2004 Brochure / 4 pages

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Write-in "Doug Mann" for School Board

Another Option for Minneapolis School Board Voters (2004 General Election)

by Doug Mann, 29 Oct 2004, Submitted to the Star-Tribune for publication 28 Oct 2004

Mann for School Board

[Photo of Doug Mann]

Doug Mann

Education is a Right, Not a Privilege!

Demand a quality public education for all on an equal basis

1) Hold schools accountable: The district can make rapid progress toward `closing the learning gap.' Use testing to identify & diagnose problems, not to pick winners & losers.

2) Desegregate inexperienced teachers: Create positions for newly-hired, inexperienced teachers in all schools, rather than concentrating them in schools for high-poverty neighborhoods.

3) Best practices for all students: Base instruction for the general student population on a college-bound curriculum and individualized assessments, NOT 'ability-grouping' and a watered-down curriculum for a majority of students.

4) Individual Educational Plans for all students who fail to thrive academically, and special education services if appropriate. Don't wait for students to fall 2 years behind grade-level expectations (which is done to maximize special Ed funding).

For more proposals visit: www.educationright.com

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Endorsements

Ron Edwards, served as chair & vice chair of the Minneapolis Civil Rights Commission for 16 years; longest-serving chairman of the board of the Minneapolis Urban League (1978-1987);

Evelyn Eubanks, former citywide Parent-Teacher Association president; volunteer advocate representing parents & students; school board candidate in 2001.

Alfred Flowers, community representative on the federal mediation team that recently worked out an agreement with the Minneapolis Police Department to curb police brutality.

Travis Lee, host of youth talk show, Let's Motivate, 1988-2001. Twenty years service as a youth advocate.

Pamela Taylor, served on the Wilder Early Childhood Education Leadership Team (1997-2000). Candidate for the Minneapolis School Board endorsed by Progressive Minnesota and the Reform Party in 1999.

Resume

Education Advocacy

*2001 & 2002 Minneapolis school board candidate (received over 20,000 votes in the 2002 general election.

*1998-2000 Minneapolis Parents Union Board of Directors

*1998-99 Minneapolis NAACP Education Advocacy Committee

*1998-99 Plaintiff, NAACP v. MN educational adequacy lawsuit

*Author of several pamphlets, including

Flight from Equality: School reform in the US since 1983

Employment / Union background

Licensed Practical Nurse since 1991, charge nurse / team leader positions 1992-2003.

Occasional news reporter: Pulse of the Twin Cities (1999 & 2003) Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder (2003)

Union shop steward (1976-78) & union delegate to an area-wide bargaining committee (1977), Local 789, United Food & Commercial Workers Union

Education

Minneapolis Community & Technical College: Graduated with honors from the Practical Nursing program in 1990 and completed general education requirements for an associate degree in nursing. Languages (from greatest to least proficient): English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, German.

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The Minneapolis School District needs new leadership. The district's strategic goal is "Closing the gap, ensuring that all students can learn." However, the school board has opted for ineffective strategies and inefficient processes, and is hiding its failures behind Enron-style accounting gimmicks promoted by No Child Left Behind.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is the name given to federal legislation passed in 2001 with support from the leadership of the Democratic and Republican parties. NCLB promises, but does not actually provide for unlimited school 'choice' to students in poor performing schools. NCLB does not consider why public schools were generally closing the racial learning gap during the 1970s and early 80s, but not since the 1980s. Testing is promoted to pick winners and losers, not as a tool to diagnose problems.

Just as the invasion & occupation of Iraq in 2003 was justified by the threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction, a major shift in educational policy during the 1980s was based on a false claim. Public K-12 schools in the US were closing the racial learning gap in the 1970s and early 1980s. However, the report of an advisory committee selected by the Reagan-Bush administration (released in April 1983), A Nation at Risk warned of "a rising tide of mediocrity" that threatened the foundations of our educational system. In other words, class and racial learning gaps were supposedly being closed at the expense of the high achievers. However, the existence of "a rising tide of mediocrity" in the 1970s and 80s is not supported by the evidence, such as math and reading scores on National Assessment of Educational Progress exams.

Lawn sign distribution begins August 1, 2004. For more information visit our web site or call 612 822-3776.

Prepared & paid for by Mann for School Board.

Treasurer: Evelyn Eubanks

PO Box 8514 Minneapolis MN 55408

Web site: www.educationright.com

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A WHITE 13 YEAR OLDS *

V *

G. *

S * *

C * BLACK 13 YEAR OLDS

O __*________________________________________

R l l l

E 1971 1988 1999

On National Assessment of Educational Progress exams the difference in average reading scores between [non-Hispanic] black & white 13 year olds declined by about 50% between 1971 & 1988, then increased by about 75% between 1988 and the late 1990s. - Source: The New Crisis (NAACP magazine), Sept/Oct 2001, "Long Division," p. 25-31, graph on page 28.

Myth: Schools with high concentrations of poor and/or minority students inevitably get poor results due discrimination and disadvantages associated with poverty.

In the year 2000 The Education Trust identified 4,577 high-performing, high- poverty and/or minority schools, which educated about 2,070,000 students, including about 1,280,000 low-income students, 564,000 African-American students; and 600,000 Latino students. [Dispelling the Myth Revisited, The Education Trust, http://www.edtrust.org]

High poverty schools are generally poor performing schools

due to institutional factors, such as overexposing students to inexperienced teachers.

"In an analysis of 900 Texas school districts, Ronald Ferguson found that teachers' expertise-as measured by scores on a licensing examination, master's degrees, & experience-accounted for about 40% of the measured variance in students' reading and mathematics achievement at grades 1 through 11..." -Nov. 1997 "Doing What matters Most: Investing in Quality Teaching," by Linda Darling-Hammond, Prepared for the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future.


	Mann for School Board \| home 2004 Brochure / 4 pages Write-in "Doug Mann" for School Board Another Option for Minneapolis School Board Voters (2004 General Election) by Doug Mann, 29 Oct 2004, Submitted to the Star-Tribune for publication 28 Oct 2004 Mann for School Board [Photo of Doug Mann] Doug Mann Education is a Right, Not a Privilege! Demand a quality public education for all on an equal basis 1) Hold schools accountable: The district can make rapid progress toward `closing the learning gap.' Use testing to identify & diagnose problems, not to pick winners & losers. 2) Desegregate inexperienced teachers: Create positions for newly-hired, inexperienced teachers in all schools, rather than concentrating them in schools for high-poverty neighborhoods. 3) Best practices for all students: Base instruction for the general student population on a college-bound curriculum and individualized assessments, NOT 'ability-grouping' and a watered-down curriculum for a majority of students. 4) Individual Educational Plans for all students who fail to thrive academically, and special education services if appropriate. Don't wait for students to fall 2 years behind grade-level expectations (which is done to maximize special Ed funding). For more proposals visit: www.educationright.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Endorsements Ron Edwards, served as chair & vice chair of the Minneapolis Civil Rights Commission for 16 years; longest-serving chairman of the board of the Minneapolis Urban League (1978-1987); Evelyn Eubanks, former citywide Parent-Teacher Association president; volunteer advocate representing parents & students; school board candidate in 2001. Alfred Flowers, community representative on the federal mediation team that recently worked out an agreement with the Minneapolis Police Department to curb police brutality. Travis Lee, host of youth talk show, Let's Motivate, 1988-2001. Twenty years service as a youth advocate. Pamela Taylor, served on the Wilder Early Childhood Education Leadership Team (1997-2000). Candidate for the Minneapolis School Board endorsed by Progressive Minnesota and the Reform Party in 1999. Resume Education Advocacy 2001 & 2002 Minneapolis school board candidate (received over 20,000 votes in the 2002 general election. 1998-2000 Minneapolis Parents Union Board of Directors 1998-99 Minneapolis NAACP Education Advocacy Committee 1998-99 Plaintiff, NAACP v. MN educational adequacy lawsuit Author of several pamphlets, including Flight from Equality: School reform in the US since 1983* Employment / Union background Licensed Practical Nurse since 1991, charge nurse / team leader positions 1992-2003. Occasional news reporter: Pulse of the Twin Cities (1999 & 2003) Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder (2003) Union shop steward (1976-78) & union delegate to an area-wide bargaining committee (1977), Local 789, United Food & Commercial Workers Union Education Minneapolis Community & Technical College: Graduated with honors from the Practical Nursing program in 1990 and completed general education requirements for an associate degree in nursing. Languages (from greatest to least proficient): English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, German. ------------------------------------------------- The Minneapolis School District needs new leadership. The district's strategic goal is "Closing the gap, ensuring that all students can learn." However, the school board has opted for ineffective strategies and inefficient processes, and is hiding its failures behind Enron-style accounting gimmicks promoted by No Child Left Behind. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) is the name given to federal legislation passed in 2001 with support from the leadership of the Democratic and Republican parties. NCLB promises, but does not actually provide for unlimited school 'choice' to students in poor performing schools. NCLB does not consider why public schools were generally closing the racial learning gap during the 1970s and early 80s, but not since the 1980s. Testing is promoted to pick winners and losers, not as a tool to diagnose problems. Just as the invasion & occupation of Iraq in 2003 was justified by the threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction, a major shift in educational policy during the 1980s was based on a false claim. Public K-12 schools in the US were closing the racial learning gap in the 1970s and early 1980s. However, the report of an advisory committee selected by the Reagan-Bush administration (released in April 1983), A Nation at Risk warned of "a rising tide of mediocrity" that threatened the foundations of our educational system. In other words, class and racial learning gaps were supposedly being closed at the expense of the high achievers. However, the existence of "a rising tide of mediocrity" in the 1970s and 80s is not supported by the evidence, such as math and reading scores on National Assessment of Educational Progress exams. Lawn sign distribution begins August 1, 2004. For more information visit our web site or call 612 822-3776. Prepared & paid for by Mann for School Board. Treasurer: Evelyn Eubanks PO Box 8514 Minneapolis MN 55408 Web site: www.educationright.com ----------------------------------------------- A WHITE 13 YEAR OLDS * V * G. * * S * * C * BLACK 13 YEAR OLDS O __________________________________________ R l l l E 1971 1988 1999 S On National Assessment of Educational Progress exams the difference in average reading scores between [non-Hispanic] black & white 13 year olds declined by about 50%* between 1971 & 1988, then increased by about 75% between 1988 and the late 1990s. - Source: The New Crisis (NAACP magazine), Sept/Oct 2001, "Long Division," p. 25-31, graph on page 28. Myth: Schools with high concentrations of poor and/or minority students inevitably get poor results due discrimination and disadvantages associated with poverty. In the year 2000 The Education Trust identified 4,577 high-performing, high- poverty and/or minority schools, which educated about 2,070,000 students, including about 1,280,000 low-income students, 564,000 African-American students; and 600,000 Latino students. [Dispelling the Myth Revisited, The Education Trust, http://www.edtrust.org] High poverty schools are generally poor performing schools due to institutional factors, such as overexposing students to inexperienced teachers. "In an analysis of 900 Texas school districts, Ronald Ferguson found that teachers' expertise-as measured by scores on a licensing examination, master's degrees, & experience-accounted for about 40% of the measured variance in students' reading and mathematics achievement at grades 1 through 11..." -Nov. 1997 "Doing What matters Most: Investing in Quality Teaching," by Linda Darling-Hammond, Prepared for the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future.