By: wfpritchard on 2/17/10
Hi Chris,

All due respect to you, as we've known one another for years and I admire your passion on issues important to you, I have a different perspective on the current mayoral control issue regarding city schools. I'd like to say that it is a down right shame a night dedicated to thanking hardworking Democrats was derailed by the threat of a union picket line. It would bave been unreasonable to ask any Democrat to cross that line to attend the dinner as many of them are union members and most of them support broader union goals and objectives. The decision to picket was yet another example of the self serving actions of the unions that have a stranglehold on our City School District.

The action reminds me of the most objectionable experience I had during my 6+ years on City Council. In 1994, then Mayor Johnson proposed a significant cut in the City's aid to the District in an attempt to balance the former's budget. This was done after discussions on ways to collaboratively cut expenses broke down. During the Council's hearings on the District's budget a dozen or so City School children were paraded in front of us, led by some parents but also some of their teachers. This image of such gross manipulation of these children, assisted by their teachers, has stayed with me to this day and is one that defines my opposition to RTA and NYSUT.

From negotiable classroom size in their contract(where principle gets trumped by negotiating tactics) to annual salary increases across the board in the School District that go beyond what most taxpaying men and women in this community receive - the time has come to do things differently.

There's much more to say on this topic. However, for now I'll end by pointing out my new home town - Penfield. When I sold my home in the city at the end of last year not a single family with young children walked through it. Yet it had four bedrooms and was certainly large enough for a family. But, like my former next door neighbors with young children who moved to Brighton just months before we moved, the families who did not walk through our home were sending a message - their children will not attend city schools.

The issue of mayoral control is a complicated one and deserves a community debate. I am confident that once legislation is drafted the Mayor will reach out and listen to city residents for their feedback. In fact he has already promised to do so. He's holding back until there is something to discuss and yes even debate.

So, the at times vitriolic response by some who oppose the idea of consolidation makes me wonder if they are just opposed to anything but the status quo? Seems to me that the way things have been done for decades when it comes to the City School District is how we got into this mess in the first place.

Bill Pritchard
Penfield, NY.

By: admin on 2/17/10
(from the Co-Owner & Publisher of the Smugtown Beacon, Christopher J. Wilmot)

Dear Bill:

First, the feeling is mutual. As you say, we've known each other for years, and I've always respected your commitment to public service. In addition, I simply find you to be a nice guy.

Secondly, there is no love lost between me and public employees unions. They are bankrupting New York State. We have far too many public employees in the 'Crumbling' Empire State, at all levels of government. While I am particularly fond of teachers, since I was fortunate enough to be a student under many competent and charming educators over the years, NYSUT and the RTA should never protect the lousy teachers who somehow become tenured, and god forbid, administrators in school districts. We in NY State are top heavy with school administration, often to the detriment of taxpayers, teachers, and especially students.

My objection to Mayoral control is two fold: First, it is anti-democratic (Why should suburban and rural New Yorkers retain the right to vote for their board's of education, and, their school budgets, while Duffy, Morelle, Gantt, and others would take away City taxpayer's right to even vote for a school board? Already in the "Big-5 Districts" in NY State, city residents are not allowed to vote on their school budget. Outrageous!!).

Secondly, Mayoral control doesn't work, where it's been tried. If you haven't already, please read the lead article at the top of today's (2/17/10) D&C Local Section. U. of R. Professor David Hursh makes a convincing case, stating, "In holding up New York City as a successful example [of Mayoral control], the Mayor cites improvements on NY City's standardized tests...but the tests are manipulated and over-emphasized."

Bill, all of us who are really honest about urban education know that the actual academic culprit, robbing city school kids of a good education is multi-generational poverty, and a lack of urban jobs. I'm sorry, my friend, but until Mayor Duffy and Maggie Brooks have the guts to address intractable urban poverty, and begin to move toward real integration, President Obama himself couldn't even turn around the fortunes of our troubled urban youth. Thank you.

Christopher J. Wilmot
Pittsford, NY

By: Howard on 2/20/10
Dear Mr. Pritchard, I am a parent of two children who attend school in the Rochester City School District (RCSD) --- one in elementary and one in high school. Unlike you and your “former next door neighbors” --- my family has no interest in moving to Penfield, Brighton or any other lily-white suburban town.

As you know, huge numbers of families in Rochester do not have access to necessary financial resources to just pick up and move to suburbia (even if they were interested in doing so). Thus, my advice would be for you, your former neighbors and others, to stay in Penfield and Brighton; worry about your schools, and leave us to worry about ours. If you and/or other suburbanites have genuine desires to help those of us who choose or have no choice but to stay in Rochester, and send our children to RCSD schools --- then it is critically important to check with us to find out our beliefs and perspectives regarding ways in which you may be able to assist.

Surely, you can’t imagine a situation in which Rochesterians, particularly those of us who are parents of the majority of RCSD students, would dare come to Penfield or Brighton, and attempt to dictate to the parents and citizens what they should or should not support relative to their schools or any other issue.

Unlike you, many of us are absolutely not “confident that the mayor will reach out and listen to city residents for [our] feedback.” In fact, we are unequivocally convinced that had Duffy really been interested in our feedback --- he would have sought it before even going public with his illogical ideas concerning mayoral control or so-called “consolidation.”

Considering the overall dysfunction and crisis within the RCSD, and within predominantly black and brown urban school districts across the U. S., which has existed for decades, if not centuries --- surely you don’t believe that RCSD parents “are just opposed to anything but the status quo?” The bottom line is that we will work with unions and anyone else who is willing to help defeat the ludicrous idea that the majority of Rochester’s citizens are willing to give up our hard-won, blood-stained right to vote for local representatives on the Rochester Board of Education --- and instead blindly support a dictatorial system of mayoral control, which, relative to producing significant, widespread, sustainable academic improvement ---.hasn’t been successful (in any form) anywhere that it’s been tried in the United States of America.

Finally, as it relates to bringing about significant, permanent, progressive change and improvement within the RCSD --- many parents and other community members have real, concrete ideas (based on authentic experience and knowledge). Once we have forced the mayor and his political henchmen and women to take suffrage and disenfranchisement off of the drawing board --- we are willing and anxious to come to the decision-making table as equal partners --- period.

Howard Eagle,
Rochester, New York

By: AlanForCongress on 3/18/10
15K per student per year and the lowest student to teacher ratio in the county? Why then can't the RCSD graduate over 50% of the students? I don't like Duffy's idea one bit. It would seem obvious to me that the previous direction the RCSD was taking is not working either. What about vouchers?

How about getting teachers from private industry that doesn’t have a teaching certificate or the college education mandate to teach in NYS? With 25 years proven experience in Information Technology I could teach kids to program. At least they would be employable once they leave high school.

What about business skills? Same source of teachers I'd take 75K a year and know a whole lot of people who would do the same to teach kids construction, salesmanship, troubleshooting, culinary arts, etc..

Basically we put them in uniforms, make em park the bad ass kicks and the I pod at the door and confiscate the cell phones and teach them real life skills. One big change though we do a little career profiling then offer them choices based on the results. If you don't want one of the choics then it's the military or the street.

Alan Aszkler
Fairport, New York