Can Roy Barnes Win Back Georgia Teachers?

For former Governor Roy Barnes to be elected governor again, he is going to have to have the  support of Georgia’s public school  teachers.  You’ll probably remember that he lost those teachers and lost his reelection bid.  The teachers were enraged by his education plan that put the onus of improving student performance on their backs, and I hear that a lot of them are still mad about it. 

Former Governor Roy Barnes, Mrs. Barnes, Columbus Mayor Jim Wetherington at Barne's Columbus Airport appearance during primary campaign

But, what is their alternative?  Public education’s budget in Georgia has been slashed about 3 billion dollars by the Republican controlled legislature and Governor Perdue.  What do you think?  Can Barnes get the teacher vote?

The Tenure Controversy at CSU

Who’s right in the tenure controversy at Columbus State?  Dr. Tim Mescon’s policy of requiring more research and publishing for a teacher to achieve tenure was one of the big reasons for the no-confidence vote.  Right before the vote, he backed off on that and said for at least a year the tenure standards will remain what they were in order to be fair to those now applying for tenure.   

Are the more rigid standards a good idea?  I’ll get into that, but first let’s look at the concept of tenure. First of all, originally, the main reason for tenure was to protect a teacher’s academic freedom. When a teacher is granted tenure he or she cannot be dismissed without  cause.  In other words,  the administration will have to show cause. If it turns out that the cause is some political, philosophical, or ideological statement that the instructor made in class or in publication, then the principal of academic freedom will have been violated. That’s not considered a valid reason for dismissal by a lot of people.  A valid reason would be for a professor not to show up for class a lot, or not concentrate on the subject he or she is assigned to teach, or perhaps for horrific evaluations by students.

I have always been told that universities are supposed to present all sorts of ideas, philosophies, ideologies,  and concepts, and to provoke students to critically think about them.  That cannot be done without academic freedom. 

A retired professor friend of mine explained that the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech both have more rigid research and publishing tenure standards than Columbus State, but he said the reason for that is that they are research institutions.  In order to achieve that they have to allot more time for teachers to do research and publishing, which means they will do less teaching. 

One of the problems with this, he says, is that your most prestigious teachers are not spending a lot of time teaching.  However,  being an effective  research school gives a university more prestige.   He believes that is why Dr. Mescon wants to institute stricter tenure standards.  However,  teachers at Columbus State have to spend most of their time teaching.  In order to spend more on research and publishing their teaching loads would need to be lightened.  That’s expensive because it would require more teachers.  There is shortage of money right now as the state keeps cutting higher education budgets. 

Maybe Dr. Mescon’s idea for stricter tenure standards is not a bad one in the future, but it doesn’t appear to be a good one now, and he obviously has recognized that.

The National Teacher of the Year, a Former Police Officer, Comes to Columbus

CSU to Host 2009 National Teacher of the Year  

Anthony Mullen, National Teacher of the Year (Photo: courtesy Columbus State University)

COLUMBUS, Ga. (CSU News Release) – The reigning national teacher of the year — a former cop who has mentored troubled teens in both careers — will share his story and professional insight Tuesday and Wednesday, March 16-17 with Columbus State University education majors and professors.

Anthony Mullen, a Greenwich, Conn., special education teacher, also will visit and speak to educators in the Musocogee County and Fort Benning school systems.

Hosted by Columbus State University’s College of Education and Health Professions, Mullen will discuss school dropout issues, the primary topic of his message during his yearlong national tour that began last June.

The former Long Island police captain will give a speech to CSU student teachers and education faculty during a 7:30-9:30 a.m. breakfast in the Cunningham Center’s Blanchard Hall. He will remain in Blanchard Hall to answer CSU student questions in a 9:30-10:15 a.m. forum that’s also open to the media.

Mullen, of Greenwich’s Arch School, an alternative education program, works in a highly structured environment with students who have severe emotional disabilities.

“I teach these young adults because they are the most complex population to educate and therefore challenge my abilities as an educator,” he says.

Mullen often worked with troubled teens during his 20 years in law enforcement before completing his master’s degree in elementary education and special education and becoming a teacher in 2001. “I actively sought teaching positions that included the job description ‘working with students with severe behavioral or emotional problems’” he said. “I knew that my biography and work experience would provide me the empathy and skills necessary to help such young people.”

Following his activities with CSU, Mullen will attend a luncheon at the Fort Benning Officers Club with Fort Benning teachers of the year (12:45-1:45 p.m. Tuesday), speak at Faith Middle School to teachers and leadership personnel (2:15-3:15 p.m. Tuesday), attend the Muscogee County School District Teacher of the Year Breakfast at the Columbus Convention and Trade Center (7:30-9:30 a.m. Wednesday) and attend the Rotary Club of Columbus’ luncheon, also at the trade center on Wednesday.

The National Teacher of Year award is sponsored by the Council of Chief State School Officers. Mullen has been visiting educators nationwide since June 1, fulfilling his duties as the national spokesperson for education. For more information on Mullen and the National Teacher of the Year Award, go to http://www.ccsso.org/Projects/national_teacher_of_the_year/.