ORANGE Unified Schools INSIDE
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The fringe Gulen Movement, post-truths and a political PAC
Orange Unified School Board Agenda Item 12 C (Agenda page 5) for the November 15, 2016 Board Meeting is a public hearing on the newest charter school application to come before the Orange Unified Trustees- the Voyager Charter School, Orange . The Thursday night hearing is to "consider the level of support" for the charter from the community, district parents, teachers and employees.
Going to the proposed charter's website, a visitor is immediately greeted by a photo of four very young children: one white blue-eyed blond boy; a blond blue-eyed white girl, and one African-American boy and one African American girl. No Hispanic/Latino Americans or Asian Americans. The California Department of Education breaks down the racial demographics of Orange Unified as: 53.8 Hispanic/Latino; 30.4% White; 9.4% Asian; 1.3% African American.
The all white Voyager Board of Directors is not what makes them unique in the diverse Greater Orange Community, it is what is missing from the information provided in some of the biographies of the Board of Directors.
(click on Voyager Board)
Voyage Lead Petitioner has employment links to controversial Turkish Imam Fethullah Gulen
The Voyager Board's Lead Petitioner and Founding Member is former charter school teacher and administrator Karen Evans. According to Evans' biography on the Voyager website, "Karen left full-time education work in 2014 to join her family’s business".
What is that "family business" that is not listed on the Voyager website that Karen Evans joined full time almost three years ago? The Evans family business is a comic strip. Karen Evans now helps with her father, cartoonist Greg Evans, with his comic strip Luann.
(click on SD Tribune )
Before that however, Karen Evans was an administrator for two Gulen Movement affiliated organizations: Irvine based Accord Education and the Magnolia Foundations' Magnolia Science Academy
| Imam Fethullah Gulen |
The Turkish government lists Fethullah Gulen as a terrorist
Karen Evans was the Director of Accountability for Irvine based and Gulen affiliated Accord Education partners. Evans also served as a Dean at a Magnolia Science Academy in La Mesa California just outside of San Diego .
Over a hundred Magnolia charter schools across theU.S. are operated by Gulen affiliated Magnolia Foundation. Despite the extensive evidence, both of these organizations (as all Gulen related orgainizations do) maintain in a post-truth style statements they are are not affiliated with each other or the Gulen Movement.
Over a hundred Magnolia charter schools across the
| Nationwide map of Gulen affiliated charter schools and "educational" orgainizations |
The Magnolia Foundation charter schools were the subject of a controversial financial report from LA Unified Inspector General:
In the audit of Magnolia Science Academy Charter Schools, we found that Magnolia Public Schools were not in full compliance with selected provisions outlined in the Charter Agreements. We found (i) the schools did not maintain all required employment and enrollment documentation, (ii) related party transactions were not disclosed in audited financial statements, and (iii) required fund reserves were not maintained. Magnolia’s Charter School executive management agreed with all 11 recommendations and had taken some corrective actions before the completion of the audit on some recommendations.
One of the many concerns of LAUSD and other districts dealing with the Magnolia Foundation charters and Gulen's other nation-wide charters are the importing of Gulen affiliated Turkish nationals under H1-B visas to fill teaching and staff positions at the schools.
In the audit of Magnolia Science Academy Charter Schools, we found that Magnolia Public Schools were not in full compliance with selected provisions outlined in the Charter Agreements. We found (i) the schools did not maintain all required employment and enrollment documentation, (ii) related party transactions were not disclosed in audited financial statements, and (iii) required fund reserves were not maintained. Magnolia’s Charter School executive management agreed with all 11 recommendations and had taken some corrective actions before the completion of the audit on some recommendations.
One of the many concerns of LAUSD and other districts dealing with the Magnolia Foundation charters and Gulen's other nation-wide charters are the importing of Gulen affiliated Turkish nationals under H1-B visas to fill teaching and staff positions at the schools.
(Click on LAUSD REPORT and LA TIMES )
In February of this year, the Turkish Government using the international law firm of Amsterdam and Partners filed a formal complaint against the Magnolia Foundation schools network in California . A similar move by the law firm was started in Texas against the Harmony Charters affiliated with the Gulen Movement.
For more information CLICK On:
- OC WEEKLY
- Gulen Investigation
Amsterdam and Partners: Magnolia Complaint- California Courier
The Magnolia Foundation has fought back against detractors with huge demonstrations at LAUSD Board meetings and at the headquarters of Amsterdam and Partners.
Karen Evans' writings in her master's program digital portfolio shows that all her 12 years of education experience was always at charter schools-mostly with the Gulen affiliated charters. She writes:
"I started teaching full time in 2002, right out of college. A small charter school happened to be down the street and I landed a job there, ignorant of charter schools but very much open to new ideas in education. I have been working in the charter system ever since, mainly at Magnolia Science Academy which is a STEM-focused middle school in San Diego
Click on EVANS Digital
In Evan's master's program digital portfolio, on March 16, 2010, four years before she quits teaching, she writes about her educational experience:
"Now, I am teaching in an essentially traditional charter school. I am doing all the things I never wanted to do as a teacher; all the things that my high school teachers did that made me want to become an educator so I could NOT do those things. I just did a two day training on the 7th grade state writing test and how to drill our kids to perform better on artificial test questions."
click on Evans 3/16/10
In her 2nd year digital portfolio, Evan's writes about attending an "experimental" under graduate college. In a first year post, she had mentioned that the college, Prescott College
"I transfered [sic] schools four times and ultimately graduated from Prescott College
click on Evans 4/30/11
Voyager Board member student assessment taken to task in 2006 state hearing
Also on the Voyager Charter Board is Newport Beach psychologist Dr. Perry Passaro. Dr. Passaro is no stranger to Orange Unified. In 2006, a written assessment of an OUSD student from Dr. Passaro's (he did not testify) was part of an California State Administrative Hearing that OUSD prevailed in- allowing the district to conduct another assessment of the student.
The hearing documents report:
"The District witnesses disagreed with Student’s mother about the sufficiency of Dr. Passaro’s assessment. Dr. William Gee, who has worked in the past as a school psychologist and special education teacher, pointed out that Dr. Passaro did not base his conclusions on any classroom observations of Student.
In Dr. Gee’s opinion, it would be difficult to make a finding of an attention disorder without comparing a child’s conduct in the classroom with the child’s conduct in other settings. Bolton explained that Passaro either did not administer the full Kaufman test and subtests to Student or failed to report the scores of the full tests. In particular, Passaro omitted any results for the portion of that test involving reading. In Bolton ’s opinion that was a significant omission in light of Passaro’s 5 conclusion that Student had a specific learning disability in the area of reading. Dr. Gee explained that because of the discrepancy between Dr. Passaro’s assessment and the two prior assessments done by the District, Dr. Passaro’s assessment alone would not be sufficient to allow the IEP team to determine Student’s eligibility. Instead, a new assessment by the District was required.
18.The evidence supports a finding that the District’s request for a new assessment was reasonable in light of the information the District possessed in August 2006. In July 2006, the District received, for the first time, an assessment which concluded that Student might be eligible for special education. The assessment was contrary to two prior assessments conducted by the District more than a year before.
The District personnel had concerns about the independent assessor’s failure to observe Student in the classroom and had questions about the presentation of some of the results of his testing. Under those circumstances, a new assessment by the District was warranted to help the IEP team determine Student’s educational or related services needs."
click on Administrative Hearing documents
Voyager post-truth biography on another Board member "teacher"
Another Voyager Charter Board of Director member is Erin Keller.
From the Voyager Charter website, Keller's biography explains Keller's vast experience as a teacher as promotes the post-truth impression that Keller is still teaching. She is not.
According to Keller's LinkedIn page, Keller has been an executive assistant for the Orange County Office of Chapter 13 (bankruptcy court) since 2014. Before that she was an Executive Legal Assistant for Lewis Law Group in Santa Ana from 2013-2014. and held another legal assistant job for Sherman Oaks' Simon and Renick from 2009-2013. According to her LinkedIn page, she taught for only five years 13 years ago.
click on Keller LinkedIn
According to the California Commission on Teaching Credentialing, the only Erin Keller with a social studies teaching credential is Erin Shea Keller. The teaching credential for Erin Shea Keller expired in July 2016.
Like Karen Evans, Keller is also from La Mesa , California
Voyager President and GenNext: Russia
President of Voyager Charter Board of Directors is Chris Winn. The biography on the Voyager website about Winn lists him as "President of Sales and Service Inc. a Villa Park, California firm specializing in technical marketing, product development with market implementation and consulting to the top semiconductor manufacturers in the United States La Palma Ave in Anaheim .
The Voyager Charter website also lists Winn as a founder of GenNext . It describes GenNext as "Newport Beach
The GenNext website describes it as "Gen Next is an invitation-only organization of successful individuals dedicated to learning about and becoming engaged with the most pressing challenges facing future generations."
The GenNext Twitter feed is full of both charter school tweets and tweets on fighting the Islamic State (ISIS).
click on OC Register
click on OC Register
It's last tweet as of 11/15/16 was an October retweet on a Russian warlords and Ukraine :
Gen Next Retweeted
Financial Times @FT
At least seven pro-Russian warlords have been assassinated in Eastern Ukraine
On the GenNext not very active Facebook page, the second posting is from January 2014. That post is about a GenNext program featuring national charter school guru Michelle Rhee-founder and CEO of the anti-teacher union political lobbying group: StudentsFirst.
Gen Next added 90 new photos from January 28, 2014 to the album: 1.28.14 — with Autumn Strier and 10 others at Fig and Olive.
Incredible Gen Next program in Orange County
click on GenNext Facebook and LA TIMES
On the Voyager Charter School Costa Mesa and a Newport Beach address. Click on GenNext PAC
Of the nine Congressional races the GenNext PAC supported in 2016, two were incumbents from California : Ed Royce, 40th Congressional District; and David Valadao, 21st, Congressional District. Both favor School Voucher Programs, click on:
- Ed Royce
- David Valadao
Also click on
- PAC
- Donors
- Recipients
- Federal Election Commission
The OUSD Board is scheduled to make a decision on granting a charter at their December 8, 2016 Board Meeting.
OUSD Board moves toward implementation
after voters overwhelmingly support Measure S
After winning over 60% of the vote this month for the OUSD Measure S Facilities Bond, two Agenda items will move forward on the Thursday November 16th OUSD to start implementing the facilities improvements at OUSD's four high schools.
Action Item 12 A ( Agenda page 3) will authorize contracts with four architectural firms, one for each high school, to proceed planning for Phase 1 work under Measure S.
Action Item 12 B (Agenda page 4) will authorize a contract with Cumming Corporation to be the Measure S Program Manager to coordinate and implement planning aspects for the facilities upgrades under Measure S.
NEXT OUSD BOARD MEETING November 17, 2016
Next OUSD Board Meeting -OUSD BOARD ROOM
CLOSED SESSION- 5:30 pm
OUSD Regular Session: 7:00 pm
For AGENDA-CLICK ON
For more information call the OUSD Superintendent’s office at 714-628-4040
For budgeting questions call Business Services at 714-628-4015
ARCHIVAL Information and direct news can be found at:
the Greater Orange News Servicehttp://greaterorange.blogspot.com/
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