Teachers Unions’ Election Day Thumping

By Larry Sand
11/11/2014
“Teachers Unions Take a Beating in Midterm Races” “Teachers Unions Take a Shellacking” “Teachers Unions Get Schooled in 2014 Election” The above is just a small sampling of post-election headlines which flooded the media after last Tuesday’s historic election, which generated a major political shakeup in the nation’s capital as well as state houses from...

TAGS: American Enterprise Institute, American Federation of Teachers, Bruce Rauner, California Center for Parent Empowerment, Center for Education Reform, City Journal, EdSource, Gloria Romero, John Fensterwald, Kara Kerwin, Larry Sand, Lily Eskelsen Garcia, Marshall Tuck, National Education Association, Randi Weingarten, Rick Hess, Rick Scott, Rick Snyder, Scott Walker, Steve Greenhut, teachers union, Tom Corbett, Tom Torlakson, Vergara

The Sorry, but Unapologetic, Teachers Unions

By Larry Sand
11/04/2014
 Unions demand apologies, but refuse to make any themselves. The cover of the November 3rd edition of Time Magazine reads “It’s nearly impossible to fire a bad teacher; some tech millionaires may have found a way to change that.” Accompanying the text is a photo of a judge’s gavel about to pound an apple. The...

TAGS: American Federation of Teachers, California Federation of Teachers, California Teachers Empowerment Network, David Welch, Larry Sand, Marshall Tuck, Michael Mulgrew, Mike Antonucci, National Education Association, New York State United Teachers, Randi Weingarten, teachers union, Tom Torlakson, United Federation of Teachers

Life After Deasy

By Larry Sand
10/28/2014
It was only a matter of time before the Los Angeles school chief was run out of town. John Deasy is the latest to exit the fast-moving revolving door known as Los Angeles School Superintendent. The job – really an impossible one – saw Roy Romer replace Ray Cortines in 2001. Romer in turn was...

TAGS: dropouts, John Deasy, Kate Walsh, LA School Report, Larry Sand, Los Angeles Unified School District, National Council on Teacher Quality, Parent Trigger, Rolf Treu, teachers union, United Teachers of Los Angeles, Vergara case

Education Reform: #1 Issue on the Ballot in California

By Larry Sand
10/21/2014
Reformer battles with teachers union darling for top education position in Sacramento. “Teachers Unions Are Putting Themselves On November’s Ballot” was the headline in a recent article by Haley Edwards in Time Magazine. Okay, this is hardly news, but the extent of the largess is eye-opening. Considering that this is not a presidential election year,...

TAGS: American Federation of Teachers, California Teachers Association, Dean Vogel, EdSource, education reform, Eli Broad, Larry Sand, Marshall Tuck, National Education Association, Steve Greenhut, teachers unions, Tom Torlakson, Vergara

Early Christmas Gift to Children and Taxpayers in Philadelphia?

By Larry Sand
10/14/2014
School reformers in Philly decide to help taxpayers and kids; teachers unions fume. Philadelphia can be a tough town – so tough, in fact, that in 1968, frustrated and cranky Eagles fans even booed Santa Claus at a late season game. When that didn’t scare off old St. Nick, the hostile fans unleashed a barrage...

TAGS: American Federation of Teachers, Jerry Jordan, Larry Sand, Michael Nutter, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, teachers union, Tom Corbett

Taxpayers, School Choice and the Unions

By Larry Sand
10/07/2014
A new study reveals that vouchers save Americans a bucket load of cash. A blockbuster report released last week shows that the American taxpayer is much better off living in a locale where school vouchers have been instituted. Vouchers, which enable children to use public funding to attend private schools, are available in scattered states...

TAGS: Cato Institute, Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, Greg Forster, Jason Bedrick, Larry Sand, National Education Association, school choice, teachers union, vouchers, Zelman v. Simmons-Harris

Teachers Unions Target Charter Schools in California

By Larry Sand
09/30/2014
The latest chapter in “kill or unionize” sees the unions in organize mode. As I’ve written before, the teachers unions have a constantly shifting relationship with charter schools. When Mercury is in retrograde, the unions want to limit their growth or legislate the publicly-funded schools of choice out of existence. At other times, organizing them...

TAGS: California Charter School Association, California Teachers Association, Center for Education Reform, Charter schools, Larry Sand, Lily Eskelsen Garcia, Mike Antonucci, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, National Education Association, teachers union, Thomas Kane

Karen Lewis and Chicago’s Illiteracy Problem

By Larry Sand
09/23/2014
After years as a teacher union boss, Karen Lewis is making plans to spread her venom to the rest of the city. Courtesy of Daniel Greenfield, we are reminded of the ugly fact that almost half of Chicago is illiterate. According to the White House website, 47 percent of Windy City residents cannot read. Additionally,...

TAGS: Arne Duncan, Chicago Teachers Union, Education Action Group, Karen Lewis, Larry Sand, Randi Weingarten, Teach For America, teachers union

Acquiescent Teachers and Their Undemocratic Unions

By Larry Sand
09/16/2014
Teachers who are not satisfied with their union must make their voices heard.  Are Unions Democratic? The Internal Politics of Labor Unions and Their Implications, a report just released by the Manhattan Institute’s Daniel DiSalvo, examines unions – specifically the public employee variety, with an emphasis on teachers unions. Addressing the democracy issue, he writes:...

TAGS: agency fee payer, Association of American Educators, California Teachers Association, Daniel DiSalvo, Dean Vogel, Larry Sand, Manhattan Institute, National Education Association, Reg Weaver, teachers union, United Teachers of Los Angeles

Bad Week for Teachers Unions

By Larry Sand
09/09/2014
These days, the teachers unions have landed on the wrong side of judges, teachers, the general public and just about everyone else whose lives they touch. Seems like the teachers unions are getting it from all sides these days. In a Wall Street Journal piece, the writers note that the percentage of elementary and secondary...

TAGS: American Federation of Teachers, California Federation of Teachers, California Teachers Association, Jerry Brown, Larry Sand, Michael Mulgrew, Michigan Education Association, Mike Antonucci, National Education Association, Right to Work, Rolf Treu, teachers unions, United Federation of Teachers, Vergara