Despite a decline in its use, corporal punishment is still permitted in 20 states. (Times)
Many states are dramatically scaling back their Race to the Top promises. (EdWeek)
The schools chief in Providence, R.I., is resigning during a chaotic year. (Providence Journal)
Los Angeles is giving up on the reading program that it has required for a decade. (L.A. Times)
Anonymous
Regarding the rapid increase of homeless students in public schools around the city, fortunately for charter schools, that’s not a problem they need concern themselves with, is it?
Only public schools and their teachers have to face that problem, which then becomes a pretext for charter invasions, public school closings and reorganizations.
What was that about charters being public schools, again?
Teacher
Where is Cathie? Shouldn’t she be saying something?
Other D13 Parent
Thank you DN for putting Community Roots on people’s radar: http://nydn.us/dJAKAq But while you were aware of the entire back story–it is more likely Community Roots would use THEIR therapy room–they chose to fan the flames in the community. This is an alert for supporters of inclusive, community-based education. Sign the petition & call your electeds! http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/mored13middleschools/email-friends?sent_to=1
District 13 parent
This is the third ugly co-location battle in District 13 since the start of the current school year (PS 9, Arts & Letters/PS 20, Comm. Roots), and all seem to pit neighbor against neighbor in this rapidly gentrifying district.
Larry Littlefield
The only technology spending that should be going up is spending on assisted homeschooling, as a lifeboat for those parents capable of joining together and pulling it off.
So some parents who can’t afford private school but value education will be able to stay in the city after the cost of the 2008 pension 25/55 pension deal for teachers redestroys the schools.
A new report by the Center for Retirement Reasearch at Boston College, which is an attempt to claim public employee retirement plans can “muddle through” with ongoing tax increases and service cuts deferred into the future and spread over many years, specifically mentions the NYC teacher retirement fund as one of eight in desperate shape.
Thus matching independent actuary John Bury’s analysis. Thus the decision has been irrevocably made to use vastly increased education spending on vastly increased years in retirement, even as the conditions in the city schools in the 1970s (after the last 25/55 deal) are repeated.
Vastly lower pay and benefits for future hires. Cuts and pay and benefits for new hires, until NYC teachers are the lowest paid in the region despite high labor costs. Cuts in support services and equipment — not the complaint about IT spending. The return of fiscal promotion (perhaps to be rationalized as social promotion again, perhaps not). The end of “fair student funding,” with a limited number of decent schools for the politically connected, Rising class sizes. Etc.
Game over. I for one won’t get fooled again.
Michael M. (parent still)
Re “the reality of 20 percent of their students are homeless.”
This in the same city of Wall Street and its banner year, bailouts, extension of the the Bush tax cuts for millionaires, and an expiration of the NYS “millionaires’ tax” — a double helping of manna for the fattest while the leanest go hungry.
There’s Wall Street, Main Street… and sleeping in the street.
And these 20 percent are children.
Dear DOE Truth Squad — whose salaries I’m partly paying: Please FWD this comment to Cathie and Mikey, and post on your cubicle wall. Or over your bed tonite.
Michael M. (parent still)
Folks, it’s time to start calling “co-location” a less sanitized, less Orwellian, name.
May I suggest: DISLOCATION.
D3 Parent
Good article by Sharon Otterman on DOE’s planned technology spending but why didn’t she mention that Joel Klein stands to earn a bundle in his new job from DOE money spent on online learning?
Koozy14
Speaking of Cathie, has anyone seen, heard from her?
Melody Harrington
It was reported that Ms. Black is vacationing in Europe.
Koozy14
lol…just posted this sentiment above before I saw this…we’re not alone!
Koozy14
Has she made a comment regarding the Graduation Rate audit?
Phase-In
City Tech Crap + Outside “Consultants” = ??
Cathie Black was reportedly in Europe with her husband by the way. Good for her!
Third Year Teacher
You really would think with all of the budget talks of the past week our supposed excellent money manager of a chancellor would at least have a comment in the media…
disgruntled
Is Cathie Black really vacationing in Europe? I hope that some reporter will get on this. As a parent I do find it strange that she hasn’t comment on the budget or the over three thousand waitlisted Kindergarteners and tomorrow the high school placement letters will go out. If she is on vacation wouldn’t that be an unexcused absence worthy of a “U” rating?
Former Tweed Employee
She really cannot respond because the mayor is keeping her ass quiet because of his horrifying approval rating. She is a big reason why he is at an all time low for public approval. Anyway she’s in Europe as was mentioned.
disgruntled
Ahhh, that’s right the 17% approval rating. If the media would confirm that Cathie Black is vacationing in Europe she could very well be toast.
IK
For more info on Joel Klein’s corrupt plans for technology in schools, please read the Advertising Age article on Newscorp and Klein’s role in capitalizing on his time as Chancellor.
I imagine the 1.5 million bonus will kick in as soon as Klein can create more “markets” (charter schools) for his new boss.
Also, didn’t Klein also take a $34,000. pension when he left as Chancellor?
Ellen
Other D13 parent
District 13 parent
The link provided takes you to a petition in support of Community Roots expansion. Is that what you meant ? For folks to sign a petition to support CR staying in P 67?
BTW, the Community Roots principal has demanded that students from the D 75 program NOT be in/on the playground when CR students are out using the playground. It seems that disabilities are catching…or disturbing to the scholars from CR. Or could it be that adults from CR are prejudiced? Kids will learn from the adults around them about how to be inclusive…..or not.
In addition,to provide space for CR the library a the school has become a classroom, affecting every student inP 67 and P 396.
Why are we even listening to folks who can be so divisive?
Ellen
FYI…..Cathie Black met with members of the CECs on Monday, March 28, form 6:00 Pm on. to the best of my knowledge, she is still in NYC.
Anonymous
weak stuff there Ellen? Were you one of the parents spitting on elementary school students as they tried to enter school?
rachel
“Why are we even listening to folks who can be so divisive?” You mean someone like you Ellen and your cohorts who derive pleasure from propagating false information, and selective information? Adults from CR are prejudiced? I didn’t see any CR adults harrasing children on their way to school, pushing placards in their faces, and intimidating them yesterday. What we had were adults from P67 demonstrating the lowest form of maturity that i can confidently say they are not adults. We do not have to agree on this issue but to go about inciting thee community with baseless accusations is wrong, worse still to act on these sentiments in a venue where children can observe it is reprehensible.
Anonymous
District 13 Parent,
You are absolutely right, and your point is an under-acknowledged one in the debate about charter invasions of public schools: that charter school takeovers of public school infrastructure are happening simultaneously with intense gentrification of these same communities. On that basis, it’s not too surprising that one of Eva Moskowitz’s supporters and advisors has been real estate developer Gideon Stein.
In NYC, charters are not only about privatizing the management of schools and busting the union, but taking over public facilities and infrastructure and handing them to private interests. It’s also no surprise that as the local public schools, with their far larger number of seasoned minority teachers, are undermined, they are replaced by privately-managed charters with teaching staffs that are almost entirely young and white.
And, as has been pointed out, the people in the community are pitted against one another. How convenient for the oligarchs who are pushing charters.
Ellen
Hello Rachel…and it is wrong to teach prejudice, The principal of CR was adamant that the children from P369 could NOT be on the play ground with the children from CR, despite the vast size of the playground.
The fact still remains….adults are limiting a child’s access to areas in the school that are community areas. What does that teach either set of children? And for what it’s worth, I don’t believe in placard waving or harassing anyone, least of allthe children.
The question was, and still is, Why are we listening to these divisive folks?”
Other D13 Parent
Ellen-
Wrong tree to bark up with me. Personally, I am the proud parent of twins with IEPs with another IEP on the way for my older daughter. Why are other children’s IEP designations more precious than ours? No child’s needs should trump another.
In the ongoing conversations about this co-location it is getting lost that Community Roots serves a Special Needs population also (yearly average is 15-20%). In fact, the school was founded as an inclusion school, meaning that each classroom is a CTT class with a Special Ed teacher teaching side-by-side a Gen Ed teacher. Further, most of the kids with IEPs are pulled out to different rooms for PT, OT, speech, reading intervention or to see a social worker.
I bridle at the suggestion that any of these schools would lose a PT/OT room as the protesters were saying yesterday. We all know that the school will elect (and it the school’s choice!) to displace an admin room before relegating OT to the stairwells. Come on.
When looking at the Educational Impact Statement and the Building Utilization Plan for the co-location proposal and the numbers are reconciled if anyone were to be squished it would be Community Roots. The space for all schools will contract, but our school will lose the most.
Between the DOE & various electeds I hope we can all sit down to discuss the veracity of the DOE’s co-location proposal. That should be the ONLY issue invoked, not race, class or Special Needs cards.
Marcie
It is important that we stick to the facts. The “library” you speak of was a locked classroom for 3 years and no child was using it. And CRCS is 20% Children with IEP’s and every class is the inclusion/CTT model-EVERY classrom.
If you want to actually read the DOE’s capacity planning report that you can easily google (it’s there) then you’d notice both 67 and 369 currently have, and will continue to have after the expansion, far more space per student than CRCS. And perhaps most importantly, 67 and 369 will have far more space than the DOE’s stated baseline. FACTS are what people should listen to, not divisive people.
prohtsd13mom
Ellen, I feel sorry for you. Our whole school community, down to the smallest Kindergartener, is more inclusionary than you are. And yes, we all learned to be like this by the example of our school leaders. Its too bad you were fed such biased information. Even sadder that you didn’t do your research before putting up such an ignorant public posting. Our smallest students could teach you about what doing research is and also what inclusion is all about because you obviously don’t understand either one from reading your poisonous, divisive comments. I am embarrassed for you.
Rachel
Hello Ellen,
Did you consider there might be a reason or maybe multiple reasons why that request was made? Or do you chose to be incensed just because hey CR principal made a decision? And what exactly has that got to do with colocation? Your inflammatory and sensationalist attitude is what is divisive. Like Marcie rightly said look up the facts, listen and explore the experiences of those who go there. There are D 13 children in the school as well and it gives priority to D 13. So who exactly loses out in this get rid of CRCS? The community that’s who. Because what you gain is another viable option for educating our kids. Its too bad that adults can be so uncooperative to put it mildly. Rather than give up empty/underutilized rooms, we are going to fight and harass people, namecalling and other demeaning behavior.
Other D13 Parent
And what was the reason you were told that the CR principal requested they not share recess time? You assume prejudice, but perhaps it was because the CR staff don’t know the children of 369 and thus don’t feel comfortable disciplining them.
“My big problem with the rollout of the Common Core is that, if some teachers hadn't read this article, they might have felt like they were the only ones confused about the CCS rollout too.”
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.