Citywide #ProtectOurSchools Rallies- Pics, Videos, and News Coverage

Some news links for our hugely successful rallies on Thursday:  Chalkbeat,   SchoolBook,   New York Daily News, New York Post, Non-profit Quarterly, Gothamist, Chalkbeat the night before -- to give it context.   Also see local coverage from Queens Courier,  South Slope News, Brooklyn Eagle , DNAinfo Downtown,  DNAinfo Fort Greene,    DNAinfo Inwood,  DNAinfo Park Slope and  Brooklyn Paper 

     Also:  good TV coverage from CBS News, News 12 Bronx  and News 12 Brooklyn.  And don't miss the terrific parent-made videos from PS 20, Arts and Letters school, Brooklyn Arbor and PS/IS 87 below -- featuring Public Advocate Tish James, former CM (and education hero) Robert Jackson, and lots of wonderful public school parents and kids. See also our Facebook event page; and feel free to add more newslinks or links to photos and videos below. 

PS 3 parents, kids, and teachers line up to protect their school

What a day!  I'm amazed at how quickly the idea we had for #protectourschools grew throughout the city.  When I first heard it suggested by Danielle Boudet, a parent from Oneonta NY and a steering committee member of our terrific statewide coalition NYS Allies for Education, I though it was a deceptively simple but wonderful idea: a symbolic action that all parents, students and teachers take: to link hands and protect their schools from Governor's attempt to defund, disrupt, and dismantle our public schools.

PS 3 parents and student

Unlike charter schools, of course, NYC public schools can't close for the day, and bus their kids and staff up to Albany.  It would be illegal, and we wouldn't want to cut short students' instructional time anyway.  But before and after school, I thought, it might be possible to enlist parents and teachers at perhaps 10-20 schools to take action, and if  everyone tweeted photos at about the same time, it might get some attention from the public.  Never did I imagine that 100-200 schools would participate, with such energy and joy and commitment.

Well, the idea took off.  The date of March 12 was set, and we emailed parents, suggesting they should organize this action at their schools.  The UFT subsequently emailed the idea to their chapter leaders as one among several actions they could take, but at many of the schools across the city, it  was really parents who took the lead in organizing these events.  This was truly a grassroots effort.

Councilmembers Dromm and Chin

I started at the morning at PS 3 in Greenwich Village, where my daughter had gone to school and was thrilled to parents and kids lined up, almost surrounding the entire school, chanting "Parents and teachers united can fight em".

I went back home and started madly tweeting and retweeting  the hundreds of images that were coming through the internet from all over the city-- wonderful photos and videos of parents, kids and teachers, chanting, holding signs and singing, defending their schools from Cuomo's predatory attacks.  Just check out the twitter feed with the hashtag #protectourschools, or go to our Facebook page to see many of them.

NYU Professor quoting Che Guevara

Then I got an email that CM Dromm, the chair of the Ed Committee in the City Council,  was holding a press conference in the Red Room at 1 PM, dashed down there, where he and other Councilmembers were speaking out against the Governor's damaging privatization agenda.  CMs Dromm, Ferreras, Chin, Maisel, Barron, Treygar, Menchaca, Rosenthal, and Lander were all wonderfully eloquent about how we'd had 12 years of the Bloomberg axe of closing schools, ripping out the heard of communities, and expanding charters -- and here we were faced with these failed and damaging proposals all over again,.

Me

I ran home, started tweeting again, and then joined the eloquent teachers and students from City-as-School who were gathered in Washington Sq. Park for a speak-out.   Teachers and students spoke about the importance of treating each other as human beings, rather than test scores or isolated pieces of data. One speaker, a professor from NYU whose name I didn't catch (if you know her, please add to the comments section below), quoted Che Guevara who said, "if education is not given to the people, they will have to take it."

City as School singing "The Times They are a Changin'"

 A Detroit activist spoke about how his city had been devastated by the closing of hundreds of schools -- and that we should fight the Governor's policies that would do likewise.  I spoke about how Cuomo's proposal to send 250 more charters to the city -- each of which would be obligated to get free space and buildings at taxpayer expense - could prove to be a fatal blow to our public education system and could cost the taxpayer $830 million per year in annual payments for rent alone.

The speak-out wrapped up with a student singing the Bob Dylan song, "The Times they are a'changing" and another teacher who said this should be only the first of many protests.  And indeed there is a rally in City Hall Park tomorrow, hosted by Tish James, our Public Advocate, and another one in front of the Governor's office on March 28. 

We got tons of press most of it good.  Some reporters who shall remain nameless implied that parents were just tools of the UFT; the Governor predictably called us "special interests" having a tantrum, which just shows how successful the day's events were. Right before he was run out of town on a rail, Commissioner John King also vilified parents as "special interests" who dared protest his high-stakes testing/privacy violating agenda.

My favorite videos from the day are below, including Tish James giving a wonderful civics letter to the parents and kids at PS 20 and Arts and Letters, and the PTA presidents of those schools explaining how they feel about Cuomo's proposals.

Below that is a great short video from Brooklyn Arbor, complete with musical refrain, and a video from PS/IS 87 in Washington Heights, where the famous Campaign for Fiscal Equity school funding case began,  and whose court decision the Governor is defying.  This one stars lead CFE plaintiff former CM Robert Jackson and the parent leaders at that school. 

A+L - P.S. 20 HANDS AROUND THE SCHOOL from Frantic Studio/client on Vimeo.

 

Post by Jennifer Rogers-Anderson.

Charter school press conference rescheduled for Cuomo appearance on behalf of big-money contributors

Boykin Curry, head of Prep Charter board with wife Celerie

See below; a pro-charter school press conference is hurriedly rescheduled today in the Bronx so the Governor could make an appearance.  When has Cuomo ever appeared at a public school to call attention to the need for more public education funding, to alleviate public school overcrowding or fix "crumbling schools"?  Never.

Could his  appearance on behalf of Girls Prep Charter in the Bronx be related to the fact that the head of the charter school's board, Boykin Curry,  gave him more than $98,000 between 2009-2012? according to http://data.influenceexplorer.com

Or the fact that in the last election cycle, Curry gave Cuomo an additional $60,800 (the limit)  according the spreadsheet compiled by Capital NY here: http://bit.ly/1vC7ZnR ?

Not to mention Curry's wife Cecilia Kemble (sometimes known as Celerie) who gave Cuomo $56,200 in the last election?   Or Bruce Kovner, on the Girls Prep advisory board,  who gave him $45,000? 

Nah.

From: Ruben Diaz <diaz@nysenate.gov>
Date: Tue, Feb 17, 2015 at 8:57 PM
Subject: ***Wednesday Morning Press Bronx Conference Rescheduled to 12:00 noon***
To: Ruben Diaz <diaz@nysenate.gov>


 ***Wednesday Morning Press Bronx Conference Rescheduled to 12:00 noon***

Press conference demonstrating support for bold action to fix failing schools crisis
 
Since Governor Andrew Cuomo will be in the Bronx in the morning of February 18, 2015, this Bronx Press Conference has been rescheduled to 12:00 noon at the Girls Prep Bronx Elementary 681 Kelly Street, Bronx, NY 10455.

Senator Ruben Diaz Sr., Assemblymen Marcos Crespo and Mark Gjonaj, and Assemblywoman Latoya Joyner Stand with Prominent Clergy and Parents to Call for Bold Change to Fix Failing Schools Crisis.

Dozens of parents will join prominent clergy and elected officials, including Senator Ruben Diaz Sr., Assemblymen Marcos Crespo and Mark Gjonaj, and Assemblywoman Latoya Joyner at Girls Prep Charter School in the Bronx on Wednesday to call on Albany lawmakers to press ahead with bold, structural change to address New York City's failing schools crisis.

With nearly half of New York City's failing schools residing in the Bronx, elected officials will stand with community members, clergy, and parents to call for an end to the crisis, and for the expansion of excellent charter schools like Girls' Prep Bronx.

Please say no to this budget deal; Call the Speaker & your Assemblymember NOW!

According to today’s NY Post, the legislature is about to make the worst possible deal imaginable: considerably more per pupil funding for charters, including more than $1100 per student over three years, and free space or rent paid for by NYC  for any new or expanding  NYC charter going forward – just in NYC, by the way, where we have the most overcrowded schools in the state, with more than half our students sitting in extremely overcrowded schools by the DOE’s own metrics, which we know are an underestimate.

Thousands of kids on waiting lists for Kindergarten each spring, thousands more sitting in trailers, and the capital plan provides less than one third of the seats needed to eliminate current overcrowding and address future enrollment growth.  But charters will be guaranteed the space to expand – paid for by city taxpayers, while our public school students  are crushed into larger and larger classes with less space to learn.

Call the Speaker’s office now:  tell him to say NO to the deal forcing the city to pay for facilities forever for new or expanded charters, while public school students will sit in increasingly overcrowded buildings.

Speaker Silver: (518) 455-3791

Then call your Assemblymember and urge them to say NO to this deal as well; find their contact info here:

If this deal goes forward, this will truly create a two tier system in which the charter schools will  be the only ones in uncrowded facilities, with the rent paid for by NYC taxpayers, and all parents will be forced to apply to charter schools whether they want to or not,  just to guarantee a seat for their child in a school that is not hugely overcrowded.

Please call the Speaker's office and your Assemblymember now.

My take on the teacher evaluation deal announced today in Albany: disappointing & with uncertain results

From what I can tell, the part of the deal that was struck between the city and the UFT seems to be a good one: an external arbiter for the subjective teacher ratings by principals, which is necessary considering the number of unfair "U" ratings we have seen from abusive principals in recent years.  CORRECTION: I should never comment before reading the reporting and the fine print.  Apparently, only 13% of teachers will have independent review the 1st year of  an "ineffective" rating from a principal, and none the second year, according to GothamSchools.

The rest of the deal statewide is very disappointing.  If I am reading the agreement correctly, it founders on four main points:

 .          Teachers will be rated on a curve, with the commissioner having the ultimate power to decide whether the curve is "rigorous" enough -- meaning automatically some teachers must fail;

.         Any teacher rated 0-64 out of 100 will be rated "ineffective" (which seems to be a biased scale);

.         If a teacher is rated ineffective thru growth rates on assessments alone, he or she must be rated ineffective overall; making the agreement to base 20-40% on test scores a total fiction.  If the 40% turns out to be state test scores alone, no matter how used, the results will be unreliable and erratic, teachers will be unfairly evaluated and  students will suffer as a result.

.    The agreement also gives the SED Commissioner too much power -- the authority to approve or disapprove any local evaluation plan he deems "insufficient."

Since the state agreement will govern NYC as well, what it means for our schools will depend on what our local assessments turn out to be. 

If they turn out to be yet more standardized tests, like the 408 standardized exams the city bid out this summer, this will mean our schools become even more test prep factories, with teachers unfairly rated and less learning in the classroom.   

Thus it is critical that some form of portfolio work, based on actual classroom work, be used for the 20 percent local assessments. But will the DOE agree to this? Will the Commissioner agree to a portfolio system, especially as he seems to believe test scores should trump all? Who knows.

As made clear at the press conference, the city has also not yet agreed to refrain from closing the 33 SIG schools -- despite this deal.  There are still many unresolved issues on the table.
In the end, this new statewide evaluation system represents a vast experiment on our kids,  with uncertain and potentially damaging results.  And all this, to get Race to the Top and SIG funds -- most of which will spent on consultants, more testing and data systems -- not to benefit the children.

Cuomo: Cut taxes on the wealthy, and slash school budgets to the bone

New York's new governor, Andrew Cuomo is insisting that that the surtax on individuals making over $200,000 should be allowed to lapse – why? Because "working families can't afford it" !!! Cuomo is quickly turning out to be a DINO (Democrat in Name Only.)

He is, of course, quite willing to layoff state employees, cap property taxes, and cut education spending to the bone instead.

According to Frank Mauro of the Fiscal Policy Institute, allowing the surtax to lapse will cost $5 billion per year.

Meanwhile, check out a new FPI report, revealing that NY State has the most unequal income distribution of any state in the country; and NYC the most unequal among cities. See the graph to the right, showing that one percent of NYC residents now make almost half of all income.

In discussing the PISA results, Diane Ravitch reveals that more than 20% of US kids live under the poverty line. Most of the nations (and cities) that compete on PISA have far lower rates of poverty.

At a time of fiscal stringency, it seems crazy to talk about helping lift children and families out of poverty. Critics say, "We can't afford to do anything anymore," "Sorry, the money is all gone," "No one should pay any new taxes," "This is not a time for social innovation; it is a time for educational innovation." But in light of the overwhelming evidence of the dire consequences of persistent poverty, it seems even crazier to ignore it and to assume that we can reach the top of the international achievement tables by closing schools, firing teachers, and hastening privatization.

See also this chart, below, from the Shanker blog, showing the unfairness of the current tax structure; and that the poorer you are, the larger percentage of your income you pay in taxes.

Cuomo of course is not alone. Chris Christie, the new Governor of NJ, also wants to cut taxes on the wealthy…. at the same time as he’s cutting funding for the state’s poorest schools, in violation of a court order.

But not everyone connected with education will be happy at the decisions to cut taxes on the wealthy. Joel Klein will get to keep more of his hard-earned cash, as he goes to work for Rupert Murdoch. He’s due to make an estimated $4 million the first year at NewsCorp, heading up their new online learning division.

And on it goes.

Andrew Cuomo: stop listening to the privateers, and start listening to parentse!

Andrew Cuomo announced for governor this weekend; according to news reports, he decided to support raising the cap on charter schools after he met with the hedge fund operators, and got their promise of contributions to his campaign.

He seems to have completely swallowed the line of the charter school lobby, according to his new campaign document, and implies giving parents a say in co-locations ‘a poison pill”:

I believe public education is the new civil rights battle and I support charter schools.

New York must be the leader when it comes to education reform. This starts with the increasing the charter school cap from 200 to 460. But increasing the cap won’t result in more charter schools if we too tightly restrict where they can be located or how they can be approved. We believe that public review and consultation are important—especially when charter schools will be co-located with traditional public schools—but this cannot become a poison pill that prevents opening new charter schools.

It’s unbelievable how bad it’s gotten and how much public education has been undermined by the hedge fund privateers, that its considered a positive sign that Robert Duffy, Mayor of Rochester, pro-charter and pro-mayoral control, who is Cuomo’s pick as lieutenant governor, feels as though he must assure parents that their neighborhood schools will not entirely disappear, according to the Gotham Schools:

We will guarantee a place for elementary school children at their nearest neighborhood school, if that is what the family wants. There will be choices of other schools with special programs and services, but every young child will be able to attend a neighborhood school if their parents choose. That will reduce transportation costs.

Some vision of public education!

If you are on Facebook, please friend Cuomo, and then post a comment on his Facebook page, as I have. Urge him to start listening to parents, for a change; not the hedge fund operators.

Ask him to oppose raising the cap on charters without rigorous protections for parent and student rights. And ask him to start paying attention to improvements for our public schools, where the vast majority of our NY students attend. Public school parents may not have millions to contribute to his campaign, unlike the hedge fund operators, but we vote!