It’s About the Kids

Posted on May 14, 2013 by edushyster2012

When a major Wall Street investor and the CEO of a fast growing chain of charter schools get together for a chat, what do you suppose they talk about? Well that’s obvious. They talk about the kids of course, and their shared dream of *crushing* the achievement gap in order to put those kids on a path leading straight to 21st century skills and success. In fact, when an executive from Prudential Financial and the CEO of the UNO Charter Schools in Chicago conversated this spring, the kids were topic #1. Let’s listen in, shall we? Continue reading →

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“Don’t Believe the Hype”

Posted on May 13, 2013 by edushyster2012

A young MBA student tells her classmates that “education reform” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

Many of my classmates in business school assume that education reform is a good thing. Accountability! Improvement! Closing the Achievement gap! Usually they know some Teach for America alums (who are now lawyers), or they’ve watched “Waiting for Superman.” They’ve heard of charter schools (which of course they didn’t attend), and being business-minded, they assume that privately-run schools will somehow be better. Because many of my classmates will go on to be business leaders, decision makers, employers and parents, I think it’s important that they understand what education reform is really about. Here’s what I tell them: Continue reading →

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Date this School (and Possibly Marry It)

Posted on May 9, 2013 by edushyster2012

Happy National Charter School Week, excellence lovers! Today we turn our extended attention spans to a fiercely urgent question: what if there was a way for teachers with enhanced excellence to find their perfect school match? And better yet, what if this dating service weeded out all of the duds—the dirty, low-expectations public schools that can be such a buzz kill for a young excellence lover? At last our dream has come true! myEDmatch.com uses the cool fun vibe of online dating to bring together “best-fit teachers and schools.” Best of all, these “best-fit” teachers don’t have to worry about being mis-matched or “ill-fit” with a LIFO-lifer loser school. Excellence lovers only please! Continue reading →

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Happy Teacher Appreciation Day! XOXO Walmart

Posted on May 7, 2013 by edushyster2012

Imagine that you are possessed of the surname “Walton” and happen to be sitting on mad coin—say a cool $90 billion. How do you celebrate the occasion that is Teacher Appreciation Day? Do you chip in to give the nation’s teachers a raise, knowing they’ve been hard hit by the recession? Do you send them gift cards to Walmart, the store that hath so enrichethed you? If you are a teacher in Massachusetts, the Waltons have an extra special treat in store for you: a fully-funded gala at the Statehouse urging the replacement of the state’s many non-excellent teachers with fresh new innovators who will share their excellence one renewable year at a time. Happy Teacher Appreciation Day, xoxo Walmart! Continue reading →

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Paris Is For Lovers (Of Excellence)

Posted on May 5, 2013 by edushyster2012

Bonjour tout le monde! EduShyster has just returned from an exciting (and excellent) adventure in Paris. But what was I doing there, inquiring minds want to know? Like your own grand dame, the unstoppable Madam Wendy Kopp, I find that one continent is simply no longer enough to contain my ambition (or excellence). C’est une blague! (This is a joke!) I was really in Paris to celebrate the official international celebration of non-excellence: May Day. My excellent adventure taught me many lessons, among them: the French have no word for EduPreneur, despite the fact that it is clearly a French word, and it is considered tres gauche to order wine by the box. Qui sait? Continue reading →

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