Mr. White Hat, David Brennan, Refuses to Testify

White Hat Management's David Brennan has built an corporate welfare empire in Ohio  by putting $1.5 million into the pockets of Republican politicians since 2000.  Now he is being sued by 10 of the charter schools' Boards that he owns, which would seem to raise some red flags for politicians who, thus far, have looked the other way, even as White Hat has preyed on the poorest kids in Ohio. From Cincinatti.com:

The state's biggest charter school operator last week refused to testify at a state legislative hearing into whether Ohio's laws give too much power to for-profit charter school companies.

It would seem that the question has been answered.  

The Charter School Reality: Free to Indoctrinate at Public Expense

Sharon Higgins continues digging into the chain of tax-supported missionary schools operated by Turkish nationalists who are disciples of Fetullah Gülen. 

Who could have guessed that when oversight and regulations are removed from schools spending public money that there are groups outside the officially sanctioned Oligarchy of Gates and Broad that have their own preferred indoctrination agendas? Just the cost of doing business, so they say.  A clip from Charter School Scandals:

Similar school features are described in "Central Asia: Fetullah Gülen's Missionary Schools" by Bayram Balci (2002). This piece was published in a newsletter produced by the International Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World (ISIM) at Leiden University (Netherlands).
Here are some excerpts:

• “The movement obtains much of its support from young urban men, especially doctors, academics and other professionals.”
• “These schools can be said to focus on modem [robotics] and scientific education. Religious matters are completely absent from their curricula.”
• “The movement's schools are managed by Turkish and national administrators and teachers.”

As far as the religious mission of the schools goes, Balci further explains:

• “His [Gülen's] community, or cemaat, is designated as the Fethullahci movement, alhough [sic] its members do not appreciate this term. Basically, Fethullah Gülen's ideas serve to accomplish three intellectual goals: the islamization of the Turkish nationalist ideology; the turkification of Islam; and the Islamization of modernity.”
• “No one knows exactly the size of Gülen's enormous community of followers and sympathizers, but most agree on an average es­timate of 3 million members…The movement has grown in part by sponsoring student dormitories, summer camps, colleges, universities, classrooms and communication organizations.”
• “…Nurcu missionaries never openly or directly proselytize.”
• “Their hocaefendi, or "respected lord", Gülen advocates two main ways of spreading Islam, tebligh and temsil.”
• “They are not allowed to pronounce the name of Gülen or Nursi, nor are they permitted to spread Nurcu literature, at least not openly.”
• “…the most important aim of the cemaat is to spread the message without expressing it directly.”

For more extensive information, read “Fethullah Gülen’s Missionary Schools in Central Asia and their Role in the Spreading of Turkism and Islam,” Balci’s 27-page article which appeared in Religion, State & Society (Vol. 31, No. 2, 2003).

Rules of the (Gates) Game: "follow lockstep" or be Punished

From the USA Today's recent profile of the Gates Foundation:

Criticism has risen with the Gates Foundation's impact and influence.

In the U.S., where the foundation concentrates mostly on efforts to reform education, the Gates Foundation, over the years, has given money to almost every major education think tank, leaving few to criticize its power, asserts former assistant secretary of Education Diane Ravitch in her new book, The Death and Life of the Great American School System.

Those who do not "follow lockstep" with the foundation can get punished, says David Shreve, federal affairs counsel at the National Conference of State Legislatures. He says his group failed to get a Gates Foundation grant renewed after its policy positions did not adhere closely enough with the foundation's education-reform strategies. "They made it clear we weren't toeing the line," Shreve says. Raikes says the foundation invites "rigorous dialogue."

Duncan Non-Answer Answer

Check out this non-answer from Duncan (via a transcript available at Ed.gov; from Oct. 6, 2009):

Coordinator: Our next call comes from (Libby Quaid) with the AP. Your line is open.

(Libby Quaid): Hi there. Mr. Secretary in August when you talked about the I3 program you gave an example of folks who might be able to get one of the grants. You talked about teach for America. And I wonder if you could just maybe give another example or two that you know of. One question I have is, if the Gates foundation is doing anything that might qualify for an I3 grant?

Arne Duncan: There are hundreds of examples out there so I don’t want to sort of, you know, give one or two. There is just - there is a wealth of great ideas and great partnerships you know across the country - early childhood, elementary, middle school, high school. And we want people to put their food forward.

And so there are many great ideas out there, many potential examples and we just want to (scale) what works. And there are many foundations that are supporting good work around the country.

Duncan's answer would be the "none of the above" response available on some multiple choice tests.

[Note: I don't think Duncan said, "we want people to put their food forward," but it would be mighty entertaining if that slipped out of his mouth as the conclusion to his non-answer. That'd certainly qualify as a Duncanism]

Do Your Homework Before Doing Business

This recent piece from Chris Young of the Pittsburgh City Paper is a must-read piece for any follower of the Imagine Schools. [Background on the Pittsburg Imagine situation here]

Who could resist this kind of marketing blitz?:

When you watch the video, it's hard to see why anyone would oppose bringing Imagine Schools into their district. The students on film look so happy.

"We are ... Imagine!" they shout in unison from their classrooms.

Watching the video on April 7 were two dozen Hazelwood residents, gathered in the pews at the Keystone Church. From the video they learned about Imagine, a "not-for-profit" organization that values "integrity, justice and fun" while turning "bad apples" into good students.

Pittsburg Schools Superintendent - a graduate of the Broad Superintendents Academy Class of '03 - already called the Imagine application "demonstrably bad" back in April, but he goes further with this statement:

"A lot of my friends in education around the country are very supportive of the charter movement," says Pittsburgh Schools Superintendent Mark Roosevelt. "But I have not had a single person once say to me, 'Wow! Imagine Schools.' It's always been, 'Watch out for Imagine Schools.'"

Yes - watch out for Imagine Schools, particularly if you're someone looking to start a charter school. Community groups that decide to start a charter and then look for an operator (not that I support this route) are entering a business agreement with C/EMOs and should proceed accordingly. That means conducting due diligence and asking around (or online) about different groups. If you google "Imagine Schools," it doesn't take long before you find stories about serious issues with the company. Heck, there are even YouTube videos of other schools celebrating their divorce from Imagine. In short, know who is sitting across the table from you. That's pretty common sensical, but it doesn't always happen. For instance (also from Young's recent article):

It may be ominous that one of Imagine's chief advocates, Sarah Jameela Martin, says she was unaware of the company's problems elsewhere until informed by CP. After reading critical articles about Imagine, though, she's still confident about the firm.

"From what I gather, Imagine's [Environmental Charter School] is not having any of the problems" other schools have experienced, Martin wrote CP in an e-mail. "I see the proposed [Hazelwood] school functioning equally well."

Not everyone agrees the school is functioning well:

"My concerns with the school revolve around the franchise-type arrangement with Imagine Schools," says Barbara Daly Danko, a business manager at the Environmental School from June 2008 to August 2009. She says she left largely because of concerns over those terms. "The contract between the local board and Imagine Schools is complicated, long-term and -- in my opinion -- very expensive."

For a related discussion (well, almost a discussion) about charter schools, facilities, and for-profit ed, check out Dean Marc Millot's comments on Mike Klonsky's Small Talk blog. Millot manages to inject some comments of the issues with dealmaking and criticize DFER co-founder Whitney Tilson, all amid some confusion about a blog post. The strong personalities of the Klonsky Bros. and the pugnacious Millot make for a bit of entertainment, too. Don't forget about Millot's scuffle with Russo a few months back re: Rotherham's censorship - oh, and Rotherham is now busy helping shake the money tree with Dutko's John Bailey over at Whiteboard Advisors.

Red-shirt the mind, not just the body

Sent to the Indianapolis Star, June 3
State superintendent Bennett wants high school to be more like college ("Ind. calls for more students to pass AP exams," June 2). In the meantime, there is a trend to condense college into three years, and at the other end, kindergarten is looking more like fourth grade these days, and preschool has become school, with instruction in pre-literacy skills to help children cope with kindergarten.
Our attitude regarding sports is the opposite: Coaches carefully "bring along" young athletes. "Red-shirting" is an honor, not something to be ashamed of: It means that the organization has faith in an athlete's potential.
We are far more careful with the body than with the mind.
Stephen Krashen

Ind. calls for more students to pass AP exams
INDIANAPOLIS — The state Department of Education says a quarter of Indiana students should pass at least one Advanced Placement exam before graduating high school.
State schools chief Tony Bennett says too many Indiana students don’t take advantage of the rigorous academic opportunities available to them.
He says that he wants least 25 percent of graduates to pass at least one AP exam or International Baccalaureate exam, or earn at least three semester hours of college credit during high school.
Only 12 Indiana schools currently meet that new measurement benchmark.
Because students only count once under the formula regardless of how many AP exams they pass, schools must get more students to take and pass AP tests to move closer to the 25 percent goal.
More information is available online at http://bit.ly/bfzJC3

A Violation of the Common Core Standards

A Violation of the Common Core Standards
Sent to the NY Times.

In a press release announcing the launching of The Common Core State Standards ("States Receive a Reading List: New Standards for Education," June 2), former Colorado Governor Roy Romer is quoted as saying: "Common standards ensure that every child across the country is getting the best possible education, no matter where a child lives or what their background is."

Clearly, neither Gov. Romer nor any of those who reviewed the press release have mastered Standard L.3.1f: "Ensure subject-verb and pronoun antecedent agreement;" (grades 3-12) and Standard L.6. 1e: "Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in pronoun number and person." (grades 6-12) (page 56 of the Common Core State Standards).

We are told that adoption of the Standards will ensure that Americans will be able to compete in the 21st century global economy. How can we hope to do this if we continue to make and allow inappropriate shifts in pronoun number?

Susan Ohanian
Stephen Krashen

Additional information:

Gov. Romer also served as superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District.

Press release, US Department of Education, "National Governors Association and State Education Chiefs Launch Common State Academic Standards"

"Portfolio Districts"

From Kenneth J. Saltman, via the Great Lakes Center for Education Research & Practice:

Urban School Decentralization and the Growth of “Portfolio Districts”

Kenneth J. Saltman, DePaul University

Executive Summary

In the latter half of the past decade, school districts in several large cities, including New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and post-Katrina New Orleans, have implemented an urban school decentralization model generally known as “portfolio districts.” Others, including those in Denver and Cleveland, are following suit in what appears to be a growing trend. The portfolio strategy has become increasingly prominent in educational policy circles, think tank and philanthropy literature, and education news reporting. As CEO of the Chicago Public Schools, Arne Duncan embraced the portfolio district model. His appointment as U.S. Secretary of Education suggests the Obama administration also supports the approach. The premise of the portfolio strategy is that if superintendents build portfolios of schools that encompass a variety of educational approaches offered by different vendors, then over time school districts will weed out under-performing approaches and vendors; as a result, more children will have more opportunities for academic success. This brief examines the available evidence for the viability of this premise and the proposals that flow from it.

[Continued here]

More Research on Teacher Performance Pay for Duncan to Ignore

One has to wonder what it will take for the corporate edu-idiots to notice that there is no evidence to support any, i. e., ANY of their "reform" proposals.  The most recent bad news for the billionaire boys club, reported by Valerie Strauss:

A study released today by Mathematica Policy Research Inc. shows no evidence that the Chicago Teacher Advancement Program improved student math and reading tests when compared with a group of similar schools that did not use the system, Education Week reported.

Chicago’s program is a version of the national Teacher Advancement Program, or TAP, which was first implemented in Chicago in 2007-08, when Duncan led the schools.

The analysis looked at the first two years of a four-year program, which has multiple steps, including increased teacher development, and an incentive payment scheme in which teachers are paid more when their students do better on standardized test scores.

The concept ignores the fact that standardized tests in schools today were not designed as teacher assessment tools and aren’t valid measures, but that isn’t stopping a headlong rush into implementation in school districts across the country.

Public Charter School Dollars and Turkish Political Conversions

Did you think KIPP was the largest charter chain in the U.S. with its 82 schools?  Think again.  It seems that charter schools are not just for corporate indoctrination and happiness training of poor children, anymore. 

Sharon Higgins has been doing some digging on a confederation of charters in a bunch of states that are making test score headlines while doing political conversion work among tens of thousands of schoolchildren.  Read Sharon's piece.  Any reporters out there at the EWA interested in something other than press releases from Arne Duncan?  A clip:

. . . .From an article in The Irish Times (January 2010) about Gülen schools in Ethiopia which quotes Hakan Yavuz, a Turkish professor who co-edited a book on the Gulen phenomenon and describes the movement as the "most powerful force in Turkey." He says its main goal has been the "Islamisation" of Turkish society:

Yavuz argues that there is a wider agenda as manifested by its increasingly global reach.

"The movement, which is rooted in selective vision of the glorious Ottoman past, has its own imperial vision of turning Turkey into a global power," he says.

This piece from the official Web site talks about the progress of the movement and concludes:

At that point, it should be noted that, the history of the movement in Europe and in Muslim World is quite short, but as a beginning, they have a good start in the Netherlands with almost all sorts of institutions and activities, in the United States with a striking rise in the amount of state-financed charter schools and in Kurdish controlled Northern Iraq with seven schools and despite a pretty slippery ground.

Yup, the official organization writes about there being a "movement" on behalf of another nation, and that American charter schools can be used as a vehicle for furthering its cause. . . .