Mayor Bill Finch’s campaign treasurer Rev. Ken Moales has been sworn in as a member of the state Board of Education supervising city schools, but the mayor was not able to persuade acting Education Commissioner George Coleman to appoint a Latino to the six-person panel. The mayor fired off a letter of complaint (or is it cover?) to the education commissioner who has been by his side on so many occasions making the case for state control–at the mayor’s request–of schools.
Considering one-third of the city’s population is Latino this is not a voting bloc to piss off. Hey, here’s an idea in lieu of adding a member, let Moales resign from the board and appoint a Latino. The mayor wrote to Coleman:
“When the selection process began, one of my recommendations to you was that the members of the Board reflected the diversity of Bridgeport. Not including a representative of the Latino community to serve our students is not acceptable.”
It’s strange the Finch administration has been conversing with the state for six months about taking over city schools but couldn’t settle on a Latino representative.
Read more: www.ctpost.com/news/article/Judge-grants-temporary-order-allowing-Bridgeport-1774908.php
It doesn’t matter if men from Mars were on the Board. When parental involvement is not present, the city’s dropout rate will continue to surge and the graduation rate will continue to fall.
90% of the parents of the kids who drop out of the Bridgeport public schools dropped out themselves. It would be great to have an Ozzie and Harriet home life but we don’t. The responsibility for keeping kids in school and educating them falls squarely on the shoulders of the Board of Education and the Principals.
The teachers and administrators bear some of the responsibility of keeping the students interested in learning and motivating them to attend classes. Rank-and-file morale has been low because of John Ramos’ ineptitude and incompetence. Removing him from the equation will go a long way toward restoring the confidence of the teachers. Replacing him with a competent and dedicated professional educator is the only way to turn the school system around.
The greater responsibility for keeping children in school falls on the shoulders of the parents. If the importance of a good education is not emphasized in the home the students will not take it seriously. What is the point of building new schools if they only serve to produce more dropouts and feed into the hopelessness and despair that is pervasive in too many neighborhoods?
Charlie, you’re right. Parents have to own the fact they need to be involved in their children’s education.
To the movie buffs let me go back to my old favorite Casablanca, where Captain Renault (Claude Rains) and where Renault has ordered that Rick’s (Humphrey Bogart) close immediately.
Rick: How can you close me up? On what grounds?
Renault: I’m shocked, shocked to find gambling is going on in here.
Employee of Rick’s: [hands Renault money] Your winnings, sir.
Renault: Oh, thank you very much. Everybody out at once!
Well, Mayor Finch said, I’m shocked, shocked to find there are no Latinos on the new BOE.
There are those who question why I talk about race, well …
Ron, my all-time favorite movie. While the search for the missing Latino would make a great movie title, it would be fiction. Latino much like colored is a description of people and not real. What’s missing is a Puerto Rican, or a Cuban, maybe a Dominican and a Mexican, a Peruvian … my point is if you allow someone to choose a name for you (and you decide you’re gonna embrace that name as your own), then it should be someone who loves you.
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Hector A. Diaz, well stated, that’s deep and I agree with you.
Well said, Hector. It’s akin to referring to all native Americans as “Indians.” Some are Cherokee, some are Sioux, some are Navajo, some are Seminole, etc. All of the tribes have their own language, customs and culture.
“Latino” refers to a linguistic group, the Spanish-speaking community. But it is not a single community. There are Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Dominicans, as you said. They all brought the dialects, culture and customs of their native lands with them.
Stupid question. If this weren’t an election year, would Bill care?
Easy answer. Hell no he wouldn’t.
Finch has pissed off the Latino community twice in the last few days. First Adam Wood’s PAC makes that defamatory video about Tito Ayala and now there’s no Latino on the new BOE. I have news for you Mr. Finch, look around you, the new BOE members are NOT representative of the Bridgeport community. Guess this is going to backfire on you too. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
Why are the meetings being held by Coleman and the city attorney and political members of the new state-appointed BOE being held at the Circle Diner in FAIRFIELD?
This brings back memories of the meetings Ganim held at a Fairfield diner that were taped by the FBI.
These are the people who are supposed to straighten out the BOE and they meet out of town where they can’t be observed.
This shows the amount of involvement the parents can expect from these people.
What a disgrace no parents on this board are they saying the parents are too DUMB to participate?
No Latinos on the board? This could not have been an accidental slight. How do you ignore one of the largest segments of our city?
I’ve been wondering that myself, why all of these people charged with the education of the city’s children are meeting out of town. There are restaurants in Bridgeport. We have electricity and indoor plumbing, too.
When did we get indoor plumbing?
Before Fairfield I’m sure!!!
If the mayor needs “cover,” I have an empty garbage pail with a lid available.
Make sure he changes his diapers before you put him in the garbage can …
*** If Fitch is so worried about Latino representation on the state education board he should ask his campaign manager, pastor Moales to step down, no? *** DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE! ***
Mojo, why the Black guy?
*** ODD MAN OUT! ***
Hector, have you missed some of the posts? I will list a few reasons why the black as you say:
1. He is the treasurer for Finch’s campaign.
2. He runs a daycare or two which receives about $200K from the Board of Education.
3. He takes salary from that daycare.
Are these enough reasons?
tc it might be knowing that much about him might tell me more about you? Let’s see what you can tell us of the others who were chosen.
and how long it will take you to tell us.
Hector you asked about Rev, Moales and I told you what I knew about him. I know just a little about the others. There is a women professor from Sacred Heart who lives in Bridgeport. The others are company executives who live outside of Bridgeport. None as far as I know have any experience in education.
Here is my opinion. I think there are enough intelligent people living in Bridgeport who could have been on the board. The parents should be represented on this board as should the Hispanic community.
Thank you, tc.
Hector, I posted on OIB questioning Rev. Moales being selected because of being the Treasurer for the re-election of Mayor Finch. Rev Moales is a very gifted and intellectual person but why would Commissioner Coleman select the Treasurer for the re-election of Mayor Finch? Then he could not find a qualified Latino?
I hear what has been said about the Hispanic community not being represented on the reconstituted board. Nor are parents, the demographic with more to lose, represented. There may be some logic to Mr. Coleman’s choices. Think about it. There are some suits from the corporate world, including one from Pound Ridge, a tony enclave over in Westchester. All of Coleman’s choices are highly educated professionals. Reverend Moales’ involvement with the Finch campaign does look a little suspicious. (Why did he make the cut when other Bridgeport residents didn’t, and how did Bill Finch get him on the board?) Appointing people from outside the city and the system is one way of achieving objectivity. Their first order of business ought to be cashing out John Ramos. He’s ineffective as an administrator, pathetically inept at managing the district’s budget. He has to go before anything can be accomplished, before any positive steps can be taken. What is in the best interests of the school children is of the greatest importance.
*** Replace Moales simply for being Finch’s campaign manager with an active minority PTA member from Bpt! ***