Stop the school closings rally!

Our day of rage at City Hall

Today, NYC's education "day of rage" was observed by angry parents, teachers, students, elected officials and community members at a rally organized by the Coalition for Public Education at City Hall.

All of those present expressed fury and disgust at how are schools are being closed, dismantled, privatized and destroyed. Joel Shatzky reports on the event at the Huffington Post.

This photo shows Muba Yarofulani, parent leader, speaking to reporters representing media outlets from throughout the world, from Harlem to Russia.

While I was speaking to the crowd about the recklessness of the men who who are shuttering our schools to put charter schools in their place, and who say they want to expand parent choice but who are taking away the most basic choice of all, the right to send our children to a high quality neighborhood public school, Chancellor Klein scurried past us into City Hall, and the crowd started to jeer and boo him.

This incident is also described on the Daily News blog, which relates how Bloomberg is using the fact that NY State made the finalist list for the Arne Duncan slush fund known as "Race to the Top" to complain once again that the cap on charters must be raised.

Yet the administration blocked a bill that would do that earlier this year, because it would allow the state comptroller to audit the charter school managers use of public funds, and would give parents a voice as to where those charters would be sited.

As many of us observed today, the tide is turning and it is time to take our schools back!

More photos of the rally here.

New charter school critiques: separate and unequal?

Check out the new UFT report on charter schools, "Separate and Unequal: the Failure of NYC Charter Schools to Serve the City's Neediest Students."

Also watch this video from the Hope Community, "Charter Schools: The Privatization of Public Education?"

The Great Debate

What's a university to do in a recession? Use the opportunity to learn how to do less with more? Use it as a convenient excuse to privatize? Stand by your constituents and struggle along with them to build political support?

Right now we're seeing it all. A few examples--

From the Chronicle: Public Colleges Consider Privatization as a Cure for the Common Recession.

In Baltimore: Regents approve tuition freeze for Maryland undergraduates, Out-of-state, graduate students to see increases

But what I'm looking for is a state or university that's using the recession as a chance to focus in on the core questions, which include:
1. What are we doing that is working? At what cost? Given that cost, is it worth it?
2. What are we doing that by no measure is having any impact? What's that costing? Do we have the stomach to stop doing it?

In other words, use this as a time to get focused on cost-effective ways to educate college students--not as a time to grow bigger and broader. Get back to your core mission. As the NY Times pointed out yesterday, right now you've got to live in the house you're in--there's no trading up. There's no upgrade in a recession, especially not one that comes at the expense of students and families.

Postscript: As I finished typing, the following news rolled in. We have a WINNER! Temple University has managed to cut its operating budget by 5% (by consolidating programs, leaving some staff positions vacant, and freezing salaries for nonunion employees) and give half of the savings (nearly $20 million) to financial aid. Tuition will rise only minimally (less than 3%). You go, Temple!