Category: Education & Schools

UPROAR GROWS IN UVALDE, TEXAS, DEMANDING ACCOUNTABILITY 

BY MALIK MIAH and BARRY SHEPPARD What the report did not say was why all the 376 officers failed to carry out their duty May 24. There is only one plausible explanation — racism — because the victims were primarily Latino. Texas is run by an ultra-right racist, sexist Republican administration. Uvalde, a town of 16,000 people, is closer to the Mexican border than the nearest large city, San Antonio. Texas, as well as federal law enforcement, is mobilized against any immigrant asylum seekers who manage to cross the border. They use force when necessary.

Black teacher’s job is in limbo

By CAROLINE WINSLOW America has long lauded its school system as a Great Equalizer—a tool that provides all students, regardless of social standing, with the tools necessary to succeed. Thus, goes the narrative, all differences in outcome can be attributed to individual choices, absolving capitalism and the structures tied to it of their responsibility. Education … Continue reading Black teacher’s job is in limbo →

Hartford teachers union fights school board’s assault

By ERNIE GOTTA Across the country, teachers in their thousands are fighting back against poor working conditions, low wages, overflowing classrooms, and unusable health care. Following teachers in Arizona, Oklahoma, Kentucky, and West Virginia, Los Angeles teachers erupted in a strike last month. They are 34,000 teachers strong and ready to take a stand against … Continue reading Hartford teachers union fights school board’s assault →

Teachers’ strikes: The rank and file takes the lead

By MARK BRUNT Across the country, teachers have taken West Virginia’s lead after a successful wildcat strike. In Kentucky, legislators passed a teacher pension reform bill, and, although a strike on the specific day was not planned, so many teachers called out on March 30 that 20 counties were forced to close schools. They remained … Continue reading Teachers’ strikes: The rank and file takes the lead →

Wisconsin-Superior students protest plan to cut programs

By LUCAS ALAN DIETSCHE On Oct. 31, the administration of the University of Wisconsin-Superior decided to give a trick instead of a treat to faculty and students. Without any warning before making the decision, the administration decided to cut (they use the word “suspend”) many of its major and minor programs. At least 25 programs … Continue reading Wisconsin-Superior students protest plan to cut programs →

Drexel professor suspended following right-wing attack

By WAYNE DELUCA — PHILADELPHIA — George Ciccariello-Maher, a controversial left-wing professor at Drexel University in this city, was placed on administrative leave in October after a string of death threats from far-right internet trolls. All of his classes were cancelled for the quarter without a replacement. The university has stated that this is a … Continue reading Drexel professor suspended following right-wing attack →

Victory for public education in Massachusetts referendum

By JOE AUCIELLO — BOSTON — In Massachusetts, a November ballot question that would have allowed for the creation of up to 12 new charter schools per year was soundly defeated. What’s more, the most resounding setbacks for charter supporters occurred in the very cities where the new schools would have been formed. In Boston, … Continue reading Victory for public education in Massachusetts referendum →

Chicago teachers, parents demand school funding

By MARK UGOLINI — CHICAGO — On July 20 over 200 Chicago teachers, students and parents gathered at City Hall to demand full funding for public schools and an elected school board. Protesters crowded inside City Hall’s second-floor lobby for a press conference with a host of local media. Later, they formed a militant picket … Continue reading Chicago teachers, parents demand school funding →

Day of Action for Chicago teachers

On April 1, the solidarity of Chicago Teachers, along with the solidarity of more than 50 union, community, and student organizations, was on full display before the entire city and state, and across the country. Nearly 20,000 teachers and supporters flooded the streets in a late-afternoon rally and march in Chicago’s “Loop,” capping a powerful Day of Action on the theme “Fund Our Futures.”

Obama’s ‘Race to the Top’ falters

By KEVIN YESSIAN In 2009, President Obama issued a fact sheet outlining his new education reform plan. Race to the Top, as it is called, has four key areas: rigorous standards and assessments, adoption of better data systems for reporting, support for teachers and school leaders to become more effective, and a plan for rigorous … Continue reading Obama’s ‘Race to the Top’ falters →

Struggle to desegregate Boston’s schools

By JOE AUCIELLO — BOSTON — This current academic year marks the 40th anniversary of the struggle to desegregate the Boston Public Schools. No celebrations were held to mark the event; there was no commemoration and little public commentary. Local television stations made no use of the ample film footage they possessed and broadcast no … Continue reading Struggle to desegregate Boston’s schools →

MLK Day of Resistance

MLK-Day of Action, Resistance, and Empowerment (MLK-D.A.R.E.) is organizing a march in Philadelphia on Jan. 19. The broad-based coalition hopes to “reclaim” Martin Luther King Day with a focus on political action. The demands of the march are: a $15 minimum wage and the right to a union; an end to the police department’s “stop and … Continue reading MLK Day of Resistance →

NY mayor & teachers union cut rotten deal

By MARTY GOODMAN This May Day, a day of celebration of the workers’ struggle, many unions were rallying at New York’s City Hall, but the news from inside was not good for workers. The unions backed “progressive” Mayor Bill de Blasio (Democrat), and Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), announced a … Continue reading NY mayor & teachers union cut rotten deal →

Supreme Ct. upholds affirmative action ban

By JEFF MACKLER The U.S. Supreme Court, in all its majesty, upheld a 2006 Michigan ballot initiative that amended the state’s constitution to ban affirmative action in higher education. Until now, only a few states have approved such bans, including California, whose 1996 so-called Civil Rights Initiative, Proposition 209, prohibited public institutions from considering race, … Continue reading Supreme Ct. upholds affirmative action ban →

Crackdown on New York’s city colleges

By MARTY GOODMAN  Without warning, war was declared on the mainly working-class students at City College of New York (CCNY), when early Sunday morning, Oct. 20, the CCNY administration shut down the Guillermo Morales/Assata Shakur Center, a hub of student activism since 1989. Morales, a Puerto Rican independence fighter, and Shakur, a former member of … Continue reading Crackdown on New York’s city colleges →

Chicago school closings challenged

By DAVID BERNT — CHICAGO— Students, parents, and teachers from across the city are fighting back against what could be the largest school-closing plan in U.S. history. Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s handpicked school board has proposed closing 54 public elementary schools, primarily in the heavily African American south and west sides of the city, affecting more than … Continue reading Chicago school closings challenged →

Tuition battle in Connecticut

By KORY YORKE and DANIEL ADAM WILLIMANTIC, Conn.— The students walked through an unfamiliar campus. Attempts by one of the more experienced marchers to start up chants were met with self-conscious and infrequent responses. They had travelled an hour by bus from Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) to Eastern Connecticut State University (ECSU) to protest … Continue reading Tuition battle in Connecticut →

SF City College threatened by privatization

By DON HARMON and KAREN SCHIEVE City College of San Francisco (CCSF), with 85,000 students on seven campuses, is under attack from powerful and monied forces, such as JP Morgan Chase, Bill Gates, Rupert Murdoch, Goldman Sachs, and Lumina Foundation. These corporate giants are in collusion with the layer of secondary bureaucrats who are doing … Continue reading SF City College threatened by privatization →

Spread the Quebec Strike! Solidarity with the Students!

As the winds of mass protest and demands for change continue to surge across Quebec, now is the time for students and working people in English Canada to march in solidarity with the students' movement. What began as opposition to tuition hikes in Quebec has grown into a fight against austerity and a defence of … Continue reading Spread the Quebec Strike! Solidarity with the Students! →

Quebec Student Revolt Continues

<!--[if !mso]><![endif]--> MONTREAL—On May 19, Quebec’s Liberal government passed draconian legislation, Law 78, to smash the mass student strike that has shaken Quebec society over the past four months. The so-called Loi de Matraque (truncheon law) is an attack on the rights of association, demonstration and free speech. It suspends academic sessions at all Quebec … Continue reading Quebec Student Revolt Continues →

Puerto Rico student leader: ‘Never give up!’

Below is an interview with Puerto Rican student activist Gamelyn Oduardo, a featured speaker at the March 23-25 conference of the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC). The interview was conducted by Socialist Action reporters Lisa Luinenburg and Ana Noli. It has been slightly edited for space reasons.Socialist Action: Could you give an overview of the … Continue reading Puerto Rico student leader: ‘Never give up!’ →