tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40870250688902473952024-03-05T04:59:52.572-08:00Marie CorfieldMother, artist, teacher, education activist, former NJ State Legislature candidate, that teacher in that Chris Christie You Tube video, writing about education, poverty, politics, women's issues, social justice and living in a world gone strange. Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.comBlogger179125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-68698230156354028472022-05-07T09:48:00.000-07:002022-05-07T09:49:23.173-07:00Abortion: Only For Those Who Need It!<p>NOTE: This post contains my opinions on Catholicism based on my experiences as a child in the 1960's and 70's. Take what you like and leave the rest. I mean no disrespect to anyone who is happy with their faith, but the Supreme Court leak has shaken me to my core and dredged up some old demons. </p><p><br /></p><p>In 1977 I was a senior in high school. Roe v. Wade was four years old, and the Catholic Church was hopping mad. At the end of that school year I would finally break free from the prison I had been in for twelve years. But they weren't done with me yet.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLz_w5-7fguKI3RM8zop2jzH3e3XNh8l8idJiL_XDomQuAF0w6ORKxnGmLRTpZi1_aslzLOenKj7Ajgh3xRkVeRCYTIJUdtNAiTWN7j1l6Ij5MQvYdDrF93vtfk6jVYl_3ZmPa350GHlATXK4SXHUkQIcGAPM8OyVfp7FLm1YSLP8SMZwlCF91X-HkQ/s562/StSebastian.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="562" data-original-width="252" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLz_w5-7fguKI3RM8zop2jzH3e3XNh8l8idJiL_XDomQuAF0w6ORKxnGmLRTpZi1_aslzLOenKj7Ajgh3xRkVeRCYTIJUdtNAiTWN7j1l6Ij5MQvYdDrF93vtfk6jVYl_3ZmPa350GHlATXK4SXHUkQIcGAPM8OyVfp7FLm1YSLP8SMZwlCF91X-HkQ/w142-h320/StSebastian.jpeg" width="142" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>For those twelve years, all us good little Catholic girls and boys were marched to church on the first Friday of every month and for various religious holidays to pray for our miserable souls and beg God's forgiveness. I had stopped going to church on Sundays when I was eleven. There were no adults at home to force me, but of course it was near impossible to get out of those perp walks with the rest of my sinning classmates and <strike>armed guards</strike> nuns keeping watch. We weren't angels, but it was drilled into our heads that we were definitely sinners. After all, we were <i>born</i> in sin thanks to some chick with an apple who took some bad advice from a talking snake and convinced the guy from whose rib she was created to go along with her. We were screwed from the start, and only the grace of God would heal us. But the nuns never explained exactly what that meant. They called it a 'mystery'. All I knew is that I couldn't find it, and by the time I was a senior, I didn't give a shit. Drugs and alcohol were making me feel a whole lot better than the Act of Contrition ever could. God hadn't helped me all the times I cried out in the night, dutifully said my prayers at mass or a zillion Hail Marys after confession, or brought in all the change from my piggy bank to 'buy' starving babies 'over there' in some nameless country while my own refrigerator sat practically empty. <span style="text-align: center;">No, grace seemed to only be attainable by </span><i>real</i> saints who were burned at the stake or crucified or shot through with arrows like poor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Sebastian_(Mantegna)" target="_blank">St. Sebastian</a> over there.</p><p>I remember the priests at mass telling us to pray for all the unborn children. <i>"Wait a minute, what about </i><u style="font-style: italic;">me</u><i>? Who's praying for </i><u style="font-style: italic;">me</u><i>?" </i>Surely the nuns knew my home life was a train wreck, they must have known how bad it was. Why weren't they praying for <i>me</i>? <i>Why weren't they helping me!</i>? I guess all of my problems were my own fault because, you know, <i>ORIGINAL SIN!!!</i></p><p>So, on a particular spring day in 1977, our church decided to hold a special 'pro-life' mass that all the students in my high school were supposed to attend. I was told by my art teacher (who was one of the coolest people I knew at the time and was just following orders), that senior AP art students were to create anti-abortion signs. My hackles went up. Until that point, none of my friends ever had to make that extremely difficult choice (that I knew of), but there were a couple of scares. And <i>no</i> one—especially a bunch of men and women hiding behind robes of hypocrisy—was going to force me to take a public stand against something as profound as bodily autonomy. What to do? </p><p>The words came to me pretty quickly. I grabbed a piece of poster board and a marker and wrote:</p><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;"><b>Abortion:</b></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;"><b>Only for those who need it!</b></span></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I don't remember going to the mass or what happened to that poster, but I do remember two of my very good friends refused to attend. They were suspended and their parents were called. <i>Heathens!</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Over the years, I tried a few times to return to the church because my connection with my higher power was, and still is, very strong, but each time, I was met with acute hypocrisy. I tried to focus on that relationship, but the priest sex abuse scandal was the final straw. To be fair, there are many Christian organizations that do tremendous work helping others, and with <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2022/05/06/americas-abortion-quandary/?utm_source=AdaptiveMailer&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=REL%20-%2022-05-06%20Abortion%20IMMEDIATE%20RELEASE&org=982&lvl=100&ite=9938&lea=2090660&ctr=0&par=1&trk=a0D3j000011EccsEAC" target="_blank">the majority of Americans supporting abortion</a>, it's safe to say that not every Christian wants to return to the days of Hester Prynne. Along the way I found one priest—<i>one</i>—at a particular church who made a point of saying at the end of every mass, this is the church of Jesus Christ, and all are welcome whether straight, gay, married, divorce, black, white, yellow, pink or blue. That's what Jesus would have said. That is true Christianity.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I think about my own daughter at the dawn of her adult life, and I am grateful that we live in a state (NJ) that respects the right of women to make their own healthcare decisions. I think about the women—and men—I know who have had to make that terribly difficult decision because they were not in a space to raise a child. And while the Christian <strike>right</strike> wrong touts it as the killing of a human being, isn't it also a death—albeit a slow, painful one—to bring a human being into a world where they will not—for whatever reason—be able to live a full, productive life?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">While I was born into a loving household, that safety and security dissolved very quickly and life was dark and scary for many years. There should have been social services to help me and my siblings, but there weren't. And now, almost 50 years later, the wealthiest nation in the history of this planet <i>still</i> does not have an adequate social safety net to help women, children and families living on the edge because a very vocal minority has gamed the system in their favor and those in the majority seem to be afraid to offend them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/roe-wade-abortion-maternal-mortality-supreme-court?token=3NQs_xWnyghE5pL67IxIbJYkloekwlY1" target="_blank">The US already leads the world's wealthiest nations in maternal mortalit</a>y, and the states most likely to ban abortion are also least likely to provide adequate, affordable healthcare, including contraception, pre- and postnatal and infant/child healthcare. Pregnancy is a 50-50 operation, yet women are blamed. We—like Eve—are the original sinners and we must pay while men still get their Viagra. As Abraham Lincoln <a href="https://www.nps.gov/liho/learn/historyculture/housedivided.htm#:~:text=%22A%20house%20divided%20against%20itself,thing%2C%20or%20all%20the%20other." target="_blank">said</a> in his famous anti-slavery speech, "A house divided against itself cannot stand... this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free."</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">If this Supreme Court decision goes through, this nation will have come full circle. The slavery of all women will be legal. Forced childbirth is slavery. Period.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6zeAU8mTJ4vWai2wtpVdDZ44kk0rS45gz8w3GbVowh9hDUg-Wj48Qcw4aRfSWG8Am_o9tVuGM9DhrDj94t-NRyLsChhhV_X5vCNLB3PEMthUlDHMFNzbRBReuyt6qHhByb5UdjVql-DooGyV2QLq4RcoHgpsGNtt64cpLlcjlpEu6CnGabWVCZe5HmQ/s4032/D116E283-09BB-40FA-8335-71CFD919719D.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6zeAU8mTJ4vWai2wtpVdDZ44kk0rS45gz8w3GbVowh9hDUg-Wj48Qcw4aRfSWG8Am_o9tVuGM9DhrDj94t-NRyLsChhhV_X5vCNLB3PEMthUlDHMFNzbRBReuyt6qHhByb5UdjVql-DooGyV2QLq4RcoHgpsGNtt64cpLlcjlpEu6CnGabWVCZe5HmQ/s320/D116E283-09BB-40FA-8335-71CFD919719D.heic" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Artwork by me</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Mad? Me too. <p></p><h1 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;"><i>VOTE!</i></span></h1><p></p><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><p></p><p></p><p></p>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-12974075543614720152021-09-11T06:32:00.000-07:002021-09-11T06:32:11.034-07:00Remembering All That Was Lost On 9/11<div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsfR39jEQsE7V0M7iI9mV1PIO0l9dp__O-kUjgrdMx7-fW3J5cv9rIevYdlc0Lz9KpwMcjyZnBTWin93lIpD-ZR539Islrc4VreKkfY3dfHjbueqCshHfuYI_J27ibzErdaRUbkdKdpxkP/s691/41484370_10217516677816733_5267152174449688576_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="691" data-original-width="690" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsfR39jEQsE7V0M7iI9mV1PIO0l9dp__O-kUjgrdMx7-fW3J5cv9rIevYdlc0Lz9KpwMcjyZnBTWin93lIpD-ZR539Islrc4VreKkfY3dfHjbueqCshHfuYI_J27ibzErdaRUbkdKdpxkP/s320/41484370_10217516677816733_5267152174449688576_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo credit: Me taken in the mid 80's</td></tr></tbody></table>Twenty years ago today the world as we knew it came to a screeching halt. It also marked the very first day of my teaching career. Six years ago today I wrote the <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2015/09/remembering-911.html" target="_blank">this piece</a>. At the time, public employees—especially teachers—were under attack from both Republicans AND some Democrats, and my family was preparing to say our final farewells to my cousin, Tony, a retired firefighter who was there for me SO many times in my life when I needed strength and wisdom, so my emotions were raw.</div><br />I repost this piece every year on 9/11 as a tribute to the world I knew as a child and as an adult, to all the lives lost and to those whose job it is to protect so that others might live. <br /><br />I probably won't be watching any of the TV coverage. That day altered my DNA so I feel it in every fiber of my being. For all those who were directly affected by that day, I wish you peace and comfort on this day and every day.<br /></span><p><br /></p>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-19801995910369460192021-08-31T06:06:00.000-07:002021-08-31T06:06:54.318-07:00Four Back-to-School Lessons From COVID Teaching<span style="font-size: medium;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW-WyiGcidNFQ3NtGHdIwuq0Rigw6BO5gnefgpnBXAEYQhUvNFLNLHqJyfhInQgrRsgABH8QbGitL6fdrWqtLyOQMGqCQt3GX6awVT1pFJ_gPiUEj_V7VgeaUo7w8L5KtHUVTbHpauRc58/s2048/aaron-blanco-tejedor-VBe9zj-JHBs-unsplash.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1356" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW-WyiGcidNFQ3NtGHdIwuq0Rigw6BO5gnefgpnBXAEYQhUvNFLNLHqJyfhInQgrRsgABH8QbGitL6fdrWqtLyOQMGqCQt3GX6awVT1pFJ_gPiUEj_V7VgeaUo7w8L5KtHUVTbHpauRc58/s320/aaron-blanco-tejedor-VBe9zj-JHBs-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="_1K5LX _1ByhS" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 13px; overflow: hidden; padding: 6px 0px 6px 10px; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@healing_photographer?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s;">Aarón Blanco Tejedor</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/teacher-stress?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s;">Unsplash</a></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">June 18, 2021 was the last day of school for my district for the 2020-2021 school year. As is my school's tradition, the entire staff gathered on the blacktop to wave goodbye to our students as their busses rolled out. I cried—not sentimental tears. No, these were tears of release—of grief, pain, anxiety, depression and anger. The long nightmare of COVID teaching was finally over! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Or so I thought...</div></span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Come September, I will be starting my 20th year in this profession, and this past school year was by far the worst. Worse than <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2015/09/remembering-911.html" target="_blank">my very first day of teaching which was September 11, 2001</a>, worse than Super Storm Sandy, <i>way</i> worse than mold outbreaks, rodent infestations or working without a contract. I’m a pretty tough cookie, but I won’t lie, it broke me. I spent many days in tears. I told myself I couldn’t do it, I was horrible, a failure. And it wasn't just me. <i>So many</i> of my colleagues—including veteran teachers—were going through the exact same thing. <br /><br />It wasn’t the actual teaching that got me. When I’m in front of students, I’m in my zone. It was everything else: technology, software, constant schedule/rule/procedure changes, switching and combining cohorts, muting/unmuting, trying to keep 5-year-olds socially distanced, endless Zoom meetings, endless paperwork, AWOL students, the tsunami of emails that flooded my inbox, and the seemingly endless stream of information that I was required to ingest, digest and regurgitate into one or more parts of my instructional day. I struggled to sleep and woke up to immediate panic attacks. There were days when ice cream calmed my nerves. I became an expert at baking—and eating—chocolate chip cookies. The Dave Matthews song, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeExyu_tdOA" target="_blank"><i>Too Much</i></a>, was a constant ear worm: </span></div><blockquote><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Straight in, suck up and go,<br />Cool it, swallow, swallow<br />Breathe deep, take it all<br />It comes cheap<br />Push it through the doors<br />Because in between the lines<br />I'm gonna pack more lines<br />So I can get in...</i></span></blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-size: large;"><i>I eat too much<br />I drink too much<br />I want too much</i></span> </blockquote><p></p><blockquote><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Too much </i></span></blockquote><p></p><blockquote></blockquote><div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Imagine having a day and a half to figure out how to ride a bike upside down and blindfolded, then having to teach it to 400 students under the age of ten when you haven't really mastered it yourself. That's what March 2020 - June 2021 was like. Oh, and I got COVID-19 and was pretty sick for a few months, so there's that.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />This was just my experience. All over the country, hundreds of thousands of educators were going through their own kind of COVID hell. I read their stories and tried to write about them, but it was all I could do to get to work on time and not crawl into bed before the sun went down, let alone try to blog. But over the summer I had some time to rest, recharge and reflect. Here—in no particular order—are my four takeaways from teaching in a pandemic: </span></div><div><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>1. Unions are vital to the survival of the 99%</b> <br /></span></span><span>Healthcare workers, first responders, retail and other frontline workers (including teachers) have been fried, burned out and </span><i>way</i><span> overworked during COVID, but educators took an enormous amount of heat because we dared to </span>demand<span> safe teaching and learning conditions in order to return to in-person instruction (imagine that?). History is rife with stories of workers who suffered and died because of unsafe working conditions and individual workers who tried and failed to improve their conditions, but it's also filled with stories of workers who organized, unionized and rallied to make changes for the better. That's what teachers all over the country did (some were more successful than others) because they know that better teaching conditions lead to better learning conditions, which leads me to... </span></span></div><div><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>2. Biden's infrastructure bill is critical to the advancement of the poor and middle class</b><br /></span></span><span><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/31/politics/infrastructure-proposal-biden-explainer/index.html" target="_blank">The bill</a> includes $100 billion for school upgrades from Pre-K to college, and $100 billion for expanded broadband access. As The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health </span><a href="https://www.jhsph.edu/covid-19/articles/is-it-safe-to-reopen-u-s-schools-during-the-covid19-pandemic.html" target="_blank">states on its COVID-19 webpage</a><span>, "Schools can be made safe, but they are not inherently safe." So far, in the 21st Century, the United States has not only landed rovers on Mars, but flown drones there, created self driving cars, and cell phones that can manage almost every aspect of our daily lives</span><i>. </i><span>But we send too many children to schools that rival those of third-world nations. In the wealthiest nation on earth, public schools are far too often the place where students go for stability, including things like food, heat, medical care and emotional security, and far too many schools are sorely lacking in all of them. </span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>Every single school in this country should be structurally sound, clean, safe, have fully operational windows, water fountains, toilets, cafeterias and HVAC systems, with the emphasis on </span><i><u>AC</u></i><span>. I don't care that you went to school without air conditioning at the dawn of time so kids today should just suck it up. I did, too. And you know what? It was </span><i><u>awful</u></i><span>—and it still </span><i><u>is</u></i><span> awful! Two years ago, the temperature in my room one September day was almost 92º: </span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRvUbFabHXJmw2DBb-Hf5OE3JeN5ycyMBc87HMPPZ3dJ8lbF-Srnlqtgzqb0lqFKf0Eo-wF0QdJIQ2mb9C8n-sN7_cBqps-YyGZDLY2OBxHSDP1f048h6Gqiyq-FF1tMpt3tLz1TL0pPe/s2048/31020040-BC68-40ED-9AA3-295736670843.heic" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRvUbFabHXJmw2DBb-Hf5OE3JeN5ycyMBc87HMPPZ3dJ8lbF-Srnlqtgzqb0lqFKf0Eo-wF0QdJIQ2mb9C8n-sN7_cBqps-YyGZDLY2OBxHSDP1f048h6Gqiyq-FF1tMpt3tLz1TL0pPe/s320/31020040-BC68-40ED-9AA3-295736670843.heic" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Actual picture I took of my portable thermostat, 9/19</td></tr></tbody></table></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>I dare you to try to teach kids anything meaningful in those conditions, especially when some are coming from third floor walkups that are no better. When the health department issues heat advisories and air quality warnings and there's no air conditioning, teaching and learning are compromised. So is health. And we know that </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/posteverything/wp/2018/01/08/public-school-buildings-are-falling-apart-and-students-are-suffering-for-it/" target="_blank">low-income students and students of color in urban neighborhoods are more likely to attend schools that are infrastructurally compromised.</a><span> The pictures below, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/PatersonEa/status/1403078969642078211" target="_blank">posted on Twitter</a><span> by the Paterson Education Association, show the conditions in one of the district's schools as staff were being forced to return to in-person instruction last year. It's the fifth largest district in New Jersey, one of the wealthiest states in the US that also happens to have </span><a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/education" target="_blank">the best public education system</a><span> in the country. If this is the best, can you imagine the worst?</span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzThWUWpA3VVTFNz_I19lSYQVHE61csYyKNWow9MLrv-w4FH3CcNOtbY3-CM219PeGdVeRPRFU5KVrxFqjIagN-FIfkWf4177lIg-YhnOUo-XlhpXh4frbAq4K_Q6g0QsN-yPi7ds1iCbe/s1659/E3phOufXEAQA_wc.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1659" data-original-width="1242" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzThWUWpA3VVTFNz_I19lSYQVHE61csYyKNWow9MLrv-w4FH3CcNOtbY3-CM219PeGdVeRPRFU5KVrxFqjIagN-FIfkWf4177lIg-YhnOUo-XlhpXh4frbAq4K_Q6g0QsN-yPi7ds1iCbe/s320/E3phOufXEAQA_wc.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsqtG-k_NHu2HiLw0Kc72YFFJgd7dm86EC9JNu4PC737bd6eOThj05SmQ3F1omPS1A0OvZePCJc9y6k0lzYlZbh-ValbZYIBphDSrKfYZaWEMUMI-_Ts_0XJ9OntlS-X-noppiUoY-43Ju/s1242/E3phOueWEAk1lYh.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1242" data-original-width="1242" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsqtG-k_NHu2HiLw0Kc72YFFJgd7dm86EC9JNu4PC737bd6eOThj05SmQ3F1omPS1A0OvZePCJc9y6k0lzYlZbh-ValbZYIBphDSrKfYZaWEMUMI-_Ts_0XJ9OntlS-X-noppiUoY-43Ju/s320/E3phOueWEAk1lYh.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vGUl84qF0HulzGQn12U6IponQ5HDQd9BQIlBPTqQ4ZIP1H6hfSlhJ0fTHSZR_EjzXB4wBtYqLCDrV_uqM6gydBLOaveGkUpQGtukzVkPHWmXH1OYrqLysRxlBtHz4tO9Dozkc76lO7F3/s1637/E3phOsVWQAIyjCJ.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1637" data-original-width="1242" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vGUl84qF0HulzGQn12U6IponQ5HDQd9BQIlBPTqQ4ZIP1H6hfSlhJ0fTHSZR_EjzXB4wBtYqLCDrV_uqM6gydBLOaveGkUpQGtukzVkPHWmXH1OYrqLysRxlBtHz4tO9Dozkc76lO7F3/s320/E3phOsVWQAIyjCJ.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD0dGa2ArtBfGVVgrEdakYmh8WUldnF4s72NVEhXmgW7wPeoQKD6SW3lVRKYQ8pw9Yo2378o_aTWWN116pVUZOuHMhyphenhyphenHBVnXHjbtIDy0pNbaKDTV6WMZVjx3q7I2IY2eJzS1T8L5IJrS5t/s2048/E3phOumWEAM7Dp_.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD0dGa2ArtBfGVVgrEdakYmh8WUldnF4s72NVEhXmgW7wPeoQKD6SW3lVRKYQ8pw9Yo2378o_aTWWN116pVUZOuHMhyphenhyphenHBVnXHjbtIDy0pNbaKDTV6WMZVjx3q7I2IY2eJzS1T8L5IJrS5t/s320/E3phOumWEAM7Dp_.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>Despite a tough fight by the PEA to keep schools closed during the height of the pandemic, they reopened to </span><a href="https://www.tapinto.net/towns/paterson/sections/education/articles/opinion-paterson-schools-threaten-students-staff-health" target="_blank">this</a><span>:</span></span></div></div><blockquote><i><span style="font-size: medium;">As 900 of Paterson’s 29,000 students came back to school buildings this week, they were greeted with dead rodents, cockroaches, standing water, mold, broken air conditioners, and filth. One student classroom even had a visit from a pigeon. Bathrooms were missing paper products, soap, and have disgusting toilets that were not cleaned since March of 2020. Many windows won’t open. The sinks either clog, spout brown water, or both. Unfortunately, the district lacks the will to change anything, sending a destructive message to students that they are not worth better conditions.</span></i></blockquote><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Earlier this year, Dr. Chris Carroll, Pediatric Critical Care Physician at Connecticut Children's Medical Center, <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisCarrollMD/status/1407307071788359691" target="_blank">tweeted an important thread</a> on racism, COVID-19 and children with asthma: </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ9WIXo-FVv0E43o5YnkblkUXr0eZpayZaSO2k2DFDZeELlamRGI-ahCfV-in1wujv7Pn8eZ6wDfRBcUBc9SSGuZ1PCYdEtZY_NitKU0CK10r1pK91W0yG94Pz1AuTfPgxqM8wWGi58J53/s601/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+10.55.55+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="305" data-original-width="601" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ9WIXo-FVv0E43o5YnkblkUXr0eZpayZaSO2k2DFDZeELlamRGI-ahCfV-in1wujv7Pn8eZ6wDfRBcUBc9SSGuZ1PCYdEtZY_NitKU0CK10r1pK91W0yG94Pz1AuTfPgxqM8wWGi58J53/w429-h217/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+10.55.55+PM.png" width="429" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvUz26dCJWAS9y_VpsknaZgeZcOZGESIST9qcuFAqDf2BGPI7EG4HWspgEU5fvw48YLTb0oIjdTevgL48VOYWZUA-wuSA55jbWkmtFPR7_wWN7g5clHhDu8rHsmow2e5P_DztPINVEYNQf/s608/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+10.58.03+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="603" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvUz26dCJWAS9y_VpsknaZgeZcOZGESIST9qcuFAqDf2BGPI7EG4HWspgEU5fvw48YLTb0oIjdTevgL48VOYWZUA-wuSA55jbWkmtFPR7_wWN7g5clHhDu8rHsmow2e5P_DztPINVEYNQf/w422-h425/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+10.58.03+PM.png" width="422" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3GmfPj4noB9RQpxMVZstR2qAwFHq6TRmcA4JjzCJnCv5PLr-I3zFc9AINtn7gSS_2EviceBcy-7yCaIt57i7OkLYFysjJoisdnfzmt8Xds8d01g_YoQ6HMOe5aS88JRXCjT_rvpiDEP8d/s603/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+11.00.41+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="451" data-original-width="603" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3GmfPj4noB9RQpxMVZstR2qAwFHq6TRmcA4JjzCJnCv5PLr-I3zFc9AINtn7gSS_2EviceBcy-7yCaIt57i7OkLYFysjJoisdnfzmt8Xds8d01g_YoQ6HMOe5aS88JRXCjT_rvpiDEP8d/w420-h314/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+11.00.41+PM.png" width="420" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLMdMJuwthJ5NbTKQFjNZQqhFgceUsCWUSLOK9wmDgc9zLmydyinyy_T3TauQuAx8GfPnRnb9E8Oc7luGvZENBhW7RMzWlBJks-3F2r9GAs_FgjEtdShkRAe_3gIoejRFnRYoill0RzZlo/s602/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+11.02.03+PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="140" data-original-width="602" height="99" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLMdMJuwthJ5NbTKQFjNZQqhFgceUsCWUSLOK9wmDgc9zLmydyinyy_T3TauQuAx8GfPnRnb9E8Oc7luGvZENBhW7RMzWlBJks-3F2r9GAs_FgjEtdShkRAe_3gIoejRFnRYoill0RzZlo/w428-h99/Screen+Shot+2021-06-22+at+11.02.03+PM.png" width="428" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sorry for the crop on the graph. It looks the same on Twitter.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: medium;">Healthy teachers teach better; healthy kids learn better and have better attendance records. If the United States can afford to give tax breaks to the uber-wealthy, we can afford to make every school clean, safe and healthy. </span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>3. It should be pretty clear now that distance learning is no match for in-person instruction</b></span><br />During the height of pandemic learning, teachers all over the country reported the same thing: handfuls of virtual students that either never showed up for class or did so sporadically. Some never turned on their camera or would hand in no work. Others played with pets or toys, watched TV, ate, danced or otherwise fooled around. I had my own experiences with all of this. As frustrating as it was, it was also completely age-appropriate—at least at my level (K-4). Spend ten minutes in an elementary classroom and you will see <i>a lot</i> of energy and movement. They're <i>little kids</i> who should <i><u>never</u></i> be forced to sit in front of a computer for that many hours a day! If it was exhausting for us, can you imagine how awful it was for them?</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>I tried to keep a soft spot for</span> parents who were as stressed and burned out as I was. Many just couldn't adequately monitor their child's learning while working from home. Other students did just fine. Those high-achievers can learn anything, anywhere, but they are not in the majority. The lesson here is that children—young children—need the structure and support that only brick-and-mortar schools give (I can't say the same for high school because I've never taught at that level). It's not just about the academics. Half of what we teach is social skills: how to get along with each other, how to function in society, how to share and take turns. And learning together helps students learn better. There were a couple of times when I forgot to end a Zoom class and I came back a little while later to find my students hanging out together, talking, laughing, sharing artwork they had done. Those kids were craving social interaction. Education is not just about academics; it's a huge part of a child's social/emotional development.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #cc0000;">4. Put your oxygen mask on first</b></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Every good teacher knows that some days we just aren't on our game. For whatever reason things didn't go as we hoped. We are taught to reflect, regroup and prepare to meet the next day with a renewed sense of purpose and lessons learned. This is how I'm heading into this coming school year. We are not back to normal yet, and things could change on a dime, so I have to be ready. But no matter what happens, my students will always come second. Yes, you read that right, <i><u>second</u></i>—after me. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Flight attendants always teach us to put our oxygen mask on <u><i>first</i></u> before we help others. If we're not breathing, we're no good to anyone. If I am stressed, sleep-deprived, anxious or panicked, I am no good to my students. I cannot and will not go through another school year like last year so I made a vow to myself that this year I will take care of myself first and foremost. If not, I will wind up smack-dab in the middle of that bowl of chocolate chip cookie dough. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Things I have promised myself for the coming school year:</span></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;">I will put my health and wellbeing first. This includes working a reasonable number of hours every day and giving myself weekends off.</span></li><li>I will provide my students with a safe, nurturing environment in which to express themselves creatively. If I achieve that, nothing else matters.</li><li>I will work <u><i>verrrrry</i></u> hard at not sweating the small stuff. PS: it's all small stuff.</li></ul></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">To all my education friends: I wish you a healthy, happy and productive school year. To all my parent and advocate friends: I wish the same to you, and I thank you for all you do every day to help students and teachers succeed.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Oh yea, and if you haven't done so already, get yer damned shot! Vaccines save lives. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></div><div><br /></div></span>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-85839329691023612402021-03-18T14:32:00.000-07:002021-03-18T14:32:25.002-07:00A Letter To My Students<p><br /></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjai7KymFhslQJw9GpXJDfb506vKw-4LU0HsseOK9soLWk60PbLG2OELyztYkSjUd4HBjiBW9Gp5ZANK-l4VKIa8UKnvEt1m-5Y04guzdIVogdJj_6ARakNTfegjDAOFtWiM_CdXDxCRjw0/s2048/sigmund-TJxotQTUr8o-unsplash.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1472" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjai7KymFhslQJw9GpXJDfb506vKw-4LU0HsseOK9soLWk60PbLG2OELyztYkSjUd4HBjiBW9Gp5ZANK-l4VKIa8UKnvEt1m-5Y04guzdIVogdJj_6ARakNTfegjDAOFtWiM_CdXDxCRjw0/s320/sigmund-TJxotQTUr8o-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span face="-apple-system, system-ui, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; text-align: start; white-space: nowrap;">Photo by </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/@sigmund?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Sigmund</a><span face="-apple-system, system-ui, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; text-align: start; white-space: nowrap;"> on </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/children-school-covid?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Unsplash</a></span></td></tr></tbody></table>Dear Students,<p></p><p>Oh how I have missed you! I've missed your noise and your chaos and your smiles which are hidden behind masks, and your laughter and your hard work, and even your frustrations and tears. I have missed your creativity and how you never cease to amaze me with it. I have missed your fearlessness and your fearfulness, your good choices and your not-so-good ones. I have missed you because without you, there is no school. </p><p>Many people who don't know much about what you and I do together call you 'lost'. But, you are not lost. Far from it! All of you who have diligently showed up on Zoom every day have been working so hard learning how to use computers and software in ways we teachers never imagined. You've been taking more responsibility for your learning, working independently, and learning from this global experience! </p><p>Some of you have really struggled with this, and I want you to know that you are not alone. So many other students and, yes, even teachers (myself included), are struggling too. This is not easy work we are doing. It's really hard sitting in front of a computer for hours on end, not being able to talk to friends or eat together in the cafeteria or enjoy assemblies or play at recess.</p><p>And to those of you who have not been with us, you are not 'lost' either. You have always been in our hearts. You have always been on our minds. We have always been searching for you, and hoping to see your face once again. We've been reaching out to you. We've been trying our best to find you and bring you back. We know you've been home, we know you've been struggling. We know your families have been struggling, too. This is all <u><i>so hard</i></u>. </p><p>But you will survive—all of you will. In fact, you will do more than just survive. You will thrive because we, your teachers, will help you, because <u><i>that's our job</i></u>.</p><p>We will not let you fall. We will hold you up and lift you up and support you in any way we can. And just like any child who has suffered from a debilitating, devastating disease—one so terrible that they couldn't even work with a tutor—you <i>will</i> come back. And you <i>will</i> be strong and you <i>will</i> be healthy and you <i>will</i> be knowledgeable. You will know how to read and write and do math. You will know how to make art and music and play sports. You will know how to speak another language—maybe not fluently, but you will learn. You will know how to do all the things you hope and dream to do. You just have to believe in yourself, believe that we will help you, and be willing to put in the effort.</p><p>You know, for a long time, those people who don't know much about what we do have been trying to stuff your heads with all sorts of information that maybe you're just not ready for yet. They want you to read and write and do math and take tests before many of you even know how to tie your shoes! That's crazy! Maybe the one good thing that will come out of this pandemic is that they will stop trying to force-feed you and just let us, your teachers, meet you where you are. </p><p>We are almost done with this crazy school year, and many of you will be coming back to school before the end of this month! I am so excited! We will get through this together. There will be laughter, fun, excitement and learning. You will see your friends and share your experiences, and little by little, we will leave that nasty Covid-19 in the dust. If you're feeling stressed, anxious or worried, know that you are not alone and you will have a lot of support. You are stronger than you realize and braver than you think. And I am so proud of you!</p><p>Hugs,</p><p>Ms. Corfield</p>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-80595337460143520572021-03-13T07:30:00.000-08:002021-03-13T07:30:13.446-08:00The 'New' Normal Post-Covid - Are YOU Ready?<blockquote><h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i>If you put a frog in boiling water, it will jump out. If you put a frog in tepid water and slowly raise the heat, it will boil to death. - Unknown</i></span></h3><p><span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; font-size: large; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLTU-0L7YrmDRqhF26i-DUimDM6fsLGNdPjbtNKMzEzsSEwoklN32fOOF-s2C9V94YU2mdmZCmIKYvu5CirZyfFG2Y1QPCVcdxFz4yZduYWwZDvko0JTUjg6SQ7clI1cqLi1XGmurgU8_a/s2048/nick-fewings-ioNNsLBO8hE-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLTU-0L7YrmDRqhF26i-DUimDM6fsLGNdPjbtNKMzEzsSEwoklN32fOOF-s2C9V94YU2mdmZCmIKYvu5CirZyfFG2Y1QPCVcdxFz4yZduYWwZDvko0JTUjg6SQ7clI1cqLi1XGmurgU8_a/s320/nick-fewings-ioNNsLBO8hE-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Nick Fewings</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Covid-19 has been raising the heat on all of us for a year. Stress, depression and anxiety have paralyzed millions. Personally, I've battled all three. </span></span></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>As someone who lived much of my life in a state of chronic stress, I very quickly became that frog again and didn't realize it until I was almost ready to be served as an appetizer. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I was sleeping either too much or too little, watching the same ten pounds turn my bathroom scale into a seesaw, a</span><span>nd despite having almost twenty years of teaching experience under my belt, there were days when I just burst into tears because virtual teaching is </span><u><b><span>just. so. hard</span></b></u><span><b>.</b> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span>Even though I had Covid-19 and its accompanying brain fog, I've also had what Ellen Cushing, </span></span><span><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/03/what-pandemic-doing-our-brains/618221/" target="_blank">writing in </a><i><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/03/what-pandemic-doing-our-brains/618221/" target="_blank">The Atlantic</a>, </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">calls </span>the Covid "fog of forgetting" that has crept into our brains simply from living in quasi-isolation for so long:</span></span></p><blockquote><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><i>Everywhere I turn, the fog of forgetting has crept in. A friend of mine recently confessed that the morning routine he’d comfortably maintained for a decade—wake up before 7, shower, dress, get on the subway—now feels unimaginable on a literal level: He cannot put himself back there. Another has forgotten how to tie a tie. A co-worker isn’t sure her toddler remembers what it’s like to go shopping in a store...</i></span> </span></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><span>“We’re all walking around with some mild cognitive impairment,” said Mike Yassa, a neuroscientist at UC Irvine. “Based on everything we know about the brain, two of the things that are really good for it are physical activity and novelty. A thing that’s very bad for it is chronic and perpetual stress.” Living through a pandemic—even for those who are doing so in relative comfort—“is exposing people to microdoses of unpredictable stress all the time,” <span style="background-color: white;">said Georgia Tech neuroscientist Tina Franklin, </span>whose research has shown that stress changes the brain regions that control executive function, learning, and memory.</span></i> </span></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><span>That stress doesn’t necessarily feel like a panic attack or a bender or a sleepless night, though of course it can. Sometimes it feels like nothing at all. <b>“It’s like a heaviness, like you’re waking up to more of the same, and it’s never going to change,”</b> [Community College Professor Jen] George told me, when I asked what her pandemic anxiety felt like. “Like wading through something thicker than water. Maybe a tar pit.” She misses the sound of voices.</span></i> </span></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><span>“We’re trapped in our dollhouses,” said Rachel Kowert, a research psychologist from Ottawa, who studies video games. “It’s just about surviving, not thriving. No one is working at their highest capacity.” </span></i><i><span>(emphasis mine)</span></i></span></blockquote></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I've only written six blog posts in the past year. My brain just hasn't been functioning the way it used to. I've been too tired, too overwhelmed. I would start to write, but lose interest. Couldn't put a complete thought together. All I wanted to do was get in bed and binge-watch... anything. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">But, life is changing! The winter of our discontent will soon be over. With vaccines rolling out in ever-increasing numbers, we will soon be dining indoors, gathering in large crowds—and hugging! A return to normal? No. There will never be a 'return'; only a moving forward to create the new normal. And that process is bound to stir up all sorts of new fears as well. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">In her March 9th <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/09/weve-adjusted-pandemic-life-now-we-face-anxiety-leaving-it-behind/" target="_blank">opinion piece</a> in <i>The Washington Post</i>, Dr. Lucy McBride calls this FONO—Fear of Normal:</span></p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/coronavirus-trauma-how-to-cope_n_5ea6fab7c5b6ad9bacf331e1"></a></span><blockquote><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/coronavirus-trauma-how-to-cope_n_5ea6fab7c5b6ad9bacf331e1">Trauma</a> has a way of doing that to us. We’ve lost more than 500,000 lives in this country alone. We’ve suffered unprecedented economic, social and emotional upheaval. And regardless of our individual pandemic experience, each of us has faced some level of loss, grief and despair...</span></i></blockquote><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><blockquote><i>But now that we’ve adjusted to pandemic life — with its inherent struggle, stress, <a href="https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/05/ce-corner-isolation">social isolation</a>, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/01/health/kids-pandemic-wall-wellness/index.html">emotional toll</a> and hidden silver linings — it’s understandable to experience emotional whiplash even as trauma recedes.</i></blockquote></span><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">When patients come to her with these symptoms, she helps them assemble a toolkit to help them cope which can include "breathing techniques, guided meditation, regular exercise, prioritizing sleep and spending time in nature, all of which tamp down stress hormones." </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>My district is going back to full in-person teaching and learning later this month. I sometimes catch myself wondering, </span><span>Have I forgotten how to teach? </span><span>Will I be able to do it? Yes, I tell myself, you will! It's like riding a bicycle. But while my mind knows this, my emotions are sending up flares and I have to pay attention. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Instead of trying to fight the stress, anxiety and fear, I leaned in. I didn't berate myself for sleeping more, scrolling through Facebook more, watching more TV, and yes, eating more. But, I also started to read books more, meditate more and spend more time in nature, and slowly but surely, the fog has started to lift. Pounds can be lost, exercise can be done, activity can ramp up in a time that is right and gentle. There is no stopwatch, no one is breathing down my neck to 'fix' everything that went 'wrong' in this past year—except me.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">While flinging open all our doors and having big parties just as the warm weather arrives sure sounds a lot more exciting and fun than meditating, we must remember that those tools help build and support the infrastructure that is our physical and emotional wellbeing, without which, we are running on pure adrenaline. And once that adrenaline is gone, we are left feeling shaky and weak. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">So, ease into this new normal. Be gentle with yourself in the coming months. As tragic as this past year has been, we are being given an opportunity to redefine what we want our futures to be. How will you write yours?</span></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpEdq41-VFC4Nv3FUDRgapNuPdB-FfiwvWaVLaIFPw_OQLOa5n7OWmkvQc2TwwJ0WYQtrxHlA2fPHsceFczxnt-yWzSw_2l_JOBCZqeGJQ4j007yQ9Sl_-snEuw2X5tCl44ONBZfYPSw74/s2048/alfred-schrock-be_O81_9z_8-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1678" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpEdq41-VFC4Nv3FUDRgapNuPdB-FfiwvWaVLaIFPw_OQLOa5n7OWmkvQc2TwwJ0WYQtrxHlA2fPHsceFczxnt-yWzSw_2l_JOBCZqeGJQ4j007yQ9Sl_-snEuw2X5tCl44ONBZfYPSw74/s320/alfred-schrock-be_O81_9z_8-unsplash.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Credit: Alfred Schrock</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-13379960968516624212021-01-22T16:19:00.000-08:002021-01-22T16:19:27.123-08:00Implosion! New Jersey's Fitting Trump Sendoff<p><span style="font-size: medium;">New Jersey's largest newspaper, <i>The Star Ledger</i>, is reporting that Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, is set for implosion on February 17th. After that date, all four of Trump's AC casinos—Trump Taj Mahal, Trump Plaza, Trump World's Fair and Trump Marina—will officially be no more.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO1jSsYW2yn6NItdi0p0PAEVc1CfuerF2O9MSUSHiQWRlFNVnR2qhOgmDtaF9AyDXyTW1tzgKUgjmuhmmXmmPry1tj8C9iSkkm7dEMQwwFyOD5hU9LDZkKfZjivQ5xXSbwWRD7pq2k41tv/s940/u-laza.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="940" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO1jSsYW2yn6NItdi0p0PAEVc1CfuerF2O9MSUSHiQWRlFNVnR2qhOgmDtaF9AyDXyTW1tzgKUgjmuhmmXmmPry1tj8C9iSkkm7dEMQwwFyOD5hU9LDZkKfZjivQ5xXSbwWRD7pq2k41tv/s320/u-laza.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption"><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Trump Plaza one month before it closed. So classy. (Photo | Dan McQuade)<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold;">ATLANTIC CITY</span></p><p class="maintitle" style="background-color: white; color: #9a3d3d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 1.6em; line-height: 1.1em; margin: 0px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_6" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Casino implosion set for Feb. 17</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span style="font-weight: bold; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Katie Kausch</span><span style="font-style: italic; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> For The Star-Ledger</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">After one final delay, Trump Plaza has a new implosion date, Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small announced.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The implosion of the long-shuttered casino is now set for Feb. 17 at 9 a.m., Small said at a Thursday morning press conference. It was pushed back from a Jan. 29 implosion date earlier this month.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The delay was caused by a large concrete foundation that was originally unknown to demolition teams, licensing and inspection director Darryl Finch said at the press conference.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Pre-implosion demolition work remains underway, including drilling holes inside the structure to place dynamite, Finch said.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The implosion will impact a several- block area, and will include evacuation zones and areas where people are not allowed outside their buildings, Rick Bianchi with the Atlantic City Police Department said. Details on which blocks and buildings will be affected are not yet finalized.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">An auction to push the button at the implosion fell apart after owner Carl Icahn objected, citing safety concerns, auctioneer Joseph Bodnar, owner of Bodnar’s Auction, told NJ Advance Media.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Meant to be a fundraiser to benefit the</span><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> local Boys & Girls Club of Atlantic City, Icahn has pledged to donate $174,000 to the organization to replace money lost in the cancellation.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Icahn Enterprises, run by conservative billionaire Icahn, took ownership of the building in 2016 after Donald Trump divested from the property.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Since the cancellation of the fundraiser, Hard Rock and Oceans casinos have each donated five rooms, to be auctioned off for overnight stays before winners can watch from a prime viewing slot at One Atlantic to benefit the organization, Small said. Donations for the Boys & Girls Club are also being collected.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">For those who can’t bid on a room, Bader Field will be used as a viewing area, Small said. Watchers will be charged for parking and asked to watch from the safety of their cars.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">“The city can’t be naive to think that no one will show up. It has nothing to do with the former president. If it was any building in the city being imploded, people will come,” Small said.</span></p><p class="abody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Georgia; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin: 10px 15px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 10px;"><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><u><b>The casino has been an eyesore in Atlantic City for years</b></u>, with discussions of an implosion dating to at least 2017. The casino shuttered in 2014 after about 30 years in business.</span></p><div><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Contrary to <a href="https://www.phillymag.com/city/2015/08/16/donald-trump-atlantic-city-empire/" target="_blank">what Trump may have led you to believe</a>, he didn't <u><b><i>sell</i></b> </u>his Atlantic City holdings; he lost them. Bigly. He filed for bankruptcy not once, not twice, not three times, but <b><u><i>four times</i></u></b>: in 1991, 2004, 2009 and 2014. Surprised? You shouldn't be. What is happening on February 17th is a fitting metaphor for how he left our country: broken, battered, bashed and deeply in debt.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I've written about Atlantic City before (<a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2014/08/revel-without-cause.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2017/11/greetings-from-atlantic-city-farewell.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2016/04/njea-must-stand-with-all-unions-in.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2016/04/update-njea-must-stand-with-atlantic.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2015/03/chris-christie-governor-wack-mole.html" target="_blank">here</a> to name a few). And I've been there many times. Despite a poverty rate over 40%, it has a <i><u>lot</u></i> going for it: some of the best restaurants I've ever eaten in (The Knife and Fork, Docks Oyster House, Buddahkan, Los Amigos, Angelos Fairmount Tavern) a beautiful beach, a fabulous retail outlet center, and some very nice hotels. But for reasons beyond my bandwidth of fiscal understanding, 43 years of gambling revenue could never get it out from under its bad rap of a honky-tonk, low-life town where more dreams are lost than won, and that's devastatingly unfair to all the hard-working people who live and work there.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So, it's no surprise that the last vestiges of Donald Trump are a failed coup attempt on our nation's capitol and the implosion of one of his long-shuttered properties in the second poorest city in New Jersey.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">If I didn't have to work that day, I'd be there in Atlantic City cheering on the implosion and the dream that will—hopefully—arise from its ashes.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Buh-bye, Donnie. Can't say we'll miss ya.</span></p><div><span class="Fid_4" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Note: All emphasis mine.</i></span></span></div>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-37399309866681497002020-08-21T09:52:00.000-07:002020-08-21T09:52:29.945-07:00An Open Letter to Gov. Murphy on School ReopeningDear Gov. Murphy,<div><br /></div><div>Within the next two weeks, school districts across New Jersey will be reopening in some way, shape or form. And while every district's plans will, no doubt, look different, one thing is the same from High Point to Cape May: this is a hot mess. </div><div><br /></div><div>In March, you gave us a clear directive to prepare for 100% virtual teaching until the end of that month. Educators across the state rose to the challenge as you very sensibly guided us through the rest of the school year one month at a time, checking the spread of the Coronavirus and its impact on our state's population. During that time, we were able to hone our skills and fine-tune our plans to deliver the very best virtual curriculum we could. We were proud of what we were able to accomplish in such a short amount of time, and I personally was so proud to count <i><u>my</u></i> governor, whom I supported from the get-go, right up there with Gov. Andrew Cuomo as one who took this pandemic seriously and took decisive steps to contain it despite the heavy criticism you faced. You did it right and your efforts paid off. </div><div><br /></div><div>But as spring rolled into summer, the numbers started to rise—<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/08/09/study-coronavirus-cases-children-rise-sharply-second-half-july-with-more-than-97000-infections/">especially in childre</a>n. Just last week, the <i>Philadelphia Inquirer</i> <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/health/coronavirus/covid-19-school-reopen-transmission-new-jersey-cherry-hill-20200812.html" target="_blank">reported</a> that "children and teenagers account for a growing share of coronavirus cases in Camden and Gloucester Counties, mirroring a national — and ominous — trend as young people rebel against social distancing rules, health experts say." </div><div><br /></div><div>Over the past few months, administrators, boards of education, community members and staff in every district have been working diligently on reopening plans (I was proud to serve on my district's reopening committee), the logistics of which often resembling a Rube Goldberg concoction. But now, with mere days until students arrive, many districts are ditching those plans and going 100% virtual—mine included—leaving parents and staff in the lurch as we all scramble to figure out how we are going to make it work in our homes and in our classrooms. Many districts have cited any or all of the following as their main stumbling blocks to reopening:</div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Back ordered PPEs</li><li>Inadequate HVAC systems and lack of air conditioning in many schools</li><li>Many classrooms without windows or operable windows </li><li>Mold</li><li>Inadequate classroom space to properly social distance</li><li>Students having to eat in their classrooms</li><li>Inability to social distance students on busses</li><li>Staff members who are at high risk requesting medical leaves</li><li>Shortage of substitutes to fill those positions</li><li>Proper accommodations for students with special needs</li><li>Available staff to properly clean buildings at the end of the day</li><li>Inability of staff to clean equipment and certain classrooms in between classes</li></ul><div>All of that costs money—which is in chronically short supply in many districts. Add to that the staggering cost of providing electronic devices to every student for home use, and a hybrid model just doesn't make sense. Where is this money supposed to come from? This is arguably the most expensive unfunded mandate ever imposed on schools.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>Parents need to go back to work, children need to go back to school, teachers <u><i>want</i></u> to go back to school, but we cannot let the abject failure of leadership in Washington force us into reopening for in-person instruction when it is clearly not safe to do so. Yes, there will be learning loss, but what is the alternative? Is spreading this virus and risking the lives of more people worth that cost? If restaurants cannot be open for indoor dining, if gyms are still closed, if many businesses are still operating remotely, how can you, in good conscience, expect schools to reopen for in-person learning? Have you ever been in a kindergarten or preschool classroom? Do you know how much time teachers spend teaching those little ones about personal space, personal hygiene and keeping their hands to themselves? As you did in the spring, you must put the health and welfare of our students and staff above all else. New Jersey has come so far in beating back this menace. You can't ease up.</div><div><br /></div><div>I am urging you to order all New Jersey schools to go to virtual instruction for at least the first two months of the school year with a plan to reassess at the end of October. During that time, I ask that you work with the state board of education to develop SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timely) goals, based on CDC recommendations, for every district to ensure we are doing everything we can to protect the health of our students and staff. </div><div><br /></div><div>Please, don't let New Jersey slide backwards. We can't afford to mess this up.</div><div><br /></div><div>Respectfully,</div><div><br /></div><div>Marie</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-37263771501630713262020-04-23T08:14:00.001-07:002020-04-23T08:14:21.838-07:00Strange Days Indeed Pt. 2 — How Big Is Your Button?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b>Some reflections on life in these strange new times from someone who's lived through a few of her own</b></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">You can buy one of Hicks' books by clicking on the links throughout this post.</span></td></tr>
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<i style="color: #073763; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">These are my thoughts and feelings; this is my experience. Take what you like and leave the rest. I mean no judgment on you or your beliefs. This is just what works for me.</span></i></h3>
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<span style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">In <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2020/04/strange-days-indeed-pt-1.html" target="_blank">Part 1</a> I talked about my grandparents, who raised me, and how their generation survived not only the Spanish Influenza, but the Great Depression and two World Wars—without Zoom meetings, cell phones, social media, Netflix, drive-by birthdays, or anything else that's helping us get through "these difficult times".</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sure, it's easy to wax nostalgic and think the entire country was united around the leaders of the day, everyone working together for the common good, but that would be too perfect. Yes, <a href="http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/depwwii/depress/" target="_blank">there was opposition</a>, but it wasn't screaming in your face in real time, 24/7/365. Many people were simply too busy trying to survive.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Oh how life has changed. With the sheer volume of information now available at the tap of a button, I feel like one of those kids in Willy Wonka's chocolate factory who couldn't resist all the temptation surrounding them until they were consumed by it. And who's to blame? Me, of course.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I have a big button. And I've allowed it to be pushed pretty hard over the years. Politics, war, injustice, Taylor Ham vs.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">pork roll</span><span style="font-size: large;"> (it's a Jersey thing)—you name it, I can sound off on it. And the more I react, the bigger the button, the easier it is to push, and the more stress, anxiety and fear grow inside me. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">There's <i><u>a lot</u></i> going on right now that is so tempting to dive into, and boy-oh-boy have I dove! But, what has it gotten me? Nuthin. Oh sure, it feels really good in the moment when I'm tweeting snarky remarks at politicians </span><span style="font-size: large;">or proving my moral certitude to </span><span style="font-size: large;">Internet trolls. But what does it do for my overall health and well-being? For the greater good? What energy am I sending out to my little corner of the universe? That I am afraid. I'm stuck in the vicious cycle of fear and my negative reaction to fear, which produces more fear. I'm stuck in what Buddhism calls <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sa%E1%B9%83s%C4%81ra_(Buddhism)" target="_blank">Samsara</a>, </span><span style="font-size: large;">the infinitely repeating cycle of birth, misery, and death.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We all have a button. It doesn't have to be something as all-encompassing as the state of the world right now. It could be your neighbor who doesn't pick up after their dog, your overly-critical boss, a family member or that noise your car keeps making that you have no money to fix. Whatever it is, your reaction to it either increases or decreases the size of your button and your overall emotional state. And it does something else: because you're generating so much negative energy, negative energy finds its way to <u><i>you</i></u>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, what to do? Start by acknowledging its existence. All that energy is there for a reason. What's it trying to say to you? What does it want from you? Why do these persons, places or things set you off? What if it was turned around to positive energy? What could you do with <i>that</i>? I grew up in a very dysfunctional and sometimes dangerous household. When things got really loud and scary, I shut down emotionally and hide—completely normal reactions for a child. But as an adult, I reacted that way to situations that were adverse, but weren't necessarily life threatening, because my ten-year-old mind was still running the show. I had to acknowledge all the hard work that kid did to keep me alive, and I had to let her know she didn't have to be in charge anymore. However, that little girl taught me an invaluable skill: how to calmly walk away from certain highly-charged situations. It's a skill for which I'm eternally grateful.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This doesn't mean that I don't get angry. Far from it! I'm a human being, and I care deeply about what's happening in the world right now. It's how I choose to react that keeps my button from growing. So, here's what I'm practicing:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">Limiting my exposure to televised news. I read more than I watch. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Disengaging with people on social media who are clearly button-pushers. That doesn't mean that I won't point out a factual error or a flaw in thinking, but it does mean that I won't react in ways that increase the size of my button, especially because there are people out there who get <i><u>paid</u></i> to push it! And if the conversation gets too heated, I can choose to walk away. Remember, it's the second person who starts an argument.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Breathing. It's a simple, involuntary act that is so important in keeping us calm and centered. I do a simple breathing meditation first thing in the morning, and if I feel anxiety coming on, I stop what I'm doing, close my eyes and breathe into the feelings until they subside. There are so many great breathing meditations out there. Find one that works for you.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Praying for people with whom I disagree or whose words or actions have caused pain or suffering. I'm not religious, but I do believe in a power greater than ourselves, and that sending good thoughts about someone into the universe can help them <i>and </i>me. Every great religion and spiritual teacher espouses love for all mankind as the fundamental goal of humanity. It's not easy, but I've found it to be very healing.</span></li>
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<span style="font-size: large;">No matter the energy source that fuels our button, it will continue to grow until we make a conscious decision to change. It's not always easy, and it does take time, so be gentle with yourself. If you fall off that wagon (and we all do), just get back on again with no shame or blame. Otherwise you're just pushing your own button.</span><br />
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<br />Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-24804892399888572212020-04-16T06:19:00.002-07:002020-04-16T06:19:51.620-07:00When School Reopens<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-size: large;">This post is in response to education 'reformer', Michael Petrilli's April 6th op-ed in the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/06/schools-should-consider-keeping-kids-same-grade-this-fall/#comments-wrapper" target="_blank">Washington Post</a></span></i></h2>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">All across this country—and around the world—students, parents and educators are writing their own chapter in this unprecedented time in human history. With barely a moment’s notice, educators created digital platforms to deliver instruction through the rest of the school year, and perhaps beyond. Parents, many of whom are now working from home or are unemployed, have been tasked with supervising their child’s instruction, while the students themselves are doing their best to absorb, process and retain all they are learning while the very real and tangible uncertainties of social distancing, health, finances and safety swirl around them. Many not only have no parental supervision, but are not engaged in learning at all due to language barriers and/or a lack of technology or Internet access.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This platform was not subjected to the rigorous analysis, data collection and punitive consequences that the education ‘reform’ movement has imposed on us over the past 20 years. Our students had an immediate need and we met it. As University of Georgia Professors Stephanie Jones and Hilary Hughes <a href="https://www.ajc.com/blog/get-schooled/opinion-this-not-home-schooling-distance-learning-online-schooling/b9rNnK77eyVLhsRMhaqZwL/">describe it</a>, “</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It is not distance learning. It is not online schooling.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> There are philosophies and research guiding those ways of teaching and learning... What we are doing right now is something different. So, let's call this what it is: COVID-19 Schooling; or better yet, Teaching and Learning in COVID-19.”</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">When school finally does reopen either this school year or next, educators will face a whole host of challenges both with their students and the system at large. For certain, there will be gaps in learning, some greater than others depending on the amount of support and stability in a student’s home. Schools themselves may look different. We just don’t know what the economic impact of the Coronavirus will be on budgets, many of which have been slashed to the bone due to education ‘reform’. So, while Mr. Petrillli calls for large numbers of students to be retained even for part of the year, some districts simply may not have enough money to retain current staff, let alone hire more.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">And while I agree with him that re-establishing routines and addressing the social and emotional needs of students must come first, there is no perfunctory timetable for <a href="https://casel.org/what-is-sel/">Social and Emotional Learning</a>. It happens all day, every day in every school, every year. It is the foundation of all good teaching and learning, and it ebbs and flows with student needs. And with the likelihood that a number of students will be returning with psychological issues ranging from mild anxiety to full-blown post-traumatic stress disorder, we are going to have to practice enormous amounts of it because </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">no amount of standardized testing, 'rigor', evaluations or other punitive measures will restore lost learning if students are not emotionally able to learn</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">No doubt </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">researchers will spend years studying the COVID-19 student cohort as they continue their education. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">So, what should be our goals moving forward? Do we simply play catch-up and restart that hamster wheel of teaching to the test? Or do we hit the reset button and add more of what’s developmentally appropriate like choice, creativity, play and experimentation into the school day? Twenty years of education ‘reform’ have turned children and educators from human ‘beings’ into human ‘doings.’ And with the</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2020/02/the-fight-for-our-children.html">alarming rise in the number of teen suicides</a> and <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/freedom-learn/201001/the-decline-play-and-rise-in-childrens-mental-disorders">children of increasingly younger ages being treated for anxiety and depression</a>, do we want that to continue? What if we </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">finally create educational environments that meet children where they are and help them move forward at a pace that’s right for them?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">We may have no other choice. Student needs may demand it. Educators and administrators in each district should assess what worked and what didn’t during their COVID-19 Schooling and develop a plan that works for them. If standardized testing is resumed in the 2020-2021 school year, it should not be used as a punitive measure against students, teachers or schools. Let it be exactly what it is: a snapshot of student ability on one test, on one day out of the year. In fact, this would be the perfect time to re-evaluate the entire concept. But, whatever does happen, K-12 educators should be the first voices that are heard—not politicians, lobbyists, billionaires, or think-tankers. No one—except parents—knows our students better than we do. We built the damned plane, we should be the ones flying it.</span><span style="color: #1d2129; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">New feature in my blog: At the end of each post, I will now be posting links to books that have inspired, changed and informed me. Click on the link to purchase.</span> </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Want to learn how ordinary people just like you have fought back against the education 'reform' movement? Check out Diane Ravitch's latest book:</i></span></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">From one of the foremost authorities on education and the history of education in the United States, "whistleblower extraordinaire" (</b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><i>The Wall Street Journal</i></b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">), former US Assistant Secretary of Education, author of the best-selling </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><i>Reign of Error</i></b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> ("fearless" (Jonathan Kozol, </b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><i>NYRB</i></b><b style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">)) - an impassioned, inspiring look at the ways in which parents, teachers, activists - citizens - are successfully fighting back to defeat the forces that are privatizing America's public schools.</b></div>
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</iframe>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-36212266711900761122020-04-04T11:07:00.001-07:002020-04-22T04:49:17.146-07:00Strange Days Indeed Pt. 1<h2>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">Some reflections on life in these strange new times from someone who's lived through a few of her own</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-size: large;"><i>Note: These are my thoughts and feelings; this is my experience. Take what you like and leave the rest. I mean no judgment on you or your religious or spiritual beliefs. This is just what works for me.</i></span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Everything old is new again.</u></b></span>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In 1929, my grandmother was a 25-year-old single mother of a two-year-old boy. She already had eleven years experience under her belt working for what was then Bell Telephone, having graduated 8th grade and lied about her age to get the job. She was also the sole breadwinner in a house that included both her parents, her sister and brother-in-law. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Welcome to the Great Depression.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Between that and the two World Wars, life took a devastating toll on people physically, mentally and spiritually. But, through sheer grit, determination and belief that things would get better, they survived and thrived. But not without tremendous loss.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">"Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without" was the mantra of the era. Although my family fared better than most (relatively speaking), like all Baby Boomers, I was raised on their stories, practices and stoicism: patch clothes and hand them down, darn socks, clean your plate, don't waste anything—and <i><u>say your prayers!</u></i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Until the day that old age finally claimed their minds, both my grandparents were devoted Catholics. They scheduled time every day for prayers. They visited religious sites. There were religious statues, images and prayer books around the house. And after church we had to rinse our mouths with water so no traces of the Eucharist remained before we ate breakfast. It was <u><i>serious</i></u> stuff.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As a child, I had no choice but to comply. But as I got older, I eventually rejected organized religion. Although I've always believed there is a power greater than all of us <i><u>some</u></i>where, I never bought into the whole concept of one religion having the market cornered on salvation. I knew there was something else out there, something that made more sense. I just didn't know where. I would soon learn that it was hiding inside me all the time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">They say that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. Well, mine appeared when I turned 25 and walked into my first <a href="https://adultchildren.org/resources/find-a-meeting/" target="_blank">Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACOA)</a> meeting. That program saved me in more ways than I can write here. Since then, my search for the meaning of life has led me through many twists and turns. Like my grandparents, my house is full of books and meaningful art and objects that reflect my spiritual beliefs. Like them, I am committed to this journey. But, unlike organized religions, I have been given no magic answers or false promises. All I can say is that the more I know about this infinite universe, the more I don't know. And I'm okay with that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Which leads me to this, written by American Buddhist Nun, Pema Chodron*: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>A [spiritual warrior] accepts that we can never know what will happen to us next. We can try to control the uncontrollable by looking for security and predictability, always hoping to be comfortable and safe. But the truth is that we can never avoid uncertainty. This not-knowing is part of the adventure. It's also what makes us afraid. </i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, how do we be unafraid in yet another time of huge uncertainty? Well, as Chodron says, </span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">[Warrior] training offers no promise of happy endings. Rather, this 'I' who wants to find security—who wants something to hold onto—will finally learn to grow up.</span> </i></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>If we find ourselves in doubt that we're up to being a warrior-in-training, we can contemplate this question: 'Do I prefer to grow up and relate to life directly, or do I choose to live and die in fear?'</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">No one knows exactly how long this pandemic will last, nor do we know whether we'll come down with it or be hit by a car. So, how do we deal with this <i><u>huge</u></i> uncertainty? Believe me, I have had some <i><u>serious</u></i> moments of anxiety and fear! If you follow me on social media, you know full-well. But all those worries and fears don't have to define my life 24/7. </span><span style="font-size: large;">I have tools to get me down off the ceiling. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I start with focusing on where I am right now. This moment is all I have. I don't have 10 minutes from now any more than I have last Tuesday. Yes, there's a pretty good chance that I <u><i>will</i></u> have 10 minutes from now, but my point is that the present moment is all I <i><u>ever</u></i> have so I might as well pay attention to it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, what's going on for you right now? Take a moment to check in. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you smell? What do you taste or touch? How does your body feel? Are you tense, muscles clenched? Where is that stress? What part of your body? Are your thoughts racing toward a future you are only imagining? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">If so, remember, <u><i>you</i></u> have the power to change all of that. The most immediate way I've found is to just breathe. I can get an asthma attack pretty easily from anxiety. It's my body's way of telling me to calm down. So, I stop what I'm doing, close my eyes and take 10 slow, calming breaths. I focus on that breath and try to let go of everything else. If thoughts invade (and they most certainly will), I let them float away and go back to focusing on my breath. I repeat that 10-breath cycle until I feel calm. Sometimes that just doesn't work. When that happens, I rely on modern medicine. Hey, I'm not a glutton for punishment! And breathing is kind of important. "Better living through pharmacology", I say. I also do the breathing every morning when I wake up, only I do 10 cycles of 10 breaths—100 breaths total. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Chodron continues:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Acknowledging what we're thinking and letting it go is the key to touching in with the wealth of bodhichitta, the awakened heart of loving-kindess and compassion. With all the messy stuff, no matter how messy it is, just start where you are—not tomorrow, not later, not yesterday when you were feeling better—but now. Start now, just as you are.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">We are all in this together. As we've seen, COVID-19 affects the young and old, rich and poor, famous and not so famous. All of us are potential victims, but we don't have to <i><u>be</u></i> victims. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Whether it's a pandemic, natural disaster war or famine, or the everyday vagaries of life, the one thing we can count on is that life <i><u>will</u></i> come at us again—<u><i>hard</i></u>. And we may suffer tremendous loss. We can either become angry, fearful and bitter, or we can be like our grandparents and great grandparents and call on those reserves of inner strength that got them through the darkest days of the 20th Century. We can also protect our hearts from fear and anxiety. We can look for the happiness and joy in life. We can help and support each other because all of us are deserving of love and compassion, and all of us have the ability to give it. As we stand at the threshold of Holy Week, remember the great universal law: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">* The quotes by Pema Chodron are from her book, <i>Comfortable With Uncertainty</i>. You can order it by clicking on this link:</span></div>
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</iframe>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-49626971259572902432020-02-13T15:10:00.001-08:002020-02-13T17:45:15.238-08:00The Fight For Our Children<i><span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b>The number of suicides among people ages 10 to 24 nationally <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db352-h.pdf" target="_blank">increased by 56 percent</a> between 2007 and 2017, according to a new federal report showing the tragic consequences of an emerging public health crisis.</b></span></i><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="color: #990000;">An NJ Advance Media report... highlighted <a href="https://projects.nj.com/features/depression/index.html">New Jersey’s rising suicide rate</a> among teens and young adults amid a mental health crisis.</span></i></span></b><br />
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<i><span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">- <a href="https://www.nj.com/education/2019/10/major-increase-in-teen-suicide-rate-is-more-than-other-age-groups-new-report-says.html" target="_blank">Adam Clark/NJ Advance Media for NJ.com</a></span></i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; font-family: , , "san francisco" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "ubuntu" , "roboto" , "noto" , "segoe ui" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: nowrap;">Photo by </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/@dmey503?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Dan Meyers</a><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #111111; font-family: , , "san francisco" , "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "ubuntu" , "roboto" , "noto" , "segoe ui" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: nowrap;"> on </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/suicide?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText" style="background-color: whitesmoke; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; white-space: nowrap;">Unsplash</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the last three years, three Hunterdon Central Regional High School students and two former students have died by suicide:</span><span style="font-size: large;"> sophomore </span><a href="https://patch.com/new-jersey/flemington/hunterdon-central-student-suddenly-dies" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Alison Vandal</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> in December 2017; senior </span><a href="https://www.tapinto.net/towns/flemington-slash-raritan/sections/education/articles/hunterdon-central-high-school-reacting-to-student-s-death" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Eden Carrera Calderon</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> in October 2019; freshman <a href="https://www.wrightfamily.com/obituary/joseph-james-drelich-jr/" target="_blank">Joseph Drelich, Jr</a> in January 2020; graduate </span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.wrightfamily.com/obituary/jared-david-yazujian/" target="_blank">Jared Yazujian</a> in January 2020;</span><span style="font-size: large;"> graduate, <a href="https://www.tapinto.net/towns/flemington-slash-raritan/sections/health-and-wellness/articles/family-reaches-out-to-others-after-death-of-20-ye" target="_blank">Christopher Soldano</a> in </span><span style="font-size: large;">July 2018. These tragic deaths have rocked our community to its core. </span><span style="font-size: large;">In a county of only about 125,000 people, it seems everybody knows somebody who has been affected by them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Suicide is the second leading cause of death among people between the ages of 10 and 24. It's a public health crisis that is largely being ignored. But, at least in our little corner of the state, that may be about to change.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Last night I attended an event called The Fight For Our Children, sponsored by <a href="https://www.gosafeharbor.org/" target="_blank">Safe Harbor Child Access Center</a>. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Safe Harbor is a 501(c) 3 that "</span><span style="font-size: large;">provides services to separating, divorcing, and divorced families to ensure that children have continuing contact with both parents and other family members. </span><span style="font-size: large;">[They] provide a safe environment for individuals healing from trauma." For teenagers struggling with mental health issues, it's a place of warmth, comfort, acceptance, love, sharing and healing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The event was originally supposed to be held at Safe Harbor's facility, but the response was too big for their small space so it was moved across the street to the Flemington Baptist Church where a standing room only crowd filled the basement meeting room.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">For the next two and a half hours Safe Harbor's director, Carol Dvoor, moderated the discussion amongst students, parents, grandparents, teachers, mental health professionals and other concerned citizens who poured out their ideas, experiences, heartbreaks and hopes in an effort to stop this epidemic. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The most compelling speakers were, of course, the students: those who are dealing with depression and anxiety on a daily basis and those fighting like hell to make sure their friends get help.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.publicschoolreview.com/hunterdon-central-regional-high-school-district-profile" target="_blank">Hunterdon Central</a> is one of the largest high schools in the state. Three thousand backpack-laden students from four different sending districts move through various campuses, taking any number of courses from a catalog that rivals a community college. And with the county vo-tech literally on the same campus, there is a path of study for every student. </span><span style="font-size: large;">It's often said that if you can't get an education at Central, you're just not trying. Both my children graduated from it; both did very well academically; both had very different experiences socially.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">For all the great opportunities Central affords its students, in a school that size, it's easy to get lost, to slip through the cracks, to go almost unnoticed. And if a student is dealing with mental health issues, there just aren't enough counselors to service all the students.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I want to be very clear: my point here is not to lambaste Central. You don't get to be a Blue Ribbon School by accident. I know many dedicated teachers there who are committed to providing the best possible learning experiences for their students. They care deeply about them, as those who were in attendance last night expressed. But I was very disturbed by reports from the students who told us that, after each suicide, once the mandatory period of 'crisis-counselors-will-be-available-to-our-students' time was over, students were pretty much expected to go back to 'normal'. Time and again, their proposals for clubs, support groups, safe spaces, memorials and the like were turned away by administration. Some were told they were being "too impatient". </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Again, I'm not trying to point fingers at the school. I only heard one side of the story last night. To be fair, there were parents who did speak about things the school has done to provide more mental health services for students. I have no doubt that the administration is very concerned and doing what they believe is best. But, one thing was very clear last night: these students don't want solutions <i><u>handed</u></i> to them; they want to be part of <i><u>creating</u></i> them. It's <u><i>their</i></u> right. It's <i><u>their</u></i> way to heal. It's <u><i>their</i></u> friends who are dying. And if they are denied that right, the school is missing a huge opportunity for some innovative healing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I am not an expert in suicide, nor am I a mental health counselor, but I did try to take my own life when I was 14. I felt I had no way out. I felt there was no hope, no other option to escape the pain. And, most importantly, I felt like there was no one who would or could help me. That's the tipping point. Fortunately, I wasn't successful, and eventually found the help and support I needed. But it wasn't until I was in my 20's and for many kids, that's just too late.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">These kids need help. Now. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Is it any coincidence that teen suicide rates have been climbing alongside the education 'reform' movement? Alongside the pressure from state and federal governments to undergo a 'rigorous' education? To perform like a trained dog on standardized tests so their teachers can keep their jobs? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In addition to the social/emotional realities of being a teenager—which are now played out in real time on social media—their childhoods are being cut short. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Students are forced to learn more and do more at alarmingly young ages, and it's simply not developmentally appropriate.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> Kindergarten is now the new first grade. Gone are nap time and lots of play and socialization. Now it's math, reading, writing and yes, testing. </span><span style="font-size: large;">The process continues right up through high school where state and federal mandates expect all students to be 'college and career ready'. Why? So they can spend four or more years racking up tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in loan debt with no clear way out?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Nowadays, it's not unusual for students in kindergarten and first grade to be under a doctor's care for anxiety and depression. This is madness. </span><span style="font-size: large;">We must do better. We owe it to this generation, and those that will follow, to give them something other than a nihilistic view of their future. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Where to start? I plan on going to the next <a href="https://www.hcrhs.org/about-hc/board-of-education" target="_blank">Hunterdon Central Board of Ed meeting</a>. Then I plan to start volunteering at Safe Harbor. Hope you'll make a difference in your community. Lives depend on it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We said this pledge at the beginning and end of the meeting last night. It bears repeating: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I pledge to help raise awareness for the importance of mental health. To ally with others in my community to break the stigma surrounding mental illness and be a resource for those who need it. To listen to others without judgement and be open and considerate to all people regardless of their situation. To act when I see someone who is showing signs of mental illness. To educate myself and others on the issue. To do my best to treat myself kindly and prioritize my wellbeing no matter what problem I might face. To reach out for help if I need it. And above all, to remember that there are always people around me who love and support me. I pledge that I will do everything in my power to help end this problem within our community and the world.</i></span></blockquote>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-74362718681958083552019-03-14T14:56:00.001-07:002019-05-17T13:58:09.014-07:00@NJSenatePres 's @Path2ProgressNJ & the 800lb Gorillas In The Room<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Expert analysis and witnesses are essential to the successful outcome of a trial, but in the court of public opinion, politicians often fail to enlist experts who may raise red flags about the policies they're trying to sell to the general public. In my little corner of the universe—education—it happens too frequently. Analysis is done by study groups and commissions that often lack any real, working K-12 educators. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The latest example is Senate President Steve Sweeney's <a href="http://pathtoprogressnj.org/" target="_blank">'Path to Progress'</a>, which touts, among other things, regionalizing many of the state's school districts and slashing (yet again) retired public employees' deferred compensation. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is the complete list of the commission's members: </span><br />
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<strong style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">MEMBERSHIP</strong></h3>
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<strong style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: 16px; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Co-chairs:</strong></h3>
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<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Paul Sarlo – </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chairman, Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee</span></i></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Steven Oroho – </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senate Republican Conference Chair</span></i></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Assemblyman Louis Greenwald – </span><i style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: middle;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Assembly Majority Leader</span></i></li>
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<strong style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Legislative Members:</strong></div>
<ul style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em 3em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Steve Sweeney – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senate President</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Dawn Addiego – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">State Senator</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Anthony Bucco – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senate Minority Budget Officer</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Assemblywoman Eliana Pintor Marin – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chairwoman, Assembly Budget</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Troy Singleton – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chairman, Senate Military and Veterans’ Affairs</em></li>
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<strong style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Subcommittee Chairs:</strong></div>
<ul style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em 3em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dr. Ray Caprio – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Rutgers Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy; Bloustein Local Government Research Center</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Frank Chin – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Managing Director, American Public Infrastructure</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Richard Keevey – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Rutgers University Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy and Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dr. Michael Lahr – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Rutgers Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy and Rutgers Economic Advisory Service</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Marc Pfeiffer – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Rutgers University, Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy; Bloustein Local Government Research Center</em></li>
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<strong style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Non-Legislative Members:</strong></div>
<ul style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: lato, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em 3em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dr. Henry Coleman – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Rutgers University, Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lucille Davy<em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> – Of Counsel, Mason, Griffin & Pierson</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Feather O’Connor Houstoun – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Adviser for Public media and journalism at Wyncote Foundation</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ray Kljajic – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">American Public Infrastructure Inc.</em></li>
<li style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: yellow;">Robert Landolfi – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Business Administrator, Woodbridge Township (retired)</em></span></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Raymond Lesniak – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chair, Lesniak Institute for American Leadership</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Jerry Maginnis – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Rowan University, William G. Rohrer College of Business</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dr. Donald Moliver – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Monmouth University, Kislak Real Estate Institute</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dr. Joel Naroff – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">President,</em> <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Naroff Economic Advisers Inc.</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Peter Reinhart – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Monmouth University Kislak Real Estate Institute</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Kurt Stroemel – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">President,</em> <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">HR&S Financial Services</em></li>
<li style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ralph Thomas – <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">CEO/Executive Director, New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants</em></li>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;">While this list may read like a Who's Who of New Jersey public policy experts, notice the one highlighted name: Robert Landolfi. He is the only K-12 representative on the commission—and he's retired. There are no real K-12 voices here, and none from South Hunterdon Regional School District, <i><u>the only district</u></i> in the past 25 years to successfully consolidate.</span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-size: large;">While Sen. Sweeney </span><span style="font-size: large;">exults in the plan's proposed successes </span><span style="font-size: large;">at town hall meetings across the state, he and his cohorts fail to address the three 800 lb gorillas in the room: </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">1. Public schools are not businesses:</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<span style="font-size: large;">While consolidation may bring about some savings in certain situations, we must not forget that school districts are not convenience store chains. We don't sell soda and lottery tickets; we teach children, each of whom comes with different needs, and each district strives to meet those needs.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> Before we go down this road, the study commission needs to understand that what may be good for one district, may not necessarily be good for all of them. Special services for low income, special needs and ESL students must be the same or better than what they currently have. And when consolidation means going from a district of approximately 3200 to a merged district with close to 10,000 students, as would be the case with my central Hunterdon County district, there will be no savings, and services will suffer. The commission should look closely at what happened in the southern part of Hunterdon County: </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">In 2016, </span><a href="https://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/06/20/checking-in-on-the-south-hunterdon-school-consolidation/" style="font-weight: 400;" target="_blank">NJ Spotlight reported</a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> on the </span><u style="font-weight: 400;">five-year</u><span style="font-weight: 400;"> process of merging four very small Hunterdon County districts into one regional district </span><i><u><span style="font-weight: 400;">with a combined population of </span>less than 1,000 students</u></i><span style="font-weight: 400;">: </span></span></div>
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<i>South Hunterdon’s merger of four school districts in 2013 has proven to be an example of both the good and the difficult in school regionalization.</i><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Tahoma, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<i></i><i>The good news is that the merger appears to have worked...</i><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Tahoma, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<i>The more cautionary news is that <u>this was a long and labor-intensive process in what was actually one of the simplest mergers</u>: four districts that were essentially unified in practice, if not in name.</i><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Tahoma, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: 400; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<i></i><i>There are no regrets, the officials said, but they acknowledged that <u>it doesn’t happen overnight</u>...</i><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<i>[School Board President Dan Seiter said that] the process started as far back as 2008, with an initial resolution of all four boards of education to look at consolidation: South Hunterdon Regional High School, West Amwell, Lambertville, and Stockton. <u>Each among the smallest districts in the state</u>, they already served as feeder districts into the regional high school.</i><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<i></i><i>It took five years and “meetings after meetings after meetings” that led to a referendum to move toward a feasibility study, Seiter said, where <u>voters in all four communities voted to proceed</u>. </i>(emphasis mine)</blockquote>
<div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Voter buy-in is essential or the process will fail. We've seen this time and again. Whether the disastrous <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2015/07/one-parent-investigates-onenewark.html" target="_blank">One Newark</a>, or the <a href="https://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/commentary/renaissance-schools-camden-public-schools-christie-s-3309-20180101.html" target="_blank">Urban Hope Act in Camden</a>, or other education 'reforms', shutting parents, taxpayers and local school officials out of the decision-making process is a recipe for disaster. Town halls are one thing; making sure taxpayers have a seat at the table is completely different. </span></div>
</span></h3>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">2. Charter schools: </span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">Back in 2014, when Sen. Sweeney and then </span><span style="font-size: large;">Asw. Donna Simon (R-LD16) were</span><span style="font-size: large;"> clamoring for municipal and school consolidation respectively, <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2014/11/asw-simons-folklore-tales-of-school.html" target="_blank">I wrote</a> about the false narratives they were touting, and spoke with one of the state's preeminent school funding experts, <a href="https://schoolfinance101.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Dr. Bruce Baker</a> of Rutgers University, who had this to say about charter schools:</span><br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><br /><span style="font-size: large;">If consolidation is such a great idea, whether to promote integration, remove administrative redundancy, etc., then it would seem utterly foolish that we continue to expand charter schools. <u>These schools tend to operate at inefficiently small size, further segregate our students, and when they do grow to a size where they operate as districts within our districts, they create significant administrative redundancy — a whole layer of "management corporation" siphoning district funds passed on to charters</u>. </span></i> </blockquote>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>We know, for example, from IRS 990 filings, that the administrative structure of Uncommon Schools has plenty of well paid admins—including their "managing director" for Newark Uncommon at about $200k in 2012. No doubt much higher now in 2014. So, in addition to Newark Public Schools, we've added, through this structure, additional governing layers that siphon resources, but don't show up on the traditional books. </i><br /> <br /><u style="font-style: italic;">So, Newark has a superintendent with a $240k salary, but now has districts within it which use funds generated by management fees skimmed from the charter allocation (which passed through the district) to pay several entire additional administrative teams.</u> (emphasis mine)</span></blockquote>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">Consolidation without plans to end this redundancy is hypocritical. If charter schools are real public schools—as their supporters claim—they will survive the process, but the process will not survive if they are not included in it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">3. Another blow to retired public employees' deferred compensation:</span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">Since </span><span style="font-size: large;">2011, when </span><span style="font-size: large;">Gov. Christie signed the bill known as <a href="https://www.state.nj.us/treasury/pensions/reform-2011.shtml" target="_blank">Chapter 78</a> into law, </span><span style="font-size: large;">tens of thousands of public employees have seen their take home pay decrease</span><span style="font-size: large;"> <u>every year</u></span><span style="font-size: large;"> as health insurance premiums and additional pension contributions have risen. Many have had to take on not only second, but third jobs to make ends meet. Others have simply left public service to make more money in the private sector. </span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2014/11/asw-simons-folklore-tales-of-school.html" target="_blank">NJ public employees now pay the highest individual insurance premiums and the 10th highest family premiums in the country</a> while earning less than their private sector counterparts. They will also have to work longer to collect their pensions and get less in return—<i>if</i> there's even a pension system left when they do retire. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">When </span><span style="font-size: large;">Gov. Christie signed that law, he also instituted a cost of living adjustment (COLA) freeze on all retirees' pensions, and with the system on life support, that's not changing any time soon. Retirees are hurting.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Now, Sen. Sweeney wants "</span><span style="font-size: large;">all new state and local government retirees to pay the same percent of premium costs they paid when working." I'm sorry, but that's not only unsustainable, it's downright cruel. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Instead of proposing public employees pay more, why isn't the commission recommending a push for Medicare for All or some other type of universal healthcare? Why isn't the commission doing anything about containing the always-increasing cost of premiums? It's just so much easier to make the people who can least afford it pay more while you close the door on your mansion and forget about their struggles. And they can't even move out of state to save some money because Gov. Christie signed a bill into law that basically makes public employees indentured servants. We can't leave. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span><span style="font-size: large;">I am not naive. The state's fiscal future is bleak. We have a projected <a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2019/03/01/nj-taxes-5-b-short-putting-budget-cuts-tax-increases-play/3003345002/" target="_blank">$5 billion revenue shortfall</a> for this fiscal year, the pension fund <a href="https://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/opinion/editorials/stress-test-finds-nj-pension-funds-could-be-gone-in/article_120b604d-5d31-585d-97ce-4b4ca508d2e5.html" target="_blank">will run out of money in about 10 years</a>, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-30/new-jersey-governor-s-budget-does-little-to-change-credit-rating" target="_blank">our credit rating is in the toilet</a>, and property taxes are eating most of us alive. But all this isn't merely the result of Gov. Christie giving away <a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2019/01/09/11-b-corporate-tax-breaks-didnt-log-job-creation-nj-auditor-says/2523575002/" target="_blank">billions in corporate tax breaks</a> and in the <a href="https://www.nj.com/politics/2018/02/court_upholds_christies_225m_exxon_settlement.html" target="_blank">Exxon settlement</a>. No, there's plenty of blame to go around, on both sides of the aisle, and it goes back decades. Yet, some </span><span style="font-size: large;">elected officials continue to put the burden of fixing the system</span><span style="font-size: large;"> <i><u>they</u></i> </span><span style="font-size: large;">broke squarely on the backs of the students they purport to help and those of us who have been continually ordered to give more, do more, and receive less in return, with little thought of how <i><u>we</u></i> will be able to make ends meet. It's always the little guy who pays.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, if Sen. Sweeney doesn't like it when people show up to his town halls and challenge these draconian measures, maybe he needs to remember what it was like </span><span style="font-size: large;">to be a rank and file iron worker worrying about how to pay bills and keep a roof over his head. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Teachers in eleven states have gone out on strike to protest draconian cuts to school funding, low pay and terrible working conditions—things that are not only sacrosanct to collective bargaining, but also make for excellent public schools, of which NJ has an abundance. If this commission pushes forward with their recommendations, I believe New Jersey may be next. </span>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-76449399053924915832019-02-20T16:11:00.000-08:002019-02-20T16:39:59.482-08:00The @StarLedger, #FakeNews & the #PARCC Propaganda Machine<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Years before 'fake news' became a household word, New Jersey's largest newspaper, <i>The Star Ledger</i> started its very own propaganda machine to bash teachers and prop up PARCC testing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">With the <a href="http://parcc/" target="_blank">flurry of </a></span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://parcc/" target="_blank">PARCC testing </a></span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://parcc/" target="_blank">bills</a> posted in Trenton in the past couple of weeks, the state's largest newspaper and education 'reform' cheerleader has been <a href="https://www.nj.com/opinion/2019/02/murphy-enough-pandering-on-parcc-editorial.html" target="_blank">shaking its pom-pons</a> recently in favor of the deeply flawed test, tossing out wild claims with little evidence to back them up (all emphasis mine):</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Phil Murphy has long strained to appease powerful critics of the PARCC, namely the teacher’s union, <b>which prefers we let kids graduate without the kind of tests that hold teachers accountable.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></b></i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">The idea that an invalid, poorly designed and un-vetted test can hold teachers "accountable" is simply illogical. <i>The Ledger </i>offers no evidence to support this far-fetched claim. Even the Christie administration wasn't so sure it would work because they kept changing the test's percentage of our evaluations seemingly at random.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>But we need the PARCC because an A in Millburn is not the same as an A in Camden. <b>We have to ensure that all kids succeed, not just those in affluent districts.</b></i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">If the <i>Ledger's</i> only measure of success is the number of prestigious colleges and universities a school's students attend, then why aren't they raising a ruckus about all those students in Camden who have been denied rich, deep curriculums in the arts, humanities, foreign languages and technology <u>(like they have in Millburn)</u><i> </i>because the state decided the best way to 'fix' their schools is to cut their funding, deny public input, silence parents and test the kids to death? That would never, <u>ever</u> happen in Millburn, and no test will ever close that disparity gap.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The PARCC and SBAC (Smarter Balance Assessment Consortium) tests were rolled out to assess student mastery of the Common Core State Standards that, along with carrot-and-stick financial incentives from the Obama administration, were supposed to level the educational playing field across all 50 states. The concept was that a child from New Jersey could move to Oregon and get the same education. Except that education reformers overlooked the fact that the United States is so culturally and economically diverse that a one size fits all education system is not appropriate. Schools in rural Central Oregon serve a very different student population—and have <i>very</i> different state funding—than students in Millburn NJ. Poverty plays a huge role in a child's chances for educational success. But <i>The Ledger</i> doesn't like to talk about that.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "benton sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large; letter-spacing: 0.2px;"><i>The <a href="https://apps.bostonglobe.com/magazine/graphics/2019/01/17/valedictorians/about-this-project/?p1=ValHeader" style="border-bottom: 0px solid black; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1565c0; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Boston Globe</a> recently tracked 93 local valedictorians and found that <a href="https://edexcellence.net/articles/rampant-grade-inflation-is-harming-vulnerable-high-schoolers?utm_source=National+Education+Gadfly+Weekly&utm_campaign=92e57e5344-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_02_13_06_45&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_ef00e8f50e-92e57e5344-71635093&mc_cid=92e57e5344&mc_eid=a874c0cb29" style="border-bottom: 0px solid black; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1565c0; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">one in four </a>failed to earn a college diploma in six years. Their high schools left them woefully underprepared. Some lost their scholarships. Others dropped out in frustration. <span style="letter-spacing: 0.2px;">We have the same problem in New Jersey. At Essex County College in Newark, 85 percent of incoming freshmen</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.2px;"> </span><a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/08/28/community-college-new-jersey-struggles-break-through-adaptive-math-courses" style="border-bottom: 0px solid black; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1565c0; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.2px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">need to take remedial math</a><span style="letter-spacing: 0.2px;">. In 2017,</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.2px;"> </span><a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/12/18/new-jerseys-essex-college-faces-probation" style="border-bottom: 0px solid black; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1565c0; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.2px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">only 13 percent graduated</a><span style="letter-spacing: 0.2px;">. While social promotion also happens in wealthier districts, those kids have a deeper safety net.</span></i></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "benton sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.2px;"> </span> </blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">I am not an education researcher, but from what I read in the <i>Boston Globe</i> study above, grade inflation—not standardized tests—is the main reason those students struggled in college. No educator with a lick of professionalism supports that, but sadly, it does happen, and 'reformers' themselves have been caught in the thick of some of the most controversial as we saw in the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2018/02/01/the-shocking-thing-about-d-c-s-exploding-schools-scandal-and-why-it-has-national-significance/?utm_term=.5d945323ac79" target="_blank">Washington, DC</a> and <a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/02/16/695344751/former-teacher-blames-education-policymakers-for-atlanta-cheating-scandal" target="_blank">Atlanta</a> testing scandals.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And as for the remedial math and graduation rates at Essex County College, <i>The</i> <i>Ledger</i> assumes the PARCC test will fix those too, despite no mention of how long it had been since those students actually took a high school math class. And the fact that the school has been embroiled in turmoil, turnover and fiscal mismanagement for a few years—which was actually mentioned in the very same link—was apparently overlooked.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But <i>The Star Ledger</i> forges ahead!</span><br />
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<i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Benton Sans", Arial, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.2px;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is why we need an objective test. Yet because the PARCC is <b>such a powerful diagnostic tool that can trace a student’s learning problem right down to a particular teacher’s lesson</b>, it ran afoul of the union.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></span></i></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As Joe Biden would say, "What a load of malarky!" Sometimes I ask myself why I bother to respond to these sophomoric tropes, but as an educator, I believe I have an obligation to facts. And here are a few facts from <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2016/04/10-things-every-parent-should-know.html" target="_blank">a post I wrote</a> back in 2016: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>The PARCC test is not diagnostic. In order for any test to accomplish this, it must have at least 25 questions per assessed skill. The PARCC does not. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Bari Ehrlichson, </span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: -0.25in;">Special Assistant to the Commissioner of Education, </span><a href="https://youtu.be/pdghzEwpEwU" style="text-indent: -0.25in;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">admitted this last year</span></a><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: -0.25in;"> in a panel discussion on the PARCC.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">2.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>The PARCC does not consistently assess grade-level skills. Rider University Professor and reading expert Russ Walsh <a href="http://russonreading.blogspot.com/2015/02/parcc-tests-and-readability-close-look.html" target="_blank">analyzed</a> some of the sample language arts questions and found many of them to be several grade levels above the tested grade. This is not only unfair to both students and teachers; it is also demoralizing to students. How can anyone be expected to succeed at something when the odds are heavily stacked against them from the start?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">3.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>Research has shown that <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2015/01/22/what-the-new-common-core-tests-are-and-arent/" target="_blank">student designed projects and research</a> are far more effective and meaningful ways for both teachers and students to assess deep learning and understanding. Standardized tests in general are meant to show trends, and as such, PARCC falls far short on the assessment continuum.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">4.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>The <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2014/04/13/statisticians-slam-popular-teacher-evaluation-method/" target="_blank">American Statistical Association has warned</a> that standardized tests should not be used to assess educator effectiveness because the methods being used are simply not reliable. And with the enormous emphasis now put on data in teaching, teachers should not be evaluated based on a flawed test that provides flawed data.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">5.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>Out of the 24 states originally in the PARCC consortium only <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/as-states-drop-out-of-parccs-common-core-test-faithful-carry-on/2015/07/22/f31eeb48-2f1c-11e5-8353-1215475949f4_story.html" target="_blank">seven plus the District of Columbia</a> will be participating in the 2016-2017 testing. This should be a red flag warning to every parent and educator.*<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">6.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>PARCC is not a reliable predictor of 'college and career readiness'. <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/confirmed-high-school-gpas-predict-college-success/" target="_blank">Recent research</a> shows that high school GPAs are the most reliable predictor of college success. Yet all across this state—and country—related arts classes that help build those GPAs are being scaled back or eliminated to make way for more Common Core study and PARCC prep. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">7.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>A recently released study published in the School Superintendent Association's<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i><a href="http://christienken.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/CCSS_Complexity_Comparison.pdf" target="_blank">Journal of Scholarship and Practice</a></i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>concluded that a higher percentage of the 2009 New Jersey high school core curriculum content standards in English language arts and math prompted higher-order thinking than the 2010 Common Core State Standards for those same subjects and grade levels. We are dumbing down our students. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">8.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span><a href="http://www.state.nj.us/education/assessment/district/110515Grad.pdf" target="_blank">The amount of testing</a> students will be subjected to starting with the graduating class of 2020 is not only against current law, it’s just plain cruel. Starting with this class, in order to graduate high school, students will have to take and fail the PARCC not once, not twice, but three times before any real assessment of their academic progress can be used. What educator in their right mind thinks this is best practice?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">9.<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal;"> </span>There are big problems with scoring. Officials from PARCC have admitted there are <a href="http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/02/03/parcc-scores-lower-on-computer.html?cmp=SOC-SHR-TW&override=web" target="_blank">discrepancies in scores</a> between students who took paper and pencil tests vs. those who took the test online, with the former group scoring on average higher than the latter. And, despite PARCC's promise of leveling the playing field for all students in all states, <a href="https://deutsch29.wordpress.com/2015/09/11/parcc-cut-scores-to-differ-by-parcc-state/" target="_blank">the PARCC consortium states have the option to change their cut scores</a>. This is nuts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">10. The fact that in its recently released report, the Study Commission On The Use Of Student Assessments in New Jersey failed to honor and recognize the hundreds of people who testified against this test, and instead recommended <a href="http://www.nj.gov/education/studycommission/FinalReport.pdf" target="_blank">a marketing campaign*</a> to crush the Opt-Out movement and brainwash parents and the general public into thinking it will solve all the world’s problems is proof that this test cannot stand on its own merit and should be thrown out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>* The PARCC consortium is now down to two states: New Jersey and New Mexico.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In a <a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/02/16/695344751/former-teacher-blames-education-policymakers-for-atlanta-cheating-scandal" target="_blank">2015 interview</a>, Shani Robinson, one of the teachers caught up in the Atlanta cheating scandal had this to say about all that testing:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , serif;">Who should really be held accountable for cheating the children? Our children have been cheated by those who have willfully torn apart black communities through displacement and gentrification, underfunded and privatized public schools, and then have criminalized black educators for a dysfunctional system that was designed to fail. ... I feel like this case is extremely important because public education is under attack, as we've seen in places where teachers are striking, and the cheating scandal was used to portray public education as a failure and justify privatizing schools.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , serif;"> </span> </i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Privatizing public schools... <u>that</u> is the story <i>The Star Ledger</i> should be covering.</span><br />
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<br />Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-68980175800495702192019-02-03T10:03:00.000-08:002019-02-03T10:03:21.016-08:00Super "Bowling For Dollars" — How Politicians & The @NFL Screw Taxpayers<h2>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: x-large;"><i>Happy Super Bowl LIII! Today is Georgia taxpayers' day to get screwed! </i></span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;">During the NFC & AFC playoffs, I <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2019/01/how-nj-politiciansd-r-stick-it-to.html" target="_blank">wrote</a> about the financial train wreck that was Super Bowl XLVIII, played in New Jersey in 2014, and how the NFL and its teams reap all the profits while host cities—and taxpayers—get screwed. Today the train wreck comes to Atlanta. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The city just opened the shiny, new </span><span style="font-size: large;">$1.6 billion</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">Mercedes-Benz Stadium, paid for by taxpayers, the majority of whom cannot afford a Mercedes Benz; all of whom had no say in how their tax dollars were going to be spent. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Michael Farren and Anne Philpot, researchers with the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, <a href="https://www.salemnews.com/opinion/columns/column-super-bowl-s-mercedes-benz-stadium-has-that-new/article_83b989da-cfc3-5310-9094-d28b38e45d26.html" target="_blank">reported</a> on just how much the state will lose not only during the Super Bowl, but for many years to come. </span><span style="font-size: large;">This isn't an anomaly. This is what happens when taxpayers subsidize professional sports. This is why 70% of Americans are against this practice.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So sit back with your guacamolé and wings and read their words. All emphasis mine:</span><br />
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Sunday’s Super Bowl, a rematch 17 years in the making, harkens back to a thrilling 2002 title game between Tom Brady’s underdog New England Patriots and the high-flying St. Louis (now-Los Angeles) Rams.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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But the host of this year’s game, Atlanta’s sparkling new Mercedes-Benz Stadium, reminds us of something less thrilling: the $1 billion or so that politicians give away in unnecessary public handouts to professional sports every year.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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The $1.6 billion stadium was underwritten by $248 million in local bonds. Once taxpayers pay those off, they’ll then write the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons an annual check for stadium operations and upkeep.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<u><b>Our calculations suggest taxpayers will pay around $1.02 billion over the course of the deal. Combined with $77 million in sales tax rebates, infrastructure investments, and city-provided land, locals could be on the hook for over five times the initial $200 million estimate.</b><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></u></blockquote>
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<u><b>The story is the same in most other sports cities.</b> </u>And like other sports teams, the Falcons rake in buckets of money: corporate sponsorships ($900 million) and personal seat licenses ($267 million) could have paid for 75 percent of the stadium cost alone, not to mention annual revenue from season ticket sales ($550 to $3,850 per ticket), TV revenue and merchandise licensing ($256 million), stadium concessions, and other events held in the stadium.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<b><u>There are only so many tax dollars to go around. Misspending them to enhance sports industry profits means that public services must be cut, taxes have to be higher, or both.</u></b><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<b><u>Atlanta will spend about as much on the stadium as it would cost to employ an additional 300 Atlanta police officers or educate 2,900 public school students for 30 years.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></u></b></blockquote>
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<b><u>Perhaps even worse, Americans from coast to coast share the burden. The income that lenders earn on the municipal bonds typically used to finance stadium construction is exempt from federal income taxes.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></u></b></blockquote>
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<u><b>That means the rest of us have to pay higher taxes (or see the federal deficit climb even higher) to make up for the shortfall.</b><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></u></blockquote>
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A tax exemption for stadium subsidies may sound like small potatoes, but Brookings Institution researchers estimated the loophole was responsible for <u><b>$3.7 billion in lost federal revenue between 2000 and 2014.</b><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></u></blockquote>
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Former President Obama tried to end it, as did House Republicans in last year’s tax reform, but <u><b>the sports industry won each time</b>.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></u></blockquote>
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Lately there have been encouraging examples of taxpayers and principled political leaders standing up to the sports industry.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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Last fall local citizen groups in Austin and Seattle gathered signatures to force public referenda that would require popular votes on future stadium subsidies — which is meaningful, since 70 percent of Americans say they’re against giving money to sports teams.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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Meanwhile, a group of Atlanta taxpayers are challenging another tax exemption.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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Their lawsuit argues that <b><u>even though the Falcons’ stadium is built on publicly owned land, the fact that the team controls all events and revenue it generates means it should pay local property taxes. That could amount to $700 million over 30 years.</u></b><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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And in the Washington, D.C. area, Virginia Delegate Michael Webert has for the past two years partnered with Maryland Delegate David Moon and D.C. Council member David Grosso to advance perhaps the best idea of all: an “interstate compact” that would prohibit subsidies for a new Washington Redskins stadium.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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This would prevent their three governments from engaging in a taxpayer-funded bidding war to attract the team.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></blockquote>
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<b><u>If all 50 states were to sign on to a similar agreement, we could permanently end the subsidy war for sports teams. As a bonus, it would eliminate a major reason that leagues restrict the number of teams, so new franchises could expand into more cities.<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></u></b></blockquote>
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<b><u>Fans may be excited to experience the Super Bowl at Atlanta’s new state-of-the-art facility, but they should remember that the money that subsidizes stadiums could go to much better purposes. Sunday’s spectacle will show yet again that the NFL doesn’t need — or deserve — public money.</u></b></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We have the money to fully fund public education, pay teachers a living wage, provide universal health insurance, pay for college, raise people out of poverty, and a whole host of other things that will improve the quality of life for millions in the richest country in the history of this planet. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It's all about priorities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-27791476438059994942019-01-27T08:21:00.000-08:002019-01-27T08:21:05.224-08:00UPDATE & ACTION: @GovMurphy Promised To Ditch #PARCC. Is He Going Back On His Word?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Y1FoOt9Bg-hrYnOj3yUnYCDv6I23vksQWWyCc6Q7eKkRqciLJ7O6YYO6jaUBm7zb92n-NQL8hVWLsN4deB_fgY7EjiOXfOl5FtmlTzWLkApJwNi08kY8Bi-lAxIsbR_0CWic-AboxqOh/s1600/26239154_1407695652689784_584929443969376364_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="960" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Y1FoOt9Bg-hrYnOj3yUnYCDv6I23vksQWWyCc6Q7eKkRqciLJ7O6YYO6jaUBm7zb92n-NQL8hVWLsN4deB_fgY7EjiOXfOl5FtmlTzWLkApJwNi08kY8Bi-lAxIsbR_0CWic-AboxqOh/s640/26239154_1407695652689784_584929443969376364_n.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gov. Murphy promised to end PARCC testing. Tell him #KeepYourWord!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><br />Update and Action Alert!</span></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Last week <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2019/01/govmurphy-promised-to-ditch-parcc-is-he.html" target="_blank">I wrote</a> about S-3381, Sen. Teresa Ruiz's bill to change the state's high school graduation requirements that, if signed into law, could have a devastating effect on thousands of New Jersey high school seniors. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">S-3381 now has a companion Assembly bill. </span><span style="font-size: large;">A-4957 was posted by Assembly</span><span style="font-size: large;"> Education Chair Pamela Lampitt, although as of this writing, it has not been assigned to a committee. The Senate bill will be heard in the Senate Budget room tomorrow at noon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">All of this is moving very quickly, and for no good reason. Both bills are expected to be voted on by the full legislature this week, so quick action is needed (see below for specific action items).</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Yesterday Save Our Schools NJ posted an extensive update. You can read the full text <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SaveOurSchoolsNJ/posts/2290151207684693" target="_blank">here</a>. These are the main concerns: </span></div>
<br style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;" /><blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">
<i><span style="font-size: large;">The NJ Appellate Court indicated that the current high school graduation testing requirements, which were imposed by the Christie Administration in 2016 and ruled illegal by the Court on December 31, 2018, will stay in effect until the Court rules on the Murphy Administration's request that all current juniors and seniors who had partially or fully met those requirements by December 30 2018 be allowed to graduate under the testing options specified in those requirements. In its December 31 ruling, the court had originally indicated that the Christie graduation requirements would be struck down as of January 31. Those testing requirements are available <a href="https://www.state.nj.us/educ%E2%80%A6/assessment/parents/GradReq.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></i></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-large;">...</span></i></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>If the Court does not grant the Murphy Administration's request regarding current seniors and juniors, there would need to be some other way for those students to meet the high school graduation testing requirements. If the Court grants the Administration's request to allow current seniors and juniors to graduate under the Christie 2016 regulations, that problem would be solved.</u></b></span></i><b><u> </u></b></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">... </span></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Currently, NJ law requires students to take a single 11th grade </span><b style="text-decoration-line: underline;">basic skills test </b><span style="font-weight: normal;">of English and math in order to graduate. </span><b style="text-decoration-line: underline;">The Ruiz bill would require students to take as many standardized tests as imposed by the NJ Department of Education and for those tests to be a demonstration of "college and career readiness," even though many students do not intend to go to college and even though this terminology is vague enough to allow a gubernatorial Administration to abuse it. </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Ruiz bill also requires students to take the college and career tests </span><u>before they qualify</u><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span><u>for any other graduation options</u><span style="font-weight: 400;">, which could force current seniors to take PARCC 10th grade ELA and Algebra 1 tests in order to graduate.</span></span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>...</i> </span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: 400;">With the additional time granted by the Appellate Court, there is no need to rush this legislation through. These bills would be a substantial change that is likely to have a major negative impact on our children. </span><b style="font-style: italic; text-decoration-line: underline;">They should not be pushed through with back room deals, as is currently happening. Parents, students and other education advocates should be able to testify and the legislature should understand the broad-reaching consequences of these bills before they vote to impose them on our children. </b><span style="font-weight: normal;">(emphasis mine)</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b>Here's why we need to fight the Ruiz/Lampitt bills:</b></span></h3>
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<li>This would be a major change in our law with no study of the impact on kids or costs to districts</li>
<li>Doubles down against the promise made by Gov. Murphy to end high school exit testing</li>
<li>Leaves the class of 2021 and beyond without a clear path to graduation</li>
<li>It's unclear if the bill actually protects the classes of 2019 and 2020. As written, they may have to take PARCC in order to graduate.</li>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b>Here's why we need to support S-558/A-672, posted by Sen. Nia Gill and Asw. Mila Jasey respectively:</b></span></h3>
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">They provide immediate relief to all current high school students</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">They provide breathing room for the NJDOE to come up with a new assessment system. The current 40-year-old statute has never been reviewed.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">They provide time for the legislature to hold hearings on the use of high school exit tests. Research since the 1970's shows that exit testing is very bad for low-income students, students of color, English language learners and students with disabilities. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Only 12 states have some form of exit testing; it is not federally mandated</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">More tests = more money spent </span></li>
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<h2 style="font-size: x-large;">
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b>Take Action Today!</b></span></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Gov. Murphy's office does not believe there will be parent backlash on the Ruiz bill. But, people who've already called his office are reporting frazzled staffers on the other end of the line. </span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">Keep calling the Governor's Office: 609-292-6000. Tell him #KeepYourWord: veto S-3381/A-4957 and support </span><span style="font-size: large;">S-558/A-672.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Tweet @GovMurphy. Tell him #KeepYourWord: veto S-3381/A-4957 and support S-558/A-672.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Call </span><span style="font-size: large;">Speaker Coughlin's regional office: 732-855-7441. Tell him to support </span><span style="font-size: large;">S-558/A-672 and reject S-3381/A-4957.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Tweet @SpeakerCoughlin. Tell him to support <span style="font-size: large;">S-558/A-672 and reject S-3381/A-4957.</span> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Call your state reps. Tell them to reject S-3381/A-4957 and support S-558/A-672. Find yours <a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/districts/municipalities.asp#C" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Share this post and encourage others to take action as well</span></li>
</ul>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-63048010470697841982019-01-23T17:45:00.001-08:002019-01-23T18:24:36.627-08:00@GovMurphy Promised To Ditch #PARCC. Is He Going Back On His Word?<span style="font-size: large;">What's harder than navigating '<a href="https://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2017/03/njs_scariest_roads_10_white-knucle_adventures.html" target="_blank">Spaghetti Junction'</a> on the Garden State Parkway? Figuring out what it takes to graduate high school in New Jersey. We thought we had it fixed, but not so fast...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKtmTJCqaL1dQJ6qPBSl6CmzB8oyowTGZ4Z5JJqjI8SKRqldjs77gLnekz2udbsrvDwXyIAFkgwTGjBKOsKPLzAFNNLDob5Xz-qX-GcHSY9kuQYuzm9UlXzpuLXFPxt6-j__lvI0XrOyLN/s1600/Screen+Shot+2019-01-21+at+11.09.22+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="690" data-original-width="759" height="579" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKtmTJCqaL1dQJ6qPBSl6CmzB8oyowTGZ4Z5JJqjI8SKRqldjs77gLnekz2udbsrvDwXyIAFkgwTGjBKOsKPLzAFNNLDob5Xz-qX-GcHSY9kuQYuzm9UlXzpuLXFPxt6-j__lvI0XrOyLN/s640/Screen+Shot+2019-01-21+at+11.09.22+AM.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Parents, educators and education activists cheered last month when the New Jersey <a href="https://www.app.com/story/news/education/2018/12/31/parcc-graduation-requirement-struck-down-nj-court/2452560002/" target="_blank">appellate court struck down the requirement</a> that high school students must pass the PARCC Algebra 1 and English Language Arts 10 tests in order to graduate high school because it violated state law requiring students to take only one exam in 11th grade to graduate. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">There was plenty to cheer about. <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2016/04/10-things-every-parent-should-know.html" target="_blank">The test is awful</a>, and was never designed for its current use. From its inception under Gov. Christie, it was met with sustained and vociferous <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2016/02/the-day-nj-parents-occupied-state-doe.html" target="_blank">pushback from parents, educators and testing experts</a>. And it has turned our public schools into test-prep and data-collection factories, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foie_gras" target="_blank">gavage-feeding</a> our students more and more grade level inappropriate info lest educators be found sleeping at their desks. This despite the fact that New Jersey consistently ranks in the top two or three states in the country for quality public education. </span><span style="font-size: large;">The test is so bad that out of the 24 states originally in the PARCC consortium, only one other remains: </span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2018/09/maryland_will_drop_the_parcc_c.html" target="_blank">New Mexico</a>, <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/education" target="_blank">which consistently finishes at or near dead last.</a></span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">In its first year of administration, </span><a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2015/12/is-njdoe-protecting-gov-christies-potus.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">we had the second highest opt-out rate in the nation</span></a><span style="font-size: large;">, bested only by New York.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> But Gov. Christie and his buddies down at the DOE (with plenty of help from some powerful state Democratic lawmakers) couldn't have that egg on their faces, so they forced it on our kids as a graduation requirement.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.state.nj.us/education/assessment/parents/GradReq.pdf" target="_blank">State graduation requirements</a> have changed so many times in the past five years, that it's clear the DOE has no idea what it's doing. And it's hurting kids. Here are just two of the many, ever-changing grad requirement charts on their website. Want to bring a high school kid or their parents to tears? Have them take a look at <i>all</i> of them and figure it out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Confused yet?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Gov. Phil Murphy made <a href="https://www.murphy4nj.com/issue/ending-the-era-of-high-stakes-testing/" target="_blank">dumping PARCC</a> one of his signature campaign issues. We grudgingly gave him a pass when he said he couldn't eliminate it for this school year because too many wheels were already in motion. But, when the appellate court rendered its decision, there was much cause for celebration. <a href="https://www.nj.com/education/2019/01/those-parcc-rules-killed-by-the-court-theyre-not-dead-yet-now-lawmakers-might-save-them.html" target="_blank">Until</a>...</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "benton sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.2px;">A bill introduced... in the state Senate would <b>change state law to accommodate rules created by former Gov. </b></span><a href="http://www.nj.com/chris-christie/" style="background-color: white; border-bottom-color: black; border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1565c0; cursor: pointer; font-family: "Benton Sans", Arial, sans-serif; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.2px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 2px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank"><b>Chris Christie</b></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "benton sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.2px;"><b>’s administration rather than repealing or revising those rules to comply with state law. The proposal would allow the state to keep in place the current graduation rules, <u>which include the controversial requirement that students pass PARCC exams</u>...</b></span></i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>State Sen. Teresa Ruiz, D-Essex, said she introduced the bill <b><u>after discussing the ruling with attorneys for Gov. <a href="https://topics.nj.com/tag/phil-murphy" style="border-bottom-color: black; border-bottom-style: solid; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: initial; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1565c0; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Phil Murphy</a>’s administration.</u></b> The state no longer gives a standardized test to all 11th grade students, so its options were limited.</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "benton sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.2px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>“The easiest way to go about it, <b><u>we all decided</u></b>, was to have a legislative fix," said Ruiz, chair of the Senate’s Education Committee. </i>(emphasis mine)</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">At least she admits it was a back-room deal. But, sorry Senator, you're wrong. Here's "<a href="https://www.app.com/story/opinion/columnists/2019/01/10/parcc-new-jersey-high-school-exit-testing/2530161002/" target="_blank">the easiest way to go about it</a>", courtesy of Julie Larrea Borst, Executive Director of <a href="http://www.saveourschoolsnj.org/" target="_blank">Save Our Schools, NJ</a>:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The governor should move immediately to announce an emergency suspension of the graduation testing requirement for the class of 2019. The Legislature then should extend that temporary suspension for a few years, <b>to protect students in subsequent classes and create an opportunity to review New Jersey’s exit testing policy.</b></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;">(emphasis mine)</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">This review should include representatives from all stakeholder groups, including—and especially—educators, parents and testing experts.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Borst continues: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Assemblywoman Mila Jasey and Sen. Nia Gill have introduced bipartisan legislation (A672/S558) that would accomplish that, suspending exit testing without interfering with the federal accountability testing requirements under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).</i></span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>A review of New Jersey high school exit testing is long overdue. New Jersey adopted exit testing 40 years ago, when the idea was first gaining traction nationally. Over the subsequent four decades, however, multiple studies have documented that </i><b style="font-style: italic; text-decoration-line: underline;">exit testing produces no educational benefits; increases high school dropout rates; and feeds the school-to-prison pipeline. Exit tests are particularly damaging for low-income students, students of color, English Language Learners, and students with disabilities.</b> (emphasis mine)</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">The very students Sen. Ruiz calls "her kids" are the same students most hurt by PARCC testing, but even more so by a high school exit test, and yet, she's introducing S-3381 to the Senate Budget Committee next Monday instead of the Education Committee.<b><i> </i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What is the rush? Since its inception, the call for slowing down, reflecting, analyzing and studying has been loud and clear, but has fallen on many deaf ears on both sides of the aisle in Trenton. To whom are elected officials beholden, and why isn't it the students and parents of New Jersey?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">High school exit exams are not federally mandated. In fact, only <a href="https://www.edweek.org/ew/section/multimedia/states-require-exam-to-graduate.html" target="_blank">12 states</a> require them. And they come at a cost. At a time when the state is strapped for resources, we do not need multiple PARCC tests administered to high school students when the law only requires one.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Never mind the fact that the Murphy administration's own attorneys are in on this fix, presumably with his blessings. If Ruiz's bill passes, Gov. Murphy <i><u>must</u></i> veto it or face serious backlash from everyone in this state who voted to end the Christie reign of error. Parents, educators and concerned citizens must call our state representatives and the governor's office and demand an end to the nightmare of standardized testing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What can you do?</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Call Gov. Murphy at 609-292-6000 and tell him to veto S-3381</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Comment at the governor's <a href="https://www.facebook.com/governorphilmurphy/" target="_blank">Facebook</a> page.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Tag @GovMurphy on Twitter. Tell him to #KeepYourWord. </span></li>
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">Call your state representatives and tell them to support the Jasey/Gill bills. Click <a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/legsearch.asp" target="_blank">here</a> to find contact info for yours. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Tag your state representatives and members of the Senate Budget Committee on social media. Those members are:</span><table align="center" border="0" style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; width: 95%px;"><tbody>
<tr><td><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=223" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />Sarlo, Paul A. </span></a>- Chair <br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=290" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Cunningham, Sandra B. </span></a>- Vice-Chair <br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=328" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Addiego, Dawn Marie </span></a> <span style="color: maroon;"> </span><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=417" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Andrzejczak, Bob </span></a> <span style="color: maroon;"> </span><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=371" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Cruz-Perez, Nilsa </span></a> <span style="color: maroon;"> </span><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=387" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Diegnan, Patrick J. </span></a><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=329" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Greenstein, Linda R. </span></a><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=394" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">O'Scanlon, Declan J. </span></a><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=281" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Oroho, Steven V. </span></a> <span style="color: maroon;"> </span><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=287" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Ruiz, M. Teresa </span></a><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=395" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Singleton, Troy </span></a><br /><a href="https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/BIO.asp?Leg=336" title="View member page"><span style="color: #009999;">Thompson, Samuel D. </span></a> </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">If possible, attend the Senate budget committee hearing on Monday, 1/28 at noon, committee room 4, and share your concerns. </span></li>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-89093599464792879412019-01-13T07:37:00.001-08:002019-02-03T08:33:15.114-08:00How NJ Politicians—D & R— Stick It To Consumers<h2>
<i style="color: #990000; font-size: xx-large;">"Are you ready for some <strike>football</strike> good ole' fashioned consumer screwing?"</i></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifc0S2RiBKSgGMKiSACLwgCUmioglAulsKuOlcCv9JhMTv77ivvKRoEbDVq8R_KVY41hU0aZDAqhx9ZC6ZVo3TG2h7xwTZaorLapYKh52TNUghV58p7EB4xmc0tzza-7g7ca8i5VCl738h/s1600/football-2724393_1920.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1508" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifc0S2RiBKSgGMKiSACLwgCUmioglAulsKuOlcCv9JhMTv77ivvKRoEbDVq8R_KVY41hU0aZDAqhx9ZC6ZVo3TG2h7xwTZaorLapYKh52TNUghV58p7EB4xmc0tzza-7g7ca8i5VCl738h/s200/football-2724393_1920.png" width="188" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">This blog has been quiet for some time. The "shock and awe" of Trumplandia has left me mouth-agape, clinging to the lifesavers tossed by our better angels in the not-"fake news" who remind me that while</span><span style="font-size: large;"> the rudder is shaking, the seas are rough, and we've taken on water, the good ship USS Democracy is holding steady—so far.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">With <a href="https://www.app.com/story/opinion/columnists/2019/01/10/parcc-new-jersey-high-school-exit-testing/2530161002/" target="_blank">PARCC testing</a>, the <a href="https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/01/legalizing-weed-and-raising-nj-minimum-wage-to-be-hashed-out-again-in-meeting-between-murphy-and-top-dems.html" target="_blank">minimum wage, legal pot</a>, <a href="https://whyy.org/articles/harsh-audit-of-n-j-tax-break-programs-finds-lax-oversight/" target="_blank">lax oversight of corporate tax breaks</a>, and <a href="https://www.app.com/story/news/politics/ocean-county/2019/01/10/ocean-county-gop-chairman-george-gilmore-indicted-federal-tax-charges/2541006002/" target="_blank">the usual political sliminess that defines the Garden State</a> all making headlines recently, there's no shortage of subject matter. </span><span style="font-size: large;">But with the NFL playoffs starting, synchronicity was at work. As I was reading the <i>Star Ledger </i><a href="https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/01/nj-supreme-court-sacks-super-bowl-ticket-sale-lawsuit.html" target="_blank">this story</a> about the 2014 Super Bowl caught my eye:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjSsfbDSNne4H_pW3FIr-fd8pR5KCO9WUrNTAHv4TqapXBcCP-aWAcUE9hhIu-BdU01MKmeaf7wuAI9tJ-R3Rhgt75XMGihhwHGnas-sPHEKCTBVKlIzMUR9JR7kSZNoCsdsAuuDHImYE/s1600/Screen+Shot+2019-01-12+at+9.55.29+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="506" data-original-width="720" height="449" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjSsfbDSNne4H_pW3FIr-fd8pR5KCO9WUrNTAHv4TqapXBcCP-aWAcUE9hhIu-BdU01MKmeaf7wuAI9tJ-R3Rhgt75XMGihhwHGnas-sPHEKCTBVKlIzMUR9JR7kSZNoCsdsAuuDHImYE/s640/Screen+Shot+2019-01-12+at+9.55.29+AM.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">So? That was five years ago. What does all this have to do with the 'All Dem, All the Time' New Jersey State Legislature and Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy? Well, this entire story is a shining example of elected officials feeding their egos at the expense of citizens, elected officials allowing big corporations to stuff their wallets at the expense of consumers and how electeds make back-room deals in the dead of night and there's not a damned thing we can do about it. Stick with me and you'll see...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">While "New York/New Jersey" <a href="https://www.newyorkjets.com/video/2014-super-bowl-announcement-nj-ny-wins-the-bid-2386749" target="_blank">won the bid</a> to host Super Bowl </span><span style="font-size: large;">XLVIII in 2014</span><span style="font-size: large;">, New York got all the glamor and New Jersey got... nothin'. We've always been the ugly stepsister of New York, despite the fact that both the Giants and the Jets play at MetLife Stadium in Secaucus, a stone's throw from Manhattan, the only thing between it and The Big Apple being the forever-under-construction-American Dream Mall—and possibly Jimmy Hoffa's body. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In 2013, then-Gov. Chris Christie touted the event as a windfall for New Jersey, promising <strike>huuuuge</strike> (ooops, sorry, wrong NJ bloviator) big revenues for our state which was reeling under the weight of nine </span><span style="font-size: large;">credit downgrades (<a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2017/03/27/nj-credit-rating-cut-11th-time-under-christie/99708996/" target="_blank">a record </a></span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2017/03/27/nj-credit-rating-cut-11th-time-under-christie/99708996/" target="_blank">eleven</a> by the time he left office). </span><span style="font-size: large;">But, as with most things Christie, it didn't pan out. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2015/01/what_did_super_bowl_xlviii_cost_how_do_you_write_1.html" target="_blank">In fact, it was a financial disaster.</a> Not only did the NFL skip town leaving an $18 million unpaid tab, l</span><span style="font-size: large;">ocal businesses and municipalities lost approximately $600 million in revenues because</span><span style="font-size: large;"> they were denied the right to use any Super Bowl branding to promote watch parties, and all the official events in the week leading up to the game were held in New York City. Even the hotels right near the stadium got screwed </span><span style="font-size: large;">because attendees were forced to use mass transit</span><span style="font-size: large;">. New Jersey spent—and lost—tens of millions in infrastructure and security upgrades, and snow removal contingencies. </span><span style="font-size: large;">It was </span><span style="font-size: large;">the most expensive Super Bowl</span><span style="font-size: large;"> to date. How expensive? <a href="https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2015/01/what_did_super_bowl_xlviii_cost_how_do_you_write_1.html" target="_blank">We may never know</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "benton sans" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large; letter-spacing: 0.2px;"><i>A definitive cost for the New Jersey Super Bowl <b><u>has never been tallied</u></b>. An NFL spokesman said they <b><u>do not provide such figures and </u></b><b style="text-decoration-line: underline;">the state treasury officials said they did not do any extensive economic analysis</b> </i>(of course not)<i>. A spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie declined comment, but pointed to earlier statements by the governor, saying the costs to New Jersey on balance “would be outweighed by the benefits given to the state and the region by having the Super Bowl here.” </i>(emphasis and snark mine)</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">Ummm... no. We lost. Bigly. And so did fans. See, actually <u><i>attending</i></u> a Super Bowl isn't for ordinary Joe Schmoes like you and me. It's insider baseball—er—football. Ninety-nine percent of the tickets for that game were reserved for the teams and other VIPs, and the one percent that was available for purchase by fans who had to <i><u>win a lottery</u></i> (boy, does this sound <a href="https://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2015/06/nj-fy16-budget-death-by-thousand-cuts.html" target="_blank">familiar</a>) in order to even purchase them were going for exorbitant prices. One fan, Josh Finkelman, was only able to purchase tickets for $2000 each, twice their face value. He called foul and filed a lawsuit </span><span style="font-size: large;">against the NFL </span><span style="font-size: large;">citing New Jersey's Consumer Fraud Act that is supposed to protect consumers from just this sort of thing. Unfortunately, he lost. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In writing the unanimous decision, State Supreme Court Justice, </span><a href="http://www.bluejersey.com/2018/05/three-things-you-should-know-about-anne-patterson/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">and Christie appointee,</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.bluejersey.com/2018/05/three-things-you-should-know-about-anne-patterson/" target="_blank">Judge Anne Patterson</a>* </span><span style="font-size: large;">wrote that this practice</span><span style="font-size: large;"> "does not constitute the unlawful withholding of more than 5 percent [of tickets]. The tickets at the heart of plaintiff’s action were part of the 99 percent of tickets reserved long before the 2014 Super Bowl for specific entities with ties to the NFL. Those tickets were never destined to be part of a public sale.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Finkelman’s attorney, Bruce Nagel, <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/beta-story-container/US/jersey-supreme-court-rules-favor-nfl-super-bowl/story?id=60264330">shot back</a>:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>It’s the most anti-consumer opinion that has been issued in decades out of New Jersey,” said Bruce Nagel, a partner at Nagel Rice LLP in Rosewood, New Jersey. “The Legislature passed a law to ensure the public had access to fair-priced tickets and the Supreme Court, at least with regard to the Super Bowl, basically nullified the statute. It’s a sad day for consumers under this ruling today.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, how did Finkelman lose a case that seemed like a no-brainer win? Could <i><u><a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2018/08/24/murphy-signs-bill-eliminating-law-intended-to-protect-ticket-buyers-576434" target="_blank">this</a></u></i> possibly have something to do with it? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>[In August], Gov. Phil Murphy... signed a controversial bill that restructures the state’s law on ticket sales, repealing 17-year-old rules that were intended to protect consumers.</i></span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Lawmakers <a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2018/07/02/legislature-quietly-moves-to-eliminate-law-to-protect-ticket-buyers-496229">quietly sent the measure</a> to Murphy in early July as they wrapped up weeks of intense budget negotiations, moving the bill through both houses so quickly that <b><u>there were no public hearings on it</u></b>.</i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>While sponsors say the bill, <a href="https://subscriber.politicopro.com/legislative-compass/bill/NJ_18R_A_4259">NJ A 4259 (18R)</a>, is intended to protect consumers — it includes a number of provisions meant to do just that — <b><u>it also repeals a law barring anyone with access to tickets that haven’t gone on sale from withholding more than 5 percent of those tickets from the general public.</u></b></i></span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">(Remember, the NFL withheld 99%!) </span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>In <a href="http://d31hzlhk6di2h5.cloudfront.net/20180824/ce/ab/d7/0b/71ba552f21a000be3d3bc3e4/A4259.pdf">a statement accompanying his signature</a>, Murphy said he understood the concerns people have about that aspect of the bill, but believes the provision puts the state at a competitive disadvantage and had sewn confusion into the industry. He noted neither New York nor Pennsylvania have this "holdback" rule.</i></span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"Entertainers have an interest in rewarding their most loyal fans with access to live performances, and the 5 percent cap can act as a hindrance to this objective in certain circumstances... </i>(I bet Bruce and Bon Jovi could count a lot more than 5% of NJ concert-goers as 'loyal fans')<i> Moreover, the difficulty in identifying tickets that have been held back and tickets that are available to the general public has led to substantial confusion and ongoing litigation, particularly when entertainers reserve tickets for groups that can encompass a wide subset of the population."</i></span> <span style="font-size: large;">(So, fix it, don't scrap it.)</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The governor instead called on Congress to pass a bill creating a comprehensive federal approach “that will promote competition and protect consumers.” </i>(Congress? Seriously? Good luck with that.)<i> He noted Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) sponsors such a measure...</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Pascrell said he was pleased the governor had endorsed his federal legislation, but said <b><u>he was disappointed Murphy was moving forward with the New Jersey bill. The measure, the congressman said, will worsen an industry that “has been increasingly hostile to music and sports fans just looking to enjoy some entertainment without being gouged."</u></b></i></span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>“Too much of this bill takes the wrong approach to addressing the unregulated, multi-billion dollar ticket marketplace,” Pascrell said in a statement. “Addressing speculative ticket reselling is a welcome policy. But </i><b style="font-style: italic; text-decoration-line: underline;">the whole law reads like a wish list from Ticketmaster, a company almost universally loathed by consumers. Eliminating limits on withholding tickets from the public while hindering transparency in pricing are steps in the wrong direction.”</b> (emphasis and snark mine)</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">And there you have it. Arguably the most Democratic state in the country, that elected a self-described progressive governor last year, quietly stuck it to her citizens. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">This story isn't just about football, but January 12, 2019, is the 50th anniversary of one of the greatest Super Bowls in my lifetime: <a href="https://www.nj.com/sports/2019/01/50-years-ago-jets-made-history-in-super-bowl-iii-and-i-remember-it-like-it-was-yesterday-izenberg.html" target="_blank">Super Bowl III</a>, Broadway Joe Namath and the Jest vs. the Baltimore Colts. In a (for that time) shocking display of bravado, chutzpah and plain ole' confidence, Namath infamously predicted the Jets would wipe the floor with the Colts. And they did. Those were simpler times, when the Super Bowl was about the game, not days-long pre-game shows, 'wardrobe malfunctions', $2 thousand dollar tickets and $2 million dollar commercials, and all those endless stats. But what do I know? I was a mere 10-year old girl who thought Joe Namath was pretty awesome and bet my father that he was right. I won. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Fifty years later, New Jersey consumers lost.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Adding...</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here's the full game. Sit back and kick it old school for a couple of hours. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>* Please be sure to read the link to the Blue Jersey article that details exactly how Judge Patterson gained her seat on the New Jersey Supreme Court. It's sickening. </i></span><i><span style="font-size: large;">The People's Organization for Progress Chair, <a href="http://njpop.org/wordpress/?tag=chairman-lawrence-hamm" target="_blank">Larry Hamm</a> described her as a lawyer who had "</span><span style="font-size: large;">consistently chosen to vigorously champion the interests of deadly corporate giants against the interests of the people"</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></i><br />
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-50375399093778263922018-05-12T09:22:00.002-07:002018-05-12T09:22:56.682-07:00#EducatingReformers - Pt. 1 Samuel<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3MrvBR02McnkI4ii9Cjo6Xq72lKlx5S7KXlCaG8knxlJ4gXuJl8XKF_jgLEedboLlJ_JZsfzyEmTdI-DnfnWPEKrGpzbZr6NksL9caQrG15U51FTmbDujKePHhPzMlG6ceITEwH8ty0L/s1600/Samuel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="612" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3MrvBR02McnkI4ii9Cjo6Xq72lKlx5S7KXlCaG8knxlJ4gXuJl8XKF_jgLEedboLlJ_JZsfzyEmTdI-DnfnWPEKrGpzbZr6NksL9caQrG15U51FTmbDujKePHhPzMlG6ceITEwH8ty0L/s320/Samuel.jpg" width="247" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Credit: AJ Garcia - UpSplash</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Last week <a href="http://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2018/05/its-time-to-get-uncomfortable.html" target="_blank">I wrote</a> about how I was going to tell the stories of students who, far too often, become statistics on both sides of the education battle. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is my first installment. This story comes from a teacher who works in an alternative high school for students who have not been successful in the regular public school setting. This isn't because of 'bad teachers', it's because they face a host of other challenges, including overwhelming obstacles at home. Over 90% of the students in this school are minorities and qualify for free and reduced lunch. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As with all of these posts, certain identifying information, including names and locations have been changed. It is also edited for brevity and content.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">This is Samuel's story:</span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;">I’ve been peripherally noting that one of my senior students, Samuel, who is inches from graduation, comes in as soon as the doors open for teachers at 7:30 am. A bit disheveled, but I know his home life isn’t perfect. Today I came in at 7:15, and he was there. Spent 15 minutes in the bathroom with a lot of water and paper towels. Couldn‘t disguise the filth. I told my school counsellor I thought he slept on the street and yup, he’s homeless. </span><span style="font-size: 21.3333px;">The staff who know Samuel knew immediately what had happened. Of course there were clues: </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">dirty, not shaving, downing energy drinks without eating, and not looking at us in the eyes even for a lunch order. BINGO. I have great staff support this year.</span></div>
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<i style="font-size: 16pt;">(Note: This teacher went on to say that next year her school is getting a new principal who knows nothing about working with this student population, but simply needs more 'experience' on their resumé, which will be a huge blow to the atmosphere at the school.)</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 21.3333px;">We all kind of enfolded him with gentle questions. He finally opened up and cried.</span><span style="font-size: 21.3333px;"> </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">We bought take-home food for him and got him the address of a men’s shelter. He is so reluctant to accept help. As I would expect, knowing his pride.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;">He is so smart! He can read a lesson 2 or 3 times and pass a test with no notes anywhere! He was on ADHD and anti-depressant drugs throughout elementary school and middle school. Mom married an alcoholic and threw him out. He's been off all prescription drugs, but living on caffeine. He moved in with his girlfriend this year when he was homeless. They had a fight over the weekend. He is back on the streets. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;">The counselor, principal and I talked to Samuel at different times today. Lots of work ahead — <b><i><u>not to get him to graduate, but to get him to realize he deserves to not be thrown around like an empty trash bag. And a lot of help to get him on his feet after graduation.</u></i></b> Meanwhile, his mother called today to find out “what’s going on with Samuel?” Samuel is 18. Our counselor talked to him before she would call mom. She will not call mom back. Samuel is an adult now, and his wishes come first. He wants nothing to do with her. (emphasis mine)<u></u></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16pt;">Thank you. This kid is brilliant and broken. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Standardized testing will not help Samuel, nor will school choice or vouchers, and certainly not decreased school funding. Not being 'college and career ready' is not his problem. This child needs love, security, a home, proper medical and psychological care and a strong support network. He is getting some of that at school, but as this teacher said, what happens after he graduates?</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Will he be able to get health insurance from whatever remnants of the Affordable Care Act are left in his state, or will he continue to suffer the debilitating effects of ADHD and depression? Will he find the inner strength to succeed? Or will his life continue to spiral out of control? If he is unable to find that support network, the odds are not in his favor. And yet, 'reformers' say public education is the problem. For Samuel, public education has been his only hope for survival.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you have a story you'd like to share about a student facing extraordinary odds, and how public education is helping him or her, email me at mcorfield610@gmail. </span></div>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-42781114164784984912018-05-06T11:23:00.000-07:002018-05-06T11:27:20.937-07:00It's Time To "Get Uncomfortable"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #990000;"><i>“Get uncomfortable, challenge your own perceptions to find clarity, b</i></span><i style="color: #990000;">e fearless, be kind, meet someone new.”</i></span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Those words were spoken by Mandy Manning, newly elected National Teacher of the Year. More on her below...</span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b>Time to focus on the little stuff</b></span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">In a recent <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/15/arts/music/joan-baez-whistle-down-the-wind-retire.html" target="_blank"><i>NY Times</i> interview</a>, Joan Baez said of her own activism, "I don't think we can think in big terms now, or we'll just get under the covers and never get out. The little stuff almost becomes more important right now, because you have a chance at it. The world we are living in is being made horrible and is going to need every little victory—that your family and friends feel some kind of support, some kind of goodness." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It was like she was reading my mind.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">With the advent of the current <strike>administration</strike> regime, education activism has become much more than fighting against vouchers, charter schools and standardized testing. It now also includes gun violence, immigration rights, racism, LGBTQ rights, women's rights, an education secretary who is a religious zealot, and the overall fight for the survival of our democracy. As our nation veers toward a Constitutional crisis, I want to focus—as Joan says—on "the little stuff"—our students, because that's where this all started. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b>Time to challenge perceptions</b></span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">In a recent <a href="http://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2018/04/dear-betsydevosed-this-is-what-it-means.html" target="_blank">open letter to Betsy DeVos</a> on the current national wave of teacher strikes, I included some pictures of the horrendous conditions in which children in the wealthiest nation on earth are expected to learn. Far too many of our students also live in these—or worse—conditions. </span><a href="http://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2018/04/america-does-not-love-her-children.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">In another post</span></a><span style="font-size: large;">, I called out the current keepers of the ideals of this once great nation for abandoning her most precious resource: our future, our children. The wealthiest nation in the history of humanity has turned its back on its children because tax cuts for the wealthy are supposed to magically cure our nation's ills. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">These posts are but drops of water in the vast ocean of education activists who, for more than a decade, have been challenging our nation's leaders on their failed and profit-driven education policies. But every drop combines to create great waves that batter the established shoreline—right on up to the White House—like this one last week:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">On Wednesday, <a href="http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2018/05/trump_meets_with_nations_top_teachers.html?cmp=soc-edit-tw" target="_blank">EdWeek reported</a> that, at the State Teachers of the Year meeting with Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos, National Teacher of the Year, Mandy Manning, staged a silent protest. She "</span><span style="font-size: large;">wore several buttons on her dress, including one that said Trans Equality Now, one for the Women's March, and one of a rainbow-colored apple." She also </span><span style="font-size: large;">presented him with letters written by her students. </span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Manning said on a press call that the pins were meant to convey her message of support for all of her populations of students. "[Our students] are wanted; they are loved; they are enough; they matter," she said.</span><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></i></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Manning teaches newly arrived immigrant and refugee students in Washington state. She told Education Week that <a href="http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2018/04/national_teacher_of_year_2018.html" style="background: transparent; color: #336699; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none;">she had her students write letters to the White House to share their stories</a>—from bureaucratic red tape splitting up families to being told to "go back to Africa." </i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2018/5/5/1762315/-There-is-a-reason-Mandy-Manning-was-Teacher-of-the-Year-Listen-to-the-speech-trump-wanted-silenced" target="_blank">She was prohibited by Trump from giving her speech</a>, which focused on the plight of her students, but later gave it on CNN's Van Jones Show:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Thank you, <a href="https://twitter.com/MandyRheaWrites" target="_blank">Mandy</a>, for being a powerful voice for all your students, especially those whose voices have been silenced for far too long. I look forward to your advocacy this coming year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The other State Teachers of the Year <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/betsy-devos-top-teachers_us_5ae79725e4b055fd7fcef147?utm_campaign=hp_fb_pages&utm_source=main_fb&utm_medium=facebook&ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063" target="_blank">sparred</a> with Education Secretary Betsy DeVos over a host of issues including vouchers, school funding and the current wave of teacher strikes, to which DeVos responded with her tired script about teacher protests being "at the expense of kids and their opportunity to go to school and learn."</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Montana's Teacher of the Year, Melissa Romano told reporters, "For her to say at the ‘expense of children’ was a very profound moment and one I’ll remember forever, because that is so far from what is happening."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">Time to name names</span></h3>
<span style="font-size: large;">Among the most moving memorials I have ever seen are the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC, the 9/11 Memorial at Ground Zero, and the placards outside the late Senator Frank Lautenberg's DC office that listed the names and pictures of all our brave service men and women killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. They remind us not only of profound events, but forever memorialize the individual human beings whose lives were ended by man's inhumanity to man. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">For far too many children in this country their home life is as horrendous as—or worse than—the conditions in their schools. It's easy for anyone (myself included) on either side of the education fight to speak of these children in terms of statistics and/or generalizations. Sometimes we need to. But we also need to give a name to these statistics. We need to hear their stories in all their heartbreaking detail, we need to confront our own fears, admit our misconceptions, and, as Mandy said, "get uncomfortable" with the reality they face, because <i><u>that</u></i> is what really matters. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">To that end, going forward I will be devoting much of this blog to telling <u><i>your</i></u> stories of individual students and the education professionals who are their greatest champions. The series will be called "Educating 'Reformers'". As always, student and teacher privacy and confidentiality are my number one concerns. Unless I have written permission from teachers and students, all names and locations will be changed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you have a story you would like to share, please contact me at mcorfield610@gmail.com.</span><br />
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-44125374949701530232018-04-09T16:22:00.001-07:002018-04-09T16:28:56.948-07:00Dear @BetsyDeVosED THIS is what it means to "serve the students"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Dear Betsy,</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I hear <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/education/wp/2018/04/09/betsy-devos-to-oklahoma-teachers-serve-the-students/?utm_term=.dd0ce7f5bd6c" target="_blank">you aren't happy with Oklahoma teachers</a> who walked off the job to protest the drastic cuts to school funding in their state. You told them they should "serve the students." You also called the strike by West Virginia teachers—who, along with OK teachers, are among the lowest paid in the country—an "adult squabble." Interesting choice of words from the head of a department that has, for the better part of the past 20 years, treated us like servants. Interesting choice of words from someone who knows virtually nothing about education law or policy; who never spent a day in her life inside a public school; who has absolutely no concept of what a public school teacher does or what it's like to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/31/us/oklahoma-teachers-profiles/index.html" target="_blank">work two, three or more jobs to keep a roof over your head</a>; who wants nothing more than to shutter public schools and use that money to fund religious schools. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLV0XSzauujmZ7Xx0RPXk29bt4G4XGhUaoFOcX5tq8_w1Kh9k_bdsXgKAa5QFyX8pv7Rx5GkQie3-YBgD-04J4LREtAIuc1Qp7nrzPShuQfNwKq0lEx9Jq06GCo7YG0Amzx7j8FfDAeP5c/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+5.34.03+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="501" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLV0XSzauujmZ7Xx0RPXk29bt4G4XGhUaoFOcX5tq8_w1Kh9k_bdsXgKAa5QFyX8pv7Rx5GkQie3-YBgD-04J4LREtAIuc1Qp7nrzPShuQfNwKq0lEx9Jq06GCo7YG0Amzx7j8FfDAeP5c/s640/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+5.34.03+PM.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What, exactly, should that "service" look like? Tea and crumpets and classical music at lunch? Neck massages after computer class? Or perhaps valet parking for those students who are fortunate enough to afford a car? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">How much more "service" must teachers perform? How many more classroom supplies, and food and clothing for their students must they buy with their own money? How many more students must be packed into their classrooms? How much more are they supposed to do with ever-decreasing budgets before you, or some elected official with strings attached to the oil lobby realizes what's going on in Oklahoma's schools? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>When is enough enough?</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since you continue to remain woefully ignorant of the workings of public schools (I guess that stuff's just not important to a billionairess who can build whatever school she wants with a wave of her magic wand), allow me to educate you on exactly what those teachers—and others around the country—are doing in "service" to their students:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Did you see these images? I can't imagine you didn't, seeing as how they went viral. But just in case you missed them, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/03/us/oklahoma-teachers-textbooks-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">here's CNN's report</a>. They were taken by <i>real</i> Oklahoma teachers, and are <i>real</i> pictures of what they have to work with <b><u>every single day</u></b> thanks to their state's massive education cuts. Did you have these problems when you were in school? Did your children? I bet not.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgju5xepOBWo4WIOfNko2SppRvTqX_j2wNNXked4t7vev72On3UybxW5Q64sJhILCSw4S4RDTSQpFfgJ_okATpapm5Ax6mdpo2tRd79cQtfiT6qeSOQz0U-q_TSO5i2Lanq8W3ykI0Jq6Jn/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+5.54.27+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="246" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgju5xepOBWo4WIOfNko2SppRvTqX_j2wNNXked4t7vev72On3UybxW5Q64sJhILCSw4S4RDTSQpFfgJ_okATpapm5Ax6mdpo2tRd79cQtfiT6qeSOQz0U-q_TSO5i2Lanq8W3ykI0Jq6Jn/s640/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+5.54.27+PM.png" width="358" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sarah Jane Scarberry</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">According to the article: </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"></span><i><span style="font-size: large;">Scarberry also shared images of her classroom's broken desks and chairs, and said they weren't too bad <b><u>compared to other classrooms.</u></b></span> </i></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"As for the desks, I'm more fortunate than most I guess. My husband works with me at Heavener and works in maintenance. He usually can use salvageable parts from discarded desks to keep me going," she told CNN. (emphasis mine)</i></span></blockquote>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8XEbYjNY_pAZ1rATxFVA3dAg6zLkjM0l_SBHNkcGf8w8ba_YZV9-nJF37R85nSokRlpe3Swc-USUGsUwrUjBBsT-21I046-pX-8FyuXoRUzlgJ_y0CCbEORIVqWgZZJAS2-0_W92DV3MS/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+6.04.19+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="437" data-original-width="300" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8XEbYjNY_pAZ1rATxFVA3dAg6zLkjM0l_SBHNkcGf8w8ba_YZV9-nJF37R85nSokRlpe3Swc-USUGsUwrUjBBsT-21I046-pX-8FyuXoRUzlgJ_y0CCbEORIVqWgZZJAS2-0_W92DV3MS/s640/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+6.04.19+PM.png" width="436" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sarah Jane Scarberry</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrUU7KPMY9yEBRGORUHA_ytKd9QE-Q6ZwGNL8nYbI147lUmURUBMVxwbrmo738aW6A7H0fW20ApGgAwvgVi2VdQbca_d7BViNsEWSNR-z13ZhRuWyz96ArSOgCQ9o0lM_irwaJ766f9cqu/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+5.56.00+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="779" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrUU7KPMY9yEBRGORUHA_ytKd9QE-Q6ZwGNL8nYbI147lUmURUBMVxwbrmo738aW6A7H0fW20ApGgAwvgVi2VdQbca_d7BViNsEWSNR-z13ZhRuWyz96ArSOgCQ9o0lM_irwaJ766f9cqu/s400/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+5.56.00+PM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mary Burton</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Teacher Mary Burton shared this picture of the anatomy books her students have to use at Eisenhower High School in Lawton, Oklahoma.</i></span></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">"I don't have enough and the ones left are in terrible shape," she said.</span> </i></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;"></span><span style="font-size: large;">Last year, her class's 25 anatomy books were shared by about 70 students, Burton said.</span> </i></blockquote>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;"></span><span style="font-size: large;">"Because graduation requirements changed, I only have one section of human anatomy, so <u><b>there are enough books for my students for the first year in a long time,"</b></u> she said.</span></i></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>On Twitter, user jamiebh73 shared a photo of a textbook from her daughter's eighth-grade history class in Owasso. In the book, <b><u>George W. Bush is still president</u></b>, she said. (emphasis mine)</i></span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyDX60AvarLYbcltcAVJxLIk69fgqVcxaicfbfA8e8R8PYoK12s96pYMoW_dalw_7mgjQDdjIzIDhZsrP1Wdpu7-fuT9PofDCtjnK3mavAzM4Epvqcb1cGXZa9-TNFwbeFPFatzBrkQkUI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+6.08.19+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="530" data-original-width="431" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyDX60AvarLYbcltcAVJxLIk69fgqVcxaicfbfA8e8R8PYoK12s96pYMoW_dalw_7mgjQDdjIzIDhZsrP1Wdpu7-fuT9PofDCtjnK3mavAzM4Epvqcb1cGXZa9-TNFwbeFPFatzBrkQkUI/s640/Screen+Shot+2018-04-09+at+6.08.19+PM.png" width="520" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/31/us/oklahoma-teachers-profiles/index.html">Allyson Kubat</a>, who teaches at Mustang High Scool, just southwest of Oklahoma City, said the textbooks students in her public speaking class use are so old that <b><u>they advise them to ask librarians about "this new thing called the Internet" and explain how to use microfiche.</u></b> (emphasis mine)</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;"> The article ends with this quote from Scarberry:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"I could go on for days about the things we need, and the opportunities my students deserve. For myself, </i><u style="font-style: italic;"><b>a raise sounds great, but this walkout for me was never about that. It was always funding for our schools,"</b></u> <i>she said. (emphasis mine)</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Can you <u><i>imagine</i></u> this??? I can. This is what happens when states give massive tax cuts to corporations. This is what happens when teachers are treated like servants instead of highly-educated professionals. This is what happens when years of begging and pleading with elected officials, who care more about tax cuts for corporate donors than the future of this country, falls on deaf ears. This is what happens when teachers <u><i><b>and</b></i></u> parents say, <b><i><u>"Enough!"</u></i></b> This is <u><i><b>not</b></i></u> an "adult squabble." This is a fight for every child in the state of Oklahoma (and West Virginia and Kentucky and Arizona) to have a good education. <b><u><i>This is what happens when teachers "serve the students."</i></u></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is a national disgrace, and as Secretary of Education, <b><i><u>you</u></i></b> should be leading the charge to fix this instead of trying to sweep it under the rug. The wealthiest country in the history of humanity has schools that rival those of third-world countries while our government blames teachers, slashes budgets and says testing and privatization are somehow going to magically fix everything. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is just the beginning.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">This "service" to the students is only going to grow. You would do well to educate yourself.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcqiIBz4umMbviELBkQExRRbYPgS_Z2truUcMy0gT_ncR1ZRLVE9jmfFTChrb_VkIvTECkYe9Fjm3Yw5dk5Qg_lkWZqe0xnRaYbMaHFv5AAVk2PF-qur-cczQwztZkEPH8kuUvlrHL3hQE/s1600/PencilsDown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="180" data-original-width="612" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcqiIBz4umMbviELBkQExRRbYPgS_Z2truUcMy0gT_ncR1ZRLVE9jmfFTChrb_VkIvTECkYe9Fjm3Yw5dk5Qg_lkWZqe0xnRaYbMaHFv5AAVk2PF-qur-cczQwztZkEPH8kuUvlrHL3hQE/s640/PencilsDown.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-9986313181292389032018-04-07T09:34:00.001-07:002018-04-08T09:40:57.184-07:00America Does Not Love Her Children<span style="font-size: large;">I usually start my day with the news and social media. It does a lot more to get me fired up than caffeine. I do ask my Higher Power to help me to not be mean or demeaning. It's far too easy to get into endless debates with anonymous profiles who are entrenched in their beliefs. Alas, I'm not perfect. I've shared more than enough snark and pointed my finger at others many a time. I've been trying to distance myself by taking news blackout days, but not so this morning. My friend, <a href="https://twitter.com/stopthefreezeNJ" target="_blank">DEFEND NJ PUBLIC ED!</a>, aka. @StopTheFreezeNJ, posted this piece of brilliance from Bill Maher and I was off to the races.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I quickly dug out the draft for this post.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I started it several years ago, during the Obama administration, amidst the upheaval of Race to the Top and the useless standardized tests that accompanied it, and are still in practice in many states. (So happy to report that this will be the last year for the <strike>CCRAP</strike> PARCC test in NJ!) I started it during Arne Duncan's utterly tone deaf tenure as <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SecretaryArneDuncan/?ref=br_rs" target="_blank">Education Secretary</a> (do read the comments for a trip down memory lane); during <a href="http://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2016/12/an-open-letter-to-govchristie.html" target="_blank">NJ Gov. Chris Christie's reign of error</a> when he slashed education funding and berated educators on an almost daily basis; after Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker shoved <a href="https://projects.jsonline.com/news/2016/11/27/for-unions-in-wisconsin-fast-and-hard-fall-since-act-10.html" target="_blank">Act 10</a> down teachers' throats and Ohio Gov. John Kasich failed to pass <a href="https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/02/john-kasich-2016-far-right-213673" target="_blank">SB5</a>; when we thought things just couldn't get any worse... </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I had to put it down because the more I researched, the more upset and overwhelmed I became. It was just too painful. I couldn't step out of what I was living through.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But America has reached a new high in all-time lows. We are no longer a democracy, we are a hypocrisy. The wealthiest nation in the history of humanity does not love her children:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">The wealthiest nation on the planet has one of the <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/06/these-rich-countries-have-high-levels-of-child-poverty/" target="_blank">highest child poverty rates</a> in the industrialized world</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">We have the <a href="https://www.healthsystemtracker.org/chart-collection/infant-mortality-u-s-compare-countries/#item-infant-mortality-higher-u-s-comparable-countries" target="_blank">highest infant mortality rate</a> of comparable countries</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">We have the <a href="https://www.oecd.org/els/health-systems/Obesity-Update-2017.pdf" target="_blank">highest child obesity</a> rate of all OECD nations</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">That number continues to climb and there is a <a href="https://www.uofmhealth.org/news/archive/201601/low-income-communities-more-likely-face-childhood-obesity" target="_blank">direct correlation</a> between it and poverty</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">The richest 1% are getting richer and the rest of us are getting poorer</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Our lowest-paid workers <a href="https://fightfor15.org/about-us/" target="_blank">are not paid a living wage</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Our current administration is rolling back regulations that keep our water, air and food safe</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">The GOP tax increase will eventually take more money from the poor and middle class, and <a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/lazarus/la-fi-lazarus-republican-tax-bill-individual-mandate-20171219-story.html" target="_blank">millions will lose health insurance</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Tax cuts in state after state are having a devastating effect on public education budgets </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Educators often work two, three and even four jobs to survive</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Our <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/teacher-salaries-by-country-2017-5#elementary-school-teachers-best-and-worst-by-gender-3" target="_blank">teachers earn far less</a> than other industrialized nations, and our female teachers earn even less</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Our schools have become shooting galleries for lunatics with semiautomatic weapons</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Elected officials would rather arm teachers with guns than supplies to effectively do our jobs</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Elected officials would rather offer 'thoughts and prayers' and continue to take blood money from the NRA than enact sensible gun legislation that the overwhelming majority of Americans—including NRA members—want</span></li>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">The education piece is not a D or R issue. There's plenty of blame—and profits—to go around. From <a href="http://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-letter-to-president-obama-about.html" target="_blank">Bill Clinton's New Market Tax Credits</a> which opened the floodgates to corporate profits from charter schools, to George W. Bush's <a href="http://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-letter-to-president-obama-about.html" target="_blank">No Child Left Behind</a>, to <a href="http://mcorfield.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-letter-to-president-obama-about.html" target="_blank">Barak Obama's disastrous Race to the Top</a> that made NCLB look like child's play, America's schools—especially those in high poverty districts—have been defunded to the bone and accountability has skyrocketed. Our teachers have been reduced to trying to force information into children's heads who are then expected to regurgitate it to prove their school's and teachers' worth. And that Arizona teacher in the video who posted her measly $320 pay stub is more the rule than the exception. Veteran educators are fleeing the profession, taking decades of experience with them. Charter schools open and close like Wack-A-Moles. Public schools are shuttered often with no public input, disrupting the lives of families and communities. The Network for Public Education even has a <a href="https://networkforpubliceducation.org/9734-2/" target="_blank">regular column</a> dedicated to the dysfunction and fiscal mismanagement in that industry. All of this is supposed to help America's children. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And I haven't even touched Betsy DeVos.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As Maher said, "We pay such lip service to our kids." But they have been watching and suffering, and now they are fighting back—and voting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is insanity. It has to stop—and it will.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Teachers have been protesting for at least the past ten years, but in the past few months, the tone has changed. <a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/04/the-teachers-strikes-have-exposed-the-gops-achilles-heel.html" target="_blank">Teachers in West Virginia, Kentucky, Arizona, Oklahoma and New Jersey are walking off the job</a> not just for higher wages but for more funding for their schools—<i><u>for their students</u></i>. This is only going to continue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">America is in the middle of a revolution. On any given day, in any given state, grass-roots campaigns are mobilizing to stop the injustice and inequality that have long festered in this country, and that ultimately hurt our children. These are just a few: </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">#BlackLivesMatter<br />#Dreamers<br />#MeToo<br />#MoralMonday<br />#EducationActivism<br />#StopGunViolence<br />#IncomeInequality<br />#WomensMarch<br />#FightFor15<br />#TheResistance<br />#BlueWave2018<br />#Indivisible</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">I'm sure I forgot a few. If so, leave them in the comments.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">But thanks to Bill Maher, we now have a new one:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiduPRLCESM-0i7e5owKU2i7IeUczcj8kQ1xr8qyrrbXeBZ6bTeDxH2jc0pecWqzYa3n8V_z2mY2UDc0TSpa4FVPNA31ONOQjNVCdqvK9tZSaV60xm8D0iGsikgOClk2CVzp7PDor9VE53K/s1600/PencilsDown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="180" data-original-width="612" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiduPRLCESM-0i7e5owKU2i7IeUczcj8kQ1xr8qyrrbXeBZ6bTeDxH2jc0pecWqzYa3n8V_z2mY2UDc0TSpa4FVPNA31ONOQjNVCdqvK9tZSaV60xm8D0iGsikgOClk2CVzp7PDor9VE53K/s640/PencilsDown.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Welcome to the Revolution!</span></div>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-11575386336744370872018-02-07T10:21:00.000-08:002018-02-07T12:00:54.914-08:00It's a New Dawn, It's a New Day for NJ, and I Feel Good!<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OfJRX-8SXOs" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you don't know Nina Simone, you don't have a pulse. Listen to the lyrics. Feel the passion. What an incredible talent, gone too soon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As I sat here this morning, reading my newspaper (yes, I do still read the paper every day. If you're not sure what it is, google it.), and scrolling my Twitter feed, this song popped into my head because my new governor, Phil Murphy, was all over both, doing good things for New Jersey. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The long, dark reign of Emperor Christie is over. I wrote about all the ways he screwed us in <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ciframe%20width=%22560%22%20height=%22315%22%20src=%22https://www.youtube.com/embed/OfJRX-8SXOs%22%20frameborder=%220%22%20allow=%22autoplay;%20encrypted-media%22%20allowfullscreen%3E%3C/iframe%3E" target="_blank">my farewell to him</a> (and in many other posts along the way). There's a new kid in town: Phil Murphy. What a breath of fresh air! In the scant four weeks he has been in office, he has done all this (in no particular order):</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Signed an <a href="http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/01/phil_murphy_to_sign_executive_order_on_equal_pay_f.html" target="_blank">executive order giving equal pay to women</a> (his first official act after being sworn in)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/governor/2018/01/29/murphy-directs-new-jersey-re-enter-regional-greenhouse-gas-initiative/1074921001/" target="_blank">Re-entered NJ in the multi-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative</a> (RGGI)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.nj.com/middlesex/index.ssf/2018/01/hold_murphy_shows_up_at_church_that_houses_immigra.html" target="_blank">Supported undocumented immigrants</a> who were given sanctuary at a local church after others were arrested by ICE agents as they dropped their children off at school. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.app.com/story/news/local/new-jersey/2018/01/12/phil-murphy-names-asbury-parks-lamont-repollet-education-chief/1026463001/" target="_blank">Appointed a real, live educator with decades of experience as the next Commissioner of Education</a>. One of his campaign promises was to ditch PARCC. Too late to make that happen this year, but every reason to expect this year will be its swan song.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/02/murphy_makes_2_moves_to_protect_net_neutrality_in.html" target="_blank">Signed an executive order to protect Net Neutrality in NJ</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2018/01/23/murphy-orders-expansion-medical-marijuana-new-jersey/1057996001/" target="_blank">Ordered the expansion of medical marijuana</a>—something that Christie signed into law, but made almost impossible to access</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2018/02/06/new-jersey-joins-fight-opposing-trumps-transgender-military-ban-239699" target="_blank">Joined 14 other states in the fight against Trump's transgender military ban</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2018/02/06/murphy-ditches-1015-for-new-ask-the-governor-program-238755" target="_blank">Ditched right-leaning, public-employee-bashing NJ101.5</a> in favor of News 12 New Jersey and public broadcasting for monthly 'Ask the Governor' broadcasts*</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Joined the governors of Pennsylvania, New York and Delaware to <a href="http://observer.com/2018/02/new-jersey-supports-delaware-river-basin-fracking-ban/" target="_blank">ban fracking on the Delaware River</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.njtvonline.org/news/video/murphy-signs-executive-order-jump-start-offshore-wind-industry/" target="_blank">Signed an executive order to bring off-shore wind industry to the state</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/watchdog/2018/01/22/gov-murphy-orders-audit-nj-transit-finances-and-personnel-practices/1053668001/" target="_blank">Ordered an audit of the beleagured NJ Transit</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.njea.org/murphy-administration-joins-pro-worker-coalition/" target="_blank">Joined 19 other states in fighting the Koch Brothers-backed Janus case that threatens public sector labor unions</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.njea.org/njea-applauds-murphy-stands-dreamers/" target="_blank">Joined 15 other states in a federal lawsuit to support Dreamers</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://newjersey.news12.com/story/37360694/murphy-moves-to-undo-christies-handgun-carry-rule" target="_blank">Vowed to roll back Christie's concealed carry regulations that made it easier for people to carry a handgun</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://njchamber.com/news/chamber-in-the-news/434-nj-signs-on-as-part-of-multistate-coalition-to-battle-gop-tax-code-revision" target="_blank">Joined with Connecticut and New York to challenge Trump's unfair tax law</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.nj.com/bergen/index.ssf/2018/01/murphy_signs_executive_order_in_hackensack.html" target="_blank">Signed an executive order aimed at saving the Affordable Care Act in NJ</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://observer.com/2018/01/gov-phil-murphy-orders-audit-new-jersey-tax-incentive-programs/" target="_blank">Ordered an audit of the <strike>NJ Tax Incentive Program</strike> Christie Corporate Welfare Program that gave over $8 billion in corporate tax breaks over the past eight years</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/governor/2018/01/17/murphy-and-democrats-agree-15-minimum-wage-but-not-how-get-there/1042129001/" target="_blank">Supports a 'clean' $15/hour minimum wage bill</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2018/02/new_jersey_sues_epa_waters_of_the_us.html" target="_blank">Joined nine other states in suing Trump's EPA roll-back of Obama-era clean water regulations</a></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-size: large;">No doubt Phil Murphy will make mistakes. He's human. No doubt he will not be able to make good on every, single campaign promise. No politician does. </span><span style="font-size: large;">But so far, he is a breath of fresh air for a battle-weary state.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Yes, indeed, it's a new dawn, it's a new day and </span><span style="font-size: large;"><i><u>I feel good</u></i>!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Adding... I think it's pretty safe to say we won't be seeing anything like this...</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWiDcXgIzTnwgPufl3sR6Yy-5MtUelpo4k7i_qmWMqjdvFMV1ZBHtwbyKP22tfuUqVMGqaHS17En5gJYb9Z3ERhIIWf695gBNkNqFRLberMOlmvcWvCIYXKggqi69XQ8qVgY38OAc8EyOD/s1600/170703200424-chris-christie-beached-exlarge-169.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="438" data-original-width="780" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWiDcXgIzTnwgPufl3sR6Yy-5MtUelpo4k7i_qmWMqjdvFMV1ZBHtwbyKP22tfuUqVMGqaHS17En5gJYb9Z3ERhIIWf695gBNkNqFRLberMOlmvcWvCIYXKggqi69XQ8qVgY38OAc8EyOD/s400/170703200424-chris-christie-beached-exlarge-169.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Public beach closed to all but Christie & family</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Or this...</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis5zAc-YSGSl_VzZjjGWtfer63AKKLRwaqBDFAUWQAE66CkxlXLgGD-JoNGoMplb2lpMQ6aGLVszYjRTkfL9vuDnbKzrz8yweUtp-6ttEpZq3Oks6fE-CYk78IUVZsuh_cBQah1RRrnboI/s1600/490595.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis5zAc-YSGSl_VzZjjGWtfer63AKKLRwaqBDFAUWQAE66CkxlXLgGD-JoNGoMplb2lpMQ6aGLVszYjRTkfL9vuDnbKzrz8yweUtp-6ttEpZq3Oks6fE-CYk78IUVZsuh_cBQah1RRrnboI/s400/490595.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Using a state helicopter to attend son's baseball game</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: large;">from Governor Murphy. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">* This article goes on to say:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Murphy rejected a different offer that would have broadcast the program free to all television sets in New Jersey. A spokesman for Murphy declined to comment.</i></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>News 12 does not reach all New Jerseyans, but neither did New Jersey 101.5, whose signal is either spotty or non-existent in the state’s southern and northern extremities — including some of the most populous areas of North Jersey. News 12 is available only to cable subscribers and Verizon Fios customers do not receive its broadcasts. But, like New Jersey 101.5 did with Christie, the program will be streamed free online, according to the source.</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-82464193365966615972018-01-12T11:08:00.000-08:002018-01-12T11:08:03.884-08:00The Real Truth About Fixing NJ<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Former GOP Assemblyman (LD16) and 2017 Gubernatorial Candidate, Jack Ciattarelli, closed his recent <a href="http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2018/01/ex-gop_lawmaker_we_cant_afford_murphys_promises_but_heres_what_can_be_done_opinion.html" target="_blank">op-ed in </a><i><a href="http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2018/01/ex-gop_lawmaker_we_cant_afford_murphys_promises_but_heres_what_can_be_done_opinion.html" target="_blank">the Star Ledger</a> </i>with this</span><span style="font-size: large;">:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><b><i>New Jersey can be fixed. But first we need some truth-telling. </i></b></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: large;">I agree. But, as the saying goes, "Position determines perspective"—and in this case, the truth. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">While it's true that the state is "facing a fiscal precipice", it's not true that the only outcome of "progressive rhetoric" would be </span><span style="font-size: large;">"a culture of dependence</span><span style="font-size: large;">,</span><span style="font-size: large;">" or worse: <u><i>"socialism"</i></u>! If that's the alternative to eight years of Chris Christie's disastrous version of trickle-down economics that left this state in a shambles, I say, "Bring it on!" <i>(Good thing I'm not running for office. I can just see the oppo mailers: 'Corfield is a Marxist!')</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">He says:</span><br />
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<h3>
<ul>
<li><i style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: large;">We cannot afford, nor do we need to fully fund pre-K - we simply need means-testing and fairer distribution of current funding.</span></i></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="color: #990000;">We cannot afford, nor do we need to fully fund public pensions - we simply need fair benefits reform.</span></i> </span></li>
<li><i style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: large;">We cannot afford, nor do we need to make community college free - we simply need to fairly subsidize tuition.</span></i></li>
<li><i style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: large;">The truth is our most taxed citizens cannot afford, nor do we need to raise taxes on the most taxed people in America - we simply need to reform our tax code to benefit all New Jerseyans.</span></i></li>
<li><i><span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">Our small business economy cannot afford, nor do we need a $15 minimum wage - we simply need to adjust the current minimum wage.</span></i></li>
</ul>
</h3>
</div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Ciattarelli tries to speak in a unifying voice, using "We" over and over. But w</span><span style="font-size: large;">ho exactly are the "We" of which he speaks? The "We" of the 'Healthy, Wealthy and White' suburbs? The "We" of the solid middle class? Or the "We" of our low-income urban centers? All three groups fared far differently under Christie. And all three will fare very differently under the Trump/GOP tax scam: the rich will win, and the poor and middle class will lose. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Ciattarelli offers no solutions except </span><span style="font-size: large;">those that hurt the largest number of "We" in the state: children, young adults, seniors, the working poor and the middle class. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Christie 2.0</span><span style="font-size: large;">.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">When reviewing the quality of life indices in the top ranking countries in the world (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-countries-to-live-in-2017-3/#12-hong-kong-residents-of-this-chinese-territory-have-a-high-average-life-expectancy-at-84-years-1" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="http://www.prosperity.com/rankings" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/quality-of-life-rankings" target="_blank">here</a>), it's</span><span style="font-size: large;"> important to note that a) the US is not in the top 10, and b) what Ciattarelli decries as "socialism" </span><span style="font-size: large;">(including quality, affordable education and a live-able minimum wage) is in part what makes the quality of life in these other countries so high. But putting the needs of the people first isn't as profitable in </span><span style="font-size: large;">the "Corporations Are People" era.</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;">The truth is that greatest investment in social<strike>ist</strike> programs this country ever made pulled us up out of the Great Depression and built the middle class. </span></span><span style="font-size: large;">If we want to pull New Jersey out of its tailspin, we must invest in our people, not continue to give huge corporate tax breaks that yield few jobs. We must invest in infrastructure and education. We must pay workers a living wage so that they have a real chance of getting out of poverty. We must have a tax system where <u><i>everyone</i></u> pays their fare share. And the state </span><span style="font-size: large;"><u><i>must</i></u> </span><span style="font-size: large;">uphold its contract with its public employees to fully fund our pensions. We have kept our end of the bargain while both Republican <i><u>and</u></i> Democratic state leaders reneged on their promises. We have made concessions. We now work longer, pay more and get less in return. While the wealthiest 1% in this state have seen their net worth skyrocket, many public employees (along with countless others in the private sector) have seen their paychecks decrease every year since Christie took office. That's the "We" in my circle. And that is not a recipe for recovery.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Take a look at that counter on the upper right side of this page. That's how long the state teachers pension has to live. That's the biggest fiscal precipice facing this state. Nothing—<u><i>including tax revenues from legalized marijuana</i></u>— should be off the table when it comes to creative solutions for this mess. </span></div>
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Ciattarelli blames his party's lack of "direction" or "solutions" for Guadagno's defeat. But the larger truth is that the GOP allowed itself to be bullied from the get-go. Bills to spur <a href="http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/03/assembly_minority_leader_alex.html" target="_blank">job creation</a>, <a href="http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/03/vote_to_override_christie_veto_of_port_authority_r.html" target="_blank">Port Authority reform</a>, <a href="http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2016/07/christie_vetoed_17m_in_welfare_womens_health_progr.html" target="_blank">funding for women's health care</a>, and so many more issues that would have helped the state get back on its feet— and shown that the GOP had a heart—fell by the wayside as electeds cowered in fear of the "Wrath of Christie" for daring to override one of his vetoes. A party so beholden to a man who chewed us up and spit us out, who left this state for greener—albeit unattainable—pastures to advance his own political agenda was never going to win that race. <br />
<br />Ultimately, fixing what's wrong in any system comes down to priorities. Phil Murphy can affect many of the changes he ran on as long as those who govern with him hold those same values, and the people of this state hold them all accountable. </div>
</span><div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">And <i><u>that</u></i> is the truth.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">PS: Also contained in Ciattarelli's piece was a cheap shot at NJEAs decision to endorse Sen. President Steve Sweeney's opponent in November. While I don't always agree 100% with what my union does, I can count on the fact that we will hold accountable those who break promises to our members. Maybe if Ciattarelli's pension was about to fall off a cliff, he'd think differently.</span></div>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-79903063317624450742018-01-05T10:34:00.000-08:002018-01-05T10:34:26.137-08:00This is How We #MAGA in 2018<h2>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">"We the People" means <u><i>all</i></u> of us because if you're not at the table, you're on the menu</span></h2>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In an op-ed in today's <i>Washington Post </i>(not available online as of this writing),</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">Joe Scarborough asks:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What will finally move Republicans to deliver a non-negotiable ultimatum to this unstable president? Will they dare place their country's interests above their own political fears? Or will they only move to end this American tragedy when there is nothing left to lose?</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">To which Eugene Robinson replied this morning on Scarborough's <i>Morning Joe</i>:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>This Congress won't do it's job, and I see no reason to expect that to change. I think <b><u>t</u></b></i><b style="font-style: italic;"><u>he duty of the American people is in November to elect a Congress that will</u></b><i>... This is not in terms of partisanship. They can be Republicans; they can be Democrats, Independents. Whatever they are, that they are patriots, that they are willing to do clearly what is their job, their constitutional role right now in this extraordinary situation. </i>(emphasis mine)</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><u>We the People</u></i> have to stop this runaway freight train because the Republican-controlled Congress won't. </span><span style="font-size: large;">We can scream and yell and protest and tweet at them all we want, but they have turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to reality, so it's up to us. </span><span style="font-size: large;">We <i>can</i> and <i>will</i> succeed in November. </span><span style="font-size: large;">We started the fight on January 21, 2017. The wave of activism that has swept across this country since that day makes the Tea Party Movement look like watered down decaf.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #990000;">A sad statistic: </span></span></h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGNuMnfgKOKKp1_QBElu77o33MZavDbiajkv2NeLQ78OHHc-4zLGMZbOSq47BrSF0Bz1U9tRVs8naicafHjk9yXYnEVFeQYNEBA0wfUoridNF0-xRWEHYoEcuMH7WCdj2AdcjJ6lAGVkA_/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-01-05+at+10.41.59+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="503" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGNuMnfgKOKKp1_QBElu77o33MZavDbiajkv2NeLQ78OHHc-4zLGMZbOSq47BrSF0Bz1U9tRVs8naicafHjk9yXYnEVFeQYNEBA0wfUoridNF0-xRWEHYoEcuMH7WCdj2AdcjJ6lAGVkA_/s400/Screen+Shot+2018-01-05+at+10.41.59+AM.png" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: large;">This year we will see a record number of primaries and challenged House races. My guess is that this will be the most expensive non-presidential election cycle in history. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">But none of that matters if we don't vote. </span><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Almost half of all registered voters didn't vote in 2017</u>. If we want to save this country, we simply cannot afford that this year, especially when nothing has been done to prevent foreign powers from tampering with our elections, and the GOP has done far too much to suppress the voting rights of minorities.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #990000;">Change the demographics</span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Flipping the House also includes electing many more women. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Women outnumber men in the US by the slimmest of margins, but we are woefully underrepresented in elected office at all levels. New Jersey, the most densely populated state in the union, has only one woman representing us in Congress, Bonnie Watson-Coleman. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Electing more women is the only way we will truly have a voice for the issues that matter to us including pay equity, health care and reproductive rights, sensible gun legislation and poverty. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/quality-of-life-full-list" target="_blank">US News and World Report</a> ranked Sweden, where women hold 44% of Parliament's seats, #2 out of 60 industrialized nations for its overall quality of life. The US is in 18th place.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>[C]ommitment to human rights, public service and sustainability have helped to make [Sweden] a <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/influence-rankings">respected leader</a> in international affairs.</i></span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Sweden operates under a model similar to those of other Nordic nations: </i><b style="font-style: italic;">heavily capitalistic</b><i> with a </i><b style="font-style: italic;">large percent of spending going toward public service.</b><i> Once well above the global average, tax rates have decreased, and an </i><b style="font-style: italic;">advanced infrastructure and transportation network assist with equal wealth distribution. Health care, as well as a college education, are free, and its people boast one of the longest life expectancies in the world. Almost all of Sweden's trash is <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/best-green-living">recycled</a>. </b>(emphasis mine)</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: large;">All that in a capitalistic system. Imagine that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #990000;">We <i><u>all</u></i> have to work</span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I live in New Jersey's 7th Congressional District, a GOP bastion for as long as anyone can remember and a <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Template:DCCC_targets_2018" target="_blank">DCCC target</a> this year. Right now there are six candidates for the Democratic nomination. I have been volunteering on the campaign of <a href="https://lindaweberforcongress.com/" target="_blank">Linda Weber</a>. Many of us here in the 7th believe she is the right candidate at the right time. She is the most qualified, the most representative of the district, and best-positioned to defeat Rep. Leonard Lance. I could go on about why, but check out her <a href="https://lindaweberforcongress.com/" target="_blank">website</a>. It tells the story far better than I. And of course, if you like what you read, please consider donating and/or getting involved.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Linda is but one. There are many other highly qualified candidates running in districts all over the US. You owe it to yourself to find out who is running in yours and support them. Any amount you can donate, whether $5 or $500, helps these candidates fight for <u><i>you</i></u>. It's a sad state of affairs, but candidates have to raise a boatload of money to be viable, so every dollar counts. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you are an unaffiliated voter, consider registering for the party of a candidate you support so you can vote in the primary. Volunteer to phone bank or canvass. Host an informational event. Register voters. Whatever you do, <i><u>do not</u></i> sit this one out. The future of our country truly is in our hands. </span></div>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4087025068890247395.post-23685687103206360492018-01-01T05:11:00.001-08:002018-01-01T19:17:09.920-08:0012 Ways to Survive Trumplandia in 2018<h2>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">Happy New Year! </span></h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">If you are like me, you spent the majority of 2017 like this:</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZJN6gEE-c-FAuDaMDWW72nTs0_HeZkP4Uvf4hKfODWzKEF7odd_pSk6YZ8WSi1nQIyKveLfUNHpqwezAGZujbgjtJ78xSGQUWu40eL6X33o30-NvaJcxue1N0WOMlcxK0wALRjyPLtoy/s1600/v1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister in "Home Alone"</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZJN6gEE-c-FAuDaMDWW72nTs0_HeZkP4Uvf4hKfODWzKEF7odd_pSk6YZ8WSi1nQIyKveLfUNHpqwezAGZujbgjtJ78xSGQUWu40eL6X33o30-NvaJcxue1N0WOMlcxK0wALRjyPLtoy/s1600/v1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">It's been brutal, no doubt. I freely admit to losing it on social media on more than one occasion, and lying awake at night wondering if I'm stuck in that <i>Dallas</i> episode <a href="https://seanmunger.com/2012/09/14/bobby-ewing-in-the-shower-an-epic-storytelling-gaffe/" target="_blank">with Bobby Ewing in the shower</a>. But sadly, no, it's not a dream. All of this is quite real (more on this later). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I am not a religious person, I do believe there is a power greater than all of us, that lives inside all of us, that surrounds us, that is the source of all our joy, happiness and strength, that is accessible any time day or night. It goes by many names: God, Allah, Love, the Force, the Universe, the Collective Unconscious, meditation, and many more. Whatever it is, it transcends this 3-dimensional reality. It's the glue that holds us all together. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In between fits of rage and an occasional shoe-throwing-at-the-TV episode, I found myself calling on that power quite a lot last year. It brought me to the point of surrender. Not the white flag waving kind. Rather, the kind Obi Wan had when he turned off his light saber and let Darth Vader turn him into space dust. There's strength in letting go. There's strength in nonviolence. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBsflNrvqqJxNrodVhRV5bGAYfuxirTR81bUHhlat1Tby1n44y4pbRBfk3I7WkVJOLR0AEFqOu2WEzs0iP2lZrpqSViFaKgu_Mi-7b0Io6_ZfT-YxN4iz0M3Py7kHciwRfOd00gK4b4hN/s1600/ca2aefd740a2a634aa5a0804c750ecbd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqBsflNrvqqJxNrodVhRV5bGAYfuxirTR81bUHhlat1Tby1n44y4pbRBfk3I7WkVJOLR0AEFqOu2WEzs0iP2lZrpqSViFaKgu_Mi-7b0Io6_ZfT-YxN4iz0M3Py7kHciwRfOd00gK4b4hN/s400/ca2aefd740a2a634aa5a0804c750ecbd.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Violence doesn't have to be physical. It manifests in thoughts and words, too. And it's exhausting. Being at peace requires much less energy. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of being tired. I'm tired of being angry and frustrated. I'm tired of being depressed. And I'm the only one who can fix that. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I'm not one to make New Year's Resolutions, so let's just call this a big coincidence. Here are 12 ways I plan to implement for a more peaceful journey through Trumplandia this year. I've already started doing some. I don't claim to be perfect, but I will make a concerted effort. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If any of them bring you comfort, terrific. If you think this is all a bunch of hokum, I'm okay with that, too. Take what you like and leave the rest. </span></div>
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<ol><span style="font-size: large;">
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Hate the behavior, not the person</span></b><br />At some point or another, those whom we love unconditionally will do or say something by which we feel hurt. It's normal. But do we hate them? No. We hate the behavior. The behavior is not the totality of them. It's a choice they made in that particular moment. It's easy to hate. It's much harder to love. </li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Practice <a href="https://thebuddhistcentre.com/text/loving-kindness-meditation" target="_blank">Loving Kindness</a></span></b><br />The strongest force on this planet is Love. Every human being on this planet burps, farts, has bad breath sometimes... and suffers. No amount of money will change that fundamental fact. Loving Kindness is a specific practice of cultivating loving thoughts and feelings starting with ourselves and moving outward all the way to those we dislike. If there is more love, there is less hate. It's that simple. </li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Don't name-call</span></b><br />Name-calling makes us no better than those to whom we are calling them. What do we gain from calling Donald Trump or someone on social media any number of names? A momentary feeling of satisfaction? Sure, but in the long run, we are no better than Trump in his worst name-calling moments. </li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Put policies before personalities</span></b><br />After my infamous <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkuTm-ON904&t=12s" target="_blank">YouTube moment</a> with Christie, and while I was running for state assembly, countless people shared Christie fat-shaming memes with me on social media. I made it clear that my issues with him had nothing to do with his weight, and everything to do with his policies. Think about this: would you be proud of your child for making fun of an overweight child? Would you laugh at and share memes if Christie was blind? In a wheelchair? Had some other disability? Food addiction is a disease like alcoholism or drug addiction. It's not something to shame someone for having. Neither is dementia. And there are a lot of people out there making the case that Trump may have that or some other form of mental illness.</li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">VOTE!</span></b><br /><a href="http://www.cosmopolitan.com/politics/a8265143/almost-half-eligible-voters-did-not-vote-election-2016/" target="_blank">Almost half of all registered voters did not vote in 2016</a>. Can you imagine the possibilities if they did? This is a right that many people around this world only dream of. Many people fought, suffered and died for our right to do so. Even if you don't like any of the candidates, you can write in someone. But please, don't take this basic freedom and cornerstone of our democracy for granted.</li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Get involved</span></b><br />Everyone is really busy, so don't even go there. But ask yourself, Am I too busy to fight for my freedoms? For my children's future? For my country? Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." Not everyone can march in a protest rally, but ALL of us can make one phone call to our representatives. ALL of us can send them an email. And if we do it once, we can do it again. And again. Activist organizations have devised so many quick and easy ways to do so that there really is no excuse. If "we the people" don't speak up, our representatives will only vote in their best interests.</li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Give yourself news blackout days</span></b><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPPdW5sWDZnqLKr4hGTsqBoN9vfD85sE-J2MPppzSIOylj2ViN4_5t_eVJbNpohDQjQE8ke25AMm4CGNSoMi3liH7D__MonlCtpzAsUTEsMTDdReegfUpjIA4LPWErWVz0lhg5xYSsKDHO/s1600/1135340.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="900" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPPdW5sWDZnqLKr4hGTsqBoN9vfD85sE-J2MPppzSIOylj2ViN4_5t_eVJbNpohDQjQE8ke25AMm4CGNSoMi3liH7D__MonlCtpzAsUTEsMTDdReegfUpjIA4LPWErWVz0lhg5xYSsKDHO/s320/1135340.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Malcom McDowell in "A Clockwork Orange"</td></tr>
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If I let myself, I could leave the news on 24/7, but then I'd end up like this. So, give yourself a break. Turn off the TV. Go for a walk. Pet the cat. Have coffee with a friend. Do something to take your mind off the insanity because you <i><u>know</u></i> it'll still be there when you get back, but you'll be better able to handle it.<br /></li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">None of this is real</span></b><br />Yea, I know, this one may be tough to swallow. It is for me. But in my quest for understanding, I have come to embrace the belief of many spiritual and metaphysical teachers that this 3-dimensional reality is an illusion. The <i>real</i> real is what lies beyond, in other realities of which we only get glimpses in dreams, déjà vus states and some heavy duty meditation (of which I am no where near). As I said, this is tough to swallow, particularly for those who stood on long lines last week waiting to pre-pay their 2018 property taxes. But do try to dip your toe in the waters of possibility.</li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Turn on, tune in, drop out</span></b><br /><div>
Unlike Timothy Leary, I <i>do not</i> espouse dropping LSD to escape from Trumplandia. However, Leary did say, </div>
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<ol><i>Like every great religion of the past we seek to find the divinity within and to express this revelation in a life of glorification and the worship of [insert name of higher power of your choice]. These ancient goals we define in the metaphor of the present — turn on, tune in, drop out.</i> </ol>
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<span style="font-size: medium;">How do you take care of yourself? I've taken up meditation, yoga and tai chi as means to deal with the stress I feel on a daily basis. I watch my sugar intake. I have stacks of inspirational daily readers on my nightstands. Make sure you're taking care of yourself: body, mind and spirit. </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #990000;">No violence</span></b><br />
Ghandi said, "An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind." Self defense is one thing, but inciting violence makes us no better than those whom we oppose. Violence manifests in words as well as deeds, so watch what you say, too.</div>
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<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Don't let politics ruin families and friendships</span></b><br />Loving families and friends are priceless gifts. I'm fortunate in that my family is in agreement politically. Most of my friends are, too. But, I have some dear old friends with whom I don't see eye-to-eye on politics. We discuss—up to a point. Then we agree to go back to our political corners and drop it. I do appreciate hearing their side of things. After all, none of us knows everything.</li>
<li><b><span style="color: #990000;">Don't be the second person </span></b>Just because someone says something or posts something on social media that you don't like (even if it's an attack against you), you don't have to respond. Remember, it's the second person who starts an argument.</li>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I hope you find something useful in what I've written. If so, please share with others. As I said earlier, take what you like and leave the rest. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Wishing you a healthy, happy, peaceful and proactive 2018.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Namaste.</span><br />
<ol><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></ol>
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Marie Corfieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15462049509943707599noreply@blogger.com0