Friday, April 24, 2009

Question 15

"The Buffalo News reported that the drop out rate in the Buffalo Public Schools was worse than when the The Superintendent and the Board were elected. How do you justify this, and what will you do to correct this outrage. And how did those incumbents allow this to happen?"

Question 14

"Why should we vote for any of the incumbent board members? They have demonstrated lack of leadership.For example,
-No new contract with the teachers
-No significant improvement in graduation rate
-Non-conforming to Contract for Excellence"

Question 13

"What would you say to opponents of the living wage to persuade them to support it?"

Question 12

"More school age children (especially males) [are] on street corners than in class-talked to some, they say it's easy to get 2 months off, just get suspended. There's no accountability, do wrong, get time off to do whatever. What's your plan?"

Question 11

"What would you do in the classroom through after school programs to educate black children better-to increase vocabularies, learning, test scores, graduation rates?"

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Question 10

"Why can't we eliminate most administrators, i.e., principals?"

Question 9

"Recent Buffalo News articles have brought light to the board for meeting expenditures and travel plans to conferences. Why do we need to send more than 2 people?"

Question 8

"When will we make all high schools college prep? Further, why have program such as da Vinci off a college campus?"

Question 7

"Should we have attendance officers? Truancy is a huge problem. If you're not there, you don't learn."

Question 7

"Does the Bison Scholarship Fund assist the best students in leaving in the Buffalo Public School System? Doesn't this rob the system of the best and brightest students and the most motivated parents?"

Question 6

"Do you know the difference between the communities in school initiative and school centered community revitalization? Outline the differences."

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Question 5

"Given the importance of peers for educational outcomes, what can the Buffalo Board of Education do to counter the segregation that concentrates poor students together?"

Question 4

"Name 3 positive things currently occurring in the Buffalo Public School District and in conjunction with that, what facets of the 3 year plan are you ready to support and enhance?"

Question 3

"What or who is the group "Buffalo Students First" which recently mailed a flyer for [the] Collins-Jacobs-Johnson slate?"

Question 2

This question is addressed to all candidates.

"How will the board deal with bringing about a sound system that would impact the high rate of school suspension?"

Question 1

This Question was addressed to Dr. Collins and Mr. Jacobs, however, all candidates should feel free to respond.

"The reading ability of inner city students i said to be low-Why do you suppose such [situation] exists, and what are you doing to change this?"

"So, since you prepared the 3 year academic plan-What is in it for reading?"

Candidates Forum

Last night we hosted a candidates forum to allow for a healthy exchange of community questions and responses from the candidates running for the 3 At-Large seats for the Board of Education. We had several questions that went unanswered due to limited time, so we are posting the questions here, with the hope that candidates will take the time to respond.

There are approximately 15 questions that we were unable to get to last night, so over the course of the next few days, we will post 5 a day.

We would like to thank all of the passionate community leaders who attended last nights forum, as well as all of the candidates. The list of candidates in attendance is as follows; Catherine Collins, Patricia Devis, Rosalind Hampton, Chris Jacobs, John Licata, Bryon McIntyre, and Fred Yellen.

Monday, April 13, 2009

The Movement-A Dance Party for the People

This past Saturday night, CEJ helped throw a tremendous Dance Party at Soundlab! The Movement, a quarterly fundraiser Dance Party for the Partnership for the Public Good, brought out a huge crowd, close to 200 people over the course of the evening. And more importantly, The Movement got people dancing and moving!

Thank you to all who danced, donated, performed, and promoted. The night was a great success. We look forward to seeing everyone again in late summer for the Movement 4!

For more information on the Partnership for the Public Good, please see their wiki site-http://ppg-buffalo.wikispaces.com/

Friday, April 3, 2009

School Board passes Living Wage Policy

Below is the Press Release from last week. It should be noted that raising the wage floor for low wage jobs is a pathway not only out of immediate poverty for those affected, but also a solid mechanism for addressing the economic crisis. This courageous step taken by the Buffalo School District, demonstrates their understanding of the intersections of poverty and education as well as establishes a comprehensive and new way of developing sound, safe, and sustainable communities for our children to learn and grow.


The Buffalo School Board, with unanimous support, passed a Living Wage Policy for the school district last night, March 25th, 2009.This policy will ensure that all district employees earn a wage in accordance to the City of Buffalo Living Wage Ordinance.

The district will make a series of incremental pay increase to employees currently earning less than a Living Wage, in order to meet full compliance with the policy no later than FY 2011/2012.

The policy, as it stands, is for direct district employees. Employees to be initially effected by the wage increase are the Transportation Aids and the Food Service Workers, which prior to the implementation of this policy earn on average $8.40 with no benefits.

By adopting a policy that mirrors the City of Buffalo Living Wage Ordinance, the district will be doing its part to improve conditions for its workers and curb poverty within the city. By taking a stand to live by the boards mantra, “Putting Children and Families First, to Ensure Academic Excellence for All,” the district has acted with the understanding that there is a direct correlation between poverty and the quality of our neighborhoods and schools.

“I don’t have to tell anyone, that poverty has the potential to undermine every positive thing we do for our children and our communities,” said Joan Malone, a leader from the Coalition for Economic Justice. “Paying good wages for valued work helps alleviate the consistent strain and anxiety that poverty produces. The adoption of a Living Wage Policy means the restoration of dignity for workers.”

Esther Macklin, a Food Service worker with the School District, spoke to the packed Board of Education office. “I love my job. I wake up every morning with a smile on my face because I know that I am doing something for our children. I give them the sustenance they require to learn every day. It hurts me that we aren’t appreciated and that we are paid poverty wages.”

At about 9pm, after significant debate and compromise, the Board finally voted on a policy that will directly impact the economic situation of close to 1,000 workers.

“We’ve been waiting for this for a long time,” said Betty Martin, the President of the Transportation Aides of Buffalo. “I’ve been here since the beginning, for close to 2 years, encouraging the Board of Education to pass this. We are really happy the Board finally decided to do the right thing."