"Fighting for School Reforms" — Against Whom?
The Michigan Education Association is taking heat even from some of its friends in the media because of the state's failure to qualify for $400 million in competitive "Race to the Top" federal grants. To be eligible, Michigan had to enact a slate of education reforms including expanding the number of charter schools, creating a more rigorous "failed school" takeover process, establishing "merit pay," increasing performance accountability for teachers, and more.
As this process unrolled last December the MEA school employee union and its legislative minions succeeded in watering down the reforms to the maximum extent possible while still allowing the state to check off (most of) the required RTTT grant boxes.
Teacher accountability provides one example. An early reform attempt in the GOP-controlled Senate was defeated, with four Republicans who had received MEA campaign cash joining Democrats in voting "no" on a bill that would allow teachers to be fired for "consistent ineffectiveness."
Sensing that this might elicit just a smidgen of backlash from already-grumbling Republican primary election voters, one of the four came back the next day with a face-saving amendment, which was adopted. It was all for naught in the end, however, because even this thin gruel was never taken up by the Democratic majority in the House, leaving at least one of those RTTT boxes unchecked.
As for merit pay, the best the Legislature could do was add toothless verbiage to School Code provisions related to evaluating teachers — but not a word about compensating them.
Now that Michigan is not among the 16 states to merit $400 million worth of federal loot in the first RTTT round, recriminations and blame-games are afoot. Everyone's picking on the MEA, even Gov. Jennifer Granholm. (If ever so circuitously: MIRS News reports the Governor saying, "I'm concerned about whether we demonstrated enough cohesion on this from all of the players.")
Perhaps the most curious comment comes from the Democratic Speaker of the House, Rep. Andy Dillon, also reported in MIRS:
"The education reforms we enacted are simply the right thing to do for kids across Michigan. House Democrats were fighting for major education reforms long before Race to the Top entered the picture." (Emphasis added.)
Democrats were fighting for reforms?
Please tell us, Mr. Speaker: Who were they fighting against?
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Unknown and Unfunded Mandates
Aside from the MEA opposing the RTTT reforms, the biggest problem with the RTTT applications was that the State Dept. of Education wanted School Boards to endorse the effort BEFORE the entire proposal and application was completed and sent to the Federal government. No offense, but given the way that schools and boards of education have been treated over the last 20 or so years, virtually no one wanted to endorse an unknown proposal. Can you blame us? It is true that "the devil is in the details," and when you don't have a reasonable inkling about what those details are going to be (and neither did the State when it asked for our approvals), no thinking person is just going to say, absolutely! We trust you to do the right thing, as you've shown us so many times in the past! (By the way, there is no sarcasm font, but it would apply to the last thought there.)
I will also point out
I will also point out the the State Super just asked for $2mill to fund 14 new administrative positions to help "process" the new law changes (to go along with the $2billion in other unfunded mandates the State foists on local governments). The new laws create a State-centralized, large Big-Brother oversight--which, ironically, the Mack Center and other conservative groups are praising. You don't find that to be ironic, Jack? How convenient to throw your political principles out the door when it means taking a shot at a union.
Look: no teacher I know is against "accountability." They--like many of us board members--want to make sure such a setup is 1) fair to all parties 2) FULLY FUNDED.
The Mack Center--of all organizations--should be APPLAUDING anyone questioning a system that foists unfunded mandates onto the backs of taxpayers and takes away local control and puts it in the political morass that is Lansing.
Don't you think??!!!
The Blame Game
Jack:
You have said in the past that we should come into any debate with the assumption of "goodwill" on the opposing view. As a teacher and a school board member--and as someone well-versed in the matters at hand--I have a hard time thinking that you and others are being "fair" or coming into this with any "goodwill" when you promote a thesis that the MEA is THE culprit in the lack of RTTT funds coming to Michigan.
Such a view, is of course, convenient and self-serving to the political cause of those writing it. But I know you're an intelligent person. And I know you know these facts 1) many people on both sides of the political aisle (not just the MEA) had reservations about the A) the lack of specific info in the RTTT application process B) the "unfunded mandate" nature of RTTT 2) that the State cobbled together and pushed through massive law changes in the span of about 10 days 3) that the RTTT funds were always--froom Day 1--a long long shot for Michigan.
Why not also mention the above? I know it isn't politically self-serving for you or your donors to tell the ENTIRE truth, but it might garner you some respect.
Free tip. Thanks.