest topic on a hot night in the Stockton Unified boardroom was the district's 2012-13 instructional calendar. And it wasn't even on the agenda for Tuesday night's meeting.

Special report, part 4: Not even outside help can fix schools

Lucia Mar and other districts are looking to San Luis Obispo County’s countless booster clubs, community service groups, education foundations and parent-teacher organizations for help.

LAUSD board pulls proposed $298-a-year parcel tax from November ballot

Worried that a financial catastrophe would cripple Los Angeles Unified if voters reject the governor's proposed tax hike, the school board decided Tuesday to remove the district's parcel tax from the November ballot to avert an Election Day showdown over education funding.

Alum Rock hires interim superintendent

The Alum Rock school board on Monday named Stephen Fiss, a former administrator in the district and a charter school director, as its interim leader.

Carmel school district postpones bond issue

Carmel Unified School District trustees on Monday decided against placing a bond on the November ballot after hearing poll results that revealed tepid enthusiasm from voters to approve one.

Moraga school board approves committee to review district sex abuse policies

In its first meeting since a child sex abuse scandal polarized this small community, the school board voted Tuesday night in favor of creating a student safety committee that will review the district's policies regarding child abuse and the legally "mandated reporting" of abuse incidents.

Four firms offer proposals to improve stadiums at three Pomona high schools

Four teams of architects and engineers, including one that was involved in designing a retractable natural grass field system for the stadium where the Arizona Cardinals play, are interested in improving athletic fields at three Pomona Unified schools.

Upland Unified board postpones transportation cut decision

The Upland Unified School District Board of Trustees on Tuesday postponed a decision on making cuts to home-to-school transportation.

Academy of the Redwoods may lose full-time principal

Nineteen students, teachers and parents spoke out at the Fortuna Union High School District board meeting Tuesday against a proposal that would reduce the principal's hours at Academy of the Redwoods and turn it into a teaching and administrative position.

Baron: Adult education’s existential crisis

Adult education in California is nearly as old as the state itself. Today, the program that has helped millions of people learn English, earn a GED, and receive job training for 156 years is facing extinction.

CASBO votes to endorse Brown tax initiative, but not Munger’s

Even as public support for Gov. Jerry Brown’s November tax initiative appears to be slipping, another powerful school association has endorsed the measure that is designed to restore some K-12 education funding.

Trigger cuts to schools make budget vote a problem for incumbents

One of the key elements of the plan that is unlikely to change is that the final budget will assume voter approval of a tax hike in November. The final budget plan is also expected to include some $5.5 billion in cuts that would be automatically triggered if tax initiatives fail. It is these trigger cuts that may be giving heartburn to lawmakers facing tough elections this fall since most of them would come from K-12 schools.

Critics decry latest shrinkage of L.A. Unified's school year

A tentative agreement to shorten the school year for Los Angeles students — for the fourth consecutive year — is almost certain to weaken academic gains, and was driven, critics said, by expediency more than the best interests of students.

Walters: California school aid at center of wrangle over tax measures

California's 6 million-student public school system is not only the largest chunk of the state budget that will be enacted this week – by far – but the major component of Gov. Jerry Brown's campaign for sales and income tax increases as well. And if that isn't yeasty enough, the governor is also proposing huge changes in the way state school money is calculated and disbursed. What emerges from all of this is impossible, even for political insiders, to predict.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Students lament loss of electives

Much of the news surrounding education funding involves teacher layoffs, but cuts at the state level are also being felt by students, who stand to lose electives and extracurricular activities that, some say, keep them interested in education.

District could put 16 classrooms at Magnolia up for lease

Up to 16 classrooms at Magnolia Elementary School should be put up for lease as a way to boost revenue for the Carlsbad Unified School District, according to a recommendation from a school advisory group.

Lack of money delays opening of alternative high school in Salinas

A financial shortfall has set back the opening of Millennium Charter High School, a college preparatory academy with an emphasis on arts and technology 

Brookings Responds to My Blog about Being Terminated « Diane Ravitch's blog

Brookings Responds to My Blog about Being Terminated « Diane Ravitch's blog:

Brookings Responds to My Blog about Being Terminated

by dianerav

Grover 

On Monday, I posted a blog called “The Day I Was Terminated.”
In that blog, I recounted that I received an email on June 5 from Grover (Russ) Whitehurst of Brookings telling me that I was being terminated–after a 19-year association with Brookings–because I was “inactive.” That’s a pretty abrupt way to finish off a 19-year affiliation.
My first thought was that the termination might be related to my pointed criticism of Mitt Romney; Whitehurst is an advisor to the Romney campaign. I then went on to admit that I might be over-reacting by assuming a political motivation. As you will see in Brookings’ response, the decision was made in April, before I blogged about Romney (it should be noted that Russ, who served during the George W. Bush administration, was unlikely to be pleased with my ongoing critique of No Child Left Behind, the administration’s signature education program).
I reviewed whether I was “inactive,” and recalled that when I asked permission to present my latest book at 

RheeFirst! » How Michelle Rhee recruits new “members”

RheeFirst! » How Michelle Rhee recruits new “members”:

How Michelle Rhee recruits new “members”

by admin

Written by Diane Ravitch for her blog.  Read the entire post here.
“A friend told me she signed an online petition on Change.org for some cause to make the world a better place, and promptly received an email from Michelle Rhee of Students First thanking her for joining. She was astonished to discover that she was a member of Students First, because she never signed anything that identified the group. This is apparently standard practice for Rhee’s group, as demonstrated by this blog by a teacher who also found herself to be a “member” of a group she had not joined.
When Rhee arrives in a state to demand an end to teachers’ job protections, she says that she has thousands and thousands of members in that state. That supposedly gives her more political clout, in addition to the hundreds of millions of dollars she can spend to elect candidates who want to crack down hard on teachers. Apparently a significant part of her “membership” consists of people who unwittingly signed up by agreeing to support something completely unrelated to Rhee and her cause of turning teachers into employees with no job protections.
Even more disturbing than the deceptive way that she garners members, however, is the deceptive message that she sends to her new “members.”… .Rhee should tell her “members” about the genuinely desperate 

 Beware of AstroTurf Ed Reformers 

Just Like Michelle Rhee's Students first only BETTER

Astroturf lobbying refers to political organizations or campaigns that appear to be made up of grassroots activists but are actually organized and run by corporate interests seeking to further their own agendas. Such groups are often typified by innocent-sounding names that have been chosen specifically to disguise the group's true backers

Just Like Michelle Rhee's

 Students first Astroturf lobbying (only Better) 

Other Astroturf lobbying groups

Just Like Michelle Rhee's

 Students first Astroturf lobbying (only Better) 

One Teacher’s Road to Vindication | NEA Today

One Teacher’s Road to Vindication | NEA Today:

One Teacher’s Road to Vindication

June 12, 2012 by twalker  
Filed under Featured News, Top Stories

7 Comments

By Michael D. Simpson, NEA Office of General Counsel

What is your teaching career worth? In dollars and cents? If a school board illegally took your job away and destroyed your right to practice your profession, how much should they be made to pay?

It’s a hard figure to calculate. But last February, a Charlotte, North Carolina, jury was up to the task. They awarded Jeff Leardini $1,173,716 for the loss of his career, one of the largest verdicts in history on behalf of a teacher.

In some ways, this is a tragic story: yet another episode of a great teacher brought down by baseless allegations of physical contact with students. But this one has an unusually happy ending.

In an interview with NEA Today, Leardini described his ordeal. It began on April 27, 2006, when Leardini, a sixth-grade language arts teacher employed by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS), was called into 

Parents Across America founding member receives Best Political Activist Award for 2012 in Florida | Seattle Education

Parents Across America founding member receives Best Political Activist Award for 2012 in Florida | Seattle Education:

Parents Across America founding member receives Best Political Activist Award for 2012 in Florida

by seattleducation2011

From the Broward County New Times:

Any disgruntled citizen can hurl insults during a school board meeting or launch a NIMBY crusade. Rita Solnet is the rare activist with powerful allies inside and outside government. Her diligently researched arguments prompt policy changes with far-reaching implications throughout the state. The Boca Raton mom helped found the national, nonpartisan group Parents Across America, which rails against privatization and high-stakes testing in schools. This year, she helped prevent a for-profit company with a dismal track record, Mavericks in Education, from opening three new charter schools in Palm Beach County. Then she 

Go to Parents Across America.

Geaux Teacher!: Diane Ravitch and The CHICAGO STORY

Geaux Teacher!: Diane Ravitch and The CHICAGO STORY:

Diane Ravitch and The CHICAGO STORY

by noreply@blogger.com (Lee Barrios, M.Ed., NBCT)

Yesterday I responded to a campaign AD from President Obama's staff. Today I'm going to forward this post to the same staff member in case he doesn't believe that teachers are being disregarded by Obama's education policy leaders like his friend Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Critics will say this is another example of union thuggery, but those familiar with the treatment of teachers in Chicago and throughout the country, will understand that it is about pulling the rug out from under our children by deprofessionalizing the profession of teaching in the name of reform. In Louisiana, for instance, new legislation allows charter schools to employ 100% NON-certified instructors.

Since the stated goal of the LDOE is to increase the number of charters in the state and taxpayer dollars are being used disproportionately to fund them, it is a foregone conclusion that students will find themselves increasingly taught by unqualified at-will employees.
(See http://www.jppss.k12.la.us/district/news/Blog.aspx?id=2147508029&blogid=2147485652 Supt. White