It could be time for a mic check as Jonah Edelman and his well-funded, out-of-town gang of professional union busters at Stand For Children, return to Chicago. On Wednesday, the group announced that it is launching a radio campaign to “educate Chicagoans about the value of public turnaround schools.” Thank goodness we have people from Portland here to educate us about how great these turnarounds are.
According to Catalyst,
[SFC director] Gonzalez is aware that the organization carries with it a negative weight, especially among unionized teachers and grassroots organizations. Stand for Children was a staunch supporter of Senate Bill 7, which limited teacher tenure and made it more difficult for teachers to strike. Senate Bill 7 also gave Chicago school leaders the power to unilaterally lengthen the school day, which had previously been a subject in collective bargaining. After the bill was passed last year, in a speech in front of the Aspen Institute, Executive Director Josh Jonah Edelman described how his group outfoxed the CTU in getting the bill passed and bragged that the bill would effectively prevent the teachers from ever striking.I don't think Jonah will be assigned to do any follow-up panels up in Aspen after this one. Do you?
We just had the local Florida guy right an op ed in our local paper. It shouldn't be stand for children but sell out children...
ReplyDeleteLocal "organizers who have joined rightwing, billionaire-funded education "reform" outfits like Stand for Children" cannot possibly be oblivioius to the broader agenda of these groups. There is a simple credibility test in this debate: a) Do you acknowledge that family income drives education success? a) Do you acknowledge the role of these wealthy elites in marginalizing workers and communities? If so, why are these questions off the table in this dabate? We can only assume a more personal motive for the "progressive" organizers who have migrated to this reactionary force in our education discourse. An education agenda that excludes the most critical questions of social and economic justice??? Pahleezzz!!
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