SPTA Major Blog

OAQ (Once -Asked Questions)

2009-12-12T07:55:00.002-05:00

Okay, it would be more exciting if these actually counted as FAQ, but the following questions were posted to the entry Ping Ping, and since they are wicked helpful and kinda buried there, I thought it would be good to repost them here with the best answers I know. Others are strongly encouraged to add to the conversation in the comments section below.

Q1. I'm unclear about how trading a teacher service day in January to April will save money? If we are still required to be here on both those days then why does it cost us?

A. The move itself doesn't save money. It allows SPSD enough time to ask the MDoE and the Associations to accept a furlough. The inservice day was moved because, while no one wants to to be doing this, the prospect of taking student time away was totally unacceptable. If April 26 is a furlough day, we won't work and our salaries will be cut by 1/180. If it is not a furlough day, it will be a professional inservice day. We will work and we will be paid for it.

Q2. What if we vote it down- then what?

A. If the Associations vote it down, the leaders will have to come up with another $140,000 in other cuts. Obviously a lot of cuts have been made already. Once concern that has been expressed is that it may be taken from an account that will impact the following year's budget. In other words, I expect we will have job cuts when the budget is presented -- not because the district has fewer students but because we have fewer dollars. The $140,000 may increase the number of job cuts. I am aware that some folks see "job cuts" as a hollow threat; I hope they're right, but I don't think so.

Q3. If we ratify, how does the money come out, in one lump sum or in smaller increments over several pay periods?

A. Terms of any furlough proposal will be negotiated with the Supt and the Board. The hardest of cores may be distressed at the willingness to even talk about this, but I find it much better to be at the table rather than outside the room. I would ask that the impact be spread over all the remaining pay periods. I am also mindful of the impact that this day would have on anyone planning to retire in the next three years, as is the Superintendent. I have confidence that Chief Negotiator Jessica Kaplan and Business Manager Polly Ward can come up with some solution that will satisfy MePERS.

Q4. If we all vote to accept this proposal, what effect does this have on hourly people? Like the ed techs and clerks?

Every bargaining unit has its own contract with the district, but the teachers are clearly the big dog. There are more of us than any other unit, and we have higher pay rates than two other units. So if we ratify a furlough, the pressure on others to follow suit would be significant, even though they retain the power to enforce their contracts if they want.

Dec 7 Budget Report

2009-12-09T14:39:00.003-05:00

By now you've probably read the superintendent's report about the proposal to save money. [If you haven't check your email.] The January 15th staff development day has become a regular student day this year. The staff development day has been moved to April 26 in anticipation of a furlough. Central office anticipates this would save $140,000. Members should be aware that there are two hurdles before the furlough day goes into effect.

1. Commissioner Gendron must first waive the state minimum number of days. To the best of my knowledge, she remains on record opposing any district going below the state minimum. Of course, because this is a staff development day (rather than a student day) she could fall back to a compromise position and waive this. I dunno -- we'll see.

2. Associations will have to consent to the furlough (as far as I understand it). As I did last year, I would ask the RA's permission to discuss the matter formally. Final changes to the contract (e.g. 179 days instead of 180) would need the membership's ratification. A full and frank discussion among members would precede any such vote. Because the question already came up, folks ought to be aware that the furlough would reduce salaries by 1/180. SPTA and central office are both mindful of the effect this would have on the pension payments of those retiring in the next three years and will discuss how to abate that effect.

Ping! Ping!

2009-12-08T06:41:00.002-05:00

A funny thing has been happening with the blog over the last month, which is of course the only thing to be happening since everytime I sit down to write, something diverts my attention.

Major: Hmmm, I should let members know that -- oh, this is shiny. I wonder what it does...

But that's beside the point. The big activity on the blog has been at least one comment submitted daily. At first I thought it demonstrated tremendous interest, but then it turned out to be offers from Nigerian government officials who want to split big bundles of cash. Occasionally, Cialis reps also email to say they can offer cut rate drugs through the mail. I haven't published these comments, but if they ping this particular post, I'll probably allow them, just in case any readers want Nigerian petro-dollars for buying gray market pharmaceuticals.

Another Email Gaffe

2009-11-03T13:55:00.000-05:00

How many of these do you think I need to make before I learn not to mess with folks? When I referenced "your social network" in today's email, I was not making a subtle endorsement of either side on question 1. Rather, I was just suggesting that if you are so cave-bound that you were unaware of today's voting, it was hardly for me to alert you to the fact. Why then the message? To remind those only slightly more aware than that to stop by the polls on their ways home.

If I caused you any consternation with that voting reminder, please be assured that it was unintentional.

Catching Up with ...

2009-10-28T06:22:00.004-04:00

Just as Fed Chairman Bernanke says that the recession is technically over, the local school budget is about to plunge into a deep hole. Follow this link to read about it in the Press Herald, including Superintendent Godin's comments on it.

By now you may be wondering, why this tone? I have two reasons.

First, it feels like we've been here often, but mostly because we've been someplace like it. I was speaking with a teacher from another district yesterday, and there was some genuine alarm (panic? maybe not, she's got some seniority) in her voice. I said that we were pretty blithe about the whole thing. After all, we freeze the budget just about every year, don't we? She asked the last time we froze the budget in October. Hmmmm.

Second, as money runs out, we'll either do without or find other sources. We have all just become licensed grant-hunters. One solid patch on which to hunt is the NEA Foundation website. MEA also has some grants. Target is funding some field trips but you'll need to use The Google to find the application. Donorschoose is an impressive project that is worth considering.

Yeah, I know that we shouldn't have to fund our own classrooms. I also know that unemployment shouldn't be 10%. The state shouldn't be millions of dollars in the hole. That nation shouldn't be trillions in debt. But we may have to, because it is, it is, and it is. I'm not suggesting that we panic, but neither am I suggesting that this is just another budget squeeze. Forewarned could be fore-funded.

November 3 Elections

2009-10-20T06:35:00.004-04:00

So these two dogs are walking on Willard Beach, complaining about the excise tax...

Here's a good Press Herald article about the City Council and School Board races in South Portland.

District 3 City Council candidates: Gary Crosby, Rosemarie Deangelis, Christopher Kessler

District 4 School Board candidates: Kendall Fassett, James Gilboy

District 5 School Board candidates: Tappan Fitzgerald, Alan Livingston

MEA's position on the election

2009-10-19T14:25:00.001-04:00

This is quoted verbatim from an email from MEA.

The 25,000 members of the Maine Education Association are facing an “immediate and real threat” that requires an immediate response from every member, every staff member, every friend, and every family member in order to avoid severe and long-terms problems for our profession. That “immediate and real threat” is Question #4 (TABOR).

If Question #4 is approved on November 3^rd, the MEA will need to reinvent itself. We will need to retool our Association to work on statewide and local referendums year-round. What we have been doing for the past several months, is what we will do on a full time basis in an effort to keep our schools funded and members employed. The current problems with the State Budget will become a permanent condition.

We simply can’t let that happen. We simply MUST bring to bear the full power, and every resource within our 25,000 member Association, to try to defeat Question #4 (TABOR) over the next two weeks. MEA, the NEA, and friends of public education from across the United States, have invested more than $1.5 million dollars to help us defeat Question #4. For the next 2 weeks, defeating Question #4 must be, and will be, our primary purpose.

Some of you have asked about the State Budget problems and have suggested that we should spend time planning our strategy for addressing the difficulties that we will all face in light of these problems. To me, it is simply a matter of priorities. WE HAVE TO WIN THE FIGHT WE ARE IN FIRST…..Question #4 (TABOR) must be defeated. While superintendents may be nervously clamoring over pending budget shortfalls, the real battle over the future direction of our State is being fought. There will be no decisions regarding the state budget between now and November 3^rd….but there will be a great deal of hand-wringing. MEA is deeply involved, and closely monitoring, the state of the State Budget. The work that is going on presently is talk about ideas and alternatives…and we are involved in those discussions. But make no mistake about what is the most immediate priority. If Question #4 (TABOR) passes on November 3^rd, all of the current talk about budget problems and shortfalls will change dramatically….and for the worse!

That is why we must devote our Association energy and resources into defeating the “immediate and real threat”. We must work to defeat Question #4. Here is what you can do over the next two weeks:

1.) Talk to your immediate family members and friends about the serious threat posed by Question #4. Don’t be intimidated by the complexity of the TABOR formula…what it will do is more important than how it works. Look at the examples from Colorado. Or simply decide that if you don’t understand it, Vote NO!

2.) Spend 1-3 hours over the next two weeks working the phones at an MEA office. It is easy. It is important. And colleagues are reporting it is actually fun!

3.) Get a bumper sticker on your car. Spread the word over the next 2 weeks that you are Voting No on Question #4. (You might say you don’t like bumper stickers…..well, it is only for 2 weeks)

4.) Talk to your colleagues and other MEA members at school and encourage them to Vote No on Question #4.

The math is simple…..

§ We need 255,000 votes to win on November 3^rd.

§ MEA has 25,000 members.

§ If we can each move 10 voters to support our schools and Vote No on Question #4….

§ WE WIN!

If we don’t Stand Up and Speak Up to save our public schools….who do you think will?

Please stand together as 25,000 members of the Maine Education Association and Vote NO on Question #4 on November 3^rd.

TABOR? Non, merci.

2009-10-16T21:03:00.002-04:00

The SPTA-RA heard about questions two and four on the November ballot on Thursday afternoon Jake Sweeney, a field rep from NEA in Maine to organize opposition to these questions, asked members to volunteer a few hours on the phone banks.

I had put in a few hours on the previous night calling folks all over the state. It's not my favorite thing, but it is very important. I hope that more teachers will give a little. If everybody took a shift, we could put some much-needed thrust under the Vote No campaign.

My GR committee colleague Mike has a much more favorable view of phone-banking. He felt no better about it than I did when he volunteered, but click here to read about his experience.

Elementary Specials Revised Schedule

2009-10-16T20:51:00.002-04:00

Some folks may be aware that kindergarten and first grade specials (art, music, and phys ed) were significantly shortened to make space for more classes while retaining 45 minute specials classes for grades two through five. Grievance Rep Sally Beatty articulated the SPTA's opposition to this position. The SPTA had several concerns about the situation. They boiled down to reduced instruction in these areas for the kids, inequitable prep time across elementary grades, and the precedent for greater erosion of instruction in elementary grades.

The district administration explored all available options, but could not fully restore the time across the district. In the end, they presented the SPTA with two options: retain the present system or make all classes 40 minutes K-5 (except the 30 Kindergarten phys ed, about which nothing can be done). The SPTA-RA wrestled with the question for some time before reaching a decision to recommend 40 minutes across the board.

It is our hope that concerned parents, teachers, and administrators will find a way to restore the former level of instruction for all students.

Got Quant?

2009-10-09T12:57:00.003-04:00

UMaine (Go you Bears!) is considering the development of a certificate program entitled Education Data Specialist. This sequence would be offered in a variety of formats including live sessions in regional sites, hybrid courses, and on-line.

They need to know if there is sufficient interest before they sink a lot of effort into developing it. For more info, contact Walt Harris (581-2467 or wharris@maine.edu).

Link to Education Data Specialist Survey

Tax Free since... (well, now)

2009-10-04T14:26:00.003-04:00

I think I forgot to announce a significant achievement by our treasurer, Jerry Hunter. Last summer, he received word that the SPTA has been approved by the IRS as a tax-exempt organization. For some time (decades, in fact), we've just assumed that somewhere along the way, someone applied for official status. Changes in tax law demanded that we put up, so Jerry went through a morass of paperwork to get us documented; still, other districts went through much worse because their initial applications were not as carefully documented. Jerry is to be commended and congratulated on this significant accomplishment.

The Joy of Giving (Just a Little)

2009-10-04T14:03:00.002-04:00

The MEA has been asking (begging) for donations to the Fund for Children and Public Education (the political action committee of the NEA) for a while. A couple years ago, the President started distributing donation envelopes at every meeting, asking for just a buck or two. Every little bit counts. Last year he was pitching the virtue of electronic funds transfer. In May, I cracked and signed up for it after much resistance. Now, with all the fervor of the recently converted, I am asking you to give as well. That's the wind-up; here's the pitch:

This year, NEA has sent $600,000 to Maine to campaign against TABOR II and the Excise Tax proposal. Last year's contribution from Maine to the NEA PAC was $9000. The year before that we contributed $16,000. Over the six years, NEA has sent millions here (literally, millions) to beat back tax cap measures. Unions put their resources where they're needed, but even NEA will get tired of bailing us out if we don't step up our contribution a little.

Over this year, I'd like to see if I couldn't get a whole bunch of members to give a buck or two. I know we pay a lot in dues, but (contrary to the popular misconception) that doesn't fund the campaigning we do. The TV, radio, and print ads, bumper stickers, lawn signs, and rallies are all paid for by contributions to PAC. Those contributions save jobs.

I'm not asking you to dig deeply (though you can if you want to). I'm asking that everybody scratch just a little. Two bucks is the price of a lottery ticket or a cup of coffee (almost). Will you spare just that much?

Next Meeting October 14

2009-10-04T13:14:00.002-04:00

The next SPTA-RA meeting will be Wednesday, October 14, 2009 in room 235 of the high school. All SPTA members are welcome to attend.

Personal Business Leave Blues

2009-10-04T12:59:00.003-04:00

Teeth are beginning to gnash about personal day requests and the denials thereof. My comments below on the subject are not about any specific case this year or in years past. So no matter how much they pertain to you personally, they are not about you alone. They are about many folks all across the district.

The contract defines personal business leave as: "an urgent religious, legal, business, household, or family matter, which cannot be conducted at times other than school hours." Often, when the superintendent rejects a personal leave request, it is because she does not see that it meets that standard. A member could always meet with her personally and attempt to explain the circumstances which show that it is urgent and cannot be conducted at times other than school hours, but hunting, fishing, shopping, and golfing are pretty hard to sell. Try to make sure your case is convincing before you apply.

In my view, the supt has been flexible on this stuff in the past, certainly more flexible than at least one previous superintendent. But three things will impel her to be more of an absolutist and shoot everything down.

1) If the sub pool runs dry, elementary teachers won't get subs for art, music, and gym. This has already been a problem at least twice this year. That means that the elementary teachers won't have the prep time they expect.

2) The supt gets a lot of requests and the number of them seems to grow every year. Her job requires that she referee the business days from vacation-like activities. Yelling at the ref is a time-honored tradition, but it doesn't always pay off well for those who yell. When we criticize her for making the calls she does, we push her to stick closer and closer to the letter of the contract rather than use her discretion. Having experienced one request shot down many years ago, I know that it is irritating when the supt doesn't agree with my point of view, but I also understand that a drive for perfect consistency will mean fewer members will get approvals. I'll take my lumps and let others have a chance.

3) Each building has a contractual maximum number of folks who can be out on personal leave on any given day. Last year we had someone whose pipes burst and needed to stay home to clean up the flood and arrange for repairs. Pretty urgent, but we already had our maximum out on personal business leave that day. His was granted as an exception of course, and it was arranged at no great disturbance, but the contract has maximums in for a purpose. With lots of personal leave days, we strain the resources that are necessary when colleagues have real emergencies. I'm not suggesting that you not take personal days when you need them -- there have been some years where I have taken all three. I'm only saying that you bear in mind the strain on the system (as well as the impact on your students' learning).

In short, if they think the supt made an error, she would be willing to discuss it. She is still using discretion in cases now, which is probably a good thing, in spite of the fact that some people feel she is arbitrary or unfair. Strains on the sub pool are bad for our colleagues, so we should be careful about requesting too many personal days.

New England College's Off Campus Master's

2009-10-04T12:53:00.003-04:00

Joanna Gagnon of New England College (Henniker, NH) contacted me to ask my help in spreading the word about their off-campus master's program. They have two meeting dates coming up. Info is posted below as a courtesy to them. I have no opinion about the value of the program, but I recall Jim Dunn's advice that moving from left to right on the salary scale (advanced education lanes) is the best way to enhance my paycheck.

New England College’s program offerings will include a Masters of Education in the following fields: Education w/Principal Certification, Curriculum & Instruction Concentration, Special Education Concentration, and Literacy & Language Arts Concentration. The program format will include a two-year completion, class one evening per week, and a lengthy summer break. If interested, please call 800-956-8465 or attend the information meeting (RSVP is required, call 800-956-8465)

Yarmouth High School (Flex Room)
286 W. Elm Street Yarmouth, ME
Wednesday, October 7th
3:00 or 4:00 p.m. (attend either meeting)

Deering High School (Library)
370 Stevens Avenue Portland, ME
Thursday, October 8th
3:00 or 4:00 p.m. (attend either meeting)

The meeting should last between 30 and 45 minutes. If you can’t arrive by the start time please send me an email and we will be happy to wait for you.

First Meeting

2009-09-13T18:02:00.003-04:00

The first meeting of the SPTA RA will be on Wednesday, September 16, at 3:40 PM in room 235 of SPHS. For those who don't know the building, that's on the top floor of the annex (the long part of the building that stretches toward Beal Gymnasium). All SPTA members are welcome -- encouraged, really -- to attend.

Buildings that have not yet organized building rep selection for the year should send last year's members and organize some selection of new reps.

Furlough Days?

2009-09-06T14:28:00.000-04:00

Bill Nemitz' column on Sunday, 9/6 reports that Commissioner of Education Susan Gendron is floating the idea of furlough days. Mr. Nemitz questions (attacks? ridicules?) the proposal, noting that Maine's minimum school calendar is already shorter than many states. I believe (though the article didn't quote it) that Angus King used to refer to it as "the shortest school year on the planet."

I don't know what the short-term fix to close the latest $30 million gap should be. Long term, the state needs to look at a real consolidation bill, along the lines of Hawaii. We still have a horse-and-buggy school district map in the digital age. If entire states can be operated by a single district, or cities that have more students than Maine has citizens, why do we need separate school boards, employee contracts, purchasing agreements, administrations, etc for every municipality?

A state school takeover would take some study and planning. Low-receiver communities like SoPo and its neighbors would suddenly find themselves with massive surpluses if almost half their tax revenue didn't have to go to education. The state, which has struggled to pay the 55% voters mandated it to pay, would be hard-pressed to pay the 93% or so that wouldn't come from the feds. So the entire tax structure of the state would need an overhaul. But I learned last summer (again) that Maine has the most tax-sensitive population (meaning its a hot-button issue for us) of any state. So, isn't a redesign of a system that eats 40% of the state budget and 50% of local budgets overdue? Not tinkering, like the consolidation bill that allowed districts to opt out, but a fundamental reinvention of our education system. We've got a gubernatorial election in fourteen months -- now's the time to start demanding something audacious.

New Ad about Health Care Reform

2009-09-02T11:35:00.004-04:00

Here's an ad MEA is promoting, urging Senator Snowe to hang in the fight for health care reform. Other groups are advertising to both Senator Snowe and Senator Collins, noting that they remain the most likely Senate Republicans to support compromise legislation. If you feel inclined to contact them about this, you can use the links below to find contact info.

Senator Collins
Senator Snowe
If you want to sound off about Congress, the President, health care reform, and NEA, you can post a comment to this message.

Start Your Engines

2009-09-02T06:27:00.000-04:00

It's September 2nd, and we already have a lot on our plates. These things include:

membership drive
getting ready for negotiations
building concerns (incl. elementary prep, staff restrooms)
preparing for November balloting

A list of proposed RA meetings is posted to the right. These meetings are open to all SPTA members. Please check the list for building-level conflicts; report unworkable dates to majorto@spsd.org.

Longterm considerations for members include the elections for President and VP in the spring. The Association will be well served if these offices (or at least the presidency) shift out of the high school for a couple years.

OMG! FB is no LOLLing matter (sorry)

2009-08-08T18:30:00.002-04:00

Having wearied of smug net-savvy presenters telling me I'm Barney Rubble (I refuse to be Fred) because I don't facebook, I decided to create a page. I feel so Net 2.0 now. However, I stand by my advice to all my SPSD colleagues: my reading of the school board's policy is that we should not befriend current students on social networking websites. I came across an interesting article about its uses and limitations, but given the functionality within Infinite Campus, I strongly recommend that teachers keep students out of their friends lists. This is especially true since the district also offers homeworknow to the middle schools and high school.

If anyone is interested in the language of the policy and my interpretation of it, I will glady look it up again and post it here.

Mute Your Own Horn

2009-08-06T12:59:00.002-04:00

Sometimes we have discussions about why the association (national and state, but especially the local) does not shout its achievements more. Non-members sometimes say that the association doesn't do anything for teachers, so they see no reason to join. Of course I most often go to the professional liability insurance, but many members keep rolling the insurance dice and winning. Good for them, I guess, as long as snake eyes don't come up, but that's a topic for another day.

Today, we have a cautionary tale from the United Transportation Union, the representative of about 125,000 active and retired railroad, bus, and mass transit workers in the US and Canada. Recently, they bragged that their influence was responsible for the appointment of Dan Elliott, associate general counsel for the UTU, to the Surface Transportation Board. Quoting Kathryn A. Wolfe from Congressional Quarterly Online:

The letter from union president Mike Futhey calls Elliott’s selection a “tribute to the political influence” of the union. The letter went on to brag of “good reason to expect President Obama to reach into the [union] ranks for other appointments in the near future.”

Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) and Jay Rockefeller IV (D-WV) exhibited bipartisan indignation by holding up Mr. Elliott's confirmation until the UTU clarified, apologized, and groveled. They've attempted this in a letter that seems to flatly contradict their earlier claims, explaining that it was just a recruitment and retention ploy for their members.

You see, the whole thing about influence is that you lose it if you claim it. When NEA or MEA or even SPTA takes credit for something, the legislators and executives need to distance themselves from us or be subject to charges that they're puppets. The most we should ever claim is that we have collaborative relationships based on mutual respect and understanding. Members who want us to flex our muscles and make the public servants quail before our mighty legion should carefully read the above linked article and consider the UTU's error.

In Memoriam

2009-08-05T19:12:00.003-04:00

With true sadness, I note the death of Anne Sheehan. She has been the MEA Gov't Relations Committee chair for longer than I've been on the committee, but much, much more than that. I've been struggling with words because all the trite things we say about the recently departed are true in this case. I wish we hadn't used those phrases on others because I'd like them to mean what they say now. I guess I will have to make due with this thought: I have lost a friend, education's lost an advocate, and the MEA has lost a whole legion in one woman.

More on Charter Schools

2009-08-02T08:19:00.004-04:00

It must be August, because I am thinking about schools and education, but not about students and lessons. I was rounding up the news this morning (rattlesnakes in the basement on weather.com!) and spotted a charter school editorial in the Washington Post.

If you are not inclined to follow the link and read the story, at least take a look at the excerpt below and consider how long Maine can remain one of the ten states without charter school legislation.

"[Baltimore Teachers Union President Marietta] English should do what her national union president, Randi Weingarten of the American Federation of Teachers, has done. Weingarten has started two charter schools in New York City to prove that union-run schools can be as effective as schools like Ujima Village. She also signed a labor agreement with a new charter school in New York managed by the successful Green Dot organization that will have a longer school day and year and will pay teachers an extra 14 percent for their time."

If the AFT President is opening charter schools, MEA should at least be considering how best to manage their arrival in Maine.

Addendum: One kind reader observed that MaineView's interview with Steve Bowen of the MHPC is informative as well. Here's the link.

Grant $ - Get Yours Now

2009-08-01T14:04:00.002-04:00

Before you throw out the August/September issue of NEA Today, take a look at the grants on pages 47-49. Too late? It's already in the trash? Try the new and improved www.nea.org on Monday, August 3. The site will be under construction until then, but it should provide access to all the grants once it is completed.

Happy Birthday, Milton Friedman

2009-07-31T20:11:00.004-04:00

For the second year in a row, I celebrated the birthday of Dr. Milton Friedman with the folks at the Maine Heritage Policy Center. With sponsorship from the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, they hosted a luncheon seminar on educational choice in Maine. I learned some very interesting things.

1. Maine Democrats in the House of Representatives are enthusiastic about charter schools and it is only because a handful of Senate Republicans opposed the most recent bill that it failed. MHPC expects the Governor to ask the legislature to reconsider charter schools next session, largely because President Obama has a five billion dollar pie to slice up for educational reform.

2. MHPC has mapped the municipalities that have school choice and those that do not. USM Professor Matthew Edney will enjoy looking at the map when it is posted on MHPC's new school choice website, Great Schools for Me. (Another thought on that in a moment.) The clustering of school choice communities (mid-coast, exurb Bangor, exurb Augusta) gives rise to some interesting hypotheses and makes anomalous towns like Boothbay and Wiscasset really stand out. Moreover, the definition of school choice is naturally MHPC's to determine since they made the map; Portland residents' three high schools and options at Hall & East End Elementary and King Middle were not sufficient to warrant a choice designation, though plainly parents do have choices here. That objection was too niggling to raise during the presentation, but as a bulldog who opted to send his son to Deering, it was on my mind.

3. MEA's legislative director Steve Crouse was mentioned by name as a highly effective lobbyist. I can't really say that MHPC's Steve Bowen was laudatory of Mr. Crouse's political prowess, but neither was he disparaging. Rather, he simply noted that Steve is very effective, and to win on charter schools, folks will have to counter his force with crowds of charter-boosters.

4. There may be some confusion between Great Schools for Me and Great Maine Schools. The former will be the new pro-school choice site created by the MHPC. The latter is the school reform coalition that funds grants for things like teaming, professional learning communities, cross-school seminars, and the Model Schools Conference.

Overall, Steve Bowen made a strong case for choice. My personal preference is to adopt public school choice now, but given the higher than average costs of students with exceptional learning conditions, I can see some problems. For this reason, I maintain that a Hawaiian state educational structure (one statewide system broken into a handful of administrative districts) would be far preferable to the current system, even with the tepid half-measure of consolidation that we've had. It doesn't seem to be anyone's favorite solution (except mine), but it will inject some competition into the public monopoly, force consolidation on towns that resist, and empower parents to determine which schools better meet their kids' needs.