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Chris Christie's attacks on Newark schools are false
http://blog.nj.com/njv_guest_blog/2012/05/chris_christies_attacks_on_new.html
ONLINE TITLE: Chris Christie's attacks on Newark schools are false
NEWSPAPER TITLE: Governor's trash talk is hurting Newark's schools
Published: Friday, May 25, 2012, 9:02 AM
By Paul Tractenberg
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John Munson/The Star-Ledger
Newark Mayor Cory Booker, left, and Gov. Chris Christie spoke at a national conference on school choice.
Gov. Chris Christie wastes no opportunity to trash Newark’s public schools. His assaults continued recently at a national school choice conference, where he and odd-couple partner Mayor Cory Booker were featured speakers.
Aside from Christie’s well-known penchant for confrontation, there are two big problems with his attacks.
First, he insists on citing “facts” that are either flat-out wrong or cherry-picked to emphasize the worst in Newark’s schools. An education expert recently questioned why those promoting school choice often use the best charter schools to characterize all charter schools and the worst regular public schools to characterize all those schools.
Urban public schools take Christie’s hardest hits, although they serve many of our state’s most difficult-to-educate students. How demoralizing it must be to those working in hard-pressed urban schools, those whose children attend them and the students themselves when the governor and his acting education commissioner lead the hit parade, and Newark’s mayor says “amen.”
Read more: http://blog.nj.com/njv_guest_blog/2012/05/chris_christies_attacks_on_new.html
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Paul Tractenberg is a professor at Rutgers Law School, founder and co-director of the Rutgers-Newark Institute on Education Law and Policy, and co-director of the Newark Schools Research Collaborative. He also is the founder of the Education Law Center.
ONLINE TITLE: Chris Christie's attacks on Newark schools are false
NEWSPAPER TITLE: Governor's trash talk is hurting Newark's schools
Published: Friday, May 25, 2012, 9:02 AM
By Paul Tractenberg
[img]
[/img]
John Munson/The Star-Ledger
Newark Mayor Cory Booker, left, and Gov. Chris Christie spoke at a national conference on school choice.
Gov. Chris Christie wastes no opportunity to trash Newark’s public schools. His assaults continued recently at a national school choice conference, where he and odd-couple partner Mayor Cory Booker were featured speakers.
Aside from Christie’s well-known penchant for confrontation, there are two big problems with his attacks.
First, he insists on citing “facts” that are either flat-out wrong or cherry-picked to emphasize the worst in Newark’s schools. An education expert recently questioned why those promoting school choice often use the best charter schools to characterize all charter schools and the worst regular public schools to characterize all those schools.
Urban public schools take Christie’s hardest hits, although they serve many of our state’s most difficult-to-educate students. How demoralizing it must be to those working in hard-pressed urban schools, those whose children attend them and the students themselves when the governor and his acting education commissioner lead the hit parade, and Newark’s mayor says “amen.”
Read more: http://blog.nj.com/njv_guest_blog/2012/05/chris_christies_attacks_on_new.html
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Paul Tractenberg is a professor at Rutgers Law School, founder and co-director of the Rutgers-Newark Institute on Education Law and Policy, and co-director of the Newark Schools Research Collaborative. He also is the founder of the Education Law Center.
6 replies
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http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/02/acting_nj_education_chief_cerf.html
Acting N.J. education chief Cerf revises account of ties to consulting firm
Published: Thursday, February 24, 2011, 7:30 AM Updated: Thursday, February 24, 2011, 10:29 AM
By Star-Ledger Staff
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Robert Sciarrino/The Star-Ledger
Sitting in the gallery, Tom Kelaher, Mayor of Toms River and former Ocean County Prosecutor, Newark Mayor Cory Booker and Acting Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf applaud Gov. Chris Christie as Christie delivers his first State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature.
NEWARK - A controversial consultant’s report recommending that some of Newark’s worst public schools be replaced with charter schools was funded by a $500,000 grant from a California educational foundation at the behest of Mayor Cory Booker.
The revelation came in an interview with officials at the foundation late Wednesday. It followed two days in which the mayor declined to provide details about the report: who funded it or the amount spent on it.
Contacted by the Star-Ledger, the spokeswoman for the Broad Foundation in Los Angeles readily acknowledged it put up the money that was used to retain Global Education Advisors to conduct an audit of the city’s schools. The spokeswoman said she wondered why the grant was kept secret.
The consulting firm, incorporated by Christopher D. Cerf before he was named the state’s acting education commissioner, has itself become the focus of growing questions over its ties to the commissioner and the mysterious way it was selected.
More.
Acting N.J. education chief Cerf revises account of ties to consulting firm
Published: Thursday, February 24, 2011, 7:30 AM Updated: Thursday, February 24, 2011, 10:29 AM
By Star-Ledger Staff
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Robert Sciarrino/The Star-Ledger
Sitting in the gallery, Tom Kelaher, Mayor of Toms River and former Ocean County Prosecutor, Newark Mayor Cory Booker and Acting Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf applaud Gov. Chris Christie as Christie delivers his first State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature.
NEWARK - A controversial consultant’s report recommending that some of Newark’s worst public schools be replaced with charter schools was funded by a $500,000 grant from a California educational foundation at the behest of Mayor Cory Booker.
The revelation came in an interview with officials at the foundation late Wednesday. It followed two days in which the mayor declined to provide details about the report: who funded it or the amount spent on it.
Contacted by the Star-Ledger, the spokeswoman for the Broad Foundation in Los Angeles readily acknowledged it put up the money that was used to retain Global Education Advisors to conduct an audit of the city’s schools. The spokeswoman said she wondered why the grant was kept secret.
The consulting firm, incorporated by Christopher D. Cerf before he was named the state’s acting education commissioner, has itself become the focus of growing questions over its ties to the commissioner and the mysterious way it was selected.
More.
http://thinkprogress.org/education/2011/06/13/243804/christie-firm-school-privatization/?mobile=nc
Christie Worked For Firm That Represented For-Profit Schools, Now Pushing For School Privatization
By Zaid Jilani on Jun 13, 2011 at 4:30 pm
One of the major initiatives of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) has been pushing for is the expansion of for-profit and privately managed schools in K-12 education. As part of this push, Christie has been championing a school voucher expansion that would cost the state $825 million to funnel tax dollars to private schools, while at the same time slashing spending for public education, cutting $820 million last year alone.
Last week, Christie announced a new “public-private school pilot program” which would allow “local school boards [to] hand control of some so-called ‘transformation schools’ to education management organizations, possibly including for-profit firms.” Christie designed the new program with Acting Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf, the “former president of the world’s largest for-profit operator of public schools, Edison Schools Inc.”
The New Jersey Star-Ledger notes that Christie actually has a very strong financial tie to Cerf’s for-profit company. The private law firm at which Christie worked as a lobbyist between 1999 and 2001 actually lobbied New Jersey’s government on behalf of Edison Schools:
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Christie Worked For Firm That Represented For-Profit Schools, Now Pushing For School Privatization
By Zaid Jilani on Jun 13, 2011 at 4:30 pm
One of the major initiatives of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) has been pushing for is the expansion of for-profit and privately managed schools in K-12 education. As part of this push, Christie has been championing a school voucher expansion that would cost the state $825 million to funnel tax dollars to private schools, while at the same time slashing spending for public education, cutting $820 million last year alone.
Last week, Christie announced a new “public-private school pilot program” which would allow “local school boards [to] hand control of some so-called ‘transformation schools’ to education management organizations, possibly including for-profit firms.” Christie designed the new program with Acting Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf, the “former president of the world’s largest for-profit operator of public schools, Edison Schools Inc.”
The New Jersey Star-Ledger notes that Christie actually has a very strong financial tie to Cerf’s for-profit company. The private law firm at which Christie worked as a lobbyist between 1999 and 2001 actually lobbied New Jersey’s government on behalf of Edison Schools:
From 1999 to 2001, Christie was a registered lobbyist at a law firm that lobbied New Jersey government on behalf of Edison Schools, according to filings with the state Election Law Enforcement Commission. While the firm was representing the multinational education company, Chris Cerf was its general counsel.
The firm, Dughi, Hewit and Palatucci, also represented Mosaica Education, a for-profit charter school operator, and the University of Phoenix, a for-profit online university. At the time, the firm listed two lobbyists, Christie and William Palatucci, a longtime political ally of the governor who is a named partner in the firm.
The firm, Dughi, Hewit and Palatucci, also represented Mosaica Education, a for-profit charter school operator, and the University of Phoenix, a for-profit online university. At the time, the firm listed two lobbyists, Christie and William Palatucci, a longtime political ally of the governor who is a named partner in the firm.
<...>
http://www.aclu-nj.org/news/2012/01/27/judge-orders-city-of-newark-to-produce-log-of-records-related-to-facebook-donation
Judge Orders City of Newark to Produce Log of Records Related to Facebook Donation
January 27, 2012
Judge rejects city’s motion to dismiss parents’ group’s lawsuit
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NEWARK – A Superior Court judge today ordered a lawsuit to proceed against the City of Newark (151k PDF) over documents related to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s $100 million donation for the city’s schools, and ordered the city to produce a list of the documents in its possession. Judge Rachel N. Davidson denied a motion by the city to dismiss the complaint, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (2.1mb PDF) (ACLU-NJ) on behalf of the Secondary Parent Council (SPC), a group of Newark parents and grandparents seeking more transparency about the Zuckerberg donation.
“Newark’s arguments to skirt New Jersey’s public disclosure laws (1.5mb PDF) simply haven’t added up from the start – that’s just one reason why this lawsuit is going forward today,” said Frank Corrado, an attorney with Barry, Corrado, Grassi & Gibson as well as the president of the ACLU-NJ Board of Trustees, who represents SPC on the ACLU-NJ's behalf. “When Mayor Booker accepted this generous offer to help transform Newark’s schools, he emphasized the role the public would play in the process. Instead they have been denied basic requests for public documents.”
The city has argued it does not have any documents, but that even if it did, they would be shielded by mayoral executive privilege, which does not exist in New Jersey. During a hearing on the motion to dismiss the case today, Judge Davidson said she found it hard to believe the city did not possess any records related to the September 2010 donation.
“It’s a little difficult to believe that after Mr. Zuckerberg pledged $100 million to the Newark Schools that the City of Newark would not have a document,” said Judge Davidson.
Michael Witt, the attorney representing the city, acknowledged that the city has some documents, which he believed would comprise roughly 50 pages of emails. The judge ordered the city to provide a log with a description of those emails by Feb. 10, 2011.
The judge’s ruling today brings Newark parents one step closer to a better understanding of the details of the donation, which was intended to transform Newark schools. Despite numerous requests for more detailed records since the announcement of the gift in September 2010, the City of Newark has released only general information about the use and sources of the funding rather than the complete body of information the public is entitled to under law.
“As parents and grandparents, we simply want to fully understand the impact of this gift on our children and get a better grasp on this aspect of their education,” said Laura Baker of the Secondary Parent Council. “Refusing to share details the public deserves to know sends a message that outside funders have more insight into the Newark Public Schools than the community members who have a stake in the process.”
The case is captioned Secondary Parent Council v. Newark.
Judge Orders City of Newark to Produce Log of Records Related to Facebook Donation
January 27, 2012
Judge rejects city’s motion to dismiss parents’ group’s lawsuit
[img]
[/img]
NEWARK – A Superior Court judge today ordered a lawsuit to proceed against the City of Newark (151k PDF) over documents related to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s $100 million donation for the city’s schools, and ordered the city to produce a list of the documents in its possession. Judge Rachel N. Davidson denied a motion by the city to dismiss the complaint, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (2.1mb PDF) (ACLU-NJ) on behalf of the Secondary Parent Council (SPC), a group of Newark parents and grandparents seeking more transparency about the Zuckerberg donation.
“Newark’s arguments to skirt New Jersey’s public disclosure laws (1.5mb PDF) simply haven’t added up from the start – that’s just one reason why this lawsuit is going forward today,” said Frank Corrado, an attorney with Barry, Corrado, Grassi & Gibson as well as the president of the ACLU-NJ Board of Trustees, who represents SPC on the ACLU-NJ's behalf. “When Mayor Booker accepted this generous offer to help transform Newark’s schools, he emphasized the role the public would play in the process. Instead they have been denied basic requests for public documents.”
The city has argued it does not have any documents, but that even if it did, they would be shielded by mayoral executive privilege, which does not exist in New Jersey. During a hearing on the motion to dismiss the case today, Judge Davidson said she found it hard to believe the city did not possess any records related to the September 2010 donation.
“It’s a little difficult to believe that after Mr. Zuckerberg pledged $100 million to the Newark Schools that the City of Newark would not have a document,” said Judge Davidson.
Michael Witt, the attorney representing the city, acknowledged that the city has some documents, which he believed would comprise roughly 50 pages of emails. The judge ordered the city to provide a log with a description of those emails by Feb. 10, 2011.
The judge’s ruling today brings Newark parents one step closer to a better understanding of the details of the donation, which was intended to transform Newark schools. Despite numerous requests for more detailed records since the announcement of the gift in September 2010, the City of Newark has released only general information about the use and sources of the funding rather than the complete body of information the public is entitled to under law.
“As parents and grandparents, we simply want to fully understand the impact of this gift on our children and get a better grasp on this aspect of their education,” said Laura Baker of the Secondary Parent Council. “Refusing to share details the public deserves to know sends a message that outside funders have more insight into the Newark Public Schools than the community members who have a stake in the process.”
The case is captioned Secondary Parent Council v. Newark.
http://www.newser.com/story/126741/aclu-sues-newark-over-zuckerberg-donation.html
ACLU Sues Newark Over Zuckerberg Donation
Suit seeks transparency over $100M gift to school system
By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff
Posted Aug 24, 2011 3:37 AM CDT
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Newark Mayor Cory Booker, left, laughs as Mark Zuckerberg, talks about his donation of $100 million to help Newark public schools during a press conference last year.
(AP Photo/Rich Schultz)
The American Civil Liberties Union is suing Newark on behalf of a parents group that wants to know exactly what the city plans to do with Mark Zuckerberg's $100 million gift to its school system. The ACLU is demanding that the city release all correspondence between the Facebook founder, Newark Mayor Cory Booker, and other city employees relating to the donation made last September, AP reports.
"As parents, as taxpayers and as citizens, we have a need and right to know how the money pledged to Newark's public schools will ultimately serve Newark's public school students," says the grandmother who filed the initial request for documents. The mayor's office says that there is no correspondence between Booker and Zuckerberg to turn over, and that all the investments llinked to the Zuckerberg fund have been made public. "There is no secret here," a spokeswoman for the mayor explains.
ACLU Sues Newark Over Zuckerberg Donation
Suit seeks transparency over $100M gift to school system
By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff
Posted Aug 24, 2011 3:37 AM CDT
[img]
[/img]
Newark Mayor Cory Booker, left, laughs as Mark Zuckerberg, talks about his donation of $100 million to help Newark public schools during a press conference last year.
(AP Photo/Rich Schultz)
The American Civil Liberties Union is suing Newark on behalf of a parents group that wants to know exactly what the city plans to do with Mark Zuckerberg's $100 million gift to its school system. The ACLU is demanding that the city release all correspondence between the Facebook founder, Newark Mayor Cory Booker, and other city employees relating to the donation made last September, AP reports.
"As parents, as taxpayers and as citizens, we have a need and right to know how the money pledged to Newark's public schools will ultimately serve Newark's public school students," says the grandmother who filed the initial request for documents. The mayor's office says that there is no correspondence between Booker and Zuckerberg to turn over, and that all the investments llinked to the Zuckerberg fund have been made public. "There is no secret here," a spokeswoman for the mayor explains.
