In response to AJC editorial, Gov. Deal says charter amendment deserves voter approval
The AJC editorial board comes out Sunday with an editorial urging the defeat of Amendment One, citing the cost of creating a new bureaucracy to approve charter schools when one already exists.
Here is a counterpoint to that opinion from Gov. Nathan Deal.
By Nathan Deal
Georgia parents enjoy a multitude of choices when shopping for a pair of jeans, a car or a bag of potato chips.
And when it’s time to go off to college, their children can choose a campus that fits them best.
The diversity of options in the marketplace shows that competition and choices drive innovation and improvement. It demonstrates that one size does not, in fact, fit all.
We would abandon a grocery store that didn’t give us options, so why don’t we demand the same from the public education system?
All parents want their children to do better than they did, but that can’t happen if they don’t have access to high-performing public schools.
When they go to the polls this November, Georgia voters have a chance to assure that parents can choose what’s best for their family and child.
Too many school districts in Georgia offer nothing but mediocre or even failing schools. In those situations, parents deserve the chance to demand something new, but they often hit a brick wall with their local school boards.
If passed, the constitutional amendment gives those parents hope. It would restore to the state the ability to charter schools. That would hardly qualify as a revolution; on the contrary, this simply takes us back to the policy we had before a misguided Georgia Supreme Court ruling struck down the state’s charter school approval process.
Unfortunately, school boards eager to maintain their monopoly have spread misinformation about what the charter school amendment would do. So let’s clarify the facts.
First and foremost, any school created by the charter commission will be a public school that is free of charge to any student living in the attendance zone.
Second, any school chartered by the state is paid for by the state, not the local school board. Opponents of the amendment claim that the charter commission will start schools and then hand the bill to the local school system. The truth is that the amendment expressly forbids the state from reducing the amount of money it provides local schools.
Despite the fact that the state provides all funding, locals still maintain control of the schools. The only role the state plays in the administration of the schools is in providing accountability. Charter schools that don’t perform get closed, as opposed to an underperforming regular school that can fail generation after generation.
And the accountability pays off. When compared to the state school system as a whole, state charter schools achieve Annual Yearly Progress at a higher rate. More telling, they significantly outperform the other schools in their districts.
A great example is Ivy Prep School in Gwinnett County. Here we have an overwhelmingly minority all-girls school – from demographics that generally score lower on standardized tests – that is outperforming the general population in Gwinnett County schools, which are some of the best in the state.
Autumn Smith attends seventh grade there.
“I live in a neighborhood where the behavior, education and parent resources aren’t up to the standards I have been taught to expect. Therefore, I went in search of a good school,” Autumn wrote to her local newspaper, explaining that her local school suffered from gangs, drugs and violence. “I’m not going to sit back, relax and wait for change that might not come until my grandchild is in school. I want change, and I want it now. I deserve to have a choice in what school I want to be in. I just don’t understand what the problem is if charter schools are performing better than other schools, when being funded less.”
A middle-schooler whose talents may have withered on the vine has instead seized her chance for excellence and achievement. It’s an opportunity she would have missed if she and her family didn’t have an option to escape a school that couldn’t live up to her expectations.
Approving the constitutional amendment will increase competition, give parents better options, encourage innovation and give students such as Autumn Smith a chance in life they might not otherwise get.
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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91 comments Add your comment
Reality_Check
November 4th, 2012
10:12 am
Isn’t the governor using state resources by promoting this amendment? After all, we pay for his time. He tried to use his thug Sam Olens to intimidate the amendment’s opponents, but it’s okay for him to actively promote it? What a hypocrite!
Banderson
November 4th, 2012
10:13 am
This is not a vote for charter schools. We already have charter schools. This is a vote for another state commission that can siphon tax dollars to private companies and allow Deal to have a few more choice positions to which he can appoint his friends and families. Thinking conservatives don’t want more government and they certainly don’t want to move control from local authorities to the state.
Private Citizen
November 4th, 2012
10:16 am
By the way, the really nice sophisticated website is from the “socialist” country. The harsh website with all the ads is from the “capitalist” country. Now you go figure out which is which.
KIM
November 4th, 2012
10:20 am
Note the reasons Ivy Prep was NOT approved by GC as a charter: out of line administrative and overhead costs AND a poorly designed curriculum. Then Ms. Gilbert and staff went BACK to the drawing board to improve. Just think what private sector companies are going to do with our tax money!!!! It is scarey!!!! Who will oversee THEIR proposals and have the guts to send them back to the drawing board??? There is no built in governmental agency for overseeing private sector expenses…of our money! Vote NO for the sake of our tax dollars.
KIM
November 4th, 2012
10:22 am
And by the way: the precious girl who speaks on behalf of Ivy Prep and charter schools could have transferred to another school within her district. All districts have provisions for that. And shame on Ivy Prep and the charter school cronies for dupping a child into this mess. She will grow up to understand that, yes, this is about money. Money, Money.
AJC Sunday editorial: Support charter schools but oppose Amendment One | Get Schooled
November 4th, 2012
10:24 am
[...] In the Sunday AJC, the editorial page urges the defeat of the charter school amendment because of the costs of creating a new bureaucracy without compelling justification. (You can read a rebuttal of that viewpoint by Gov. Nathan Deal here.) [...]
crankee-yankee
November 4th, 2012
10:24 am
Beverly Fraud
November 4th, 2012
10:12 am
“What do you tell those parents?”
Get involved.
Dr. Monica Henson
November 4th, 2012
10:25 am
KIM posted, “Note the reasons Ivy Prep was NOT approved by GC as a charter: out of line administrative and overhead costs AND a poorly designed curriculum. Then Ms. Gilbert and staff went BACK to the drawing board to improve.”
Pure BS and delay tactics by GCPS. The criticism of the curriculum was not that it was poorly designed–it was that it “wasn’t innovative.” Ivy Prep is now out from under the “oversight” of GCPS as a state-chartered school and is implementing its curriculum so well that in 2012, saw 100% of 6th and 7th graders at Ivy Prep Gwinnett meeting or exceeding CRCT standards in reading. Ivy Prep Gwinnett was also named a GaDOE Rewards School (highest-performing Title I). They do this with a far higher percentage of minority and low-income students than their geographic peers in the district. Wonder what GCPS says to that? Clearly, the curriculum isn’t innovative and doesn’t meet a demand.
“Just think what private sector companies are going to do with our tax money!!!! It is scarey!!!! Who will oversee THEIR proposals and have the guts to send them back to the drawing board??? There is no built in governmental agency for overseeing private sector expenses…of our money! Vote NO for the sake of our tax dollars.”
All chartered schools in Georgia, whether they are authorized locally, by the Commission, or by the State Board of Education, must adhere to the same state and federal financial reporting guidelines as all district public schools. The Georgia Department of Education currently provides that oversight and reports out to the State Board of Education. The claim that there will be “no oversight” of the finances of Commission-authorized schools is patently, absurdly false.
FairLady
November 4th, 2012
10:25 am
Many Georgians like my family have relocated to Georgia because of our jobs. I was appalled when researching the educational options available for my son in the Atlanta area. Quality public schools are NOT available to ALL the children of Georgia. We chose a place to live that had quality public schools because there were NO charter schools or high performing schools near our employment. It was worth the 30 minute commute to work to insure our son had a quality education. We could NOT afford a private school education for our son and his education is a priority!! Not all Georgians have the luxury of moving or paying for private schools. The status of education in Georgia will become an economic issue. What business or industry will want to locate to a state with such low graduation rates and ask their employees to live in an academically failing state with limited school choice options!! I voted YES for Amendment One and for more school choice for my new home state!
Shar
November 4th, 2012
10:26 am
The primary areas of complaint on these blogs, as echoed in national surveys on public educaition, are as follows:
– Unresponsive, bloated administrations
– Unruly students
– Uncooperative parents
This amendment will do nothing to allieviate any of these problems, which is not a surprise as it is only supposed to expose another pile of tax money to the depredations of politicians and their corporate masters.
Policy changes are easier and cheaper than changing the constitution for the benefit of the greedy and well-connected, and they will do more for students. They require, however, that we give up on the ideas of blended classrooms, of education being a no-strings-attached gift to parents and top-down budgeting.
Set behavioral standards, including requirements for classroom preparation, and enforce them. Require parents whose children are impeding the progress of the rest of the class to come to school and sit with their child, taking care of the discipline issue or facing removal of their child and assignment to social services. Stop shifting responsibility for delivery of services like counselling, medical care, crisis intervention, etc to schools. Teachers should not have to counsel children any more than social workers should have to teach them geometry. Finally, local boards should issue overall budget guidelines, perhaps in per-pupil spending ranges, and schools should submit their own budgets according to the needs in the classroom. Central offices can have what is left over, and cut as needed. First priority should be the classroom, last should be administrative, which is the opposite of the current budgetary process.
The frustration being felt by every thinking adult with the current educational system is understandable but it will only be made worse by allowing corrupt, soulless vampires like Deal, Rogers and Jones to get their sticky fingers in the pie. Despite all the mealy-mouthed, sanctimonious “for the children” bologna that those in power like to piously mouth during elections (see Deal’s essay above for an excellent example), preious few of the people in power care if students succeed. What they want is the money that taxpayers continue to invest in the hope that at least some kids will find a way to achieve.
The least we can do is to make parents accountable for their children’s behavior as it affects classroom and school conduct, force funding of classrooms before one dime is spent on adminsitration and fight against mission creep in the schools to allow teachers to focus on actual teaching.
Private Citizen
November 4th, 2012
10:27 am
One of your Deals with the Devil is your arrangement with internet in Georgia, something every “21st century” student needs. At the least, be informed.
In contrast, Riga, Seoul, and Paris all offered triple-play packages for less than $40 per month. London, Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen, and Hong Kong all had triple play packages available for under $50. http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2012/07/tokyo-seoul-and-paris-get-faster-cheaper-broadband-than-us-cities/
Oh, and some of those cities with fast internet and all of that privately owned industry are “socialist.” Don’t ask Comcast about this information because they sure won’t tell you!!!
Private Citizen
November 4th, 2012
10:30 am
“Socialist” = annual checkups and serious treatment when you need it and you leave with your finances intact. Unheard of in Georgia! Of course, these services are in functioning societies, not crumbling ones. Pardon if I seem to be pounding on a chisel to make a point.
sloboffthestreet
November 4th, 2012
10:35 am
Beverly Fraud
In Georgia we have 2 of the most traveled Interstate Highways in the nation. Any idiot who thought taking one cent for every dollar spent from non resident travelers to help fund our road repair and construction no matter what part of the state the money was spent, lacks logic and reason. IDIOT!
As for “Good fishing” in the man made sewers and fecal infested streams & rivers here in Georgia, perhaps you enjoy eating CRAP-PEE?
Vote YES for Amendment One !! The beauty of hiring a private group is you can demand results or fire and start over. With the poorly trained players employed presently, we simply allow them to fail year after year and deal with an ever changing course of study. So we take the waiver and here the players complain about Common Core which is what should have been taught during NCLB. A student scoring a 50 on a test is an “F”. Not “ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS.”
Some people simply take little to no pride in their work. Vote YES to STOP THE MESS!!!
ssteacher
November 4th, 2012
10:37 am
I thought Republicans were against centralized government. Oh wait, Deal was a Democrat in the 90s, until he knew he couldn’t win in 1996. Then he “resigned” from federal office rather than to be found guilty of a crime he committed while in office.
The only thing worse than Deal, the idiots of Georgia who continue to vote for him.
People need to think long and hard about any Constitutional Amendment on a ballot. When in doubt, vote no. There should be no doubt about women voting, minorities voting, or granting equal rights and opportunities for all under a constitutional law.
However, there is plenty of doubt about whether Charter Schools (run by companies not associated with Georgia) should have the ability to pay off corrupt politicians (Deal’s issue in D.C.) to get the opportunity to take our tax revenues as corporate profit.
sloboffthestreet
November 4th, 2012
10:39 am
Beverly Fraud “Correction”
In Georgia we have 2 of the most traveled Interstate Highways in the nation. Any idiot who thought taking one cent for every dollar spent from non resident travelers to help fund our road repair and construction was a bad idea, no matter what part of the state the money was spent, lacks logic and reason. IDIOT!
Meredith
November 4th, 2012
10:39 am
Rhetorical, pandering hogwash!
Private Citizen
November 4th, 2012
10:46 am
Come to think of it, it is socialist countries that have bought your beer manufacturing and than have made a billion dollar industry out of selling you “Red Bull.” So remember that every time you see a can of “Red Bull” in a store cooler, ever time an American buys a can of “Red Bull” they’re paying for someone else’s health care outside the United States. You think I’m kidding. I’ll check for you.
Red Bull 2012 sales $2.7 billion. http://www.energyfiend.com/the-15-top-energy-drink-brands
Red Bull is an energy drink sold by Austrian company Red Bull GmbH http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Bull
The nation of Austria has a two-tier health care system in which many individuals receive publicly-funded care, but they also have the option to purchase supplementary private health insurance…. Healthcare in Austria is universal for residents of Austria http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healthcare_in_Austria
Here’s a paper on it if you want to know the particulars of how they do it. http://www.goeg.at/cxdata/media/download/Broschuere_Gesundheitswesen_OE_E.pdf
Interesting. The population of the country Austria is about the same as the metropolitan Atlanta area and their government is a representative democracy.
Beverly Fraud
November 4th, 2012
10:47 am
Local board members are required by law to attend training each year.
SACS approved “training”
@Really? if you know SACS you just made a compelling argument FOR this amendment
Dr. Monica Henson
November 4th, 2012
10:58 am
catlady posted, “Let’s establish charter schools that take on the TOUGHEST kids, and see how successful they are! Leave the public schools for those who are well-behaved, and have parents who are involved in raising them.”
That’s been the clarion call of the public education establishment and the teachers who support it for decades now: give us “good kids” with “good parents,” along with billions of dollars more, and we’ll improve education. Send the hard-to-teach kids to someone else. If only we had better kids with better parents, we’d be working miracles.
This is why so many parents are demanding choices.
Feeling Betrayed
November 4th, 2012
10:59 am
As an educator for 13 years, I can’t believe the comments I have just read from the governor. He is the leader of this state and THE STATE tells me what to teach. THE STATE tells me when to teach it. THE STATE determines how much seat time students gets. THE STATE tells me my class can be 32+ students large. THE STATE tells me how these students will be assessed. THE STATE tells me how I will be evaluated. So, it seems to me, THE STATE has created these “mediocre” and “failing schools”. Why would anyone want to create a new government agency where THE STATE has even more control over education? If passed, how long will it be before they too are betrayed by law markers who are looking for a miracle fix?
Point/Counterpoint
November 4th, 2012
11:00 am
@ Dr Henson, I know exactly how public schools are funded, just as I know there is already a process in place for approving charter schools. I also know the state budget for FY13 cut state funding for public schools to a 50/50 split with state/local dollars. Pro-charter folks state that the state sends 75% state funding to charter schools. We will have to pay more in taxes to make up this new funding for the charters and to continue paying 50% locally.
Really?
November 4th, 2012
11:01 am
Willinroswell : you mention dysfunctional local boards of education, do you think for a minute that charter governing boards would be any different? They would be made up of parents and community members, possibly “elected” from within the “charter district” just like a local board of education. Untrained? Local board members are required by law to attend training each year. Would charter governing boards have the same requirements? Unless a governing board is made up of the entire pool of student’s parents, we are sure to hear the same vocal minority scream “the board will not respond to my needs”. Potential is still there for people of perceived power and financial means to “control” decisions from hiring teachers, school leaders and decide curriculum that will not not be agreed upon by the school community.
Comparing school choice to the same level as providing choice for the brand of breakfast cereals is ludicrous!
I don’t see this being an issue about charter schools and fully support a no vote.
Amazed
November 4th, 2012
11:02 am
Alas, the Governor continues to sign his name to letters written by his revenge motivated policy director. She is sore over being fired form the DOE. Gov. deal has no courage at all! His lack of understanding of the issue is very clear and his continued support of this amendment has nothing to do with choice or children. It is about political expediency and money from donors for re-election. Wake up people! The power is shifting away from the local politicians to state government. Which is full of power hungry ideologically driven folks on both sides of the isle. There is no compromise from either side. Again I say, wake up! (sounds like the national level governing problem as well) Wake up!
Ed Johnson
November 4th, 2012
12:58 pm
“The first comment here really bothers me. Why insult? Is this how we discuss an important educational issue? The fact that within five minutes of this news, the first comment is an actually an insult and it is approved by AJC is really really worrisome. AJC please approve my comment as well.”
There is a story about two methods for cooking a live frog (or is it lobster?).
Method 1: Drop the frog into a pot of boiling water. Be prepared to deal with the frog flailing and struggling to escape its predicament until, in the end, the frog’s spirit escapes to frog heaven.
Method 2: Gently ease the frog into a pot of water at room temperature, gradually apply heat, and the frog will sit there and happily cook to death.
Now, let’s take this story as an invitation to see degrees or styles of “insult.”
On the one hand, there is @South Georgia’s Method 1 style of insult. It is direct, easily recognizable, and likely to provoke an immediate “Why insult?” response, as it did with @Educator.
On the other hand, there is the Method 2 style of insult Gov. Deal and legislators Jan Jones, Edward Lindsey, Chip Rogers, Alisha Thomas Morgan, Brooks Coleman, Margaret Kaiser, Matt Hatchett and similar others have directed at Georgia vis-à-vis HR 1162 and Amendment One. They, of course, intend for Georgia to not recognize the insult until it’s too late, if at all.
So, which style of insult is most likely to go unchallenged and which is most likely to be challenged with “Why insult?” Of course, Deal and Company’s insult will escape being challenged if their insult cannot be recognized, as they intend.
More importantly, which style of insult is most morally and ethically base, so is most deserving of the most grim, most direct, most obvious rebuke?
Point/Counterpoint
November 4th, 2012
2:16 pm
@Feeling betrayed, you summed it up in a way no one else has and there is no reason to argue anymore.
Private Citizen
November 4th, 2012
2:45 pm
Shar See? Teacher is minding their own business, just swimming along doing their thing, doing what they do best, and then the roving administrators (shark) show up http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkrLQP7Pat8#t=0m37s
But what is fixing to happen to the administrations than enable and allow this type of activity from their own. Awe look at the nice shark swimming around before the charter amendment appears. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y27LSPcbeB4
Torrey
November 4th, 2012
3:11 pm
Am I missing something? I do not recall hearing of a budgetary excess to establish charter schools. I thought there was a budget deficit mandating cuts in education. Where did these billions come from to fund charters? And when did GOP Nathan Deal start caring about poor black inner-city girls? And if money could be so easily spent to improve education in charter schools, why can’t that same money and methodology be used in current schools to achieve the same results?
Nathan Deal is a slimy, hand-slapping, back-room dealing crook. He’s shown us that time and time again. I wouldn’t….pardon me… I DIDN’T SUPPORT IT (I voted early) because the logic was flawed & Deal was so dogged about its support.
catlady
November 4th, 2012
3:56 pm
Dr. Henson: As much as I admire and frequently agree with you, my post was TIC. If charter schools are an Educational Jesus, then let’s quit wasting all this money on traditional public schools for children who are difficult to educate–diagnosed and undiagnosed LD, MR, BD, ADHD, no parents, bad parents, drug infested, etc–and let the Educational Jesus save them, AND save us money to boot!
BTW, I am Dr. Catlady (UGA, 1995) with over three decades of experience. I do not support charter schools run by companies for profit.
Dr. Monica Henson
November 4th, 2012
4:41 pm
Dr. Catlady, I understand that your post was satirical. However, it still sums up all too well the earnestness with which many of our peers in public education excuse the failures of the system.
I don’t support permitting for-profit companies to operate charter schools, either. Nevertheless, there are several benefits and advantages to be gained by crafting a partnership with a provider, not the least of which is economies of scale. The arrangement that my charter school’s board of directors has crafted preserves the integrity of our school’s mission, reserves all decision making authority for the school’s administrators, and ensures that we benefit from the partnership without permitting the provider to exercise authority over our operations. This is precisely the relationship that any district public school has, ostensibly, with its vendors.
Shar
November 4th, 2012
4:45 pm
@Feeling Betrayed, you are so very right.
Nathan Deal, you could not be more wrong. Or more of a corrupt, self-serving liar.
I wouldn’t let you near my kids, much less increase your power over every child in Georgia.
Weasel.
Shar
November 4th, 2012
5:00 pm
@Dr. Henson, wake up. Dr. Catlady knows of what she writes. There will be no “relationship” between a district public school and a vendor, and there will be no “crafting a partnership” between “your” charter school board and vendors.
There will be a disgusting collection of incompetent cronies of the kind that Deal has already inflicted upon the DOE, the Ports Board, the Lottery and, as of about 4 on Friday afternoon (gotta get those cheezy, slimey appointments of incompetents done at the time when the news media and workers will be paying the least attention) the Workers’ Comp Board, all making back room deals with the wolves from out of state who have paid for this push with the bought and paid for local schilling of Chip Rogers, Jan Jones and Nathan Deal. Every single area of school siting, construction, management, curriculum, assessment and supply will be out of local hands, unaccountable to anyone but the state level figures who appoint the bagmen who will approve the charters of their friends and inflict the schools on districts that have not requested, and do not want, them. There will be no way out, but an endlessly-stretching bill with a nice fat profit margin slathered on top.
This in no way compares to the charter situation you yourself are involved with. As you so ably personify, there is an effective way to start charters at the local level and a means by which to appeal if the local board does not approve the charter.
This is about draining the public education budget in such a way that nobody, from the Georgia Supreme Court to education professionals to voters to parents to taxpayers, can stand in the way of corruption. Nathan Deal does not give a rat’s behind about the success or failure of any child in Georgia, or most any adult. His shortcut to the good life, now that his illegal monopoly on issuing titles has been discovered and stopped, is to sell off access to state funds, and to put wealthy bozos in his debt as they busy themselves stripping our resources.
Judging by the utter incompetence of his appointees to date, let’s just imagine who he would seat in his Charter Crony Council, to manage your school and teach your children. How ’bout some high-school graduates who work in his salvage operations? Or perhaps one of those out-of-work recreational clerks who were victimized by his daughter’s inability to run her outdoor business? Or maybe that welfare queen herself? How far do you think you can get working with this level of incompetence, with no redress or input?
cris
November 4th, 2012
5:48 pm
Hey Governor Deal…remember Roy Barnes? I do. I’m pretty sure he thought he was untouchable too. Can’t wait to campaign against you in 2014….and it really will be “for the good of the children” – mine and the ones that I teach day to day.
mborim
November 4th, 2012
6:09 pm
Our Republican Governor has insulted every single public school teacher in the state of Georgia.
I say, “Three strikes, and you’re out”.
Strike #1—Sunday liquor sales—and we fooled them!
Strike #2—T-splost(aka—transportation referendum)—and we fooled them again!
Strike #3—Charter School Amendment (aka—let’s slap every public school teacher in the face)—and we will fool them for the 3rd time!
Private Citizen
November 4th, 2012
6:10 pm
Shar I’m a little confused. You resonate with feeling betrayed’s report of the STATE being all kinds of in the teachers business, and I agree with this, but then you want to shut down what seems to be the only thing to temper of otherwise provide something besides this type of treatment from the STATE. I’ve been dosed with it myself so I agree with on this general “clunker” feeling toward someone of some-THING that is completely in your business is an excessive and arbitrary way. The charter amendment seems like the only way to deal with it. Also, some persons may want to demonize Mr. Deal, etc. but he is really a very small part of it. This charter amendment concept is “big” and I think it has momentum.
As far as the government schools and those who run them, for some reason this video resonates with me concerning some of the things going on in management of government schools in Georgia. I think it is voiced a little differently in Georgia, a little smoother, but no less arbitrary and at time containing real mal-intent underneath and is someone is looking for a mark and is literally making a living by going around doing authority stunts on unsuspecting humans. I’ve seen it. I’ve seen several teachers treated in this manner as if it is a little industry within the school systems. And then the same people want to play entrapment with recommendations and work reviews and such. It is no surprise that there is some push-back and I’m all for it. Here is an example of the type public service I am referencing. It’s from Baltimore and shows two young people telling what happened when they asked an officer for help. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0H_iXI2DkDk
living in an outdated ed system
November 4th, 2012
8:23 pm
It is not surprising that this newspaper would come out against the amendment, when it is clear that that the author of this blog shares that same viewpoint. Based on what my sources tell me, I am fully confident that despite this newspaper’s anachronistic view of public education, that the amendment will pass, and that Georgia can then take its place among the states on the path of improving its public education system for the benefit of its children.
bootney farnsworth
November 4th, 2012
8:26 pm
hell, if crooked ole Nate likes it, just another reason why I’m glad I voted no.
bootney farnsworth
November 4th, 2012
8:28 pm
how many different names does P&J post under?
Scooby
November 4th, 2012
9:49 pm
Say no to Thug Deal and his cronies. These GA repubs are just like the mob, there’s no shame in their game. We have to shut em down with our votes just like we did with the TSPLOST.
KIM
November 4th, 2012
9:59 pm
@Dr. Monica Henson I noticed Ivy Prep’s selection as a Reward School. Your arguments would be valid if Ivy Prep had the same high standards as GCPS or CCPS. Sorry, they simply don’t. And if this amendment passes, the private companies wanting our tax dollars will be coming out of the woodwork just like the school improvement LLCs and turn around LLCs. It is a money grab.
Dr. Monica Henson
November 5th, 2012
10:04 pm
??? Ivy Prep outperforms nearly every school in Gwinnett, with a significant majority enrollment of low-income and minority students, yet it doesn’t have “the same high standards”?
Simply clinging to a belief and repeating it doesn’t make it true.
Ivan Cohen
November 6th, 2012
12:18 pm
To think, Governor Deal, your parents were educators. Hmmmm…..this is how you pay them back. by being a cheer leader for charter schools. Shame on you!