The Perimeter Exposes the Grand Takeover in Oakland...

...and coming to a poor urban school district near you

Stopping by The Perimeter Primate, Oakland mom and Ed activist supreme, is like sitting down for a 10 course banquet with one delicious nugget after another. Add a fine wine and it is quite a dining experience. Here are a few chewy morsels.

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I haven’t yet researched who exactly those “private philanthropic funders” might be, but looking at the NLNS Board of Director members list reveals the usual edu-philanthro-manipulate-preneur billionaires and company:

Read it all: The National Scene on a Local Scale
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I had known that, since the state takeover, the school district had been run by Broad-trained people, but the Trib's description wouldn't fit them. It instantly irked me that a group of people – who the editorial would not even name – seemed to be having considerable influence on the direction of Oakland’s public schools. I posted my concern on a local community listserv.

Later that day I received a private response, and two follow-ups, from an Oakland resident who was very involved with the city at the time.

There is a group of Oakland business people led by [A, a wealthy local businessman] who are strong Eli Broad supporters, and charter school supporters and think that the downfall of the school system is the teachers and the unions.... The whole time Randy was talking about his plan to close and reopen all the schools so that teachers have to re-apply for their jobs at lower salaries.

Read it all: Is it Fiction, or Not? Not.

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Dear Perimeter Primate,
What I don't understand about the hatred leveled toward Michelle Rhee, TFA, Broad, the Gates Foundation, etc. is that I really don't think they would be working this hard to destroy schools. Everyone I know who does this work in low-income public schools works like a dog because they want to help kids achieve. The people I know are light years away from "caring less about" public education. They are simply trying to think hard and work hard to fix the system and improve the lives of children."

The PP responds:
"Has anyone else noticed that our nation's schools are only "failing" in districts which the middle class abandoned long ago? Has anyone else noticed that a small set of extraordinarily powerful people, namely the billionaires Gates, Bloomberg, Broad and the Walton family, and a few assorted millionaires, have now gained control of school districts primarily filled with poor kids?"

Read her response in full at Wishing I Was a Fly

F i x i n g t h e S c h o o l s , i n F i v e E a s y S t e p s !

Ah, the wisdom of an experienced teacher. Here is the face of reform that would work from Accountable Talk. I love Step 5. As I commented on AT's post, on the few occasions where all our admins were out, the teachers and secretaries (NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE ABILITY OF GOOD SCHOOL SECRETARIES TO RUN A SCHOOL) sort of just took over and the place ran better than ever. Ed Notes has always stood for the principle of election of principals.

And make sure to check out AT's great suggestion to throw shoes at pictures of Bloomberg. Maybe start all faculty conferences that way. I bet the supevisors join in - if we haven't fired them yet.

S t e p O n e - - S t o p t h e G i m m i c k s

S t e p T w o - - E n f o r c e D i s c i p l i n e

S t e p T h r e e - - R e d u c e C l a s s S i z e

S t e p F o u r - - A t t r a c t i n g a n d K e e p i n g t h e B e s t T e a c h e r s

S t e p F i v e - - F i r e A l l A d m i n i s t r a t o r s