Thanks to Francesco Portelos's FOIL request, we now find out that an astonishing 186 untenured teachers were discontinued in just a four month period between July 1 to October 31 of 2014. This figure does not include teachers who decided to resign rather than continue teaching in the NYC Public Schools. While there are no comparable numbers available under the Bloomberg administration, it's hard to believe that the magnitude of the discontinuance numbers in the four month period under De Blasio and Farina are greater than under the Bloomberg administration but it appears that's the case.
At the beginning of the De Blasio administration, teachers hoped for a new philosophy that would support teachers, treat them as the professionals they are, and with the respect that they deserved. Moreover, there was real hope that the destructive Bloomberg policies that hurt students and starved the schools of necessary resources would end. In fact, UFT President Michael Mulgrew hugged the new Chancellor, Carmen Farina, and claimed that there is a new tone at the DOE. Instead, not only did we see the continuation of the destructive Bloomberg policies of "fair student funding" and the ATR crisis but the inadequate school budgets were frozen at Bloomberg levels and class sizes were not reduced as was promised by the Mayor.
Chancellor Carmen Farina has proven to be inept and is as much anti-teacher as her hated predecessors under the Bloomberg administration. In fact, she has retained many of the Bloomberg appointed administrators at the DOE in vital policy making positions and this is reflected in the obscene amount of paperwork and data mining that is required of the classroom teachers. Moreover, there has been no letup of tenured teachers facing 3020-a disciplinary charges as the overstaffed Office of Legal Services needs fresh meat to prosecute to keep them busy. Finally, her disdain for veteran teachers showed when she was Principal of her school, where 80% were forced out of the school during her tenure and her statements to "newbie teachers"to beware of the teachers cafeteria and the gripping veteran teachers.
The new tone claimed by UFT President Michael Mulgrew is simply an illusion when it comes to the classroom teacher.
7 comments:
I think Mayor DiBlasio wants to be a people's mayor. I think he wants to help the middle and working class people, but he's being pushed around by the moneyed class.The problems that you write about are part of a huge social movement that's been taking place. The rich are trying to control everything. including the housing market. They are turning NYC and other cities into cash registers. They're trying to monopolize everything. Funny that Cuomo chose to use the word monopolize towards the teacher's union. He was projectng what he and his billionaire deformers want.
Why were they discontinued? What did the UFT do to help them? What did the DOE do to help them, before cutting the cord? The number alone tells us very little. Maybe they were all rich drug addicted pedophiles who read the Times instead of the Post or Chalkbeat. Perhaps Mr. Mulgrew should be asked these questions.
So let’s get this straight.
Ms. Farina began teaching in the NYC BOE in 1966.
She stayed at PS 29 for 22 years.
She left the classroom in 1988. She was in some administrative position from 1988-1991.
She was principal of Ps 6 from 1991-2001 .
In 2001, she went into the chancellor’s office and stayed there until 2006 when she announced her retirement.
She spends 7 years in retirement and then comes back as chancellor. I assume that while she was in retirement, she was not “working” in education.
The last time she was in the classroom was 1988- pre cell phone, smart boards, eureka math, engage New York, ready Jen x, Common Core, high stakes testing, etc. I could go on and on.
How does she know what teaching is like today? For someone to say such disparaging things about veteran teachers, why would we think she is capable of understanding how to use all these new programs and technology.
She feels that older teachers cannot learn the new material, yet her resume looks very much like the resumes of some ATRs.
These remarks may boomerang back to her.
As a 29 year old non tenured teacher in the ATR this is my biggest fear.
Fascism......
When private sector billionaires take over public sector resources with the support of the federal, state, and city government.
It's baaaack....
*"In 2001, she went into the chancellor’s office and stayed there until 2006 ..."
In fact, Farina was Region 8 Superintendent in Brooklyn from 2002 until March 2004. In that office and later at Tweed she was adept in covering up Regents cheating at the Cobble Hill School of American Studies.
Cuomo going to fundraiser for moskowitch but he never shows up at numerous requests including television ads begging for governor to visit a nyc classroom. Now this creep is spending time with the money and the fake suits backing up moskowitch's "scholors" peeing in their pants..
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