When my daughter goes to college, what will she find?

Professor Zero dixit:
"Real conditions are that we are either hot members of the Academic Industrial Complex with hobbies of our choice, or tutors to the privileged classes with hobbies of our college’s choice, or activists in popular education with hobbies resembling the day jobs of hot members of the Academic Industrial Complex."
I will be thinking about this as I grade, as I write my paper for the MLA, and as I prepare my classes for spring, knowing that only 1/10 of the searches in our college can go forward, leaving many positions unfilled, departments that are already understaffed falling farther behind. In the short and long term, the politics of disinvestment in higher education promoted by our current governor and legislature (because they can't override his veto) have made the conditions of work at my institution--for staff, students and faculty--more difficult. Paying for college at our state's land-grant university without leaving with at least $25,000 in debt, has become an unreachable goal for many. Our fiscal realities are completely and utterly at odds with the professed goals of our administration.
In other words, we can either think big and meet the challenges, or we can collectively continue to advance blindly as if this were still the 20th century.

Well, since you ASKED...

Wow, I have a reader whom I don't know? Hi, Anonymous commenter!
Numbers kind of remind me of tests, and the semester is over, so I'll try to reply in the spirit of sincere dialogue, although I do prefer addressing someone by a name. I"m long-winded, so if you actually return to read this, here goes. I moved your questions about my previous post out of the comments, because I found myself writing such long answers.

1. How do you know that the parents opposing this are a "minority?"

2. Which other political action committees besides HRC do you think we should allow to pilot curricula in our public schools?

3. Do you recognize that the idea of legalizing same-sex marriage is a controversial political issue?

4. Who is a child's primary educator, the parent(s) or the school?

5. Have you read the "Welcoming Schools" curriculum?

6. Can you accept that people who oppose this curriculum are not by definition bigoted or homophobic?

Re: HRC, politics and what goes on in our schools? short answer, what isn't political about public school as an institution? Public school is mandatory because the state wants to produce citizens who will support the status quo. This has its pluses and its minuses, depending on how invested one is in that status quo. In my ideal world, our schools would be a lot different: there would be free full-day preschool starting at age 3, as there is in many European countries. Teacher-child ratios would be more reasonable; there would be at least an hour of PE a day; music and art would be as important as any other subject; all children would have daily instruction in a second language from first grade on; the children would have more than a pitiful 20 minutes to eat lunch, and that lunch would be healthy, prepared on site, and nothing with high-fructose corn syrup would be allowed on school grounds. NCLB would be abolished...you get the picture. We would have an anti-bias and gender-fair curriculum and teach that people should be valued above profits (heresy!). Alas, I am not queen of the world. I'm happy that the public schools in Minneapolis are as good as they are, given how they are subjected to continual funding shuffles, staffing uncertainty, and the mandate to provide for special needs students without adequate funding. Am I concerned about the agenda of the Human Rights Campaign? Well, they screwed up on ENDA, but that's another conversation.

Re: 4: Primary educator? Short answer: their peers. Ideally, parents do their best to teach their kids how to be good people. We may also teach them a bunch of other stuff: please and thank you are big in my house. Kids are in school 8 hours a day, and during that time the schools are in charge of their education on a series of subjects, in accordance with federal, state, and local mandates (standards, testing). But guess what? schools teach our kids social norms all the time: stand in line, raise your hand, ask permission to go to the bathroom, don't run in the halls, don't have jello spitting contests in the cafeteria, don't make snotty remarks to the teacher, take turns, be nice, don't hit. We expect the school to ensure their physical safety, and by necessity the schools also have a huge role in shaping their emotional and moral life, whether we like that or not. And kids learn a lot from each other, sometimes more than we recognize. Peer influence is huge, huge.

re: 5. Did I read the HRC "Welcoming Schools" curriculum? That's a somewhat insulting question, but yes, I did, quite carefully. I am an educator, so I understand the importance of homework and research. That is why I recognize that Kersten's article misrepresented it, and the discussions I have seen make claims about it that are often simply untrue: it does not mandate "sex education" nor will it "do away with gender" as I have seen at least one person assert.

As an educator, I also know that when a school adopts a curriculum, they make use of a set of resources, which they adapt to fit their needs. There is no state organization that will require a test, like the math and reading tests my child just took, to see if they "got it right." It is quite likely that the schools (and primarily the teachers) will decide which elements fit best with their community, their style and their already existing anti-bullying policies. Because I have been actively involved in my school I know the real, live people who are doing their best to teach too many kids with too few resources. They want the tools to do a better job, and they thought this curriculum served an unmet need. Before a curriculum can be implemented, you need to have the teachers on board. If they decide this is not something they can use, well, hey.

re: 3. What? gay marriage is controversial? why, I hadn't noticed. Ok, seriously, her dads' marriage is legal in the European Union, and frankly, it hurts me that there are people who want to deprive them of their happiness here.



re: 1 and 6: Actually, when I read the comments in response to a couple of blog posts, I was rather grateful to see how many people who did not identify as GLBT were supportive of the Welcoming Schools curriculum or at least of the idea of the need for it. When I spoke at the school board meeting tonight, I just said that I don't want any family to have to feel afraid the way I did: afraid that the school would be unkind to my child and my family, or look away when others were unkind or cruel. Then I sat down and cried because I hate it that people are fighting to keep our children in a situation of fear. I didn't have time to narrate in tedious and dreary detail all the bullying I have endured, witnessed, or (finally, after the age of 40) fought against. Someone else spoke about teen suicide rates, depression, and the public and mental health issues that homophobic bullying causes. Several people came up very quietly and thanked me and shook my hand. The folks who didn't come but wrote to me that they supported me and were glad I was there to represent them also make me believe that we are not the minority.

That's why I think (and I am hopeful) that those who sincerely want our schools to be inclusive, respectful and safe will work to make this a reality for all of us, not just people who are like you, who want to keep the schools safe for bullies and feel all morally superior about it at the same time. Sorry to be so blunt, but that's what your questions felt like to me.

But, if you actually came back and read this, thank you; I appreciate the opportunity to write this down. I welcome a sincere engagement if you care to reply.

Coming out in support of change in the public schools

Yesterday I got an email asking for parents to attend or speak up at tonight's school board meeting in support of the Welcoming Families pilot program that will be voluntarily implemented at three schools this coming year, including our family's K-12 school.

Here is a slightly edited version of an email I sent to family, friends and parents, asking for their support:

Greetings, all
You may have read or heard about the Minneapolis Public School's implementation of the Welcoming Schools pilot program, an anti-bullying, GLBT inclusive curriculum. MSP Superintendent, Dr. Green, strongly advocates a proactive approach to address the issues of bullying in our schools, especially as it targets GLBT children, their families, and all children who witness or participate in bullying behavior targeting
e states:

"The Welcoming Schools curriculum is a tool to combat bullying, by focusing on diversity, gender stereotyping and name-calling. This project, being voluntarily piloted in three MPS schools, complements the district's health education standards which require that students from kindergarten and up "state a way that people are the same and different," and students from second grade and up "identify different family patterns (nuclear, single parent, gay, lesbian, adoptive, foster, extended, etc.)."

Yesterday's homophobic and grotesquely misleading column by Katherine Kersten in the Star Tribune has generated much discussion (some negative and quite a bit positive) about the implementation of this pilot program. As a minority of vocal opponents can generate misinformation about the curriculum and a create the false impression that this project lacks popular support, I plan to attend tonight's school board meeting to speak in support of the Welcoming School's pilot program.


LAST MONTH"S MEETING, ONLY OPPPONENTS SHOWED UP AND THERE WAS NO VISIBLE SUPPORT! We can't let Kersten's demagoguery mobilize those who want to keep the schools safe for bullies; we need to confront these efforts vigorously and publicly.

[My daughter's school] already has an active bullying prevention program and my daughter reports to me that she has not experienced bullying herself (although she recognizes that it may occur). Every child should be fortunate enough to have the experience she has had.

I wanted to let you know that am #4 on the list of people to speak between 5:30 and 6:00 tonight at the Public Input time slot for the School Board Meeting.

As a member of Rainbow Families, the mother of a 8th grader, and professor who is active with the GLBTA Program and the Transgender Commission, I will be there because every child has the right to learn in a safe environment, because all children suffer negative consequences when some children are bullied, and because I interact frequently with adult students who are still suffering from bullying at the school where I work. I applaud the strong commitment by the Superintendent and School Board to educate staff and teachers as well as students and their families about what we can all do to combat bullying and create affirming and welcoming schools in partnership with Out 4 Good and Rainbow Families

I will only have 3 minutes. I hope that you or your friends, co-workers, or acquaintances might consider being present at tonight's meeting to support me and my family, and to increase the visibilty of public support for GLBT families in Minneapolis Public Schools.

Better yet, if you have the possibility of putting yourself on the agenda, you can call and you will get 3 minutes, too!


Our family and others are out at school as families with gay parents.
Not every family or child has had the positive experience we have had; we need to work to change this. Thanks

Yours,
momo

Things I learned in school this semester

To all my Senior Seminar students who completed their projects and graduated this semester: Congratulations, and best wishes! It was a pleasure to work with you on topics that were important to you. A sample of some of the things I learned from you this semester:

Judeo-espaniol (ladino), the language spoken by the Jews who were expelled from Spain;

Hugo Chavez and the polarization of opinions about him and his programs, and the educational missions in Venezuela;

Mexico's educational system and recent changes;

more about bilingual education in the context of colonization in the Americas;

the new law in Spain concerning violence against women and the incredible film Te doy mis ojos.

There are many more I could mention, but I still have three more papers to grade.

Good luck to all of you!

Fixing School Lunches: How can we make change?

Flea over at One Good Thing reviews the book Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children. It sounds like something I have to read. The Nation published this interview with one of the authors, Ann Cooper, in which she describes the major changes she was able to make to the Berkeley School systems school lunch program.

When my daughter was in child care, the children were served wholesome, delicious food, with vegetarian options. The kids loved it. In our (otherwise excellent) public school here in Minneapolis, where most of the kids are eligible for free breakfast and lunch, the food they serve keeps them alive, but it is otherwise dreadful. So we've made her lunch every day since kindergarten, and talked about healthy food choices. When she attends school in Spain, they serve simple but nutritious and delicious food. The idea of serving the kids junk food would simply not occur to them.

I asked my daughter what she thought of the school cafeteria food her friends eat. She made a face and said, "It's packaged and it's usually wet. The french fries are soggy. It would cost the same to have actual chefs preparing the food as to get the packages." When I asked her how she knew that, she said that they learned it in their "Life Skills" class when they saw the movie "Super Size Me." Hah!! I guess I'd better put that in our Netflix queue and see it myself. Clearly at least some of the teachers are trying to educate the kids about nutrition, and that's an important step.

Flea points out that the most famous instances of this kind of change are those driven by chefs like Alice Waters with the Edible Schoolyard program, and occur in large cities. She wonders about whether such efforts can happen in places with fewer resources, and about how poor people can afford to eat organic food when it seems to be so much more expensive. These are a great questions, and it got me thinking about what it would take to make this kind of change in our public school food service right here in the Twin Cities (and especially since there is a public forum tonight for the school board elections coming up).

Is it already happening? It's not as if we don't have celebrity chefs, a thriving sustainable agriculture and co-op movement with a long history, and rich sources of local foods. Here in winterland, we can't have a year-round garden in the backyard the way they do in California, but it wouldn't be hard to make huge improvements right away. But you do have to get parents to organize and lobby for changes in collaboration with the school board and elected officials, break out of the corporate stranglehold on food contracts, and join the movement. I've discovered at least one local school district, in Hopkins, that has made major changes in its school lunch program, with great success. So, not only can it be done here, it has been done here! Looks as if I should register for this "Bioneers" conference coming up Oct 20. because it sounds as if it will combine inspiration, education, and some hands-on pragmatic organizing ideas.

Here are some web resources I intend to explore, when I've finished with work today:
I am a member of a food co-op called The Wedge, which has an organics FAQ and lots of educational links. The Center for Ecoliteracy has a program called Rethinking School Lunch, which has a guide on how to do it. This is linked from Alice Water's site as well.
The Physicians' Committee for Responsible Medicine has an initiative called Health School Lunches for educating legislators and administrators about making school lunches healthier. They also have this great guide to resources for parents. They are dealing with the fact that huge numbers of schoolkids in the U.S. get their lunches through the National School Lunch Program, so change has to happen in partnership with this effort. I am dismayed, but not surprised to find that their 2006 report card gives the Minneapolis School District a D+
Jamie Oliver, another celebrity chef in London, has an ambitious and visionary program called "Feed me better" Let's hear it for celebrities who use their powers for good!