FW: Support the CSU system
Wesley Strong
Wes Strong
860 916 2761
From: mySGA <my...@mail.ccsu.edu>
Date: Mon, Mar 15, 2010 at 2:56 PM
Subject: FW: Support the CSU system
To: Students S-T Distribution List <Stude...@mail.ccsu.edu>, Students U-Z Distribution List <Stude...@mail.ccsu.edu>
joshua.bl...@hartnet.org
I actually got this from SGA because I sometimes take grad class at CCSU,
but I can't see what the huge image is. What's it say?
I wanted update folks on the Hartford situation.
We suffered a major defeat last night at the Board of Education meeting.
The Board voted to support a "corrective action order" which would open the
HFT contract and change system-wide seniority rules.
You can see a very in-depth article at the new CT Mirror here:
http://www.ctmirror.org/story/5187/action-would-be-first-test-state-authority-over-troubled-schools
There is also the "Cliff Notes" version of a story at the Courant:
http://www.courant.com/community/hartford/hc-harttford-school0317.artmar16,0,4257879.story
It was all together inspiring and utterly depressing last night. Multiple
issues converged besides the acrimonious seniority issue: MLK school being
shutdown without any input, Dwight school being shutdown with out any input
and the Capital Prep students demanding a "certificate of occupancy" so
they
can have their new building.
What was clear was that every resource is available to magnet schools and
charter schools and everyone else (which is the vast majority of the
students, parents, and teachers) is left to fight for crumbs. MLK parents
and students are pushed to the side so that the Superintendent and Board
can trip over themselves to help and celebrate the magnet schools. This is
a harbinger of things to come under Obama's "Race to the Top" scheme. With
"Race to the Top", the states must compete for federal funds, but the way
you qualify for this competition is by passing legislation in the state
legislatures that bolster charter schools and weaken union contracts.
The hot new slogan is "School Choice". The idea is that parents and
students are finally empowered to choose their school. The reality is
unfortunately quite literal: the school chooses who their students are.
Charters and magnets all have the ability to remove students that are not
fitting in or are behavioral problems or if the principal just doesn't like
them (they like to call it �counseling out�). They students then return to
his or her district public school, where they remain. Couple this with the
fact that charters and magnets have shockingly low numbers of English
Language Learners (ELL) and Special Education students compared to all
other public schools. The slots at charter schools and magnet schools are
always quickly filled because the waiting lists for these schools are so
long. But the vast majority of public schools that are not charter schools
or magnets do not have this power to remove whomever they choose.
Last night it was repeatedly argued by magnet school principals that
teacher �bumping� would disrupt the relationships and environment of their
�specialty� schools. Unfortunately, it was clear that we already have
�bumping� all the time in this district: it�s the students who are bumped,
from places like MLK and Dwight, without any choice. These students (the
vast majority of students) haven't been lucky enough to get into a charter
or a magnet school.
And so this is where public education is right now: feast for the lucky few
and famine for the great majority.
The Superintendent�s corrective action order now goes to the State Board of
Education. It�s unclear how long it will stay with them and the General
Assembly�
Wesley Strong writes: