From the Social Justice Stand For Children Sub-Group.

We had some fabulous gatherings to discuss Diane Ravitch’s The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education. We hope you can join us in July and August as we continue to read and discuss current education books. As we did in June, we will hold at least two separate book club dates in July and August, to accommodate a variety of schedules.

July’s reading will be Jay Mathews’ Work Hard. Be Nice: How Two Inspired Teachers Created the Most Promising Schools in America. A summary: “Many people in the United States believe that low-income children can no more be expected to do well in school than ballerinas can be counted on to excel in football, begins Washington Post education reporter Mathews (Escalante: The Best Teacher in America). He delves into the Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) and follows the enterprise’s founders, Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin, from their days as young educators in the Teach for America program to heading one of the country’s most controversial education programs running today. Luckily for many low-income children, Feinberg and Levin believed that with proper mentors, student incentives and unrestrained enthusiasm on the part of the teachers, some of the country’s poorest children could surpass the expectations of most inner-city public schools. Mathews emphasizes Feinberg and Levin’s personal stakes in the KIPP program, as they often found themselves becoming personally involved with the families of their students (in one case Feinberg took the TV away from a student’s apartment because the student’s mother insisted that she could not stop her child from watching it). Mathews innate ability to be at once observer and commentator makes this an insightful and enlightening book.”

Please choose one of the following July dates to join in a discussion of this book:

• July 14, 7-8:30 p.m. at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashville
  OR
• July 18, 4-5:30 p.m. at Rumours Wine and Art Bar

August’s reading is still to be determined. Please choose one of the following August dates to join in a discussion of that month’s book:

• August 11,7-8:30 p.m. at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashville
  OR
• August 15, 4-5:30 p.m. at Rumours Wine and Art Bar

As usual, child care will be provided for each of these gatherings, but please let us know in advance if you will need it. RSVP to kwingate@stand.org.

This project is sponsored by the First Unitarian Universalist Social Justice Committee and made possible by a grant from the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Nashville Endowment Trust.

We look forward to seeing you this summer!

Safety Net, a sub-committee of Social Justice, has posted an open letter to the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association.  Based on our church’s experience, Safety Net had some suggested revisions to the UUMA’s guidelines.  We are most grateful to  the Rev. Gail Seavey, who plans to share our thoughts at the UUMA’s upcoming Ministry Days on June 22 and 23.

We are excited to share the following information about Nashville Stand for Children’s Education Book Club and Study Group. This project is sponsored by the the FUUN Social Justice Committee and made possible by a grant from the FUUN Endowment Trust.

We hope you can join us this summer as we gather as a community to study and reflect on some of the issues affecting education today.

• What? Summer Education Book Club and Study Group
• When and Where? Choose either Wednesday, June 16 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the FUUN, 1808 Woodmont Blvd., Nashville, TN 37215
  OR
  Sunday, June 20 from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at Rumours Wine and Art Bar, 2304 12th Ave. South, Nashville, TN 37204
• July and August dates tba

The first book we’ll be reading is The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education by Diane Ravitch. It is available at the Nashville Public Library, although there are a number of holds on every copy. Here’s a summary of the book from Booklist: “As an education historian and former assistant secretary of education, Ravitch has witnessed the trends in public education over the past 40 years and has herself swung from public-school advocate to market-driven accountability and choice supporter back to public-school advocate. With passion and insight, she analyzes research and draws on interviews with educators, philanthropists, and business executives to question the current direction of reform of public education. In the mid-1990s, the movement to boost educational standards failed on political concerns; next came the emphasis on accountability with its reliance on standardized testing. Now educators are worried that the No Child Left Behind mandate that all students meet proficiency standards by 2014 will result in the dismantling of public schools across the nation. Ravitch analyzes the impact of choice on public schools, attempts to quantify quality teaching, and describes the data wars with advocates for charter and traditional public schools. Ravitch also critiques the continued reliance on a corporate model for school reform and the continued failure of such efforts to emphasize curriculum. Conceding that there is no single solution, Ravitch concludes by advocating for strong educational values and revival of strong neighborhood public schools. For readers on all sides of the school-reform debate, this is a very important book.”

RSVP to kwingate@stand.org. We look forward to seeing you this summer!