Hey Folks,

Just letting you know that I renewed with AA. The renewal price will be $309, which is a 3% increase over last year's, which is excellent.

I am so incredibly tired from this week. I would post something more. But I would rather die or sleep or both.

kisses

-James

Folks,

It is that time of year again. I just need to know how many people plan on renewing their membership to Allentown Athletix?

I have already heard from a few of you about your plans (Tad, Tib) but what about the rest of you? If you could let me know as soon as possible so we can lock down the rate I would appreciate it.

kisses,

-James

Here is the artvoice interview with John Lacata, the man who came in first in the school board race. I am proud and excited that he will be serving on this board and taking it in a new direction.

Sorry, I know I haven't posted much in the last few weeks. But I still have the warm glow of victory.

kisses!

Heidi requested that I sum up the school board race and its implications here. I am a little drunk with victory right now, so please forgive my wide-eyed optimism.

The school board currently is dysfunctions. How does less than 30% of elementary school kids pass the English and Math state exams and less than 46% of students graduate while we spend a whopping $18,000 per student? It isn't the teachers. It is tough to get and retain good teachers when they have pay freezes for five years at a time and we micromanage their classrooms (administrators dictate that you only have x-amount of time to teach a particular subject and then you must move on or face disciplinary action). We have good and dedicated teachers who are working with what they have.

I wrote out the many problems that originate in the school board with explanations - travel, spending on untested and ineffective programs, school closings, living-wage, James Williams (Superintendent, weiner), Phil Ramore (Teatcher Union president, weiner), charter schools - but this post would take an hour to read.

The current school board looks like this. There are a total of 9 members. 5 of which hold a majority and are pro-Williams which includes the three incumbents who were up for reelection. If there could be a single issue that is most important for our schools it is Williams. Here is why.

Williams was not hired. The board barely had time to read his resume. They did not have time to call references. They did not have time to look at his track record. They did not have time to deliberate. The five members received a phone call and at the next meeting Williams was hired. Had they checked up on him they would have seen that he has been a complete failure in each school district he has ever worked at. For example: in Buffalo a student was wrongly suspended by principle Crystal Barton (you can search Buffalo News for details). Williams chose not to discipline her and the school board voted to do nothing as well.

Williams's contract is up next year and if the incumbents won we would have another four years of failure.

But let's talk about the actual race.

Incumbent Chris Jacobs comes from money. He travels in the Saturn Club circle and if you prick his finger blue blood pours out. And he ran his race in a fitting way. A seat on the board pays $5,000 a year. To retain that seat Jacobs spent about $100,000. To put that in context, historically, an expensive school board race costs $5,000. According to financial disclosure reports he spent $30,000 on mailers alone which does not include all of the mailers, robodials, and paid staffers on reports yet to be filed and all of the money he funneled through a bogus organization called Student's First (you can read about that in art voice). He tried to carry his two incumbent friends with him and he failed in that.

How can an average citizen afford to run for school board with money like that?

The way we won is how we win every race: hard fucking work. We held only a few fundraisers to pay for the few mailers we did. We didn't robodial, we got volunteers (unpaid) to phonebank (thanks Janelle!). Our candidates didn't throw money at people to go door to door, our candidates went door to door. We made this race real. Not about glossy mailings and pictures of politicians. Just parents with children in the system (something the incumbents are not. If they have kids they send them to private schools).

Here is what this means.

The board has been dysfunctional. I wish I could find it but there was a youtube video from a news report on a fight between school board members. Apparently, one threatened the other with violence in private. They interviewed the threatened candidate. Then they talk to the one accused of the threatening. She did the interview in a towel. Before the news. WHAT! The school board is full of assholes and now there are two less assholes.

We can expect the perks for school board members to go away. Travel will be greatly reduced and no more catering. If school board members need a meal, they can have a school lunch. The school board wont be meeting in a tiny room in city hall with limited public access. They will meet at different locations in the community or in council chambers so the public has more access. James Williams no longer has a free hand to suck. He has a year left on his contract and unless he doesn't turn the entire school system around, we will have a new, competent superintendent soon.

I am not intimately familiar with all the details on the board. But I do know that John Lacata is the very voice that was needed on the board. He is not beholden to anyone other than himself and his five children in the system; not the superintendent, not the BTF. He is familiar with the issues. And over the coarse of the race he has done research and developed sophisticated positions on issues. Of all the candidates I am most excited he is now on the board. Bryon McIntyre also won. He is a good man and is not a member of the Saturn Club. He is very familiar with the issues of people who cannot afford to send their children to private schools and have to live with a terrible school system. He will be a great voice for a large portion of the city, and a portion that is often ignored.

But, I knew I was working for the right people when the mailers started coming in. Chris Jacobs was endorsed by Byron Brown, Brian Higgins, Joe Golombeck, Sam Hoyt. He was endorsed by the status quo and the status quo endorsed the entire slate.

With a 6-3 majority, the school board might actually make our schools better. Thank god!

Let me end with the best TV ad in a school board race, EVAH