2010-08-19 11:29
Can Teacher Power Save Schools?
That's an interesting and valid question. This article outlines an example from Los Angeles of teachers stepping up to address the needs of "failing schools". They are developing their own plans to address the needs of their schools and many of those plans have been accepted by the school district. Read for yourself.
http://www.nea.org/home/40716.htm?utm_source=nea_today_express&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20200818NewTeachersNeedYourHelp&utm_content=PSCLA
Educators prepare to lead dozens of Los Angeles schools this fall.
By Alain Jehlen
They’re not hanging an “under new management” sign on Jefferson High School in Los Angeles, but they could.
At Jefferson and dozens of other Los Angeles schools, faculty-led committees have been given the authority to make big decisions about how to run the school.
This experiment was set in motion last February when the LA school board voted to adopt plans submitted by educator-led teams at 29 schools in low-income, high-minority areas of the city.
The board had put 36 schools out to bid, inviting proposals from charter school operators and other organizations. The smart money was on charter operators to snag most of them. But United Teachers Los Angeles (a joint affiliate of NEA and the American Federation of Teachers) helped educators at the schools team up with parents and administrators to write their own proposals. And the school board accepted 29 of them.
Jefferson's plan includes splitting into five autonomous mini-schools sharing one campus. Each school will make its own decisions about school culture and how to spend its money. Mini-school councils will choose their principals and when there are openings for new faculty, they’ll select them.
The really hard part starts now. As educators roll up their sleeves and start making the changes, here’s a look at two Jefferson High School leaders and some of their students:
Social studies teacher Nicolle Fefferman
Nicolle Fefferman, the UTLA chapter chair, moved all the way from Connecticut to teach at this high school. She grew up in LA, but was in her first year teaching in New Haven when she read in a newspaper about a student riot at Jefferson. She decided right then to come home. “I wanted to be a part of fixing the problems of our schools in low-income communities of color,” she says. “I figured I’d get in, work hard, and join up with like-minded people to make positive changes.”
So she did.
And when UTLA offered assistance to Jefferson teachers if they wanted to write their own proposal for the school, Fefferman grabbed it. “We knew we’d have to scrape together the time and scramble to teach and still have our families. We’d have to move, move, move and come up with something good, good, good!”
Fefferman led a team of about 25—15 teachers and 10 administrators and parents—in developing the proposal. They read, visited other schools, they put in nights and weekends, and wrote a plan focused on strengthening bonds between teachers and students.
When the school board announced its surprise decision, Fefferman was excited, proud—and exhausted. “I’m so tired!” she said. “But now we have to start the work. We can’t just talk any more. This is it!”
And all the while, she kept teaching. One day last spring, she divided her students into groups to write radio scripts about being caught in a natural disaster. Three freshmen girls came up with this plot line: They and their friends are having a party to celebrate one girl’s wonderful news. Suddenly a tornado sweeps down on their house, uproots a tree, and kills them all.
Tornadoes are rare in Southern California, but the great news they were celebrating before the storm struck was based on reality: One of their classmates had gotten pregnant.
“Babies are valued, and it’s accepted that girls will get pregnant young,” explained Fefferman later. That’s one of the challenges she faces in helping her students succeed in school and the job market.
But Fefferman’s not interested in making excuses for Jefferson’s low test scores and high drop-out rate. “Our school is a failing school. What we’re doing isn’t working. That’s unacceptable,” she says to a colleague over lunch.
Last May, UTLA organized a weekend workshop for leaders at the 29 schools to help get each school ready for launch.
Fefferman didn’t go. She spent her Saturday morning helping one of her star students, a senior girl she’d known since ninth grade, go to college. The girl had been admitted to UCLA and Berkeley but isn’t eligible for government scholarships or loans because she’s undocumented. So Fefferman drove her to the airport for a quick trip to Berkeley (paid for with Fefferman’s husband’s frequent flyer miles) to interview for a private organization scholarship.
It worked: The girl got the scholarship, and several more that she scrounged on her own. This fall, as Fefferman helps Jefferson turn a fresh page, her student will start a new life as a Berkeley freshman.
Art teacher Luis Garcia
Art teacher Luis Garcia is a graduate of Jefferson High, and he was not a big fan of the school when he was there. “One thing I felt was missing was teacher support,” he says. “I’m not saying none of them cared—half of them did, and that half kept me going.”
One teacher who cared about Garcia was his science teacher and volleyball coach. “He wasn’t from our culture. He was Middle Eastern. But he tried to learn our language. He got to know us. And he inspired me to come back,” says Garcia.
“I recall Mahatma Gandhi’s quote, ‘Be the change you want to see.’ I want to be that change at Jefferson High School.”
Here’s his approach: “I need to learn from my students first, before they can learn from me. If I don’t know what they’re going through, how am I going to get through to them?”
Garcia, who teaches art, is close to many of his students. Hernan Cortez is a senior he has worked with for three years. “He completely changed my mentality,” says Cortez. “At first, I just wanted a career that would make me wealthy, but being in his class helped me see that helping others can really pay off.” Cortez is headed for college to study civil engineering, and then come back to help his community.
Garcia has high hopes for the new Jefferson High School. “There will be a more personal relationship not only with students, but also parents, because we won’t be under the control of a bureaucratic system,” he says. “It will be up to the school and the home. I believe that will change the culture.”
2010-08-01 11:19
Republican Educators Meet To
Strategize and Support Education
Two educators from Washington state just returned from Washington, D.C., where they joined 89 educators from 41 other states at the 4th annual NEA Republican Leaders Conference (RLC). Attending her first conference was Spokane elementary school teacher Beth Nye. She is a member of the Spokane Education Association Executive Board and part of WEA’s 5th Congressional District Contact Team. Attending his fourth conference was retired Bothell teacher Ken Mortland. He is the founder of the WEA Republican Educators Caucus and a member of the WEA Retired Board, WEA PAC Board, and Mainstream Republicans of Washington Board
During the conference, members heard from NEA Pres. Dennis Van Roekel, who emphasized the importance of bipartisanship on education issues and reaffirmed NEA’s commitment to the NEA RLC, which is a joint effort of NEA and the Republican National Committee. Several Republican elected officials spoke at the conference, including Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX), Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL), Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO), Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX & Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee), and Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA). Reichert was a particular hit at the conference.
“Federal government is not the national school board,” said Cong. Biggert. She went on to say, “We need to do more with holding parents accountable.” Cong. Sam Graves, whose wife is a special ed teacher, said, “Special ed kids should be exempt from standardized tests amd their IEPs should be the focus of their assessment.”
Members listened to briefings on federal education policy, taxes, & the economy. They participated in a grassroots lobbying and leadership seminar, and they visited the hill to speak with members of Congress about the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA and also know as No Child Left Behind). Nye and Mortland visited Justin Prosser in Cong. Doc Hastings office and David Bahar, in Cong. Jay Inslee’s office. Nye spoke to Cong. Cathy McMorris-Rodgers, and Mortland talked to Lindsay Manson in Cong. Reichert’s office.
After their visits on the hill, members were hosted at the Ronald Reagan Center, where they received updates on congressional elections across the country. While there, they were introduced to senatorial candidate Dino Rossi from Washington state, who was attending a meeting there.
Other WEA Republican members who have attended this conference are Ana Harlos (NEA Leg Comm), Dennis Weber (newly elected president of the Longview Education Association & Longview City Councilman), and Kathy Axtell (Chinook Uniserv President and recipient of the 2009 NEA ESP of the Year award.)
2010-07-12 13:24
Much of this Renaissance is explained in her newest book, “The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are undermining Education.” In this book she raises some interesting concerns:
· The “extent to which it is appropriate for a mega-rich foundation to take charge of reforming public schools, even though it is accountable to no one and elected by no one.”
· The fact that the “federal government is prohibited by law from imposing any curriculum on states or school districts.”
· The fact that this reform means different things to different parties, eg. “Democrats saw an opportunity to reinvent government” and “Republicans (saw) a chance to diminish the power of teachers’ unions…” (Remember she worked for Pres. George H. W. Bush)
· Revealing the sources of her concerns: “I concluded that curriculum and instruction were far more important than choice and accountability”
· “…choice would let thousands of flowers bloom but would not strengthen American education.”
· “… focus on the essentials of education..” 1) schools with strong coherent explicit curriculum that is grounded in the liberal arts and science; 2) plenty of opportunity for children to engage in activities and projects that make learning lively; 3) ensuring that students have the knowledge they need to understand political debates, scientific phenomena, and the world they live in; 4) be sure they are prepared for the responsibilities of democratic citizenship in a complex society.
· “We must take care that our teachers are well educated, and not just well trained.
· “We must be sure that schools have the authority to maintain both standards of learning and standards of behavior.”
WEA Republican Educators Caucus invites your comments and responses to Dr. Ravitch’s concerns.
2010-07-07 09:18
Mainstream Republicans of Washington has begun its 2010 endorsement process. Here is a list of the current endorsements.
| Federal | U.S. Senator | Dino Rossi |
| Cong. Dist 1 | U.S. Rep | James Watkins |
| Cong. Dist 4 | U.S. Rep | Doc Hastings |
| Cong. Dist 5 | U.S. Rep | Cathy McMorris Rodgers |
| Cong. Dist 6 | U.S. Rep | Doug Cloud |
| Cong. Dist 8 | U.S. Rep | Dave Reichert |
| Cong. Dist 9 | U.S. Rep | Richard (Dick) Muri |
| Leg Dist 2 | St Rep Pos. 2 | J. T. Wilcox |
| Leg Dist 5 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Jay Rodne |
| Leg Dist 5 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Glenn Anderson |
| Leg Dist 6 | St Senator | Michael Baumgartner |
| Leg Dist 6 | St Rep Pos. 2 | |
| Leg Dist 8 | St Senator | Jerome Delvin |
| Leg Dist 8 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Brad Klippert |
| Leg Dist 8 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Larry Haler |
| Leg Dist 9 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Susan Fagan |
| Leg Dist 9 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Joe Schmick |
| Leg Dist 10 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Norma Smith |
| Leg Dist 10 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Barbara Bailey |
| Leg Dist 11 | St Rep Pos. 2 | John Potter |
| Leg Dist 12 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Cary Condotta |
| Leg Dist 12 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Mike Armstrong |
| Leg Dist 13 | St Senator | Janna Holmquist |
| Leg Dist 14 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Norm Johnson |
| Leg Dist 14 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Charles Ross |
| Leg Dist 15 | St Rep Pos. 2 | David Taylor |
| Leg Dist 16 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Maureen Walsh |
| Leg Dist 16 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Terry R. Nealey |
| Leg Dist 17 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Brian Peck |
| Leg Dist 20 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Gary Alexander |
| Leg Dist 24 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Jim McEntire |
| Leg Dist 25 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Bruce Dammeier |
| Leg Dist 25 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Hans Zeiger |
| Leg Dist 26 | St Senator | Marty McClendon |
| Leg Dist 26 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Jan Angel |
| Leg Dist 26 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Doug Richards |
| Leg Dist 28 | St Rep Pos. 2 | |
| Leg Dist 29 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Steven T Cook |
| Leg Dist 30 | St Senator | Tony Moore |
| Leg Dist 31 | St Senator | Matt Richardson |
| Leg Dist 31 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Shawn Bunney |
| Leg Dist 32 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Art Coday |
| Leg Dist 35 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Daniel (Dan) Griffey |
| Leg Dist 41 | St Senator | Steve Litzow |
| Leg Dist 41 | St Rep Pos. 1 | Peter Dunbar |
| Leg Dist 41 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Stephen Strader |
| Leg Dist 42 | St Senator | Doug Ericksen |
| Leg Dist 44 | St Senator | Dave Schmidt |
| Leg Dist 44 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Mike Hope |
| Leg Dist 45 | St Senator | Andy Hill |
| Leg Dist 47 | St Senator | Joe Fain |
| Leg Dist 47 | St Rep Pos. 1 | |
| Leg Dist 47 | St Rep Pos. 2 | Rodrigo M. Yanez |
| Leg Dist 48 | St Senator | Gregg Bennett |
| Supreme Court | Justice Position 1 | Jim Johnson |
| Court of Appeals, Div 2, Dist 3 | Judge Position 2 | Joseph Daggy |
| Auditor Thurston | Kim Wyman | |
| Prosecuting Attorney | Dan Satterberg | |
| Auditor Benton | Brenda Chilton | |
| Dist Court Judge | Dave Petersen |
2010-06-23 13:49
I had the honor of chairing the 2010 Washington State Republican Party Platform Committee this year. Wanting to do something different, the committee elected to create a video version of the platform. In the interest of time, the video only covers the plank titles (not the entire plank). I hope you enjoy what we came up with. Please feel free to pass it along on your Facebook pages and email lists. It would be great if people became more aware of party platforms.
2010-06-14 10:33
At the 2010 Cascade Conference, MRW released major revisions to the principles of Mainstream.
Mainstream Republicans of Washington
Declaration of Independence
We, Mainstream Republicans of Washington, declare our independence from politics that move us away from traditional Republican values as practiced by Presidents Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan, and in the Evergreen State, by our own Governor, Dan Evans.
This independence turns into political action through recruitment, financing, election and re-election of candidates who demonstrate, without litmus tests, agreement with the following principles:
Statement of Principles
We believe, first and foremost, with President Lincoln, that “The proper function of government is to do for people those things that have to be done but cannot be done, or cannot be done as well, by individuals.”
We believe the fundamental principle that government should be fiscally responsible, limited in scope, and non-intrusive.
We believe in limited government and the fulfillment of its important responsibilities, but our goal is to make that limited government work well, efficiently, effectively, and responsively.
We believe in the American family as the appropriate environment to teach the values of our society, without governmental intrusion.
We believe in the free enterprise system, and free trade, with restrained government involvement, to allow our economic system to maximize both the common good and individual opportunity.
We believe in a strong national defense, featuring a volunteer force that is honored and compensated appropriately for service to our country.
We believe that the best government is closest to home, with local importance placed on law enforcement, the prevention of crime, strong court systems, and emphasis on coordinating services and avoiding conflict with state and federal entities.
We believe in government at all levels that is transparent; that the public has a “right to know” how their laws are being carried out.
We believe that there are more effective ways of creating a “safety net” for the disabled, the elderly, and the under-privileged by encouraging individual initiative rather than creating dependency.
We believe in personal responsibility, that faith in the individual is the true foundation of our national strength, and personal freedom and privacy must be maintained by our governing laws.
We believe that religion is a matter of personal conscience, and we must carefully balance within the constitutional mandate that the "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion" and "prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
We believe in ethnic, cultural, and religious diversity in our society – maintaining unity with such diversity is necessary and remains a unique characteristic of America.
We believe in equal access to economic opportunity and due process of law as these are the basics which make America the land of opportunity and freedom.
We believe in equal rights for all citizens as our full potential can only be realized after these become a reality, including race ethnicity, gender, age, and sexual orientation.
We believe in publicly funded public education as an obligation of our society; it provides the glue that bonds together the diverse segments of our society and provides the skills necessary to realize our economic opportunities.
We believe in environmental stewardship, the protection of our recreational opportunities and our safety, and encourage the use of public-private partnerships to achieve these goals.
We believe that participation in the political process by an informed, involved citizenry is essential if we are to have truly representative government.
Adopted as amended - March 11, 2010
2010-05-28 19:02
2010 Cascade Conference
A Great Success
Last weekend moderate Republicans and Republican candidates gathered at the SeaTac Holiday Inn for the 29th Cascade Conference, the annual event sponsored by Mainstream Republicans of Washington. Put together by Secretary of State Sam Reed and his cadre of volunteers, the conference brought in notables on many issues to discuss and share ideas.
Among the highlights were the presentations of the Joel Prichard Award, the Maryann Mitchell Award and the Norm Maleng Award. The Joel Pritchard Award, given to the most inspiring and outstanding member, was given by previous recipient retired Governor Dan Evans to retired Senator Slade Gorton. The Maryann Mitchell Award, given to the most outstanding legislator, was awarded by previous recipient Sen. Linda Evans Parlette to retiring Sen. Dale Brandland. And the Norm Maleng Award, given to the most outstanding members of local government, was presented by previous recipient Thurston County Auditor Kim Wyman to Seattle Port Commission President Bill Bryant.
Speakers included Dino Rossi . Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Rep. Dave Reichert, and Attorney General Rob McKenna. Rossi spoke at the Friday evening reception. While many hoped he would announce his candidacy for the US Senate, that didn’t happen. But Rossi discussed the position of Republicans in the approaching 2010 elections. McMorris Rodgers spoke to the Saturday morning breakfast by video message from Washington, D.C. Reichert spoke at the breakfast in person. Both shared their concerns about the spending and debt increases in D.C. McKenna, given the topic of “Washington State: 21st Century Global Leader”, discussed Washington’s advantages and disadvantages in world trade and the challenges of the future.
Five panel forums were the heart of the program and included panels on “Budget, Taxes, and Jobs”, moderated by Renee Radcliff Sinclair of the US Chamber of Commerce; “Tea Party or the Republican Party” , moderated by Rep. Maureen Walsh; “Washington State, the Saudi Arabia of Clean Energy”, moderated by Washington Conservation Voters leader Mike Vaska; “Education: Is Washington Racing to the Bottom”, moderated by Rep. Skip Priest; and “Campaign Strategies & Tactics for the 2010 Election” moderated by Rep. Bruce Dammeier.
2010-05-13 20:07
Mainstream Republicans of Washington takes great pride in announcing that one of its founders, Sec. of State Sam Reed, has been given Governing Magazine's 2009 Public Official of the Year. Given the thousands who inhabit that pool of potential candidates, selection is, indeed, an honor.
"I am greatly honored and deeply humbled to be named," said Reed. He added, "Just in case anyone misinterprets the “nonpartisanship” point, I want to let you know that I am very much a partisan Republican – and have always been a party activist practically all my life. But, after I take that oath of office and walk into the Capitol, I am working for all the citizens of the state and strive to conduct myself with fairness, openness, transparency and integrity."
See below the Tacoma News Tribune article that announced the award.
Reed’s a national role model for nonpartisanship
THE NEWS TRIBUNE
October 27, 2009
In 2004, Washington Secretary of Sam Reed was at the center of the firestorm created by one of the closest gubernatorial races in U.S. history. Two recounts, multiple lawsuits and six months later, Reed – a Republican – declared that Democrat Chris Gregoire had beaten Republican Dino Rossi by 133 votes out of nearly 3 million cast.
For Reed, the chaos of uncertainty during that time was a personal challenge – to reform the system so that it would hold up to scrutiny in future close races.
His fairness during the tense months as vote counts teetered back and forth and his reform efforts afterward are reasons Reed is being honored as one of the nation’s eight top public officials in next month’s issue of Governing magazine. He and Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley are the only two statewide elected officials being honored.
It would be hard to find another elected official in this state who has so clearly earned the respect from people across the political spectrum in Washington. They demonstrated it by overwhelmingly re-electing Reed to a third term in 2008.
In an article titled “Counting on Fairness,” Governing reporter John Buntin writes, “What’s most telling about how Reed handled (the 2004 election) is that both parties were angry at him at one time or another. He followed instincts for fairness, not gamesmanship.”
After the 2004 crisis, Reed worked with county auditors to scrub voter rolls, create a statewide voter registration database and improve the training of election workers.
He was a leader in the effort to move up the state primary from September to August in order to give elections officials more of a cushion to determine primary winners – a boon for candidates, too, who would have certainty earlier that they had qualified for the general election. And when the courts struck down the state’s popular blanket primary after it was challenged by the political parties, Reed championed the next best thing: the top-two primary system.
He’s also been a staunch advocate for greater access to voting. For instance, he worked for legislation to restore ex-felons’ right to vote even if they haven’t paid off their court fines.
Anyone looking for an example of how to run an office that cries out for nonpartisan evenhandedness – county auditor, for instance – need look no farther than Reed for inspiration and guidance.
Washington voters are lucky to have him as their top elections official.
Originally published: October 27, 2009
© Copyright 2009 Tacoma News, Inc. A subsidiary of The McClatchy Company
2010-05-13 20:05
WEA Pres. Lindquist Acknowledges Efforts to Get
WEA Republicans Involved
We have already reported on the joint effort that involves National Education Association, the Washington Education Association, the Republican National Committee and the Washington State Republican Party to get Republican teachers more active in the association and the party. Now, WEA Pres. Mary Lindquist has weighed in. In a recent statement, she said the following:
“The mission of the Washington Education Association is to “advance the professional interests of its members in order to make public education the best it can be for students, staff and communities.” This is not a partisan issue, but it is a political issue.
WEA in partnership with NEA and the Republican National Committee and the Washington State Republican Party, have embarked upon a joint effort to build greater support for public education. NEA is in the third year of its Republican Leaders Conference with WEA members’ active participation.
This effort reflects our commitment to bi-partisan politics. As President of WEA, I am proud of these efforts and ask each UniServ Council to support the active involvement of members of both major political parties in achieving our mission and goals. “
2010-04-03 12:19
Due to excessive irrelevant and disrespectful comments, this posting, which opened Mainstream's blog site, was taken down and reposted today, without the comments.
Welcome to the new Mainstream Republicans of Washington blog site. We are proud to have this resource up and running for our members. This page will be a forum for discussion and debate as well as a place to stay up to date on future events and issues facing our organization. All are welcome to comment on future posts created by our select contributors. If you would like to be a contributor to this blog, please let our Executive Director Alex Hays know by emailing him at alex@washingtonmainstream.org. Thank you for your continued support and we look forward to the dialogue and healthy debates to come.
August |
| 2010-08-19 11:29 - Teachers Take Proactive Stance |
| 2010-08-01 11:19 - Republican Educators Meet |
July |
| 2010-07-12 13:24 - Ravitch’s Remarkable Renaissance |
| 2010-07-07 09:18 - MRW Endorses for 2010 |
June |
| 2010-06-23 13:49 - GOP Platform Video |
| 2010-06-14 10:33 - Revised Principles |
May |
| 2010-05-28 19:02 - 2010 Cascade Conference |
| 2010-05-13 20:07 - Reed Receives Award |
| 2010-05-13 20:05 - Lindquist Weighs In |
April |
| 2010-04-03 12:19 - Mainstream Blog Up & Running |
March |
| 2010-03-19 08:35 - No-Bail Amendment |