Category Archives: School Reform

School’s Out? D.C. and NYC Teachers Talk School Closures

Posted on May 3, 2012 by admin

Listen to educators Candi Peterson, Nils DeVito and James Boutin [Audio clip: view full post to listen] Interview by Pete Tucker, written report by Chris Lewis (@Chris_Lewis_) Washingtonians and New Yorkers, be warned. If the mayor has his way, your … Continue reading →

Posted in District of Columbia, Labor/Jobs, School Reform | Comments Off

DC Officials Insist On Improving Schools By Closing Them

Posted on April 20, 2012 by admin

Listen to TheFightBack question Mayor Gray and Chancellor Henderson: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] “We are going to have to consolidate the number of schools that we educate our children in,” Mayor Vincent Gray said Wednesday at a … Continue reading →

Posted in District of Columbia, School Reform | Comments Off

School Closure Expert Robert Bobb Is Back in Town

Posted on April 13, 2012 by admin

Listen to TheFightBack question Bobb: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] Former City Administrator and D.C. School Board president Robert Bobb is back in town. Actually, he never left. “I just commuted back and forth for two years. I … Continue reading →

Posted in District of Columbia, School Reform | Comments Off

School Officials Use Force, and Police, to Thwart Student Walkout

Posted on March 14, 2012 by admin

Listen to town hall, beginning with Principal Batenga [Audio clip: view full post to listen] “I will not discuss the suspensions in this forum,” Northwestern High School Principal Edgar Batenga said Monday evening at a town hall at the Hyattsville school. … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupy Movement, Prince George's County, School Reform | Comments Off

Occupy the DOE

Posted on March 4, 2012 by admin

Listen to TheFightBack’s March 3 show: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] “You’re going to have a generation of young people enslaved to the credit card industry, enslaved to the student debt industry,” Justin Butler, a student at George Washington … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupy Movement, School Reform | Comments Off

If Walmart Sells Cheerleading Outfits, D.C. Officials Won’t Have To Go Far

Posted on February 28, 2012 by admin

Listen to Michael Wilson: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] “We don’t feel like D.C. should trust Walmart’s track record to build the future of this city,” Respect DC organizer Mike Wilson said Saturday morning. He spoke with TheFightBack in the … Continue reading →

Posted in District of Columbia, School Reform, Walmart | Comments Off

TheFightBack, Jan. 21: Tuskegee Airmen, Gulf Coast Oil Spill, and DCPS Cheating Scandal

Posted on January 22, 2012 by admin

Listen to full show: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] This weekend, a movie about the Tuskegee Airmen is premiering at 2,500 theaters across the country. “Red Tails,” starring Cuba Gooding Jr., highlights the African American pilots who fought … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, School Reform | Comments Off

Was Trayon White Arrested for Standing Up for his Constituents?

Posted on December 23, 2011 by admin

LISTEN TO TRAYON WHITE: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] “How am I unauthorized [to be here]?” Ward 8 School Board member Trayon White asked while standing at the Woodland Terrace Public Housing Project, which resides in the ward … Continue reading →

Posted in District of Columbia, Gentrification, School Reform | Comments Off

Silencing Dissent: WTU VP Candi Peterson’s Removal From Office

Posted on October 20, 2011 by admin

LISTEN TO THE FULL 40-MINUTE INTERVIEW WITH CANDI PETERSON HERE: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] download mp3 Seven months after the membership of the Washington Teachers’ Union elected Candi Peterson general vice president, she was unceremoniously, and possibly … Continue reading →

Posted in District of Columbia, School Reform | Comments Off

A Back-to-School Special: Mary Levy Discusses DCPS’s de Facto Segregation, Lack of Transparency, High Turnover and More

Posted on September 20, 2011 by admin

LISTEN TO MARY LEVY: [Audio clip: view full post to listen] download mp3 The DCPS school year is under way and many students are adjusting to an unfamiliar environment. They’re not alone. A surprising number of both teachers and principals … Continue reading →

Posted in Gentrification, School Reform | Comments Off