Final Project - Sarah Hastings One Newark

This video is a  montage of the conditions surrounding the new One Newark school reformation plan. The new plan was put into place by Governor Christie, who appointed Cami Anderson, the new superintended of the Newark school district. According the One Newark website, under the new plan all Newark schools will be open and available to students of Newark no matter what section they live in. All  schools will be held to the same standards of curriculum and teachers will  be held to a higher standard of accountability. One Newark has already started to and will continue to close failing public schools and replace with charter schools. The website says that One Newark is committed to having students attend excellent schools in thriving communities.

On digital paper this school reform plan sounds great. However, since the plan has been put into place the community has been outraged. The consequence of the One Newark plan has left many students with out seats in classrooms or even schools to attend. The students that were enrolled into schools, were forced to travel across town into a different area of Newark regardless if there were schools closer to where they lived. In addition, many teachers were laid off and replaced with recent college graduates despite students and parents concerns. This picture looked quite different than the one Christie had promised.

ONE NEWARK MONTAGE

Community activist, local government, and parents all agree that the plan was implemented before any actual planning could be done  After all "One Newark" was put into place only a few months after it was announced to the public. That raises the question- Why was there a rush to push for "One Newark"? What was the motive? It doesn't appear to be for the benefit of Newark students, so who is benefiting?

The Charters schools are financially benefiting from urban areas. Charter schools are becoming privatized in a way that allows them to profit from failing schools in poor neighborhoods. The business of schooling is starting to pick up business. Charters are paid by the government to educate children who can't afford to obtain a decent education. This arrangement relieves the government from the stress of the daunting task of providing a quality education to urban areas. However, for profit charters are a conflict of interest and will only harm the kids involved.

The video is made to provoke critical thinking and collective action. The goal is to have Newark residents watch the video and consider the motives of Christie and his administration. I suggest that Newark residents don't fight against Christie's plan but take collective action to take back control of the city. Although Christie and Cami Anderson is not willing to work with the community, if the community works together to gain control of Newark District, they will not have a choice but to start cooperating. If money is the motive for Christie then money is where the power lies. Perhaps we should start our own charter school and get paid to teach or own kids; just a suggestion.   The video will live on you tube and Newark News Facebook.




Resource List

NJ Spotlight -Article by Laura Waters  -  NJ Spotlight - http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/14/09/09/opinion-time-to-cash-in-on-charter-schools-i-don-t-think-so/

Jersey Jazzman -http://jerseyjazzman.blogspot.com

Newark Student Union -https://twitter.com/newarkstudents
NJ.com -

www.nj.com - One Newark Article