Assembly member Gottfried on the pro-charter mailing sent out by ERN without his consent

See Assembly Member Gottfried's response to Jan Carr's email to him, about the pro-charter school flyer she received in the mail sent by the charter lobbyists Education Reform Now in his name:

I am appalled about the "Education Reform Now" mailing, because it utterly misrepresents my position.

I do not support charter schools, and have spoken out frequently against them. I support a long list of proposals to rein them in, make them treat teachers and students more fairly, provide transparency, prevent crowding out public schools, etc. etc. I voted for the charter school bill because it includes many of those important changes. For me, the part of the bill that increased the limit on the number of charter schools was a regrettable price to pay for the valuable parts of the bill. I felt we were destined to lose the fight to keep the number down anyway.

The "Education Reform Now" people supported the bill for the opposite reason. I understand they have sent out these dishonest mailings in the districts of many legislators who voted for the bill for the reasons I did.

The implication of what you wrote above is that these flyers were mailed out without his permission; AM Gottfried, is that an accurate interpretation of your statement?

Yes. I understand that the mailer was sent in the name of ERN, not in my name. The prominence of my name and photo give the impression that it was “in (my) name.” The mailer was sent without my involvement, knowledge, or consent or that of anyone on my behalf. If I had had any prior knowledge of it, I would have vehemently objected to it.

Have you seen the flyers? Exactly how do the claims on the flyer mistake your position? Have you been in contact with ERN about this issue, asking them to halt their mailings?

I have been in Albany since the mailer hit, and so I have not actually seen it. I have been told that it implies that I support charter schools, which is not true. My chief of staff called ERN and expressed my strong objection to the mailing and asked that they halt further mailings of this nature.

One more question, and I hope you do not take this as a slight on your integrity or honesty. There has been alot of discussion on the NYC Education list serv and elsewhere about the piles of money ERN and Democrats for Education Reform have offered elected officials and candidates, under their names and also those of the hedge fund operators whose contributions they "bundle" . Some candidates have reported publicly and in private that they were offered $200,000 to support charter school expansion.

See for example, the statements of Steve Behar, running for Assembly in Queens; and Tony Avella, a candidate for the State Senate, who reportedly has also told supporters he was offered a lot of money to change his position on this issue but refused.

Have you been promised and/or received any substantial contributions from these groups or individuals? And if you are in the future, would you accept these donations?

I have not been offered, promised or received any contribution from these groups. If any individual contributor to my campaign is associated with such a group, I am not aware of it. If in the future anyone were to offer me a campaign contribution under circumstances suggesting that they were doing so because they thought I support charter schools, I would correct their misunderstanding. While I may accept a contribution even though I disagree with a donor on an issue, I would not accept a contribution from a single-issue organization such as these where I strongly disagree with the organization.

Thanks so much for clarifying your position,

Thank you for asking. Richard Gottfried

Parents who have received a similar pro-charter mailing in the name of your legislators; please reach out to them and ask them these or similar questions. The influence and money of the charter school industry is frightening.

Open letter to AM Gottfried re charter school cap

Dear Assemblymember Gottfried:

I just received a big glossy flier that I assumed was from your office trumpeting the lifting of the charter cap. When I looked more closely, I saw that it was paid for by Education Reform Now.

I am a constituent and have appreciated your work on many fronts. But I'm upset to see that you're in bed with a cabal of hedge fund multi-millionaires masquerading as education reformers.

What is their interest in education? What spoils do they hope to reap? Contracts for testing and data? Real estate tax deals? When they thank you for "giving New York the opportunity to win $700 million in federal aid for our kids" I can almost see them salivating at the prospect of getting their mitts on those millions. And of course that will be much easier for them to do when schools are no longer subject to public school oversight.

It is NOT true, as the flier claims that "These schools are proven to work, with higher test scores and graduation rates." I trust you know as well as I do that charter schools cherry pick their students, taking only students who have AND MAINTAIN high test scores, that they don't educate ELLs, and that the tests results have been manipulated beyond meaning.

I've been a NYC public school parent for 10 years, and it sickens me to see these "re-formers" work so stealthily to systematically dismantle our public school system. It sickens me to see them demonize hard-working teachers who actually know something about education and care about our city's students.

Why are you in bed with them?

Sincerely, Jan Carr

A list of NY State elected officials who have received the largest contributions from the charter school lobby is posted at Albany Citizen One, though Gottfried's name is not among them -- yet.

SCHOOL NETS THOUSANDS WITH “DUNK-THE-KLEIN” GAME

November 11, 2007 (Gadfly News)

A public elementary school in Brooklyn that has requested it remain anonymous received an unexpected windfall on Saturday during their annual fall fair, netting thousands of extra dollars for their PTA because of an unusual attraction. The game was Dunk-the-Clown – with a difference.

As is customary, a clown sitting on a chair hurled taunts and insults at the fair-goers, while they took turns throwing balls at him, attempting to dunk him in the basin of water below. But the clown was Joel I. Klein, NYC Schools Chancellor.

“Your school gets an F!” Mr. Klein shouted.

Or was it Mr. Klein? A label across his chest proclaimed he was, but a woman in the crowd revealed, “It’s actually Joe Ruiz, president of our PTA. Our school got an undeserved bad grade on the school report cards last week. Our principal and teachers were pretty demoralized, so people around here are a little angry. We know how hard our teachers work, and frankly, we’d all like to take a shot at Klein.”

From his perch atop the game, Mr. Ruiz shouted a steady stream of insults. Some were about the marked increase in standardized testing in the schools. When a group of students stepped up to the plate, he shouted, “I’m going to give you more tests! More tests! More!”

When a teacher took her turn, Mr. Ruiz cracked an imaginary whip and shouted, “Test prep! Test prep! Test prep!”

When a parent took aim, Mr. Ruiz addressed the issue of the cell phone ban. Referring to a statement made repeatedly by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, that parents want their children to carry cell phones to school merely so they can ask them what they want for dinner, Mr. Ruiz shouted, “What do you want, chicken or fish?”

Notably, the principal of the school did not hurl a ball, though she smiled appreciatively at those who did. As she stood on the sidelines, Mr. Ruiz taunted her with comments about the repeated reorganizations of the schools. “I’m replacing the districts with regions! No! I’ve decided to do away with the regions! Ha! Ha! Who’s going to help you now?

The crowd, which appeared unruly, attracted the attention of a uniformed police officer patrolling the neighborhood, though when the officer saw what was going on, he joined the line himself. “I’d like a piece of this guy,” he said. “Last winter my daughter’s bus route got cancelled. She waited hours in the cold for a school bus that never came, and now, to get to school, she has to cross a busy highway by herself.”

A quick sampling of those waiting take shots at the “Chancellor” revealed that many were not from the school hosting the fair.

“My daughter goes to high school in the Bronx,” said one man. “She has to take 2 subways, so she checks in with us each leg of the trip. But last spring, the DOE confiscated her cell phone. It took us 3 days to get it back. I had to lose a day of work to go demand it.”

Behind him, another woman said, “My son is in third grade at a neighboring school. This week his teacher announced she just can’t take it anymore. She’s accepted a job in Westchester. Twice the pay for a fraction of the aggravation.”

By the end of the day, the school hosting the fair had netted over $10,000 at the dunking game.

Mr. Bloomberg, reached at a $5,000-a-plate fundraising dinner for the private school his daughter had attended, was asked his reaction to the outpouring of anger at his schools chancellor. “Running a school system is not a popularity contest,” he said curtly. “You get a few disgruntled parents out there and they do a lot of whining.”

But Mr. Ruiz dismissed Mr. Bloomberg’s comment. “A few?” he said, fanning a fat stack of bills. “Ten thousand dollars at a dollar a pop? I’d call that a lot of angry parents. Maybe I should call the mayor’s cell phone and ask him what he’s eating there at his black-tie dinner. Chicken? Or crow?"

-- by Jan Carr

A failing grade for Joel Klein by Jan Carr

Dear Chancellor Klein,

I was horrified to read on today's DOE website that my son's school, Salk School of Science, received a C on its "Report Card." The principal of this school, Rhonda Perry, is one of the most hard-working, gifted and visionary educators I have ever encountered or can imagine encountering -- and that includes all the inspirational professors I was privileged to work with when studying for my M.Ed., and all the smart, committed educators I worked with and learned from when I myself worked as a teacher.

The teachers whom Ms. Perry has employed at Salk are also shining stars of the system. They work long days, long beyond what is called for contractually, personally shepherding the 36+ students they have in their classes, meeting regularly to discuss and compare notes on kids who might be falling behind. Ms. Perry and the teachers at Salk bring a vibrancy and enthusiasm and creativity to a DOE curriculum that is increasingly hidebound and dominated by test prep.

You should be interested to know that in the time my son has been at Salk I have been so impressed by the teachers and curriculum that I regularly have written educator friends of mine in other states to describe the exciting learning community we are privileged to be part of. But if my son is getting a great education -- an education that engages and excites him at every turn -- it is because of Ms. Perry and the teachers at Salk, and largely IN SPITE OF what the DOE is doing and the ill-advised, miserly, destabilizing changes you have initiated in the last few years.

It is outrageous to me that our schools are given a letter grade at all, and even more so that that grade is principally determined by a narrow assessment of test scores. According to your website, Salk School of Science is now threatened with "consequences" if they get 3 C's in a row. Shame on you!

How are our smart, hard-working educators supposed to feel in the face of a grade that might merit "consequences?" If they feel completely demoralized and are now considering throwing in the towel and leaving the castigating DOE behind them I could not blame them one whit.

But me? I feel angry. Angry that you've reduced our educational system to this, angry that you show such disrespect for the hard-working educators who are on the front lines, working with our children day in and day out, principals and teachers who have devoted their lives to the education of our city's children. The way you treat our educators is part and parcel of the way you treat our students -- constantly barraging them with narrow, deadening tests and demoralizing them with meaningless scores.

You claim to be concerned about the schools that are failing our most vulnerable students. BUT DEADENING TESTING AND HUMILIATING OUR EDUCATORS IS NOT THE WAY TO CORRECT THAT. When I was a teacher, I worked in the Head Start program with a low-income population. I know that, given the right environment -- small class size, smart teachers, good staff development -- those students can become real learners, despite the many other challenges they face.

Mr. Klein, it pains me to say it, but you are not an educator. Nor do you seem to understand in any way, shape or form how to work with professionals who are.

My grade for the DOE? A resounding F. Unfortunately, I fear that your actions will now resound throughout the system. And it is our schools and students who will feel the "consequences" of your grade.

Sincerely,
Jan Carr, M.Ed.