Update on Panel meeting, Mulgrew on my radio show tomorrow, Cuomo and Bill Gates, and more

Dear Friends — A quick note to update you on a few issues:

1- In my previous email, I had the wrong date for this week’s meeting of the Panel for Educational Policy when a bunch of highly questionable, potentially wasteful contracts will be voted upon – it is Thursday May 7 at 6 PM.   DOE’s instructions on how to join the meeting and provide comment will be available here, hopefully by tomorrow when you click on that date.

2- Tomorrow morning Wed. May 6 at 10 AM I will be interviewing Michael Mulgrew, President of the UFT, on my weekly radio show “Talk out of School” at 99.5 FM or at www.wbai.org, about how he envisions schools should be restructured next fall to allow for health, safety and maximum academic and emotional support. Please listen in!  

3- At his daily press conference today, Gov. Cuomo said he would be partnering with the Gates Foundation to “reimagine” education and expand the use of online learning in our schools next year. This decision by the Governor is hard for many of us to imagine, given Gates’ deplorable record of damage to our schools, including pushing the Common Core, teacher evaluation linked to test scores, and inBloom Inc., designed to collect and share our children’s personal data without parental consent. Check out the letter we sent to him today, warning him against this, signed by Class Size Matters, NY State Allies for Public Education, and the Parent Coalition for Student Privacy. Our letter was quoted by the AP, in US News and World Report, and in Gothamist. Let’s hope the Governor doesn’t send our schools down that dangerous path again.

4- Finally, today is Giving Tuesday. Thanks so much to those of you who contributed to Class Size Matters last week on my birthday; for those who didn’t, please consider donating today. Given our uncertain funding future, we could really use the help.

Hoping you and your family stay safe and healthy, Leonie