More Than a Score (52 page)

John Kuhn
is the superintendent of schools in the little Perrin-Whitt District in Texas and a vocal advocate for public education. His “Alamo Letter” and speeches at a Save Texas Schools rally and the Save Our Schools March in Washington, DC, went viral, as did his essay “The Exhaustion of the American Teacher.” His books include
Test-and-Punish
(Park Place Publications) and
Fear and Learning in America
(Teachers College Press).

 

 

Jia Lee
teaches fourth and fifth grades at the Earth School in New York City, which her son also attended. She is a leading member of two organizations working to oppose high-stakes testing, Change the Stakes and Teachers of Conscience, and an activist with MORE.

 

 

Karen Lewis
is the president of the Chicago Teachers Union. A member of CTU since 1988, Lewis taught high school chemistry in the Chicago Public Schools for twenty-two years. She believes that students, parents, teachers, and community members are educators' natural allies. Her goal is to truly improve Chicago Public Schools and stand firmly against the privatization of public education. Lewis comes from a family of educators—her father, mother, and husband, John Lewis, all were CPS teachers.

 

 

Malcolm London,
called the Gil-Scott Heron of this generation by Cornel West, is a young Chicago poet, performer, activist, and educator. Malcolm has shared stages with actors Matt Damon, John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, and artist Lupe Fiasco as a part of the
The People Speak, Live!
cast. Malcolm is a passionate teaching artist on staff at Young Chicago Authors. He visits schools, introducing their work to hundreds of students through writing workshops and performances.

 

 

Barbara Madeloni
is a teacher educator and activist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association. Through activist groups Can't Be Neutral and ReClaiming the Conversation on Education, she develops conferences and workshops to educate and organize resistance to the neoliberal assault on education. She blogs at @
The Chalkface
.

 

 

Cauldierre McKay
was a senior at Classical High School and executive board member of the Providence Student Union during the time of writing. When not organizing his peers for better schools or speaking truth to power, he likes to debate, learn various crafts at New Urban Arts, and sightsee around Providence in the early morning. Cauldierre is currently a student at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

 

 

Mark Naison
is a professor of African American Studies and History at Fordham University, author most recently of
Badass Teachers Unite! Reflections on Education, History, and Youth Activism
(Haymarket, 2014), coauthor with Melissa Castillo-Garsow
of
Pure Bronx
(Augustus Publishing, 2013), and a cofounder of the Badass Teachers Association.

 

 

Monty Neill, EdD,
executive director of the National Center for Fair & Open Testing (FairTest), has led FairTest's work on testing in the public schools since 1987. He has initiated national and state coalitions of education, civil rights, religious, disability, and parent organizations to work toward fundamental change in the assessment of students and in accountability. He chairs the national Forum on Educational Accountability. Under his leadership, FairTest has collaborated on testing reform efforts with organizations in many states. Among dozens of publications, he is lead author of
Failing Our Children
,
Implementing Performance Assessments: A Guide to Classroom School and System Reform
, and
Testing Our Children: A Report Card on State Assessment Systems
. He has taught and been an administrator in preschool, high school, and college, and he is a grandfather of three children in the public schools.

 

 

Photo credit: Jack Miller

Diane Ravitch
is a historian of education and previously served as the US assistant secretary of education. She is research professor of education at New York University and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Her most recent book is
Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Public Schools
(Knopf, 2013). She is the author of numerous books and articles, including
The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education
. She also blogs on educational issues at dianeravitch.net.

 

 

Aaron Regunberg
is the executive director of the Providence Student Union, a youth-led student organizing program in Providence, Rhode Island. A graduate of Brown University, Aaron is a community organizer with experience organizing a range of direct action, legislative, and electoral campaigns.