Chancellor in waiting might no longer be...? Cathie Black brushed off the vote says to the media "stay tuned"

The  decision of the eight member  panel  appointed to advise Commissioner David Steiner on whether to grant a waiver to Cathie Black, the Hearst media magazine mogul surprised many  Tuesday evening after they met in Manhattan. 
Many in the community troubled by her appointment two weeks ago viewed the eight member  panel earlier as a rubber stamp for Mayor Bloomberg though four voted no, two voted yes and two voted not at this time,  the option the commissioner preferred. 
But legal experts commented a "compromise...was not legal," adding the commissioner doesn't have the authority "to grant a waiver based on another person having the qualifications."
The magazine mogul  undeterred confident she'll be appointed  the NY Daily News reported, "Black brushed off the vote Tuesday night as she entered her Park Avenue building, just saying "stay tuned,"...
This in light of the fact various polls on the issue indicated serious concerns about the Black appointment for NYC Schools Chancellor, while over 98% in a CBS on line poll voted she is not qualified.
Quinnipiac University reported 62% of parents with children in the NYC public school system voted no for Mrs. Black, 64% voted the chancellor needs more educational experience than management alone as Mayor Bloomberg asserted the reason why he hired her.  Overall 47% of the public voted thumbs down for Cathie Black and 51% voted she didn't have the right experience. 
Quinnipiac University survey 1, 287 registered voters from November 16 -21 in NYC.  But don't tell Mayor Bloomberg who is so gung-ho in continuing with his appointment of Mrs. Black who said of the public reaction, "This is not a popularity contest." 

Chancellor in waiting Cathie Black to "prove them wrong"

Cathie Black when Bloomberg first appointed her 11/9

"I'll prove them wrong," Black told the New York Post and the NY1 cable television channel. "This has happened to the predecessors before me, and we'll get through it. ... I will be the next chancellor."


 Media mogul Cathie Black, Wednesday, voiced her opposition to those skeptical about her appointment as the NYC Schools Chancellor. This was quite a presumptuous remark Mrs. Black made while aides in the education department and Bloomberg's staff  brief and train her on education issues to prepare her better for what to say in public and to make her appear  knowledgeable about a field she lacks former credentials and experience.


Yet the first former nontraditional chancellor of the NYC schools Levy, a lawyer like Klein who preceded him commented, "walking into that system with no experience in managing an organized work force and no experience in education would be a pretty tall order for anyone."  He added, "Black will face a steep learning curve if the waiver is granted."


Though more supportive of the mayor's choice than the nominee in an earlier statement, Levy said, "The statute seems to require somebody with some education credentials. It was written before the contemporary wisdom that a good manager can overcome a lot of domain knowledge," Levy said. "It's not obvious to me how the commission of education gets around those conditions."


Nevertheless, the list of critics of Cathie Black to become the next NYC Schools Chancellor is insurmountable growing daily from parents, unions, the NYC City Council, NYS Assembly and Senate, civil rights lawyers and advocates, including two on-line petitions to State Education Commissioner David Steiner to deny the waiver. The two petitions so far garnered 13,000 signatures objecting to Mrs. Black's appointment. 


And the NYTimes,  City Room Blog comments  criticized the selection of the members on the panel seen as too laden with Mayor Bloomberg appointees. The selection process viewed as too secretive more of an  indictment of  Mayoral control of schools in the nation.
Photo Credit: Associated Press.

Update: Deny Chancellor Waiver to Cathie Black

The online- petition asking Commissioner of Education Dr. David M. Steiner to Deny granting waiver to appoint Mrs. Cathie Black as the next NYC Schools Chancellor has nearly 10,354 signatures from across New York State and the nation.


That's 1,150 signatures daily! And another petition NYC KIDS PAC circulating collected over 2, 228 signatures " Deny a Waiver to Cathleen Black; sh is unqualified to become NYC Chancellor. " Rallies and protests staged through out NYC against the appointment of media Mogul Cathie Black for NYC Schools Chancellor.

The public not swayed by powerful people endorsing Cathie Black for NYC Schools Chancellor

In a NYDaily News poll 84% voted not swayed by  powerful people endorsing Cathie Black for NYC Schools Chancellor only 12% voted yes, indicated there is massive opposition increasing daily to her appointment despite support from three former NYC mayors and  talk show host diva Oprah Winfrey.

And the petition on-line against her appointment, the signatures increasing daily garnered closed to 10,000 signatures, something the NYC Education Department continues to ignore the public right to be involved in the process according to a  report in the Amsterdam News, the oldest continuously publishing African-American newspaper in the United States.

Denial of NYC Chancellor Waiver

The online- petition asking Commissioner of Education Dr. David M. Steiner to Deny granting waiver to appoint Mrs. Cathie Black as the next NYC Schools Chancellor has nearly 10,000 signatures from across New York State and the nation.

To:  David M. Steiner

Dear Commissioner David M. Steiner,

Today, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced his appointment of Cathie Black to replace Joel Klein as Chancellor of New York City Schools. Ms. Black, currently executive vice president of Hearst Magazines, lacks the required educational and professional qualifications for the position of Schools Chancellor as determined by state law. As a result, she will require a waiver from your office in order to accept the appointment.

The children, parents, and educational community of New York City deserve a leader with experience in education. Ms. Black's corporate experience may well qualify her for executive positions in business, but the education of our children and the training of our teachers is not corporate business. We urge you, as an educator, to:

~Deny the necessary waiver for Ms. Black's appointment

~Reaffirm the qualification requirements for NYC Schools Chancellor

Sincerely,
The Undersigned

 created by NYC Public Schools and written by Justin Wedes, Educator (jwedes@gmail.com).

Commissioner of Education response to Assembyman Jeffries re waiver for Kathie Black

Commissioner of Education, Dr. David M. Steiner sent  letter  to Assembly Member Hakeem Jeffries in his response to his an inquiry on Nov. 15,  re the waiver controversy surrounding Mayor Michael Bloomberg's appointee for  NYC  Schools Chancellor media mogul Cathie Black.

A Facebook message is circulating about the DENY WAIVER RALLY organized for tomorrow, Thursday, November 18, at 4:45 PM at the Tweed Court House ( NYC Department of Education Headquarters), 52 Chambers St. in Manhattan. Contact person is William  H. McDonald. His email: whm6363@gmail.com
The rally organizers are calling for: Parents, Students and Community Speakout for a Qualified Chancellor.

Open Letter to Commissioner David M. Steiner: Re: Appointment of Cathie Black, Chancellor NYC Schools

November 15, 2010

Dr. David M. Steiner

Commissioner of Education

New York State Education Depart.                                    

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, New York 12234

Re: Appointment of Cathleen Black, NYC Schools Chancellor

Dear Dr. Steiner:

This letter is in response to the appointment of Cathleen P. Black, Chairperson of  Hearst Magazines, as NYC Schools Chancellor. Mayor Michael Bloomberg appointed her on Tuesday, November 9, 2010.

The voices of dissent on the appointment have increased daily, as well as,  the members of the State Legislature's black, Latino, and Asian caucus, parents,  including the likelihood of legal action on how Mayor Bloomberg appointed her, and State Senator-elect Tony Avella the 11th Senate District sent a letter to your attention on November 10th, urging you to deny the waiver Mrs. Black needs to become the chancellor.

Mrs. Black has a superb business background in  the publication of magazines and newspapers around the world, holding high level positions in this field from the President of USA Today to the Newspapers Association of America to her present post as the Chairperson of Hearst Magazines.

She recently joined the advisory board of the Harlem Village Academies in July, though, she never attended a board meeting before her appointment. She has few experiences in public education, while her life-style and socio-economic background is far removed from the children and the staff she is suppose to lead.

With no formal  preparation in the field of education, credits or professional experiences in public education, I wonder how is it she is suppose to lead the New York City School District as a chancellor or a staff of twelve deputies all licensed school district administrators?

The  position of a chancellor  is not an on-the-job-training one as Mrs. Black commented in the media she'll have twelve deputies to train her. This is insulting to the staff, the children and the people of New York City, and makes a mockery of the position of NYC Schools Chancellor.

The student population of 1.1 million students in the NYC schools includes nearly half  from Latino homes a large percentage of Puerto Rican children many of them in schools failing to achieve adequate yearly progress some with graduation rates as low as 25%. And  although there has been some progress in the schools as a whole this too has been recently mitigated by the introduction of the new State Education Department  testing and standards.

Mrs. Black admitted she has no prior experience working with unions, a background essential for anyone taking on the role of NYC Schools Chancellor. Overall, her appointment is a troubling one, the way in which Mayor Bloomberg appointed her questionable, the idea he picks from his own personal address book from "A to Z" as he himself admits is absurd.

 The whole process is not a transparent one, there is no involvement from the schools, stakeholders or the community nor a diverse pool of candidates allowed to apply for the position as there was no public announcement of the vacancy. 

The children, staff and community in the New York City Schools deserve the most highly qualified leader to head the schools someone with formal credentials, experience and a professional background in the field of education. Cathleen Black does not meet the criteria established in New York State law requirements not even minimally.

Therefore as Commissioner of Education for the State of New York Education Department on behalf of the Latino community and those in the field of education with a similar perspective ( over 9000 signed an on-petition and the numbers increasing daily on-line) we urge you to up-hold the State education requirements in the law for the appointment of chancellors deny granting this waiver to Mrs. Cathleen Black to become NYC Schools Chancellor.

Sincerely,
Maria Rosa, SDA

New Story: How Mayor Bloomberg "picks" his chancellors!

Déjà vu! errie! He did it again! New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg again picks his chancellor the same way he picked the outgoing one Joel Klein. Just go through your address book from A to Z, and pick a name hoping,"one day all of a sudden somebody is going to say, 'that's it."

“I did have a public search, and I picked the best person,” the mayor said at Tuesday’s news conference announcing Ms. Black’s appointment. “I considered as many different people; I talked to people for suggestions.” He added: “I believe if you reach out to as many different people as you can, one day all of a sudden somebody is going to say, ‘That’s it.’ ”

Joel Klein never a Chancellor

Joel Klein never was a Chancellor, never had a contract as NYS Education law required. What he did have and was able to produce a letter of appointment according to the group Parent Advocate.og, requesting a copy in 2007.

How I picked Joel Klein Chancellor for NYC Schools after I won Mayoral Control in 2002

"when I needed a chancellor, I went down my address book from A to Z, and I wrote down the names of anybody who I could conceivably think of somebody saying "oh he or she should be chancellor" so that I would give everybody a fair shot. And I looked down the list, and there was just no question.
Right away, Joel Klein stood out. I interviewed maybe 10 people. The other nine-their names were in the paper the next day. Klein's name wasn't in the paper. That's one of the reasons to pick him."

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, U.S. Newsweek, October, 2006

How to pick a chancellor? Just ask Mayor Bloomberg.

Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo first public statement about education

In his first public statement about education at the Somos Legislative Conference in San Juan,  Puerto Rico today, Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo flanked by Latino elected officials Representative Nydia Velazquez and Assemblyman Feliz Ortiz from New York responded:

"... the answer can't always be more money, more money more money. How do you have the highest education spending in the state of New York and your number forty  in terms of performance? That means it's not about the money because your spending more than anyone else but your not getting  the performance, the product. And this was suppose to be about the children and educating the children and making sure your children have the best education you can get them, and were not doing that anyway so it was never about the money."

Governor-elect Cuomo second largest contributors to his campaign after real estate companies the hedge fund investors who favor charter schools. Robert Duffy, his  Lt. governor-elect from Rochester supports mayoral control of the Rochester Public Schools already the bill passed the Assembly six months ago to give the mayor control, and awaiting for Senate approval where a fierce battle ensued over the issue.

New York State gubernatorial debate 2010: "No Administrator Left Behind"

Warren Redlich, Libertarian gubernatorial candidate, in the general election for governor in New York State on November 2, 2010 talked about the " no administrator left behind," criticizing the lay-off of teachers and aides in his school district (though never mentioned the school district).

Build Academy: What happened to the ideals and mission?

Build Academy is a unique school with an interesting history developed during the period of segregated schooling in the Buffalo Public Schools .  Mr. William L. Gaiter was the executive director of the school. This film shows officials from the Buffalo Schools and Build Academy signing the documents that integrated the school largely as a result of an earlier class action law suit members of the NAACP had filed. The idea for Build Academy started in the 1960's  established by 1966 later integrated in 1969.  Mr. Gaiter commented Build used as a model for the Magnet school concept to integrate the Buffalo Schools.
In the film Mr. Gaiter said, " the purpose of Build was to fight for quality education for black students with the objectives to secure strong effective community participation in educational decision-making, to offer high quality education in the ghetto,  and to develop more creative teachers."
Recently, some community members and parents involved with  Build Academy  raised concerns about the new principal Central Office transferred to the school at a Buffalo Board of Education meeting.

Dough Ruffin a documentary film maker founder of Urban Legacy Filmworks produced this film for the 40th anniversary of Build in 2009.

Control board officials warned school board of "fiscal emergency"

Buffalo control board officials presented a dismal financial report of the district projected four-year  finances as a "fiscal emergency" at the School Board meeting Wednesday night.
They mention  as one of the few resources available  "the $70 million set aside to cover the cost it could face if it loses a lawsuit from the teachers union seeking compensation for years when teachers did not receive step pay increases."
And control board officials  balked at the idea of a state financial audit of the schools  Board President Ralph Hernandez mentioned he might ask his School Board colleagues to support him in asking the state to perform.
The  public wants to know why is it the district continues to pursue the issue of the teacher steps in court? Why not just enter into contract negotiations with the teachers' union settle the matter once and for all instead of dragging it through the courts?  
Teachers denied their contractual steps after the wage freeze  the district instead went to court knowing they wouldn't succeed. That's why the  district set aside the $70 million. Yet  money the district could use to offset this "fiscal emergency" instead is used to pay for unnecessary  expensive legal fees to maintain a futile court battle.