As CPS prepares to close a record number of schools, the fate of students and communities is in question.
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In the News: Reform groups target parents
By: Cassandra West / June 18, 2012
New Schools for Chicago, which funds charter schools, and Stand For Children, an Oregon-based group that recently opened offices in Chicago, have been conducting parent training workshops this spring.
New Schools for Chicago, which has raised millions of dollars for charter schools, is now training parents to be advocates for their children in public schools and charter schools, and to spread the word among neighbors who might be unhappy with CPS. (CBS Chicago)
As CPS students began their summer vacations Friday, their parents were left to wonder whether they will be returning on time when school is scheduled to begin this fall, now that the teachers union has voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. (Sun-Times)
A Sun-Times editorial says the Chicago Teachers Union "is raising critical questions and the CPS should work with teachers to resolve them."
Blogger Seth Lavin announces he is giving up his Chicago Schools Wonks blog, a weekly newsletter on Chicago school reform that he started last year. A TFA alum, Lavin, 26, took a job outside of schools for a year, has decided to jump back into teaching. Next, year he'll be a sophomore world history teacher at Noble-Rauner.
IN THE STATE
School officials in Normal have approved a two-year contract for teachers and other professionals in McLean County Unit 5 that will give them a 1 percent increase in base pay each year. (WBEZ)
Springfield School Superintendent Walter Milton is denying rumors that he is moving to Texas. (State Journal Register)
Groups of teacher educators and other higher education officials met in Bloomington last week in an effort to ensure that education programs in Illinois produce young teachers capable of teaching to the common K-12 content standards adopted in all but four states. (Education Week)
IN THE NATION
Los Angeles Unified's teachers union has ratified an agreement to take up to 10 unpaid furlough days next year to save the jobs of 4,700 educators and restore some Adult Education, preschool and English-learner programs that had been threatened with elimination, officials said Saturday. (Los Angeles Daily News)
Newark needs more money to meet Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's $100 million challenge. (NJ.com)
Some public schools in Brooklyn are receiving federal money to spur desegregation. But the process is complicated by geography, the Supreme Court and city priorities. (The New York Times)
re: Mr. Lavin's withdrawl from public blogging
Seth Lavin's June 15 statement closing down his blog was truly strange. First he effectively trashes Mayor Emanuel's and CPS's reform plan and announces he is going to work as a teacher for a charter school group, Noble Street that is one of the largest beneficiaries of that very reform plan. Second, he argues that the primary motivation for him shutting down his blog is that teaching will be time consuming and he must devote himself to that profession.
I suspect that the contract Mr. Lavin may have just signed with Noble-Rauner Charter School may also have something to do with this.
Currently Noble Street is trying to hire 120 teachers, which is a significant number . So they are hiring a lot of people. According to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funded Education Resource Strategies, Inc Noble Street as a policy gives teachers only one year contracts [http://erstrategies.org/documents/pdf/ERS_Noble_7-3.pdf]. Part Mr. Lavin's contract will discuss the bonus system used at the Noble Network which in the 2005-2006 school year looked like this:
Maximum bonus $4,000, possibly it is larger today.
Basis for bonus - Half of the bonus was based on overall
student performance in the school: Teachers earn $1,000 if 50 percent or more 11th graders
meet or exceed the PSAE standards and $2,000 if 70 percent or more 11th graders meet or
exceed the standards. The second half of the bonus is related to the following criteria for each teacher’s practice:
• The principal’s observation of teachers;
• Attendance of 92 percent or better of students in their advisory;
• Organized and complete records of students’ homework;
• Parent attendance at report card night;
• Checking for dress code in advisory;
• Being on time to staff meetings; and
• Staying up-to-date with requirements for special education students
I think it would go without saying that Noble Street's Superintendent Mike Milkie would heavily restrict current employees from making critical comments about the educational process or pay at any of his schools and it would probably be considered insubordination under the one year's contract provisions. Mr. Lavin states in his farewell he may again have a public face, but I suspect that will not happen while he is under contract with Noble Street. Free speech rights under law can be limited by employment contracts. If an employee commingles business and personal activities, they can have no expectation of first-amendment protections.
Rod Estvan
contract
I don't believe there is a teacher contract at Noble. Like the large majority of U.S. workers, it's "employment at will".
Milkie is hardly the type of personality that would try to control the public behavior of his many bright employees. They have an strong culture of expectations, but there are few "orders from the top".
I expect that Seth will blog again, but it won't be another attempt at a comprehensive Chicago school blog as long as he's an employee of one of the school systems.
He seems like a bright guy and Noble is lucky to get him.
re: contract's and Noble Network
The report I linked clearly referenced the Noble Network having one year contracts. Don please provide any reference indicating that since 2006 the Noble Network has changed its policy, I would be happy to be corrected if that is the case.
Rod Estvan
As a former resident and
As a former resident and current teacher in an AUSL school I can vouch for a non-profit educational reform organization's desire to limit teacher's voices in the media and/or public domain. While AUSL and Noble Street are different organizations they are similar in many respects and I wouldn't be surprised if Noble tried very hard to control the messaging about their organization (as AUSL does). I have been told in multiple instances (both as an employee of AUSL and as a teacher in their schools) not to speak with the media and to direct any requests to my principal. Also, anytime I comment on a site like this I make sure to be careful about what I say and how I say it (note this post is anonymous although not all of mine are). If Even if Noble didn't explicitly tell Seth Lavin to cut-it-out I'm sure it was communicated. The idea that Noble isn't interested in controlling the messaging about their schools and employees is just naive. As Seth, himself, has noticed the reform movement is more interested in moving in one direction than doing what works. As such they really could care less what one of their teachers thinks, especially if that teacher is bright and has an open mind.
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