Community activists and others file legal opposition to NYPD body cam policy
Community activists and others file legal opposition to NYPD body cam policy
The New York Police Department’s body camera program launched this week, but not without a fight from activists. Last...
The New York Police Department’s body camera program launched this week, but not without a fight from activists.
Last week, Communities United for Police Reform and other community groups filed a legal opposition to the NYPD’s then-proposed policy. Submitted to Judge Analisa Torres, they wanted to halt the program’s rollout. The community groups, along with entities like The Center for Constitutional Rights, believe the language of the program renders the concept of body cameras for cops meaningless.
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The Empty Center: Challenge and Opportunity for Progressives
Huffington Post - January 15, 2015, by Robert Borsage - Legislators in the new Congress haven't even cut the curtains...
Huffington Post - January 15, 2015, by Robert Borsage - Legislators in the new Congress haven't even cut the curtains for their offices, but it is already clear that the right has no clue and the "center" offers no hope.
Republican Mitch McConnell, newly installed as Senate majority leader, announced that his goal is not to be "scary." House Republican leader John Boehner declared his troops had to prove Republicans can "govern."
But Republicans are already tripping over those low bars. They stuffed the legislative docket with "message" bills to repeal Obamacare, rollback immigration reforms, and cripple agencies that protect the environment (Environmental Protection Agency), consumers (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau), workers (the Labor Department) and taxpayers (cutting the IRS ability to police tax dodgers). They've already proved adept at backroom maneuvers to tuck Wall Street favors in "must-pass" legislation.
The truly "scary" agenda, however, is the legislation that McConnell and Boehner have teed up for bipartisan approval: authorization of the Keystone Pipeline is already on the president's desk; next comes fast track trade authority to grease the skids for the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, corporate tax "reform" that "simplifies" the tax code and lowers rates, and inevitably a budget that will posture on a budget deficit that should be larger while ignoring the debilitating deficits that must be smaller (the public investment and trade deficits). It will starve already inadequate programs for the vulnerable, while larding more on an already bloated Pentagon.
These "bipartisan" measures assume that the best thing to do in a hole is to keep digging. Progressives will have their hands full simply trying to stop the parade of horrors, which will require either Democratic unity in the Senate or firm presidential vetoes -- both less than certain trumpets. Obstructing the horrible, however, necessary, is not sufficient. Republicans already suffer from the absence of any positive agenda. Their pollsters have finally accepted that they must find a populist voice, but thus far that entails not much more than donning a hardhat atop their uptown garb.
Confront and Counter
Progressives must find ways not simply to confront the Republican idiocies, but to counter with a bold reform agenda that commensurate with the size of our problems.
We suffer an economy that does not work for most Americans even in the fifth year of "recovery." This can only happen because the rules have been systematically rigged to favor the few. Changing that reality requires far more than a few sensible reforms. It requires taking on fundamentals at the heart of our economy: transforming our global tax and trade policies, shackling Wall Street, progressive taxes to pay for vital public investment, empowering workers and curbing perverse CEO compensation policies, reviving anti-trust, curbing money in politics, cleaning up Washington, capturing a lead in the green industrial revolution.
In this effort, President Obama will be at best a sunshine general. Hopefully, he will continue to frame vital wage reforms -- calling for lifting the minimum wage and guaranteed sick days and family leave, enforcing overtime, procurement reforms that give preference to "good jobs" employers. He will continue to build his legacy on the environment. But on fundamentals -- trade, Wall Street, public investment, anti-trust and more -- he's more part of the problem than the solution.
At the national level, Senators Elizabeth Warren, Sherrod Brown, Jeff Merkley, Bernie Sanders have begun to take the lead. A broader formal or informal populist caucus in the Senate, and the strengthened Congressional Progressive Caucus in the House can help define and drive big alternatives, with outside allies rallying support and taking the names of the Blue Dog or Wall Street Democrats who don't get it. Major debates -- on trade, on taxes, on budgets -- can be occasions for offering real alternative directions.
The danger here is that the debate turns quickly to framing "message" bills rather than debating fundamental reform. The recent rollout of the Democratic middle-class tax cut shows the perils. The proposal excels for partisan positioning. It offers working Americans real money -- a $2,000 tax cut, paid for by taxes on the banks and the rich. It puts Republicans in a box, since they won't raise taxes to pay for the equivalent. But a tax cut competition with Republicans is something of a mugs game. It accepts the conservative notion that tax breaks offer workers the only hope for a raise. And by devoting progressive taxes to tax cuts, it defaults on addressing our debilitating public investment deficit. If Democrats aren't making the case for rebuilding our starved public sphere -- including basic infrastructure like roads, rail and sewers, providing the basics for schools, investing in R&D -- then we will all suffer.
The debate about agenda should not be left to legislators. The January AFL-CIO convocation on raising wages -- which will be echoed in forums across the country -- provides one example of how progressive groups can help frame and drive the reform debate.
Local Action; National Megaphone
With Washington largely gridlocked, progressives have sensibly turned more attention to driving reform at the state and local level. Given Republican gains at the state level, many of those battles will be defensive, against their assault on unions and worker rights, and their efforts to rollback environmental protection while constricting the rights of women, voters, and the vulnerable.
But in blue states like California and in blue cities even in the midst of red states, progressives should be championing fundamental reforms. Already significant progress has been made in raising the floor under workers -- raising the minimum wage and extending basic worker guarantees. Procurement reforms can offer preference to good jobs employers, and enforce buy America provisions. As California Governor Jerry Brown has shown, states can drive the climate debate, extending state renewable energy standards and providing markets for renewable energy. State taxes could favor companies that maintain less obscene ratios of CEO to worker pay.
None of this will come easy, given the hold of corporate interests over state and local politics. Citizen groups like National People's Action, PICO, Jobs with Justice, LAANE, the Center for Popular Democracy along with labor unions like SEIU and AFSCME are already driving change. What is needed is a coherent strategy to provide a national megaphone that provides local reforms with national attention, demonstrating that progressives are not only on the case, but also on the march.
People in Motion
As the film Selma correctly makes clear about the transformation of civil rights in the 1960s, none of this will get done without people's movements -- people in motion protesting the rigged game and demanding a better deal.
Occupy Wall Street set the stage, awakening Americans and the mainstream media to the Gilded Age inequality that too many had come to accept as natural. The demonstrations of fast food workers and low wage government workers have begun to challenge the Wal-Mart low road in the economy. What progress has been made on immigration reform has come from aggressive popular mobilization. The environmental movement has begun to show its force in the streets. It would be useful to link with money in politics groups to expose and confront the entrenched interests and corrupted politicians that cling to climate denial. Students, graduates and parents should be rallying against the absurdity that getting a college education all say is necessary requires taking on debt burdens that all agree are ruinous.
What the labor movement, the civil rights movement, the women's movement, the gay rights movement, the Latino movements have shown over and over again is one simple truth: Those who benefit from a stacked deck won't call for a new deal. Fundamental change comes only when the oppressed make it impossible to sustain the old order.
2016: Who Is Prepared to Stand?
The mainstream media have already begun their saturation coverage of the 2016 presidential horserace. How will Hillary run? Will she be challenged by Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders or another candidate on the left? Will Bush or Romney consolidate the Republican establishment? Who will emerge on the right? Where is the big money going in both parties?
In this coverage, platforms and reform ideas are contrasted with those of rival candidates, measured only for their potential political effectiveness. Congressional showdowns are measured by their potential effect on "the race." In the lead up to 2016, this is likely to disintegrate into the competitive posturing of ersatz populists. Absent is any measure of the ideas against the scope of the challenges Americans must struggle with everyday.
Filling this vacuum is the imperative for progressives. The real question isn't who is prepared to run, but who is prepared to stand for fundamental reform? This is one reason why progressive challengers in the primaries are so important. Hard-pressed Americans pay little attention to politics or to congressional debates. Presidential primaries often surprise because they are one occasion where, if activists are engaged, a broader public begins to pay attention.
Progressive challengers -- a Bernie Sanders, Jim Webb, Elizabeth Warren or Sherrod Brown -- can force a debate on what it really takes to make this economy work for working people. They can expose the limits of the center reform agenda, and the scope of real alternatives. It would be a true tragedy if 2016 took place without a fundamental debate about the stark reality we face and the presidential contenders plan to do about it.
But again, no challenge in the Democratic Party will have legs unless people are in motion, mobilizing, challenging business as usual, and forcing politicians to get outside of their comfort zone. Dislodging the entrenched interests and big money that dominate our politics won't be easy. It won't happen in one election or with one movement. Democracy, as Bill Moyers has written, isn't easy. But it is our only hope.
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Activists from around the country to march, hold workshops in Pittsburgh
Activists from around the country to march, hold workshops in Pittsburgh
An estimated 1,500 demonstrators will hit the streets of Downtown Pittsburgh this afternoon — and both geographically...
An estimated 1,500 demonstrators will hit the streets of Downtown Pittsburgh this afternoon — and both geographically and politically, they expect to cover a lot of ground.
The “Still We Rise” March, which kicks off a two-day gathering of activists from around the country, begins at 2:30 and will feature stops including the Pittsburgh branch of the Federal Reserve, the headquarters of UPMC and the Station Square office of Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey.
Ana Maria Archila, co-director of the Center for Popular Democracy, which is organizing the gathering, said the activists are turning out to put the spotlight on issues communities face such as economic inequality, racism and xenophobia.
“… We will win our rights,” she said, adding that the event “is really the launch of a national grassroots community.”
In fact, the “People’s Convention” at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center expects to attract over 40 progressive groups from 30 states, focusing on issues ranging from immigrant rights and racial equity to environmental concerns and public schools advocacy. A parallel program will involve policy discussions among progressive elected officials: Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto and City Councilor Daniel Lavelle are among those participating.
The event “reflects what we’re trying to do in Pittsburgh, on a national level,” said Erin Kramer, executive director of activist group One Pittsburgh.
Here as elsewhere, organizers have pressed fast-food employers to raise minimum wages to at least $15 an hour, and fought for a city ordinance requiring employers to grant paid sick leave to workers. Other cities are weighing “fair scheduling” ordinances that require giving workers earlier notice about, and input on, their work schedules.
Immigration issues, which have become a critical issue in this year’s presidential race, also will be a key topic. While Ms. Kramer said the convention is about more than electoral politics, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump “is really a threat for a lot of participants. He’s literally talking about building walls and sending people home. You may see a Trump puppet in the parade, more as a rodeo clown than anything else.”
The agenda may seem sprawling. “It is hard to weave these things together,” Ms. Archila admitted. One goal of the convention is for participants to craft a “statement of unity” outlining a vision to guide future activism.
But “all of our issues are interconnected,” said Pittsburgh education activist Pam Harbin, who will attend the convention to discuss tactics and lessons with organizers from elsewhere. “A $15 minimum wage is deeply connected to the fight for quality schools, because if you have parents working three jobs, you really can’t ask, ‘Why aren’t these parents more involved in their kids’ education?’”
Campaigns for higher wages or better worker protections often concentrate on the federal level. But with Washington in a partisan deadlock, activists are increasingly pressing for change locally.
“In some ways, people became more reliant on the federal government, and that took some of the wind out of the sails of local activism,” said Lisa Graves, executive director of the left-leaning Center for Media and Democracy. “But seeing the federal government crippled is an opportunity to reinvigorate local democracy.”
There are perils to the approach, as Pittsburgh has learned. Here as elsewhere, while progressives may control city hall, conservatives often rule state capitals.
State law has barred enforcing a Pittsburgh law to require the reporting of lost-and-stolen firearms, for example. And last December, an Allegheny County judge struck down ordinances requiring paid sick leave for employers, and special training for building security guards. A 2009 Supreme Court ruling barred municipalities for setting such rules for employers, Judge Joseph James ruled.
“It’s a growing trend to see these special interests using their access at the state level to preempt local democracy,” Ms. Graves said. This weekend will feature discussions of the challenge, but because states can limit local authority, “It’s extremely difficult to overcome.”
And a local ordinance may not help struggling families across the city line — at least not immediately.
Still, said Ms. Kramer, “If you lift the minimum wage in one place, people say, ‘Why not me?’ You have to start by painting an alternative picture.”
By Chris Potter
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Weak Charter School Oversight Leads to Fraud and Mismanagement
DailyKos - May 6, 2014, by Laura Clawson - Charter schools benefit from a massive double standard, taking public money...
DailyKos - May 6, 2014, by Laura Clawson - Charter schools benefit from a massive double standard, taking public money without being subject to the regulations or oversight applied to traditional public schools. That lack of regulation and oversight has a cost, in students' educational experiences and in dollars. More than $100 million, as a new report from the Center for Popular Democracy and Integrity in Education shows.The report identifies six key types of abuse:
Charter operators using public funds illegally for personal gain:Joel Pourier, former CEO of Oh Day Aki Heart Charter School in Minnesota, who embezzled $1.38 million from 2003 to 2008. He used the money on houses, cars, and trips to strip clubs. Meanwhile, according to an article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the school “lacked funds for field trips, supplies, computers and textbooks.” A judge sentenced Mr. Pourier to 10 years in prison. Given the number of years, and the severity of the fraud, over a million dollars might have been saved had there been adequate charter oversight.
School revenue used to illegally support other charter operator businesses:For example, in 2012, the former CEO and founder of the New Media Technology Charter School in Philadelphia was sentenced to prison for stealing $522,000 in taxpayer money to prop up a restaurant, a health food store, and a private school.
Mismanagement that puts children in actual or potential danger:Ohio's State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Dr. Richard A. Ross, was forced to shut down two charter schools, The Talented Tenth Leadership Academy for Boys Charter School and The Talented Tenth Leadership Academy for Girls Charter School, because, according to Ross, “They did not ensure the safety of the students, they did not adequately feed the students, they did not accurately track the students and they were not educating the students well. It is unacceptable and intolerable that a sponsor and school would do such a poor job. It is an educational travesty.”
Charters illegally requesting public dollars for services not provided:[New Jersey] officials shut down the Regional Experiential Academic Charter High School after the state found, according to report in the New York Times, “a wide range of problems, including failure to provide special education students with the services required by state and federal law.
Some charter schools have also been caught illegally inflating their enrollment to collect money for students who weren't actually in the schools, while others have been tagged for general mismanagement of funds.
While some of the most egregious cases are found out, leading in some cases to prison sentences as cited above, we have no way of knowing how many similar situations haven't yet come to light. And in most cases, a prison sentence for the wrongdoer is all very well, but it won't get back the money that was supposed to go to educating kids. That's why the report calls for oversight agencies with teeth, able to catch fraud and mismanagement and actuallydo something about it; for charters to face the same transparency requirements public schools do, including following state open meetings and open records laws; and for charters to be governed by elected boards including parents, teachers, and, for high schools, students. Right now, in too many states charters are like the Wild West. Charter advocates like that when it lets them cut costs, increase profits and keep teachers non-union and as powerless as possible, of course. That's why we see so many state legislatures rapidly expanding charters without expanding oversight. They may not like straight-up theft, but it's a risk they're willing to run for all the other benefits of weak oversight.
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Dallas Fed Struggles to Fill Fisher’s Big Shoes
The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas is taking its time picking a new president, leaving the position vacant for more...
The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas is taking its time picking a new president, leaving the position vacant for more than four months and leaving the institution without a strong public voice at a time of intense debate over when the central bank should start raising interest rates.
Former president Richard Fisher stepped down March 19, leaving the bank’s first vice president Helen Holcomb to serve as interim president. His exit was long anticipated: he faced mandatory retirement due to his age. The bank formally announced Mr. Fisher’s impending exit in November. Executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles was tapped to find a successor.
Other regional Fed banks, in contrast, have filled their top vacancies more briskly in recent years. For instance, Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser retired March 1 and his replacement, Patrick Harker, was announced the next day.
The duration of the Dallas vacancy has surprised many central bank watchers. Some of them say the bank’s board of directors appears to want a clone of Mr. Fisher—a strong voice on major issues with deep ties to the Lone Star state.
“It’s beyond bizarre” a new president hasn’t been named yet, said Danielle DiMartino Booth, who served as a close adviser to Mr. Fisher when they were both at the bank. Ms. Booth, who left the Dallas Fed in June and is now a strategist with the Liscio Report, said what the bank appears to want is a rare commodity.
“Richard Fisher rose to the status of being a deity in Texas,” Ms. Booth said. “People associate the success of the state” with him, and it is “very difficult” to find a new leader who can maintain that sort of profile, she said.
The Dallas Fed responded to questions about the search process by producing a description of what the bank seeks in a new leader. It said candidates should have “recognized stature” in economics and finance and preferably hold a Ph.D. The “ideal candidate will exhibit a strong combination of economic/market/policy expertise, integrity (and willingness to satisfy financial interest and disclosure requirements), leadership, communication skills, interpersonal skills, and community involvement,” it said.
Before joining the Dallas Fed, Mr. Fisher was a wealthy hedge-fund operator and diplomat. He was known for a brash public style as president. He made his case against the Fed’s easy money policies in speeches invoking high and pop culture, warning repeatedly about frothy financial markets and arguing in vain for higher interest rates.
His predecessor Robert McTeer, operating under the nickname of the “Lonesome Dove,” was known for opposing rate rises—sometimes via haiku.
The Dallas Fed has “a tradition of having an outspoken leader,” said Ethan Harris, chief economist at Bank of American Merrill Lynch.
Those with knowledge of the process say the Dallas Fed is seeking a replacement who will carry on that tradition.
Heidrick & Struggles didn’t respond to questions about the search process.
The Dallas Fed president is chosen by the bank’s board of directors, subject to approval by the Federal Reserve’s Washington-based board of governors. The Dallas board members drawn from the financial industry are prohibited by law from participating in the search. The other Dallas board members who are involved declined to comment.
In recent years, regional Fed bank presidents have tended to be insiders. For example, San Francisco Fed President John Williams was previously the bank’s research director. Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester was previously research director at the Philadelphia Fed. Mr. Harker served on the Philadelphia Fed’s board before taking the top job. Now, only current Atlanta Fed chief Dennis Lockhart had no formal connection to the central bank before joining. Mr. Fisher was the rare bird who came in cold.
“Recent history has shown that the regional banks conduct a thorough and broad review of candidates that almost exclusively ends with the insider being selected,” said Aaron Klein, director of the financial regulatory reform initiative with the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington.
Mr. Harris said central bank insiders, shaped by a Fed culture that often rewards a gray public persona, tend to lack the dramatic flair of the past two Dallas Fed chiefs.
Some critics from labor unions and local community groups say they are disappointed by the lack of openness surrounding the selection process given that the regional Fed bank presidents are government officials who participate in important central bank policy decisions.
“We are very disappointed in what we’ve run into” trying to have a voice in the process, said Mark York, secretary-treasurer of the Dallas AFL-CIO. He said a letter from the union and other local groups asked for names under consideration to be made public in a bid to allow the public to weigh in, among other requests.
That said, not all think the bright light of transparency is a cure all. Lou Crandall, chief economist for Wrightson ICAP, said wanting to know more about the process is a “fair point.” But he warned “you don’t want a lot of public jockeying over this.”
Source: The Wall Street Journal
'Freedom city'? Going beyond 'sanctuary,' Austin, Texas, vows to curtail arrests
'Freedom city'? Going beyond 'sanctuary,' Austin, Texas, vows to curtail arrests
While Austin is among the country’s first so-called freedom cities, it’s part of a wider movement around...
While Austin is among the country’s first so-called freedom cities, it’s part of a wider movement around decriminalizing low-level offenses and decreasing arrests. According to Local Progress, a national network of progressive city officials, some council members in El Paso and Dallas are also considering “freedom city” proposals.
Read the full article here.
Activists to SEC’s White: Step aside on audit regulator appointment
A national coalition of 14 organizations told Mary Jo White, chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to...
A national coalition of 14 organizations told Mary Jo White, chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to take herself out of the selection process for the next chair of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the audit regulator.
In a letter sent on Thursday the signers said they believe there’s a conflict of interest created by her decision on an issue that will impact her family’s income. That’s because John White, her husband, is a member of the PCAOB’s Standing Advisory Group, selected by the board of the PCAOB, who are in turn chosen by the SEC and White.
The conflict has existed ever since White was approved as SEC chairwoman. Her spokeswoman told MarketWatch in September that her husband’s role in the PCAOB group was reviewed when she first took the job, and then again when the first PCAOB board appointment during her tenure was required. The conflict rose to the surface in early September, when Bloomberg reported that White was considering potential candidates to replace PCAOB Chair James Doty.
Doty has signaled he would like to return for another term but his industry reform-minded tenure has caused some, including at the SEC, to criticize his tenure. Critics say progress on the “nuts and bolts” of the agency is slow because of Doty’s preoccupation with larger industry-level initiatives focused on greater accountability and transparency for auditors and audits.
Bloomberg’s coverage of the conflict, and White’s admission that she was shopping for alternatives to Doty, led John White’s law firm, Cravath, Swaine & Moore, to remove marketing-type references to White’s position on the SAG from its website the following day, as reported by MarketWatch.
The organizations are the Alliance for a Just Society, American Family Voices, Campaign for America’s Future, Center for Effective Government, Center for Popular Democracy, Community Organizations in Action, Communications Workers of America, Democracy for America, Main Street Alliance, The Other 98%, Public Citizen, RootsAction, Rootstrikers and MoveOn.org Civil Action.
Source: MarketWatch
Six national retailers agree to stop using on-call shift scheduling tactics
Six national retailers agree to stop using on-call shift scheduling tactics
NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) — New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced Dec. 20 that six major retailers...
NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) — New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced Dec. 20 that six major retailers have agreed to stop using on-call shift scheduling after an inquiry by a multistate coalition of attorneys general.
On-call shifts involve employees calling their employers, usually a couple hours before they are supposed to attend work, to see if they will be scheduled to work or not. According to Schneiderman’s office, as many as 50,000 workers nationwide will benefit from this policy change.
“On-call shifts are not a business necessity and should be a thing of the past," Schneiderman said. "People should not have to keep the day open, arrange for child care, and give up other opportunities without being compensated for their time. I am pleased that these companies have stepped up to the plate and agreed to stop using this unfair method of scheduling.”
The six companies that agreed to stop the practice are Aeropostale, Carter’s, David’s Tea, Disney, PacSun and Zumiez. These companies were among 15 large retailers that received the coalition’s inquiry.
"This latest announcement shows the sweeping positive impact that Attorney General Schneiderman's actions have had on the lives of people working in retail,” said Carrie Gleason, director of the Fair Workweek Initiative at the Center for Popular Democracy.
By Mark Iandolo
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Black Students in Milwaukee Are Demanding Change to Racist Discipline In Public Schools
Black Students in Milwaukee Are Demanding Change to Racist Discipline In Public Schools
A report released Tuesday by the Center for Popular Democracy and the Milwaukee youth group Leaders Igniting...
A report released Tuesday by the Center for Popular Democracy and the Milwaukee youth group Leaders Igniting Transformation paints a much more troubling picture.According to the report, in the 2016-2017 school year, Milwaukee Public Schools suspended 10,267 students, including one of every three ninth-graders. The Milwaukee Police Department has 12 dedicated officers assigned to public schools and another six deployed on the streets to take truant students into custody. That’s in addition to 269 school safety assistants, the city’s version of school resource officers. That deployment costs Milwaukee taxpayers more than $15 million a year, but it comes at an even greater social cost.
Read the full article here.
Groups Charge $30 Million in Charter School Fraud, Call for Tougher Oversight
WHYY - October 1, 2014, by Tom Macdonald - A new report is calling for holding charter schools in Pennsylvania more...
WHYY - October 1, 2014, by Tom Macdonald - A new report is calling for holding charter schools in Pennsylvania more accountable.Produced by the groups Center for Public Democracy, Integrity in Education and Action United, the report says the $30 million in charter school fraud already discovered in Pennsylvania could be the tip of the iceberg because there isn't enough oversight.Kia Hinton of Action United says they are calling for reforms such as targeted audits because $30 million could have been put to much better use."Do you know what that could get us? That could get us more teachers so our classrooms don't have 40 students, that could get us textbooks, so our students have textbooks and that could get us support staff to support our teachers and our students," Hinton said.The groups are also calling for a moratorium on any new charter schools until more controls are implemented.Chinara Bioaal has a child in Philly schools and says the report is just a first step to end fraud."We will be conducting information requests on all charter schools to review board minutes to determine the quality or existence of their fraud risk management programs, we will challenge charter schools to sign the fraud risk management pledge adopting fraud risk management programs," Bioaal said.The Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools responded to the report saying it supports prosecuting fraud and mismanagement. However "the report draws sweeping conclusions about the entire charter sector based on only 11 cited incidents in the course of almost 20 years, while ignoring numerous alleged and actual fraud and fiscal mismanagement in the districts."Source
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