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Some questions about sexuality on a survey of school nurses this week included statements that prompted the UFT to threaten legal action if the survey remained live. (Click on the picture for a larger view.)

The teachers union threatened legal action against the city today after school nurses complained about a survey that allowed them to characterize homosexuality a “perversion” and “disgusting.”

When school nurses logged into their Department of Education email earlier this week, they saw a request from the Office of School Health to complete a survey, titled “OSH High School Nurse Educational Needs Assessment” and hosted on the website SurveyMonkey.com.

The survey started out innocuously, asking respondents to note features of their schools, such as whether they have Gay-Straight Alliances or similar groups, and rate their knowledge of issues related to sexuality and confidence about discussing them with students.

But on the sixth page, the questions took a jarring turn. A series of eight questions probed, in blunt language, the nurses’ own attitudes about sexuality, asking them to rate how closely they agreed or disagreed with statements such as “Male homosexuality is a perversion” and “I think lesbians are disgusting.” Another question asked them to rate their agreement with the statement, “Just as in other species, male homosexuality is a natural expression of sexuality for men.” (more…)

Robert Powell is Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.'s choice to represent him on the Panel for Educational Policy.

The latest addition to the citywide school board responsible for signing off on school closures has a child at a school that could be on the chopping block this year.

Robert Powell is replacing Wilfredo Pagan as Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.’s pick for the Panel for Educational Policy, starting with tonight’s meeting in Manhattan. Pagan served on the board, which is controlled by the mayor, for just a year.

Powell attended city schools, then sent six children to them, according to a press release Diaz’s office put out today. One of his children currently attends Herbert H. Lehman High School, which last month was told for the third time in a year that its performance is so weak that it might be closed.

Powell has a long history of participating in school governance.  (more…)

Comptroller John Liu visited UFT headquarters after being elected in 2009. Today, Liu proposed new education and economic policies, including the "community schools" model the UFT favors.

The city should ease the path to college for top high school students by promising them free tuition at city colleges, Comptroller John Liu said today in a “State of the City” speech, his second in 2012.

In the speech, Liu put forth a slate of policy proposals, including several focused on education, that he said would enhance the city’s economic future. Liu is a likely mayoral candidate, but as comptroller his job is to safeguard the city’s financial prospects.

“The offer of free tuition would help motivate students and elevate CUNY, one of our city’s most valuable gems, to the level of a competitive prize,” Liu said, according to his prepared remarks. “It would also be a life-saver for many working families who are struggling to send their kids to college.”

Liu did not explain how the city could fund the initiative, but it would not cost much. With tuition set at $5,400 a year, even if every student in the top 10 percent of each graduating class enrolled and would not ordinarily receive financial aid — an unlikely scenario — paying their way would cost less than $12 million a year.

Other proposals Liu made today would cost the city a lot more. (more…)

• Police were called to an East Harlem school that had conducted a ‘shooter’ lockdown drill. (Times)
• Some police precincts in the city are staffing schools with more of their safety officers. (Post)
• Officials are reviewing gun company investments made by the city’s teacher pension system. (Post)
• Michael Mulgrew called off talks on evaluations until the city addressed rollout issues. (GothamSchools)
• A court ruled the city acted too harshly when it fired a teacher who slapped one of her students. (Post)
• Early versions of evaluation systems in some states have changed. (Hechinger via GothamSchools)
• Parents are divided over a Williamsburg charter school that will enroll a diverse population. (Schoolbook)
• A Bronx parent council is blocking an ex-”turnaround” school from changing its name. (GothamSchools)
• A probe found a city employee helped fake vendors bilk $1.5 million from the city. (GothamSchools)
• A Baruch College professor said he inflated student grades because he didn’t want them to fail. (Times)