0 Confessions of a Public School Parent

The Boston Compact, Charter School legislation, possible school closures and the Mayor who left ALL Boston's children behind once he took the oath of office. School, citizen groups, weird City of Boston "partner" events, reaching out to others in places like Chicago, Philadelphia, New York - all places being decimated by education reform, reading articles and digging into data on DESE and other sites. This is what my spare time - time when I could relax or do something totally selfish with - essentially revolves around or something similar for the past 23 years.  Confession: my youngest is now in high school and I feel like I have failed...

0 How I Really Feel - Testimony Before Joint Ed Committee Regarding Charter Schools

My own testimony before the Massachusetts Legislature's Joint Education Committee at the hearing regarding lifting the cap on charter schools on October 13, 2015. I hope all of our legislators read this, and more importantly, read and watch Tabitha's testimony at the same hearing as she is a BPS student and students are the true consumers of our education system. Dear Senator Chang-Diaz, Representative Peisch and Joint Education Committee Members: My name is Karen Kast-McBride and I am a proud Boston Public School parent, advocate and Citizens for Public Schools Board member. I want all parents to have choices in where they educate their...

0 Impact of Charter Schools on Public Schools - Testimony of a BPS Student

Shared with permission, below is the text of Tabitha Kast-McBride's testimony regarding the impact of charter schools on her education as a Boston Public School student. She gave this testimony to the members of the Joint Education Committee at the Massachusetts State House on Tuesday, October 13, 2015 - after waiting more than eight hours to testify. You can also view the video of Tabitha's testimony here. Dear Senators and Representatives of the Joint Education Committee: Hello! My name is Tabitha Kast-McBride. I am 17 years old and currently a student at Tech Boston Academy – a Boston Public School. I would like to speak about the...

0 David vs. Goiliath: How Big Money Is Being Defeated by Unfunded Citizen Activists in Boston

Boston, MA July 2014: For months, years really, the public was fed misinformation.  There were campaigns, and millions of dollars were poured into countless political coffers. There were non-profit organizations, (Stand for Children, Families for Excellent Schools and others) whose purposes were supposedly to help income-challenged families and students advocate for their schools, but were really fronts for those trying to destroy those schools and profit off of public funds.  Then there were millions more spent on flashy campaigns crafted to make the public believe that only education reformers and charter schools would solve the public...

0 1st Quarter Massachusetts Education Recap 2015

Though quiet for awhile now, I have not been absent or ignorant of what has been happening in my beloved school district and the state. Unfortunately, having to search for and then get up to speed in a new job, and because it has been a hard year for my daughter and that, along with high school applications and auditions for my younger daughter, has led to my silence over the past few months. Whether you considered it a nice break (yes, I know some did), or missed my voice and insights - plus the knowledge gained over 22 years as a Boston Public School parent - I am here to say I am back to help keep folks informed and educated. We all need to...