Arizona Educators United?

Strike. Walk out.

In my 22 years in education, I never thought I'd hear those words. I remember marching along McDowell near 35th Avenue, signs in hand, speaking out about the lack of support for teachers. It was 1997.

I remember gathering in the cafeteria of Isaac Junior High and hearing our Superintendent tell us that there was no money, that the State's funding model for our zip codes was broken and that there was a law suit pending. I remember veteran teachers voicing deep frustrations, tears shed, and wondering when I could just go lead wrestling practice....and then go home to my family.

Fast forward to this morning, sitting in my rental car, in a Salt Lake City parking lot, on a conference call talking to my leadership team back in Phoenix about closing school for 3 days. Managing food services, where will the kids go, who's going to be open, should we cancel our neighborhood clean up, will this work, what other scenarios should we run?

Then I get a text from my 15 year old son, expressing his frustration with the selfishness of the situation. Reconciling the low teacher pay, student performance, and school funding numbers with trying to deliver services...he's very frustrated with adults who seemingly can't get it together.

Then I read a Board President/State Senator's take on where the proposed 20% by 2020 is supposed to come from, and my confusion multiplies. This isn't a response, it's a reaction. A knee-jerk, election year misdirection cue.

You're more than likely aware of my conspiracy theories about how school choice is being weaponized into privatized education via charter school education management organizations and private school tax breaks/vouchers.

You need look no further than those who've aligned themselves with Arizona's Governor to see how the weaponization unfolds. Their drumbeat, narrative, is consistent and prolific. But it misses the point entirely - the school choice/school funding movement is capitalizing on a 200 year old public education/district school model.

So long as district's keep their white-knuckled hold on that system they will be beaten into submission, lost their market share and disappear. Districts, you have to unite, control the narrative with facts, and beat them at their game. School choice.

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