Support the Cast of Abbott Elementary from “Ed Reformer” Attacks

An important read from the Network for Public Education.  This is particularly interesting, as it shows the corporate-style response to attack anything that jeopardizes their revenue stream.

Dear Michael,   ABC’s award-winning sitcom Abbott Elementary is the story of a wonderful group of teachers who stick with a challenging Philadelphia public school because they love teaching and kids. In recent episodes, it has been critical of the effects of charter schools. It seems hard to believe it, but “Ed Reformers” are attacking its creator, Quinta Brunson, on Twitter.   Please stand up for Abbott Elementary & Ms Brunson by copying and tweeting the Tweets below. The show and its producers need to know you stand for truth-telling and for public schools.    Thank you @AbbottElemABC & @quintabrunson for yr amazing show that dares to tell truth abt how charters hurt public schools. Love the show. Keep up the great work! I love  #AbbottElementary https://abc.com/shows/abbott-elementary   How small @JeanneAllen & @edreform look trying to suppress @AbbottElemABC from criticizing the charter system by lying about @quintabrunson. https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/quinta-brunson-shuts-down-critic-151809283.html I love #AbbottElementary   When @AbbottElemABC critiques Pa billionaire trying to undermine public schools w/charters, @edreform goes on the attack. Pathetic to go after a beloved show & its beloved creator/star @quintabrunson. Gotta say it. I love #AbbottElementary. https://abc.com/shows/abbott-elementary   You can read about the show’s critique of charters here and the Jeanne Allen controversy here including the Tweets in which Brunson pushes back.

Thanks for all you do,

Carol Burris Network for Public Education Executive Director

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What Great Public High Schools Can Do and More!

A very important read from the Network for Public Education.

Dear Michael, On March 21 at 7:00 pm EST, Diane Ravitch and our great friend, Kevin Welner of the National Education Policy Center (NEPC) will speak with two Nebraskans, University of Nebraska Professor Edmund T. Hamann and Lincoln High School principal Mark Larson, about the extraordinary things that public high schools can accomplish when they are dedicated to becoming a school of opportunity. They will also discuss the threats to public education that are happening right now in a state that presently does not have vouchers or charter schools. This is a conversation you will not want to miss.  To attend via Zoom please join us click with a here. Biden Budget Increases Education Funding…but Not for the Federal Charter School Programs. Thanks to YOUR advocacy, the Biden Administration is holding the line on CSP funding. The charter school lobby is furious and is pressuring Congress to increase the amount. Let your representatives know that you do NOT want to see CSP funding increased. In fact, you would like a moratorium. This is an updated email, so even if you have sent one you can send it again. Send your email NOW to Congress by clicking here. Only Six Months Away From our Tenth Anniversary Conference Make sure that you get your ticket to join us and secure a discounted reservation price at our conference hotel. It is a bargain. Reserve your room today. Next week, we will be choosing from wonderful panel applications to fill our event. We can’t wait to tell you all about it. Reserve your place at the conference today! Thanks for all you do, Carol Burris, Executive Director   The Network for Public Education is a 501 (c)(3) organization. You can make a tax deductible donation here. You can follow us on twitter and like us on Facebook.

Neo-Nazi Homeschools and the Vouchers That Could Fund Them

A very important read from the Network for Public Education.

Dear Michael, Yesterday our sister organization, the Network for Public Education, sent out a critical press release following the exposure of a Neo-Nazi Homeschool Network. According to the report in the Huffington Post, its numbers thus far are in the thousands, but the greater threat is how its existence exposes the dangers of publicly-subsidized vouchers designed to fund extremist beliefs. You can find that press release here. In that release, we call for the immediate cessation of ESA voucher payments to homeschoolers and all other non-school-based “individualized” instruction programs.  Such programs, including so-called micro-schools, operate with almost no curricular supervision or public fiscal oversight, allowing them to legally indoctrinate children with a distorted hate-filled curriculum directly supported by public funds. Do ESAs presently fund Neo-Nazi homeschools? The truth is we do not know, nor do lawmakers. What is taught to children is unknown. That is the point. The following states presently have ESA vouchers that fund “independent learning programs, ” potentially including Neo-Nazi and other extremist homeschool teachings. Arizona, Florida, Indiana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Utah. If you reside in one of the above states, please act now by sending your email calling on legislators to defund ESA vouchers for individualized education, homeschools, and micro-schools. (Only residents of those states can participate). CLICK HERE TO SEND YOUR EMAIL While these seven states are the only states that presently fund homeschool ESAs, other bills are being proposed that would either create new ESA vouchers or expand existing programs. Voucher bills are popping up across the nation. We are keeping track of them here. Join us in Washington, DC for our 10th Anniversary Conference! We hope you’ll join us for the NPE/NPE Action 2023 Conference in Washington, D.C., Public Schools: Where Democracy Grows. We will be gathering at the Capital Hilton in the heart of the nation’s capital to celebrate our 10th Anniversary. You can register for the conference and book your discounted hotel reservations here. If you would like to present at the 2023 conference fill out the application for panelists here. We are taking submissions to present until March 1. Thanks for all you do, Carol Burris Executive Director Donations to NPE Action (a 501(c)(4)) are not tax deductible, but they are needed to lobby and educate the public about the issues and candidates we support. Please make a donation today.

A New Report on Anti-Public Ed Parent Groups and Who Funds Them

An important report from the folks at the Network for Public Education.

Dear Michael, They show up shouting at school board meetings with endless complaints. The press interviews them as though they are some “regular moms” looking out for their children, but they are not. They are a well-funded facade for the Koch, Walton, and DeVos families to disrupt and destroy public education.   In our new report, author and academician Maurice Cunningham pulls back the veil on the players, tactics, and funders. This must-read report identifies the who, how, and why behind Merchants of Deception: Parent Props and Their Funders. Click the image below to read the report.

What Happened to the 1.3 Million Children Who Stopped Going to School?

If you listen to the right-wing media, families are leaving public schools in droves. In this piece, I say, “not so fast.” Using real data, not anecdotal accounts, I argue that what should be a national concern centered on the welfare of children has instead become promotional material for those who wish to eliminate public schools.   Please read and share my latest piece in the Progressive.

NPE Conference Panel Proposal Submissions Date is March 1, 2023

If you would like to present at our October 2023 Tenth Anniversary Conference in Washington, D.C., remember that there is only one month remaining to submit your proposal. Priority will be given to panels that focus on one or more of the following themes: Strengthening School Boards Promoting a Diverse Curriculum Fighting Against School Privatization Creating Grassroots Legislative Agendas Celebrating the Teaching Profession Single-member panels are discouraged and are unlikely to be approved. Please consider being joined by two or three colleagues with expertise or perspective on your topic. You can fill out an application for your panel here.

Thank you for all you do,

Carol Burris Network for Public Education Executive Director   The Network for Public Education is a 501 (c)(3) organization. You can make a tax deductible donation here. You can follow us on twitter and like us on Facebook.

NEW REPORT – Chartered for Profit II: Pandemic Profiteering

A very important read from the Network for Public Education.

Dear Michael,   In the fall of 2021, one in every five (20%) charter school students was enrolled in a for-profit run school.     There is no other way to put it–the for-profit charter industry saw an opportunity to expand its market share during a national health crisis and took it. Worst of all, 27% of for-profit enrolled students attended a low-quality virtual charter.   Read NPE’s latest report, Chartered for Profit II: Pandemic Profiteering.

READ THE REPORT

Profiteering and grift are possible because for-profit operators use their taxpayer-funded wealth to influence lawmakers to keep regulations and oversight lax. In a single year in Arizona, 91.8 percent of charter schools were granted exemptions from procurement regulations meant to ensure taxpayer funds were being spent responsibly. Sweeps contracts are commonly used to give the for-profit operator financial control over the allegedly nonprofit school. Sweetheart deals and related party transactions allow the operator’s family and friends, board members and even employees to cash in on public funds meant for kids. Through elaborate webs of property flips and purchases by related companies, operators find ways to fill their bank accounts from charter schools. We explain it all.   Read and share our report using this link: https://networkforpubliceducation.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Chartered-for-Profit-II.pdf Three states with a high proportion of charter schools–Michigan, Florida and Ohio–are now dominated by the for-profit-run charter industry with over half of their schools being nonprofit in name only. And Nevada and Arizona are quickly catching up. Will your state be next? Read Chartered for Profit II and find out the how and why of the charter for-profit world. It’s time we demand reform.

READ THE REPORT

2023 Conference

We hope you’ll join us for the NPE/NPE Action 2023 Conference in Washington, D.C., Public Schools: Where Democracy Grows. We will be gathering at the Capital Hilton in the heart of the nation’s capital to celebrate our 10th Anniversary on October 28-29, 2023.

JOIN US

You can book your hotel reservations here, and if you would like to present at the 2023 conference fill out the application for panelists here.

Donate to NPE

Please consider making a donation to the Network for Public Education. We rely on donations from supporters like you to produce reports, organize our conference and so much more. We were so grateful for our 2022 supporters that we created a page on our website to thank them.   We hope we can rely on your financial support in 2023! You can make a donation here.   You can share a link to our newsletter with this link: networkforpubliceducation.org/new-report—chartered-for-profit-ii-pandemic-profiteering/

Thanks for all you do,

Carol Burris Network for Public Education Executive Director

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