Posted on by arotherham

The Peerage

Per this conflict of interest issue on Race to the Top a senior admin official wants to make two things clear. 

First, this is unprecedented and the potential for conflicts of interest is high so they want more people to apply to ensure a good pool to draw from for the process.  So if you’re thinking about it now is the time. 

Second, don’t try this at home.  In other words, if in doubt don’t conflict yourself out!  They’re going to look very carefully at those issues, obviously, but if you’re interested they say to go ahead and apply and let the process run its course rather than self-selecting out.

Much more information here on the process and how to apply or nominate.

4 Replies to “The Peerage”

  1. Yes, this is something we can all agree on: We don’t want people who have conflicts of interests to be involved in reviewing Race to the Top proposals.

    The most obvious people who should be eliminated from consideration are people who intend to make a financial “killing” by opening chains of for-profit charter schools. The last thing we need now is another Wall Street debacle. Also, people who know in their hearts that they hold schoolteachers in contempt should recuse themselves. We need people who can attract the “best and the brightest” and that requires a person who values teaching as a profession. We know who you are by your blogs, posts and newspaper articles.

    Who are the people who can best review these proposals? How about choosing those citizens who already serve our young people for modest salaries or no salary at all? They are our nation’s teachers, professors and parents! You can depend on these individuals to make certain Race to the Top money goes to our students and not our “entrepreneurs.” Our nation’s teachers will never allow this money to go to the nations hustlers. Of that you can be certain.

  2. If this is meant to be transformative, don’t hold your breath. The qualifications listed by Joanne Weiss are so establishment that I can’t see how you can avoid conflicts of interest. And the comment posted by Linda is so defensive and biased that it underlines the problem with this project.

    This isn’t about the adults, it’s about the students. It’s not about teaching, it’s about learning.

    If the reviewers do not have that mind set, it will all be a colossal waste of time.

  3. Yes, it’s all about students and learning and that’s why we must involve those parents, teachers and educators who have dedicated their lives, without a quest for money or power, to nurture our children. Actually, isn’t this just the wisdom of Solomon?

  4. I don’t see what Solomon has to do with this. He ordered that the baby be split in half and the real mother relinquished her claim so that the baby could be saved. No adult in the education establishment has reliquinshed any claims in order to save the children, certainly not the unions. And all those good people you say are out there, how come their actions and commitment haven’t made a dent in the unconscionable achievement gap since the publication of A Nation at Risk in 1983? How long are those children supposed to wait?

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