Per this, one liberal education observer and UFT critic in NYC writes to Eduwonk to note:
What is so disappointing is that the Republicans overplayed their hands so obnoxiously that this could prove to be more of a problem down the line. The UFT was on the ropes the last few weeks with all the attention their contract has gotten. But even I am annoyed with the way the union’s application was treated. Those f**ers on the right don’t know how to let destiny run its course.
NYT writes-up the state of play here. Who cares if UFT head Randi Weingarten is on the board? That’s a political complaint, no? It’s a UFT school, it’s not as though they can disown it if things go poorly.
Update: Desperate Hill Staffers! A reader writes: Please tell me your liberal observer/UFT critic is a hot, young, and single woman. OK, first some basic ground rules…this is Eduwonk not Edupimp. Second, no, it’s a dude…a middle-aged dude…
Update II: More NYC, column on the cap issue.
“…city charter schools have been running rings around the rest of the system for quite a while. Last year, for instance, an astonishing 70% of city charter schools outscored schools in their local districts on math and reading tests.
It’s all the more astonishing considering that charters, by law, get 22% less state funding per student than other schools. The Legislature, in effect, designed these schools to fail. And still, they prevailed.