Category Archives: Activism

Grading policy convenient timing for charter school vote —Barbara Stratton

Received Monday on Media flap over Lowndes grading. -jsq
I found the controversy over the Lowndes Grading Policy convenient timing for last week’s House vote on HR 1162 for a GA Constitutional Amendment to allow the state to establish Charter Schools with no oversight by local boards of education. HR 1162 failed the necessary 2/3 vote on 02/08/12. However,it was approved to be reconsidered on 02/09/12 so it has not gone away. Our 3 South GA republican representatives all voted in favor of HR 1162. (No surprises there, but we will remember in November.) Meanwhile part of the reason HR 1162 failed was the state Democratic Caucus undercut the House vote by requesting Democrats deny HR 1162 in favor of their version HR 1335, which they say goes further in allowing state officials to over ride local school board denials of special schools.

Obviously CUEE is not the only party interested in undermining and over riding local school board authority. However, I suspect CUEE had a hand in the phone campaign asking Lowndes school parents to call Rep. Shaw if they were in favor of HR 1162 because we all know that is one of their tactics. The message did not say to call if they were against it. CUEE is definitely still very much in the mix for discrediting local school board authority and our elected officials are evidently in their corner.

-Barbara Stratton

School grading controversy successfully stirred

I don’t usually promote anonymous blog comments, but here’s one received Monday on Media flap over Lowndes grading. -jsq
The reporter didn’t call it “new”, Troy Davis did when he sent it to all the teachers. Maybe you should talk with some teachers who are deeply against the policy before you start ranting. And to correlate this with consolidation is ridiculous, you’re just stretching for controversy.

-Amy

Dr. Smith enumerated several other things which he alleged that reporter misrepresented; see above link. And Dr. Troy Davis set the record straight yesterday in the VDT.

I’d be happy to talk to teachers, pro or con. Send ’em over!

“Stretching for controversy”? Around here you have to duck to avoid controversy. You know, like the VDT saying it won’t publish any more stories about school consolidation….

I see the VDT is not ducking this one, though, rather helping stir it up. In yesterday’s story, the VDT announced mission accomplished:

The new grading policy for grades third through eighth released by the Lowndes County school system in January has stirred controversy locally and even nationally.
It wasn’t the grading policy that stirred controversy, it was Scott James, Fox News, the VDT, the AJC, the SMN, etc. And that “controversy” will make it easier the next time “unification” rears its ugly head.

-jsq

CCA offers to buy prisons from 48 states

Desperation or disaster capitalism by CCA? Trying to get as entrenched as possible before more people catch on that private prisons don’t save money for states?

Andrew Jones wrote for Raw Story yesterday, Private prison company offers to buy 48 states’ prisons

In exchange for keeping at least a 90 percent occupancy rate, the private prison company Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) has sent a letter to 48 states offering to manage their prisons for the low price of $250 million per year, according to a letter obtained by the Huffington Post.

The company says it’s a way for states to help manage their current budget crisis. “We believe this comes at a timely and helpful juncture and hope you will share our belief in the benefits of the purchase-and-manage model,” CCA chief corrections officer Harley Lappin said in the letter.

What does CCA want in return?
…a 20-year management contract, plus an assurance that the prison would remain at least 90 percent full….
So if a state, such as Georgia, was thinking of sentencing reform, or of getting on with decriminalizing drugs, either would become quite difficult after signing such contracts.

Here’s CCA’s offer letter, complete with a blank to fill in for the state.

Maybe CCA is realizing that it’s coming to the end of its rope on its old tricks, such as these, pointed out by Chris Kirkham in HufffintongPost yesterday, Continue reading →

Help pass GA Senate Bill 401 to facilitate distributed power cogeneration

SB 401 intends to modernize Georgia law to make distributed power generation easier. You can help.

Drs Sidney Smith and Pat Godbey not only have started Tabby Power, which sells solar power directly to customers. They also have an outfit called Lower Rates for Customers, which is about generating solar power in one place and selling it in another. There are various legal impediments to doing that.

Charlie Harper wrote for the Courier-Herald and Peach Pundit 9 February 2012, A Little Sunshine On A Battle To Expand Renewable Energy,

Essentially, customers with solar panels meter not only power coming into their house from the existing grid, but also the amount of power returned to the grid. The generating company — Georgia Power in most of the state — is required to buy surplus power back based on their state granted regulated monopoly status. Currently, projects are limited in size to 10 Kw for residential customers and 100 Kw for business customers. SB 401 removes these caps.

More intricate details of the bill provide for private ownership of these systems, as opposed to current law which requires the owner of the property to also own the attached grids. This will allow for manufacturers of solar grids or interested third parties to enter into financing or lease agreements which pay for the systems long term out of cost savings for the customer. By allowing for these arrangements, many customers can access these systems with no money up front, as opposed to the high initial capital costs which would take years to recover.

Here are the details and text of SB 401. It has six cosponsors:
  1. Carter, Buddy 1st
  2. Chance, Ronnie 16th
  3. Carter, Jason 42nd
  4. Williams, Tommie 19th
  5. Rogers, Chip 21st
  6. Stoner, Doug 6th
We’ve seen Doug Stoner before, at last June’s Southern Solar Summit, talking about renewable energy. It looks like he and others are actually trying to do something about it.

You can help, by signing this petition.

-jsq

Animal shelter vet resigns from board

Last month the Niagara County, NY SPCA fired its executive director; this month one of its board members resigned. He is a veterinarian, and he oversaw the euthanasia that a report by Erie County, NY SPCA said was improperly applied. He claims that wasn’t so, because the animals were anesthetized first, and now invoices for the anesthetic have turned up.

Michael Wooten wrote for wgrz.com 9 February 2012,

2 On Your Side contacted the SPCA Serving Erie County. Although Ms. Carr was unavailable, we were told she based her report and conclusions on the information that was provided to her and the interviews she conducted.

The Niagara County facility had poor record-keeping, so it’s possible Ms. Carr did not receive the invoices. Some have expressed concern about why all documents weren’t turned over during Ms. Carr’s investigation. Others have also questioned if Rompun, even in large concentrations and doses, are enough to make an animal unconscious.

Maybe if there had been more oversight and transparency at the animal shelter, none of this would have happened. At least in Erie County, New York, there’s finally some sort of accountability.

-jsq

Has CCA already breached the private prison agreement with VLCIA?

And also in her recent response about the Notice to Proceed (NTP), VLCIA Executive Director Andrea Schruijer didn’t answer the other question, which was whether VLCIA had received the Preliminary Specifications ( see section 1.6.1) that appear to have been due at least half a year ago, according to the Development Schedule in Schedule 1.6.2 of the Agreement. Without those Preliminary Specifications, maybe CCA has already breached the contract.

She copied VLCIA’s attorney. Probably he could interpret the termination clauses of the contract that way….

-jsq

Media flap over Lowndes grading

Interesting timing, the Chamber deciding to pay off CUEE’s debts from pushing school consolidation, followed shortly by a media campaign to discredit the Lowndes School System.
17 January 2012:
Chamber of Commerce board decides to repay CUEE’s outstanding vendor debts in exchange for owning CUEE’s education document.
3 February 2012:
Maureen Downey blogged for the AJC, No zeros in school any longer. But aren’t there well deserved zeros? Despite admitting that the Lowndes school grading policy is a common practice in many systems and is intended to make sure students actually learn, she ends with this spin:
But aren’t there well deserved zeros?

I would argue that middle school teachers have some students who simply don’t do the work. They get it; they just don’t do it. The Lowndes policy calls for multiple interventions for obdurate students, but wouldn’t a zero make an important statement?

How else do adolescents learn that there are consequences for failure to comply with assignments? In the classroom, it is a zero. In the workplace, it is termination.

3 February 2012:
Lowndes School System Superintendent Dr. Steve Smith explained Lowndes grading policies, including this bit:
The Lowndes County Schools recently released grading guidelines for parents to clarify what has been our current practice on reporting of grades and to reaffirm our commitment to mastery learning by all students. For the past year and a half, our practice in grades 3-8 has been….
The point being that this is not a new policy.
Continue reading →

Development Schedule for CCA and VLCIA private prison

In her recent response about the Notice to Proceed (NTP), VLCIA Executive Director Andrea Schruijer cited and paraphrased paragraph 1.6.2 of the Purchase and Development Agreement. The same paragraph points out the Development Schedule is already in the Agreement, as Schedule 1.6.2.
The Development Schedule contains, among other things, milestones for the work and assignments of responsibility to the Parties for the attainment of certain milestones.
Here it is:

So it’s not clear why she said CCA hadn’t provided a Development Schedule.

-jsq

VLCIA has not received a Notice to Proceed from CCA for the private prison

Received Wednesday. -jsq
From: Andrea Schruijer
Sent: Tuesday, February 07, 2012 3:38 PM
To: ‘Matt Flumerfelt’
Cc: ‘Steve Gupton’
Subject: RE: Notice to Proceed and Preliminary Specifications

Dear Mr. Flumerfelt,

In regards to your email of February 6, 2012, CCA has not given to the Authority a “Development Schedule” and has not received from CCA a “Notice to Proceed.” Under paragraph 1.6.2, except for some due diligence provided for in the agreement, the Parties have no obligation to proceed with design, permitting, installation or construction of the Project, prior to receiving a NTP from CCA. CCA has absolute discretion in issuing or withholding the NTP. After the issuance of the NTP the parties shall proceed with the development of the project in accordance with the Development Schedule.

Sincerely,
Andrea Schruijer

Continue reading →

Save money by streamlining the state penal code

Even the Bainbridge and Decatur County Post-Searchlight publishes news about their very own state legislator explaining one of the biggest reasont why prisons are a bad bet for a local economy: because we can’t afford to lock up so many people anymore.

Brennan Leathers wrote 6 January 2012, Georgia legislature going back to work State Senator John Bulloch (R-Ochlocknee):

“We’re still struggling to find revenue to pay for operation of the state government and its services,” Bulloch said. “We’re going to have to fill holes that we filled during worse economic times using federal stimulus money and other temporary money.”

Bulloch said he also understands Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has instructed Georgia’s department heads to include 2-percent cuts in their budget requests for this year.

One way in which legislators might opt to save money is by streamlining its criminal penal code. According to Bulloch, Georgia has a very high number of people serving supervised probation or parole.

“A lot of those people who are in prison or under close supervision by state officers are serving sentences for non-violent offenses or minor felonies,” Bulloch said. “We may look at alternative means for dealing with them, such as creating drug courts or setting up drug-testing centers that would monitor drug offenders without imprisoning them.”

Which would mean fewer people in prison. Which would mean no need for new prisons. And some existing prisons might close.

Do we want a private prison in Lowndes County so more prisoners can compete with local workers here, too? If you don’t think so, remember CCA says community opposition can impede private prison site selection. Here’s a petition urging the Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authorithy to stop the CCA private prison. Spend those tax dollars on rehabilitation and education instead.

-jsq