District Administration - July/August 2011 - (Page 52)

After YeArs, ethnic studies still controversiAl sage, a separatist message.” As proof, he pointed to Rodolfo Acuna’s book, “Occupied America: A History of Chicanos,” and other materials used in the classes. Horne helped draft Arizona House Bill 2281, which bans classes that “promote the overthrow of the United States government, … promote resentment toward a race or class of people, … are designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group, … and advocate ethnic solidarity.” When HB 2281 was passed in May 2010, students staged a protest, and 11 MASD teachers filed a lawsuit against Horne and the state board. CNN reported that Tucson school board member Adelita Grijalva called HB 2281 “part of an anti-immigrant political climate.” Richard Martinez, the attorney representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, maintains that HB 2281 violates the First and 14th Amendments. “Accusing us of sedition is comical,” says Augustine F. Romero, the Tucson district’s director of student equality. “We’ve done nothing wrong. … What we’re really about is closing the achievement gap.” Roberto Cintli Rodriguez, a University of Arizona professor and advocate of MASD, adds, “Tucson’s program is exceptional, a model. Students become engaged and they succeed. Expanding and adopting such an ethnic studies model in communities nationwide … would unquestionably see a dramatic rise in graduation rates and an increase in college-going rates.” Last fall, Horne ran as the Republican nominee for state attorney general, won the election, and declared Tucson schools to be in violation of HB 2281, which went into effect Jan. 1. TUSD board president Mark Stegeman complained that this was “ex post facto jurisprudence”—that the state could not punish TUSD for noncompliance in 2010, because the bill had not become law yet. The Tucson board insisted that the district had done nothing wrong, and it filed an administrative appeal. Still, Tucson was in a tight spot. First, such an appeal leads to a quasi-judicial 52 July/August 2011 50 Tips on How to Navigate Ethnic Studies WHETHER yoU’RE iN A STATE LikE TExAS WHERE PARTiSANS battle over the mainstream curriculum standards, or in a district like Tucson whose policies are under attack by the state board, community groups and groups of students and of teachers, getting through an ideological fight between supporters and foes of ethnic studies can be a challenge. • “Find and cultivate champions in the legislature to support your program,” advises Bernadette kelley, chair of the Task Force on African American History in Florida. Apparently, supporters of Mexican-American studies in Tucson could have used some more champions in their state legislature in the spring of 2010. • Have a champion in the district to sell the program. Superintendent Alberto Carvalho of Miami-Dade County Public Schools and Dennis Holt, supervisor of secondary school social studies at Hillsborough County (Fla.) Public Schools, stress the importance of finding a classroom teacher in each school who will promote the agenda to other teachers and to students. • Explain the situation to all groups in the community. Superintendent John Pedicone of the Tucson Unified School District does this often, and even in Florida school districts, where the culture wars are barely noticeable, superintendents are out there, talking to the public. • Have credible proof of the effectiveness of the program in question. Pedicone inherited numbers justifying the Mexican-American studies program that, in the opinion of his staff statistician, overstated the success of the program at keeping kids on the academic path. The statistician adjusted the numbers, so now they show a less dramatic, but still worthy, disparity in graduation rates between students who take these classes and those who don’t. • Be creative in financing. Carvalho set the bar high when he reduced administrative costs 52 percent and changed his district’s health plan. • Connect ethnic studies—or almost any elective—to the back-to-basics movement. Holt has done this by emphasizing reading in the content. Electives should help advance the district’s fundamental goals, not compete against them. • Make negotiations, not war. As demonstrated by the uncompromising stands of both sides in Arizona—and the fact that both are threatening the Tucson school district—this can be the hardest part. But ultimately, says Pedicone, “the district needs to be taking care of people, not being adversarial.” review that isn’t binding. Second, Tucson’s new superintendent, John Pedicone, had chosen to comply with HB 2281, to the dismay of some MASD teachers. Third, if found to be violating the law, the already financially strapped Tucson schools would forfeit about $15 million in state aid. Pedicone said that “we can’t jeopardize the whole district for the sake of any one program.” (At last count, fewer than 5 percent of Tucson’s 13,000 high school students were enrolled in MASD classes.) When Horne’s replacement as state superintendent initiated a $170,000 audit of the Mexican-American studies classes in early 2011, Pedicone convinced him to avoid making any adverse rulings in the midst of the semester. Meanwhile, Stegeman, caught between advocates and foes of the MASD, suggested a compromise: Continue to offer the classes, but as electives, so students would have to take the mainstream American history and government courses for core social studies credits. Sean Arce, director of Mexican-American studies in the district, told board members District Administration

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - July/August 2011

District Administration - July/August 2011
Contents
From the Editor
News Update
Facilities News
Inside the Law
District Profile
Administrator Profile
The Social Media Dilemma
Is Year-Round Schooling on Track?
After 50 Years, Ethnic Studies Still Controversial
Finding the Right Purchasing Solution
Look, Listen, Learn
Research Center
Supervisor’s Opinion
Going Mobile
Superintendent’s Insight
Books
Product Focus
New Products
Online Edge

District Administration - July/August 2011