UPDATED: Rally at City Hall and Close Encounters of the Heated Kind with Mayor Mike by Leonie Haimson - NYC Public School Parents:

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We had a great rally this morning at City Hall to protest the budget cuts to schools. About fifty parents turned up, some with their children, with signs pasted to their jackets saying, “Do not balance the budget on our backs.”

Joining us were Council Members Robert Jackson and Margaret Chin of Manhattan, Mark Weprin of Queens, Jumaane Williams and Matthieu Eugene of Brooklyn, and Diana Reyna of Brooklyn and Queens, as well as Leroy Barr, staff director of the UFT and Donovan Richards, CM Sanders chief of staff.

At the end of the rally we had an unexpected encounter with Bloomberg himself. Pictures from the rally and our encounter with Mayor Mike are now up on the CSM Facebook page .

At the press conference, I showed charts revealing the sharp increases in class size that have already occurred, as well as a chart with the worsening distribution of income in NYC and NY state.

Eliminating 6,000 teaching positions would be an absolute disaster for our children, and would lead to even further increases in class size, probably the sharpest in over 30 years. I concluded that though the mayor may want to roll over the city’s $3 billion surplus, we as parents will not roll over when it comes to our children.

All of the elected officials were eloquent in their defense of our children’s right to a quality education, and pledged that they would fight hard to make sure that there would be no further increases in class size or any cuts to the classroom in the city’s education budget. I handed CM Jackson our petition with over 1,000 signatures and asked him to give it to Speaker Quinn, who will have to protect our children in the budget negotiations.

He emphasized that there was no need for any cuts with the city’s $3 billion surplus; Mark Weprin pointed out that there were plenty other areas that were expendable in the DOE spending policies, including wasteful testing, technology enhancements, consultants and private contracts. CM Chin said as a former teacher and married to a teacher, she knew full well how important class size is and that we cannot afford to let class sizes grow any more. Both Jumaane Williams and Matthieu Eugent pointed out that focusing on improving education is the best investment the city can make.

Sue Dietrich, Staten Island parent and head of the Chancellor’s Parent Advisory Council, representing all the PTAs in the city, said her son’s class was already at 34 students; and that it can’t possibly go any higher. She pointed out that the city’s arts programs, like the great chorus at PS 22 that sang at the Oscars, could be lost if there were any more budget cuts to schools.

Noah Gotbaum, President of CEC D3, said the Governor and the Mayor should be ashamed of themselves for favoring millionaires over our kids, and that though Cuomo talked about “shared sacrifice” it was hard to see what if anything the wealthy had sacrificed in this budget.

Lisa Donlan, parent leader and member of the Grassroots Education Movement led us in a chant, “Whose schools? Our schools! Whose taxes? Our taxes? Whose priorities? Our priorities!” Sarah Porter, parent activist from PS132K in Williamsburg, wrapped up by pointing out the mayor’s math was defective and that he needed remedial lessons, since there was no need to cut 6,000 teachers with such a large surplus.

After the rally was over, some of us remained talking on the plaza in front of City Hall, including Sarah, Tina Schiller of PS 234, and Benita Rivera of the Mother’s Agenda, when I noticed the Mayor walking down the steps.

I waved to him and shouted, “Please, Mr. Mayor, do not balance the budget on our children’s backs” and that “Millionaires should pay more, including you!”

To my surprise, he briskly walked over to us. He asked if we were teachers, and we said, no, parents. I showed him the class size charts, and asked him if he would want to have his child in such large classes; how could he consider letting them increase even more?

He countered by saying that city had been subjected to big cuts from the feds and the state and we should criticize them, not him. I followed up by pointing out that the city’s had a $3 billion surplus, but he claimed that there was no surplus; when we disputed that, he added that he needed to save the surplus for the year after.

I told him that I knew he wanted to roll over the surplus, but our kids cannot have their education further damaged. We said he should use the surplus now to fill holes in this year’s budget, and if he needed more money, he should raise city taxes on the wealthy. He said, go tell Albany; and that he’s been up there arguing with them.

We pointed out that he didn’t go to Albany to support the surtax on the wealthy but that he had instead opposed this. Several times he said, “Listen to me! I won’t talk unless you listen to me!” After about five minutes, he got tired of the discussion, and walked off.

Luckily, Benita Rivera was snapping photos with her cell phone; these are on the CSM Facebook page along with earlier ones from the rally, taken by Michelle Faljean of the SI Federation of PTAs:

Thanks Benita, Michelle, and everyone who came today!

After our exchange with the mayor, Erin Einhorn, City Hall Daily News reporter ran over, along with Samantha Gross of the AP, to ask us about it. She has already posted an account of our debate on the DN blog, entitled Mayor Bloomberg Listens! (But Does He Hear?)

UPDATED: The mayor's press spokesman has responded and so have I. several times on the DN blog. Go check it out!

Go check it out and leave a comment! And please leave a comment below.

Parents Groups Playing Hooky by Jess Wisloski

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Education advocates have long warned that the diminishing role for parents in schools will eventually kill off parent involvement altogether.

Now, the city's own findings on the efficacy of two avenues available for parents to weigh in on their childrens' schools back up Mayor Bloomberg's critics.

Out of 100 schools, 78% of parent coordinators - the on-staff liaisons between parents and the school - could not be reached on their city-provided cell phones, according to a survey by Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum.

And the Department of Education's own parent engagement office found that only 51% of the schools it has looked at so far has a functioning School Leadership Team (SLT).

The news may be no surprise to parents, who have bemoaned many of the administration's reforms - including disbanding local school boards.

But for educators, whose jobs are to engage parents, recent tallies are worrisome.

"It's really embarrassing to say our district's Presidents Council is not even in effect right now," Michelle Lloyd-Bey, the community superintendent of Queens District 27, said at a community meeting in March. A Presidents Council represents all the PTAs in a district.

She added that SLTs - a body of teachers and parents that help in school decision-making - "are not sending documentation as they're supposed to, not keeping records, and in some cases they're not even functioning."

Martine Guerrier, the city's chief of parent engagement, said her office is working to fix the problems. "SLTs have always been an issue," she said. Her office began looking into SLTs recently and found that many only existed on paper. But in district surveys, 83% of schools claimed they had SLTs.

Guerrier's office was created last year to address some of these complaints. "We just started, so there's no way to tell right now, but I'm encouraged by what I've seen," she said of the city's progress.

But William McDonald, a parent in Queens District 29 who also heads the citywide Chancellor's Parent Advisory Committee, said the effect of Bloomberg's initiatives on parent involvement has been "a mess."

"It's to the point now where SLTs don't function at all," he said, noting the problem began in 2003 when the city eliminated SLT budgets. The city instead hired "SLT coordinators" - a job that was dissolved last year.

And with the PTAs also disappearing or growing less active, McDonald sees a dim future.

"As I see it, in three years, parent involvement probably won't even exist," he said.

jwisloski@nydailynews.com

10,000 Flood City Hall to Demand Restoring Ed Budget Cuts by Michael Hirsch - United Federation of Teachers

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More than 10,000 teachers, principals, parents, students and elected officials braved a soaking rain on March 19 to rally outside City Hall to protest $800 million in budget cuts threatening New York City public schools.

Stretching from a stage at the foot of City Hall Park to three blocks north of Chambers Street was a sea of waterproof green painter hats worn by the fired-up protesters. On the hats were the words “Keep the Promises,” the name of the coalition that organized the rally and a reference to the demand that city and state government rescind current budget cuts and restore promised funds for the coming school year.

The rain, sometimes blowing horizontally, only made those in the crowd more angry as they cheered speaker after speaker who charged that the cuts would doom efforts to win smaller class sizes and put the quality of schools at risk.

Teachers Joielynn Rugg and Laura Rainer were among the 44 educators and parents from Staten Island’s PS 36 who attended the rally.

Looking out at the huge turnout from the stage, UFT President Randi Weingarten noted how rain wasn’t the only thing coming down hard on City Hall. “The streets today are flooded with caring people, because everybody who is here in this rain understands what this is all about,” Weingarten said. “As much as was lost with the January cutbacks, the September cuts will be six times worse.”

Weingarten praised a plan by the state Assembly that would restore every dollar ex-governor Eliot Spitzer cut from his proposed budget before his March 17 resignation. It would also impose a 1 percent surcharge on all incomes of state residents and nonresidents working in the state who earn more than $1 million annually, a plan Weingarten said that was both needed and fair. The Assembly bill also mandates that Mayor Michael Bloom­berg restore all his planned cuts, she said, “because kids don’t get do overs.”

State AFL-CIO President Denis Hughes agreed that with the economy tanking, “these are tough times, but labor unions are used to tough times, and I promise we will stand with you and help get them to do the things they promised they’d do.”

Ernest Logan, president of the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, asked, “Why is it that when things get tough, they cut the schools? We know that schools are the safety net for when we are in trouble.”

City Council Education Committee Chair Robert Jackson (at podium) and the Council members flanking him pledged to “keep the promises” and fight the education cuts.

Added student Giselle Lopez, “We can’t get to tomorrow if we can’t deal with today.”

Brooklyn Councilman Dominic Recchia was just one of a number of speakers who linked the fiscal shortchanging of schools to the protracted Iraq War — which, ironically, had started exactly five years ago to the day.

“President Bush must end the war now,” Recchia said, “and put the money into education.”

Dozens of City Council members approached the microphone one by one to pledge their support to the coalition, while City Councilman Bill de Blasio announced that he had sponsored a resolution demanding that the mayor restore the cuts. The resolution has 42 cosigners.

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer criticized Chancellor Joel Klein for defending the mayor’s cuts instead of school needs.

“You should be leading the fight in Albany,” not defending the cuts, Stringer said.

Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said that the lack of Department of Education transparency — the capacity for elected officials and the public to see how the department spends its funding — was so extreme that even her office couldn’t get information.

Gotbaum said she was told by a DOE official that information she requested on whether there were cuts to the central administration that paralleled cuts to the schools, as the DOE claimed, was “on the Web site.”

“We found they made no cuts at Tweed at all,” Gotbaum said.

William McDonald, chair of the Chancellor’s Parents Advisory Council, asked, “Whose money? Whose schools?” and he warned elected officials: “If you’re not going to keep your promises, you’re not going to keep your jobs.”

Billy Easton of the Alliance for Quality Education closed the rally by urging demonstrators to call legislators before the April 1 state budget deadline and tell them “to fight for the Assembly budget bill.” He also announced that there are daily bus rides to Albany for lobbying through March 31. [Go to www.ourkidscantwait.org for more information.]

Standing soaked in the downpour, Brenda Major, delegate at PS 173 in the Bronx, said the rain couldn’t keep her and her colleagues from demonstrating. “As my father says, we’re all Baptists,” she said.

Equally drenched was parent David Quintana of Ozone Park, a member of the Chancellor’s Parents Advisory Council, who said he was disgusted with the chancellor. “Joel Klein should be leading this, instead of hiding in Tweed,” he said.

The rain-soaked crowd of educators, parents and students stretched along the Broadway side of City Hall Park all the way north past Chambers Street.

Education Panel Votes To End 8th Grade Social Promotion by Austin Considine, Assistant Editor - Queens Chronicle

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The city’s Panel for Education Policy passed a measure on March 17 that effectively abolishes eighth grade “social promotion” in schools.

The PEP — whose approval is required for Department of Education mandates — passed the measure with an 11-1 vote.

“For too long, eighth graders have simply been passed along to high school, even if they were far below grade level and at risk of dropping out,” Schools Chancellor Joel Klein said in a statement after the vote. “Tonight’s vote will help ensure that these students will enter high school ready to succeed.”

Under the new policy, most eighth graders must pass all four core academic subjects, including their math and English Language Arts assessments, social studies and science. Students will also have to score a Level 2 or above on their math and ELA tests.

Students who fail to meet the new requirements will be able to retake failed tests or courses at summer school. Failing that, they will be obliged to repeat the eighth grade. In a small number of cases, students may appeal such decisions.

Standards can differ slightly for English learners, special education students and students who have been held back before.

The move has drawn vociferous criticism from some groups and parents who feel that children may be unduly punished for the failures of their respective middle schools.

At a meeting before the vote on March 20, critics shouted in protest, prompting Klein to clear the room twice before eventually cancelling the meeting, according to press reports.

Indeed, it is unclear what the new policy means for students and parents in under-performing school districts like 27 — which comprises Woodhaven, Ozone Park, Howard Beach, Far Rockaway and parts of Richmond Hill, South Ozone Park and Kew Gardens.

According to the DOE’s school grading system — whereby schools are given letter grades for performance — more than half the schools in District 27 scored a C or lower. Of the district’s 16 middle schools (including K-8 schools), nine of them received a C or lower.

“Nobody wants to see kids who aren’t qualified to move on move on,” said David Quintana, former District 27 representative for the Chancellor’s Parent Advisory Council. “But all they’re doing is leaving (these kids) behind.”

Quintana also accused the DOE of holding back potential drop-outs to make high school graduation rates look “rosy and sweet.”

Andrew Jacob, a spokesman for the DOE, cited statistics showing that eighth graders who pass all their courses are more than twice as likely to graduate high school than those who don’t.

“Fundamentally, it does a disservice to students to move them along before they’re ready,” he said. “It sets them up for failure.”

Jacob also cited additional measures that would help children pass, including new, periodic assessments for early problem detection, and a middle school improvement plan, currently in the works for next year.

Queens still did not have a borough representative on the panel when the vote was taken, as it has not for the last five months. The task of appointing a representative falls to Borough President Helen Marshall.

Mayoral Control Is Strangling Public Schools - Letter to the Editor by David M. Quintana - Leader-Observer

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Queens Chronicle - Mayoral Control

Dear Editor;

I am writing to voice my serious concerns with mayoral control and the present NYC school governance system. Mayoral control sunsets in 2009 and I would like to see it eliminated. Mayor Bloomberg and School Chancellor Klein have not used this authority to the betterment of our schools nor have student performance improved significantly.

I am the proud parent of two daughters and a product of the NYC Public Education system in District 27 – being a graduate of PS 60, MS 210 & John Adams High School.

I also am the former District 27 Representative to the Chancellor’s Parent Advisory Council (CPAC), the former Co-President of the MS210 Parents Association in Ozone Park and present member of my daughter’s Parents Association board and a member of the Community Board 10 Education Committee.

I recently gave testimony before the New York City Council and at hearing held by the United Federation of Teachers on the mayoral control in our schools, which I will summarize as follows.

I feel the six year experiment with Mayoral control of the NYC Department of Education has not achieved improved student performance.

Mayoral control has eliminated the public election of community oversight bodies (school boards) which violates the basic human rights of our communities and parents to participate in their children’s education.

I believe that the development of a whole child requires the reinstitution of the Arts, Music, Physical Education (Gym), Student Governments and the teaching of basic American Civics – so students can learn how a basic democracy works so they can make intelligent political decisions in their own and their families self interest as adults and concerned citizens.

I call for the Elimination of the NYPD presence in the schools, which I feel creates a prison-like atmosphere in our schools...As the NYCLU has also noted, in its determined effort to bring these official vigilantes under control, that “this massive presence would make the NYPD’s school safety division the fifth largest police force in the country—larger than [those of] Washington D.C., Detroit, Boston, or Las Vegas.”

I feel that we should put Educators back into Tweed Courthouse and not corporate “media spin doctors” who misinform the citizenry about the problems in our schools.

Mayoral control has resulted in educational leaders being replaced by lawyers and corporate consultants as policy makers and decision makers, causing widespread demoralization within the system.

Mayoral control has resulted in costly no-bid contracts...which has taken vast amounts of money from the classrooms and into large corporate coffers ...

Mayoral control has ignored the basic human rights of our children and had a major negative impact on an entire generation of student’s elementary school experience; all of which has been driven by, high stakes testing and constant test preparation, limiting the scope and depth of a comprehensive curriculum, lack of fulfilling special education mandates, and constant upheaval causing high anxiety.

I believe that New York City Council members should have authority to monitor schools within their districts.

I demand that our elected officials and our Queens contingency of New York State legislators respond to this educational catastrophe and malfeasance by eliminating Mayoral control and remodeling the school system based on a human rights framework with a governance plan which incorporates local autonomy, school based decision making, parent and community involvement with strict oversight by independent bodies and the City Council.

I appreciate this opportunity to speak out on behalf of the children and parents of Queens public schools.

Sincerely,

David M. Quintana
Ozone Park

Klein Touts NYC Gains at TC Colloquium - Teachers College - Columbia University: News

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At a Teachers College colloquium this past week sponsored by TC’s Office of Policy and Research, Joel Klein, New York City’s Education Chancellor, outlined gains New York City has made for its public school students via increasing mayoral control of the school system.

Klein cited gains across a wide range of academic markers, from significant increases in student math and reading scores to a surge in graduation rates after nearly 30 years of stagnation. A large part of the success, he said, was due to the Mayor’s ability to limit the power and funding of school boards, and tie the funding system to students instead of schools.

Klein acknowledged audience member Michael Rebell, the head of Teachers College’s Campaign for Educational Equity, who previously won a series of court orders against New York State to bring billions of dollars into the New York City School system. “What Michael has done is fantastic—money is extremely important to the system,” Klein said. “But it isn’t everything. What’s more important is that it is spent well.”

In particular, Klein touted a number of leadership incentive programs, such as a program that can give principals bonuses of $25,000 or more if they have an excellent record, mentor other principals and are willing to lead high-needs schools. “You’ll have some principals making more than $200,000 a year, which will increase our ability to attract and retain the best candidates,” he said. He also noted a similar program for teachers offering bonuses of up to $10,000.

There’s still work left to do, Klein said. It upsets him that tenure is awarded to 99 percent of the teachers who remain in the public schools after three years on the job. “It shouldn’t be that way,” he said. “It certainly isn’t the case at Teachers College. Tenure is something to be earned.”

In a question-and-answer session following Klein’s talk, Rebell asked the Chancellor about reports that the city’s lead teachers program was faltering. Klein said that policy results take time. “You have to create a new culture” before policies can take hold, he said.

Asked about impediments that might prevent other cities from replicating New York’s successes, Klein talked about the human element. “People make rational choices,” he said. “If pay scales are similar in successful and failing schools, most teachers are going to want to work with motivated students.” Also, he said, “policy choices that work for children aren’t always going to work for the adults. Reducing tenure is going to be controversial—I get it.”

Still, Klein said, “the best days are ahead for best practices in education.”

NYC Public School Parents: What's Wrong with Mayoral Control by Leonie Haimson NYC Public School Parents blog...

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New York City Hall

On Monday the City Council held hearings on Mayoral control; most of those who testified said that the current system was not working -- that the administration wields dictatorial powers with no checks and balances, exhibits an overwhelmingly arrogant and dismissive attitude towards parents and other stakeholders, and repeatedly introduces misconceived and badly executed policies.

Several speakers suggested that the Department of Education should at least be subject to city law, as are other city agencies. This would also allow the City Council to overturn the worst and most abusive policies. Others spoke of the need to reinvigorate district control and strengthen the authority of District Community Education Councils.

Much of the testimony was incisive. Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer argued that the Panel on Educational Policy, now basically a rubber stamp for the administration, should be reformed to ensure more independence and actual input into policies; in his oral comments, he also pointed that he had never seen a bureaucracy that so enjoyed ignoring and refusing to meet with elected officials and parents. Other city agencies respond -- but not the DOE.

George Sweeting of the Independent Budget Office pointed out that the DOE routinely evades the sort of financial transparency required of all other agencies, making their job of providing adequate oversight nearly impossible -- and that Tweed's lack of disclosure had worsened over the last year. He also pointed out that rather than breaking down its budget by program as do other city agencies, "under the DOE’s current approach, a single unit of appropriation covers all of the $6.2 billion budgeted for general education purposes in the city’s schools."

Many parents expressed their frustration with the powerless they felt under the current system -- and stated that the unchecked imperial powers implicit in the current incarnation of Mayoral control is contrary to our entire system of government. As quoted on WNYC radio, retired teacher and gadfly Norm Scott pointed out that no one in power at Tweed has any experience in education:

" What would you think if Bloomberg suddenly called me up and said, "Hey Norm, I know you never dealt with money, but I'd like you to manage my hedge fund." This is basically what people are doing by turning the systems over to people who have never worked in the system."

See also testimony from Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott, and a powerpoint from Chancellor Klein.

Susan Shiroma, president of the Citywide Council on High Schools, Lisa Donlan, president of Community Education Council in District 1, and Josh Karan, CEC member in District 6.

Leonie Haimson of Class Size Matters, Diane Ravitch, educational historian and Randi Weingarten, President of the UFT.

Eugenia Simmons-Taylor, parent leader from Manhattan, David Quintana, parent leader from Queens, and Dorothy Giglio, parent leader from Brooklyn.

Ann Kjellberg, D2 parent and Political Action Committee, Dave Palmer of NY Lawyers for the Public Interest, and Cecilia Blewer of ICOPE.

Send us yours at classsizematters@gmail.com

Education Notes Online: My Birthday Present...City Council Hearings on Mayoral Control by Norm Scott

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Gee, how did they know that is what I wanted for my B-Day? (Well, I did get my Beef Wellington at "One if By Land..." last night.) I get to cover for The Wave and then switch hats and spew my 2 minutes of venom. Back later tonight with a report.

Update:
The very disappointing news is that every politician seems to want mayoral control in some form but just wants to tweak it. Later in the day, when real parents and teachers spoke they really got to the guts of the issue. Some of them are sending their testimony which I'll put up on the Norm's Notes blog but probably won't get to it till next week.

Randi flew in from Ohio and was actually very good - the UFT should put up her testimony. She wouldn't take a stand on mayoral control because she's waiting to hear the results of the UFT governance meetings. Okaaay!

Leonie Haimson spoke and so did Lisa Donlon, who pointed to some achievements under community control. Queens' David Quintana also made a strong statement. As did another parent from District 24. Ellen Raider from ICOPE and Gene Prisco from ICE, along with me were on the same panel when we spoke. I'm not sure anyone was listening.

I spoke about getting politics out of education. Sure! Ask politicians to do this. I pointed to how shameless they were about staying silent when Joel Klein got a waiver to be Chancellor. I said a bunch more but need to check my notes and I'm too lazy to do that now. You've probably read it here already.

Know what I think? They're all scared shitless of Bloomberg and his money. When he is gone, he will still exercise enormous influence over education to assure the monster will not be dismantled.

Check out Tuesday's NY Times for Jennifer Medina's story. I'll add some pics to this post tomorrow.

I tried to blog live from the Council chambers but only got this far before my wi-fi conked out (I was using that little XO laptop). I walked in towards the end of Klein and Walcott's testimony.

City Council Chamber, City Hall
March 3, 2008

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NY Daily News - 18 Ed Dept. Bigs Making at Least 190G by Erin Einhorn

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Educrat Marcia Lyles and Chancellor Joel Klein both make over $200,000 - more than the police commissioner.

Eighteen city education honchos were making more than $190,000 a year when classes began this September - up from just two last year, a Daily News salary analysis found.

That's more than Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta and the commissioners of major city departments like Health, Housing and Children's Services, who all make $189,700.

The top execs at the Education Department's Tweed Courthouse headquarters are among only 28 noncourt officials in all of city government who have cracked the $190,000 line. Most of the others are deputy mayors.

"Tweed is too top-heavy," said William McDonald, who heads a citywide group of elected parent leaders. "I don't know what it is these people are doing, but it doesn't seem to be getting down to the kids."

One of the 18 execs has since dropped to part-time status, but even with her out of the mix, the total number drawing salaries above $180,000 has surged to 36 from 20 in September 2006.

"Given their responsibilities, the salaries are appropriate," schools spokesman David Cantor said. "You're talking about the top managers of an agency that employs 140,000 people and educates 1.1 million children."

He pointed out that the number of managers making more than $150,000 dipped from 204 early in the year to 194 in September.

School officials yesterday could not provide details on total administrative salary costs this year compared with last year. A consultant hired to cut fat claims $170 million that once went to the bureaucracy is going to classrooms.

Most of the pay increase was part of a one-year 6.5% bump that went to most city managers last year. That's compared with the 2% increase teachers collected from October 2006 to this October.

The total cost of paying the top 100 people on the school payroll surged by 7.3% from September 2006 to this September.

Those 100 execs cost nearly $18 million.

"It's way too much," said Carlton Richardson, a member of the elected Community Education Council in Brooklyn's District 18. "They need to filter that money down to schools."

City Council Education Committee Chairman Robert Jackson said he has "no problem with paying people a good salary as long as they produce."

But school officials, he said, are leading a system where only 50% of kids earned an on-time diploma last year.

"Overall, as a system, that's failure," he said.

eeinhorn@nydailynews.com

With Tina Moore and Benjamin Lesser

NY Daily News - Leaders Rally for Queens Principal by Peter Kadushin

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The controversy over a popular Queens principal accused of assaulting a student and mishandling school funds flared up recently as community leaders and elected officials rallied for the beleaguered educator.

Breakfast Queens Education Forum

During a roundtable meeting in Queens with Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, advocates of Principal Shango Blake demanded a hearing for the former head of Intermediate School 109 in Queens Village.

Shango Blake - Daily News Photo

His father, James Blake, a CUNY professor, led the offensive at the gathering - originally intended as a forum for Klein to address education issues in southern Queens.

"If my son did something wrong, I want him to be punished because that will be beneficial for him," said James Blake. "But he has to have a fair hearing first. There have only been allegations."

Chancellor Joel Klein

Blake was removed as principal of IS 109 after investigators alleged that he had "choked and punched" a 13-year-old student and misappropriated $30,000 in school graduation, lunch and snack sale funds. Blake has denied the allegations.

Congressman Gregory Meeks

"He will be charged, and he will have a chance to have a full and fair hearing," Klein said to Blake and a room packed with his son's supporters.

District 27 Council President - Seated on Dais Assemblywoman Michelle Titus, State Senator Shirley Huntley and Assemblywoman Vivian Cooke

"We are working with the union to find processes to move it more quickly."

District 27 Council President Lorraine Bridges

Since Blake's removal - announced a week before the start of the school year - scores of parents, community leaders and elected officials have come to his defense.

State Senator Malcolm Smith

"I would like to see him have due process," said Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-Queens).

"He is being held in limbo and has not had the chance to address those that accused him, and that is fundamentally wrong."

Assemblywoman Michelle Titus

Many of Blake's defenders credit the principal with increasing math and reading scores and turning around the once-failing school.

"It was like they removed the CEO of a company and replaced them with a freshman in college," said Richard Arnoux, an IS109 parent.

"Blake turned that school into a success for our children. Right now these are allegations, and all of the changes at IS 109 have been destroyed," Arnoux said.

CPAC Chair William McDonald, District 27 Council President Willie Ramos and Manhattan HS President's Council Danielle Rogers

But Blake is not without his critics. Faculty members and other parents have taken issue with his autocratic leadership style and have told the Daily News the school is functioning well without him.

NY1: Governor's Education Point Man Meets With Parent Leaders by Michael Meehan..

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Governor Eliot Spitzer's point man on education met with some school parent leaders in the city Thursday. NY1 Education reporter Michael Meenan was there and heard the concerns parents want passed on to the governor.

Dr. Manuel Rivera is Governor Eliot Spitzer’s top adviser on education issues, named to the post right after Spitzer took office in January.

On Thursday the former chief of schools in Rochester, Boston and several other large cities came to town to meet with a citywide council of elected parent leaders to hear their concerns about this city's Department of Education.

"We need to have parent involvement in order to make this school system better. They might not think that, but that's the only way it’s going to be better because parents are the first teachers,” said parent leader Robert Reed.

But what was really on the minds of these parent leaders is how to spend a billion dollars in new aid, $700 million from the state, and $300 million from the city. The money is the first installment in what are being called "contracts for excellence” resulting from a court finding that the state has been under-funding city schools for decades.

"We just feel that the money came down and things just happened and the people that fought for it, really didn't participate in the reward and that's the part that is hurtful when our children are the consumers in the system and there's no accountability,” said parent leader Maria Daponte-Dougherty.

Of the billion dollars, the city DOE can spend three quarters any way it wants, without state approval. Rivera said that does not mean there should be no oversight.

"People want to know where that funding is going and to what extent is it going to the needs of the most needy students and is it in fact going to those programs and practices that yielding the best results?” said Rivera.

Rivera says when it comes to the spending, his boss the governor has one bottom line.

"These contracts for excellence are intended to get better results for children,” said Rivera.

Parents we spoke with said they thought they got a good hearing.

"I have that feeling that he's sincere and will take back our information to the governor,” said parent leader Muba Yarofulani.

It remains to be seen if Albany will take into account these concerns when deciding whether or not to approve the city's plan to spend this new state money.

– Michael Meenan

spiked.com: Bloomberg’s ‘disinterested’ agenda...

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In a recent spat over city schools, New York mayor Mike Bloomberg referred to the city’s major teaching union as ‘exactly the NRA’ – a reference to the arch-conservative National Rifle Association. While this kind of tough talk is not uncommon in the gritty world of New York’s urban politics, the comment was of more than passing significance. What could the nominally Republican Bloomberg find in common between a liberal union and a right-wing lobby group? The comparison reveals much about Bloomberg’s vision for the New York school system, but also about political debate in an era when our leaders understand themselves as managers.

Bloomberg’s campaign to reorganise city schools is now in its fifth year. A mammoth undertaking given the size of the system (1.1million students, 1,200 schools, 83,000 teachers), Bloomberg’s drive was initially popular and is widely credited with the record breaking 20 per cent margin of victory in his 2005 re-election. Resistance from a number of interested groups has been building, however, and has even managed to obstruct some of the mayor’s more ambitious proposals.

But the criticism has been constrained by posing the battle over the city’s schools in an outdated language of left and right. Opponents attack Bloomberg for being pro-corporate, anti-teacher or anti-principal (head teacher), but critics have not recognised that the central tenet of Bloomberg’s education crusade, and perhaps his politics more widely, is not the defence of a particular set of interests, but an attack on the very idea of interest itself. The mayor prefers that individuals do not speak through collectives and groups that represent specific interests or ideals. Instead, Bloomberg’s ideal world is one in which everyone expresses their interest in an entirely individualised way ‘directly’ to him.

One way in which this vision is articulated is through the language of accountability, a buzzword that runs through every initiative of the Bloomberg administration. (1) Collective interests are seen as barriers to the goal of accountability. So, for instance, Bloomberg assumed complete control over city schools in 2002, abolishing the erstwhile Board of Education, the bureaucracy which had previously run the system. According to the logic of the reform, this has made Bloomberg directly responsible for the success or failure of city education. Meanwhile, the focus on accountability has led to the search for ways to measure school performance. This has included implementing a city-wide curriculum, decentralising spending decisions to individual principals and introducing a ‘report-card’ on school performance to be sent to parents.

A recent proposal to change the school funding procedure seeks to further this project. Currently, teaching staff are allotted to schools on the basis of student numbers, and money is then allocated on the basis of a number of measures – poverty in the school’s neighbourhoods, a city-wide average of the teachers’ wages, the number of non-native English speakers etc. Bloomberg, aided and abetted by his loyal schools chancellor, Joel Klein, has proposed a new scheme whereby school funding would be allocated purely on the basis of student numbers.

By equalising funding for each student, Bloomberg furthers his agenda of accountability in two ways. First, it seems to level the playing field, allowing for a more direct comparison between different schools. As the Department of Education puts it: ‘Schools with comparable students will know they have comparable resources. Not getting a fair share will no longer be an excuse for poor performance.’ (2) Second, it would move the school system closer to the mayor’s market ideal, whereby students, who would take their funding with them should they decide to change schools, would act as consumers within a market place. In this ideal model, they would gravitate toward stronger schools, rewarding their superior education and encouraging those schools’ losing students to improve.

Not that the mayor got his way on this issue. The United Federation of Teachers (UFT), a union that represents 74,000 New York City teachers and is therefore a major player in education policy, has opposed the plans. They claim, amongst other things, that these changes will make it harder for senior teachers, who command higher salaries, to be hired. In a victory of sorts for the UFT, the mayor referred the plan to a ‘task force’, which includes UFT representatives, for further consideration. But in the sniping that preceded the deal Bloomberg made a number of interesting statements offering some insight into the thinking that drives his reforms.

Most notable was the bad tempered exchange in which Bloomberg described the UFT as ‘exactly the NRA’ (3). In the political demonology of American liberals, comparing an opponent to the NRA is the equivalent of labelling a rival as ‘fascist’ in an internet debate. Bloomberg’s rhetorical gambit reminds us just how far he is from the mainstream of American conservatism. It marked him out as a true coastal liberal, giving the lie to his opportunistic adoption of the Republican Party label in the 2001 election.

More revealing still was Bloomberg’s characterisation of the NRA, and his justification for using it as an epithet for the UFT: ‘You always do have the problem of a very small group of people who are single-issue focused having a disproportionate percentage of power.’ For Bloomberg, the NRA, and by extension the UFT, represent exactly the kind of interest-driven politics he defines himself against. In opposition to the UFT he repeatedly condemned ‘special interests’ while claiming that he and his altruistic allies were ‘standing up for our children’s interest, all our children’s interests’ (4).

This union bashing does not represent a conventional right-wing attack on labour. Bloomberg is not anti-teacher; he regularly refers to teachers as his ‘partners’ in education reform. He has also raised their salaries throughout his administration. He has, however, sought an unconventional relationship with teachers, a direct one that sidesteps their independent articulation of interests through the union.

This is clearest in the Bloomberg administration’s treatment of school principals (who Bloomberg often refers to as middle-managers). Principals are invited to regular lunches with Joel Klein while the former head of their union, the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, reports that she had to beg to get a meeting with Bloomberg. (5) The administration has also set up the ‘Leadership Academy’ to train future principals rather than letting them rise up through the ranks as happened in the past. This measure was understood as allowing the administration a greater influence over the direction of schools. At the same time, it obstructs the organic process whereby veteran teachers develop autonomous leadership that might exercise influence over the direction of school policy. The idea is to substitute bureaucratic management of teacher development for the more conventional standard of seniority.

A similarly managerial approach is apparent in the calls for parental involvement in schools. In a Department of Education (DOE) booklet, parents’ ‘rights and responsibilities’ are outlined in detail on the basis that the DOE recognises ‘parents are the primary educators of their children’ (6). And there have been repeated attempts to canvass the opinion of parents, most recently in an enormous survey launched last month. (7) Moreover, parents are courted as watchdogs of the administration, monitoring the progress of their children’s schools. Of the plan to issue an annual school report to parents, Bloomberg said: ‘Personally, I can’t think of a better way to hold a principal’s feet to the fire than arming mom and dad with the facts about how well or poorly their children’s school is performing.’ (8)

But the administration’s attitude to parental involvement appears, at first glance, to be contradictory. While endlessly encouraging and soliciting parent input, they have dismantled the Community School Boards that once provided a public forum for discussion of education. And when challenged by parents, the administration has been defensive; parent groups who oppose change are lumped in with the UFT as ‘special interests’. The attitude of the administration is that their apparent ‘disinterest’ – the fact that they claim to have nothing personal at stake in the disputes – is the reason that we should follow their lead on reform. Their supposed position of pure altruism is seen as substantiating their claim to political power and as a way of discrediting their opponents.

Bloomberg does want parental involvement but as guarantors of accountability, not as active citizens. He views parents and students as isolated consumers, their choices providing the ultimate measure of school success. But this market model does not indicate that Bloomberg represents a firmly pro-market position. As noted above, he is no draconian cost cutter. Just as he raised teachers’ salaries, the overall education budget has increased substantially under his watch.

It is more that the kind of individual choices that make up the market system are, by default, the methods by which the Bloomberg administration believes it can assess the school system. Lacking any broader agenda for education, the only measure available to the administration is the aggregation of the individual choices that students and their parents make. In fact, Bloomberg’s attitude seems to be that there shouldn’t be a particular agenda for education. The market mechanisms of adding up consumer preferences, and measuring success or failure through report cards and test scores, is a substitute for the more difficult discussion of what education is all about.

This leads back to the attack on interests. For the Bloomberg administration, any intervening force that disrupts the operation of their market model is corrupting. If individual choice is the ultimate arbiter, we distrust those organisations that might seek to impose their vision on those choices. Margaret Thatcher famously said ‘there is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families.’ But she did not entirely believe this; rather she was using the market model as a political weapon against those interests with which she disagreed. (9) Lacking her political agenda, Bloomberg attacks all interests in the name of his own, anti-political (or managerial) vision of education. But the perverse consequence of this is that he establishes himself as ultimate arbiter of individual views, the supreme aggregator of all those choices. In the name of ‘disinterest’ he dictates to those who have an actual stake in the system.

Nick Frayn is a writer and researcher based in New York.

NY1: Judge Sides With Cell Phone Ban, Parents To Appeal Decision...

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The cell phone wars could go on, as parents say they may appeal the ruling of a judge who sided with the city in its ban on cell phones in public schools. The lawsuit by eight parents claimed the Department of Education policy violates the constitutional rights of students and parents, who say cell phones are needed in case of emergencies. Some students NY1 spoke with said they believe they should be able to have their cell phones on hand, as long as they are responsible with them. "I really need my cell phone to get in contact with my mother because she's always calling me and I need to call her to tell her where I'm going, what I'm doing,” said one student. “And I think it's going to be a giant loss if we lose our cell phones, not because so we can talk to our friends, but for basic responsibility purposes.” “If I take the bus in the morning they'll call me in the morning and they like for me to call them when I get out of school,” said another student. But the DOE says the policy preserves a safe learning environment for students, arguing cell phones are disruptive and can be used for cheating. The judge agreed saying the decision on whether cell phones should be permitted in schools should be left up to the DOE, and not the court. The city's lead attorney on the case says the court did the right thing.

Cell Phone Ban Upheld by Court...

NY Times: Manhattan Court Upholds School Cellphone Ban By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN

A State Supreme Court justice ruled yesterday that New York City’s rule prohibiting students from bringing cellphones to public schools was “rational,” rejecting an effort by parents who had sought to overturn the ban. In a 50-page decision, the justice, Lewis Bart Stone, said the court could decide only whether the rule was a reasonable way to prevent students from using cellphones in school and that he could not suggest a different rule, even if he preferred one. “The court finds that banning possession in the school is not an irrational method to accomplish such goal,” he wrote. Justice Stone also rejected a claim that the rule violated students’ and parents’ constitutional rights. “Neither the state nor federal constitutions include any express constitutional right to bear cellphones,” he wrote. Norman Siegel, above, a lawyer for the parents, said they were considering an appeal. “We will not rest until the ban is lifted,” he said. David Cantor, a spokesman for Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein, said the city was pleased with the decision.

CBS/AP: Judge: City Ban On Cell Phones In Schools OK


(CBS/AP) NEW YORK The city ban on students having cellular telephones in public schools is rational and legal, a judge ruled Monday in support of a policy that parents have vigorously opposed.

The Department of Education's ban has existed for years in the nation's biggest school system, but until last spring many students carried cell phones without risk of punishment.

When the city began random security checks in schools in April 2006 as part of a weapons crackdown, authorities began finding and confiscating hundreds of cell phones, prompting protests over the no-phone policy.

Eight parents who wanted their children to have cell phones in schools filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education on July 13, 2006, challenging the ban as irrational and unsafe. They also argued that it intruded on a parent's right to determine a child's care, custody and control.

DOE officials responded that cell phones were disruptive in schools and could be used for cheating. They said the ban was a reasonable way to preserve a safe learning environment and did not violate anyone's rights.

Manhattan state Supreme Court Justice Lewis Bart Stone agreed.

He said he did "not rule on the wisdom or lack of wisdom of the cell phone rules" or on any future modification or repeal the DOE might choose to make about rules regarding possession of cell phones in public schools.

The judge noted that the parents suggested there might be technological "fixes" that would satisfy both sides, but no suggestion was compelling enough for him to find the DOE cell phone rules faulty.

Even if he were to try to impose a technology-based decision, the judge said, the rapid pace of technological change would probably make obsolete any decision he might issue.

City lawyer Eamonn Foley said the judge "correctly held that the Department of Education had a rational basis to adopt its cell phone policy and that the policy does not violate any constitutional right of students or their parents."

Many parents disagreed with the judge's ruling and were disappointed by it, their attorney Norman Siegel said.

"We remain committed to reversing the ban and are seriously considering appealing the decision," he said. "We will not rest until the cell phone ban is lifted."

NY Daily News: State court says city can ban cell phones in schools

The city ban on students having cellular telephones in public schools is rational and legal, a judge ruled Monday in support of a policy that parents have vigorously opposed.

The Department of Education's ban has existed for years in the nation's biggest school system, but until last spring many students carried cell phones without risk of punishment.

When the city began random security checks in schools in April 2006 as part of a weapons crackdown, authorities began finding and confiscating hundreds of cell phones, prompting protests over the no-phone policy.

Eight parents who wanted their children to have cell phones in schools filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education on July 13, 2006, challenging the ban as irrational and unsafe. They also argued that it intruded on a parent's right to determine a child's care, custody and control.

DOE officials responded that cell phones were disruptive in schools and could be used for cheating. They said the ban was a reasonable way to preserve a safe learning environment and did not violate anyone's rights.

Manhattan state Supreme Court Justice Lewis Bart Stone agreed.

He said he did "not rule on the wisdom or lack of wisdom of the cell phone rules" or on any future modification or repeal the DOE might choose to make about rules regarding possession of cell phones in public schools.

The judge noted that the parents suggested there might be technological "fixes" that would satisfy both sides, but no suggestion was compelling enough for him to find the DOE cell phone rules faulty.

Even if he were to try to impose a technology-based decision, the judge said, the rapid pace of technological change would probably make obsolete any decision he might issue.

City lawyer Eamonn Foley said the judge "correctly held that the Department of Education had a rational basis to adopt its cell phone policy and that the policy does not violate any constitutional right of students or their parents."

SI Advance: Cell phone suit by Island parents against DOE dismissed

The lawsuit filed on behalf of two Staten Island mothers and six other public school parents against the Department of Education's cell phone ban has been dismissed, according to the suit's lead lawyer, Norman Siegel.

The July filing sought to challenge the constitutionality of the cell phone policy - which effectively prohibited students from carrying cell phones to and from school and upset many parents who said their children relied on the devices to keep them safe.

Siegel said his team was considering an appeal of the decision by New York state Supreme Court Justice Lewis Bart Stone.

--Contributed by Yoav Gonen

NY Sun: Parents Lose in Court Case on Cell Phones by SARAH GARLAND

A group of parents seeking to overturn Mayor Bloomberg's ban on cell phones in city schools is likely to appeal a state Supreme Court judge's decision yesterday to dismiss their lawsuit against the city.

The group's lawyer, Norman Siegel, said he was disappointed, but vowed to continue to fight the city over the ban, which he has argued is unconstitutional.

"It's not over yet," one of the eight plaintiffs in the case, Ellen Bilofsky, said. "It's still an unfair and unenforceable rule, and we intend to keep fighting against it."

Ms. Bilofsky said she was compelled to join the lawsuit after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Her daughter, Jessica — then a 14-year-old freshman at Stuyvesant High School — that day wandered for hours around Manhattan unable to contact her parents because she didn't have a cell phone at the time.

Ms. Bilofsky's son, Alexander, is now a sophomore at Stuyvesant, and she said she constantly fears for his safety when he doesn't carry a phone.

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1010WINS News: State Court Says NYC Can Ban Cell Phones in Schools

NEW YORK (AP) -- The city has a right to ban cell phones from public schools, a court ruled Monday, reinforcing a policy that has angered parents.

The ban had been in place for years in the nation's biggest school system, but until last spring many students carried the phones without consequence.

When the city began random security checks in April 2006 as part of a weapons crackdown, authorities began finding and confiscating hundreds of cell phones, prompting protests over the no-phone policy.

Parents who wanted their children to be able to take phones to schools had sued to strike down the ban. They said it was safer for children to have phones.

The Department of Education said the phones were disruptive and could be used for cheating.

Education officials said the cell phone policy was a reasonable way to preserve a safe learning environment and didn't violate anyone's rights.

"(The Manhattan state Supreme Court) correctly held that the Department of Education had a rational basis to adopt its cell phone policy and that the policy does not violate any constitutional right of students or their parents,'' said Eamonn Foley, a lawyer for the city.

You Tube: Tim Johnson's Speech at the 31 IDEAL Ed Forum...

Thanks to NYC Public School Parents:

Tim Johnson, Chairman of the Chancellor's Parent Advisory Council, speaks at the 31 IDEAL Ed symposium April 31st on Staten Island.



Tim Johnson galvanized the audience like no other speaker on April 30 in Staten Island with his assault on mayoral control and the leadership of Joel Klein and Mayor Bloomberg. And with Chris Cerf sitting just a few feet away. Randi Weingarten, Betsy Gotbaum, Robert Jackson, and CSA head Ernie Logan were all featured speakers.

Queens Chronicle: Survey Buries Concerns On Class Size: Parents...by Colin Gustafson, Assistant Editor

While the results of the Department of Education’s public opinion survey on the school system will not be tabulated for several months, the verdict from the eight parents who helped design the questionnaire is already in — and the news is not promising.

“This is simply another (public relations) offensive by Tweed (education headquarters) to try to show that they really care about what parents think when the reality is otherwise,” the parents wrote in a scathing e-mail to the office of Schools Chancellor Joel Klein last week. “Parents’ voices and views have again been stifled, even when it comes to the survey itself.”

In an effort to solicit greater input from the public, the department sent out surveys this week to more than 1.8 million students, teachers and parents about their attitude toward public education in New York City. The goal, according to education officials, was to assess the performance of each school citywide, while gaining insight into the concerns of parents and educators.

The survey results will count toward about 10 percent of each school’s performance grade, ranging from A through F. And while responses from parents will have slightly more weight than those of students or teachers, critics charged that the questionnaire pays scant attention to the issues that matter most to the public.

Instead, it focuses largely on satisfaction ratings — ranging from “Strongly Agree” to “Strongly Disagree” — on school quality, activities and coursework. Absent from all but one of the 14 multiple-choice questions are concerns regarding class size, standardized testing, test preparation and principals’ attitudes toward parents, critics said.

One question at the end of the survey asks parents to choose just one of 10 potential “improvements” they would most like to see at their child’s school.

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Eyewitness News: Parents Frustrated by School Report Card Surveys by Art McFarland...

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New York - WABC, April 30, 2007) - Frustrated parents are staging a boycott Monday, trying to send a message to Mayor Bloomberg.

They're not happy with a new school survey parents are being given, and some are telling others not to fill it out.

Education reporter Art McFarland has more on the controversy.

The mayor had already promised a way for the New York City school community to weigh in on how individual schools are doing.

"Starting today, we're going to be sending out our 'Learning Environment Surveys,' to the school system's three biggest stakeholders: the teachers, the parents and the students," Mayor Bloomberg said.

The surveys will amount to 10 percent of overall report cards to be issued for each school.

"This survey was not written to really address the problems that all of us said were important," parent activist Leonie Haimson said. " Haimson, of the group "Class Size Matters," was on a panel of parent leaders asked to make suggestions for the survey. She is not alone in calling for a form of protest over the survey.

"Instead of answering the questions that really don't pertain to our issues, we want parents to cross out the survey and write how they really feel on it," she said.

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