Jackson Jambalaya

With the new changes (not using graduating rates) school administrators will easily manipulate their rankings to avoid "the trigger trap."

Progressive my ass.

My fallback position is always the same: A school fails primarily because of the students and the students are failures for a number of reasons. Chief among them are their parents for a variety of reasons. So, will Cecil or anyone else please tell me how the failed parents of failing children can TAKE OVER anything (other than a sidewalk or parking lot of an apartment building).

And since that law has passed, how many parents have pulled the "trigger"? Look at the process, and you will see nothing but Nancy, Cecil and the status-quo's finger prints on that process....One that is designed to protect them and their cronies.

Anytime I see ANYTHING Cecil Brown puts out in public my shit detector goes on full alert.

Cecil isn't part of the solution. He's part of the problem.

Two things he left out:

(1) Even after three straight years of failing, MDE still has final approval over any charter conversion request. If MDE doesn't want any charters in Mississippi, they just have to refuse any request. No appeals, no voter accountability.

(2) MDE can grant schools that have failed for three straight years an extra year to improve their scores. If they pop above F for even one year, the clock resets. That means a school could fail for 9 out of 11 years and still not be eligible for charter conversion.

This education reform gun has one helluva safety on the Parent Trigger.

3 more years and it will be Bye-bye Cecil Brown.

I see three deal breakers in the current law. First, the three year failing requirement. There are lousy schools that still keep from failing under the current measuring criteria, and if they can simply move up a notch in any one year the clock resets. Second, why should a parent have to wait three years to take his child out of a failing school? Ridiculous - parents shouldn't have to wait three months to move their children to a better school, and the official status of the lousy school shouldn't matter. Finally, Rep. Brown tries to make it sound easy to gather 50% of the students' parents and get them to agree on something. It's hard to get 50% of the parents to agree on how long the lunch hour should be, and it will be next to impossible to gather up that many parents to begin the process of turning a failing school into a charter. These schools are full of students with working parents, many single moms who barely have time keeping the laundry done and helping with homework. They're supposed to abandon their families to rebuild the school? Rep. Brown and the rest of the education establishment knows how ridiculous this requirement is. I'm sure they put it into the law to insure that no school ever converts and the status quo is protected. We need a new charter school law that will make the poor schools and the departments that cover for them accountable to the parents whose children are at risk. Bill Billingsley

It's sort of like saying:

We have a government grocery store, and you must pay to get food there no matter how poor the quality.

We WILL NOT let you take your money to any private grocery store (unless you want to pay twice).

But, if:

(1) The government decided to declare the government grocery store "chronically underperforming" based on easily-manipulated standards; AND

(2) All the customers of the government grocery store got together and held a majority vote to oust the current manager, even though the current manager would do everything in his power to keep them disorganized; AND

(3) The government used its unreviewable discretion to approve the removal of the current manager; AND

(4) The customers could then find some independent contractor to come in and manage the existing grocery store facility,

THEN, and only then, could you have an alternative to the government grocery story. (Unless you want to pay twice, of course.)

Nice job, Cecil. You're certainly not the embodiment of what is holding Mississippi back, or anything.

"You're certainly not the embodiment of what is holding Mississippi back, or anything."

giggle, snort, chuckle, hahahahahaha

8:08 nailed it, especially that last line.

Don't forget, city schools are run by city government, and that means the Democrats. Just want to give credit for the outstanding educational achievements of Jackson utes to whom it belongs ;-)

sorry 1:08 nailed it.

My problem with Rep. Brown's comments is that I believe he knows it would be impossible to get 50% of the parents in a school to act. If we as a society can't get more than approximately 37% of the electorate to vote in off-year federal elections, and barely pushing 50% in presidential elections, how does someone like Cecil Brown look us in the eye and assert that a 50% parent request rate to convert a school is reasonable?

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0781453.html

3:36; how do you conclude that 'city schools are run by city government'? While there may be an assortment of unholy alliances at play, City Hall has nothing to do with 'running' public schools.

This is a measure supported by the Tea Party and GOP in other states.

There is zero basis to believe that 50% is an impossible target level.

I suspect those commenting have never attended a PTA meeting or been a home room mother. That is where the initiative would start and those would be the parents reaching out to other parents.

Were Rep. Brown a Republican writing the very same words, I expect all of those above would be supporting the parent trigger and applauding his comments.

While there may be an assortment of unholy alliances at play, City Hall has nothing to do with 'running' public schools.

But here in Jackson Shadow the Mayor rules -- really lords over -- the school board member selection process and politics most certainly is a key and central consideration.

The Mayor and city don't run JPS but the puppets selected do.

This is a measure supported by the Tea Party and GOP in other states.

Bullshit. Conservatives DO NOT support forcing children to attend failing public schools for THREE CONSECUTIVE YEARS before a solution, however meager and superficial, can be pursued.

Wrong, 7:39. If Phil Bryant or Tate Reeves or Dwight D. Eisenhower himself wrote this drivel I'd still be against it. This should not be a partisan or racial argument. This is about children and parents getting a chance to better themselves through quality educational opportunities. BB

I don't know how Mr. Cecil Pompous Ass Brown can look any parent with kids in public schools directly in the eye and tell them that they have to wait 3 years. What a fool!!!!!

The definition of a failing school or school district should be left up to the parent. I am sure many parents believe that the public school of their district is a failure, it doesn't meet their standards. They should be able to take that money to ANY school of their choice. If such a program existed, children in our state would become THE MOST educated in America. Does ANYONE disagree?

R. Mabus

If the current law actually functions as Cecil Brown implies that it does, then why has the State only had one charter school created under that law since the law’s inception? Ray Mabus is right. If a majority of the parents want to convert their children’s school into a charter school, go ahead. And they shouldn't have to wait three years until their children have already moved (or are about to move) to a different school. If 50% of parents sign a petition for a charter school, the petition should become effective the very next school year if not immediately. Without such a provision, the current charter school law is no more than a roadblock disguised as an opportunity.

Do any of you know the average time it takes to convert a failing school into a charter and what's involved?

What percentage of parents do you think is the appropriate number?

And, do you think that percentage of parents will immediately agree about what kind of charter school program they adopt? Do you think they will set up the mechanics overnight?

If the majority of the named percentage of parents decide they want to covert your public school into an immersion charter, are you going to be happy with that?

And, do you know what will be required of you as a parent? You will have to participate as a condition of your child's attendance.

My grandchildren go to a charter school in another state. It's in a city with several charters at every level.

Be careful what you wish for.

My grandchildren go to a charter school in another state. It's in a city with several charters at every level.

How many times are you going to remind us? You obviously can't answer any of the questions you've posed from direct experience in Mississippi.

Close you eyes and imagine a group of, say, 50 parents of Jackson public school students. Any school. Any age group. Any ward.

Now, with your eyes still closed, imagine that group coming together in a meeting, being there on time, keeping quiet, being orderly, electing a chair, adopting an agenda and setting a subsequent meeting. And imagine ten percent of them even knowing the purpose of schools.

Now, open your eyes and realize what a fool you've been for going through this exercise.

9:38 am, can you answer any of the questions I posed? I actually can, but you wouldn't believe me. You have to do this for yourself to be persuaded.

However charter schools is done here is no skin off my back.

My children are grown and gone and live elsewhere. Though I did send them both to private schools in Mississippi from pre-school on.

While I've never been a public school teacher at the elementary, middle school or high school , I've had extensive professional experience with education systems in 3 states, including this one, where one get to see the " products" of local public and private school systems.

And, then there was successfully educating my own children and being an involved parent. And, even in the private schools here , being involved was necessary or else they would not have done so well at the universities they attended or in life in general.

So, what's your basis of knowledge on this subject?

Cecil Brown’s article is PURE POLITICS. Why?

1. Cecil Brown’s district has been completely redrawn and is much more conservative. To get reelected Cecil must start saying things that sound moderate but which do not actually result in any conservative policies being enacted.

2. Cecil knows that the charter school bill that was defeated in the House Education committee by twisting the arms of some Republicans from Desoto County will eventually pass. He must give some cover to his Democrat friends to keep opposing it without being cast as obstructionist liberals. Thus, we get an “I’m for charter schools – just not that kind of charter schools” refrain. And what is his proof? That he is for the current charter school law.

Isn’t the answer obvious? Just call his bluff. Enact the new law without repealing the old law. Oh, and while the House is doing that, eliminate the three year requirement in the old law. Of course, he’ll say he and the other Democrats must vote against anything that contains the new law. Also, he’ll vote against removing the three year requirement. So what? That will still take away most of the political cover he and his liberal friends are trying to give themselves.

The comes the next step - taking away Cecil’s seat in the 2015 legislative elections.

FYI, Cecil is working the local newspapers.

"Parent Trigger Law"
Meridian newspaper
http://www.wtok.com/home/headlines/Parent-Trigger-Law-166699446.html