A coalition of organizations, including Planned Parenthood and the largest teachers union (National Education Association), has issued a new national sex education curriculum for kindergarten through high school designed to guide children toward sexual activity, glorify homosexuality, and end all abstinence-based sex education.
For background, read Abstinence Education Yields Lowest Teen Birth Rate Ever and also read Feds Fund Homosexualists' School Training as well as Planned Parenthood Lures Teen clients via Texting in addition, read Planned Parenthood's Sexual Assault on Kids
UPDATE 1/18/12: Details and motivations of the sexual indoctrinators' plans (opinion)
UPDATE 8/16/12: Planned Parenthood's Oral Sex Push Bad According to Federal Government Report
UPDATE 2/6/12 - Planned Parenthood's Business Model: Hooking Kids on Sex (Warning: Sexually graphic video)
-- From "Sex education standards encourage teaching of sexual identity, anti-bullying in schools" by Kimberly Hefling, Associated Press 1/9/12
Young elementary school students should use the proper names for body parts and, by the end of fifth grade, know that sexual orientation is “the romantic attraction of an individual to someone of the same gender or a different gender,” according to new sexual education guidelines released Monday by a coalition of health and education groups.
By presenting minimum standards that schools can use to formulate school curriculums for each age level, the groups hope that schools can build a sequential foundation that in the long term will better help teens as they grow into adults.
Despite awareness of bullying, for example, Debra Hauser, president of Advocates for Youth, one of the groups involved with creating the standards, said some schools don’t address it — or at least not in relation to sexual orientation or gender identity, which is where she said a lot of the bullying occurs.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Sex-ed advocates launch ‘Future of Sex Education’ project, propose national sex-ed standards" by Marcos Restrepo, The American Independent 1/11/12
Advocates for Youth, along with staff from Answer and the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), launched the “The Future of Sex Education” project and drafted “a strategic framework” to develop the sexuality education standards in public schools.
The Future of Sex Education project includes “Envisioning the Future of Sex Education,” a “tool kit” “limited to Pre-K through Grade 12 public school students and all of the adults involved in providing sexuality education in this setting: school administrators, teachers, educators, parents, and others.”
According to Education Week, when the the Future of Sex Education Initiative “was conceived, the hope was that federal spending on abstinence-only sexual education would eventually be extinguished (which isn’t yet the case ) and something would be needed to teach sexuality, comprehensively.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Brand new ‘guidelines’ pushing radical, explicit sex ed agenda on schools nationwide" by Christine Dhanagom, LifeSiteNews.com 1/12/12
The guidelines, published Monday in the Journal of School Health, were authored by the American Association of Health Education, the American School Health Association, the National Education Association – Health Information Network, the Society of State Leaders of Health and Physical Education, Advocates for Youth, Answer, and the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States.
While the document does not say what organizations were represented at the meeting, the “advisory committee” and list of “additional reviewers” includes two representatives from Planned Parenthood, a representative from Planned Parenthood’s former research arm, the Guttmacher Institute, and the director of training and curriculum development for the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network.
The 6th – 8th grade curriculum calls for an explanation of the correct way to use a condom and an analysis of “external influences that have an impact on one’s attitudes about gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity.”
By the end of 12th grade, the curriculum prescribes that students should be able to “differentiate between biological sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity and expression.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also read Kids Choose Porn as Better Teacher than School
Showing posts with label NEA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NEA. Show all posts
Friday, January 13, 2012
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Pro-gay Teacher Bullies Christians on Anti-bullying Day
Wearing a homosexualist T-shirt, economics teacher Jay McDowell dedicated an entire school day in 2010 to pushing the Gay Agenda at Howell, Michigan High School. When he pressed the issue with student Daniel Glowacki who replied that his Catholic faith counters the homosexual lifestyle, McDowell ordered Glowacki out of the room and threatened suspending him. The school disciplined McDowell, but now mother Sandra Glowacki has filed a federal lawsuit against the school.
The homosexual lobby has since inundated the school with hate mail for its action against the teacher.
For background, read Homosexual Indoctrination Mandated for Schools and also read Feds Fund Homosexualists' School Training as well as Praise Lesbian Homecoming King, or You're a Bigot plus read 'Queer Studies' Degree: Normalizing Sexual Deviancy
UPDATE 6/22/13: Federal Judge Patrick Duggan fines teacher for violating Glowacki’s right to free speech
UPDATE: See a list of anti-Christian public school incidents
-- From "Lawsuit filed against Howell High School" posted at WDIV-TV4 (Detroit) 12/15/11
Daniel Glowacki, 16, was kicked out of class for not participating in the school’s spirit day to support gay and lesbian rights.
Teacher Jay McDowell was wearing a shirt supporting gay teens, but demanded a student remove her Confederate flag belt buckle because it was offensive. Glowacki challenged the teacher on tolerance and was ejected from class.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Howell student's mom sues over son's rights" by Lisa Roose-Church, Livingston Daily Press & Argus 12/17/11
The Thomas More Law Center filed the lawsuit Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Detroit on behalf of Sandra Glowacki. It alleges teacher Jay McDowell violated her son's First Amendment rights when he removed the then-16-year-old teen, Daniel Glowacki, from class in October 2010 after the teen said he did not support homosexuality because of his religious beliefs.
Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel for the Law Center, said . . . "This case points out the outrageous way in which homosexual activists have turned our public schools into indoctrination centers, and are seeking to eradicate all religious and moral opposition to their agenda."
Superintendent Ron Wilson said the board's policy is simple - it does not tolerate bullying by teachers or students based on gender, sexuality, et cetera.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Mom: Son kicked out of class over views on gays" by David Ashenfelter, Gannett News Service 12/16/11
The suit says the teacher kicked out Daniel Glowacki, 16, then a junior, from an economics class on Oct. 20, 2010, while the district was observing anti-bullying day and Spirit Day. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation encourages Americans to wear purple on Spirit Day to support LGBT youth who may feel harassed because of their sexual preference.
The lawsuit said the district allowed teachers to sell purple “Tyler’s Army” T-shirts in support of Tyler Clementi, a Rutgers University freshman who killed himself last year after a roommate streamed an Internet video of Clementi kissing a male student. The teacher, McDowell, wore one of the T-shirts throughout the day and devoted his classes to promoting homosexuality, the suit said.
The district suspended McDowell for one day without pay for violating district policy but eventually rescinded the penalty to settle a grievance he filed.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "School District Sued for Punishing Student's Opposition to 'Gay' Lifestyle" by Dave Bohon, The New American 12/21/11
When Daniel Glowacki said his Catholic religion does not accept homosexuality and he could not condone the behavior, McDowell was ‘angered’ and told Daniel Glowacki that his religion was ‘wrong,’ according to the lawsuit. McDowell then ordered Daniel Glowacki to leave the classroom.”
According to the Daily News, a “second student also was ordered out of the classroom when that student raised his hand to McDowell’s question about whether anyone else did not accept homosexuality.”
Following the classroom incident, recalled a Thomas More press release, news of the case made national headlines. Lesbian talk show host Ellen DeGeneres even got into the act when a homosexual student who had spoken up for McDowell at a school board meeting was invited to her show to talk about the case. For his appearance the homosexual student was given a $10,000 academic scholarship by a digital media company.
Homosexual activists across the country hailed McDowell for his “heroism” while branding the young Glowacki a bigot and his religiously motivated objections to homosexuality “hate” speech. Glowacki’s actions even prompted his high school to schedule a school assembly to talk about the dangers of “bullying.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "District receives threats following Glowacki lawsuit" by Lisa Roose-Church, Livingston Daily Press & Argus 12/21/11
Howell Public Schools has received "vulgar and threatening" e-mails related to "misinformation" contained in a federal lawsuit alleging a student was kicked out of class for his religious beliefs.
"Many of these e-mails are vulgar and threatening," Superintendent Ron Wilson wrote in the statement. "It is ironic that the very people who say they oppose violence and bullying are using these same tactics to intimidate our elected officials and staff." [Referring to the "homosexual lobby."]
As a result of the incident, McDowell was required to take part in training related to student's First Amendment rights and the discipline remains in his personnel file.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
The homosexual lobby has since inundated the school with hate mail for its action against the teacher.
For background, read Homosexual Indoctrination Mandated for Schools and also read Feds Fund Homosexualists' School Training as well as Praise Lesbian Homecoming King, or You're a Bigot plus read 'Queer Studies' Degree: Normalizing Sexual Deviancy
UPDATE 6/22/13: Federal Judge Patrick Duggan fines teacher for violating Glowacki’s right to free speech
UPDATE: See a list of anti-Christian public school incidents
-- From "Lawsuit filed against Howell High School" posted at WDIV-TV4 (Detroit) 12/15/11
Daniel Glowacki, 16, was kicked out of class for not participating in the school’s spirit day to support gay and lesbian rights.
Teacher Jay McDowell was wearing a shirt supporting gay teens, but demanded a student remove her Confederate flag belt buckle because it was offensive. Glowacki challenged the teacher on tolerance and was ejected from class.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Howell student's mom sues over son's rights" by Lisa Roose-Church, Livingston Daily Press & Argus 12/17/11
The Thomas More Law Center filed the lawsuit Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Detroit on behalf of Sandra Glowacki. It alleges teacher Jay McDowell violated her son's First Amendment rights when he removed the then-16-year-old teen, Daniel Glowacki, from class in October 2010 after the teen said he did not support homosexuality because of his religious beliefs.
Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel for the Law Center, said . . . "This case points out the outrageous way in which homosexual activists have turned our public schools into indoctrination centers, and are seeking to eradicate all religious and moral opposition to their agenda."
Superintendent Ron Wilson said the board's policy is simple - it does not tolerate bullying by teachers or students based on gender, sexuality, et cetera.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Mom: Son kicked out of class over views on gays" by David Ashenfelter, Gannett News Service 12/16/11
The suit says the teacher kicked out Daniel Glowacki, 16, then a junior, from an economics class on Oct. 20, 2010, while the district was observing anti-bullying day and Spirit Day. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation encourages Americans to wear purple on Spirit Day to support LGBT youth who may feel harassed because of their sexual preference.
The lawsuit said the district allowed teachers to sell purple “Tyler’s Army” T-shirts in support of Tyler Clementi, a Rutgers University freshman who killed himself last year after a roommate streamed an Internet video of Clementi kissing a male student. The teacher, McDowell, wore one of the T-shirts throughout the day and devoted his classes to promoting homosexuality, the suit said.
The district suspended McDowell for one day without pay for violating district policy but eventually rescinded the penalty to settle a grievance he filed.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "School District Sued for Punishing Student's Opposition to 'Gay' Lifestyle" by Dave Bohon, The New American 12/21/11
When Daniel Glowacki said his Catholic religion does not accept homosexuality and he could not condone the behavior, McDowell was ‘angered’ and told Daniel Glowacki that his religion was ‘wrong,’ according to the lawsuit. McDowell then ordered Daniel Glowacki to leave the classroom.”
According to the Daily News, a “second student also was ordered out of the classroom when that student raised his hand to McDowell’s question about whether anyone else did not accept homosexuality.”
Following the classroom incident, recalled a Thomas More press release, news of the case made national headlines. Lesbian talk show host Ellen DeGeneres even got into the act when a homosexual student who had spoken up for McDowell at a school board meeting was invited to her show to talk about the case. For his appearance the homosexual student was given a $10,000 academic scholarship by a digital media company.
Homosexual activists across the country hailed McDowell for his “heroism” while branding the young Glowacki a bigot and his religiously motivated objections to homosexuality “hate” speech. Glowacki’s actions even prompted his high school to schedule a school assembly to talk about the dangers of “bullying.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "District receives threats following Glowacki lawsuit" by Lisa Roose-Church, Livingston Daily Press & Argus 12/21/11
Howell Public Schools has received "vulgar and threatening" e-mails related to "misinformation" contained in a federal lawsuit alleging a student was kicked out of class for his religious beliefs.
"Many of these e-mails are vulgar and threatening," Superintendent Ron Wilson wrote in the statement. "It is ironic that the very people who say they oppose violence and bullying are using these same tactics to intimidate our elected officials and staff." [Referring to the "homosexual lobby."]
As a result of the incident, McDowell was required to take part in training related to student's First Amendment rights and the discipline remains in his personnel file.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Homosexual Indoctrination 'Day of Silence' in Schools
Students observing the Day of Silence will be protesting the alleged system-wide victimization of homosexuals, bisexuals, transsexuals, intersexed, queer and questioning students, teachers, janitors, bus drivers and school superintendents, based on heteronormativity and homophobia, stemming from outworn arguments and old attitudes, inevitably leading to bullying and violence.
For background, read Schools Celebrate Homosexuality
-- From "CRHS to participate in Day of Silence against LGBT discrimination" by Lauren T. Taniguchi, The News of Cumberland County South Jersey Newspapers 4/11/11
Over 50 students and faculty at Cumberland Regional High School (CRHS) will participate in a nationwide Day of Silence on April 15 to protest discrimination, harassment and abuse faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students and their allies.
The Day of Silence is a student-led project of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), the leading national education organization focused on creating safe schools for all LGBT students.
GLSEN’s 2003 National School Climate Survey found that more than four out of five LGBT students report verbal, sexual or physical harassment at schools across the county, and 29 percent report missing at least one day of school in the past month out of fear for their personal safety in school. By participating in the Day of Silence, students and faculty strive toward making anti-LGBT bullying, harassment and name-calling unacceptable in American schools.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Potsdam High School students to observe 'Day of Silence' Friday to draw attention to bullying" posted at North Country Now (Potsdam, NY) 4/7/11
Potsdam High School students will be observing a "Day of Silence" . . . to draw attention to the bullying and harassment faced by students everywhere.
Organized by the high school Gay-Straight Alliance, students wanted to open up the event to all students and all types of bullying. Silence is used as a tactic to provide a space for personal reflections about the consequences of being silent and silenced, organizers say.
“Day of Silence” was started in 1996 at the University of Virginia. In 2001, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network became the official sponsor of the event. GLSEN reports that hundreds of thousands of students nationwide take a vow of silence to bring attention to name-calling, bullying and harassment in their schools.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Dumbing down for the Day of Silence" by Linda Harvey, president of Mission America 4/11/11
The DOS [Day of Silence] operates at the most elementary level of manipulation, propaganda and social engineering. It takes "social justice" nonsense, stirs in unfounded claims of "civil rights," adds a helping of knee-jerk anti-religious prejudice, swirls in teen rebellion, and simmers with disconnected stories of tragedy and heartbreak. Out comes a Hitler Youth product ready to do battle with anyone holding traditional moral values or even common sense.
As we taxpayers take a harder look at the strong-arm tactics of teachers' unions and their leftist cronies, let's examine what kind of product we are getting for our money. For those schools that enthusiastically back, or even allow the likes of the Day of Silence, the product is the tragically lobotomized young mind.
But it's a product that's been supported by the National Education Association, which contributes to GLSEN (and a host of other "gay" groups) with teachers' dues money. In Ohio, Wisconsin and other non-"right-to-work" states, teachers are compelled to finance this poison.
To read the entire opinion column above, CLICK HERE.
For a Christian response to the indoctrination, CLICK HERE.
For background, read Schools Celebrate Homosexuality
-- From "CRHS to participate in Day of Silence against LGBT discrimination" by Lauren T. Taniguchi, The News of Cumberland County South Jersey Newspapers 4/11/11
Over 50 students and faculty at Cumberland Regional High School (CRHS) will participate in a nationwide Day of Silence on April 15 to protest discrimination, harassment and abuse faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students and their allies.
The Day of Silence is a student-led project of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), the leading national education organization focused on creating safe schools for all LGBT students.
GLSEN’s 2003 National School Climate Survey found that more than four out of five LGBT students report verbal, sexual or physical harassment at schools across the county, and 29 percent report missing at least one day of school in the past month out of fear for their personal safety in school. By participating in the Day of Silence, students and faculty strive toward making anti-LGBT bullying, harassment and name-calling unacceptable in American schools.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Potsdam High School students to observe 'Day of Silence' Friday to draw attention to bullying" posted at North Country Now (Potsdam, NY) 4/7/11
Potsdam High School students will be observing a "Day of Silence" . . . to draw attention to the bullying and harassment faced by students everywhere.
Organized by the high school Gay-Straight Alliance, students wanted to open up the event to all students and all types of bullying. Silence is used as a tactic to provide a space for personal reflections about the consequences of being silent and silenced, organizers say.
“Day of Silence” was started in 1996 at the University of Virginia. In 2001, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network became the official sponsor of the event. GLSEN reports that hundreds of thousands of students nationwide take a vow of silence to bring attention to name-calling, bullying and harassment in their schools.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Dumbing down for the Day of Silence" by Linda Harvey, president of Mission America 4/11/11
The DOS [Day of Silence] operates at the most elementary level of manipulation, propaganda and social engineering. It takes "social justice" nonsense, stirs in unfounded claims of "civil rights," adds a helping of knee-jerk anti-religious prejudice, swirls in teen rebellion, and simmers with disconnected stories of tragedy and heartbreak. Out comes a Hitler Youth product ready to do battle with anyone holding traditional moral values or even common sense.
As we taxpayers take a harder look at the strong-arm tactics of teachers' unions and their leftist cronies, let's examine what kind of product we are getting for our money. For those schools that enthusiastically back, or even allow the likes of the Day of Silence, the product is the tragically lobotomized young mind.
But it's a product that's been supported by the National Education Association, which contributes to GLSEN (and a host of other "gay" groups) with teachers' dues money. In Ohio, Wisconsin and other non-"right-to-work" states, teachers are compelled to finance this poison.
To read the entire opinion column above, CLICK HERE.
For a Christian response to the indoctrination, CLICK HERE.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Exposed: Obama's Gay Agenda for Schools
UPDATE 12/2/12: School Doesn't Back Gay Agenda, President Obama Investigates
UPDATE 10/3/13: October is Homosexual Indoctrination Month at Schools
UPDATE 6/7/11: White House Says Gay Recruitment of Kids Successful
UPDATE 10/26/10: White House Forces Gay Agenda on Schools
New archive video of President Obama's 'Safe School Czar' Kevin Jennings speaking of his Gay Agenda on April 25, 1998 at Harvard.
-- From "Queering Education" by Mary Grabar, posted at American Thinker 9/3/10
The gay-positive lifestyle is being promoted aggressively in K-12 schools, often under the cover of anti-bullying efforts, under the leadership of Kevin Jennings, Assistant Deputy Secretary, Office of Safe & Drug Free Schools. Before his federal appointment, Jennings founded and ran GLSEN, (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network). Under Jennings' direction, GLSEN was involved in activities that affirmed homosexuality to children with explicit materials. Jennings also wrote the foreword to a book titled Queering Elementary Education.
GLSEN, which in the 2008-2009 year enjoyed a $157,500 contribution from the NEA, the largest teachers union in the country, pitches its materials and training services to schools. It targets not only high school students, but middle school students. For example, the video and teachers guide for Out of the Past, about a 17-year-old who begins a gay-straight alliance group in her public school, is targeted for grades 7 through 12.
. . . the organizations that put out a brochure titled "Just the Facts about Sexual Development of Youth" . . . include not only the two largest teachers' unions, but also the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychological Association.
. . . Furthermore, "Just the Facts" is promoted aggressively on the (GLSEN) website.
In such a way, the peer reviewers, the accrediting organizations, and professors assert their power; they actively exclude not only opposing religious views, but also studies and professional opinions of those who disagree with them. It's a problem that plagues our entire educational system.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "U.S. Government Takes on Schoolyard Bullies" by Carol Bengle Gilbert, Featured Education Contributor, Associated Content 9/13/10
Assistant Deputy Secretary of Education Kevin Jennings was keynote speaker at the Aug. 11 to 12 bullying summit. In an interview with Southern California Public Radio, Jennings noted that an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development study showed the USA to be in the middle of 40 industrial countries surveyed in terms of bullying severity.
While the bullying summit has given bullying a high profile, Phillip C. Rodkin, an associate professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and summit speaker, acknowledged that not much is known about effective anti-bullying practices. Historically, adults "didn't ask," he said. "They didn't want to know."
. . . The government will never know the true scope of America's bullying problem if it relies on self-reporting by schools.
As a nation suddenly concerned with bullying, we have a lot to learn.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also, click headlines below for related, previous articles:
White House Wants Homosexual Indoctrination in Schools
Obama Administration Expands Title IX to Advance Gay Agenda
Obama Appoints 'Fox' to Guard School 'Henhouse'
Part 2: Obama Appoints 'Fox' to Guard School 'Henhouse'
Congressmen Tell Obama to Fire Deviant Sex Advisor
Congressional Power to Obama's Gay Agenda
Obama Education Adviser Recommends Pornography to Children
Schools Celebrate Homosexuality
White House Exploits Youth Suicide to Advance Gay Agenda
UPDATE 10/3/13: October is Homosexual Indoctrination Month at Schools
UPDATE 6/7/11: White House Says Gay Recruitment of Kids Successful
UPDATE 10/26/10: White House Forces Gay Agenda on Schools
New archive video of President Obama's 'Safe School Czar' Kevin Jennings speaking of his Gay Agenda on April 25, 1998 at Harvard.
-- From "Queering Education" by Mary Grabar, posted at American Thinker 9/3/10
The gay-positive lifestyle is being promoted aggressively in K-12 schools, often under the cover of anti-bullying efforts, under the leadership of Kevin Jennings, Assistant Deputy Secretary, Office of Safe & Drug Free Schools. Before his federal appointment, Jennings founded and ran GLSEN, (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network). Under Jennings' direction, GLSEN was involved in activities that affirmed homosexuality to children with explicit materials. Jennings also wrote the foreword to a book titled Queering Elementary Education.
GLSEN, which in the 2008-2009 year enjoyed a $157,500 contribution from the NEA, the largest teachers union in the country, pitches its materials and training services to schools. It targets not only high school students, but middle school students. For example, the video and teachers guide for Out of the Past, about a 17-year-old who begins a gay-straight alliance group in her public school, is targeted for grades 7 through 12.
. . . the organizations that put out a brochure titled "Just the Facts about Sexual Development of Youth" . . . include not only the two largest teachers' unions, but also the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychological Association.
. . . Furthermore, "Just the Facts" is promoted aggressively on the (GLSEN) website.
In such a way, the peer reviewers, the accrediting organizations, and professors assert their power; they actively exclude not only opposing religious views, but also studies and professional opinions of those who disagree with them. It's a problem that plagues our entire educational system.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "U.S. Government Takes on Schoolyard Bullies" by Carol Bengle Gilbert, Featured Education Contributor, Associated Content 9/13/10
Assistant Deputy Secretary of Education Kevin Jennings was keynote speaker at the Aug. 11 to 12 bullying summit. In an interview with Southern California Public Radio, Jennings noted that an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development study showed the USA to be in the middle of 40 industrial countries surveyed in terms of bullying severity.
While the bullying summit has given bullying a high profile, Phillip C. Rodkin, an associate professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and summit speaker, acknowledged that not much is known about effective anti-bullying practices. Historically, adults "didn't ask," he said. "They didn't want to know."
. . . The government will never know the true scope of America's bullying problem if it relies on self-reporting by schools.
As a nation suddenly concerned with bullying, we have a lot to learn.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Also, click headlines below for related, previous articles:
White House Wants Homosexual Indoctrination in Schools
Obama Administration Expands Title IX to Advance Gay Agenda
Obama Appoints 'Fox' to Guard School 'Henhouse'
Part 2: Obama Appoints 'Fox' to Guard School 'Henhouse'
Congressmen Tell Obama to Fire Deviant Sex Advisor
Congressional Power to Obama's Gay Agenda
Obama Education Adviser Recommends Pornography to Children
Schools Celebrate Homosexuality
White House Exploits Youth Suicide to Advance Gay Agenda
Monday, August 23, 2010
Mother Sues School over Sexualization Curriculum
A Helena [Montana] mother says the final adoption of a highly controversial proposed health curriculum will cause her and her children “irreparable harm” and is asking a District Court judge to intervene.
UPDATE 9/29/10 - School board meets, changes nothing substantive (video):
UPDATE 9/17/10 (video below): Superintendent stands firm on curriculum with insignificant modifications
UPDATE 9/2/10: Speaking before large crowds in Montana, Dr. Miriam Grossman, a child psychiatrist and medical doctor, says the proposed curriculum provides too much information too soon, and not enough information later on.
For extensive background, read Montana Sex Ed Starting at Kindergarten
-- From "Mother sues over sex-ed curriculum" by Angela Brandt, Independent Record (Helena, MT) 8/21/10
The complaint calls into question the content of the curriculum and the process used to develop it. The complaint alleges the curriculum is in violation of the Montana Constitution because it was developed without any public hearings or meetings where parents could observe and participate.
According to court documents, [Kristi] Allen-Gailushas requested “a seat at the table” via a letter to Superintendent Bruce Messinger and was refused. She then asked to speak at a school board meeting and was ignored, the documents allege, thus violating her freedom of speech and expression.
Allen-Gailushas, a Republican candidate for Montana House District 82, announced her complaint alongside members of the Big Sky Tea Party Association late Friday afternoon at the Lewis and Clark County Courthouse. She said the curriculum was decided upon “behind closed doors.”
The proposed curriculum — a 62-page document that covers a wide spectrum of health concerns — is the result of two years of work by a committee. It takes a science-based approach in covering topics such as nutrition, relationships, mental health, environmental health and disease prevention.
Critics take particular issue with the proposal to teach fifth-grade students that sexual activity includes “vaginal, oral, or anal penetration” and ensure kindergarteners through third-graders know the anatomical names for body parts, including the penis and vagina.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 9/29/10 - School board meets, changes nothing substantive (video):
UPDATE 9/17/10 (video below): Superintendent stands firm on curriculum with insignificant modifications
UPDATE 9/2/10: Speaking before large crowds in Montana, Dr. Miriam Grossman, a child psychiatrist and medical doctor, says the proposed curriculum provides too much information too soon, and not enough information later on.
For extensive background, read Montana Sex Ed Starting at Kindergarten
-- From "Mother sues over sex-ed curriculum" by Angela Brandt, Independent Record (Helena, MT) 8/21/10
The complaint calls into question the content of the curriculum and the process used to develop it. The complaint alleges the curriculum is in violation of the Montana Constitution because it was developed without any public hearings or meetings where parents could observe and participate.
According to court documents, [Kristi] Allen-Gailushas requested “a seat at the table” via a letter to Superintendent Bruce Messinger and was refused. She then asked to speak at a school board meeting and was ignored, the documents allege, thus violating her freedom of speech and expression.
Allen-Gailushas, a Republican candidate for Montana House District 82, announced her complaint alongside members of the Big Sky Tea Party Association late Friday afternoon at the Lewis and Clark County Courthouse. She said the curriculum was decided upon “behind closed doors.”
The proposed curriculum — a 62-page document that covers a wide spectrum of health concerns — is the result of two years of work by a committee. It takes a science-based approach in covering topics such as nutrition, relationships, mental health, environmental health and disease prevention.
Critics take particular issue with the proposal to teach fifth-grade students that sexual activity includes “vaginal, oral, or anal penetration” and ensure kindergarteners through third-graders know the anatomical names for body parts, including the penis and vagina.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Montana Sex Ed Starting at Kindergarten
Following national guidelines, grade school in Helena Montana will start by teaching kindergarteners about genitals, homosexual behavior to first graders, oral sex to pre-pubescent kids . . . and later it gets more explicit.
UPDATE 7/15/10: Latest TV interviews with parents & school superintendent (see below)
-- From "Sex-ed provisions to get public hearing Tuesday" by Alana Listoe, Helena Independent Record 7/11/10
Helena School District administrators and the [revised health enhancement curriculum] document’s creators defend the comprehensive health education document, saying as a whole it will foster a healthier lifestyle for all students as they mature from early childhood into young adults. Opponents say the proposals on human sexuality give too graphic information to children at too young an age.
A committee made up of administrators, teachers, nurses and health and police department officials met for two years [unbeknownst to parents] considering best practices, as well as state and national standards while they developed the 62-page document that encompasses nutrition, relationships, mental health, environmental health and disease prevention.
But the stirring debate in the community has centered on a few pages about human sexuality.
Some of the sticking points are introduction of body parts by their correct names in kindergarten; understanding in first grade that human beings can love people of the same gender; and understanding in fifth grade that sexual intercourse includes, but is not limited to vaginal, oral or anal penetration.
Much of those points being taught at those specific ages coincide with the Guideline for Comprehensive Sexuality Education put out by the National Guidelines Task Force, as well as other national health education standards. The district’s proposal is somewhat conservative on a few points compared to those national guidelines that, for example, say in early elementary school (ages 5 through 8), students should learn that men and women have sperm and egg cells that enable them to reproduce and that vaginal intercourse is when a penis is placed inside the vagina — the most common way for a sperm and egg to join.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 7/14/10: Video
UPDATE 7/14/10: Video
UPDATE 7/14/10: Video
UPDATE 7/13/10: Video
UPDATE 7/15/10: Latest TV interviews with parents & school superintendent (see below)
-- From "Sex-ed provisions to get public hearing Tuesday" by Alana Listoe, Helena Independent Record 7/11/10
Helena School District administrators and the [revised health enhancement curriculum] document’s creators defend the comprehensive health education document, saying as a whole it will foster a healthier lifestyle for all students as they mature from early childhood into young adults. Opponents say the proposals on human sexuality give too graphic information to children at too young an age.
A committee made up of administrators, teachers, nurses and health and police department officials met for two years [unbeknownst to parents] considering best practices, as well as state and national standards while they developed the 62-page document that encompasses nutrition, relationships, mental health, environmental health and disease prevention.
But the stirring debate in the community has centered on a few pages about human sexuality.
Some of the sticking points are introduction of body parts by their correct names in kindergarten; understanding in first grade that human beings can love people of the same gender; and understanding in fifth grade that sexual intercourse includes, but is not limited to vaginal, oral or anal penetration.
Much of those points being taught at those specific ages coincide with the Guideline for Comprehensive Sexuality Education put out by the National Guidelines Task Force, as well as other national health education standards. The district’s proposal is somewhat conservative on a few points compared to those national guidelines that, for example, say in early elementary school (ages 5 through 8), students should learn that men and women have sperm and egg cells that enable them to reproduce and that vaginal intercourse is when a penis is placed inside the vagina — the most common way for a sperm and egg to join.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 7/14/10: Video
UPDATE 7/14/10: Video
UPDATE 7/14/10: Video
UPDATE 7/13/10: Video
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Texas Puts American History Back Into School
The Texas State Board of education overhauled its existing social studies and history curriculum [Friday] by a majority vote, much to the chagrin of educators and political activists across the country.
-- From "In Texas, social studies textbooks get a conservative make-over" By Brad Knickerbocker, Staff writer, Christian Science Monitor 5/22/10
In a move that has potential national impact, the Texas State Board of Education has approved controversial changes to social studies textbooks – pushing high school teaching in a more conservative direction.
The Dallas Morning news reports that the curriculum standards adopted Friday by a 9-5 vote along party lines on the elected board have “a definite political and philosophical bent in many areas.”
Students would learn about the “unintended consequences” of Title IX, affirmative action, and the Great Society, and would study such conservative icons as Phyllis Schlafly, the Heritage Foundation, and the Moral Majority.
There’s also more emphasis on religion’s role in US history. This was evident in the opening prayer at Friday’s meeting in Austin by education board member Cynthia Dunbar made "in the name of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ … [on behalf of] “a Christian land governed by Christian principles.”
Supporters of the changes see them as correcting liberal views imposed when Democrats controlled the state education board.
But as the Monitor’s Amanda Paulson reported this week, critics are dismayed at what they see as an attempt to push conservative ideology – even if it flies in the face of scholarship – into textbooks.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Texas textbook controversy: outdated or back on track from politically correct derailment?" by Melissa Thayer, Independent Examiner 5/22/10
One of the changes that has caused a stir is that during a high school government class the students were asked to compare and contrast the judicial language of the separation of church and state with the wording in the First Amendment. An Associated Press writer chose to use the wording "watered down the rationale".
The board also rejected the use of the secular terms B.C.E. and C.E. for distinguishing historical periods and will use the normal terms B.C. and A.D. in the textbooks. The people who claim that those terms are "religious" should consider the case of the Byron Union School District in California who incorporate fasting and other religious practices into their World History and Cultures studies on Muslim culture. Parents who were upset that their children were adopting a Muslim name, fasting and being required to learn Muslim prayers sued the school district and after a long process, finally the Supreme Court rejected the appeal in 2006. The instructional material is still available for the classes.
The amendments to the curriculum include referring to the United States of America's government as a "constitutional republic" instead of a "democracy". In [Arne] Duncan's concern that children will be "shielded from the truth", one wonders if the Secretary of Education [Duncan] has read the wording of the foundational documents of America where the word "democracy" is, in truth, absent.
Author and scholar Diane Ravitch has already said that textbook and test publishers have been censoring the content of educational materials to screen out topics and ideas that might be considered traditional or controversial or offensive. Children have been being taught a filtered form of history instead of the truth.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
-- From "In Texas, social studies textbooks get a conservative make-over" By Brad Knickerbocker, Staff writer, Christian Science Monitor 5/22/10
In a move that has potential national impact, the Texas State Board of Education has approved controversial changes to social studies textbooks – pushing high school teaching in a more conservative direction.
The Dallas Morning news reports that the curriculum standards adopted Friday by a 9-5 vote along party lines on the elected board have “a definite political and philosophical bent in many areas.”
Students would learn about the “unintended consequences” of Title IX, affirmative action, and the Great Society, and would study such conservative icons as Phyllis Schlafly, the Heritage Foundation, and the Moral Majority.
There’s also more emphasis on religion’s role in US history. This was evident in the opening prayer at Friday’s meeting in Austin by education board member Cynthia Dunbar made "in the name of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ … [on behalf of] “a Christian land governed by Christian principles.”
Supporters of the changes see them as correcting liberal views imposed when Democrats controlled the state education board.
But as the Monitor’s Amanda Paulson reported this week, critics are dismayed at what they see as an attempt to push conservative ideology – even if it flies in the face of scholarship – into textbooks.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Texas textbook controversy: outdated or back on track from politically correct derailment?" by Melissa Thayer, Independent Examiner 5/22/10
One of the changes that has caused a stir is that during a high school government class the students were asked to compare and contrast the judicial language of the separation of church and state with the wording in the First Amendment. An Associated Press writer chose to use the wording "watered down the rationale".
The board also rejected the use of the secular terms B.C.E. and C.E. for distinguishing historical periods and will use the normal terms B.C. and A.D. in the textbooks. The people who claim that those terms are "religious" should consider the case of the Byron Union School District in California who incorporate fasting and other religious practices into their World History and Cultures studies on Muslim culture. Parents who were upset that their children were adopting a Muslim name, fasting and being required to learn Muslim prayers sued the school district and after a long process, finally the Supreme Court rejected the appeal in 2006. The instructional material is still available for the classes.
The amendments to the curriculum include referring to the United States of America's government as a "constitutional republic" instead of a "democracy". In [Arne] Duncan's concern that children will be "shielded from the truth", one wonders if the Secretary of Education [Duncan] has read the wording of the foundational documents of America where the word "democracy" is, in truth, absent.
Author and scholar Diane Ravitch has already said that textbook and test publishers have been censoring the content of educational materials to screen out topics and ideas that might be considered traditional or controversial or offensive. Children have been being taught a filtered form of history instead of the truth.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Schools Celebrate Homosexuality Friday 4/16/10
GLSEN, the homosexual advocacy organization founded by White House "Safe School Czar" Kevin Jennings, with the help of teachers' unions, has successfully infiltrated thousands of public schools in America with its annual homosexual indoctrination "Day of Silence." As posted previously, homosexualists use an anti-bullying ruse to advance the Gay Agenda in schools.
-- From "Gay Day of Silence a Waste of Tax Dollars, Critics Say" by FOXNews.com 4/12/10
Thousands of public schools nationwide will allow students affiliated with a gay and lesbian advocacy group to sponsor an anti-bullying "Day of Silence" on Friday, a demonstration some socially conservative family organizations say is a disruptive waste of taxpayer dollars and a reason to keep kids out of school.
GLSEN — the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network — is organizing the 15th annual Day of Silence for April 16, encouraging students to remain mute during classes to call attention to verbal and physical abuse of gay students.
GLSEN says students at more than 5,000 middle and high schools are expected to participate, and over 30,000 people have joined a Facebook event promoting the effort. Many sport T-shirts or hand out literature promoting alliances between gay and straight students.
But family advocacy groups warn that GLSEN is using the day to try to indoctrinate kids and force a pro-gay agenda into schools — something they want kept out of class entirely.
"I think that we shouldn't be exploiting public education for this," said Laurie Higgins, director of school advocacy for the Illinois Family Institute. "There are better ways to use taxpayer money. We send our kids there to learn the subject matter, not ... to be unwillingly exposed to political protest during instructional time."
The boycott of classes is a new tactic being urged by conservative groups to hit school officials where they think it will hurt the most: in the wallet.
The family groups also worry that GLSEN's reach into the classroom will continue after the Day of Silence is over. While Higgins agrees that bullying is a problem, she said it would "open a can of worms" to give the group free rein and allow public schools — and public funds — to "transform the moral beliefs of other people's children," she said.
GLSEN does not currently receive any federal or state funding, according to a spokesman for the group. The non-profit is funded by charitable foundations, teachers' unions and a host of corporations.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Also read about this from last year.
-- From "Gay Day of Silence a Waste of Tax Dollars, Critics Say" by FOXNews.com 4/12/10
Thousands of public schools nationwide will allow students affiliated with a gay and lesbian advocacy group to sponsor an anti-bullying "Day of Silence" on Friday, a demonstration some socially conservative family organizations say is a disruptive waste of taxpayer dollars and a reason to keep kids out of school.
GLSEN — the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network — is organizing the 15th annual Day of Silence for April 16, encouraging students to remain mute during classes to call attention to verbal and physical abuse of gay students.
GLSEN says students at more than 5,000 middle and high schools are expected to participate, and over 30,000 people have joined a Facebook event promoting the effort. Many sport T-shirts or hand out literature promoting alliances between gay and straight students.
But family advocacy groups warn that GLSEN is using the day to try to indoctrinate kids and force a pro-gay agenda into schools — something they want kept out of class entirely.
"I think that we shouldn't be exploiting public education for this," said Laurie Higgins, director of school advocacy for the Illinois Family Institute. "There are better ways to use taxpayer money. We send our kids there to learn the subject matter, not ... to be unwillingly exposed to political protest during instructional time."
The boycott of classes is a new tactic being urged by conservative groups to hit school officials where they think it will hurt the most: in the wallet.
The family groups also worry that GLSEN's reach into the classroom will continue after the Day of Silence is over. While Higgins agrees that bullying is a problem, she said it would "open a can of worms" to give the group free rein and allow public schools — and public funds — to "transform the moral beliefs of other people's children," she said.
GLSEN does not currently receive any federal or state funding, according to a spokesman for the group. The non-profit is funded by charitable foundations, teachers' unions and a host of corporations.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Also read about this from last year.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Texas Textbooks Spark National Debate
Christians on the Texas School Board have drawn the scorn of liberal indoctrinators across America, but the Texans' position resonates with the majority of parents.
UPDATE 3/30/10: Texas legislature holds hearings
See previous background reports.
-- From "Poll: Majority of Americans Believe Their Kids' Textbooks Place Political Correctness Above Accuracy" by Joe Schoffstall, CNSNews.com 3/11/10
A new Rasmussen Poll shows that 60 percent of Americans with children in elementary schools say most school textbooks are more concerned with presenting information in a politically correct manner than in accuracy.
In a national survey conducted March 6-7, 1,000 adults were asked: “Are most school textbooks more concerned about accurately providing information or about presenting information in a politically correct manner?”
Only 28 percent thought textbooks were more concerned with presenting information accurately.
Among all Americans polled, even those without children, the same percentage -- 28 percent – said they believe that accuracy is paramount, while 55 percent disagreed and said most textbooks are more concerned about political correctness. Eighteen percent of those polled were undecided.
Only 31 percent of the adults polled said most school history textbooks portray American history accurately, while 43 percent said they believe that most of their children’s history books are inaccurate. Twenty-six (26) percent are not sure.
When asked if parents should be able to transfer their children to another school if they disagreed with the material presented at their current schools, 61 percent said that should be allowed, while 27 percent disagreed, and 12 percent said they were not sure.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 3/30/10: Texas legislature holds hearings
See previous background reports.
-- From "Poll: Majority of Americans Believe Their Kids' Textbooks Place Political Correctness Above Accuracy" by Joe Schoffstall, CNSNews.com 3/11/10
A new Rasmussen Poll shows that 60 percent of Americans with children in elementary schools say most school textbooks are more concerned with presenting information in a politically correct manner than in accuracy.
In a national survey conducted March 6-7, 1,000 adults were asked: “Are most school textbooks more concerned about accurately providing information or about presenting information in a politically correct manner?”
Only 28 percent thought textbooks were more concerned with presenting information accurately.
Among all Americans polled, even those without children, the same percentage -- 28 percent – said they believe that accuracy is paramount, while 55 percent disagreed and said most textbooks are more concerned about political correctness. Eighteen percent of those polled were undecided.
Only 31 percent of the adults polled said most school history textbooks portray American history accurately, while 43 percent said they believe that most of their children’s history books are inaccurate. Twenty-six (26) percent are not sure.
When asked if parents should be able to transfer their children to another school if they disagreed with the material presented at their current schools, 61 percent said that should be allowed, while 27 percent disagreed, and 12 percent said they were not sure.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
ObamaCare Means More Teen Sex, Less Abstinence
Liberal sex education "experts" expect Obama and a compliant Congress to stop the Bush-era federal promotion of wholesome living and marriage to students, in favor of sexualization and homosexual indoctrination
-- From "Sex Ed Should Not Promote Only Marriage or Heterosexual Relationships, Advocates Say" by Penny Starr, CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer 10/16/09
A coalition of liberal sex education advocates says the Obama administration and the Democrat-controlled Congress will end support for abstinence-only programs that emphasize marriage and heterosexual relationships.
“The appropriations bills this year represent the most profound change in national sex education policy that we have ever had in the history of this country,” said William Smith, vice president for education and training with the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), at an event held Thursday on Capitol Hill.
Martha Kempner, vice president for information and communications with SIECUS, said the sex education programs used over the past eight years in America’s middle and high schools had a pro-marriage agenda.
“It’s six years of marriage promotion,” Kempner said. “You’re going on a journey and basically students are told that the only life goal that is acceptable is heterosexual marriage, and there’s one journey to follow to get there and it requires abstinence until you get there. . . They were still espousing marriage as the only appropriate adult relationship, including inaccurate information … promoting biases against sexual orientation, gender and family structure.”
Virginity pledges, Kempner added, not only don’t keep teens from having sex, but they also unfairly target homosexuals.
“Asking a gay or lesbian teen to sign this in high school is tantamount to asking them to agreeing to a lifetime without sexual behavior,” she said. “These programs are really made -- I would say they are made -- for a heterosexual classroom, but they are really made for a heterosexual world and obviously that’s inappropriate.”
Randall Moody, a lobbyist for the NEA, said the organization and its members support sex education that includes “sexual abstinence, birth control, family planning, diversity of sexual orientation, gender identification, parenting skills, STDs, HIV-AIDS, sexual harassment and abuse and problems associated with and resulting from teenage pregnancy.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "How to Lobby Against Sex Ed" by Joe Eaton, Atlantic Online 10/14/09
In late September, the Senate Finance Committee approved an amendment to its health care bill from Utah Republican Orrin Hatch that would reinstate $50 million in annual funding to abstinence-only programs. Earlier this year, President Obama removed funding for the programs from his budget.
. . . A spokeswoman for the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, which opposes abstinence-only education, said the Hatch amendment was not a surprise. But the spokeswoman, who declined to be identified by name, said she hopes and expects that the amendment will be cut from any final health reform bill before it leaves Congress . . .
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
-- From "Sex Ed Should Not Promote Only Marriage or Heterosexual Relationships, Advocates Say" by Penny Starr, CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer 10/16/09
A coalition of liberal sex education advocates says the Obama administration and the Democrat-controlled Congress will end support for abstinence-only programs that emphasize marriage and heterosexual relationships.
“The appropriations bills this year represent the most profound change in national sex education policy that we have ever had in the history of this country,” said William Smith, vice president for education and training with the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), at an event held Thursday on Capitol Hill.
Martha Kempner, vice president for information and communications with SIECUS, said the sex education programs used over the past eight years in America’s middle and high schools had a pro-marriage agenda.
“It’s six years of marriage promotion,” Kempner said. “You’re going on a journey and basically students are told that the only life goal that is acceptable is heterosexual marriage, and there’s one journey to follow to get there and it requires abstinence until you get there. . . They were still espousing marriage as the only appropriate adult relationship, including inaccurate information … promoting biases against sexual orientation, gender and family structure.”
Virginity pledges, Kempner added, not only don’t keep teens from having sex, but they also unfairly target homosexuals.
“Asking a gay or lesbian teen to sign this in high school is tantamount to asking them to agreeing to a lifetime without sexual behavior,” she said. “These programs are really made -- I would say they are made -- for a heterosexual classroom, but they are really made for a heterosexual world and obviously that’s inappropriate.”
Randall Moody, a lobbyist for the NEA, said the organization and its members support sex education that includes “sexual abstinence, birth control, family planning, diversity of sexual orientation, gender identification, parenting skills, STDs, HIV-AIDS, sexual harassment and abuse and problems associated with and resulting from teenage pregnancy.”
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "How to Lobby Against Sex Ed" by Joe Eaton, Atlantic Online 10/14/09
In late September, the Senate Finance Committee approved an amendment to its health care bill from Utah Republican Orrin Hatch that would reinstate $50 million in annual funding to abstinence-only programs. Earlier this year, President Obama removed funding for the programs from his budget.
. . . A spokeswoman for the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, which opposes abstinence-only education, said the Hatch amendment was not a surprise. But the spokeswoman, who declined to be identified by name, said she hopes and expects that the amendment will be cut from any final health reform bill before it leaves Congress . . .
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Public School Obama Worship now Epidemic
North Carolina school officials are unapologetic of the video showing children chanting Obama campaign slogans.
For background, read New Jersey Investigates School's Obama Indoctrination
-- From "Video from Enka school gets national attention" from Staff Reports, Asheville (North Carolina) Citizen-Times 9/29/09
A brief video clip of a program at Sand Hill-Venable Elementary that shows students chanting “change has come” and “yes, yes we can” is getting national attention and prompting accusations of indoctrination.
The less than one-minute clip was pulled from a 30-minute PTO program about “heroes” performed last February by third-graders for their parents.
“This was not indoctrination. This was a lesson in American history and citizenship taken directly from the section of the N.C. Standard Course of Study entitled Citizenship: People Making a Difference.”
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
For background, read New Jersey Investigates School's Obama Indoctrination
-- From "Video from Enka school gets national attention" from Staff Reports, Asheville (North Carolina) Citizen-Times 9/29/09
A brief video clip of a program at Sand Hill-Venable Elementary that shows students chanting “change has come” and “yes, yes we can” is getting national attention and prompting accusations of indoctrination.
The less than one-minute clip was pulled from a 30-minute PTO program about “heroes” performed last February by third-graders for their parents.
“This was not indoctrination. This was a lesson in American history and citizenship taken directly from the section of the N.C. Standard Course of Study entitled Citizenship: People Making a Difference.”
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Texas Educators: Christmas Still Exists
Citizens complained after 'experts' recommended replacing Christmas with teaching of Diwali (Hindu/Buddhist), so the Texas State Board of Education announced that social studies textbooks will continue to include mention of Christmas.
-- From "Board decides to keep Christmas in textbooks" by Gary Scharrer, Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau 9/18/09
The board will not approve the new curriculum standards for public schools until next year, but wanted to assure constituents they will not accept a recommendation to yank Christmas.
The board met with consultants and educators appointed to develop new curriculum standards for textbooks covering history, government, sociology, economics and geography for the next decade.
Board members also signaled their intent to restore Rosh Hashanah as an example of a Jewish observance, in addition to Yom Kippur.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
-- From "Board decides to keep Christmas in textbooks" by Gary Scharrer, Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau 9/18/09
The board will not approve the new curriculum standards for public schools until next year, but wanted to assure constituents they will not accept a recommendation to yank Christmas.
The board met with consultants and educators appointed to develop new curriculum standards for textbooks covering history, government, sociology, economics and geography for the next decade.
Board members also signaled their intent to restore Rosh Hashanah as an example of a Jewish observance, in addition to Yom Kippur.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Calif. Teachers Pull Down Over $100K Pensions
The recession is exposing excessive government programs throughout the U.S. at federal, state and local levels.
Teachers in metro areas across the nation receive salaries and pensions that dwarf most every profession -- not the story in many of America's rural schools.
-- From "3,000 retired educators take home 6-figure pensions" by Tony Saavedra and Jennifer Muir, The Orange County Register 9/18/09
Retired Capistrano Unified School District Superintendent James A. Fleming collects $141,331 a year in California state teacher retirement funds, on top of the $64,068 pension he collects from working 27 years in Florida.
Fleming is one of 3,090 educators in the California State Teachers' Retirement System who make at least $100,000 a year in taxpayer-guaranteed public pensions, according to a CalSTRS database obtained under the state Public Records Act. Most of the highly paid pensioners are superintendents and other district administrators. And some are pulling salaries from other jobs or pensions in other states.
In contrast, the average STRS pension is just $36,252, according to June 2008 figures, the most recent available. Of the 196,000 retirees, only 1.6 percent receive $100,000 or more, but they account for 5 percent of the $8 billion yearly payout. The average retiree in 2008 had 29 years of service.
Large public pensions have come under fire in recent months as state and local governments sag under the weight of runaway spending and a tanking economy. Like the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the teachers’ retirement system is running into trouble as workers retire to larger pensions that are increasingly difficult to fund.
While the average state teachers’ system pensioner collects $36,252, educators retiring last year did so to an average pension of $51,948. Officials calculate that the system will face a $23 billion funding gap by 2039.
Consider James C. Enochs, the highest paid pensioner in the STRS system, at $285,460.
Another member of the "100,000-plus" club, former Orange Unified School District Superintendent Thomas Godley collects $210,211 a year.
To read the lengthy list of stats, CLICK HERE.
Teachers in metro areas across the nation receive salaries and pensions that dwarf most every profession -- not the story in many of America's rural schools.
-- From "3,000 retired educators take home 6-figure pensions" by Tony Saavedra and Jennifer Muir, The Orange County Register 9/18/09
Retired Capistrano Unified School District Superintendent James A. Fleming collects $141,331 a year in California state teacher retirement funds, on top of the $64,068 pension he collects from working 27 years in Florida.
Fleming is one of 3,090 educators in the California State Teachers' Retirement System who make at least $100,000 a year in taxpayer-guaranteed public pensions, according to a CalSTRS database obtained under the state Public Records Act. Most of the highly paid pensioners are superintendents and other district administrators. And some are pulling salaries from other jobs or pensions in other states.
In contrast, the average STRS pension is just $36,252, according to June 2008 figures, the most recent available. Of the 196,000 retirees, only 1.6 percent receive $100,000 or more, but they account for 5 percent of the $8 billion yearly payout. The average retiree in 2008 had 29 years of service.
Large public pensions have come under fire in recent months as state and local governments sag under the weight of runaway spending and a tanking economy. Like the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the teachers’ retirement system is running into trouble as workers retire to larger pensions that are increasingly difficult to fund.
While the average state teachers’ system pensioner collects $36,252, educators retiring last year did so to an average pension of $51,948. Officials calculate that the system will face a $23 billion funding gap by 2039.
Consider James C. Enochs, the highest paid pensioner in the STRS system, at $285,460.
Another member of the "100,000-plus" club, former Orange Unified School District Superintendent Thomas Godley collects $210,211 a year.
To read the lengthy list of stats, CLICK HERE.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Harvard to Train Indoctrination Commandants
The Harvard Graduate School of Education launches a new doctoral degree in education leadership as "a 'catalyst to drive change' . . . to alter education policy debates . . ."
-- From "Harvard to offer a doctorate in education leadership" by Tracy Jan, Boston Globe Staff 9/15/09
School officials liken the Doctor of Education Leadership Program to the education equivalent of a law or medical degree. It will be taught by faculty from the education school, Harvard Business School, and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
The program aims to train graduates for senior leadership roles in school systems, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and the private sector, school officials said.
It is designed to give students a deep understanding of teaching and learning, as well as the management and leadership skills required to help transform the American education sector.
Students in the third year of the program will participate in a yearlong residency with partner organizations such as urban public school systems in New York City, Atlanta, and Denver, as well as national organizations focused on changing K-12 education, including Teach for America, New Leaders for New Schools, and the National Center of Education and the Economy.
The new program is supported in part by The Wallace Foundation, which has given Harvard a $10 million grant.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
-- From "Harvard to offer a doctorate in education leadership" by Tracy Jan, Boston Globe Staff 9/15/09
School officials liken the Doctor of Education Leadership Program to the education equivalent of a law or medical degree. It will be taught by faculty from the education school, Harvard Business School, and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
The program aims to train graduates for senior leadership roles in school systems, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and the private sector, school officials said.
It is designed to give students a deep understanding of teaching and learning, as well as the management and leadership skills required to help transform the American education sector.
Students in the third year of the program will participate in a yearlong residency with partner organizations such as urban public school systems in New York City, Atlanta, and Denver, as well as national organizations focused on changing K-12 education, including Teach for America, New Leaders for New Schools, and the National Center of Education and the Economy.
The new program is supported in part by The Wallace Foundation, which has given Harvard a $10 million grant.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
'Higher Education' Minus the Learning
As America laments high school graduates who can't read their diploma, thus necessitating extended studies at junior college and other so-called 'institutes of learning,' even elite colleges and universities entice students into debt to study Batman, pimps, and sin.
These institutions fear that a course catalog presenting hard studies "might scare students off."
Draining the economy? It would seem that the current purpose of America's education system is to create perpetual students -- consuming tax dollars and imprisoning potential human resources.
-- From "Colleges find juicy titles swell enrollment" by Peter Schworm, Boston Globe Staff 9/8/09
As schools compete for students and faculty come under pressure to boost enrollment in their classes, colleges from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst to Wellesley are jazzing up course catalogs to entice a generation of students drawn to the dramatic. This year’s offerings include crowd-pleasing topics like massacres, superheroes, and sin.
Jessica Holmes, a 38-year-old economics professor at Middlebury, is part of the younger wave. This fall, she will teach Economics of Sin, a titillating title that has sparked sharp interest, with even faculty, staff, and community members looking to audit the class.
“In what other economics class will they have the opportunity to explore pornography, prostitution, crime and punishment, drugs and drug legalization, the sale of human organs, and gambling?” Holmes asked.
The trend toward more inventive, provocative course names reflects a broader movement of professors using more creative teaching methods to capture students’ interest, Holmes and other academics say.
In that way, the catchy titles go beyond savvy marketing, a shorthand way to show students raised on text messaging and Facebook that the course has a contemporary edge. They also signal a shift away from stuffy lectures and abstruse textbooks to discussion-based, multimedia classes, and winkingly suggest the class might be entertaining.
When it came time to name his philosophy seminar last year, Jeffrey Bernstein, an associate professor of philosophy at the College of the Holy Cross, went the highbrow route with Iconoclasm and Theogony: A Tale of Two Transgressions.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
These institutions fear that a course catalog presenting hard studies "might scare students off."
Draining the economy? It would seem that the current purpose of America's education system is to create perpetual students -- consuming tax dollars and imprisoning potential human resources.
-- From "Colleges find juicy titles swell enrollment" by Peter Schworm, Boston Globe Staff 9/8/09
As schools compete for students and faculty come under pressure to boost enrollment in their classes, colleges from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst to Wellesley are jazzing up course catalogs to entice a generation of students drawn to the dramatic. This year’s offerings include crowd-pleasing topics like massacres, superheroes, and sin.
Jessica Holmes, a 38-year-old economics professor at Middlebury, is part of the younger wave. This fall, she will teach Economics of Sin, a titillating title that has sparked sharp interest, with even faculty, staff, and community members looking to audit the class.
“In what other economics class will they have the opportunity to explore pornography, prostitution, crime and punishment, drugs and drug legalization, the sale of human organs, and gambling?” Holmes asked.
The trend toward more inventive, provocative course names reflects a broader movement of professors using more creative teaching methods to capture students’ interest, Holmes and other academics say.
In that way, the catchy titles go beyond savvy marketing, a shorthand way to show students raised on text messaging and Facebook that the course has a contemporary edge. They also signal a shift away from stuffy lectures and abstruse textbooks to discussion-based, multimedia classes, and winkingly suggest the class might be entertaining.
When it came time to name his philosophy seminar last year, Jeffrey Bernstein, an associate professor of philosophy at the College of the Holy Cross, went the highbrow route with Iconoclasm and Theogony: A Tale of Two Transgressions.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Obama Indoctrinating Students: America Lashes Out at White House
President Barack Obama's plans for a televised back-to-school address to students next week are drawing fire from some conservatives, who say he's just trying to indoctrinate them to his political beliefs.
The Obama administration is rethinking its course recommendations for students, [now] rewriting its suggestions to teachers for student assignments on how to "help the president,"
After two days of firestorm among Americans, with few exceptions the mainstream media continues to hide this story.
-- From "Right blasts Obama speech to students" by Nia-Malika Henderson, Politico 9/3/09
In the Sept. 8 speech, Obama will challenge students to work hard, set goals for their education and take responsibility for their learning, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a letter to principals.
The Education Department is encouraging teachers to create lesson plans around the speech, using materials provided on the department website, that urge students to learn about Obama and other presidents.
But already, some conservatives are crying foul. The chairman of the Florida Republican Party is condemning Obama's speech as an attempt to "indoctrinate America's children to his socialist agenda."
Texas school districts are discussing whether the president's speech will be shown — some districts are leaving it up to individual teachers with an opt out parents who don't want their children to view the speech, according to the Houston Chronicle.
In his letter to principals, Duncan said viewing of the speech is encouraged, not mandatory. It's the first time a president has ever given a speech addressed directly to students.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Arlington Pulls Up a Desk For President, Entourage" by Michael Alison Chandler and Debbi Wilgoren, Washington Post Staff Writers 9/3/09
The speech, which will be broadcast live on C-SPAN and the White House Web site, is intended to motivate students and underscore the president's commitment to education, even as the country is engaged in two wars, an economic crisis and a tense health-care debate, the White House said.
But some of Obama's harsher critics have denounced the effort, saying the White House is trying to indoctrinate students politically. They are especially opposed to suggestions by the U.S. Department of Education for classroom activities that could be linked to the speech, such as group discussions of what Obama is asking children to do and whether the speech left them feeling motivated.
Jim Greer, chairman of the Republican Party for the state of Florida, issued a statement blasting the speech as an effort to "spread President Obama's socialist ideology." Although Obama will focus on themes such as setting educational goals and taking personal responsibility for learning, Greer speculated that the president would use the address to "justify his positions" on health care, the economy and taxes.
At the same time, administration officials appear to have responded to some of the criticism, changing a suggested activity from having children write letters to themselves about "what they could do to help the president" to writing about "how they can achieve their short-term and long-term educational goals."
[White House spokesman Tommy] Vietor said aides decided the new language was "clearer" than the original. There was never a political -- or policy -- component intended as part of the effort, he said. The speech will be released in advance and posted to the White House Web site, he said, so parents or teachers can review the text before the broadcast.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "White House Withdraws Call for Students to 'Help' Obama" FOX News 9/3/09
The Washington Times reported Thursday that presidential aides acknowledged they helped the U.S. Education Department write the suggested assignments, which stirred criticism by many who say Obama is trying to indoctrinate the education system.
White House aides said the language was supposed to be a inspirational, pro-education message to America's youths, but its unintended consequences were evident.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
The Obama administration is rethinking its course recommendations for students, [now] rewriting its suggestions to teachers for student assignments on how to "help the president,"
After two days of firestorm among Americans, with few exceptions the mainstream media continues to hide this story.
-- From "Right blasts Obama speech to students" by Nia-Malika Henderson, Politico 9/3/09
In the Sept. 8 speech, Obama will challenge students to work hard, set goals for their education and take responsibility for their learning, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a letter to principals.
The Education Department is encouraging teachers to create lesson plans around the speech, using materials provided on the department website, that urge students to learn about Obama and other presidents.
But already, some conservatives are crying foul. The chairman of the Florida Republican Party is condemning Obama's speech as an attempt to "indoctrinate America's children to his socialist agenda."
Texas school districts are discussing whether the president's speech will be shown — some districts are leaving it up to individual teachers with an opt out parents who don't want their children to view the speech, according to the Houston Chronicle.
In his letter to principals, Duncan said viewing of the speech is encouraged, not mandatory. It's the first time a president has ever given a speech addressed directly to students.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Arlington Pulls Up a Desk For President, Entourage" by Michael Alison Chandler and Debbi Wilgoren, Washington Post Staff Writers 9/3/09
The speech, which will be broadcast live on C-SPAN and the White House Web site, is intended to motivate students and underscore the president's commitment to education, even as the country is engaged in two wars, an economic crisis and a tense health-care debate, the White House said.
But some of Obama's harsher critics have denounced the effort, saying the White House is trying to indoctrinate students politically. They are especially opposed to suggestions by the U.S. Department of Education for classroom activities that could be linked to the speech, such as group discussions of what Obama is asking children to do and whether the speech left them feeling motivated.
Jim Greer, chairman of the Republican Party for the state of Florida, issued a statement blasting the speech as an effort to "spread President Obama's socialist ideology." Although Obama will focus on themes such as setting educational goals and taking personal responsibility for learning, Greer speculated that the president would use the address to "justify his positions" on health care, the economy and taxes.
At the same time, administration officials appear to have responded to some of the criticism, changing a suggested activity from having children write letters to themselves about "what they could do to help the president" to writing about "how they can achieve their short-term and long-term educational goals."
[White House spokesman Tommy] Vietor said aides decided the new language was "clearer" than the original. There was never a political -- or policy -- component intended as part of the effort, he said. The speech will be released in advance and posted to the White House Web site, he said, so parents or teachers can review the text before the broadcast.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "White House Withdraws Call for Students to 'Help' Obama" FOX News 9/3/09
The Washington Times reported Thursday that presidential aides acknowledged they helped the U.S. Education Department write the suggested assignments, which stirred criticism by many who say Obama is trying to indoctrinate the education system.
White House aides said the language was supposed to be a inspirational, pro-education message to America's youths, but its unintended consequences were evident.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
D.C. Ruling: Ex-gays Protected by Human Rights Act
The Superior Court of the District of Columbia has ruled that former homosexuals must be recognized under the sexual orientation non-discrimination laws. . . . sexual orientation does not require unchanging characteristics.
-- From "'Ex-Gays' Protected Under D.C. Human Rights Act, Judge Rules" posted by Amanda Hess at (pro-homosexual) Washington City Paper 8/25/09
In 2002, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) applied for an exhibit booth at the National Education Association’s annual convention, “Expo 2002.” PFOX submitted an application, signed a deposit check, and prepared its exhibit: an educational display, it claims, “to promote tolerance and equality for the ex-gay community.” The NEA denied PFOX’s application, citing limited booth space. PFOX suspected there was another motive at play: sexual orientation discrimination.
In 2005, POX filed a discrimination claim with the D.C. Office of Human Rights against the NEA for “refusing to provide public accommodations to ex-gays.” When the D.C. Office of Human Rights sided with the NEA, PFOX appealed the decision to D.C. Superior Court. Judge Maurice Ross handed down the decision in June of this year: PFOX’s request to reverse the OHR’s decision was denied.
But Ross’s decision wasn’t a total loss for PFOX: While Ross decided in the NEA’s favor, he also held that ex-gays do, in fact, constitute a protected group under the D.C. Human Rights Act. Judging from PFOX’s eerily celebratory press release, this is kind of a big deal for them.
According to Ross’s decision, the Human Rights Act doesn’t only protect groups defined by “immutable characteristics,” as the Office of Human Rights’ decision claimed. The Act also protects groups defined by “preference or practice” —like people who previously “practiced” gayness, and now “prefer” to practice heterosexuality:
OHR’s determination that a characteristic must be immutable to be protected under the HRA is clearly erroneous as a matter of law. . . . Indeed, the HRA lists numerous protected categories such as religion, personal appearance, familial status, and source of income, which are subject to change. . . . Pertaining to sexual orientation, moreover, the HRA in §2-1401.02(28) defines sexual orientation as “male or female homosexuality, heterosexuality and bisexuality, by preference or practice.” Thus, the HRA’s intent and plain language eschews narrow interpretation.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Court Rules Ex-Homosexuals Are Protected by D.C. Human Rights Act" CNSNews.com 8/25/09
"By failing to protect former homosexuals, the sexual orientation laws gave more rights to homosexuals than heterosexuals who were once gay," [said Regina Griggs, executive director of PFOX] in a statement. "So PFOX asked the Court to reverse OHR's decision, which it did. The Court held that ex-gays are a protected class under 'sexual orientation.'"
The NEA Ex-Gay Educators Caucus is an internal entity recognized by NEA for the purpose of attempting to influence NEA governance. Although caucuses do not speak for or act on behalf of the NEA, they do advise and lobby NEA governance, according to the NEA Ex-Gay Educators Caucus Web site.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
-- From "'Ex-Gays' Protected Under D.C. Human Rights Act, Judge Rules" posted by Amanda Hess at (pro-homosexual) Washington City Paper 8/25/09
In 2002, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays (PFOX) applied for an exhibit booth at the National Education Association’s annual convention, “Expo 2002.” PFOX submitted an application, signed a deposit check, and prepared its exhibit: an educational display, it claims, “to promote tolerance and equality for the ex-gay community.” The NEA denied PFOX’s application, citing limited booth space. PFOX suspected there was another motive at play: sexual orientation discrimination.
In 2005, POX filed a discrimination claim with the D.C. Office of Human Rights against the NEA for “refusing to provide public accommodations to ex-gays.” When the D.C. Office of Human Rights sided with the NEA, PFOX appealed the decision to D.C. Superior Court. Judge Maurice Ross handed down the decision in June of this year: PFOX’s request to reverse the OHR’s decision was denied.
But Ross’s decision wasn’t a total loss for PFOX: While Ross decided in the NEA’s favor, he also held that ex-gays do, in fact, constitute a protected group under the D.C. Human Rights Act. Judging from PFOX’s eerily celebratory press release, this is kind of a big deal for them.
According to Ross’s decision, the Human Rights Act doesn’t only protect groups defined by “immutable characteristics,” as the Office of Human Rights’ decision claimed. The Act also protects groups defined by “preference or practice” —like people who previously “practiced” gayness, and now “prefer” to practice heterosexuality:
OHR’s determination that a characteristic must be immutable to be protected under the HRA is clearly erroneous as a matter of law. . . . Indeed, the HRA lists numerous protected categories such as religion, personal appearance, familial status, and source of income, which are subject to change. . . . Pertaining to sexual orientation, moreover, the HRA in §2-1401.02(28) defines sexual orientation as “male or female homosexuality, heterosexuality and bisexuality, by preference or practice.” Thus, the HRA’s intent and plain language eschews narrow interpretation.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
From "Court Rules Ex-Homosexuals Are Protected by D.C. Human Rights Act" CNSNews.com 8/25/09
"By failing to protect former homosexuals, the sexual orientation laws gave more rights to homosexuals than heterosexuals who were once gay," [said Regina Griggs, executive director of PFOX] in a statement. "So PFOX asked the Court to reverse OHR's decision, which it did. The Court held that ex-gays are a protected class under 'sexual orientation.'"
The NEA Ex-Gay Educators Caucus is an internal entity recognized by NEA for the purpose of attempting to influence NEA governance. Although caucuses do not speak for or act on behalf of the NEA, they do advise and lobby NEA governance, according to the NEA Ex-Gay Educators Caucus Web site.
To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
L.A. Mayor Sees Privatization as Solution to Failing Public Schools
Mayor Villaraigosa has recognized that public education is failing in its mission as a result of too much control by the institution of education -- the teachers' unions and bureaucracy.
Under a bill introduced by School Board member Yolie Flores Aguilar, private operators could bid for control of 50 new campuses and hundreds of struggling ones.
-- From "Villaraigosa advocates letting outside operators bid for control of L.A. Unified schools" by Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times 8/11/09
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Tuesday he will push the school district to allow outside operators to bid for control of hundreds of campuses, a move he described as the centerpiece of education reform for his second term.
The proposal drew the ire of the teachers union, which has strongly criticized the mayor's own school-improvement efforts at 10 schools, including Roosevelt High in Boyle Heights. Villaraigosa, in turn, called the union "the biggest defender of the status quo."
The mayor's goal, embodied in part in a proposal by Board of Education member Yolie Flores Aguilar, would let charter-school organizations, the mayor's nonprofit and other groups compete to run 50 new schools scheduled to open over the next four years. The school board is scheduled to take up that motion later this month.
Villaraigosa also wants to allow outside groups or the district to shut down and restaff hundreds of existing schools that have long been rated "failing" under federal accountability rules. Supt. Ramon C. Cortines and other officials have said that closing unsuccessful schools is a logical outgrowth of the Flores Aguilar plan.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Under a bill introduced by School Board member Yolie Flores Aguilar, private operators could bid for control of 50 new campuses and hundreds of struggling ones.
-- From "Villaraigosa advocates letting outside operators bid for control of L.A. Unified schools" by Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times 8/11/09
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Tuesday he will push the school district to allow outside operators to bid for control of hundreds of campuses, a move he described as the centerpiece of education reform for his second term.
The proposal drew the ire of the teachers union, which has strongly criticized the mayor's own school-improvement efforts at 10 schools, including Roosevelt High in Boyle Heights. Villaraigosa, in turn, called the union "the biggest defender of the status quo."
The mayor's goal, embodied in part in a proposal by Board of Education member Yolie Flores Aguilar, would let charter-school organizations, the mayor's nonprofit and other groups compete to run 50 new schools scheduled to open over the next four years. The school board is scheduled to take up that motion later this month.
Villaraigosa also wants to allow outside groups or the district to shut down and restaff hundreds of existing schools that have long been rated "failing" under federal accountability rules. Supt. Ramon C. Cortines and other officials have said that closing unsuccessful schools is a logical outgrowth of the Flores Aguilar plan.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Teacher's Union Votes for Same-sex 'Marriage' (and more)
Public school focus on Gay Agenda and sexualization of children made crystal clear at annual meeting
-- From "At meeting, NEA declines to remain neutral on abortion" by Erin Roach, staff writer for Baptist Press 7/6/09
The National Education Association, the nation's largest labor union, voted July 5 to reject a proposal officially to remain neutral on the issues of abortion and family planning.
Also during its annual meeting in San Diego July 1-6, the NEA went on record as supporting laws legalizing civil unions and "gay marriage" -- it said either are acceptable -- and it backed efforts to repeal federal legislation that "discriminates" against same-sex couples, which presumably could target the Defense of Marriage Amendment.
The proposed bylaw amendment regarding abortion would have invalidated NEA Resolution I-16 on family planning, which says NEA "supports family planning, including the right to reproductive freedom."
The defeated proposal said the NEA takes "no position" on the issues of abortion and family planning. It would have prohibited the NEA from filing a friend-of-the-court brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in litigation seeking to overturn Roe v. Wade, and it would have kept the NEA from "lobbying for or against legislation regarding the dissemination of birth control information, the funding of birth control procedures, or the sale of birth control products."
By voice vote delegates in San Diego adopted the following action plan July 3:
-- "NEA will support its affiliates seeking to enact state legislation that guarantees to same-sex couples the right to enter into a legally recognized relationship pursuant to which they have the same rights and benefits as similarly-situated heterosexual couples, including, without limitation, rights and benefits with regard to medical decisions, taxes, inheritance, adoption and immigration.
-- "NEA will support its affiliates in opposing state constitutional and/or statutory provisions that could have the effect of prohibiting the state and its political subdivisions from providing the same rights and benefits to same-sex couples as are provided to similarly-situated heterosexual couples.
-- "NEA will take such actions as may be appropriate to support efforts to (a) repeal any federal legislation and/or regulations that discriminate against same-sex couples, and (b) enact federal legislation and/or regulations that treat same-sex couples and similarly-situated heterosexual couples equally with regard to social security, health care, taxation, and other federal rights and benefits.
[This] has been interpreted by some conservatives as aiming at the Defense of Marriage Amendment [DOMA]. . . . Signed into law in 1996, DOMA gives states the option of refusing to recognize "gay marriage" from other states.
NEA's executive committee will monitor the implementation of the action plan on "gay marriage" and will keep NEA affiliates informed of actions taken to achieve its objectives, the organization said.
NEA's 3.2 million members work at every level of education, from preschool to university graduate programs. NEA has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
-- From "At meeting, NEA declines to remain neutral on abortion" by Erin Roach, staff writer for Baptist Press 7/6/09
The National Education Association, the nation's largest labor union, voted July 5 to reject a proposal officially to remain neutral on the issues of abortion and family planning.
Also during its annual meeting in San Diego July 1-6, the NEA went on record as supporting laws legalizing civil unions and "gay marriage" -- it said either are acceptable -- and it backed efforts to repeal federal legislation that "discriminates" against same-sex couples, which presumably could target the Defense of Marriage Amendment.
The proposed bylaw amendment regarding abortion would have invalidated NEA Resolution I-16 on family planning, which says NEA "supports family planning, including the right to reproductive freedom."
The defeated proposal said the NEA takes "no position" on the issues of abortion and family planning. It would have prohibited the NEA from filing a friend-of-the-court brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in litigation seeking to overturn Roe v. Wade, and it would have kept the NEA from "lobbying for or against legislation regarding the dissemination of birth control information, the funding of birth control procedures, or the sale of birth control products."
By voice vote delegates in San Diego adopted the following action plan July 3:
-- "NEA will support its affiliates seeking to enact state legislation that guarantees to same-sex couples the right to enter into a legally recognized relationship pursuant to which they have the same rights and benefits as similarly-situated heterosexual couples, including, without limitation, rights and benefits with regard to medical decisions, taxes, inheritance, adoption and immigration.
-- "NEA will support its affiliates in opposing state constitutional and/or statutory provisions that could have the effect of prohibiting the state and its political subdivisions from providing the same rights and benefits to same-sex couples as are provided to similarly-situated heterosexual couples.
-- "NEA will take such actions as may be appropriate to support efforts to (a) repeal any federal legislation and/or regulations that discriminate against same-sex couples, and (b) enact federal legislation and/or regulations that treat same-sex couples and similarly-situated heterosexual couples equally with regard to social security, health care, taxation, and other federal rights and benefits.
[This] has been interpreted by some conservatives as aiming at the Defense of Marriage Amendment [DOMA]. . . . Signed into law in 1996, DOMA gives states the option of refusing to recognize "gay marriage" from other states.
NEA's executive committee will monitor the implementation of the action plan on "gay marriage" and will keep NEA affiliates informed of actions taken to achieve its objectives, the organization said.
NEA's 3.2 million members work at every level of education, from preschool to university graduate programs. NEA has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Fired Teacher Didn't Sufficiently Support Obama
Tim Latham, who has spent the last 19 years teaching students American history and government . . . [says] that his personal political views weren't making the grade with the rest of the faculty . . .
UPDATE 6/23/09: School re-hires teacher after national scrutiny
-- From "Kansas Teacher Claims Conservative Views Led to Loss of Job" by Joshua Rhett Miller, FOX News 6/12/09
The 44-year-old teacher filed a grievance earlier this month with his district after his contract was not renewed in April. He argues the district didn't follow the proper process.
Latham claims school officials violated his contract by not conducting proper reviews — four 20-minute in-class evaluations throughout the year — and says they were looking for a way to get rid of him due to his personal politics.
During Latham's brief meeting with [Assistant Principal] Gentry, he claims Gentry told him his school-affiliated Web site was "too patriotic." The site has links to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the Air Force, the U.S. Army and other military- and history-related sites.
He claims the critiques took a personal turn in October, when class lessons began focusing on the presidential race between Obama and John McCain. One student, whom Latham declined to identify, complained to Gentry that he had been too critical of Obama.
Latham also said that Gentry asked him about a "McCain-Palin" bumper sticker on his car.
"She said, 'I don't know how you could support that woman,'" Latham said. "That was the beginning of what was going on. They were trying to find a reason to get rid of me."
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
UPDATE 6/23/09: School re-hires teacher after national scrutiny
-- From "Kansas Teacher Claims Conservative Views Led to Loss of Job" by Joshua Rhett Miller, FOX News 6/12/09
The 44-year-old teacher filed a grievance earlier this month with his district after his contract was not renewed in April. He argues the district didn't follow the proper process.
Latham claims school officials violated his contract by not conducting proper reviews — four 20-minute in-class evaluations throughout the year — and says they were looking for a way to get rid of him due to his personal politics.
During Latham's brief meeting with [Assistant Principal] Gentry, he claims Gentry told him his school-affiliated Web site was "too patriotic." The site has links to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the Air Force, the U.S. Army and other military- and history-related sites.
He claims the critiques took a personal turn in October, when class lessons began focusing on the presidential race between Obama and John McCain. One student, whom Latham declined to identify, complained to Gentry that he had been too critical of Obama.
Latham also said that Gentry asked him about a "McCain-Palin" bumper sticker on his car.
"She said, 'I don't know how you could support that woman,'" Latham said. "That was the beginning of what was going on. They were trying to find a reason to get rid of me."
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
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