Are your Local Schools Being Transformed into Community Schools? And Why it Matters.

 

There is so much jargon in education today, and it would serve every parent, school board member, and tax payer to recognize it and see it for the red flag that it is. One must first understand the part of the Obama administration's Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) about community schools.  ESSA was passed into law in 2015, and was touted as the remedy to the Bush administration's, No Child Left Behind. What many of us didn't know is that there is a plan in motion to reduce local control over our schools, add multiple "stakeholders" to the leadership table, and do so in order to create venture capital investment opportunities with eyes on our public education tax dollars. I wish I were kidding.

Ask yourself if there are any venture capitalists or people in that field on your school board? Are there people involved with charter schools? With sustainable communities? With community schools? Is race being used disingenuously to promote policies that would set up a community school model in your school district? Not sure? Check out this page of talking points, called the Community Schools Messaging Guide- Making the Case.  Note that this is the policy and advocacy page. 

The question that gives it all away: How are community schools funded?

Read below and please notice the blue highlighted section. Note the outside funding by many possible stakeholders, but especially take note of foundations, corporations, and individuals for funding sources.

Thought #1: Why would a school district that is well-funded give away local control and invite so many stakeholders to the table in decision making?

Thought #2: Why can't our federal/state/local government fairly fund school districts so that public/private and philanthropic partnerships don't have to be imposed on any school district anywhere? 

Thought #3: Why is it acceptable that investors are profiting off the backs of the most vulnerable and underserved?


This new venture requires a roll out of community schools, which previously seemed to focus on low-income and urban school districts. Well, lucky suburban folks, you are part of the pie now, too.

One giveaway is the outcomes-based focus on measuring growth in our schools on things like benchmark tests. Those outcomes are exactly what Wall Street and private venture capitalists need to invest in feel-good deals "helping our most vulnerable" where they really can't loose. 

 Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings, is the author of the critically acclaimed books, The Dreamkeepers: Successful Teachers of African American Children, Crossing over to Canaan: The Journey of New Teachers in Diverse Classrooms, and Beyond the Big House: African American Educators on Teacher Education.

And it seems she is aware and tired of certain groups pushing their own agenda in the name of Black children. Read her latest Black & Smart blog post here.


Last summer in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, I was shocked to learn of the push to reopen schools in person. I couldn't wrap my mind around the concept, and felt betrayed on behalf of every teacher, staff member, and family who didn't think it was safe enough. I kept asking myself why they would take these risks? It wasn't exactly a local decision, as I noticed the same jargon and decisions being made in school districts across the country. It was a well coordinated and organized effort guided by playbooks like this one. 

Community schools are planned to become the "heart" of communities and will be open 24/7, all of the time. Check out this web page on the messaging/talking points, which directly explain how your future community school will provide doctors, nurses, healthcare, food, shelter, and more. They even offer an "elevator speech".

It is no accident that so many school districts have decided to ignore the dangers of a global pandemic that has run amuck in our country. This is their first step in putting our schools at the "center" of the community.


Take a glance at the screen shot below. Again, Black children are being used in marketing material. It appears that the reader is supposed to think that opening schools in person is important for helping our society's "most vulnerable". 


Have you ever noticed how many "gaps" there seem to be these days? All the better to set up easy bets for the profiteers of Wall Street. Now we see claims of "learning gaps" or "learning  loss" due to COVID-19, and the push for tutors has arrived. Any time our schools collect data there is a growing chance that it will be used for social impact bond investing. Investors can consider themselves philanthropists, make easy money, and delude themselves that they are helping out "neediest and most vulnerable students".

 


 

Consider the following example: The Utah High Quality Preschool Program. “Preschool can close this achievement gap so that all kids, regardless of their circumstances, have the same chance to succeed.”

 Note the foundations often involved here, as they partner with firms like Goldman Sachs. This is venture philathropy at it's core. 

 
Is the question really, "How can schools save money by reducing the number of children in special education?" Perhaps a more student centered question is, "Are our special education students getting the supports and strategies they need in our system?" Perhaps looking at the number of lawsuits and settlements in a district is a better measure of if the district is meeting special education student needs. If the district is doing right by it's students, there shouldn't be many lawsuits or settlements.

Notice how the focus of investments uses minorities and groups like people with disabilities to profit off of? Historically, Wall Street and venture capitalists haven't shown much interest in helping the most vulnerable groups in our society. They suddenly seem to care so much.

                       Source here.
 
 Last thought of the day... Did you notice the top docs from CHOP making their rounds last fall, and telling us it was safe to re-open schools during this pandemic? They are involved with the policy lab at CHOP.  Policy = politics. I have been wondering why no one has paid attention to the fact that CHOP researchers found an elevated biomarker related to blood vessel damage in ALL children who have had COVID-19?  They found this in EVERY SINGLE child who had COVID-19.

Should we be comfortable with this shift? Will we ever trust a system that puts a business model before children and school staff's health and safety? And just think of all the school, medical, and mental health data that this system will have access to, and what they will do with it.



If they are transforming our school districts without being forthright about it, how can we ever trust these community leaders?

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