My DOE Incarceration Is Over - Free At Last!

Yes, it is true after 1567 days, my DOE incarceration is finally over. The DOE, while never admitting defeat, has thrown in the towel and surrendered to the inevitable truth and has put me back into a school.

The DOE really had no choice since my Arbitrator, bless her soul, found no misconduct on my part and gave me a slap on the wrist for making a student uncomfortable based upon a clumsy statement on my part that happened in a classroom of 30 students. This was more about the student then myself but as we all know the Arbitrators must give something to the DOE because that is how the system works.

What lessons have I learned during my DOE-enforced incarceration? Many

• That the SCI and OSI investigation process is biased against the teacher and is dictated by how the Principal feels about him or her.

• That teachers who had the PIP+ program will almost certainly be terminated by the Arbitrator.

• There are few acquittals and there is about a 20% termination rate if the teacher goes through the 3020-a hearings. However, many (not all) of the Arbitrator decisions tend to be more lenient to the teacher then the settlements the DOE offers if he or she takes the 3020-a hearing to its conclusion.

• There is really no matrix between what the teacher is charged with and what the Arbitrator decides as an "award". Every 3020-a case is different, and the outcome depends on many factors. Therefore, there is no way to know what the final decision will be. This uncertainty leads many frightened teachers to accept settlement terms with the DOE that includes significant fines ($5,000 to $15,000) and a course or two.
  

• The Union leaders believe all reassigned teachers are "guilty of something" and they should stay quiet and be clueless to the procedures until the reassignment process ends. In fact, they warn newly reassigned teachers not to talk to others about their case so as to control the flow of information to the frightened teacher.
  

• Many good teachers are reassigned due to vindictive and insecure principals and there is no consequences to these administrators when the charges are found to be false or frivolous.

• A majority of the charges against teachers are greatly embellished, taken out of context, twisted, and false. The Arbitrator does not look kindly to this when the DOE fails to show proof of the charges in testimony. Remember, it is hard to remember a lie but easy to remember the truth and this shows up in the 3020-a hearings where witnesses are under oath.
  

• The teacher is the most important witness in the 3020-a hearing. The Arbitrator always wants to hear from you. Therefore, if you handle yourself well and tell the truth, the Arbitrator will take that in account when issuing the "award". Never lie! If you are caught in a lie, none of your testimony will be credible and it can lead to your termination.
  

• Some teachers should never be in the classroom again. However, the DOE seems to make deals with these same problem teachers time and again and send them back to the classroom. unbelievable, but true. I will write a follow up about these people at a later date.

Finally, never go into a meeting with the Principal or an Investigator without union representation, never, never, never! Too many teachers found themselves out of the classroom after going into the Principal's office without union representation and end up hanging themselves based upon their own statements.

The Education Deformer Stooges That Run Educators4Excellence Are Just Clueless Lap Dogs For Emperor Bloomberg

I have read the proposals by Educators4Excellence (E4E) on who should get laid off and believe that these fifth columnists are not just clueless on how the NYC school system works but are aiding and abetting Emperor Bloomberg in his attempt to destroy the teacher's union. The proposals are almost the same as the Mayor4Life's proposal except they added absences as a factor. Of course just like the Emperor and his vassal Chancellor Cathie Black, they do not explain how to come up a fair and equitable teacher evaluation procedure, except to ask that Principals document why a teacher should be laid off. The E4E are simply stooges for the Mayor and his ed deformer friends who really want a replaceable, inexpensive, and unvested teaching staff in their "education on the cheap" policies. With top stooge and Bloomberg jester, Jonathan (Moe) Bing carrying the ball to Albany to ask for repeal of the seniority-based layoffs for teachers.

For people who don't understand about E4E, this group was formed by two "newbie" teachers who promptly quit teaching full time when the ed deformers funded their organization and gave them a salary. Sydney (Curly) Morris and Evan (Larry) Stone receives funding from the Gates Foundation and Joel Klein's Education Reform group. As for Principals empowered to do the right thing. Here are just three cases why seniority-based layoffs is the only way to go.

Exhibit A: Chapter Leader Peter Lamphere's story.

Exhibit B: Principal Iris Blidge.

Exhibit C: Tale Of Two Teachers.

Finally, JD2718 wrote an article that he took from a Philadelphia blog that applies here and is why seniority-based layoffs cannot be changed under any circumstances.

Eliminating seniority-based layoffs is just bringing back the "bad old days" of Tammany Hall where, patronage, favoritism, cronyism, and intimidation would determine who would get laid off. Its bad enough that Bloomberg acts like "Boss Tweed" does this City really want to back to the 1800's? I hope not.

Our Cold-Hearted Mayor Wants To Give Teachers A Valentine Gift For The Next School Year. Eliminate Our Jobs & Hurt The Schools.

With the arrival of Valentine's Day our heartless Mayor has ramped up his rhetoric on attacking experienced teachers by imploring the State Legislature to eliminate seniority-based layoff procedure known as "last in, first out" or LIFO. His allies, the New York Post who almost everyday has an article and editorial to eliminate LIFO and that hypocrite, Joel Klein adds to the chorus to eliminate LIFO. Moreover, the Mayor not only wants to get rid of senior teachers but wants to eliminate ATRs, "U" rated teachers, and any teacher who found themselves in the "rubber room" no matter what the reason is, real or imagined. This is simply an ideological attack on teachers and is consistent with his disrespect for our union and our profession.

In addition, the Mayor4Life is also attacking our pension as well. According to his Emperor, Michael Bloomberg, no teacher would be allowed to retire and receive benefits until 65. Furthermore, the billionaire Mayor wants to eliminate the 7% interest rate to teacher TDA's. It is quite obvious that starting with his appointment of his country club buddy and flunky, the unqualified Cathie Black as Chancellor, the dramatic increase in class sizes and school overcrowding in the last couple of years, his objection to the millionaire tax that would affect his rich friends, and how he uses the recession to advance his ideological programs shows that it is not about the children when it comes to his Administration. Its about him.

This brings me to UFT President Michael Mulgrew who has finally started a public relations campaign against Bloomberg called Blizzard. However, I found it too Randi Weingarten like. Meaning it was too soft and didn't explain how to reduce class size by using the ATRs. Further, the ad should have explained that Bloomberg's attack on seniority-based layoffs is reminiscent to the abuse by Tammany Hall of the public worker which led to the establishment to Civil Service Law. Comparing Bloomberg to "Boss Tweed" would have been a very effective visual. I can only hope that this ad is only the first of many and that these ads must destroy the myth that he is the education Mayor.

What the Mayor is doing is simple senior teacher bashing and disrespect, combined with his "education on the cheap" polices.

Emperor Bloomberg Wants To Bring Back "The Bad Old Days" When Civil Service Was Controlled By Tammany Hall & Boss Tweed

One of the darkest periods in New York City history was when Tammany Hall controlled New York City where public jobs were given to those people based upon nepotism, prejudice, kickbacks, and outright corruption. In response in 1883 the Civil Service regulations were implemented to protect public workers from those disgusting practices. Now, 128 years later The Emperor, Mayor4Life, Michael Bloomberg wants to bring back these "bad old days" of Boss Tweed by attacking hard-won protections for Civil Servants. The Emperor makes no bones about eliminating seniority-based layoffs, pension rights, due process, and scale back civil service rights as he setup a task force, without Labor input that proposed everything he wants. By contrast the Citytime and ARIS fiascoes and the outrageous funding of highly paid consultants and their useless programs are ignored by the Emperor.

This is what happens when you buy your way to a third term and think that you can do anything you want. All the Emperor wants to do is be the new Boss Tweed and bring Tammany Hall polices back where public employees can be hired and fired at will and be removed for no reason at all.

It is time for the unions throughout New York State and New York City to band together to stop Bloomberg's media blitz and bashing of union workers by putting pressure on the legislature and fighting back by organizing their own media blitz by comparing Bloomberg's proposals to the "bad old days" before there were civil service protections.

What is the difference between Boss Tweed and Bloomberg when it comes to the Civil Service laws and public worker respect? Nothing, nothing at all!

In Another Case Of DOE Hypocrisy, They Are Using Teachers Who Were Charged With IncompetenceTo Continue Teaching Students.

In yet another case, of DOE hypocrisy many teachers who were charged with incompetence by the DOE and have settlied their 3020-a cases by resigning at the end of the school year find themselves back into the classroom and teaching students. Yes, you read this right, the DOE after pressuring teachers to resign at the end of the school year based upon incompetence charges are sent back to schools to finish out the year teaching students! Just unbelievable, and hypocritical. I know many of you think I am making this up but it is true. I know at least 12 teachers who took settlements to resign at the end of the school year, rather than fight a losing battle because of PIP+ at the 3020-a hearing. All, yes all the teachers were put back into schools and most are back in the classroom teaching students.

Now just think, these teachers were charged by the DOE under State Law 3020-a with incompetence. That means that the DOE believes that these teachers should not be teaching the students and yet if the teacher settles the incompetence charges by resigning at the end of the school year, they are almost immediately sent to a school and in many cases given a classroom to teach the children. If these teachers were really incompetent, how could they be allowed back into the classroom? The answer is quite simple. The DOE knows that many of these teachers are not incompetent, they are either old (very few young teachers are charged with incompetence), make too much money, the Principal does not like the teacher (see the Iris Blige article), or don't fit the culture of the school. In my experience with the teachers charged with incompetence the majority are quality teachers that fit one or more of the issues I identified in this article.

For all you media outlets, how can you justify the DOE filling charges of incompetence against a teacher and once the teacher resigns due to the incompetence charges are sent to teach in a classroom with students until the end of the school year? Now that is just another case of DOE hypocrisy that the media closes their collective eyes to.

Its About Time That UFT President Michael Mulgrew Took On The Emperor, Mayor Michael Bloomberg InThe Mass Media.

I am glad to see that our UFT President, Michael Mulgrew has finally had enough and has started to publicly respond in the newspapers and television to the Emperor's proclamations. It is long overdue. I have complained that Michael Mulgrew has been strangely quiet about the three core issues for teachers. ATRs, seniority-based layoffs, and tenure and this has led to many an insecure teacher to question the union's commitment to its core values. First, he has allowed Bloomberg to run with the seniority-based layoff issue, commonly known as "last in, first out" to the point that he gave a tepid response to the issue when he met with those misguided stooges at Educators4Excellence. He also has not aggressively defended the ATRs when he knows full well thst the ATR crises was created by the DOE and they can simply end the crises by putting the ATRs back into the classroom where they belong in and reduce the ever increasing class size issue at the same time.

Therefore, it was really refreshing to see UFT President Michel Mulgrew, in the New York Post article, forcefully respond to the Emperor Bloomberg by comparing him to that despot Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. It is time that our union went on the offensive and bring out the "rubber stamp" PEP which is controlled by the Emperor and the wasting of billions of dollars on consultants and questionable programs (Citytime, ARIS, etc.) .

Let's hope the our union President, Michael Mulgrew, has finally realized that Randi Weingarten's appeasement policy does not work and you need to fight back by any legal means necessary like taking out full page ads to not only defend our position but to show the real goal of Bloomberg's "children last" and "education on the cheap policies" a replaceable and nontenured teaching staff who will never last long enough to qualify for a pension.

My Response To Bloomberg's Court Jester, Jonathan Bing On His Teacher Bashing Article In The New York Post

I picked up the New York Post and found that the Emperor's Court Jester and clueless politician Jonathan Bing wrote an opinion piece that explained his position on why seniority-based layoffs, called "last in, first out" should be eliminated and be based upon teacher merit. He wants "justice for teachers and kids". However, he does not explain how his form of "justice" will work. The problem with what Court Jester Bing's idea is that he failed to say how do you evaluate teacher effectiveness! Nowhere in the article does he pretend to have any idea how to evaluate teachers. Just like his Emperor, Mayor4Life Michael Bloomberg, he wants quality teachers but fails to explain who would make that evaluation. He, just like his no longer teaching friends at Education4Excellence (E4E), has no evaluation plan to determine a quality teacher. Justice indeeed.

Of course we know the answer who will evaluate teachers .its the Principal and no one else. Therefore, these politicians, ex-newbie teachers of E4E, and education deformers are willing to allow one person who can be affected by budget, ageism, prejudice, and power to determine the teacher's fate. Exhibit A of why no right-thinking person would ever allow this to happen is Principal Iris Blige, who went after her staff and the DOE apparently looked the other way. If the DOE does not discipline wayward principals who abuse their position of authority, what would stop principals from terminating teachers without cause simply because the Principal doesn't like the teacher? The answer is nothing, nothing at all.

Yes, Court Jester Jonathan Bing, it is nice that you want effective teachers. However, you and your Emperor have not even proposed a fair and unbiased evaluation system that would be a starting point to even attempt to change seniority-based layoffs. I just hope our union is savvy enough not to let down its members by agreeing to eliminate or weaken seniority-based layoffs. Just like the ATRs and tenure, seniority-based layoffs is not negotiable.

update: The New York Post Editorial Board has blatantly stated that the Principal, and only the Principal should determine "effective teachers". Do I need to prove my point that eliminating seniority-based layoffs is simply a way to get rid of highly-paid, senior teachers?

The Union Must Stand Up For The ATRs Since It Was The DOE That Caused The ATR Crises In The First Place

It is no secret that his Emperor, Mayor4Life Michael Bloomberg wants to eliminate senior teachers by any means possible. Be it eliminating "last in first out", impose renewable tenure, or get rid of ATRs. Of course the easiest of the three would be the ATRs by claiming that they do not have a classroom position. Therefore, look for the Emperor to go after the ATRs. However, Bloomberg has no chance of achieving his goals unless the union lets him. See, the ATRs were created by the ex-Chancellor Joel Klein who allowed Principals to hire "newbie teachers" without selecting teachers on the excessed list. Randi Weingarten foolishly agreed to let the DOE do this as long as there were no time limits imposed on the ATRs. Now that it cost over $100 million dollars annually , the hypocrite ex-Chancellor complains that they want them fired. Well you created the ATR crises and the only way to resolve it is to put the ATRs back in the classroom that they belong in in the first place. I'm sure you've noticed that Bloomberg did not demand to fire deskbound uniform service personnel. It is just his way of going after senior teachers who he seems to hate with a passion.

That brings us up to Michael Mulgrew who seems strangely quiet as the Emperor and his minions keep blasting the teachers in the media and even tried to get the new Governor, Andrew Cuomo to include it in his speech (he failed). Granted, the union is probably quietly making sure that what Bloomberg and Black want, they won't get. However, I am concerned that our union's tactic to secretly negotiate with the DOE only to come out on the short end makes me very nervous.

It is time for the union to remind the members that there will be no retreat on tenure, seniority, and the ATRs. Let's be pro-active not reactive. Randi Weingarten is gone, stop reminding us of her failed leadership when negotiating with the DOE.

Bloomberg & Black Are Trying To Divide Teachers Based Upon Age & Experience In Their "Education On The Cheap" Policy.

There is little doubt that the Mayor4Life, his Emperor, Michael Bloomberg and his puppet Chancellor, the unqualified Cathie Black, have made a full court press in trying to split the teachers by age and experience. Their cynical complaints that seniority in the form of "last in, first out" will harm the children is not only baseless but is just a blatant attempt to further their "education on the cheap" policy that would advance their goal of a replaceable teaching staff. By having such a teaching staff, few teachers would qualify for a pension or retiree health benefits. This would save the City large amount of money in pensions and the ever-increasing health benefits. The ex-Chancellor Joel Klein admitted as much when he was quoted by UFT President Michael Mulgrew in saying ‘I’m going to pit new teachers against older teachers and I’m going to do it by trying to make it look like we’re doing layoffs''.

Bloomberg stated that if he could eliminate seniority, it would be good for the children since he would need to layoff less teachers, keep the best, and eliminate the ATR pool. However, what he fails to say is who would determine who is an "effective teacher"? We all know the answer, it is the Principal. Therefore, a teacher's continued employment will primarily depend on how he or she gets along with Principal and not what the parents or students feel about the teacher. In the Bloomberg/Klein era parent complaints were ignored and students were used as a tool to advance their propaganda against school staff.

That brings us to the stooges at the Excellence4Education, who were formed by two "newbie" ex-teachers who are now independently paid by the Bill Gates foundation through the Al Sharpton/Joel Klein misnamed Education Equity Project. They think of themselves as a force or reform but what they are is a divisive force that plays the fool for the Bloomberg Administration. They want everything that Bloomberg wants, elimination of seniority ("last in, first out") , merit pay, a teacher evaluation system, and an ATR time limit. All of these positions are contrary to the union's position and is well-aligned with the Bloomberg Administration and the non-educators at Tweed. What about class size? How about the studies that show it takes a minimum of five years to be an "effective teacher" and eight years to plateau at their highest teaching level? What about inept and incompetent Administration. E4E is very quiet about these issues.

I am sure we have all noticed that the teacher evaluation process does not presently involve peer review and based upon the "double standard" the DOE uses between teacher and Administrator, you can guess that a teacher has just as much chance to prevail against a vindictive and insecure Principal out to get him or her then a falsely accused Soviet citizen had in the "Stalin Show Trial". I bet that whatever teacher input that is eventually allowed in the teacher evaluation process will simply be a "fig leaf" for the Principal to do what he or she wants.

"Children First"? Don't make me laugh, it is simply all about saving money, ageism, and a reduction in future benefits paid to retirees. Let's say it as it is "children last" in the Bloomberg/Black campaign to implement their "education on the cheap" policy.

There Is No Doubt That Bloomberg Is Marshaling His Forces To Get Rid Of "Last In, First Out". - It Is Time For Michael Mulgrew To Fight Back.

It has become very apparent that Mayor4Life, Emperor Michael Bloomberg is marshaling his forces to attack "Last In, First Out" (LIFO) based upon seniority during layoffs. This attack started with Mayor Bloomberg's State of the City speech where senority protections for teachers was one of his main points. Since that time we have seen the news media publish opinion pieces and editorials blasting seniority-based LIFO. For example the ex-chancellor and #1 hypocrite Joel Klein, along with Michelle Rhee blasted LIFO in a New York Daily News opinion piece yesterday Here. Next we have the "fifth columnists in E4E who are funded by Gates, Sharpton and Klein to advocate against LIFO. The New York Post has jumped on the bandwagon by writing a very favorable article about E4E without mentioning the founders no longer teach full time (they allegedly sub one day a week) and are paid a salary by outside Ed-deformers. The New York Post's very slanted article even insinuated that ICE member Jeff Kaufman supported them. I found that highly unlikely and I hope Jeff demands that the New York Post give him equal time to explain his position on E4E. To further attack LIFO the New York Post allowed the E4E founders to write an opinion piece explaining their position on LIFO, among their other equally objectionable programs.

I must say I support Michael Mulgrew's meeting with the E4E since it is our union's responsibility to hear all sides and remember the old saying "keep your friends close and your enemies closer". Gotham Schools have Michael Mulgrew's speech to E4E here. Furthermore, I believe Michael Mulgrew when he claimed Joel Klein told him he supports E4E to drive a wedge between the younger and older teachers in the union. Remember when Joel Klein showed up to their drinking party?

It is now time for Michael Mulgrew to show how strong our union is by not only bringing all unions together to ensure that seniority-based LIFO is "dead on arrival" when it goes to the State Legislature but that he expose why the Mayor4Life wants to get rid of LIFO and the other civil service protections union workers have. What are they? Let me show you.

Who Evaluates The Teachers?:
Presently, there is no acceptable evaluation method and under New York State's "Race To The Top" such an evaluation method needs to be worked out with the union. Therefore, according to the City, only the Principal will be consulted to determine who should be laid off. Can you imagine that you are an "effective teacher", the students thrive in your classroom but the Principal does not like you because you are.

• outspoken
• a school leader (Chapter Leader, School based Leadership, etc).
• Not the right culture (you get the message).
• Too expensive

Age Discrimination:
What is left unsaid in the seniority-based LIFO attack is that principals will almost always favor young teachers because they are cheap and less likely to know their rights. To further encourage principals to hire young teachers the DOE has this "fair student funding" formula that actually penalizes principals from hiring older and highly-paid teachers. Take a look at the average age of teachers who are now ATRs and in the"rubber rooms" back in 2009.

Leadership Academy Principals:
Would you want these clueless in the classroom (some not even tenured teachers) principals determine if you are effective? How about having Iris Blige determining your fate? Get the message?

Replaceable Teaching Staff:
It is no secret that under Bloomberg and Klein they want to see a 100% turnover in the teaching staff so they cannot get a pension or retiree health benefits, since there is already a 50% turnover, it makes sense to start rating experienced teachers "ineffective" and terminate them before they are vested and cost the City money.

Michael Bloomberg's attack on teachers is simply part of his policy to save money and not what is best for the children. Anybody who believes differently is clueless indeed. For Bloomberg it is not about the children its about the money.

The Triborough Amendment, The ATRs, The Union, And Mayor Bloomberg. - Can An ATR Time Limit Be Imposed? - Not Without The Union's Approval.

One of the many rumors that is going around the NYC school system is that there will be an ATR time limit for the next school year. This rumor seems to have originated from the Bureaucrats at the "Children First Networks" (CFN's) as many teachers and school administrators have brought back these rumors. This has caused many of the ATRs to contact the union about the rumors of an ATR time limit and have been reassured that there is no ATR time limit. However, some in the union leadership have been less than forthright about the union's steadfastness in making sure there will not be an ATR time limit in the future. These union officials have claimed that the union may not be able to stop an ATR time limit as time goes on. Really? Let's investigate if this claimby certain union officials is really true?

My investigation starts in 1982 when New York State passed the Triborough Amendment as part of the Taylor Law that requires the employer to keep the existing contract in place until a new collective bargaining agreement is negotiated with the union. That means that even if the DOE demanded an ATR time limit it cannot get one without the union's agreement. Therefore, the only way there could be an ATR time limit is if our union caves and agrees to one. In other words, there cannot be an ATR time limit without the union's approval. The DOE created the ATRs and it is their fault, nobody else's that we have an ATR crises. The union would be doing a disservice to its members by letting the DOE get away with the mess they created in the first place. Under Randi Weingarten, the great appeaser, the union has given up many of our rights for a raise that barely kept up with inflation. Now we have Michael (don't call me Mike) Mulgrew who has privately claimed that he will be much tougher with the DOE and City when it comes to its members. What bothers me is he has essentially the same Weingarten lackeys surrounding him with a history of failed accomplishments. Only time will tell if his actions equal his rhetoric.

That brings us to Emperor, Mayor4Life Michael Bloomberg who thinks that he can just simply change the rules that govern the unions. Unfortunately, for Bloomie the New York State laws that govern the Civil Service and public employees are not for sale, unlike the New York City Mayoral Election, the combined might of the unions make any changes that weaken civil service protections are "dead on arrival". Therefore, the Mayor can rant and rave all he wants but if he indeed goes ahead with teacher layoffs, it will be "last in, first out". Therefore, look for the City to magically come up with the money to save the "newbies" just like he did for the unqualified Chancellor, Cathie Black by giving her 10 million dollars for test tutoring. However, no matter what the Mayor wants, he cannot impose an ATR time limit.

I hope this post puts to rest the fears of the 1,400 ATRs in the system that there will be an ATR time limit since only the union can allow one to be implemented and of cause the union would never do this to their members. Right Michael Mulgrew?

The Retaining Of Iris Blige As Principal At Fordham High School For The Arts Is Just Another Disgusting Example Of The DOE's "Double Standard".

Well we are now under the Administration of the unqualified Chancellor, Cathie Black, and nothing has changed when it cones to disciplining Administrators. The latest example of this is brought to you by the "Principal from Hell". Ms. Iris Blige, Principal of Fordham High School of the Arts who was allowed to keep both her job and stay as Principal of the school despite being found by a school investigator for trying to falsely terminate teachers and deny them their livelihood. The DOE, rather than try to fire her, in what would appear to be an iron-clad case with at least two Assistant Principals and numerous teachers ready to testify against her, cut a deal and paid a $7,500 fine without pleading guilty to the charge. Just unbelievable but business as usual when it comes to the DOE. This is just another example of the DOE "double standard" which allows administrators relatively free passes to continue in their positions while attacking teachers and demanding termination who do much less, if anything at all.

The New York Post reported today that the Principal targeted a dozen teachers for "unsatisfactory ratings" and eventual termination without cause. Gotham Schools has the entire OSI report here. and is interesting reading.

This is not the first time this "Principal from hell", Iris Blige has made the news. Back in March of 2009, she was cited and criticized for the high teacher turnover that occurred under her leadership and was reported in Gotham Schools Even the New York Teacher via the Rubber Room Reporter wrote about her underhanded and sleazy intentions about going after people and even had a "hit list" of teachers she wanted terminated. On the other side of the teacher spectrum, Education notes online wrote about one teacher who was removed to the "rubber room" simply because she pissed off Ms. Blige and is a must read Here. She was subject to a protest demonstration outside the school by disgruntiled staff and students back in March of 2009 that made the local news.

Ms Blige is one of the first graduates of the infamous "Principal Leadership Academy" that wastes 10 million dollars annually and is just another shinning example of the inferior leadership this money-wasting Academy produces. Maybe that was where the mysterious 10 million dollars that Mayor Bloomberg gave to Cathie Black for test tutoring came from? One can only hope so. However, let's go back to Principal Iris Blige.

Ms. Blige was known to target Chapter Leaders in particular and earned the unions ire which named her a member of their exclusive PINI Principal list. JD2718 named her school as one of the schools that teachers should not apply to and rightly so. Until the DOE gets rid of these PINI Principals like Iris Blige, their claim that they are trying to provide a quality education to the students is just a fraud. The DOE just continues in their "children last" policy when it comes to the students where these principals are in charge of.

Ex-Chancellor Joel Klein Quietly Takes A Pension As He Criticized Teachers For Their Pension System. What A Hypocrite!

Our ex-Chancellor Joel Klein has already put in his retirement papers so that he can get his $34,000 pension. Yes, the same pension that last month he criticized as being too generous for teachers and hurts the schools. The Daily News broke the story in today's paper and also titled it "Height Of Hypocrisy".

Joel Klein taking the money when only weeks ago he stated that the teachers' defined benefit pension as being a budget buster and should be made less generous. is just hypocritical.

This is just another example of our ex-Chancellor following his "do as I say not what I do" program. Sure he deserved the pension but so do the teachers. How dare he tell teachers who worked the same amount of time he did as Chancellor and whom would get approximately $7,000 annually, as being too generous for the school system. What a hypocrite! Thee right thing to do was to refuse his pension until the NYC school system recovers from the devastating and recurring budget cuts that he imposed on the schools while protecting his non-educator buddies and their high priced consultants at Tweed.

Joel, you have done an excellent job in your "children last" program and the "education on the cheap" policy. Therefore, you justly deserve the pension and to further increase the budget problems for the NYC schools.

Its Good To Be The Chancellor. If Cathie Black Was A Teacher, The DOE Would Bring Disciplinary Action And Even Termination Charges.

Our unqualified Chancellor, Cathie Black put her foot in her mouth by claiming that the way to handle classroom overcrowding was for parents to practice birth control. Not only was this an insensitive remark but has racial implications as many poor minority parents are told to limit the amount of children unless they can afford them. She further shoved her foot deeper into her mouth when she told the same audience that when it came to budget cuts she was faced with a "Sophie's Choice". I guess the loser in the Education budget cuts are to be exterminated in a Nazi death camp. What a gruesome thought. She then compounded her stupid remarks with keeping schools open and telling parents, students, and staff to show up while canceling her trip to a Staten Island school because of the ice and snow. Just unbelievable!

Remember, the unqualified Chancellor, Cathie Black never went to public school, she went to a private school with low class sizes and high tuition while her children were sent to boarding school with even lower class sizes and astronomical tuition that only the elite can afford. Furthermore, Cathie Black has no educational experience and doesn't even have a master's degree, a necessary requirement according to New York State regulations. However, her puppeteer, Mayor Bloomberg managed to obtain a waiver from the State which was unfortunate for the New York City Schools. You would think the Mayor4Life would be embarrassed by the unqualified Chancellor's actions. However, he defended Cathie Black by saying that we all say things that are taken out of context or regret how it came out. Even the New York Post Wrote an Editorial calling on Cathie Black "to put a lid on it, Cathie". Further, the Post comment section which is usually supportive, universally panned her idiotic statements.

Now if Cathie Black was a teacher that teacher would have been brought up on charges for making a raciest statement under the Chancellor's Regulation A-421 for Verbal Abuse and would be subject to the DOE's investigative arms of OEO and/or OSI. Moreover, the use of the "Sophie's Choice" comparison to budget cuts would lead to charges of Anti-semitism and an insensitivity to how Jewish students feel about what happened to their people during the Nazi period. I suspect the Mayor4Life would have demanded that the teacher be removed from the classroom and be fired. However, Cathie Black is the Chancellor and Mayor Bloomberg hand-picked her. Therefore, instead of firing her, The Mayor defends her. Too bad he doesn't use the same standard for all those teachers who had to go through their disciplinary and termination hearings for allegedly doing a lot less.

I guess it is good to be Chancellor since you are not accountable for your actions, no matter how stupid they are.

Why The UFT and DOE Makes It Almost Impossible To Be Aquitted By An Arbitrator In Their 3020-a Hearings

In some of my posts I get comments from anonymous people on why if teachers are innocent, then why do they get fines, and even suspensions in their 3020-a hearings? That is a very good question and this post will answer that question. The answer is in fact, very simple. The NYC version of the 3020-a process is geared not to acquit educators. Let's look why that is the case.

New York State 3020-a Process:
First, what is the 3020-a State Law? The 3020-a State Law requires that any school district who wants to fire an educator for alleged incompetence or misconduct must present their case in front of an impartial arbitrator, paid for by the State, and will hear from both sides who can present evidence and witnesses to prove or defend their case. This is called "due process" and stops school districts from filing frivolous or bogus charges since it can cost $250,000 or more to go through an entire 3020-a hearing process. In the State version of the 3020-a hearings, the Arbitrator and the school district lawyer are not familiar with each other and the 3020-a Arbitrator is more likely to acquit or terminate the educator, based on the evidence, or lack thereof. However, the NYC 3020-a process is different.

New York City 3020-a Process:
A decade ago the UFT and the DOE decided to "streamline" the 3020-a process by assigning Arbitrators to a panel to hear the New York City educator cases (Article 21G2 pg 116 of the latest teacher contract). The Arbitrators selected served for a maximum of a one year term and can only be renewed if both sides agree that the Arbitrator did a good job. Therefore, Arbitrators were under pressure form both sides to come up with decisions that would not alienate one side or the other that might jeopardize their position on the Board. Therefore, Arbitrators were very reluctant to either terminate or acquit educators but would hand down "awards" of fines and suspensions. The Arbitrators knew that if they did not terminate the teacher, the union was happy that the educator kept his or her job, while the DOE was happy that the Arbitrators found the educator guilty by handing out fines and suspensions. While this is not the same as the State 3020-a proceedings it should have resulted in relatively fair decisions. However, the New York City 3020-a arraignment is actually detrimental to the educator, when compared to the State 3020-a process since the DOE is more aggressive in going after Arbitrators and the hearings are held in their building. Let's look at the other changes the UFT and DOE have agreed on that hurt educator "due process" rights when compared to the State 3020-a process.

The Elimination Of The Three Arbitrator Panel For Incompetence Cases:
The State 3020-a process requires a three Arbitrator panel to determine educator incompetence. However, the UFT and DOE agreed to eliminate the three Arbitrator panel and only one Arbitrator is assigned to each incompetence case. The elimination of the three-Arbitrator panel reduces educator "due process" by allowing one Arbitrator to make the decision that can affect the educator's future employment. As you have guessed there has been more charges of teacher incompetence since this change a decade ago.

Gone Is The Educator's Right To Select An Arbitrator From A List:
The State 3020-a process allows the accused educator to select an Arbitrator from a list sent by the State. In the NYC 3020-a process, the Arbitrator is assigned to the educator and cannot be changed.

Familiarity By All Parties With Each Other:
The NYC 3020-a process allows the Arbitrator to be paired up with the DOE and NYSUT lawyers. This grouping can stay together for up to four years and the only outsider is the accused educator. Therefore, the Arbitrator may be influenced by the lawyers that he or she has been with for years while the poor educator is just an outsider and a number. This is not good for the educator as his or her input may be somewhat discounted by the Arbitrator. This may be especially true when the educator takes a private lawyer who is not only a stranger to the Arbitrator but threatens the group relationship and can subconsciously affected the Arbitrator's decision.

The Probable Cause Provision:
Only the NYC 3020-a process has the infamous "probable cause" provision that was just recently expanded by the UFT and DOE to include a felony assault allegation. This has resulted in many an educator taken off payroll for up to three months and without health benefits simply based upon hearsay.

Elimination Of The Right To Grieve A Letter To The File:
The UFT also agreed to eliminate the teacher's right to grieve Letters-To-The-File (LIF) allowing Principals to pile up LIF against teachers for use in the 3020-a hearing.

In addition, the DOE is much more aggressive in removing Arbitrators who they believe are too educator friendly then the UFT. The result is that the remaining Arbitrators will make sure the "awards" are sufficiency harsh to pacify the DOE, least they be targeted for removal by the DOE.

Finally, the UFT has encouraged the teachers to take the voluntary PIP+ program that has a 90% failure rate and an almost 100% termination rate by the Arbitrators. who have uniformly agreed to allow the PIP+ educator to testify as an "expert witness".

The union may object to this post but the truth is the truth. Our union has weakened educator "due process" rights and have put any teacher that is targeted by an Administrator in danger of termination.

The Emperor Mayor Wants To Bring Back Nepotism, Favoritism, And Patronage Into The Civil Service System. Fat Chance Bloomie!

The self-proclaimed Emperor doesn't like the Civil Service System that was established in 1883 which was set up to eliminate favoritism, nepotism, and patronage when hiring, firing, and promoting government employees. The Mayor4Life selected a hand-picked group of friends and executives to revamp the Civil Service System to bring back the very abuses that was the reason for the Civil Service System in the first place. This elitist group was called the Workforce Reform Task Force and its mission was to reduce worker protections under the Civil Service system. Mayor Bloomberg did not see fit to include any union leaders in the group and made sure the unions were kept in the dark about the task force and did not know about the report until the New York Times brought attention to it. Predictably, the unions were very upset about not being involved in the process and have formed a united front to stop any of the Bloomberg proposals that require State approval to see the light of day.

One of the major reforms Mayor Bloomberg wants is to eliminate the "last in, first out" requirement for City teachers and changes to the Taylor Law making it easier for the City to use department seniority, rather than total seniority to determine layoffs. This would allow the City to eliminate whole departments rather than have bumping occur. Predictably the union leaders were very negative to the changes led by the Uniformed Firefighters Association President, Steve Cassidy who was disgusted with the secrecy of the task force and said had the union been included in the discussions, maybe common ground could have been found for the union to support some of the 23 recommendations. Instead the Mayor is trying to steamroll this past them and the unions will band together to fight any changes sent to Albany. Teacher union Pf resident Michael Mulgrew stated that "Emperor Mike wants complete control of everyone, in their jobs and their life. That's how I read the report".

The Emperor's disregard and disconnect with the people is becoming more and more evident. First, he buys a third term, next he selects an unqualified Chancellor, then poorly handles, the blizzard in December. Furthermore, he proposes changes in the Civil Service system without union input and finally, NYC is the only major school district in the Philadelphia to Boston corridor that opens schools when the secondary roads are unplowed and sidewalks are not cleared, putting many children in danger just to get some money from the State. If that is not "children last" I don't know what is.

Is it any wonder that the Mayor's approval ratings have dropped to 37%. However, what does he care what the little people think, he is the billionaire Emperor and he does as he pleases.

Breaking News! I Will Disclose Why The Tweed Taliban Has Incarcerated Me For The Last 1531 Days!

As many of you have suspected and some of you know, I have been incarcerated by the Tweed Taliban, based upon false and frivolous charges for an astounding 1531 days and counting. Hear what I have to say on the South Bronx School internet radio broadcast on Tuesday at 9pm. Just call 1-917-932-8721. You will not be disappointed.

I will be talking about the following issues:

1. The 3020-a changes that the union allowed to reduce "teacher due process rights".
2. The hypocrisy by the DOE legal services in making settlements with "bad teachers".
3. The union's lack of action to protect reassigned teachers.
4. My charges and what happened at my 3020-a hearing.
5. The corrupt investigation process.

I hope this will be an eye-opening experience for teachers who are unaware of how the system works and why it can happen to them.

Even The Bloomberg Administration Realizes The Waste of Money The DOE Spends On High-Priced Consultants By Using The No-Bid Contracting Process.

Finally, with the City cash starved, Mayor Bloomberg has started to acknowledge the wasteful and questionable spending by Tweed of high priced consultants by using a no-bid process and ordered the DOE to eliminate 4 million dollars worth of consultants to keep open firehouses the New York Daily News reported today. We, in the education community has complained for years how Tweed used this no-bid process to hire high priced consultants and programs with questionable educational value. Especially when it came to the classroom. It wasn't too long ago that some of Tweed's questionable spending habits surfaced in the media. We all remember this travesty, don't we?

Now that Joel Klein was pushed out and the unqualified Chancellor, Cathie Black is really the Mayor's puppet, the Mayor is now taking a closer look at Tweed's spending and it is about time. With no Joel Klein to run interference to block the City from investigating the DOE's spending practices, it should be open season for the City to scrutinize how the nearly 500 million dollars are used by Tweed. The 4 million dollars is really just a tip of the iceberg. With the schools starving for funds to serve the City's children, it is unconscionable for Tweed to use precious funds for questionable and wasteful programs that have little to do with education and nothing to do with the classroom.

The reallocation of funds from Tweed to the schools are a priority when the City is threatening to layoff 6,400 teachers and countless other school personnel. Therefore, it is time that each and every program that Tweed wants to fund be sent to an educational screening committee to ensure there is educational value of the program. Finally, no more no-bid contracts that just result in overpaying for suspect programs with little, if any educational value.

It is time that Chancellor Cathie Black do some real housecleaning and get rid of those Tweed officials who were responsible for the wasting of hundreds of millions of dollars given to highly paid consultants'. It should be children first not "children last".

The Unqualified Chancellor, Cathie Black Shows Her True Colors By Concentrating On Budget Cuts And Not The Children In Her "Children Last" Program.

I hate to say I told you so but the unqualified Chancellor, Cathie Black has tipped her hand by stating that her top priority is the Bloomberg-imposed budget cuts and increasing already large class size to account for less teachers in the school system. She was very vague about how she was to handle budget cuts without hurting the schools but did say that increasing class size is not as important as keeping quality (cheap & inexperienced) teachers in the classroom. I wonder where she got that from? In other words eliminate "last in, first out" civil service requirements. Another reason she was vague was she really knows nothing about education or the New York City Public Schools. Remember, she went to private school and her children went to a boarding school with maybe 10-15 students per class.

Cathie Black started her school tour by going to a few carefully selected schools while staying clear of the struggling and failing schools, like Jamaica High School that would show her what the DOE has done to them by starving them or money and forcing them to take the students that were rejected from other schools. These are known as over the counter students. A more detailed history of what happened to Jamaica High School was written up by teacher Marc Epstein, Here. I see no real change in this school year with the unqualified Chancellor in charge as she is really a pre-kindergartner when it comes to her knowledge of the public schools. Therefore, look for the cuts to be controlled by Tweed and layoffs come from outside Tweed. That means the Regional Offices (CFN's) clerical positions, school aides, and support staff are in serious danger of losing their jobs. Do not look for significant cuts at Tweed or their pet programs that have proven to be just about worthless to student academic achievement. How does a bunch of British and Australian non-educators add to an American educational program? The millions spent on these worthless quality review and letter grade programs inspired by Tweed, should have resulted in the firing of these idiots who approved it. Instead they were promoted under Joel Klein.

I hold little hope for the New York City Public School students while the Bloomberg puppet, Cathie Black, is told by the Mayor what to cut and leave Tweed alone. Haven't they have done a good job destroying the New York City Public School in their ever continuing "children last" program?

My New Year's Wish For Our Union To Work On.

We are now starting the 2011 year and it will certainly be a trying year for our union as we now have a new Governor who will be demanding education cuts, a Mayor who refuses to negotiate a contract and is threatening to layoff 6,400 teachers, and a clueless Chancellor who will blindly follow the Mayor's orders, no matter how destructive it will be to the children. This is the time that our union must show they are strong and willing to go to the limit to protect their members. Something the union has failed to do in the last few years. For example, my last year's wishes failed to materialize as we saw the union frequently outmaneuvered by the Bloomberg/Klein Administration and their media outlets. This is the second consecutive year that the union has utterly failed to protect their members against the Bloomberg/Klein onslaught and to improve the teaching profession.

Michael (don't call me Mike) Mulgrew has stated that he is no Randi Weingarten. However, he has kept the same old failed leadership that was around when she was union President and who were responsible for the infamous 2005 contract. Furthermore, the union continues to secretly negotiate with the DOE without asking their members who are affected by the negotiations and in many cases are blindsided when the DOE, time and again reneges or ignores the agreement.

What do I expect the union to do this year? Glad you asked. Here is my New Year's list:

1. A contract that includes the "City pattern" with no givebacks!.
2. No ATR time limit, ever!
3. No changing the "last in, first out" layoff list.
4. No weakening of our "due process" rights.
5. The right to a fair and independent investigation for alleged misconduct.
6. Elimination of the PIP+ termination program.
7. Teacher input into the teacher evaluation program.

Finally, it is time for our union to be proactive and stop being reactive when it comes to its member concerns.