Sparking the evolution of education choice
After spending time at the Republican convention in Tampa and the Democratic convention in Charlotte, I needed to decompress, so I headed to Montana where I am now sitting on a hill watching a herd of deer graze in the meadow below. These deer have no funny hats on their[Read More…]
DNC: President Obama suggests Mitt Romney would gut education spending, but avoids mention of Race to the Top (redefinEd). (Image from Minnesota.publicradio.org) Panel discussions sponsored by Democrats for Education Reform highlight the battle within the party over education policy (redefinED). Teachers union leaders promise to campaign hard for Obama, despite[Read More…]
In Orlando back in June, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and other big-city Democratic mayors convinced the U.S. Conference of Mayors to unanimously endorse the idea of parent triggers – and were promptly savaged by critics. They were tools of ALEC, profiteers, enemies of public schools. Nutter just spoke to the DNC a[Read More…]
We want to spotlight two new videos that highlight the tension – and potential for change – that we’ve been seeing all week between education factions at the Democratic National Convention. The first is from Democrats for Education Reform; the second, from TEACHED. To whet your appetite, here are some choice[Read More…]
Andy Ford, president of the Florida teachers union, has done his darnedest to kick out many of the Republicans who continue to run both the executive and legislative branches in this state, and they don’t usually take a shine to his approach. Just the other day, Ford bought a two-page[Read More…]
From U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan’s prepared remarks at the DNC tonight: I’m here tonight as a parent with two young children who attend a wonderful public school. No one has more at stake in this election than our kids, and that is why we need to re-elect President Obama![Read More…]
The battle for the soul of the Democratic Party, at least in the area of public education policy, was on full display yesterday at two panel discussions organized by Democrats for Education Reform. (Full disclosure: I am DFER’s Florida coordinator.) The first panel consisted of Democratic state legislators from Colorado,[Read More…]
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick made the most extensive remarks about K-12 education on the DNC stage last night. He didn’t explicitly mention Race to the Top, expansion of charter schools or a push for better teacher evaluation systems (all Obama administration priorities) but he did reference more accountability, higher teaching standards and[Read More…]
