Danny Westneat’s May 27, 2009 piece Westneat started me thinking about the American icons who are no more or who are not what they were. WAMU is now JP Morgan Chase and Chrysler, formerly with Daimler Benz may marry Fiat. Who knows what may become of GM. We don’t now say as Charles Wilson a former GM president said “what’s good for GM is good for the country.”

Two definitions of icon frame this discussion about schools. The system of public education is both “an image; a representation and an important and enduring symbol.”

icon Public schools are a reflection of this society, how far we have come and how far we still have to go. They are a symbol of the genuine attempt by this country to extend opportunity to the greatest number.

This passage in Westneat’s piece struck a chord:

More than 600 school parents have signed an online petition, at supportgreatteachers.com, that calls out the teachers union for causing "great distress and upheaval" in the schools. At issue is the policy of choosing who gets laid off solely by seniority. "Wake up and see how union refusal to consider merit is damaging the profession and our kids," wrote one parent. "We want the best teachers, not the oldest, teaching our kids," wrote another. "Teacher unions are an anachronism," said another.

The organizers of the petition are a group of parents called Community and Parents for Public Schools. They agree what they're doing is very un-Seattle. They're fed up with calcified bureaucracy. They see how schools in Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., are being shaken up by market-oriented approaches. Such as charter schools. But in Seattle, no politician seems willing to question the system. So it is left to parents.

"I am so not a Republican," laughed Andrew Kwatinetz, vice president of the group. He's an ex-Microsoftie with two kids in Seattle Public Schools. "I think what we are is extremely frustrated about policies that make little sense that are eroding the quality of the schools…..

What people are saying is there is a lack of balance in the current school equation. We are arriving at the point of not caring whether one is of a particular political flavor because the flavor of the moment is good schools and quality education. Now that middle class kids may face poor education choices, politics seem to matter less. The truth is ALL kids deserve a good basic education.

Anyone reading a newspaper or tuning in to info on the web or television news is aware of teacher layoffs. The Seattle Times in its May 13, 2009 edition Teacher Layoff reports that about 170 teachers and certificated staff will receive layoff notices. The news isn’t better for teachers in other districts. According to the same edition of the Times:

Bellevue announced it will make $5 million in cuts by reducing its teaching staff by the equivalent of 60 full-time certificated-instructional staff, two administrative jobs and eight classified jobs. Officials said the cutbacks will cause class sizes to increase by about 1.6 students in kindergarten through fifth grade, and 1.4 students in middle and high school.

Elsewhere on the Eastside, the Lake Washington and Northshore districts have avoided teacher layoffs through cutbacks such as administrative reductions and fee increases.

The Issaquah School District has sent layoff notices to 158 teachers, although it hopes to bring back 60 or 70 of the positions once its funding becomes more clear. The Snoqualmie Valley School District plans to reduce its teaching staff by the equivalent of 18.5 positions

There is constant mention of the fact that teachers have contracts and that the superintendents must honor contracts and abide by contract rules. Recently, Seattle superintendent Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson caused a stir when she sent out a letter, which was interpreted by the Seattle Teachers Association (SEA) as terminating the contacts of all Seattle district teachers. Goodloe-Johnson Letter The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports in its May 15, 2009 edition District and Union Agree:

Last week the union had threatened legal action because of a letter Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson sent out that teachers believed terminated the contracts of all 3,300 members. The letter, which district officials later said mailed prematurely, said teachers contracts need to be changed because of education cuts at the state level.

Parties to the contract in the current education setting are the union, teachers and the district.

There are different types of contract. Most people are familiar with a contract called a mortgage. This contract between a lender and a purchaser facilitates the purchase of a home. The housing crisis was precipitated by predatory practices, fraud, and consumers who may have gotten in over their heads. This breakdown in the housing market has resulted in what many say is a breakdown in the “social contract.” Many feel that the lack of regulatory oversight allowed the housing bubble to burst. The “real parties” were not part of the contract. Still many more claim that because stimulus money is aimed at the very financial institutions that precipitated the crisis and not the individual homeowners facing foreclosure, the “real parties” are still not at the table. The idea of a contract between the rulers and the ruled has evolved from the idea of a Biblical covenant to ideas espoused by philosophers like Rousseau, Hobbes, and Locke. This society, unlike many others has accepted the idea that a public education is good for the individual and society as a whole. The “social contract” object is to provide all students with a good public education.

One of the key principles of contract law is “parties in interest.” The freedictionary.com defines “real party in interest” as “the person or entity who will benefit from a lawsuit or petition….” The problem with contracts in education is the “real” parties are not the subject of the contact. Using the Seattle district as an example, parties in education contracts can be represented by a triangle:

              SEA

District               Teachers

Education contracts should look like this:

                                          Students

Individual School                                              Parents

Principal

Teachers

One of the key differences between this country and many third world nations is the acceptance by both government and most of the public that there should be a “public” education for most of the population.

The problem with the current education system is that the “real parties in interest” to the contract are unrepresentated. What a shame.

Is a public education available to all who want to take advantage of the chance going the way of other American icons?

Dr. Wilda says this about that. ©