PUBLIC HEARING ON SUCCESS ACADEMY’S SWITCH TO D1 IS THIS THURSDAY (1/8) at PS 20 ANNA SILVER!
We have almost 2300 signatures on our petition with more coming in.
Now we need to stand strong and turn out for the hearing to let SACS, SUNY, and the DoE know that District One is strong, District One is united, and District One says NO THANKS!
Public speaker sign in starts at 5:30. Hearing begins at 6pm.
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Rosie Mendez Addresses the forum at Anna Silver School.
Twenty-four hours before a public meeting on yet another of charter entrepreneur Eva Moskowitz’s machinations — in this case switching districts in which to open up another unwanted Success Academy — the Department of Education (DOE) suddenly announced that the meeting was to be called off.
No reason was given.
Members of Community Education Council 1 simply received word that the meeting was not to be held.
Hard cheese old chap!
Insulted at such cavalier treatment, CEC 1’s fearless President Lisa Donlon decided to hold a public forum in its stead in which members of the Lower East Side community could speak their mind about Moskowitz and her ever expanding charter empire.
This they did. Fervently. Angrily. Passionately.
The forum began with a speech by Lower East Side Councilwoman Rosie Mendez , a fierce supporter of public school in her district. Later in the evening New York State Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, also a strong supporter of public schools, arrived in support of the community.
Somewhere in the middle of the many speakers it was announced that some guy named Cohen from the DOE was there and wanted to explain what happened. He spoke very briefly and in a somewhat penitent tone stated that since the Moskowitz “ charter proposal had been withdrawn for August 2015”, the DOE saw no reason to hold the public meeting.
Cohen did not explain why they waited until twenty four hours before the meeting to announce that.
CEC 1 President Lisa Donlon was quick to point out to that Success Academy had not withdrawn its application.
Speaker after speaker told horror stories about dealing with Success Academy and while there was a sense of relief at the DOE’s announcement, there was no misunderstanding the fact that Moskowitz and her hedge fund backers would be back when they sensed the time was right.
The crowd of about 200 people included parents, principals, and teachers, including a contingent from MORE. It was refreshing to witness such a display of rebellious intelligence and community.
Raginghorseblog 
January 9, 2015 at 2:42 pm
success academy charter schools will have a hard time staffing their schools. Not only are they not opening up any new schools next year, the current schools they have are losing teachers by the groves – teachers running for the hills as teacher retention rates in moskowitch schools are close to 100 percent. Previously, TFA or teach for america closed their New York office down due to lack of applicants. Get the picture here? No one wants to work with slime balls…no one wants to work with a “CEO” of the school who makes 5-800 thousand per year while teachers get a pencil and a bag of balls.