Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Little Rock Schools State Chamber attacks LR schools
Posted by Max Brantley on Tue, Aug 3, 2010 at 6:33 PM
Deja 1957 vu all over again. The Arkansas establishment, in the person of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce, has organized to beat up on the Little Rock School District. The district's sin: Seeking to hold the state of Arkansas to its court promise not to contribute to desegregation in the Little Rock School District.
The Chamber has started an advocacy group, Speak up for Schools, to carry this message. Who's paying? Will they disclose? I'm guessing no. Citizens United will shield the corporate money, but you can figure where it's coming from.
Background: The state — under the thrall of Walton, Hussman, Murphy, Stephens and other big money influences — has decided that unlimited charter schools are the solution to education needs, particularly in the Little Rock School District, because, you see, it is one of the handful in the state with a unionized workforce. They don't care that not a single national study yet has proved the efficacy of charter schools over conventional public schooling. They don't care how underqualified the applicants for charters in Pulaski County might be. They just want charters dealt out like playing cards. The advocates of this strategy will rig and misrepresent test results, using the megaphone of the Democrat-Gazette editorial page, to get the job done. (Such as by having you believe a majority white/majority middle income charter school's test scores can somehow be compared straight up to a majority black, impoverished school population. Such as by having you believe majority white charter schools full of already achieving middle income middle school kids haven't contributed to the plummeting white population of magnet middle schools.)
The chamber talks mostly in code. It has characterized the Little Rock School District's filing over state charter practices as a grab for more money in the letter you'll see on the jump. That's a gross mischaracterization of the legal action, but the chamber knows its messaging and its audience. Its members will gladly believe any calumny about the majority black-populated, majority black-led LRSD, particularly since many of these leaders have never set foot in these public schools.
Chamber CEO Randy Zook's letter to "community leaders" and "education advocates" is on the jump. I consider myself an education advocate, but I wasn't on the mailing list. I bet the AEA wasn't either.
The Chamber's new advocacy group Speak Up for Schools, is nothing but a thinly disguised charter school advocacy group. Reads one headline:
Little Rock School District: A Wasted Investment.
As a parent of two successful LRSD graduates, you'll pardon me if I don't see it through quite the same prism. I suspect I can find a few tens of thousands of others who feel similarly, whatever the manifest needs for improvement in the district continue to be. (And you won't find anyone who's written more — including recently — about some of those shortcomings, including in leadership.)
The chamber has essentially declared war on the Little Rock School District. It will reap the whirlwind.
It is a crying shame when you read the propaganda site the chamber is touting. Badly flawed studies from the Walton-financed ideological conservative think tank at UA; D-G propaganda; it's all there. You won't find any of our reporting on the mixed results for charter schools; the unfulfilled promises on diversity in some Pulaski charters; the unmet benchmarks at some of the most highly touted charters. That would be off-message. And when the Chamber wins — and the money usually does — and Little Rock is left with a balkanized, inefficient system of multiple education fiefdoms (little tiny school districts; Weiner should sue), some favored by fatcat money and some not, and a remnant urban core district full of the hard cases that the charter schools quickly "counsel out" I can assure you we'll be left with a capital city that won't be inviting to outside investment. That's the real tragedy of the Chamber's co-option by the ruling elite, the disaster it's certain to produce.
I can't help but remember that the lead-footed meddling of Chamber of Commerce "community leaders" in Little Rock School Board elections several years ago set fire to the events that have the chamber so unhappy today. They liked having a stooge as school superintendent. People who actually lived and worked and sent kids to schools in the district didn't. It's worth remembering that a local charter school moved that same stooge out the first chance it had, along with some of his highly paid minions that were thought so highly of when they were serving masters Walton and Hussman as LRSD employees.
It would appear the group is getting ready to get involved in school elections. The only contest this year is between Micheal Daugherty, unsuccessfully targeted by the chamber forces three years ago, and Michael Nellums, who professes not to be a teacher union foe but isn't particularly convincing when he says so. Nellums would do well to tell Speak Up for Schools, the chamber's front group, and the Democrat-Gazette to let him do his own campaigning this time. Those groups weren't well-received in the district three years ago. Hard to see Hussman/Walton back Nellums too enthusiastically since his key community backer is John Walker, the devil incarnate in the eyes of the Chamber.
One final rant: The gap between white and black students is real — in Little Rock and everywhere else in the country. But it's ironic to find the Chamber noting how high white scores are in the Little Rock school district on the new group's website (to illustrate the gap with blacks) at the same time it is talking about population growth (of white people) in Benton, Bryant, Cabot and Conway. If it's really top-notch education results those folks are seeking in the suburbs, even the Chamber's own information shows white folks are getting it — and much more — in the LRSD. Maybe there's another factor in suburban growth beyond AP classes and National Merit scholars (which, last I checked, were dominated by LRSD). Bigger lots? Cheaper housing? Farm living? Better catfish restaurants? Something?
Depressing news.
It will be interesting to see if it was hand-fed to the Democrat-Gazette for appropriate news treatment in Wednesday's paper. The triple flutterblast of editorial adoration will take up at least two columns in the Sunday editorial section for starters and many more reprises.
WEDNESDAY UPDATE: D-G had the story, on page one naturally. Unless I miss my guess, they followed up this post. It is more unbelievable still in the morning light that the state Chamber of Commerce (shilling for Walton, Hussman, Murphy, Stephens) would send this blunt message to the world of business:
The largest school district in our state sucks. It does nothing — nothing — worthwhile for children. Not a single one of them.
Really makes you want to settle in LR don't it?
LETTER FROM STATE CHAMBER
Business Leaders/Education Advocates
Good afternoon. I’m sure you’re aware that recently the Little Rock School District followed through on its threat to file a lawsuit against the state of Arkansas related to the 1989 desegregation settlement agreement. After careful review of the legal brief, it is clear that the purpose of this action is to attempt to obtain substantial additional funding for their school district from the state of Arkansas.
To help counter the consequences of the lawsuit and to give parents and teachers a voice in education choice, a grassroots coalition has recently been formed. The coalition, “Speak Up For Schools — Better Schools For A Better Little Rock,” goal is to educate and keep people informed about the lawsuit and any action surrounding it. The coalition is new, has recently started its outreach and could use your support. Its mission is to bring parents, business leaders and concerned citizens together to help create a better and more productive learning environment for our children in order to create a better, more equipped generation of leaders for Little Rock.
Because of your involvement as a community leader and an advocate for equal education for all, I’m asking you to please visit http://www.speakuplittlerock.com/
Please join today. As the lawsuit continues to gain momentum, it’s important that we have the support of leaders such as yourself. If you have any questions please contact me.
Randy Zook
President & CEO
State Chamber/AIA
1200 W. Capitol
Little Rock, AR 72201
501-372-2222
PS FROM MAX: "Grass roots"? Right. But the roots are green.
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Comments (37)
Showing 1-37 of 37
Good for the Chamber. Time to stop the "Stuck On Stupid" business over at the Little Rock School District. You know, it begs the question: why does the LRSD continue to lose "market share" to private schools and to other school districts by people who purposefully move out of the district or who never move into the district in the first place (kind of like trying to figure out what a "saved job" is)? The bottom line is, if this was the business world, and a business was losing "market share" for its product or service, then it would probably make some very serious changes. Sounds like that is what the Chamber is trying to do and to promote. After all, if we embrace the recommendations of the Chamber and the Hussman crowd, and it doesn't work any better then guess what, BIG MAX? We can always go back to how the district is being run right now!!!!
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Thank you Max. I didn't get a letter either, but at least now I know where to sign up.
Miss FireBlancheLincoln, was freshman English not very good to you? Can you comprehend at all?
As Max points out (numerous times on this site as well) LR charter schools have not had the promised results. Their scores are no better that public schools and in many cases charter scores are beneath public schools' scores.
LR would be foolish to fall for Hussman-Walton scheme to bust unions while their outcome would be a diminished public school system.
I've lived in two areas where people flocked to surrounding small towns. Fayetteville is one. The real reason is to get lower cost housing.
Let's not forget that the end game is to eliminate public education in favor of a private model ala' health care: kids with rich parents get a great education, kids with poor parents get no education, elementary school costs $50K a year, and the educational insurance companies get 30% of your tuition for the privilege of rationing your child's education and telling them what schools, teachers and classes they can attend.
People who use the phrase, "begs the question," really should know what it means--if they expect to be taken seriously.
The correct use of the native tongue is the first mark of an educated man--according to Nicholas Murray Butler.
Makes sense to me.
That reference to the purpose of the lawsuit being to obtain additional funding is just shameful. Disgusting, really.
We all have points of view. We all have visions for what is best for Our Town. We all have a right to fight for the approach we favor. There is no excuse for sacrificing the truth in order to win the day.
They'll rig and misrepresent test results, using the megaphone of the Democrat-Gazette editorial page, to get the job done.
Boss, like you and the judge, we have two kids who are products of the LRSD, and were mighty proud of the high quality college-prep education they received. It benefits them to this day.
As for the influence of the ArkD-G editorial page in promoting charter schools, Im not overly concerned. Consider that in a state of almost three million people, the weekday circulation of the ArkD-G is 185,200 and on Sunday, 268,000. In the LR city zone, the penetration is 58%.
What percentage of those relatively few subscribers do you suppose read the editorials? The numbers (national statistics) Ive seen indicate that at best 62% of those reading the printed editions of newspapers read editorials, and only 25% of online subscribers take the time to read em.
So now you know why Im not terribly worried about the influence of the ArkD-Gs editorials. If, however, you can think of any reasons why I should be, please pass 'em on.
You know when I was a little boy hiding behind the couch, picking my nose and eatin it, I never thought one day I'd hate and fear Halliburton or the Chamber of Commerce. What horrible little men there are hiding behind the curtains these days. Why on earth are YOU still a member of the Chamber, any Chamber.....punish them all!
Remember, FBL wants everything privatized so some rich white guy can make his next billion. Anything the government does is bad because it prevents the rich from making profits. Give the kids to the private schools and FK those who can't afford to get in......after all we need plenty of ditch diggers and septic tank drainers and chicken gutters.
2 classes, a few rich ones in the top class, the rest of us wage slaves on the bottom. By god we need some dumbass kids, the other 49 states look to Arkansas to create them! They're probably heatherens anyway.....
The Chamber is so ridiculous. They are bent on destroying public schools instead of improving them; they're relying on a flawed report by Ritter and the Walton U. gang; they have probably made a serious misjudgment of the public on this issue and will reap the whirlwind of public scorn for doing this despicable disservice to the community and its citizens.
If the newspaper speaks up for the Chamber's actions, then it's time to stop getting the DOG. And, I think the national chamber of commerce and national news services and other national educational agencies need to be made aware of this arrogant action on the part of the Arkansas State CofC. It's time to put the screws to these M-f-ing bloodsuckers.
Get Real: I dunno the answer to your question. Notta gotta clue. A guess: 25,000?
Jake: If we stopped getting the DOG, we'd miss your excellent LTEs.
A secondary, more recent meaning of "Begging the question" is simply as a synonym for "raising the question". It's just as correct as the older logical fallacy meaning.
"That reference to the purpose of the lawsuit being to obtain additional funding is just shameful. Disgusting, really. . . . There is no excuse for sacrificing the truth in order to win the day."
Tap: Have you read the pleading Chris Heller filed with the Court on behalf of the LRSD? Look to the very end, where there is a summary of what the LRSD is asking the Court to order. If you haven't read it yet, you should, then you might reconsider your comment about "sacrificing the truth."
You can argue about whether or not it is appropriate for the requested funds to be given to the LRSD, . . . or whether the LRSD is justified in starting the litigation cycle anew . . . but there is really no doubt that the purpose of the legal maneuvering is to obtain and preserve additional state funding for the LRSD.
"A secondary, more recent meaning . . ."
Translation: We've given up on educating you dumb bastards. Utilizing our voices, we can dialog about how we might impact students with a course in keyboarding.
I find it interesting that Randy Zook lists himself as President & CEO State Chamber/AIA. However, there is no Zook on the roster of Licensed Architects in the State of Arkansas nor on the Board or Staff of the Arkansas State Board of Architects..
Registration as an Architect used to be a requirement for full AIA membership and for using AIA in signatures or titles.
From Wikipedia: "More recently, "to beg the question" has been used as a synonym for "to raise the question": for example, "This year's budget deficit is half a trillion dollars. This begs the question- how are we ever going to balance the budget?"
Using the term in this way, although common, is considered incorrect by some usage commentators.[10"
So if you misuse language enough, the misuse will become correct.
In some circles, this is referred to as "dumbing down America."
I recognize the living nature of language and that ultimately usage makes correctness. But I'm still of the opinion that just because "everybody" does something wrong, that doesn't make it right. There was a time when the criterion was, "the usage of AN EDUCATED native speaker of the language." In those days, the usage of the UNEDUCATED didn't constitute correctness.
Yeah, I know it's an uphill battle. But education is ALWAYS an uphill battle. The two most common elements in the universe are hydrogen and ignorance. And hydrogen is running a distant second!
IMHO
Now I know LR has a good number of rich liberals, maybe not Chenal so much but there were plenty of Obama and Snyder signs in the Heights and Hillcrest.
Do we have any liberal patrons who are supporting the real LR public schools with the kind of bucks the Murphy's and Hussman's are pumping into the pseudo public schools?
(The best example I can think of is Deming in ElDorado, and that's along way to go.)
mudturtle, Deming is on the list of committed business leaders who support the Arkansas Education Coalition. See the list of other wealthy business owners who support this extremely pro-charter, anti-public school coalition here: http://www.educatearkansas.com/view/179
The list also includes two school board members. Melanie Fox of the LRSD board, and Tim Clark, President of the PCSSD school board. Sitting on the board of a public school, how you can advocate AGAINST public schools is beyond me.
There are few, if any, big-money backers of public education, and that's the biggest problem. You have mostly wealthy parents of private school kids arguing that we need to do away with public education rather than investing the time and money to help fix some of the problems in the public education system so that all students benefit.
In spite of all of the bad publicity, there are some very good things in our public education system and many excellent student graduates of the system. It would be nice to see the state's millionaires working to improve our state's public education system rather than investing so much money to destroy it.
"How many hits does AT receive on Sundays?"
It's not the number, it's who reads the AT.
My sonny graduated from Central, did well, and is now finishing at Emory and doing fine there. He loved Central and its diversity. He wouldn't have wanted to go to a mostly white, rich-kid school foisted off on a gullible public by the likes of Hussman, et al.
You might as well spend your morning watching your lawn sprinkler go back and forth as to read the DG editorial page.
Cynthia Howell is on Hussmans payroll, but you wont find any of Hussmans anticipated editorial pitch in her article this morning. As always, I thought her reporting was objective and fair. That's to her credit, and for that matter, to Hussman's, too. Some excerpts from todays piece [LR schools get new foe on charters] follow:
Attorneys for the Little Rock district have been sharply critical of the study done by the universitys Office of Education Policy for failing to take into account court-ordered desegregation requirements and for omitting findings that would support the Little Rock districts argument that the charter schools draw students who would help desegregate the systems magnet schools.
Charles Armstrong, president of the Little Rock School Board, said Tuesday that he received a copy of Zooks message from the districts attorney, Chris Heller of the Friday, Eldredge and Clark law firm.
I dont have any reaction to it, Armstrong said about the coalition and the website. I dont know what this group is trying to do, Amstrong continued, but my position has been that the charter schools need to hold up their end of their bargain -- that whatever they said they would do, they should do.
If the charter school says it is going to furnish transportation, they should do it to make sure every child gets a chance to go, Armstrong said. If they say they are going to take 60 percent of kids who qualify for free and reduced-price lunch or 60 percent of kids who score at basic or below [on state required tests], they should live up to their charter. Whatever they put on their charter, stick with it and do it.
The Little Rock School Board voted 4-3 in March to authorize its attorneys to file a motion in the 27-year-old Pulaski County school desegregation lawsuit challenging the state Board of Educations approval of charter schools in Pulaski County without regard to the effect the schools have on federal court-approved desegregation efforts in the Little Rock, North Little Rock and Pulaski County Special school districts.
Twelve of the states 17 taxpayer-supported, independently operated charter schools are located in Pulaski County. The Little Rock district has said the state has violated the settlement agreement in the desegregation case.
In its legal complaint, the Little Rock district argued that the impact of the states unconditional approval of charter schools has been to undermine the student assignment aspect of the 1989 settlement agreement between the district and the state. The state now pays nearly $70 million in extra desegregation aid each year to the Little Rock district, the North Little Rock School District and the Pulaski County Special School District.
In its motion to the court, the Little Rock district asked that the state pay the full cost of transporting students who are from low-income families to charter schools. It also asks, among other things, that the state be required to develop programs or policies to improve equal opportunity for an adequate education to all students attending high-poverty schools in the district, and that the state bear the cost of such programs.
And who is doing their website and public relations work? Most likely Cranford Johnson Robinson Woods. Stacy Sells has been tied to Zooks beltloop since he got there.
I'm curious as to how many of you including Max are members of their local chambers of commerce? What about the AT and its owner?
I respectfully disagree with you GoodBadUgly. I continue to agree with Max that it is a gross mischaracterization "the purpose" of the motion is to secure more funding from the State. Having re-read the motion this morning I continue to believe that "the purpose" is to
(1) enjoin the state from approving addtional charter schools without reference to impact on LRSD desegregation and
(2) require existing charter schools to adhere to the expectations under which they were authorized.
These are the first two requested forms of relief requested in the final paragraphs. I believe they reflect the purpose of the motion.
Yes, there are references to requiring the State to pay transportation costs to charter schools, reimbursing LRSD for costs, and paying for the M-to-M impact caused by the charter schools. If you believe these ancillary requests, and not changing the way charter schools are handled, is "the purpose" of the motion, I am afraid I cannot agree.
I can reconsider to the extent that I suggested the statement was "false."
It is, instead, disingenous.
So how's about LR City Government cancelling that $200,000 check to the local Chamber? It's ridiculous to support any group who is trying to screw you.
I am not my publisher's keeper, but I am sure the Times is a member of the Little Rock chamber. I also know the publisher is an admirer of Randy Zook. I think it should be clear that my thoughts are my own.
As for memberships: I quote Groucho. I wouldn't want to be a member of any organization that would have me.
I do not know enough about the statistics to speak to the relative value of charter schools. What I do know is that I am a product of LRSD and through the last twenty+ years that education has served me well as I have pursued a BA, four masters degrees and now a second doctorate. What prepared me for my education was learning from Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Hart at Forrest Park and Mrs. Ingram at the old Stephens Intermediate School, and great teachers like Mr. Brown, Mrs. James, Mrs. Ayers and Mrs. Holaday at Central. These are not failing teachers in a failing system. These are all educators of both great compassion and great skill. From Mrs. Smith teaching me to love to read to Mrs. Holaday teaching me to love public speaking, the LRSD helped shape me for the future.
I understand that the LRSD is in difficult times. THere are serious systemic problems. I, for one, am glad that someone as gifted and wise as Greg Adams will be serving on the LRSD board. That is the kind of commitment we all need to show to LRSD and public education in general.
"I have pursued a BA, four masters degrees and now a second doctorate."
Lord-Amighty, presrevrob! You're givin' me an' my puny MBA an inferiority complex.
"If it's really top-notch education results those folks are seeking "
Then they would move to another damn state....
I have no dog in this hunt since we never used the local schools (home school) but I also don't understand the need for community leaders to spend so much time and money trying to ruin and bad mouth the local school district. If Walton, Hussman, Murphy, Stephens and friends really cared about the children of Arkansas they would use their time and money to help their local districts...not try to tear them down.
I've never understood charter school for the smart kids, they get everything they need no matter where they are. The ones who need extra help (LD kids, kids who learn in odd ways, the teens for whom school does not work) are the ones who need new and different ways of being reached and learning....but they always get left behind in these arguments.
Yes, Get Real, for many years I made a payroll. Still on a board that does, too.
T/Y Max. My bad.
I appreciate the correction, but 4:38 AM? Either you couldn't sleep or you're working too hard. T/Y again.
Also T/Y Skypilot.
Its 'Petitio Quæsiti' used correctly (I hope) from now own for me, I appreciate your posts and esoteric forays into language and logic.
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