Here's to the Schools! SOS March and National Call To Action

Learn more at http://www.saveourschoolsmarch.org/ This is the last in our series putting forward the values teachers, students and parents want to see given priority in the nation's policies around public education. This is not a call for the status quo, but for support that will actually make our society more just and creative! Hear people from many backgrounds elaborate during activities in Washington DC and around the country this July. DC Conference: July 28-29, March: July 30, Congress: July 31


Credits:
Written by Anthony Cody, Edited by Tom Valens, Narrated by Jim Griffiths
Photos- "One Room School" edited by Raymond Bial, "The Story of American Public Education," edited by Sarah Mondale, Central Park East School, Phoebe Ferguson
Film: "TEACH" by Robert Lamothe, "To Make A Difference" and "August to June: Bringing Life to School," by Tom Valens, "World Peace and Other Fourth Grade Achievements," by Chris Farina, "Children and Asthma," by Light- Saraf Films, "Lessons From the Real World" by Bob Gliner.

Sen Gillibrand Says Education Agenda Must Stress More Math and Science by Roger Muehlig - The Daily News Online: News

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Saying that more than 25 percent of students across the state tested poorly in math and science last year, U.S. Senator, Kristen Gillibrand announced an education agenda intended to strengthen instruction in those areas to better prepare students for jobs in an increasingly technological era.

"America is home to the world's strongest economy, the greatest colleges and universities, and the world's brightest minds, Gillibrand said in releasing her agenda during a conference call with upstate news media last week.

"But if we're going to keep our place atop the global economy, we must prepare our students with the education they need for the jobs of the future."

That starts, she said, with sparking more interest in math, science and technology, drawing more STEM (science, technology and math) teachers to educate students in "high-need" areas and streamlining proficiency standards.

"We are relying on our children today to be the innovators of tomorrow," she said in a news release tied to the conference call. "It's our job to make sure they are prepared."

Gillibrand said high-tech is going to be the best growing industry and that her agenda includes:

-- The Engineering Education for Innovation Act, a targeted effort that would, among other things, integrate engineering education into K-12 classrooms, increase engineering and technology teacher preparation programs, and promote partnerships among K-12 school administrators and teachers and engineering professionals.

The legislation, she said, would create a three-year program to award grants for planning and implementation of engineering education into K-12 instruction and curriculum.

-- Co-sponsoring legislation to establish a grant program within the U.S. Department of Education to create more hands-on STEM learning experiences, such as robotics.

-- Introducing legislation to provide STEM teachers who work in low-income, high-need schools a tax credit to cover 10 percent of their undergraduate tuition, up to $1,000 each year.

-- Legislation encouraging states and the National Assessment Governing Board to adopt common core standards in mathematics and encourage state participation by establishing an incentive fund for awarding four-year grants to states that agree to adopt voluntary math and science standards as the core of their own standards and align their teacher certification and professional development to those standards.

Focusing on primary education is a first step, Gillibrand said. "We have a long way to go."

--

Students lack proficiency

The Bureau of Labor Statistics says the fastest-growing occupations in the last 10 years required expertise in the fields of science and math, according to U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

But, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, less than a third of American students are proficient in those two academic fields, she said.

For Western New York, figures from four math and four science regents from 2010 indicate 23 percent of high school students scored unsatisfactory in math and 16 percent scored unsatisfactory in science.

In the Rochester/Finger Lakes region, the figures were 25 percent and 15 percent, respectively.

News and Notes from Rep Anthony D. Weiner - NY 9th Congressional District

GOP Budget Would Cut Queens to Its Core

Weiner Study Highlights Impact of More Than $25 Billion

in Funding Cuts To Borough Over 10 Years

Today, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D – Queens and Brooklyn) released a study highlighting how the GOP budget plan to be considered this week would cut funding to Queens by more than $25 billion over 10 years, slashing money for cops, transportation, seniors and education.

Under the Republican budget plan, more than $25 billion in federal aid to Queens would be cut over 10 years. During a time when the City is facing a massive budget deficit, this proposal would force major cuts in programs like Medicare and Medicaid, hurting countless seniors and low-income residents in the borough. Title I education funding would be cut by over $205 million, and federal grants to the NYPD would be cut by $111 million. This could mean that more than 425 cops would be taken off the streets of Queens.

Additionally, if the GOP budget passes, over the next decade the MTA would lose over $667 million that is used to fund vital rail and bus infrastructure and security projects throughout Queens, and the more than 300,000 seniors in the borough would lose their guaranteed Medicare benefits and be forced to pay additional premium costs.

"The GOP budget is not about debt reduction, it’s about increasing the dangerous inequities in our economy and society. It is an assault on the middle class and those struggling to make it.”

Weiner’s study found the following:

CUTS TO QUEENS OVER 10 YEARS: MORE THAN $25 BILLION

Medicare

· The over 300,000 seniors in Queens would lose their guaranteed Medicare benefits and be forced to pay premium costs that the new proposed subsidy doesn’t cover. (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and U.S. Census)

Medicaid

• Medicaid costs would be shifted to Queens residents as state and local taxes revenue would need to cover the over $20 billion in Medicaid cuts over 10 years contained within this budget proposal. (NYC OMB and Center for Budget and Policy Priorities)

SNAP Program

• The SNAP Program will now be tied to a block grant program with benefits contingent upon on work or job training. Over 96,000 Queens residents would lose their SNAP benefits and Queens would see $1.7 billion cut in funding over 10 years. (U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Census)

Education

• Title I funding, which provides funding for primary and secondary schools, would be cut by over $205 million over 10 years.(NYC Independent Budget Office (IBO)
• Pell Grants which provide grants for lower income college students would be cut by $1 billion over 10 years and the maximum Pell Grant award would be cut by $819 per student. (NYC Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.S. Census)

Law Enforcement

• Federal grants to the New York Police Department for Queens would be cut by $111 million over 10 years. This could mean that 425 cops are taken off the streets of Queens. (NYC IBO)

Housing

• The Low Income Heating and Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) which helps the lowest-income New Yorkers stay warm would be cut by over $68 million over 10 years. (NYC OMB)
• Section 8 vouchers which provide vouchers for low-income families to locate decent, safe, and affordable housing would be cut by over $83 million to NYC over 10 years. (NYC IBO)
• The Public Housing Operating Fund, which provides subsidies to public housing agencies, would be cut by nearly $310 million over 10 years. (NYC IBO)
• The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, which funds local Queens community development activities such as affordable housing, anti-poverty programs, and infrastructure development, would experience over $53 million in cuts over 10 years. (NYC IBO)
• The HOME investment partnerships program, which works with nonprofit groups to build, buy, and rehabilitate affordable housing would be cut by $4 million over 10 years. (NYC IBO)
• The Public Housing Capital Fund, which provides funding for the development and modernization of public housing, would be cut by $22 million over 10 years. (NYC IBO)

Transportation

• MTA would lose over $667 million over 10 years that is used to fund vital rail and bus infrastructure and security projects throughout Queens. (Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA))

Human Services

• The Child Care and Development Fund which provides subsidies for child care for low-income families so that parents can work would be cut by nearly $20 million over 10 years. (NYC IBO)
• Community Services Block Grants which provides funding to assist with employment, education, nutrition and emergency services for the homeless, migrants and the elderly would be cut nearly $10 million over 10 years. (NYC IBO)

Infrastructure

• The Drinking Water Revolving Fund which works to ensure that local residents receive clean and safe drinking water would be cut by $150 million for Queens. (NYC OMB)
• The Clean Water Revolving Fund which works to ensures that local communities can provide clean and sanitary wastewater treatment services for their residents would be cut by $778 million over 10 years for Queens. (NYC OMB)

Job Training

• Queens job training and workforce investment which provides adult workforce training, job-related activities for young adults, and dislocated workers programs would be cut by over $94 million over 10 years. (NYC IBO)

Weiner on President’s Budget Speech: “Today, We Go on Offense”

With President Obama set to give a major speech today outlining his plan for the budget, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D – Queens and Brooklyn) released the following statement:

"Now it's our turn. For months, we have heard the one-note attacks by the GOP on the middle class and those struggling to make it. Medicare, student loans and women's health have all been under attack.”

“Today, we go on offense.”

Weiner Announces $281 Million in Pell Grants for Local Students

More Than 67,000 Will Receive Vital Education Aid in Queens Alone

Today, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D – Queens and Brooklyn) announced that more than 67,000 Queens students will receive $281 million in Pell Grants this year to help cover the rising costs of a college education.

Federal Pell Grants provide need-based assistance to low-income students to help promote access to college and postsecondary education. This year, students across the nation are eligible to receive up to $5,550 each in Pell Grants, which are not required to be repaid.

In Queens alone, over 67,000 students will receive more than $281 million in aid – with an average grant of $4,136 per student. The announcement, however, comes in the midst of attempts by Congressional Republicans to cut the important grant by $1 billion over the next ten years in Queens.

Republicans in Congress, led by Rep. Paul Ryan, are proposing to reduce the maximum Pell Grant award by $819 per student beginning next year. If successful, the maximum Pell Grant will be slashed to $4,731 – a reduction of more than 14 percent. With the cost of higher education rising every year, the GOP proposal would devastate a vital lifeline for students in the borough.

"During a time when colleges are raising tuition, Pell Grants are an important tool in helping students get the education they deserve and the education they need to succeed in the 21^st century workplace,” Weiner said. “$281 million in Pell Grants for Queens is great news, but it’s also a reminder of what’s at stake next year if the draconian budget being pushed by Republicans actually passes.”

Coalition Launches With Impact Report: Mayor's Child Care Cuts Devastate Struggling Communities

NEW REPORT SHOWS THAT MAYOR’S CHILD CARE CUTS WOULD FURTHER DEVASTATE COMMUNITIES WITH HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT AND LOW EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE

EMERGENCY COALITION TO SAVE CHILD CARE LAUNCHES EFFORT TO RESTORE CHILD CARE TO 17,000 CHILDREN; SLAMS MAYOR FOR TURNING HIS BACK ON WORKING NEW YORKERS WHO DEPEND ON AFFORDABLE CHILD CARE

Cuts Undermine Mayor’s Welfare-to-Work Legacy

The newly-formed  Emergency Coalition to Save Child Care, made up of dozens of organizations and religious institutions, launched an effort to restore child care to the 17,000 children who are about to lose care under the Mayor’s plan to cut child care for working families. This cut combined with 14,000 slots lost since 2006 add up to a 50% cut in child care for working families.

These cuts will lead to:

• Lower graduation rates from high school
• More working parents leaving the workforce

The new report finds that the impact of these cuts is not shared equally and will hit some of the city’s most struggling communities the hardest.

• Communities with a high unmet need for child care will lose significant numbers of subsidies, including Washington Heights where 370 children will lose subsidies and Unionport/Soundview in the Bronx where 486 children will lose their subsidies.
• Communities with unemployment rates over 16 percent will be hit hard, including Bedford-Stuyvesant where 684 children will lose subsidies and Mott Haven where 502 children will lose their subsidies.
• Communities where less than half of the students are meeting state and city reading standards will bear a large burden of these cuts, including East New York where 972 children will lose their subsidies, and Brownsville where 543 children will lose their subsidies.

“Cutting child care for 17,000 children in working families is penny-wise and pound-foolish,” said Fatima Goldman, Executive Director/CEO of the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies. “These cuts will devastate areas throughout the City that already have high unemployment and low performance on state education tests.”

“The Mayor’s plan to cut child care subsidies for nearly 17,000 children will have a dire effect on thousands of working families in our City, forcing parents to scramble for alternative care and preventing tens of thousands of children from getting the early education opportunities they deserve,” said Council Member Annabel Palma, Chair of the General Welfare Committee. “It is unconscionable that the Mayor continues to preach about the merits of upward social mobility while simultaneously denying working New Yorkers the resources they need to lift themselves out of poverty. Our children and families deserve better from their Mayor.”

The child care system is already under serving the people who need it most. The City’s own Community Needs Assessment released in 2008 found that the city was serving only 27 percent of eligible children in city-funded programs, and only 37 percent of all children under the age of six were being served in any early childhood setting.

Studies have shown that every $1 cut from child care leads to a $1.86 loss in economic activity, and that child care and early learning programs save up to a billion dollars in future costs for remedial education and lowered high school graduation rates.

“Our City already has high unemployment,” said Raglan George, Executive Director of AFSCME District Council 1707. “Why would the Mayor want to cut 17,000 child care slots – leaving parents at risk of losing their jobs because they cannot find a safe place for their child while they are at work and leaving child care providers at risk of having to lay off the people who work for them?”

These cuts will lead to a higher need for other government programs such as health insurance, food stamps, public assistance and unemployment benefits. Many parents determine that the high cost of child care exceeds their income, and they are unable to go to work because they have nowhere safe for their children during the day. More than a thousand early childhood professionals will lose their jobs and the availability of employment in this sector will be drastically reduced.

"These cuts should never even be an option for the City" said Rev. Lisa D. Jenkins of Blessed Trinity Baptist Church in Harlem. "These cuts are unacceptable at any time. Children and hard-working parents should not be paying the price for the city's budget shortfalls. Our leaders should not cut programs that allow hard-working parents to care for their children while they're at work. Without child care, these parents will be forced to make drastic choices."

IMPACT ON CHILDREN

Children will pay the biggest price for this cut in child care services. It is well documented that positive early childhood learning opportunities lead to more positive outcomes later in life. Children who attend quality early childhood programs are more likely to graduate from high school, less likely to be involved in crime and less likely to become teen parents.

“Our centers provide safe, affordable and educational child care,” said Margarita Rosa, Executive Director, of Grand Street Settlement which has child care centers in Bushwick and the Lower East Side. “If the Mayor cuts these 17,000 child care slots, many of these parents will have no option except to turn to unsafe options that don’t provide kids with the education they need to succeed in school later on. That makes no sense.”

IMPACT ON WORKING PARENTS

Working parents who lose their subsidy will need to make the difficult decision between making alternative, less stable arrangements for their children and leaving the workforce. 

Child care is one of the most important factors for a working parent. Many parents, especially single mothers, have reported that they would be unable to work without child care assistance. 

The costs of child care are prohibitive and for many, without a subsidy, it does not pay to work. Despite all of the rhetoric about helping people become employed and stay self-sufficient, these cuts will lead to many parents leaving the workforce and becoming more reliant on government supports, such as health insurance, food stamps, unemployment or public assistance.

“The City’s plan makes no sense to cut child care for 17,000 children,” said Nassha Norton,a working mother from East New York whose daughter is losing child care. “For years, the city has encouraged people to a job and work. But without child care, how am I supposed to work?”

ABOUT THE CUTS

The Mayor’s plan cuts child care subsidies for almost 17,000 children this year. 14,000 child care slots have already been lost since 2006. 47,887 low-income children from working families are getting subsidized child care right now. The City is only serving 27% of eligible children. The Mayor’s proposal would cut 17,000 subsidized slots for children, adding to the problem. 300 classrooms with capacity for5,440 kids are at risk of closure. Click here to read the full report.

Senator Joe Addabbo Co-sponsors Bill to Require Hate Crimes Curriculum in All New York State Schools

Responding to last month’s gang-related murder in his district of a young man by five teens now charged with manslaughter, who also are being investigated by the NYPD for hate crimes, NYS Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr.(D-Queens), a member of the Senate’s Education Committee, is co-sponsoring a bill (S.269), which would raise awareness about hate crimes through curriculum in the schools. Addabbo supported this bill in the Education Committee and the bill has been sent to the full Senate for a vote.  

The Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating last month’s murder as to whether the suspects shouted anti-gay slurs at the victim and whether he was chased and bludgeoned to death on a Woodhaven street because he was perceived to be gay.  

The proposed new law requires a course of instruction in the awareness of hate crimes in our schools, so that every child in New York State will become educated on the commission of hate crimes. Hate crimes mean offenses that are committed based upon the race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious practice, age, disability or sexual orientation of the victim. The instruction will include examples of symbols and objects associated with hate crimes and the events and historical significance surrounding such symbols and objects. Such a course will also focus on the moral aspects and legal implications of such offenses and promote attitudes of tolerance and acceptance.

The law requires the board of education, trustees, principal or other person in charge of every public, private and parochial school in New York State to arrange for giving such course of instruction in every school under its/his or her control to every pupil for a period of not less than 45 minutes in each month during which such school is in session. The law will take effect on the first of September following the date on which it becomes a law.  

Explains Addabbo, “This bill offers a valuable course to increase an understanding of the seriousness of hate crimes among all students in New York State.  It is important that our schools teach core values of tolerance, acceptance and knowledge to all children in order to prevent hate crimes.” He believes that students should be taught about the vile nature of hate crimes and that such instruction will directly combat negative language and stereotypes that are prevalent in today’s society. Addabbo is hopeful that this instruction will educate our youth about the implications and dire consequences of hate crimes, and will provide them with a better understanding of the differences in each person. 

Michelle Rhee’s Potential DC Cheating Scandal by: Ann Bibby - Care2

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Michelle Rhee rose to prominence in the education reform ranks thanks in large part to methods that helped raise test scores in the perennially low-scoring Washington D.C. school district she oversaw as chancellor.

Her tough stance on low-performing schools and teachers, which included firing those whose students didn't measure up on standardized tests, endeared her to reformers like Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan.

A Shining Star

Using a merit pay inspired bonus system to spur performance in both teachers and students, Rhee's reforms seemed to work. Schools like Crosby S. Noyes Education Campus made spectacular gains on the standardized test used by the No Child Left Behind Law to measure student academic growth. In 2006, Noyes ranked in the 10% and was labeled a school "in need of improvement" but two years later ranked 58% and was one of Rhee's "shining stars," proof that her reform efforts worked.

Teachers at Noyes were rewarded with $8,000 bonuses and the principal received $10,000 on two different occasions within a three-year period. Parents, however, complained that the test scores made no sense. Their children still couldn't perform basic math, but they were ignored. Test scores, after all, don't lie.

But sometimes, teachers do.

Altering Test Answers

A recent examination of the tests given in Rhee's former district has revealed that perhaps her incentives worked too well and not in a good way. Noyes students' tests, for example, revealed a high number of erasure marks on the test sheets. A frequency higher than would be expected normally and always from an incorrect answer to a correct answer. In one Noyes seventh grade classroom, the average wrong to right erasure marks averaged 12.7 compared to a district wide average of less than 1. The odds of winning the Powerball, in fact, are greater than such an occurrence being merely chance.

At least half of the schools under Rhee's tenure appear to suffer from the same higher than should be expected erasure problem. Taking into account what was at stake for teachers and principals, it evokes questions. Had some schools engaged in widespread answer changing to secure bonuses or jobs?

What Do You Think?

Rhee's methods have been touted by no less than the White House. But what if the miraculous turnaround of schools under her charge was the result of cheating?

The current Education Secretary, Arne Duncan, came into his White House appointment under similar circumstances. His tenure as the superintendent of the Chicago Public schools system supposedly resulted in widespread improvement based on test scores that turned out to be questionable.

If the "reformers" aren't really reforming, why has no one put the brakes on the dismantling of public education? Even NCLB has fallen far short of it's promise without anyone questioning the wisdom of allowing it to be the law of the land.

What do you think? Are we doing our children good, or harm, by jumping on every bandwagon and following every reformer without first testing their theories on a smaller scale to see if they have merit? What should we be doing?

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand: The Right Priorities for Our Working Families - The Huffington Post

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The 2010 election was a mandate for one thing: creating jobs and strengthening our economy for the long term. I heard that message loud and clear from New York families in every corner of our state, and I am working with my colleagues in Congress on solutions that will help create good-paying jobs and get the economy moving again for everyone.

But, instead of focusing on rebuilding the economy, House Republicans have unleashed an extreme ideological attack on America's women and working families with HR 1, the first bill they introduced this Congress.

The House-passed bill slashed critical funding for prenatal care, including $750 million from nutrition programs for pregnant women and infant children.

It denies more than 5 million American women access to breast and cervical cancer screenings that could potentially save their lives.

Their budget cuts affect early childhood education deeply -- cutting more than $1 billion from Head Start, and nearly $40 million from child care, depriving nearly 370,000 children from the early learning needed to put them on a path to a bright future.

And despite the overwhelming demand from the American people for Democrats and Republicans to work together to invest in job creation policies, House Republicans slashed nearly $1.5 billion from the job training programs we need to prepare America's workforce for the jobs of today and the high-tech jobs of tomorrow.

But, more than these dollar figures and the irresponsible budgeting and priorities from Republicans, this debate is about the working families who rely on these resources to make ends meet each day. From the single mother who will no longer be able to provide nutritious meals for her young children to the young woman in who will no longer have access to the early cancer screenings that could save her life to our children who will never walk through the doors of a university years from now because the doors to early education are being closed to them today. We cannot slash and burn our way to a healthy society and a thriving economy.

These are the wrong priorities for New York and the wrong policies for America.

Instead of marginalizing women, Congress must get to work on policies that can foster job creation and fuel economic growth. I have a range of proposals that can help get us there.

I have authored legislation that empowers more women and minority-owned businesses with the resources to help guide these budding entrepreneurs to be leaders of our economy, opening up access to the credit they desperately need to get their businesses off the ground.

I have also authored legislation to support the increase of young girls and minorities in the fields of math and science to generate the leaders we need in emerging high-tech industries that will be the future of our economy.

I'm fighting to make childcare more affordable for working parents so they can continue working and advancing their careers, closing wage gaps that for too long have held women back from the fair economic opportunities they need.

And, as our troops return home from Iraq and Afghanistan, and our women veterans become one of the fastest growing segments of the homeless veteran population, I'm partnering with businesses and working to provide them with tax credits in exchange for hiring recent veterans so our heroes have better access to good-paying jobs after serving our country.

These are the priorities that I am urging my Republican colleagues to join me on. And we can all do our part -- because this debate isn't just happening in the halls of Congress. It's happening in each and every one of our communities, at kitchen tables and living rooms, in our schools and in our churches. It's up to all of us to get off the sidelines and join the effort to protect our families and the resources that keep our communities safe, healthy and thriving.

We will not stand for this attack on America's women and working families.

It's time to focus on real solutions that will create jobs and build our economy for real strength and stability -- not just for the fortunate few, but for every American.

Education Forum at the Ridgewood Democratic Club on March 25th...

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On Friday March 25th, the Ridgewood Democratic Club held a forum on Education with guest speaker Billy Easton (Executive Director) - Alliance for Quality Education...