Democratic divide?

If these strong words at the Democratic National Convention are any sign, the cracks in the Democratic Party over things like vouchers and merit pay are widening.

A gaggle of renegade Democrats – including NYC Chancellor Joel Klein and the mayors of Denver, Newark and D.C. – staged a three-hour forum in Denver Sunday that included a fair amount of anti-teachers-union rhetoric.

"As Democrats, we have been wrong on education," said Newark Mayor Cory Booker (shown above). "It's time to get right."

Florida Democrats haven't been as split, unless you consider the growing rift over vouchers or put stock in Jeb's report card (how did 9 Democrats get A's?!).

- Ron Matus, state education reporter

Comments

[MenckenJr]

I don't think Bright Futures and FRAG should be unconstitutional; I think they should be for public and non-religious private colleges exclusively. Let the adherents of a religion promote it and educate new clergy for it (and pay the tab).

MenckenJr,

So do you also feel that Bright Futures and FRAG should be declared unconstitutional as well? Students take those taxpayer dollars to faith based institutions like Southeastern, Edwin Waters, and Florida Memorial.

[MenckenJr]

2:00 - Yes, the VPK program should be declared unconstitutional unless faith-based providers are excluded. Direct taxpayer dollars have no business going to sectarian institutions of any kind.

Termie,

Kudos to you if you outed the public school abuses. But you still haven't provided any evidence--none--that private schools serving poor kids in urban areas in Florida have principals making over $100,000. Please provide data or lose your credibility.

[terminator]

3:06
and who do you think provided the state with the information?
two wrongs don't make a right.

Termie,

As usual you make claims with no data. Why don't you give us some data on how many private schools serving low income children have principals making $100,000. Any data, perhaps?

Here's some data for you: Senator Frederica Wilson pulling down over $100,000 as a "dropout prevention director" for the Dade Public Schools?

You want people making over $100,000? Here you go:

Report: Miami-Dade School District Pays $26M In Overtime
Auditor General's Report Shows 400 Workers Making Six Figures

POSTED: 5:14 pm EST February 20, 2008
UPDATED: 8:23 pm EST February 20, 2008

MIAMI -- A review of records found some surprising math for many employees in the Miami-Dade School District.

Local 10 has learned through a report from the Sate of Florida Auditor General that more than 400 district workers in 2006 earned more than $100,000, and the total amount of overtime spent by the school district totaled $26 million.

The list of names filled 14 pages of a computer printout compared to just two pages for the slightly smaller district of Broward County employees who made at least $100,000 that same year, Local 10's Julie Summers reported.

The report stated that the "extensive and continued" payments of overtime in the Miami-Dade County School District has a "negative effect on district operations."

A closer look at some of the overtime and additional income the school system spent included a refrigeration mechanic whose salary range maxed out at about $59,588 for 2006, but who earned $111,158, according to the report. The report states the mechanic worked 1,250 hours of overtime and made almost as much in overtime as he did his regular base pay. The report shows his overtime pay was $51,570.

In another instance, a zone mechanic whose total base wages were $59,784 made $42,849 in overtime for working 1,033 hours.

Although not in the six-figure ballpark, other findings in the report were a bus driver who made more overtime wages than the person's annual salary. The bus driver worked 1,130 hours of overtime, according to the report. The driver's base wages were $25,500, but the driver made $30,747 in overtime, making $56,247 for the year.

A high school registrar with total base wages of $46,441 worked 962 hours of overtime adding $31,375 to the bankroll for total wages of $77,816.

Teachers, however, are being kept out of the big money loop. Local 10's investigation revealed that less than 1 percent of the $100,000 earners actually taught in the classroom.

"We need to be able to pay teachers enough that they can live on, and that they can stay in the community. And yet we find money for administrators, for secretary's overtime. And yet we don't have enough money to pay the same kind of salaries to teachers," said Dr. Marta Perez, a Miami-Dade School board member.

The report faulted the school district for the excessive overtime concluding that "the staff analysis did not indicate whether other alternatives to overtime were considered such as using part-time employment, rotating shifts, and outsourcing.

In the midst of all this, Superintendent Rudy Crew has proposed closing schools next year and selling land the school owns, Summers reported.

John Schuster, a district representative for Miami-Dade Public Schools told Local 10 that the overtime was necessary due to a hiring freeze and he also insisted that none of the spending was inappropriate.

Other areas of questionable spending in the report included how money for school vehicles was spent, misspending on food and cellular telephone bills.

The district has 30 days to respond to the preliminary report Depending on their response, the auditor general will then issue a final report, according to Summers.

Copyright 2008 by Local10.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Dear MenckenJr,

First, nice nom de plume. Second, do you believe the VPK program should be declared unconstitutional? That's the important question.

More important is this: the state constitutional prohibition against funding faith based organizations isn't there to prevent "indoctrination" of students. It's there to prevent the state support of religions. So even if schools didn't teach religious concepts and only taught the Sunshine State Standards, they would still be in violation of the state constitution under the current Appeals Court interpretation.

That's why the Salvation Army submitted a friend of the court brief in the voucher case before the Florida Supreme Court, as did the City of Jacksonville. in JAX they have drug rehab programs where the only willing providers are faith based ones. These groups could not provide these services if the Blaine amendment is applied consistently.

So you believe that something happens to kids over the summer between their senior year in high school and the freshman year in college that girds them against this evil brainwashing? Personally I think college kids are better targets for propaganda of all kinds, conservative or liberal.

If you want a pre-k program or a K-12 progam to exclude faith based providers, you have to apply it to college and other services as well. You can't selectively apply the law to serve your personal preferences.

[terminator]

11:05
how many private voucher and charter schools are paying "Principals" or "Directors" $100K salaries or farming out business to their buddies on the charter school governing board?
A lot of scams going on out there using kids as gunieu pigs.
Problem is, some parents equate "private" as being better which isn't always the case as we all know.

[MenckenJr]

11:05 - I didn't agree with the voluntary Pre-K when it passed. As for Bright Futures and FRAGs, those are for students who (as adults) would presumably be more resistant to indoctrination with silly worldviews and backwards theologies than primary school students.

Termie,

The U.S. Constitution has already been interpreted by the U.S. Supreme court as not prohibting K-12 choice programs including faith based schools, in the Cleveland case. They decided that like in the GI Bill, parents were choosing amoing faith based and secular options, so it was not a case of the government supporting religion. Veterans have been using taxpayer funds to attend faith based colleges--even to go to seminary--for decades.

In Florida tens of thousands of children use taxpayer dollars under the Voluntary Pre-K program to attend faith based schools. Same for Bright Futures and Florida Resident Access Grants. I presume that your teachers' union objects to that as well? If not, are you not hypocrites? If yes, why haven't you sued on those programs?

Could it be that this really isn't about the seperation of church and state but the threat to your monopoly over $20 billion of state taxpayer funding?

Your assertion that the programs are about private schools making money are laughable. The maximum scholarship in under $4,000--how is that a profit making situation?

[terminator]

duh, gee guys, the only little problem with this scenario is there's something in the US Constitution about "separation of church and state" and in the Florida Constitution about "parallel school systems".
try building UP your local public schools rather than sending your kids to "faux" private voucher schools that are in business for one reason guys....to make someone MONEY!
Jeb and the Bushites are all about PRIVITIZAION.
Don't you get it?
See you in court on September 3rd!

What is going to be very interesting is the coming battle over funding and how choice figures in that. Every day we read an article about how the public schools are starving, but the articles never--not once--tell you what per pupil spending is in a district. Dade's per pupil is $17,000 total with over $10,000 per kid just in operating costs. This in a district that has been shrinking for five yeras in a row. How long will taxpayers just accept the pleas of poverty without demanding facts? Will taxpayers start to look at choice programs as a way to save money? That would make the politics even more fascinating.

Look at who in Denver is on each side. On the side of parental choice you have the rising young African American stars of the Democratic party--the mayors of Newark, DC, and Philadelphia, and the President of the Colorado state Senate. Speaking for the status quo, you have--Reg Weaver and Randi Weingarten of the teachers' union.

Which side represents the past, and which represents the future? Which represents the children and parents, and which represents the system?

K-12 education is changing rapidly, whether we want it to or not. Parents with enough income are already customizing their kids' educations. You have kids that are simultaneously enrolled in the Florida Virtual School, a local community college, and their assigned public high school.

It's only low income parents who are being left out of this customization. Given the diversity of our student population, it's insane to think that a one-size, top down system is going to maximize results. These choice programs give low income and special needs parents options to match their kids to the right schools. It's time to leave behind the "public vs. private" rhetoric and focus on what works for each child.

A majority of the Legislative Black Caucus in Florida voted in the 2008 session to expand the tax credit scholarship program for low income children. The first person to co-sponsor the bill was Sen. Al Lawson, incoming Senate Democratic leader. The second to co-sponsor was Rep. Frank Peterman, then chairman of the Black Caucus.

These legislators are just responding to the wishes of their constituents. Why would they not work to give them the power to do what is right for their kids? These programs don't tell parents where to send their kids, they just empower them to choose the best school--a power that parents with enough money already have.

To better understand why Democrats, especially those in Florida, are starting to support parental choice, watch this short video of a 2007 march in Tallahassee. Over 4,000 low income parents came from as far away as Miami to show their support for the tax credit scholarship program:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYn--nxi7wc

If Democrats continue to deny low incoem and working class parents the power to choose the best school for their kids, they put themselves at great risk. Florida choice programs serve largely Democrat constituencies. Some Democrat state Senators have over 3,000 kids in their disrict on the McKay and tax credit scholarship programs. To work against this empowerment is very dangerous for these legislators.