January 03, 2007
Seattle School board recall effort
Eric Dawson, from The Committee to Stop All School Closures, has filed a petition to recall Seattle School board members Cheryl Chow, Brita Butler-Wall, Darlene Flynn, Michael DeBell and Irene Stewart.
It would be nice to get rid of all of them. However, the bar for judicial approval of a recall petition is extraordinarily high. Even if the recall question makes it on the November ballot, it may well be in moot. Butler-Wall, Flynn and Stewart are up for re-election this fall anyway.
Posted by Stefan Sharkansky at January 03, 2007
09:59 AM | Email This
1. It is my understanding the new board members have already been selected by the various union types and tyical endorsors, including the Ds. My knowledge is first hand knowledge of one future board member only.
2. 1. Swatter beat me to my first point. How is the new group going to be better than the group they replace? The real question is whether the school board as an instituiton has passed the point of usefulness.
2. Just like both mangement stupidity and union stupidity has practically killed the US car industry. The secular progressive jugganaut will probably kill public schools. Evenutually, the children left in most public schools outside the tony burbs will be difficult to control and most will have few family or social supports. Teachers left in those schools will either be new seeking experience or those of low quality. Many of the newer good teachers will move on after getting experience. Public schools will become more costly as the give "combat" pay to those willing to teach. The level of education will not necessary go up for those in public school.
3. The problem is the current insitutional structure is designed not to educate kids, but to insure the job security of the adults and push the political and social agenda of the union and school board. (see, NEA web site for political agenda)
4. Until there is competition in education, nothing will change. This current recall effort is like giving the Titanic passengers buckets and telling them to bail all the while expecting the ship not to sink.
3. WVH has said it better than I could. He is right-on, as is Swatter. School choice (vouchers)is a very big deal with me and is the only way to save the children.
School choice will also have another benefit. It will break the back of the liberal indoctrination that unionized schools give our kids. This issue is as important as a good education.
4. This should be a call to all Sound Politics readers who care about education, everyone should sign up if possible to run for the Seattle school board. If there could be 15 to 20 candidates for each position in the primary, maybe one of you can make it through to the general. When the time comes in May or June, or whenever it is this year, go down to the county office and sign yourself up.
5. The committee to stop ALL school closures? Do these folks really think the district is short of classroom space?
6. I agree that school vouchers are the way to go. How can we expect any kind of positive change when the schools are not paid based on performance, rather they are paid on attendance. From what I have been hearing from my neighbors, as long as a student shows up for around 70% of the time the teacher can not fail the student even if they dont do any work.
7. What would happen if you built a city and a school system and only hired "politically progressive people" for administration?
8. "The Committee to Stop All School Closures" is another perfect example of what is wrong with the Seattle school system in particular (beyond what infects all or most public schools). How do these morons expect to keep a school open with 10 or 15 students in attendance? They have no desire to be involved in some spirit of compromise for the good of the school district in general. They can't see that the closures will help their situation. All they have is selfish self-interest, for whatever reason. They obviously expect the taxpayers to shoulder the cost of a building built for a few 1000 students (+ services) for a small cadre of their little angels. Normal people would see this unsustainable path to ruin and not insist it be followed to conclusion.
I think this attitude stems from some sort of entitlement they feel because they pay taxes (I'm a taxpayer damn it!) so government should cover their every wish no matter how unreasonable. I see this kind of attitude with people who are on the dole. Their lives are small and they want to be able to exercise some sort of outrage. You know, like they see responsible people do in the movies.
9. This petition is not going to fly. As bad as they might be, there does not seem to be a legal basis for a recall. In any event, the recall effort will fail because they are up for re-election within 270 days by the time the sufficiency detrermination is made by the superior court.
10. I remember when Cheryl Chow pulled out a wood paddle and pounded me for something I can't even remember... all I remember is I was in her office and she decided to let this little 7th grade boy have it with a wood paddle... I say oust that lame ass loser for a school board member!!!! OUST!
11. #10
What were the circumstances?
I assume that you posted the comment and you are not in prison or rehab?
You can write complete sentences.
Are you telling me your public school experience was not successful?
Just asking in fun.