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Why did the UFT endorse Thompson?
The UFT leadership say that they looked at all the candidates, and chose the one with the surest path to victory. Does that seem plausible? As we close in on the NYC Mayoral primary in less than a...
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Cool election map
It’s the next morning and we still don’t know if Bill De Blasio won the Democratic Primary by 40% – enough to avoid a run-off. The New York Times provided a nice map. Go, look, play. There are buttons...
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Will there be a runoff?
The NYTimes election map I like shows the following votes not yet counted (don’t know if this is accurate) Staten Island – 2 precincts Brooklyn – Cobble Hill – 7 precincts. (probably good for De...
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Runoff looking unlikely
As the remaining precincts report results, De Blasio stays narrowly, but clearly, over the 40% threshold. At this moment, based on the NYTimes count (updated every ten minutes), he is at 40.25%, with...
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It will soon be time to end this election
In the Spring, the UFT worked out a strategy to find a candidate for mayor – someone who could catch Quinn, beat her in a runoff, and go on to win the general election. The choice came down to Bill De...
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New York City’s Next Schools Chancellor
There’s been much discussion of who the next chancellor should be. I’m not going to name names. I don’t know that anyone would listen to me. And I don’t know that I really know enough. Instead, I...
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Chancellor Fariña
Fariña’s selection alone sets a better tone. We can expect a different kind of conversation with, for the first time in ages, educators leading both the school system and the teachers union. And tone...
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Chancellor Fariña: Progress Reports and Quality Reviews
Things under de Blasio/Fariña will get better for the schools, students, and teachers of NYC. They might get a whole lot better. They certainly won’t get worse. One area we should watch is...
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UFT Contract Proposal – My First Comments
After the negotiating committee meeting Thursday I had dinner plans – but not until 8, an hour’s walk north of 52 Broadway. So I sat in the back of the lobby, facing the escalator, reading. “Jonathan”...
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Chancellor Fariña: Problem Principals
Things under de Blasio/Fariña will get better for the schools, students, and teachers of NYC. They might get a whole lot better. They certainly won’t get worse. But we’ve seen very little real change...
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Chancellor Fariña: Problems scurrying around Tweed
One of the easiest ills to fix is all over Tweed: lawyers who serve no good purpose. I have been writing for months that things would improve under Fariña: “Things under de Blasio/Fariña will get...
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Frustrating Endorsements
State Senate 11 – UFT ally, John Liu, against Tony Avella who once challenged Bloomberg, but more recently joined the IDC to help Klein and the Republicans steal back the senate that they’d lost 31 –...
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The Community School Farce
New York City is getting community schools. Mayor de Blasio likes them. The UFT likes them. They have “wrap-around” services – which can mean a lot. They have drop-out prevention programs. They have...
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de Blasio / Fariña – not performing up to expectations
I think those who are trashing them are wrong. I think those who are defending them are wrong. I’ll leave out the non-education stuff – that’s more complicated, and while de Blasio has chalked up some...
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Have school closings in NYC stopped for now?
One expectation that we had for de Blasio / Fariña was that school closings would stop. Has this happened? Sort of. And now much of those decisions are out of their hands. So much so that I left it off...
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2 years in, 2 to go – it’s time, it’s past time, for de Blasio to clean house
Top priority should be cleaning house, now. Get the remaining Kleinies and incompetents out of Tweed. Audit principals with high staff turnover. As 2015, de Blasio’s second year as mayor, closes,...
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Bill de Blasio for a second term?
It looks likely that he will get the UFT endorsement. He already has endorsements from many unions – starting with the sanitation workers. Still, bad optics on AFT President Randi Weingarten hosting a...
View ArticleIt’s Time to Close New York City’s Schools
Public Safety is at risk – the Time to Act is Now New York City has scores of confirmed cases – There has been absolutely minimal testing – No one has acquired immunity – There are probably hundreds of...
View ArticleCoronavirus and the Campaign to Close Schools – note to members
Some Updates: this if for UFT members at the HS of American Studies at Lehman College. If you are not a UFT member at HSAS, I am sharing this with you 1) for your information 2) so you can take some...
View ArticleLet’s move our schools towards closure. Steps teachers can take now
NYC’s Mayor is foot-dragging. Leadership is required, and none is offered. The Centers for Disease Control revised its guidance. NYC is not complying with CDC guidance. The CDC recommends a school with...
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