Charter movement leaders have no respect for parent voice, parent rights or student rights. Now that their money is being threatened they finding charter parents helpful. So, now the center started a parent network to push for more money for charters.

” “I think the ‘freeze’ in education funds to public charter schools this year was a wake up call to schools to make sure something like this does not happen again.”

For years, the Center has piled hundreds of parents onto buses and driven them to Albany for lobby day, but the conversations with lawmakers were brief and easily forgotten.

Now the Center is creating the Charter Parents Advocacy Network, or CPAN, an organization that Maclin said will familiarize parents with the legislative and financial problems their schools face and turn them into political activists.

Though the Center’s website says CPAN is “by parents, of parents, and for parents,” the group was launched by the Center and Maclin is currently recruiting charter school parents to lead the group.

“I think it’s a very smart move on their part to do it,” said Leonie Haimson, executive director of the non-profit Class Size Matters. “They need to look like they’re grassroots even though no one believes they are.” ”

Political activists to get them more money. Despicable.

But what do the EMO’s or CMO’s care, these are not their kids. They see our children as dollar bills.

Or are you just throwing around baseless accusations like so many tired anti-charter posters?

So Jeff Maclin and his fellow associates only decide to “tap” into charter parents voices in October 2009. If my memory serves me correctly, charter schools were in existence 10 years ago. Why is CPAN only familiarizing parents with legislative and financial problems rather than educating and informing parents of the rights within the charter school system? I guess their areas of concern was and continues to be to only bus parents up to Albany as they deem fit. Something seems very odd about that!

*Center’s website says CPAN is “by parents, of parents, and for parents”* Is that really the case? Doesn’t CPAN consist of paid officials that hired Valrie Babb a PAID Director who just so happens to be a charter school parent? That is a good ploy to cover up their “ASTROTURF” movement. A revision on their website needs to state the following CPAN is ” by the center, for charter school leaders along with its board of trustees, and for profit”!

If only your call for unity were raised before Mayoral Control got renewed.

Funny, I don’t recall any of the “astroturfed” faux-grass-roots parents on the parent-empowerment side of the fence at this rally, but there were about 20 on the pro-Mayoral Control side.

I don’t know who sent this email; I got it third-hand with no “From” or “To”:

“Subject: For your information- Rally for Mayoral Control

Colleagues and friends,

This Sunday Governor Patterson (sic) joined by Mayor Bloomberg, two Borough Presidents, AFT President Randi Weingarten and EVP of the CSA, Principals and APs union, Peter McNally along with local electeds will hold a press conference/rally at PS 57 in East Harlem (address below) at 11am to encourage the State Senate to vote on mayoral control and not allow the legislation to sunset.

We need any and all there…parents, children, educators, school leaders, community orgs, etc. Please join us and please pass this along to others you think can help mobilize folks for Sunday.

Let me know if you have questions. Thanks in advance!!

When: Sunday, June 28, 2009

11am-12pm

Where: P.S. 57

176 E 115th St

Between Third and Lexington Avenues

MANHATTAN
“

Parent empowerment is one of the keys to our school’s success. I don’t presume that our model is perfect, and I have great respect for the diversity of school approaches in NYC public schools, be them district or charter.

At Renaissance, we are constantly looking for ways to encourage parent participation and collaboration via regular meetings between the parent leadership and the school management team, parents organizing after school programs, workshops and cultural events, membership on the Collaborative School Governance Committee and an elected seat on the Board of Trustees.

The frustration and anger of NYC public school parents is real! Educators and those who want to see great public schools should listen to parents and find ways to bring them into the process, whether it is via the processes of a single school like mine, or in a grand system of 1400+ schools. It’d be great to see some practical organizing here on GS on how to enhance parent empowerment and voice here in NYC.

Best,

Nicholas Tishuk
Director of Programs and Accountability
The Renaissance Charter School
Teach11372 @ gmail.com

Now we all know what Mark Twain meant when he said “Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest. “

I can think of a good many reasons why parents feel their voices are not being heard. My list would be different than yours, but that’s not what’s important now.

Over enough time, the message — explicitly so from the Mayor who draws a false distinction between “activists” and “parents”, and whose position about school matters is in conflict with his own DOE’s and SCA’s — is clearly that our voices are not worth raising. In great part, because you-know-who is NOT LISTENING.

I am glad that you and I, and others, are speaking up and speaking out nonetheless.

On this matter, parents have common ground. Charter or non is the least of it.

(That paid charter proponents, insiders, and administrators — and even the Bloomberg machine itself — look at charter parents as a group to be wound up for PR purposes is another story.)

Big barriers include:

+Lack of transparency regarding the formula by which charter schools are funded (the AOE/TAPU- Approved Operating Expenses/Total Aidable Pupil Units)

+A lack of open citywide, borough-wide or local institutions which are open to membership of district parents, but not charter parents (Community Education Councils, as the most notable example)

NYC Charter parents are just like their fellow NYC public school parents; they run the gamut from dedicated, activist parent organizers to folks unengaged or alienated in the political process.

Unfortunately, some of the anti-charter school messaging has muddied the waters for parents. Think about this: If you are constantly told that your son or daughter’s school is not really “public”, wouldn’t you are much less likely to call your local assemblyperson, city councilperson, state senator or the governor regarding your child’s school?

The sad outcome of this messaging is that charter school parents and their fellow NYC public school parents become split on an issue in which they should be united: cuts to the NYC Department of Education budgets, with a two year delay, will lead to cuts in charter school budgets (as we received in 2002). Increases to NYCDOE expenditures lead to increases in charter school budgets, again with the same two year delay.

With the charter school “freeze/cut” in this year’s budget, charter schools schools received a disproportionate and unequal loss of funding. The additional funding increases that NYCDOE schools received two years ago, including Campaign for Fiscal Equity dollars, have been lost, promises from Sen. Smith and Gov. Paterson, notwithstanding.

For parents who simply want a great school for their child, this level of minutia is hard to get a grasp on, much less organize around. While we have worked hard to inform and empower parents at Renaissance, it is not an easy task.

Best,

Nicholas Tishuk
Director of Programs and Accountability
The Renaissance Charter School
Teach11372 @ gmail.com