Based on their 2015 tax filing, the Rodel Foundation of Delaware Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Paul Herdman, makes an astonishing $398,000. Keep in mind this was in 2015 so he is most likely well over that pesky $400,000 barrier. Good lord! I found lots of interesting stuff in this tax filing, signed off by Dr. Paul Herdman on May 12th, 2017. As well, I looked up some of Rodel’s best friends and found TONS of information on them as well!
On August 18th, the candidates for the Delaware U.S. Representative for Congress will meet at the Christina Cultural Arts Center for a debate on education. From 6pm to 8pm, the candidates will field questions about their stance on education in Delaware and the USA. Admission is free, but you do need to register through Eventbrite at this link. As well, you can submit questions for the candidates at this link. You can even submit a specific question for a specific candidate!
Confirmed to attend at this point are Democrat candidates Sean Barney, Lisa Blunt-Rochester, Mike Miller, Bryan Townsend and Scott Walker. A tentative yes has been provided by Libertarian candidate Scott Gesty. As of this writing, Republican candidate Hans Reigle has not responded.
I’ve been waiting for something like this to happen. We need this for all candidates running for office: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and the House and Senate candidates. I put up a hail Mary thing last week about getting an “Education Forum on the Green” debate going, but to be honest, I don’t have the pull to make that happen on the fly. I know my limitations!
The event will be sponsored by DelaCORE Leaders, with the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League, League Young Professionals, and the PACE Network. The event will be moderated by WHYY reporter Avi Wolfman-Arent and Nate Durant from Thomas Edison Charter School.
In the News Journal today, the Rodel Foundation of Delaware and several civil rights groups posted a full-page ad opposing House Bill 50 and supporting Senate Joint Resolution #2. These are NOT important tests. In fact, they are designed so companies like Rodel can continue to absorb more funds which should be going into our classrooms so the very same low-income, minority and special needs children can get the resources they need. There is more than enough data, and the Smarter Balanced Assessment will not give timely or important information other than how bad kids do on standardized tests.
We must have been a completely broken society before this standardized testing craze. In the eyes of these folks, humanity must have become civilized at the dawn of the assessment age… I am reminded of a song from the 1980s…
Yesterday, by a vote of 8-6, the Delaware House Education Committee released House Bill 50 which would allow parent opt-out of the Smarter Balanced Assessment to become a part of state law if passed. I have received the exact votes from the members of the committee:
Yes: Kim Williams, Sean Matthews, Edward Osienski, Charles Potter, Michael Ramone, Sean Lynn, Kevin Hensley, and Harvey Kenton
No: Earl Jaques, Deborah Heffernan, Michael Barbieri, and Stephanie Bolden
Absent: Joseph Miro and Timothy Dukes (was at meeting but must have left early)
The following organizations were NOT IN SUPPORT of House Bill 50 and parent opt-out:
Delaware Department of Education, Delaware State Board of Education, Delaware Business Roundtable, Delaware Chamber of Commerce, Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League, First State Montessori Charter School, One Parent, A special education teacher in Milford School District, four legislators, Brandywine Superintendent Dr. Mark Holodick
The following organizations SUPPORT House Bill 50 and parent opt-out:
Delaware PTA, Delaware State Educators Association (DSEA), Delaware Parents & Teachers for Public Education, Several Parents, Several Teachers, eight legislators, Exceptional Delaware, Delaware Parents & Teachers for Public Education
The following school district boards in Delaware have passed resolutions similar to House Bill 50 in the respect they will honor parent opt-out and will not penalize the opted out student: Capital, Christina, Red Clay Consolidated
Our work needs to focus on the entire Delaware House of Representatives and the Speaker of the House Pete Schwartzkopf.
The Season Of Myths 