New WonkyFolk, Bellwether On AI, School Board Timing And Sleeper State Referendums. Plus Friday Fish!
Larry Rosenstock and Don Shalvey - legacies.
Greetings! Will it ever stop raining? I hope so, because I’m riding in the PMC Unpaved this weekend in the Berkshires. If you see a rider with pink handlebar tape on a black gravel bike, that’s me—riding for a good friend. It’s not too late to join this year’s campaign, and I’d be grateful, as would the many who will benefit from your generosity.
ICYMI - new Bellwether work on AI is out. One ed tech founder called it the most useful resource they've seen to date. Check out why. If you haven’t signed up for Bellwether’s AI newsletter yet, a new edition is out this week.
On Monday,
I took a look at the Corey DeAngelis situation. I’m not a fan (or I guess an OnlyFan, as it turns out…), but wow, on a human level. A few folks have tried to turn this into a big school choice story. It’s not. In the same way that when a teachers' union leader gets indicted for corruption, it’s not really a union story, or when a school superintendent is charged with malfeasance, it’s more about personal failings. It doesn’t tell you much about the institution. This, too, is a personal story (and a culture war story as well). That said, it does warrant a closer look at how it all came about and lessons about educelebrity. The 74’s Linda Jacobson has advanced the reporting, rather than just summarizing it.
Jed Wallace and I discuss this further in the latest episode of WonkyFolk, but we also talk about a new study out of Denver that you should check out, what’s happening with education in Oaxaca, ESA funding, Mexico, and why Don Shalvey matters so much—plus, what a great human Larry Rosentock is.
You can listen and read through this link. Or, if you like to watch, on YouTube:
Laboratories of Democracy
The Washington Post editorial board weighed in on two education-related ballot referendums. One seeks to eliminate some testing requirements in Massachusetts, spearheaded by the teachers' union. It’s pretty obvious what’s going on there. The other concerns a proposed electoral reform in Florida that would require school board candidates to declare party affiliation. Currently, most school board elections are non-partisan, but this change would undo a prior Florida reform that made them ostensibly non-partisan.
Point: school board elections should be non-partisan. Counterpoint: too late!
A reform package I’m more interested in (and one Florida is considering) is around the timing of school board elections. We still hold them, in many places, at off-peak times, which gives special interest groups extra leverage. There’s very little evidence suggesting this is a good idea, and plenty suggesting it’s not. We should vote for school board members at the same time we vote for federal, state, and local officials. This would be low-hanging fruit for good government reform, and it’s surprising there isn’t more momentum behind it. Especially considering that many of the same people who complain about voter suppression are defending time and place rules for school board elections that depress turnout.
I’d also keep an eye on Amendment 80 in Colorado. In the late 1990s, a parents’ rights amendment was defeated there. This year, voters will decide on a measure that would create a right to school choice. While it sounds appealing on the surface, there are potential secondary effects, and the language is vague. Conservatives are sponsoring it, but some homeschoolers worry it could lead to more regulation. Public schools and many Democrats see it as a step toward vouchers. Coloradans have 14 proposed amendments on the ballot this year.
Friday Fish Pics
Here’s one of Julie Corbett’s kids (with some expert fishing guide work from grandpa) and a fat sheepshead in Lake Champlain in Vermont. When not being the fishing photographer, Julie’s a great consultant in our sector and is working on a doctoral dissertation on the systemic barriers that result in the underrepresentation on local school boards. I'm not entirely sure, but with the hats it looks like there is some Boston - NY stuff happening here in the background, too.
And Friday Fish Porn
Here's Bellwether's Amy Chen Kulesa (one of the authors of the AI report at the top of this post) with a nice one in Colorado.
New around here? Wondering what this is all about? Check out this unique archive of hundreds of pictures of education types with fish. Send me yours!