Fw: [epata] Richmond and Oakland mayors question RTTT (again without big space)

["Monty Neill" <monty@fairtest.org>]

Richmond is in George Miller's district, I believe. And the Rep for Oakland 
is also on the House Ed Comm. Monty

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <langlois-rine@comcast.net>
To: <epata@interversity.org>
Sent: Thursday, January 07, 2010 8:23 PM
Subject: [epata] Richmond and Oakland mayors question RTTT (again without 
big space)



At least two California mayors see through the hype. Mayors McLaughlin of 
Richmond and Dellums of Oakland were both in the press recently offering 
their perspectives on Race to the Top (See below).

Mayor McLaughlin (my boss) continues to urge local, state and federal 
policymakers to provide as much support as possible to students and teachers 
in the classroom, and to join her in advocating for policies that will 
address the root causes of gross income inequality in our society.

Best wishes,
Marilyn

Letter to the editor published in the San Francisco Chronicle Jan. 7, 2010:

Wrong-way race

I commend Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums for declining to join nine California 
mayors in jumping on Education Secretary Arne Duncan's Race to the Top 
bandwagon ("Dellums ducks out of mayor's coalition," Chip Johnson, Jan. 5
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/05/BAAB1BDGC4.DTL ).

Parents and dedicated teachers in my community tell me that instead of 
excessive testing and ranking, which Race to the Top calls for, teachers 
need more support to create a positive learning community for all children, 
especially the most vulnerable.

[Race to the Top] Guidelines suggest replacing the entire staff of a 
struggling school. Cities like Richmond that are struggling with crime look 
for ways to give more support to our police officers. We would never 
consider simply replacing all of them.

In both education and crime, the root cause of gross income inequality (the 
most consistent indicator of social ills) must also be addressed. Dellums is 
right to call for federal policies to reduce the broad U.S. wealth gap.

If California applies for competitive Race to the Top funds, it might get 
around $50 per pupil. Another way to get that sum for sure would be to 
discontinue California's high school exit exam, which has been shown to be 
ineffective.

GAYLE McLAUGHLIN

Mayor of Richmond

Read more: 
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/07/ED2A1BE1QS.DTL#ixzz0bwpT2zPH