I’m guilty. No, I haven’t posted crosshairs on anyone. But I have used intemperate language to describe policies and people with whom I disagree. It’s so easy to fall into the pattern of sarcasm and vitriol. And look what it gets us. A dead child. A public
Read more →I have a hard time listening to lawyers describe our public schools. I want to stand up and shout: go to a school! We could have gotten up from the Trenton court room and walked a few blocks to a school that the Christie administration says meets
Read more →The countdown isn’t over for 8 young Paterson women. The New Year’s Eve ball may have dropped, but they are still counting the days until they leave for the rain forests of Costa Rica’s Osa peninsula on January 13. This will be the third group of young women that PEF has
Read more →The papers all dutifully reported that the US students ranked last in science literacy and only in the middle of the 24 nations in math literacy. Gov. Christie and lots of other politicians decried our education performance. It’s fashionable to find we have a crisis. And their answers are
Read more →The newly released QSAC [Quality Single Accountability Contiuum] scores suggest that Paterson Public Schools will regain governance, personnel and operations. But don’t pop that celebratory cork yet. Acting Commissioner Hendrick’s letter doesn’t give a firm timeline for next steps. It does say that a confirming decision will depend upon
Read more →New rumors that Gov Christie will name a new Commissioner of Education are swirling around again. The Gov’s choice matters. A lot. Paterson needs stability. In the past 5 years, Paterson has had three superintendents, each with a different vision for how to improve our schools. Each
Read more →It’s a day to celebrate! Paterson parents stood up for their kids in two separate, but significant actions. First, Corey Teague organized a protest in front of the Paterson Public Schools central offices to highlight the state’s lack of action in releasing funds to provide for pre-k
Read more →Gov. Christie moves to limit superintendent salaries and the suburbs fight back. Could this be the issue that brings the cities and the suburbs together? Listening to the suburban superintendents and school board members at a public hearing last week gives me hope that city/suburb education coalitions
Read more →Thanks to John Mooney and and NJ Spotlight, we now know that 308 employees of the School Development Authority, including nearly 50 making over $100,000, have worked for nearly a year to reconsider 50 school projects and reorganize the organizational chart. With roughly 60 SDA employees per
Read more →More choice. Academic rigor. New school configurations. School/teacher reward plans. I listened to Dr. Evans at Thursday night’ forum with hope and dread. Hope: Because the strategic plan and this year’s targets are bold and doable. Dread: Because the foes of change in Paterson have defeated every
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