By Steve Gunn
EAGnews.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. – It’s a very good sign when a traditionally liberal, pro-union newspaper like the Washington Post is willing to criticize union leaders who reject necessary school reforms.

In an editorial published last week, the Post noted that Washington Teachers Union President Nathan Saunders, a moderate who was working with education Chancellor Kayla Henderson on a number of promising reforms, was recently defeated in his re-election bid by hard-core traditionalist Elizabeth Davis.

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“It’s not a good sign that the new leadership won on a platform that painted the incumbent as too compliant with reform initiatives being pushed by Chancellor Kayla Henderson,” the editorial said.

The newspaper noted that Saunders has been working with Henderson on a new collective bargaining agreement that would have included a longer school day and year, something that makes a lot of sense for the many struggling students of D.C.

“What helped influence his thinking, Mr. Saunders said, was the 43 percent of public school students in charter schools and the growing numbers clamoring to get in,” the editorial said.

In other words, the common perception is that traditional D.C. public schools aren’t getting the job done, and if they don’t improve their performance, few students will be left.

As Saunders put it, “No kids in (traditional) public schools means no teachers.”

Davis is apparently unimpressed with Saunders’ view of the situation.

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“(Davis) expressed some skepticism about the effectiveness of a longer school day in boosting student achievement and opposition to Ms. Henderson’s push to get chartering authority for system schools; she also supports a cap on charter schools,” the editorial said.

“Most troubling is her belief that teachers at charter schools should be unionized, a move that would threaten the flexibility that has allowed these independent schools to create news ways of getting disadvantaged students to achieve.

“This was an election decided by a small percentage of those eligible to vote … The question that now confronts Ms. Davis is whether to stick with what makes for a good campaign … but fails to bring about improvements in the city’s schools.”