News Hot off the Presses
This week, Orlando, FL is hosting the U.S Conference of Mayors. According to Reuters, "hundreds" of mayors endorsed "parent trigger" laws...
"...aimed at bypassing elected school boards and giving parents at the worst public schools the opportunity to band together and force immediate change."
Well, it does force change but is it change the only outcome parents create? Generally so. The adage "be careful what you wish for" surely applies here to those parents.
I called Mayor McGinn's office and they are going to let me know if he voted on this issue and if he did, how he voted. It will be a great disappointment if he voted yes.
Parent trigger laws are in place in several states including California, Texas and Louisiana and are under consideration in states including Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York. So far, though, the concept has never successfully been used to turn around a school.
Though it has not yet been shown to work, parent trigger has support from many of the big players seeking to inject more free-market competition into public education, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation.
Major philanthropies and wealthy financiers have poured money into backing political candidates and advocacy groups, including one called Parent Revolution, that promote parent trigger, according to campaign finance records in several states.
Opponents of parent trigger, however, pointed out that the mayors' endorsement was largely symbolic, since such policies typically require legislative approval.
"Parents don't have control once they pull the trigger," said Kathleen Oropeza, co-founder of Fund Education Now, an advocacy group that successfully fought to derail a parent trigger bill in Florida earlier this year. "Who profits? Not parents and children."
Keep in mind, I-1240 has such a trigger except that it's much worse. The majority of parents OR teachers can sign a petition for an approved charter to take over a school. There is NO other law or pending law in the country on this issue that allows just teachers to take over a school.
And, with I-1240 it is NOT just for failing schools - it's for every single school in every single district. Bye, bye Garfield? International High in Bellevue? High-performing schools are under this trigger as well.
In other news, Washington STEM announced Patrick D'Amelio as its new CEO. He was recently the head of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Puget Sound and former CEO at the Alliance for Education.
Patrick was always warm and gracious to me when he was running the Alliance. It also bore no resemblance to the Alliance you see today so naturally, I missed him when he left. Good choice, Washington STEM.
"...aimed at bypassing elected school boards and giving parents at the worst public schools the opportunity to band together and force immediate change."
Well, it does force change but is it change the only outcome parents create? Generally so. The adage "be careful what you wish for" surely applies here to those parents.
I called Mayor McGinn's office and they are going to let me know if he voted on this issue and if he did, how he voted. It will be a great disappointment if he voted yes.
Parent trigger laws are in place in several states including California, Texas and Louisiana and are under consideration in states including Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York. So far, though, the concept has never successfully been used to turn around a school.
Though it has not yet been shown to work, parent trigger has support from many of the big players seeking to inject more free-market competition into public education, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation.
Major philanthropies and wealthy financiers have poured money into backing political candidates and advocacy groups, including one called Parent Revolution, that promote parent trigger, according to campaign finance records in several states.
Opponents of parent trigger, however, pointed out that the mayors' endorsement was largely symbolic, since such policies typically require legislative approval.
"Parents don't have control once they pull the trigger," said Kathleen Oropeza, co-founder of Fund Education Now, an advocacy group that successfully fought to derail a parent trigger bill in Florida earlier this year. "Who profits? Not parents and children."
Keep in mind, I-1240 has such a trigger except that it's much worse. The majority of parents OR teachers can sign a petition for an approved charter to take over a school. There is NO other law or pending law in the country on this issue that allows just teachers to take over a school.
And, with I-1240 it is NOT just for failing schools - it's for every single school in every single district. Bye, bye Garfield? International High in Bellevue? High-performing schools are under this trigger as well.
In other news, Washington STEM announced Patrick D'Amelio as its new CEO. He was recently the head of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Puget Sound and former CEO at the Alliance for Education.
Patrick was always warm and gracious to me when he was running the Alliance. It also bore no resemblance to the Alliance you see today so naturally, I missed him when he left. Good choice, Washington STEM.
Comments
You are starting to sound desperate on this whole charter issue. Grasping at straws.
- Judy
Second, I can very well imagine a scenario where teachers at a high-performing school could hear the siren song of a charter promising them more. The number of teachers at a school versus the number of parents at a school is far smaller.
I'm not grasping at straws; I'm explaining what is in the initiative and possible outcomes. That's more than LEV or Stand are doing.
Another school in a different district went charter because it was promised large amounts of money by a donor, but district restrictions prohibit from accepting large amounts of money from a single donor.
All of these were successful public schools in fairly well-to-do areas.
Just how are principals and assistant principals being trained to evaluate teachers and be "instructional leaders". Check out the latest PUBLIC records.
PG&E and PET Training materials
AZ has gone off the deep end.
CT
- Judy
Except, of course, that Melissa has been working much harder than that on a wide variety of education issues for much longer without any pay. So anyone who doubts that she is doing it as a volunteer isn't paying very good attention to who Melissa is and what she has been doing for the past decade.
Holy Cow! Sorry, David Brewster, but your services are not wanted here! Melissa may give you a pass but I find that kind of sleaze despicable. Would these "several" people be those that mounted the email campaign against McLaren and Peaslee? Or is "Judy" Swahili for Big Fish Greer?
Frankly, I am glad someone is doing the deep dive that I would warrant 98% of petition-signers have not done. Isn't that the pro camp's strategy? Obscure and obfuscate? Heaven forbid voters have actual facts, data and research. Ain't it all about "data-driven" decision? Right.
And no, I'm not being paid by the union either. In fact, I pay them, and quite honestly, I wish they did as much research as Melissa (and Charlie and Dora, etc.)
-CT
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/03/report-questions-giving-t_n_830798.html
Public School Parent
- Judy
Think about it for a minute.
Seriously. I'm just a regular parent too. Note that Melissa doesn't argue in her defense so I will. If I "mistook" you for David Brewster, it is because he has: used insinuation and hyperbole to advance his rag, capitalized on "payola" "journalism"; and then pled poverty for a handout. If I compare you unfavorably to Frank Greer it's because he colluded with Michael DeBell to smear the latter's compadres. Sure, it's not a nice thing to be mistaken for these folks.