By Mike Myslinski
After years of dealing with Superintendent Alan Bersin's infamous "Blueprint for Student Success," San Diego Unified teachers have come up with their own blueprint for success.
They are mobilizing the community to convince the school board to "take back public education" from Bersin's control and remove him from the top decision-making role in the district.
The 10,000-member San Diego Education Association (SDEA) launched a massive organizing campaign and community outreach effort that included a salvo of radio ads. The goal is to convince the newly elected school board members that the San Diego Unified School District needs a superintendent who actually listens to teachers and parents.
The association is asking parents and other supporters of the 141,000 students in the state's second-largest school district to sign petitions to show the school board that they agree with educators about Bersin's removal, says SDEA President Terry Pesta. Board action could mean sharply reducing his powers, taking away some of his duties, or, if the board chooses, dismissing him well before his contract expires in 2006.
"Teachers and parents just can't take any more," says Pesta. "We need someone who will work with us to help all children learn."
Teachers have good reason to be fed up, as documents posted on the SDEA website [http://www.sdea.net/] attest. The website outlines many of Bersin's outrageous acts over the years:
- His repeated claims that classroom teachers are the district's real problem.
- His personal editing of reports from "independent researchers" hired to rate his "Blueprint" reforms.
- His administration's punitive, illegal transfers of teachers he considers to be "blockers."
- His blustering threats, such as, "You are either with me or I will be ruthless in pursuing you!" as he fired 15 administrators.
The last straw may have come in October of this year when Bersin announced he wants to abandon eight of the lowest-performing schools by putting them up for bid from outside groups, including for-profit private companies or charter school outfits. The schools are in low-income neighborhoods.
"There has been this huge financial and human cost to our district under his administration," says Pesta. "We have had six years of his failed policies, and his expensive schemes have not led to notable increases in student achievement. In fact, they have led to a disenchanted and demoralized workforce, student body and community. We believe that this district really can't move forward with Alan Bersin in charge."
SDEA is expected to turn in more than 40,000 of petitions at the Dec. 14 school board meeting.
Pesta says teachers are optimistic about newly elected school board members Mitz Lee, Luis Acle and Shelia Jackson, all of whom campaigned on the promise to rein in Bersin. His critics now hold a majority on the five-member board, which for years just rubber-stamped Bersin's schemes.
The first step in the SDEA campaign was to present the plan to the SDEA Rep Council, which then mobilized the membership to sign employee petitions and circulate community petitions. Organizers visited more than 70 school sites in four weeks to assess member sentiment and mobilize members to send e-mails and postcards to the school board.
Radio ads were used to supplement the community effort. Each ad alerted the public to the need for removing Bersin from his decision-making role. Working with SDEA, CTA produced two 60-second spots that aired on 11 local radio stations — a strong media buy that itself made news. The ads started in late November and will end in mid-December.
"After the new San Diego school board is sworn in on Dec. 6, we have a chance to make a new beginning for San Diego public schools," says the announcer in the first ad. "After years of turmoil, it's time the school board took back control of our schools from Superintendent Alan Bersin."
In the ad, parents recount how Bersin has spent $100 million on outside consultants during his six-year reign while eliminating music, art, vocational and technical education programs. Ernestine Rae Riner, last year's district elementary school teacher of the year, sums up the feelings of teachers: "I think it's time for San Diego schools to move forward again. We don't need more mismanagement that wastes taxpayers' dollars on ideas that don't work."
The ad ends with: "Let your school board members know it's time that San Diego had a superintendent who will listen."
In an interview, Riner says Bersin's iron-fisted "my way or the highway" legacy has destroyed morale. His strong opposition to art instruction dismayed elementary teachers. "For years, teachers were practically hiding their crayons," she says.
"Bersin has spent too much money on consultants. The children should come first. The needs of the teachers and the schools should always come first."
The second SDEA radio ad touched on similar themes, with more parents and teachers talking about Bersin's cutting of school programs and squandering millions of dollars on consultants.
CTA's assistance with these ads reflects the union's commitment to this fight, says SDEA member Dianne Jones, a member of the CTA Board of Directors.
"Our teachers here have been shut out by Bersin for six years. The school board is elected by the entire community and should listen to the concerns of the community."
Local activists from the grassroots group ACORN (the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) got involved on the petition drive and helped collect signatures in the community.
The language of the petition is blunt and to the point.
Under the headline, "End Bersin's monopoly of failed educational initiatives," the petition decries Bersin's misguided "Blueprint" reforms, saying that "millions of scarce education dollars have been spent on the Blueprint — an untested, unproven experiment which has not yielded promised improvements in student achievement."
Draining money from the classroom by spending millions of dollars on outside consultants, the petition continues, the Bersin administration has "mismanaged district finances, and has repeatedly faced sizable deficits over many years despite claims that spending would be controlled."
It also says Bersin "blamed teachers and other employees for the problems, demonized their associations, and systematically cut them out of the decision-making every step of the way, year after year after year."
It concludes: "It's time for real reforms that will provide every student the chance to learn and to succeed. The time is now. Now more than ever. The new school board must make a commitment to change with the removal of Superintendent Alan Bersin."
Teachers are tired of Bersin's broken promises, says Pesta. "This is not the leader we need for a school district with a budget of more than $1 billion and 20,000 total employees.
"Bersin has broken so many promises to our students, teachers and the community of San Diego since coming here in 1998. Our campaign is telling the new school board members to keep their promise of taking immediate action to take back our schools from this so-called leader who has failed us all in so many ways."
