I am writing this piece on the day that the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers’ contract with the School District of Philadelphia expires. Since the last time I wrote about the terms of the contract, PFT president Jerry Jordan has held a press conference stating that the union (of which I am a member) was unwilling […]
As we hurtle toward the end of the summer amid a continued standoff between the Philadelphia School District’s administration (along with Governor Corbett, the Pennsylvania legislature, and to a lesser extent Mayor Nutter) and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (of which I am a member), I’d like to to try to discuss some of the […]
When I discussed the Philadelphia School Reform Commission’s actions last week, I mentioned that I felt like the superintendent had staged an exercise in kabuki theater. By creating deadlines, threatening to close schools, and setting dollar figures for what the schools required, he created both a sense of crisis and an impression that he could […]
Yesterday on Twitter the word starting getting around that Philadelphia superintendent William Hite had asked the School Reform Commission to suspend certain elements of the Pennsylvania School Code. Many of these suspended elements cover staffing-related areas that are covered by the district’s contract with unions such as the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, of which I […]
I read a lot of good articles and essays while I was working on the last post on PEDs. Before I close those tabs on my browser, I wanted to share them here. The new ephedra?: Shaun Assael at ESPN investigates a new supplement that might contain amphetamines. This is one example of the dangers […]
As I sit down to write this, Major League Baseball fans have been waiting for weeks to hear how MLB will punish players implicated in the Biogenesis performance enhancing drugs scandal. The rumor mill has constantly hyped an announcement of multiple suspensions that was just around the corner, but so far the only player to […]