Public bodies and public meetings and public speech

A few true if possibly unpopular points which I am putting here because I have no interest in arguing in threads¹ of comments:

Public bodies meet to conduct public business. There are things that are under the purview of specific public bodies, and they are required to meet in posted meetings of a quorum of that body to make decisions in public (with ten exceptions).

By Massachusetts state law, those public meetings are not required to have public comment, which is always, under MGL Ch. 30A, sec. 20 (g), at the discretion of the chair ²

You are not alone

 

Dedication to Ben Aaronovitch’s “Broken Homes”

Hi.

Feels like there's a lot going on, doesn't it?

on educators responding to protests

 It is days like today that I recall then Acting Commissioner Jeff Wulfson's words in 2018, speaking of the protests that followed the Parkland shootings: 

 We talk a lot here at this board about the importance of teaching students about civic engagement and how democracy works. This is it. This is as real as it gets. If this is not what we call a teachable moment, I don't know what is, and I hope our educators take advantage of this opportunity to help model and teach their students about how we bring about change peacefully in a democracy.

Remarkably, DESE sent it out as part of the Commissioner's update that week 

Are you in Boston this afternoon?

While the focus of the protest is around Boston Public Schools' budgetary woes, they'd welcome other support! (And something we can all agree on: they've GOT to knock it off with creating schools that they aren't paying for!)
4:30 pm
State House

It's Twitter official: Arne Duncan is coming to Worcester Tech

As had been rumored, Worcester is having a visitor Wednesday:

U.S. Sec. of Ed. @arneduncan will visit #Worcester Technical High School Wednesday.
— Jackie Reis (@JackieReisTG) March 7, 2014

Apparently, it's a nine am town hall meeting on career and technical education.
I hear the protest is at Belmont and Skyline Drive and starts at 8:30.

Protest in Chicago today

There is a protest planned for Daley Plaza in Chicago this afternoon at 4 pm CDT. The city has erected barricades at the Board of Ed.
For the best information, follow #CPSClosings on Twitter.

Webinar on the SOS March next Wednesday

The second annual Save Our School March will be taking place on April 4-7 in Washington, D.C.They will be occupying the DoE again, and there's a great schedule of events.
As a lead-up and fundraiser for that, there will be a webinar next Wednesday, March 27 at 9 pm Eastern.

Please Join Us as We Occupy the Department of Education for a Second Time!!

Drs. Morna McDermott, Shaun Johnson, Veteran Educator Ceresta Smith and Student Voice Stephanie Rivera will share the details during this Save Our Schools hosted Webinar.

SOS March coverage: UPDATED

In today's T&G
Should you be a Bay Stater heading down to D.C., there's a contingent meeting at the World War II memorial, Massachusetts regiment. Hope to see you!
I'll only add that I won't be able to liveblog the march, but I will tweet (you can find my Tweeter feed here), and I'll post when I get back.

UPDATE: It appears that it has come to the administration's attention that they are about to have thousands of upset parents, teachers, elected officials, educational researchers, and others turn up on their doorstep.  EdWeek reports that yesterday's meeting between organizers and ed officials (Duncan apparently stopped by for 10 minutes)...depends on who you ask. Duncan thinks they aren't far apart; organizers disagree. Considering that the previous times Duncan has met (by phone or otherwise) with some of the same people, I'm not confident he actually listened.

Why I March

Next Saturday is the Save Our Schools March in Washington, D.C. I'll be heading down for the day. As part of the protest, those going are being asked to write "Why I March." Here's mine.

I believe in democracy.

I believe that, as the Massachusetts Constitution says, "(w)isdom, and knowledge, as well as virtue, diffused generally among the body of the people, being necessary for the preservation of their rights and liberties" that we must educate the next generation in order for democracy to succeed.

I believe that educating citizens to participate in a democracy is one of the most complicated and most important things we can do, and I believe that it cannot be legitimately represented on a data chart.

I believe that every five year old sitting in a classroom is there to become an educated member of our society, not simply a worker in our economy.

I believe that far too many decisions are being made about education in this country by people who never have stood before a classroom, never have supervised a recess, never have sat in a staff meeting, never have written and rewritten a lesson plan, never have wondered what to do about that one kid they just can't seem to reach.

I believe that far too many decisions are being made about education in this country by people who have never agonized over their decision on where to send their children to school, never watched with great concern as their local budget gets cut and cut again, never asked when their kids were going to learn history or science, never wondered where the joy that they remember in their own elementary days has gone in their children's lives.

I believe there is far too much corporate say in education, and that a society in which the voices of big business are listened to above all else is a society out of balance.

I believe that standardized testing is an illegitimate means of evaluating students, schools, teachers, principals, districts, and superintendents, and I believe that a decade under No Child Left Behind has left our nation's schools weaker.

I believe that education funding should not be subject to political whim, and I believe that the priority we place on funding our children's education speaks volumes about who we are as a nation.

When I took office as a member of the Worcester School Committee last January, I swore to uphold the Constitution of the United States.
However, at this time, national education policy does not work to establish justice. It does not ensure domestic tranquillity. It does not provide for the common defense. It does not promote the general welfare. As such, it does not form a more perfect union, and it will not secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.
I meant what I said when I took that oath, and I fight hard to fulfill it.
The President, members of the Cabinet, and members of Congress also took such an oath. Next week, I will be in Washington to remind them to fulfill it.

That is why I march.