All the talk about caring about the kids, the parents. Ha. The nation’s second largest teachers union got caught telling members how they really feel about parents’ involvement in the education of their offspring. Someone at the American Federation of Teachers, who wasn’t thinking, posted online an AFT PowerPoint “bragging” about undermining parents’ battling in favor of Connecticut’s attempt at parent-trigger reform.
The notorious PowerPoint, meant for union activists, spewed out lobbying tactics the AFT used against the Connecticut proposal. As the WSJ noted, this document gave us all a peek into “union cynicism and power.” The state’s AFT had a “Plan A” called “Kill Mode,” meant to totally shoot down the bill. It failed. So, the union swung into action with Plan B, “Engage the Opposition.” Meetings were held to work out the bill, but certain groups – like parents who supported the trigger – were not invited to the negotiating table.
Union leaders pumped their political muscle to wring out a parent-trigger law so weak it leaves Connecticut parents twiddling their thumbs rather than pulling any reform trigger. To add insult to injury, the union boasts that rather than depend on parent petitions to turn around a school, school governance councils will be established, but (wink, wink) “they are advisory and do not have true governing authority.”
It comes as no surprise that the PowerPoint was pulled, but not before reform blogger RiShawn Biddle made a copy.