Talk out of School: Top education stories of 2021, De Blasio record, what we might expect from Mayor Adams, and school safety during the Omicron Surge

Check out our latest Talk out of School podcast:  Daniel Alicea and I recap the top education stories of 2021, discuss the De Blasio record, what we might expect of Mayor Eric Adams, and whether current school safety protocols are strong enough during the Omicron surge.  Please leave your comments below! 

Episode Notes

Gotham Gazette, The Sizeable Downside of de Blasio’s education record

NY1, At many schools, the DOE is testing fever kids for Covid than you might think

NYC Public School Parents, Deceptive messaging and multiple gaps in the level of protection from Covid that the DOE is providing students -- but why?

NYC Public School Parents , Update on Omicron and what's happening in schools in NYC and elsewhere to limit transmission

NYC Public School Parents, The city's claim of low in-school transmission is unreliable at best

Reddit , I Am a New York City Public High School Student. The Situation is Beyond Control.

New Yorker, Who Gets the Blame When Schools Shut Down

Gothamist, NYC Schools Bought Weaker Air Purifiers. Now Underventilated Campuses Are More Prone To COVID Cases

Nature: Real-world data show that filters clean COVID-causing virus from air

Important update on just-announced NYC school closings and other important developments

After several weeks of resistance, Mayor de Blasio just announced that starting tomorrow, Monday March 16, NYC public schools will be closed, and will remain closed until at least April 20, to stem the rapid spread of coronavirus.  For the next week, schools will be open only as a place for parents to pick up food if they need it for their families, and teachers will be trained in online learning starting Tuesday.

The following week, starting March 23, students will begin to engage in “remote learning”, and “Regional Enrichment centers” will be opened throughout the city to provide child care for first responders, health care and transit workers, and “our most vulnerable populations.”
Chancellor Carranza said that online devices will also be provided to the approximately 300,000 kids who don’t have them. A schedule of events is available on the DOE website here. The Chancellor strongly urged all parents to sign up for School Accounts to stay in the loop, if you haven’t already; instructions here.

• The Mayor delayed this necessary decision for weeks, even after most public health experts, parents, teachers, union officials, and other elected leaders had begged him to close the schools, as nearly every other large district and more than 15 states have already done. More on about this in a blog post I wrote on Thursday. With more than half a million kids in overcrowded schools, and more than 325,000 in classes of 30 or more, it would be simply impossible to prevent the rapid spread of the virus among our children, teachers and other staff, which currently is our best chance to prevent our health care system from becoming quickly overwhelmed.
  

• Yet I am also very skeptical as to the value of online learning even under the best of conditions; and there is growing consensus among independent researchers that it doesn’t work well, especially for kids who need help the most.  I and others also have many privacy concerns, some of which are outlined on our Parent Coalition for Student Privacy blog, where I also offer some alternative suggestions as to what might be better ways to keep your kids engaged, both physically and intellectually, during the weeks ahead.  

When online instruction begins in NYC, I will be eager to hear from all of you, including parents, teachers and students, as to what your experiences are with whatever programs are adopted by the DOE.

• Most importantly, it will be important for you to keep yourselves and your children safe by maintaining an acceptable “social distance” from others who may be unknowingly infected. I urge you to consult the most reliable information on how to do this best; for example, this site from the Harvard Medical School.

Though Mayor de Blasio has repeatedly claimed that asymptomatic individuals, including children, do not spread the disease, this is contrary to several recent scientific studies that show otherwise. In any event, much of the city will be shutting down in the coming days, including the City Council budget hearings that were due to start next week.

I wanted to get this update to you quickly and will try to keep you informed as events unfold. Meanwhile, I hope that whatever situation you find yourselves in, at work and at home, that you and your family remain healthy in the days ahead.

Yours, Leonie

Why parents should apply to run for their Community or Citywide Council -- despite the limitations of that role

Elections for District Community Education Councils and Citywide Councils will be held this spring, with the application process starting next month on Feb. 14.  Serving on these Councils is often frustrating as they have very little power other than advisory - and even the advice they give is often ignored. 

As Deb Alexander, the co-President of CEC 30, pointed out a recent Queens town hall meeting, when CECs pass resolutions on important policy questions, they are completely ignored by the Mayor and Chancellor and don't even get a response.  At the meeting, De Blasio then said someone at DOE would now be charged with responding to CEC resolutions - this after almost six years of failing to do so.  

Deb also pointed out that no CEC member was appointed by him to the advisory committee on the Amazon headquarters in Long Island City - despite extreme school overcrowding in the neighborhood, and the fact that two potential school sites were given to Amazon for their new headquarters, without any consultation with neighborhood residents. The Mayor then said he would add a CEC member -- but the fact that this never occurred to him in the first place is emblematic of the lowly position that CECs and parents in general appear to have in his overall scheme of things.

When he initially ran for Mayor, De Blasio also made specific promises that if elected, his appointees on the Panel for Educational Policy would have to refer specifically to the positions of CECs on school closings or co-locations in their districts before voting on whether to approve them.  He wrote this in 2013 on the NYC Kids PAC survey: "The Panel for Educational Policy must address the PEP's vote on major school utilization changes in their PEP meetings. They must state why they disagree with the local CEC and work with the local CEC for alternative solutions." 

Nothing of the sort has happened, and again, despite all the claims of this administration, little attention has been given to parent or community input in these decisions, or other controversial policies. The one power that CECs assuredly have by state law is to approve changes in school zoning lines -- and even then, that authority is often ignored by the DOE when they want to close a zoned school, which in the case of PS 25 in District 16, has prompted a lawsuit.  

All in all, it is not surprising to discover  that 31 out of 36 Councils do not have their full compliment of members currently, according to the DOE website, given the lack of respect they have been given by the last two administrations.  Perhaps this is one reason why the Education Council Consortium, the organization consisting of CEC and Citywide Council leaders, wants to put limits on the unilateral system of mayoral control. 

Nevertheless, serving on your CEC or a Citywide Council is important, and I urge parents to apply.  Often, members are given briefings by DOE and thus informed of policies before others hear about them.  In some cases, as in the diversity initiatives undertaken by CEC 1 and CEC 15, they can help shape the plans of the administration, especially when they are in general agreement with the Mayor's goals.  They also have a potential impact in organizing parents in the district to lobby local elected officials to site and build new schools in the district, to help ease overcrowding.  Many CEC members have been important in advocating for better policies.  We have been pressing for CECs to have a formal advisory role in the city planning process, similar to Community Boards currently.  And if Mayoral control is amended in the next legislative session, their role in school governance may indeed be enhanced.  

More reasons to join these Councils are articulated by Camille Casaretti, President of CEC 15, in the message below.   You can apply here starting Feb. 14; deadline March 19.

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District 15 Families,

A VERY Happy New Year to you all! 

As you consider your goals for this New Year, I would like to offer this exciting opportunity.

The 2019 CEC Elections are upon us and will be officially announced in January. The application period will open on February 14.

As an involved and engaged community member, you should consider running for a seat on the D15 Community Education Council. You come to the meetings, you read the emails, you want to learn about how the system works and how you can help. You volunteer in your child's school, you led a team. You got this too!

If you have the time and passion to fight for public education, and you are prepared to take on a leadership role in our District to advocate for our 35 school communities, fill out that application when it arrives at your inbox. You're going to get the information from us and you'll get it from the DOE as well if you are signed up on their mailing list. Sign up now and check off Updates for Parents and Families.

The impact and value CECs bring to the communities they represent is immeasurable. But there's more to it. You get something for your family, too! When your own child sees you in action you are teaching them a lesson in civic engagement, a lesson on giving back to the community, and a lesson in caring about others. 

Come to one of our January Meetings and talk to your CEC15 school liaison about why they ran. You may find you have similar reasons. Ask them what they love about being a CEC member and what drives them crazy. It isn't always perfect.

Flyers will be coming soon with more information. You have time to think about it. If you have questions, please contact the DOE’s Office of Family and Community Empowerment (FACE) about the CEC Elections at Elections2019@schools.nyc.gov or at 212-374-1936.

Wishing you all the best in 2019!

Camille

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Estimadas Familias del Distrito 15,

Estamos muy contentos de compartir con ustedes que las Elecciones de CEC 2019 ya están a punto de comenzar y será anunciado oficialmente en enero.  El plazo pare solicitar una aplicación comenzará el 14 de febrero.  

Como miembro involucrado y comprometido de la comunidad, usted debe considerar postularse para un asiento en el Consejo de Educación Comunal Distrito 15.  Viene a las reuniones, lee los correos electrónicos, quiere aprender sobre como el sistema trabaja y como usted puede ayudar.  Es voluntario en la escuela de su hijo(a), usted dirigió un equipo.  ¡Usted puede con esto también!

Si tiene el tiempo y la pasión para luchar por la educación pública, y está preparado(a) para asumir un papel de liderazgo en nuestro Distrito para abogar por nuestras 35 comunidades escolares, complete esa solicitud cuando llegue a su buzón electrónico.  Obtendrá la información de nosotros y también la recibirá del Departamento de Educación si está registrado(a) en su lista de correo electrónico.   ¡Regístrese ahora y marque Updates for Parents and Families (Últimas Noticias para Padres y Familias)!

El impacto y el valor que los Consejos de Educación Comunal (CEC) de la ciudad traen a las comunidades que ellos representan es inmenso.  Pero hay más que eso.  ¡También obtiene algo para su familia!  Cuando su propio(a) hijo(a) lo ve a usted en acción, le está enseñando una lección sobre participación cívica, una lección sobre cómo devolver a la comunidad y una lección sobre cómo preocuparse por los demás.

Asista a una de nuestras reuniones de enero y hable con su enlace escolar de CEC15 sobre por qué se postularon para un puesto en el CEC.  Podrá darse cuenta que tienen razones similares.  Pregúntele qué le gusta de ser un miembro del CEC y qué los vuelve locos.  No es siempre perfecto.

Los folletos llegarán prontos con más información.  Tiene tiempo para pensarlo.  Si tiene alguna pregunta, comuníquese con la Oficina de Empoderamiento Familiar y Comunitario (the Office of Family and Community Empowerment), o mejor conocido como FACE, del Departamento de Educación a  Elections2019@schools.nyc.gov o al 212-374-1936. 

¡Deseandoles lo mejor!

Camille Casaretti

Presidente del CEC15

Elizabeth Rose resigns from DOE; who will take her place but hopefully not adopt her positions and policies?

Former Deputy Chancellor Elizabeth Rose resigned yesterday.  Her resignation letter to DOE colleagues below recounting her record omits the countless school co-locations she pushed through despite huge parent and community opposition, her failure to address school overcrowding honestly with accurate reporting and reasonable enrollment projections, and her view that neither class size nor school overcrowding matters in terms of student learning.  

All these attributes and beliefs reflected the same ideological biases that she carried over from Joel Klein, who first plucked her from the corporate world to appoint her as Director of Portfolio Planning in 2009. This division was in charge of pushing through unpopular school closings and charter school co-locations, and throughout multiple hearings, Rose appeared indifferent to parent and student concerns. Others who preceded her in this job during the Bloomberg years include the current Superintendent of Louisiana schools John White and the head of the pro-charter Walton Family Foundation Marc Sternberg. Rose then rose through the ranks swiftly to become Deputy Chancellor Kathleen Grimm's chief of staff, and after Grimm died, inherited her position.

Though Rose mentions the removal of PCB lights in her resignation letter as one of her proudest achievements, she omits the fact that DOE faced lawsuits and EPA pressure that forced them to speed up the PCB removal process.  She also doesn't mention the months of delay before DOE began to test school water for lead according to the new state law, and the confusing and even dishonest messages she put out about this issue to reporters and parents. 

It probably didn't help her case either that Rose was revealed to have engineered a secret, illegal deal with Eva Moskowitz that she could move a new Success charter middle school into the PS 25 building after DOE closed the school, without going through any of the legally mandated process for changes in school utilization.  This move was only forestalled when the parents of PS 25 won a temporary restraining order against closing their school.

Her resignation comes after her two major demotions in recent months; first her removal by Chancellor Carranza from the Deputy Chancellor position to a new post entitled "CEO of School Operations," and then, after the busing scandal broke, a further demotion to “senior contractors advisor for transportation." 

No one person seems now to be exactly filling the powerful position of Deputy Chancellor for School Operations that Rose once held.  The new organizational chart appears to divide her responsibilities between former Mayoral adviser Karin Goldmark, now Deputy Chancellor for School Planning and Development, Chief Operating Officer Ursalina Ramirez, Deputy Chancellor for School Climate and Wellness LaShawn Robinson, and Josh Wallach, Deputy Chancellor for Early Education and Student Enrollment. 

Goldmark served during the Klein years as Vice President of  the controversial Leadership Academy, which was known for training non-educators to be principals, who when assigned to schools were too often shown to be inept and/or corrupt.  Moreover, the DOE's spending on the program was later found to be riddled with "waste, fraud and abuse," according to a scathing audit by the City Comptroller.

Incidentally, in  emails recently released by the Mayor's office after the NY Post and NY1 successfully obtained them via a Freedom for Information lawsuit, both Goldmark and Wallach were revealed to have been in favor of adopting a Unified Enrollment plan for the DOE in 2015 that would have helped recruit NYC students to charter schools. 

Preliminary draft of Mayor's 2015 speech

 
This enrollment system has been supported by the Gates Foundation which awards additional funding to districts that agree to adopt it, and has been heavily promoted by Gates-funded pro-charter advocacy groups like the Center for Reinventing Public Education.  

Though as Chalkbeat notes,  "De Blasio's aides quickly worked the idea into a draft of his 2015 speech," an excerpt of which is to the left, the Mayor deleted this passage and did not adopt the system. The final speech delivered September 15, 2015, and entitled "Equity and Excellence" is posted here.

Rose's resignation letter sent yesterday is below.

__________________________

Dear Colleagues,

When I first joined the DOE in 2009, I never imagined that I would still be here nine years later.  I can honestly say it is because I have loved the work we do, and loved serving our students and this City.

The last 9 years have been the most interesting, fulfilling, and exciting stage in my professional career.  I have had the opportunity to see long-term projects from inception to completion: the building of new buildings, the first graduating classes of new schools I helped open, the removal and replacement of all PCB lighting fixtures, identifying gender-neutral bathrooms in all our schools, and expanding universal free lunch to all schools. 

Other initiatives will continue, including significant reductions in suspensions and persistently dangerous schools, systematic improvements to accessibility and transparency of information about accessibility, major initiatives to expand and improve physical and health education, to build new gymnasiums, and upgrades to school cafeterias that increased both the number of students eating lunch and their enjoyment of their meal. Over the past three years alone, the PEP approved 174 proposals related to our schools and buildings, and we worked with CECs to approve 18 re-zonings. 

None of these would have been possible without the incredible dedication and effort of all the talented people I have had the pleasure and privilege to work with, including those on my teams, those with whom we have collaborated in our shared commitment to improving learning conditions and outcomes for all our students, the parents and advocates I have met, and especially those who have mentored me along the way.

I have served under five Chancellors, and am proud of the work my teams and I have accomplished. 

I have decided it is time to leave the DOE, both to spend additional time on some personal needs, and to figure out my next adventure.

 New York is a big city, but a small world; I hope we will cross paths again.  It has truly been an honor to serve with you.  Elizabeth