So, about Virginia… The election in Virginia was not about “education”–it was about racism, and white supremacy. Maybe if establishment Democrats hadn’t tacked hard right on education, starting with Bill Clinton and reaching a crescendo with Barack Obama and Arne Duncan, we wouldn’t have given up the “high road” on public education. There’s been a lot of discussion about the […]

In the aftermath of the most consequential election in our lifetimes, I thought I’d take this opportunity to offer some free advice for state Democratic parties interested in attracting even more new voters and turning more red state legislatures blue: Let’s put a lot more focus on two issues that are critically important to building a stronger, more informed voter […]

I got an email from our school’s business manager on Friday at 5:11pm with an “emergency request” to complete a new required training module. The deadline for completing this module? The following Monday morning. As usual, the “system” didn’t allow me to even start the training module–some sort of IT glitch I assume–so I called the business manager, who was […]

Vice President Mike Pence visited a school in North Carolina today, ostensibly to show how the power of school choice is the key to reopening schools this fall… In an email sent Monday, school officials said Pence will visit Thales Academy K-5 to see how school choice works and to advocate for its further implementation. Pence also tweeted about how […]

If you’ve seen your teacher friends warning about the dangers of the Covid-19 pandemic providing an opportunity for unscrupulous education reformers, like US Secretary of Education and serial public school defunder, Betsy DeVos, to dismantle our system of public schools and wondered to yourself, “Now how would these people do that?”…here’s how. In the Utica (MI) Community Schools (UCS), the […]

In the aftermath of the recent Public Education Forum in Pittsburgh last week, I’ve noticed an uptick in the number of education reform related posts on social media. Unfortunately, just as with our more strictly political dialogue these days, it can be difficult to distinguish between facts and “Corporate-Reform-Agenda-Propaganda” (i.e., CRAP), or #alternativefacts. In the spirit of giving, I offer […]

Given that education consistently ranks among the top issues for voters in most public opinion polls, with the vast majority (82%) of parents of school-aged children reporting that they are either “somewhat” or “completely satisfied” with their child’s education, one could be forgiven for being flummoxed by the near-absence of questions about teachers, schools, or education in general at any […]

Michigan, allegedly, does not permit for-profit charter schools. And yet one of the largest for-profit charter management corporations, National Heritage Academies (NHA), is headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan. And they take the “for profit” part seriously: NHA funds itself partly by charging its schools high rates. For example, the New York Daily News reported that NHA owned property in Brooklyn […]

Michael Bennet, US Senator from Colorado and presidential candidate, had what the pundits this morning are calling “a moment” at last night’s Democratic Debate on CNN. Let’s hope that moment ends immediately. Ironically enough, Bennet’s big moment came as he waxed poetic about “America’s public schools”, a topic that has received a depressingly minuscule amount of attention. Because while Bennet […]

“I wouldn’t want to be the one that tells Gov. Jerry Brown that he can’t teach a government class because he would otherwise have to go back to college,” said Myrna Castrejón, president and CEO of the California Charter Schools Association. I would. Because Jerry Brown is in no way qualified, prepared, certified, or remotely capable of being a teacher. […]

Secretary of Education and Disney villain Betsy DeVos spoke to a group of education writers in Baltimore the other day, and it appears her feelings are hurt. “I never imagined I’d be a focus of your coverage. I don’t enjoy the publicity that comes with my position. I don’t love being up on stage or on any kind of platform. […]