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July 6, 2012

Arbitrator: City used “circular reasoning” to justify turnarounds

by Rachel Cromidas, at 6:02 pm

Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s testimony before an arbitrator drove one nail into the coffin of the city’s plans to replace or rehire teachers at 24 “turnaround” schools.

Last week an arbitrator determined that the city violated the city’s contracts with the teachers and principals unions when it moved to replace staff members at the schools. This afternoon the arbitrator, Scott Buchheit, released a detailed explanation of why he ruled the way he did.

The city was trying to use hiring procedures set for closing schools and their replacements. But the unions argued that the turnaround plans were “sham closures” that would not result in new schools. Instead, they argued, the city was unfairly using contractual provisions about “excessing” to remove teachers and administrators it deemed unsatisfactory.

In upholding the unions’ grievance, Buchheit at times turns Bloomberg’s and other city officials’ words against them.

He quotes a 2011 memorandum written by the Department of Education’s chief financial officer, which said, “excessing is not a permissible way to deal with unsatisfactory teachers.”

Yet city officials said they intended to do just that from the start of the turnaround process, Buchheit determined.

When he first announced the turnaround plans during his State of the City Address in January, Bloomberg “repeatedly made clear that the DOE’s new plan concerning the 24 (then 33) schools was based upon the desire to change staffing in the classroom,” Buchheit writes. He quotes Bloomberg saying, ”Under this process, the best teachers stay; the least effective go.”

The arbitrator notes that Bloomberg has frequently expressed his distaste for the current process for shedding teachers from schools that are contracting, which is based on seniority, not job performance. “Suffice it to say that at the arbitration hearing the Mayor reaffirmed his dislike,” Buchheit writes.

Buchheit emphasized that he was not passing judgment on the value of the city’s plans for the schools, which State Education Commissioner John King approved in late June. And he said nothing in his decision would prevent the city from continuing with portions of the plans that do not involve using the hiring rules that take effect when schools are closed.

Those rules, outlined in a clause in the teachers union contract known as 18D, call for closing schools to set up hiring committees to review current teachers who apply for jobs at the replacement schools. According to 18D, the committees must hire back at least half of them of the qualified applicants from each school. City officials and school administrators began carrying out 18D procedures in the 24 schools last month with the understanding that the arbitrator could ultimately reverse it.

Department of Education officials had said they were confident that King’s approval of the reform plans would prove that the 24 schools were truly being closed. But Buchheit said King’s decision did not necessarily mean the schools were being closed and replaced with new schools. “New,” he said, typically means “never existing before,” which would not be the case for the 24 schools.

“The evidence here establishes that much would remain the same in the 24 new schools,” he wrote, including the schools’ buildings, student populations, courses, partnering organizations, and, for 18 of them, their principals. He also noted that many of the schools’ new names would still contain the old names, such as August Martin High School, which would change to “The School of Opportunities at the August Martin Campus.”

Deputy Chancellor Marc Sternberg also suggested that the school closings were inauthentic, the arbitrator concludes, when he wrote in a memorandum to principals shortly after Bloomberg’s speech explaining that their schools would be closed “as a technical matter.”

For the schools to be truly new, Buchheit says, much would have to change, including their overall educational visions and leadership. Instead, the biggest change the city cited was the planned staffing change — but that change could only happen, he notes, if the schools were new.

“The DOE cannot use the end result of Article 18D being invoked as justification for why it is permitted to invoke 18D,” Buchheit writes. “I cannot adopt this circular reasoning for the purposes of contract interpretation.”

On Monday, Bloomberg said the city would appeal Buchheit’s ruling because the arbitrator had not yet explained his rationale. But after reading the opinion, city attorney Georgia Pestana said the city will not withdraw its appeal, which it filed in State Supreme Court on Monday. “The arbitrator clearly exceeded his authority,” she said.

The city had argued that the unions’ grievances were not arbitrable at all. In his opinion, Buchheit rejects each of the city’s three arguments for why the grievance should not be subject to binding arbitration.

Buchheit’s full decision is below:

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  • Anonymous

    How unappealing.

  • Invictus

    Someone in City Hall needs to be impeached by squandering tax payer dollars in such meritless litigation.  As typical of all people who do not have a stake and skin in the game, to waste someone else’s hard earned dollars.  

  • Eat your words..

    Dunked on again!. Looks like the mayor is going to get posterized every Friday going forward for the summer. This time there is a rim rattling, 360, in your face- with your own words-dunk by the Spiderman of the legal system, Scott Buchheit. Mayor! If you were in my class, I would send you for referral as you show signs of Oppositional Defiant Disorder with a slight twang of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Your first goal on your IEP for the year will be to sit in your office for a week and not embarrass yourself. I can’t manage my class if you can’t respect the class rules!

  • Turnaround Teacher

    The Sternberg quote is the best.  Way to make your intentions even more obvious than they already were Mark…

  • Anonymous

    Thanks for reporting this in full Gotham.
    It helps publicize the charade, one among many!

  • MHaber8643

    We should name a (real!) new school after Scott The Arbitrator!!!

  • cj

    As all these big things seem to do, it comes out on Friday afternoon so that the papers on Saturday, which get the smallest readership anyway, carry small articles and by Sunday, it is forgotten.

    Interesting that the Post and News had ediotorials, the Times has had nothing until a small thing in schoolbook today mentioning the appeal.  Monday morning, it will be interesting to see if Bloomberg has something to say but boy oh boy, was he slammed in this decision especially regarding his circular reasoning  Oh and Marc Sternberg, when is the happy hour to celebrate how your words partially destroyed your bosses’ caser.  If ever there was a decision showing just how deceitful this mayor is, I haven’t seen it yet.  I trust the judge on Monday will laugh at the city lawyers and throw them right out of court.

  • Sing2uluv2001

    The illustrious Bloomberg does not get his way….. So let’s force the issue….(sounds familiar?) People it’s a scam for the dollar …. He sold out our great teachers and school real estate to show “change” to compete for federal and private dollars. Good for business but horrible for students and the entire NYC educational system. The writing was on the page and his intentions were clear; never truly helping struggling schools. He used NYC and received great corporate gains. No, let’s not talk about the parents responsibility in raising disrespectful students Mr. Mayor. Let’s talk about how you destroyed the moral of great educators with your disrespect and leaving our students with the new revolving door teacher. Yes , citizens of NYC you will see what the new revolving door teacher will be. 

  • Jjman36

    Circular reasoning is at the center so to speak of Mr. Bloomberg’s reasoning on most things.   I am surely not alone in pointing out Mr. Bloomberg’s penchant for re-interpreting the facts to fit his actions.  For example, once a strong proponent of term-limits he changed his mind when he was about to is to be term limited.   A day after making the case against large surgery drinks he is celebrating dounut day.  So my question is when will he finally be seen for he is by the “respectable” press such as the New York Times or even Gotham Schools?   Why does this matter so much to me?   It must be my never-ending search for an inkling of social justice!  That and perhaps it will save teachers and students from the mayor demoralizing, vindictive educational polices.    Although I must point out the UFT’s role in this mess which was not making a stand against the knee-jerk destruction of the large schools in NYC when there was never a real effort to identify and address the problems facing these schools. I know because I was at Walton and early victim of Bloomberg and Klein school destroying polices.  Mr. Mulgrew is doing a much better job and I can only wonder what would have happened if he was in charge instead of Randi.

  • someone who cares

    I’m really insulted by his “least effective teachers go” quote.  What about teachers in A and B schools.  Do you think every teacher in those schools is highly effective?  It’s a shame that we get picked on for taking a job at a struggling school.  True teachers would take jobs at struggling schools where the students need those most assistance.  A true teacher doesn’t teach at a school where all the students are already capable and motivated.  

  • Memasuzy

    This is my favorite line: “The DOE cannot use the
    end result of Article 18D being invoked as justification for why it is
    permitted to invoke 18D,” Buchheit writes. “I cannot adopt this circular
    reasoning for the purposes of contract interpretation.”
    So typical of Bloomberg to have his ends justify his means.

  • Seekthetruth

    “The arbitrator clearly exceeded his authority.”
    How so?

    It should be more like this: Bloomberg clearly exceeded his authority. 1- With respect to this baseless, statistically flawed school closure tactic, and 2- your term was over about 3 yrs ago. Any politician, including Quinn, who unconstitutionally modified the law, especially something as critical as term limits, which is there for a good and obvious reason, clearly exceeded their authority and should not hold power (“new” politicians). Maybe they can all hold hands and write a book titled: “For Dummies, How to gain dictatorial power”. Choose wisely in the next elections. The same power-hungry vultures may want to stay in office indefinitely.

  • Excessed ATR

    How about this…Each schools principal has their own budget and thats all this comes down to. MONEY! I was excessed from my school for none other than money reasons. I have never received a U rating and I am in my 7th yr. It has nothing to do with the effectiveness of the teacher. It is strictly a BUSINESS.

  • Jjman36

    Memasuzy – Why did the UFT even include this 18D stuff? It was part of Randi trying to please everyone. She thought she had our best interests at heart but I believe she just didn’t quite know what that were! You were right in 2005!

  • Jjman36

    If we (the UFT) do the right thing in the next election we can change this horrible ATR nightmare! I was an ATR same as you with 10 years becasue they closed my school (Walton). I landed at DWC and now the mayor is destroying this school as well. We need to make sure the next mayor changes things.

  • guest

    Randi had her own interests to move on to bigger and better things such as a position in the federal Department of Education.  She just didn’t want to continue to be branded as an opponent of school reform.  As such, in many ways, she sold the members down the river with the 2005 contract (of course she told us this was the price we had to pay for our raises but not to worry, the union would be there to protect us.

    After she left, and for a long time and I am not sure it has ever ended, she basicaly still controlled Mulgrew.  Again she didn’t want the union to be characterized as negative to all matters of school reform.  Hence of course they threw the New Haven teachers under the bus.  The union, of course, had its opportunity in the last Mayhoral election but they misread the voters mood and thought Bloomberg could not be beaten and did not want to make a further enemy of him.

    This is where we are at today.  I really wonder if Mulgrew really thought these grievances had any chance and he was just going through the motions.  We will see just what ultimatey the union decides to do once the appeal is, as it almost has to be, is thrown out.  How hard will they push that all teachers be returned or whether they will compromise as they always seem to do to the detriment of the teachers of the city.

  • ASTRAKA

    “How hard will they push that all teachers be returned or whether they will compromise as they always seem to do to the detriment of the teachers of the city.”The answer should be obvious to all!The “Unity” leadership has a knack in turning inadvertent wins to losses.   Just wait and see. I give them credit though, for knowing how the great majority of the UFT membership reacts.-”24 schools are going to close.”- “Who cares, it is not our school”- “3500 teachers may become ATRs”-” Who cares, it is not me.”-” Years without a contract”-”That’s OK, we will outlast the mayor.”

  • guest

    Believing that teachers at A and B schools are better than the teachers in struggling schools is like believing that any restaurant in NYC with an A rating is outstanding!!!

  • Hypatia

    Even in a glorious win for the UFT, a few members will find a way to turn the gold into dross. Reminds me of how Republicans, after years of unsuccessfully hunting down Bin Laden, found every petty reason to criticize Obama when he finally located and eliminated the terrorist. How about you guys give the partisan caucus a rest for once and celebrate this wonderful accomplishment by the UFT – and yes, with Unity leadership.

  • Pogue

     UFT celebrations are tepid due to past, so-called and temporary, “victories”…see Jamaica High School.

    It is a good victory, but my breath is held for what the future holds.

  • Student Advocate

    I wish the administration at these schools would send this article to all staff and parents of children attending these 24 schools in need of extra support.  Unfortunately, we have been so battered and bruised all year.  Many staff members are nursing wounds this summer and trying to preserve any semblance of self and family that may exist after this demoralizing year.  Honestly, I am going forward with plans for September as if the arbitration has been respected and accepted.  I pray this will be an instance where justice prevails.  Bloomberg fought a psychological battle with us this year and won in many instances.   He had many of us doubting ourselves and our students identifying themselves as “failing” and “low-achieving”. This is just some more of those same tactics.  I will not be forced into a state of helplessness and self doubt because the Mayor is throwing a temper tantrum.  “F” and  “U” for DOE’s policies and the Mayor’s attempted dictatorship.  Education is a matter of the heart.  The heartless should have never had complete control in the first place.  And whoever passed the law in NYC that makes impeachment of the Mayor impossible, please ammend that.  Thank you in advance….

  • BK

     Hypatia- i do not mean to say anything bad, but do you know what went on and what IS going on?? Are you at one of these schools? I doubt it. The union does not go near these schools. No help. They cause this  then try to play the hero. But rest assured it is due to the likes of you that district reps such as TURNER, get paid big bucks to be out of a classroom, and then pretend they care. Please wake up. For all of us.

  • Roxanascott

    It’s a shame that politics uses the power to ruin the

    education system

    instead of supporting it.

  • Manhattan70

    The only organizations that are more corrupt than the UFT is the DOE and the Bonanno Crime Family.  Open your eyes. 

  • burned

    Astraka is right to point out that the problem lies with the UFT membership as well as with the leadership.

  • Future ATR

     BK is right.  The U.F.T. sent one representative (who was a half step above useless) on three different occasions.  When I emailed the U.F.T. for help or advice I didn’t even get a response- heck I did get a response from Patrick Sullivan who everyone knows is a P.E.P. member, and he was much more helpful.  Mulgrew never stepped foot in my school or I’m sure, any of the other turnaround schools.  The people in these schools have been left without support the whole time.  It took the union forever to file the grievance and their delay allowed the process to continue and teachers had to go through this horrible process.  Now that Bloomberg is ignoring the arbitrator, you still don’t hear anything from the U.F.T.  But weren’t they the first ones to celebrate their “victory” when the arbitrator sided with the unions.  Wait until there are thousands of A.T.R.’s again.  Bloomberg has complete control over the system and he will always win the war against public school teachers. 

  • Anonymous

    Patrick Sullivan is one of the few dissenting voters (real voters) on the PEP. He’s incredibly helpful, AND will keep tabs on a school situation years after you reach out to him. Very devoted, listens carefully and fights hard. Just didn’t want to leave him characterized as “on the PEP”.

  • Unfairly blaming the teachers

     You are so right, “someone who cares”!!!  I know someone who taught in the “Transfer High Schools,” who was suddenly, after years of devoted, hardworking, well- rated service, given “u” ratings for two years for absolutely no reason, just because the principal wanted to stop offering the subject this teacher taught — one of the more difficult subjects. (The teacher has not been replaced at that school; the subject is no longer taught at that school!)

    In the subject taught by this teacher, this teacher had the best outcomes (Regents scores) of the entire Transfer High Schools program in their borough — maybe even in all five boroughs. Mind you, it was still a pretty low Regents passing rate, but it was the best any teacher had managed to produce. 

    Talk about blaming the teacher unfairly!  Perhaps the Transfer Schools were being unrealistic in offering this subject at all.  This teacher was such a good influence on the kids, who truly looked up to this individual, and they were learning — even the ones who were not “Regents scholars” still would come back to visit and some even reported going on to take more of this subject in CUNY and the Community Colleges, and they thanked this teacher for getting them started in learning this subject.

    This teacher survived the 3020a  process, thank God, but will nevertheless probably end up in the ATR pool, at best. But with 2 “U” ratings and more than 10 years’ service, who’s going to offer this teacher a job?  If it’s not the “U” ratings, it’ll be that this teacher makes too much money for a principal to want to hire them. 

    How did it come to pass that excessed (aka “ATRs”) don’t still get preference and first option when an opening occurs?  How did the DOE become a system that cant even assign a teacher to a school?????

    It’s criminal!  This all could have been avoided if the DOE was set up to simply reassign this teacher to a school that wanted to still offer that subject.  This is a successful, excellent teacher with valuable experience in an especially challenging student population, who was merely put through the mill on trumped-up charges that the 3020a process vindicated!

    But this teacher’s career is still likely ruined.  And, more important than that, yet another excellent teacher will be withheld from the students who need as many good teachers as they can get.

    This country’s public education system is down the tubes, and I don’t understand why the public is not more aware of this scandal, which is eating up more tax dollars than ever!!!!

    I could go on and on even more….

  • guest

    Why did it happen?  Because your union gave up the excessing rules and the stipulation that excessed teachers be automatically assigned to openings first within the district but then city wide in the last contract to satisfy Joel Klein’s (or Michael Bloomberg’s same difference) demands that Principals be given complete autonomy to choose their staffs as is done in business and Randi Weingarten gave in (obstensibly in exhcnage for a raise but also as it sounds good and she didn’t want to be pained as being opposed to reforming a failing system.  Another example of throwing union members under the bus.  What about what they did to tenure last year; thousands of teachers denied tenure for no reason at all.  Did they at least try to fight it under the principle of past practices, an important part of union bargaining rights?  No because after all if you’re opposed to tenure reform, you’re for the status quo and we can’t have that.

    Now they won the arbitration.  It is not clear their hearts were ever in it.  I didn’t hear a peep from the union when thousands of teachers for no reason were illegally, as the arbitrator has found, were let go.  Now Mulgrew wants to meet with these people to set up a way to make sure the schools are up and running in September.  That’s not his responsibility.  He won, now all teachers illegally “excessed” get their jobs back but we’ll see after the city’s appeal is thrown out just how many of these illegally excessed teachers are thrown under the bus and what he does in September when they all suddenly get U rated lessons just like the union did little when statistically it can be seen that the number of U rated lessons and teachers has risen dramtically and the union hasn’t said a word.  To think for one second this union is first and foremost interested in protecting its members from the slime running the DOE is hard to accept.

  • Mr. Flerporillo

    So the City did agree to submit the question of arbitrability to the arbitrator.  If a party agrees that an arbitrator has the authority to decide whether he has jurisdiction over a dispute, a court isn’t going to step in and revisit that question from scratch. This was either a big tactical error by the City or the City had reason to think that it had a better chance with the arbitrator than it had with the court. In either case, this appeal looks very weak.

  • Bkbomb1449

     It is time for all teachers such as yourself to realize that the union is the problem. The DOE is against teachers so what they do against us should be expected. What does the union do to protect us should be where you point your finger. You pay a lot of dues for all of your points to be well taken care of. It is time to vote out Unity.

  • old teach

    I would like to but this arbitrator a 16 ounce bottle of Coca Cola and drink to him on the corner of East 79 street off of 5th avenue in Manhattan. What a hoot, the city claims he over stepped his authority, something this administration does continually.

  • Guest

    As a Principal I find many of the comments misinformed and way off base. First, principals are under considerable pressure to have test scores improve year over year. No principal would excess or force out anyone who produces solid test gains, as the job is on the line based on test scores.. Next, the cost of a teacher to the budget is the average salary of all the teachers in a school, making a senior teacher only marginally expensive, especially in a large school. Additionally, budgets are determined by the average salary the previous year not the up-coming year. Excessing a teacher in June would have o effect on the september budget, only on the budget for the following year.Finally, and of extreme importance to principals, performance bonuses, which can exceed $35,000 with multi year additions,are based on tet score improvements year to year. No principal,or anybody else, wouldwould oust any teacher who could help win the bonus.

  • Turnaround Observer

    At my school older teachers who produced the same test results as younger teachers were not invited back.

    The difference between those invited back and those not invited back seems to have been willingness to work ten hours each day on student work and committees. Teaching results seemed to count for very little, if anything, in hiring decisions.

  • guest

    Assuming you are a Principal, and I have no reason to doubt it, are you a Principal at one of the turnaround schools who has sold your staff and students down the river and also done nothing to defend the unique history of your school?  Even if one was to accept your premise, there are too many reports out there that excellent teachers were let go in these charades of interviews.  Any true Principal of a high school being subjected to this idiocy would have resigned rather than to push the DOE’s agenda.  Oh yes, you can look at the example of Eric Nadelstern who pushed the DOE’s agenda that he became a deputy chancellor, was an evil henchman in the closing of many schools  and when the time came, they threw him under the bus too.

    I personally have little respect for any of the so called Principals who did not fight for their schools, staffs and students and who continue to pull this garbage such as using the new idiotic names for their schools to try to further this nonsense that these schools are being closed.

    Further do you actually believe the chief problem with any of these schools is the teachers?  If you have the same students, you’re going to get the same results unless you are in on the credit recovery or grade changing games played by so many of your colleagues.

  • ASTRAKA

    “ No principal,or anybody else, would oust any teacher who could help win the bonus.” 

    Based on your comments I can tell you are young and inexperienced.  Your comments do not describe reality in most schools.  Please, do not take my post as an insult.

  • Anonymous

    Sounds on point in general these days; going above and way beyond is what’s desired and expected. Plus a teacher should be a consummate Yes person, taking on every extra responsibility under the sun and helping push back against any possible pushback from teachers who have lives outside of school. Oh, that’s unpaid overtime in the private sector, and a part of most teacher’s careers, but it’s so much better when it’s voluntary.

  • Unfairly blaming the teachers

    RE: performance bonuses, which can exceed $35,000 with multi year additions,are based on test score improvements year to year. No principal,or anybody else, would oust any teacher who could help win the bonus.

    OK: Let’s say your school is a Transfer School, in which the students have multiple issues – gaps due to interruptions in their prior education, personal issues that affect attendance and readiness to learn, etc.
    You have a teacher of the hardest subject taught at your school.  And this teacher is the “weak link” in your school’s test scores, because in that subject, fewer students are passing the Regents.
    BUT, that teacher’s Regents results are better than in any comparable student body to yours — that is, the teacher’s Regents results, while low, are higher than in any other transfer school in the borough, in this subject. This means that this supposed “weak link” teacher is actually the most successful teacher of that subject in all of  the Transfer Schools of that borough.  And that teacher’s scores are improving, but very slowly, only a little, year to year.
    You want that $35,000. bonus.  What do you do?
    In the DOE, you decide to stop offering that subject in your school!
    But the problem is, what do you do with that teacher?  You don’t need any other teachers in that subject area, and anyway, you can save a lot of money by getting rid of this teacher and not replacing them at all.
    The only way to get rid of them is to make them out to be a bad teacher.  So you start doing lots more observations, and suddenly they turn out to be “U” ratings.  And you start becoming oh-so-strict with all kinds of DOE regs that you don’t even enforce with the other teachers. That gives you a reason to put all kinds of letters in the teacher’s file.  And you start interviewing the students, looking for the malcontents who will come up with supposed “dirt” on the teacher.  And you find any ruse you can to charge that teacher with anything you can make up, even if it’s unsubstantiated, because remember, the burden of proof goes on the teacher at the DOE, not on the principal.
    If the teacher endures this process long enough, they get a couple of “u” ratings for the year, and boom: 3020a charges!  Then, that teacher is removed from your school, and you get your $35,000 bonus!!!

    MEANWHILE, even if the teacher survives the 3020a process, at best they become an ATR with “U” ratings, and too high on the pay scale for anyone to hire at another school.  YOU, dear principal, have ruined a perfectly good — even excellent — teacher’s career, and deprived your students from the chance to reach for the stars (by taking this difficult subject that you dropped because only a few of your students were Regents material in this subject).  ALL FOR $35,000.

    Correct me if I’m wrong, but I know of this exact situation!!!!!

  • Lives destroyed

    Turnaround is a ridiculous way to get rid of poor teachers. So many wonderful teachers, guidance counselors and secretaries were excessed along with some ineffective staff. It seems as if the interim principal just wants to get rid of the amazing spirit of the school. Lives have been destroyed; the school family has been torn apart and all because this is supposed to help the students!  Find a way to get rid of the “bad” teachers, but keep the good ones. There has to be another way.

  • BK

     Gotham schools and all teachers and public should take notice what this principal says. In his/her comment there is not mention of helping kids. If you are a teacher who speaks out about actually teaching kids to succeed in life, not about the numbers, then you are a detriment to this principal. If you are a teacher who wants kids held accountable, then this principal does not want you. No matter how good of a teacher you are. The goal is to reach a number in any way possible, not to help kids.

  • SomeoneWho Cares

    If Bloomberg cared at all about the students, he would have stuck to the transformation model for all these schools, hired principals who had true leadership qualities that inspire, encourage, and support staff as well as treat them like professionals, and provided materials and technology to help them succeed. Remember, this situation occurred when he didn’t get his way with teacher evaluations. He wanted a teacher’s whole career to be decided on an evaluation that allowed the teacher no right to appeal. That is the reason he decided, much to the detriment of students, to proceed with the turnaround plan. Many of the teachers who were let go from these schools were stellar teachers who won grants, awards, were featured in news articles, and whose students adored them. This is not about getting rid of ineffective teachers. How can it be? More than 70% of teachers were let go, and out of that 70%, only a handful received a U rating (and even those ratings were not necessarily warranted). The fact that the State is turning a blind eye to the Bloomberg problem (and yes, it is HE who is the problem) has left us with no one in whom to trust, believe, or restore faith. We all know Bloomberg is a wealthy man who can destroy careers whenever he opens his pockets or his mouth, but I for one have always believed that integrity, character, and wisdom were far more powerful than money. I guess I was wrong. My heart breaks for all the staff of these schools who may lose their positions and for all the students who have been pawns in this unconscionable exercise of power and bullying. If the State does the right thing and denies Bloomberg’s appeal as well as replaces principals who abused their power, my faith in the system just might be restored. 

  • burned

    Hi Principal, The principals of the 33 (later 24) Turnaround schools had to go to DOE hdq every Tuesday to be trained to carry out the Turnaround.  (I assume you were NOT among them)  A very important part of this training was how to hire staff.  I’m sure that whatever they were trained to do, they did, and that took priority over the $35,000 (which would be hard to achieve in most cases anyhow) or school budget.  Their primary personal interest in making hiring decisions was to appease DOE, or they had every reason to believe they would not be principals for long.

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