Friday, April 11, 2014

Why Miami-Dade GOP Delegation are wasting valuable opportunity to reinvent the Florida Public School system

http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/04/09/4050205/lawmakers-demand-apology-from.html




I am not for tax increases in public education. I am for efficiencies in government. So long as the voters are likely to approve school bonds for primary, secondary and in this case, higher education, school administrators by nature have no motivation over long periods of time, to be frugal with the people's money. As a college drop out myself, I would like to see higher graduation rates Miami-Dade College, I support Mr. Padrón simply for calling out these legislators as amateurs and followers with zero vision, it is what they are. While Hon. Trujillo, Bileca and Artiles carry the low tax pledge in their shirt pocket, they have cow towed to misguided educational reformers advocating petition based parent trigger bill in the House that failed twice in the Florida Senate 20-20. Meanwhile Florida is the only state with a ballot based Parent Trigger Law on the books that needs to be amended.


Since I was the first PTA President to apply this law in 2013, I can attest to how Un-American the voting guidelines are within its text and how these legislators sit on their hands. I personally suggested to Governor Scott as well a Bileca Trujillo and to Aritiles through my counsel the urgency for it to be amended. After all, it took almost a decade for two parents to apply it suffer intimidation of your children in school and lose the election. But when it is amended with the support of Mr. Padrón and Ms. Cancio perhaps the 2004 Teacher Empowerment Law 1002.33 3(b) will be the it is the single most important legislation in public education in America while increasing the graduation rates at Community College nationwide! Amending it will make it the "Parent" Empowerment Law as it is so named. Here is why: As it stands today it gives Teachers veto power over Parents vote by quorum criteria. We parents are the only stakeholders that pay the school board taxes and approve the bonds. Simply amending 'and' to 'or" is game changer in public education as all other states can mimic Florida's law. How would these legislators like to be elected this way?


Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

Parents Take Back Act is Change We Can Relieve in.

http://www.postonpolitics.com/2014/04/private-school-voucher-bill-scaled-back-again-to-woo-senate/#comments


I am always amazed at the lack if urgency to raise the bar on public education. The senate is lead by RINO Republican who unfortunately learned his politically correct ways as a superintendent who raised sales taxes in his county to rebuild his schools. School is about creativity and teachers who can compete with one another to perfect their craft always serve their students better. It has very little to do with testing. It has a lot more to do with reading skills. These skills students are not receiving in mass. Only the brightest students in stable home environment get a good education. Therefore any creative way for the private sector to contribute directly to a low income family to get a head start should NOT be deterred in anyway; especially from conservatives. As a republican in Florida must I remind you their was time in the recent past, we did not have a majority since the Reconstruction? Stop cow towing to liberals who have failed America with their liberal arts agenda and teacher’s unions. Work quickly and assertively on principles alone. Reinvent public school not reform it with common core standards that will prove to be ineffective top down approach Washington DC mandates to states. Your window may close when those  20-20 ties in the Florida senate in last two session will be apparently shameful. The only bill worth sponsoring are our proposed Amendments to the un-American 2004 Teachers Empowerment Law into The Parent empowerment law it was intended to be. óó

Posted by at No comments:

Friday, November 29, 2013

Status Quo Florida Senator wants to dilute School Choices impact by limiting curricula

http://www.thefloridacurrent.com/article.cfm?id=35476548


If our amendments to the 2004 Parent Empowerment Law 12002.33 3 (b) are not addressed and proposed in legislation this coming 2014 session, momentum will be lost and our effort to change the deficient law will be in vain. This law as presently written  denies the civil liberties of proponents seeking a ballot initaitive to convert to a Governing School in Florida. It portents an onslaught of initiatives by the advocates of status quo to continue on their misguded ways to reform the the public education system instead of reineventing the public system.



BILLS
SB 0452 Relating to Charter Schools (Clemens)
11/27/13 SENATE Filed
LEGISLATORS
Sen Jeff Clemens
Education >
Senator wants to tighten charter school focus
James Call, 11/27/2013 - 03:54 PM
A Palm Beach County senator wants to narrow the mission of charter schools.Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, Wednesday, filed SB 452 -- revising the guiding principles listed in statute creating charter schools to meet “a specific instructional need or a need for additional educational facilities.”
 “I think charter schools are there to serve the needs that the (traditional) public school system can’t,” Clemens said. “If they’re just going to do the same thing that we’re doing in public schools then I think it is a poor use of our tax resources.”
Charter schools receive taxpayer dollars but have private governing boards. There are nearly 600 of them in the state, some operated by private nonprofit companies, with an enrollment of more than 203,000 students.
“Who would set the parameters of what is needed?” said Lynn Norman-Teck, spokeswoman for the Florida Consortium of  Public Charter Schools after the bill was read to her. Norman-Teck expressed reservations about its language, saying there are numerous reasons why a parent may choose a charter school in addition to a specialized curriculum.
“I understand the thinking behind the bill but you have to look at the bigger picture,” Norman-Teck said. “A charter school may have a completely unique educational program but then there are schools that follow the same curriculum as the district and you ask, ‘But what is different?’ It may be smaller classes, it may be a uniform policy, it might be closer to where a parent works. The bill doesn’t address the parameters a parent uses when picking a charter.”
Charter schools control their own finance and supporters of traditional public schools see them as a financial drain on public education. Clemens expressed some of that frustration. Florida lawmakers the past three sessions appropriated more than $200 million in school construction and maintenance money for charters compared with $20 million (in 2013) for public schools.
“If those monies are going to charter schools that are serving a completely different need than public schools then that is a good thing,” said Clemens, quickly reciting three charters in his district meeting specific needs for the school district. “(But) if they are essentially doing the same thing as public schools are, I find that to be a waste of taxpayers’ dollars. I want to make sure that we are focusing on meeting additional needs rather than doing the same thing.”
SB 452 has yet to be assigned to any committees. Clemens said if it fails to gain any traction he will try to amend the language onto a bill addressing charter school accountability.
Related Research: Florida Statute Chapter 1002.33 - Charter Schools.
Reporter James Call can be reached at jcall@thefloridacurrent.com.
Filed in: Education
Tags: Charter Schools, Education Funding, K-12 Education
Related Current

Comments


Posted by at No comments:

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Save Us From Ourselves- Islander News guest commentary October 10 2013




"When you are dead you do not know you are dead. Only those who loved you do. The same applies when you are stupid." 

- Anonymous


"Honesty is an expensive gift. Do not expect it from cheap people"

-Warren Buffet 


Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

The answer to Overcrowding in public school is redevelopment of old schools by non profit Governing Boards.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/07/01/3480460/seven-period-high-school-schedule.html

If you really want to enforce Florida’s Class Size amendment passed by the voters then Parents will have to take back district run schools via a school ballot using an amended 2004 Parent Empowerment Law. Otherwise, you are the mercy of the Principal and Teachers. Another parent and I were the first parents in Florida to apply the law in Key Biscayne’s K8 Center in March. We were not in it to win it but to change it and created the legal precedent in the process. Manatee County Rowlett Elementary an A Magnet School, was the second the call the vote and succeeded with a visionary Principal and Vice Principal in June with a landslide victory!

Our “A” KB K8 Center is 137% of capacity with portion of it 52 years old, dilapidated, overcrowded and below FEMA flood criteria on a barrier island. If you really want to reinvent public schools and lead the United States in this parent movement join us in our quest to amend the 2004 Parent Empowerment Law.

Once a Governing School is in place, your community will invigorated by the new direction in your school future . The power of potential takes over instead of the powerless malaise of complaints about School Board// Teacher's Union culture on campus. Most of the big employers in your area will look to contribute to their area school with governing boards were thier employees live. It is natural affect of empowerment. From the corporation standpoint it gives them opportunity, a tracking mechanism to follow a students success in school from pre-school to high school. What seems like a simple contribution to area school may parlay into potential executive or over achieving employee for the Corporation. Surely the students will feel the same way, knowing the strong possibility of having a job when they graduate.

Come joins us Parents Take Back schools in Florida. We are the leaders the Sunshine state was the first to have a ballot based parent Empowerment law. Let's perfect it..Our suggested language is posted in previous posts.
Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

LandSlide Victory for Rowlett Elementary : The First Conversion of District School to Charter by Ballot in Florida History!!



Rowlett Elementary on its way to become a charter

Print
Font Size:
Default font size
Larger font size
Posted: Tuesday, June 11, 2013 5:26 pm | Updated: 5:36 pm, Tue Jun 11, 2013.
0 comments
Posted on June 11, 2013



Rowlett Elementary is one step closer to managing themselves as a charter. The school got the support of parents and teachers needed to move forward with the conversion process.
"We wanted to continue to offer the uniqueness that we've done for the last 13 years," said Rowlett Elementary School Principal Brian Flynn. 

Flynn is talking about the magnet programs the school currently provides to students. "There is performing arts, communications which includes foreign language and technology and right now because of the budget situation we are not sure if we are going to be able to continue to offer those programs," he added.
So with no assurance from the Manatee County School district the school began the process to convert into a charter.  Which gives them more control over their curriculum. Flynn says stage one of that process was a vote.  "We had the votes tallied and we had overwhelming support from both by teachers and parents."
Parents voted in favor of the measure 480 to 26, teachers also supported the conversion 57 to 4 but the vote is just the beginning. Rowlett officials must now submit an application to the school board for approval.
"We know exactly what we need to develop for them, there are specifics we have to give them and we plan on doing that," said Flynn.
According to the Florida Department of Education's web site those specifics include everything from showing details of their curriculum to setting objectives for improving student learning. There is also a financial plan requirement that Flynn says they are positive they can meet. "We know what our revenue will be. We know what our expenses will be.  And, in putting everything together we feel we are going to be in the black by well over $100,000. "
The charter application is due on August 1st.  The Manatee County School Board will have 60 days from that point to approve or deny the request.
Posted by at No comments:

Friday, June 7, 2013

Landslide Victory to Convert to charter in Laupahoeehoe, Hawaii-145-35

http://www.bigislandvideonews.com/2010/02/11/video-landslide-yes-vote-for-laupahoehoe-charter-school/


As the first parents in US History to

 force a vote to convert to charter an

 "A" school in Florida, I can express

 how invigorating it is to see parents

 and alumni banding together to take  

 their public school. They "get it" and

 expressed how much they love their

 school. Although we were not

 successful here in the sunshine state,

 I feel the sun from Hawaii shining on

 us as change is coming for Parents

 and Alumni of this K-12 in Hawaii.

 They are looking at the horizon and

 see light shinning and the future for

 their kids is bright. 


Congratulations. 


"Change we can relieve in." ó

Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)