Back-up Reminder: TODAY- CALL ALL MEMBERS OF WEST CONTRA COSTA SCHOOL BOARD- District to Vote on Defying Exit Exam Law

[Jo Ann Behm <jobehm@behmer.us>]

PLEASE FORWARD EVERYWHERE TO ANYONE WHO CAN HELP OUR HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS!

Help end this reprehensible and supremacist education policy and
premeditated institutional abuse [of power]---the CAHSEE as a condition to
graduate...  Make 4-5 phone calls and join me for a march & rally tomorrow
afternoon in Richmond!

Please phone today, this evening, or early tomorrow urging WCCUSD board
members to vote tomorrow to defy the State over the exit exam on behalf of
their nearly 500 seniors [in their district alone] at risk of losing so
much, being denied diplomas, graduation rights, robbed of the honor and
dignity all have earned over 13 years, to satisfy 225 graduation units,
receiving passing grades in 30-40 courses, 13 specifically required for
graduation!  12,000 hours in school should mean more than 12 hours of
testing.

If West Contra Costa Unified School Board votes to defy the state, other
districts will likely jump on board [as they have done with the Coachella
Unified case against O¹Connell, CDE, SBE et al for total absence of
alternate assessments in other languages for the STAR and CAHSEE....the
Coachella case now has 10 districts and 3 non-profits suing the state...

PLEASE MAKE URGENT CALL TO ALL MEMBERS OF WEST CONTRA COSTA SCHOOL BOARD-
urging them to vote tomorrow to defy state policy on the Exit Exam...almost
500 seniors in the SCCUSD alone otherwise fully qualified & many with over
3.0 GPA¹s, will be denied their hard-earned diplomas, possibly barred from
graduation ceremonies, and forced to abandon college and living wage job
opportunities.  A token Certificates of Completion [in lieu of a diploma] is
meaningless for college or financial aid and will not qualify them for tens
of thousands of jobs, training programs, apprenticeships that require a high
school diploma.

I went the WCCUSD Press Conference sponsored by ?Justice Matters¹ last
Wednesday April 5 [my 26th anniversary] at Lovonya Dejean Middle School &
gave public input the school board¹s special CAHSEE hearing afterward at
5:00 p.m.---then stayed until 9 p.m. to give two more minutes of input
[opposing CAHSEE] during the public comment period at their official WCCUSD
board meeting. 

There will lots more wedding anniversaries for me to celebrate but only one
in a lifetime graduation ceremony for the Class of 2006... so where I needed
to be last Wednesday was no contest.   I will be back in Richmond tomorrow
too and hope others in the Bay Area can join me:

CALL EACH MEMBER OF THE WEST CONTRA COSTA SCHOOL Board and tell them to vote
to protect the graduation/diploma rights and dignity and future access to
scholarships, financial aid, and access to living wage employment  [see
talking points below]

Charles Ramsey:  510- 682-5600
Karen Pfeifer:  510- 526-5367
Karen Fenton:  510-236-8460
Glen Price:  510-528-1315
Dave Brown:  510- 758-7077  [thank Dave, this initiative for civil
disobedience taking a stand for seniors was his idea]

Also, after you make your phone calls please consider joining me and
Richmond High seniors tomorrow [call me 415-613-0600 or 415-897-2426 to
carpool from Marin] heading for Richmond:

April 10    SAVE OUR DIPLOMAS

WHAT:   A MARCH FOR STUDENT RIGHTS TO SAVE OUR DIPLOMAS!
WHEN:   MONDAY APRIL 10TH, 3:45PM IN FRONT OF RICHMOND HIGH (1250 23rd St.)
MARCHING TO:    LOVONYA DEJEAN MIDDLE SCHOOL 3400 MACDONALD AVE., RICHMOND,
CA

NEARLY 500 STUDENTS OF THE WEST CONTRA COSTA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT MAY NOT
RECEIVE THEIR HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA THIS JUNE BECAUSE OF THE CALIFORNIA HIGH
SCHOOL EXIT EXAM... UNLESS YOU COME TAKE A STAND TO SUPPORT THE RESOLUTION
(that will be voted on April 10th) TO AWARD STUDENTS DIPLOMAS REGARDLESS OF
WHETHER THE HAVE PASSED THE EXIT EXAM--SO LONG AS THEY HAVE FULFILLED ALL
THEIR REQUIREMENTS.
 
STUDENTS SAY ENOUGH OF THIS RACIST TEST!
JUSTICE FOR STUDENTS OF COLOR!
JUSTICE FOR IMMIGRANTS!
JUSTICE FOR ALL STUDENTS!


* Research from Harvard, UCLA, UCSB, Stanford, Univ. of MN, AZ State, Ball
State Univ., Univ. of So. Fla, the Rand Corporation, CA Public Policy
Institute, Center on Education Policy, and CA Center for Teaching and
Learning, and many other authoritative and compelling research against high
stakes testing provides an indisputable body of evidence against such
destructive and punitive high stakes testing state policies...but CA
officials have consistently ignored this and recommendations of their own
stakeholders panels and meetings---to push Supt. O¹Connell¹s politicized
CAHSEE forward at any cost.

* High stakes tests for professional licensures/certification such as
physicians, nurses, accountants, attorneys are tolerable [barely] but not
for the longest publicly mandated educational requirement in the world---13
years, 12,000 hours, 2,000 days of public school, nearly half of child's
life on the planet persevering, meeting all requirements in K-12.

* High stakes tests described above are for licensure, not to take away the
diploma that took 4, 6, 8 years of schooling to earn.  Higher education has
no high stakes test required to be awarded a diploma...why should public
K-12 education, the longest mandated public education requirement and
undertaking in a lifetime.

* WCCUSD seniors did not get one dime of the $20 million appropriated by the
STATE at the last minute to help this year¹s seniors pass the CAHSEE.  It
would have been $600 each but the funds only got to one-third of all seniors
in the state who needed the CAHSEE remedial help...how is this equitable or
fair?

* CAHSEE 2 subjects v.  Graduation requirements to pass 13 mandatory courses
incl sciences, social studies, economics, world and U.S. History,
geography, civics, visual or performing arts or foreign languages, etc

* CAHSEE scrantron tells more ? v. opinions and grades from 30-40 high
school teachers who spend 90-180 days or more with students

* CAHSEE cold-turkey/surprise topic essay v. real life requiring references,
drafts, edits, word processor to be minimally acceptable
        CAHSEE no computers or calculators v. real life jobs/college require
technology

* STAR has 1 alternate assessments [CAPA] and 2 more under development [the
one for 2% flex modified grade level students with disabilities & STS
[Standards-based Tests in Spanish] vs.  zero alternate assessments for
CAHSEE [persistent state violation of NCLB & IDEA]

* At least 16 states with exit exams have alternatives for all students,
such as consideration for grades in courses tested [AZ & WA], use of
computerized versions [MA, VA, NC, SC], tests in multiple languages [NY],
alternate tests, acceptable substitute tests

* CA has one of the narrowest, most restrictive test
accommodation/modifications policies in the U.S.

* Nine states have a waiver or appeal process for all students [not just
special ed]

* Plus, multiple, gross universal design flaws reported in Chpt 2 of last
HumRRO-Human Resources Research Organization, independent contractor
headquartered in Alexandria, VA to analysis the CAHSEE :