2014! Should Ole Acquaintance be forgot... 2013 the Education Reform Year in Review, Part Two

Following the failure of the December 2012 lame duck efforts to pass sweeping education reform changes, nobody knew quite what was going to happen next in the early winter of 2013.

The "transparent" and "pragmatic" campaigner for Governor, it seemed, had decided that in actually governing he needed a different approach. The opposition to his changes was massive, and so to move forward in relentlessly positive fashion he needed to proceed  a bit more cautiously, trusting that the structural changes imagined would not be noticed by parents or those whose home values rely on school districts.

The year, then, has been one of parents and public schools trying to guess  which way the Governor will twist and turn.

But one thing now is crystal clear: the ultimate goal of "unbundling" traditional public education always has been in focus for the Governor. He just doesn't want it to be in focus for voters anymore until after November 2014.

So -- to 2013 -- lest we forget between now and November 2014:

1) January 2013 Bridge Conference. Bridge Magazine and Phil Powers host a large (500 or more people) conference featuring Vicki Markavitch, Governor Snyder's top aid Bill Rustem, State Board of Education John Austin and others, including David Hecker, President of the AFT. The Oxford Foundation was represented by Peter Ruddell. The  impulse for the conference was that education was becoming as divisive an issue in the state as "right to work."

To the confusion of many in the early morning conference room, Bill Rustem blustered for 5 minutes about the absolute need for the EAA and -- just before it looked like he might take off his shoe to pound the podium -- left the room, leaving the Governor's office represented by a youngish aid who had trouble making himself audible the rest of the day.

Many had not understood the centrality of the EAA to the state wide debate.-- "http://bridgemi.com/2013/01/snyder-adviser-educator-pull-no-punches-before-large-audience-at-educati... 

In retrospect, Rustem's focus makes perfect sense.

The EAA as a state run "shadow" District makes all other changes possible -- and, of course, it satisfies the demands of major national donors like the Broad Foundation. In short, Gov. Snyder can fail at every other legislative action except the EAA and still recast public education as he sees fit without having to go to the people to change the constitution.

"http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/bp--govs-man-says-public-education-like-th...

2) March 2013 Richard McClellan email tells Lisa Lyons to proceed "piecemeal" to accomplish the objectives of the December 2012 failed legislation. http://mipfs.org/node/193  Rather than openly state what the objectives were,  Lyons was to put forward pieces of legislation (written mainly by ALEC,etc.) that accomplished the same goals of December 2012 -- but in a quieter fashion. Lyons doesn't do "quiet" particularly well. In June, for example, while Inkster and Saginaw Buena Vista Districts were being closed, Lyons managed to insult every teacher in the state, referring to teachers in those Districts who were losing their jobs as "fattened pigs": http://www.mlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/06/rep_lyons_issues_statement_on.html .

To a certain extent, her ham-handedness and bellicosity has helped public education advocates in that the Representative's manner of speaking calls repeated attention to much of the ugliness and anger underlying these proposed changes.http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/bp--bloomfield-birmingham-and-troy-moms-sh...

But one got a sense of what "piecemeal" meant.

The House passed HB4369 the bill designed to codify the EAA (originally HB6004). Mike McCready voted yes. The bill sat in the Senate Education Committee until December 2013 because of many factors, including the "skunks" works scandal (see below). And a "vouchers for vendors" clause got in to the state budget that provided some of what was asked for in HB5923 via "21j" provisions. Mike McCready voted yes, here, too.http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/vouchers-for-vendors-redux-and-in-piecemea...

3) April 2013 Chad Livengood of The Detroit News breaks the story that the Governor has been supporting a secret group ("skunks" works) http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/bp--whats-in-a-name-oxford-pefa-or-skunk-w...led by Richard McClellan to design and promote "budget" schools that will function at 5,000 per pupil (some 2,000 below the state's current allocation) and employ a system that looks very much like the EAA's computer modules http://michiganradio.org/post/after-it-was-outed-secret-education-group-will-now-meet-public

3a) In order to mitigate the substantial  negative press behind the story Governor Snyder turns his reform efforts over to State Superintendent, Mike Flanagan. The move initially assuaged some concerns but it became clear that 1) Flanagan was going to move according to the Governor's original plans by dissolving Districts and that this was 2) part of long term strategy employed by other states that deflects political pressure away from elected officials on to state appointed Superintendents brought in specifically to dismantle public education.http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/bp--dont-forget-your-lunch-honey-and-keep-..." Technically speaking, the state Board of Education -- currently controlled by 6 Democrats -- hires and fires the State Superintendent. But it now seems reasonable to look for a Tony Bennet (Indiana) State Superintendent foisted on them by the Governor. The Governor now, perhaps, realizes he can get done what he wants to get done with an Arne Duncan style Democrat -- one the State Board won't be able to refuse. Flanagan, for his part, has been incoherent at points, trying to be both an advocate for public education and please the Governor. http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/shame-on-mike-flanaganit-is-time-to-step-d...

4) In May and June 2013-- with State Superintendent Flanagan now supposedly leading the way -- the Michigan legislature votes to dissolve Inskster and Saginaw Buena Vista. Pressure from still undisclosed Oakland County politicians saves Pontiac -- also on the dissolution list and probably in worse shape than either Inkster of Buena Vista -- when an amendment is adopted that no District with more than 2500 students can be dissolved. http://www.mlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/06/senate_narrowly_approves_schoo.html

5) Summer and early fall 2013 Much to the delight of surrounding Oakland County Districts that would have had to absorb staff, students, and buildings, backroom deals keep Pontiac open. Remarkably, a 750k pay out to the MDE goes to Donald Weatherspoon, EM of Highland Park and Muskegon Heights Schools (now fully chartered Districts), to become "consultant" for Pontiac. His brother, Greg, of the MDE, gets his old job at Highland Park. You can't make this stuff up: http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/em-by-any-other-name

6) Early fall 2013 State Treasure Andy Dillon -- the administration official who would be signing off  on other school closures, presumably first in poor, primarily African-American Districts -- has to resign because of "personal" problems.http://www.mlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/10/resigning_michigan_treasurer_a.html

7) December Lisa Lyons and the House float a number of bills that draw attention from the education community including bills that require schools to provide (and pay for) epi-pens. Two bills, 5111-5112, draw particular attention. The first insists all 3rd graders who fail a state issued test be retained and the second restructures the just established (August) school color-coded grading system.

In December, however, it becomes clear the real order of business is to codify the EAA.

The sudden gesture to pull the bill out of the Senate Education seems to catch many in the education community offguard -- Eastern Michigan U. faculty protest vigorously their schools involvement with the EAA but are overruled by a Governor appointed board of regents -- and the whole mess quickly turns in to a legislative debacle. 

After pointing to the EAA as the saving vehicle for the state early in the last week of December session Superintendent Mike Flanagan calls for a "Marshall Plan" in the state to save public education by week's end -- perhaps not realizing that the Marshall Plan helped created global conditions that allowed for the first critic to cry "public education in America is failing" [see Part One]

HB4369 passes in the Senate 20-18, but when it returns to the House no legislation is finalized.

Rather remarkably, the Michigan legislature ended the year stymied by a bill that would have revamped public education in Michigan but left the main vehicle for doing so -- the EAA -- outside the strictures of the Open Meetings and Freedom of Information Act.

The stunning reason as articulated by my representative? This is an "experiment" on kids and thus the State of Michigan need secrecy to conduct its experiment.http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/open-letter-to-the-bhsd--eaa-your-future

As it stands, the only thing certain is that we are back in "piecemeal" mode, putting off until 2014 elections the next big step. 

So enjoy 2014!!! This is the year the Governor hopes you will forget that he plans to "unbundle" public education in Michigan!!!