Simmering discontent puts Stand for Children in hot water

Portland Tribune:

Portland’s nonprofit Stand for Children, an education advocacy group with chapters in nine states, is under fire by critics this week after a video and blog post raised questions about the organization’s direction and leadership.

A now-viral video of Stand cofounder Jonah Edelman, the Portland son of national civil rights activist Marian Wright Edelman and leader of the group, was recorded at a public forum in Aspen, Colo., describing how he out-politicked a teachers’ union to get a piece of education reform legislation adopted by the Illinois Legislature. The three unions involved, in Illinois and Chicago, issued statements of “disappointment” and Edelman quickly apologized for the comments.

Read the full article here. Discuss below.

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    It's nice to see a more complete report on this controversy in an Oregon newspaper. But, apart from the video about Illinois, what "reform" positions has Stand for Children in Oregon taken that so upsets current members. Is it that some(or, perhaps, many) current members do not support any "reform" but just want to pump more money into the existing system. That's not for me, and I wish Stand for Children good luck in redefining itself.

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