Exposing the real "Right to Work" supporters agenda

Efforts to pass "Right to Work" laws go back decades (a measure was defeated in Ohio in 1958, by the massive margin of 63.3% No to 36.7% yes), and have always been pursued by monied interests looking to put a dent in the power of workers ability to stand up for themselves and each other through collective action.

It should not be lost on anyone that the major backers of this latest anti-union push are billionaires and big business, none of whom actually belong to a union. Having seen previous "right to work" efforts defeated, the extreme right, and their big business backers have had to send their latest effort through a rebranding exercise and they have come up with a new catchy title "work place freedom".

Who doesn't love freedom? Well apparently the very people promoting the effort. LimaOhio.com reported on a meeting of Tea Party members discussing "work place freedom" and why they were pursuing it

Speakers at an Allen County Patriots meeting Thursday made the case that the National Education Association abuses teacher dues to support a liberal agenda that disrespects Christian values.
[...]
According to Boyatt, NEA gave close to $15 million to advocacy groups in the 2011-12 school year and $18 million in 2010-11. The advocacy groups, she said, included the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, Human Rights Campaign, Women’s Campaign Forum and Rainbow Push Coalition.

From there, it got uglier, much uglier

Harvey said the NEA has supported an “immoral, deviant and destructive” gay agenda for at least 25 years, citing its gay and lesbian caucus started in 1987. Harvey criticized the union for supporting a gay and lesbian history month, diversity training that included homosexuality, and pro-homosexual school counseling. She said the NEA has asked schools to protect students and staff from sexual orientation harassment and discrimination and has replaced the word “tolerance” with acceptance and respect.

“Kids are being trained as activists now,” she said.

Harvey said the NEA has voted to lobby for same-sex unions and said petitions are currently circulating to overturn the 2004 Ohio marriage amendment, which stated that that only a union between a man and woman would be recognized as a valid marriage. The OEA opposed the amendment.

This is why the Tea Party in Ohio wants to pursue "right to work" legislation, not to create any kid of "freedom", but to enable their ongoing bigotry by attacking organizations that have a long history of standing up for equality and fairness. Public opinion polls show strong majorities now supporting marriage equalityand how out of the mainstream these Tea Party "Patriots" truly are.

The NEA and its members should be rightly proud of their support for equality, even when it was unpopular to do so.

Big business backers of this effort ought to take a closer look at who some of their allies are. The world has moved on from 1958, but voters are likely to deliver an equally stinging defeat to the purveyors of this ugly bigoted agenda.

Mayor Jackson has a secret Ed plan

The Plain Dealer has a report that hints at Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson having a education reform plan.

Mayor Frank Jackson is working on a plan to make the Cleveland schools academically successful and financially stable, a task that will require changes in state law and that Gov. John Kasich said "could set a standard for the whole state."

We don't know what this plan is however, because Jackson isn't saying.

Jackson declined Wednesday to discuss details of his plan, saying that would be premature.

We do know a few things though. Like most corporate education reformers, Jackson isn't collaborating with educators.

Cleveland Teachers Union President David Quolke, whose members would be most affected if the plan renews Jackson's earlier push for changes in teacher rules and contracts, said Wednesday that he has "absolutely no knowledge" of Jackson's plans.

He said CTU is always willing to discuss changes and collaborate to improve the schools, but has not been included.

It is no surprise that the Governor seems delighted by this new, as Jackson had previously stated he supported SB5 like education reforms, even while denying he supported SB5. The fact that the plan is currently secret and no educator discussions have taken place provides more than a clue as to the direction Jackson wishes to take Cleveland schools.

The very real problem facing Cleveland schools isn't a lack of corporate education reform, but instead the state having raided its budget.

The district is facing tight financial restrains with the existing $13.2 million deficit, the recent recall of more than 400 teachers and state funding cuts totaling $14.5 million.

Jackson is now having to plan a local levy push, along with lay offs and service recutions in order to compensate for this massive loss of revenue. Perhaps Jackson should spend a few minutes talking to the Governor not about corporate ed reform, but school funding reform - the administration is looking for ideas on a new funding formula.

Do Teacher Quality Initiatives Impact the Wrong Teachers?

Three anectdotes.

so, what do these three have in common?

In the first, the teacher (rightfully) wanted to scare the worst students straight and push the mediocre ones to do better. But it was the best student (I'd like to think) who was mortified, not the worst ones. Many years later, I found out my Mom had relayed my reaction to the teacher, who had sighed, shaken her head, and said something like "it's always the wrong ones who get scared."

In the second, I (rightfully, I sure hope) wanted to scare the worst students straight and push the mediocre ones to do better. But the only reaction I got was from possibly the best student in the class -- the one who doesn't need to spend any time fretting about what the end of term report card will say.

In the third, the district (rightfully, I think) wanted to scare the worst teachers straight (and/or just fire them) and push the mediocre ones to do better. I can't say how the other teachers responded, but the model teacher I know is the one who's been scared, despite being straight as an arrow to begin with.

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