Deception
Dear Deceived:
In the last issue of themail, I wrote that Chancellor Rhee and Mayor
Fenty had lost the trust of DCPS and government employees. And that was
before the events of Monday and Tuesday that Dorothy recounts below.
Fenty told the council on Monday that he had no idea how the Washington
Teachers Union contract was funded in the budget he had submitted. Rhee
told councilmembers on Tuesday that, although she had claimed in October
2009 that DCPS would have a $43 million deficit in fiscal year 2010 that
required her to fire 388 DCPS employees, including 266 teachers, she now
claimed that DCPS would actually have a fiscal year 2010 surplus of $34
million that would fund teachers’ raises and retroactive pay raises in
fiscal year 2011.
Rhee and Fenty have been busy inventing consecutive cover stories
ever since. The problem, they claimed, was an arithmetic error, a
miscalculation, that made them really think there would be a deficit.
The problem was all the Chief Financial Officer’s fault; the CFO makes
a good fall guy. There wasn’t really a problem, since the false budget
numbers the city presented to a judge fooled him, and convinced him that
the phony deficit was real, and that it justified firing the teachers.
The judge’s accepting DCPS’s fake numbers proves the fake numbers
were real. There wasn’t really a problem for the teachers union, since
unions aren’t built on a brotherhood of workers protecting each other
and looking out for their common interest, and the surviving teachers
should be happy to take raises funded by blood money, by firing their
fellow union members. Union members should look to the future, and
forget the wrong done to their fellow union members in the long-ago
past, just a few months ago. The problem wasn’t Fenty’s and Rhee’s
failure to inform the council or the public when they “discovered” a
$34 million surplus in the DCPS budget, since the DCPS and the mayor
have no duty to inform the public or the council of anything.
Why hasn’t any cover story lasted for more than a few hours?
Because all the cover stories lead to one conclusion. Fenty and Rhee
will say anything they need to say to justify doing what they want to
do, and they don’t care about the real-life damage they do to
government workers or city residents. Rhee was asked whether she would
consider using the surprising surplus to rehire wrongfully fired
teachers, and her response was screw them.
Now the city council begins its process of overseeing the city’s
budget, and it has to do its oversight with an entirely new attitude,
informed by its experience with Rhee and the DCPS budget. It has to
expect that any budget submitted to it for any agency, department, or
program is susceptible to manipulation with the intent to deceive, to
deceive them or the public.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
###############
On Tuesday morning, I attended the administrative meeting that
councilmembers held with School Chancellor Michelle Rhee and Washington
Teachers Union President George Parker in order to be briefed on the
newly negotiated WTU contract. The meeting, held in Chairman Vincent
Gray’s fifth floor conference room at the Wilson Building, followed by
one day the council’s contentious budget hearing with the mayor, City
Administrator Neil Albert, and Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi. At
that Monday hearing, Mayor Fenty and City Administrator Neil Albert were
unable to point to any line item in the budget where the contract raises
promised to the teachers were funded. They were stumped when they were
pressed on whether the $140 million cost of the contract was adequately
funded in the FY 2011 budget that the Mayor had submitted to the council
on April 1, and Mayor Fenty told the council that Chancellor Rhee would
be able to explain the funding to them on Tuesday.
At the Tuesday meeting, attendees included Rhee; Parker;
Councilmembers Gray, Alexander, Barry Bowser, K. Brown, M. Brown,
Catania, Evans, Graham, Mendelson, and Wells; DC Auditor Deborah Nickles;
senior staffers from the office of the Deputy Mayor for Education, and
representative from the American Federation of Teachers. Rhee astounded
everyone there when she announced that DC Public Schools would fund the
contract by using a “newly found” surplus of $34 million for this
fiscal year. Some of the atmosphere of the meeting was given in reports
in the Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/14/AR2010041404847.html)
and the Washington Examiner (http://tinyurl.com/ybcqc7a). Here
are some other emotional reactions by Councilmembers to Rhee’s
revelation. Barry: “It is clear to me that we didn’t need to have a
RIF.” Catania: “I don’t have any confidence in your [Rhee’s]
numbers.” Catania: “A cynic . . . [would not that it is] too
convenient that an appropriate number of teachers were RIFed [in order]
to fund the pay increases [in the WTU contract]. Catania: “I am
suspicious of the process.” Graham: “Why did you [Rhee] wait until
this moment to say this?” Gray: “We [the councilmembers] are all
stunned.” K. Brown: “Looks like shenanigans.” Gray: “If I was
one of the 266 individuals [teachers] who had lost their jobs, I would
be ready to put my hands around someone’s throat and squeeze.” Gray:
“People lost their jobs over a budget deficit which did not exist.”
Wells: “This was an error, or was it manufactured.” Gray: “Some
people’s pay raise [under the new WTU contract] was funded by someone
else’s job.”
###############
DC Teachers’ Tentative Agreement: “Buyer
Beware”
Nathan A. Saunders, General Vice President, WTU, nasaunders@aol.com
DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee and WTU President George Parker
announced a tentative agreement (TA) after three years amid protests of
a group of wrongfully terminated teachers and now former union members,
who lost their medical benefits, life insurance, and voting rights.
Since that time, the news media has been regurgitating the well prepared
press package without investigation or analysis. Despite their unfounded
reports of soon-to-be-rich public school teachers, the TA delivers less.
Teachers have not received mailed copies of the TA and the Internet
version at WTUlocal6.org does not include the side agreement letters,
yet it advertises “the entire” TA.
Teachers’ rights in the contract are ambiguous and vague, and use
unresolved terms. The words “tenure” and “seniority,” while
preserved, are irrelevant, as their meaning is gutted and without
substance. A troubling section is Performance Based Pay; it is
incomplete and states it will be developed later — yet Performance
Based Excessing is oppressive — establishing quick terminations within
sixty days. For Rhee, the contract is specific, binding, and punitive;
for teachers, it is incomplete, indefinite, and unenforceable. Rhee has
made the jobs of the DC city council, mayor, foundations, and Chief
Financial Officer (CFO) child’s play with Article 40, et. seq.
(P.103):
ARTICLE 40 - SUFFICIENT FUNDS
40.1 The Parties agree that all provisions of this Agreement are
subject to the availability of funds.
40.2 Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as a promise that
Congress, the DC Council, or any other organization shall appropriate
sufficient funds to meet the obligations set forth in this Agreement.
40.3 DCPS agrees to provide financial certification that DCPS can
meet the obligations of this contract before moving toward final
approval. The parties agree that the failure to provide the funds to
meet the obligations of the Agreement pertaining to base salary,
benefits (defined as the provisions governing optical, dental and
legal benefits), and mutual consent, is a material breach of contract
by DCPS. The consequences of that breach will be settled by a court or
an arbitrator, unless otherwise negotiated by the Parties.
The TA creates no financial liability on any entity. It does not have
the full faith and credit security of the DC government. As a result,
teachers are not guaranteed a 21 percent raise or a 0 percent raise but
teachers will jeopardize 100 percent of their current salary. Because of
Article 40, CFO Gandhi could approve the TA’s financial soundness
without using his calculator, that is, if he and others (DC city council
and the US Congress) are as eager to shortchange teachers as Rhee and
Parker. Article 40 language is an entirely new low standard to WTU
contracts. Nothing is certain including the bonus, the base salary, the
promise or the requirement for the DC Government to even appropriate the
funds! Teachers risk everything without any assurances. Article 40.1 and
40.2 are failure to pay escape clause provisions which would cause any
breach of contract lawsuit to wilt. Article 40.3 is unnecessary
gibberish as all breach of contract issues are court adjudicated based
on common law principles. The “Article 40 style trickery” permeates
the entire TA. Those believing the courts would not allow a bad deal to
exist must think again. Courts do not inquire into the value of promises
negotiators make to one another. The number or quality of promises made
by DCPS or WTU is not the business of the court. Therefore, teachers
could ratify a bad deal and have no legal recourse.
Rhee’s education philosophy translates into “terminating teachers
helps children,” and teachers voting for ratification will be
endorsing her. Churning teachers in and out of classrooms will affect
students negatively. Some voters for ratification may be seduced by
Wal-Mart and Enron foundation money, but they could join ranks of the DC
unemployed. Teaching jobs are hard to find even for experienced,
certified teachers — ask the protesters. With the DC government
running a $530 million deficit and calls to reduce DCPS spending,
ratifying an unsecured, non-pensionable, and unenforceable TA could
create hundreds of unemployed teachers. Most teachers, who are committed
to students’ well being, the teaching profession, and their family’s
economic security, will say no to ratification.
###############
Shameless Co-optation of Emancipation Day
Samuel Jordan, Samunomas@msn.com
The moral and political corruption and empty symbolism represented by
the DC Voting Rights bill has inspired an opportunistic attempt by DC
Vote, Eleanor Holmes Norton and the Leadership Conference on Civil
Rights to co-opt DC Emancipation Day on April 16. Theirs is to be called
DC Emancipation Advocacy Day and it will be a mass lobbying effort to
associate the yet unanswered cry for freedom of the African slave and
his/her progeny with the humiliating “one vote for DC” Voting Rights
bill. There is no freedom, no dignity, no autonomy, and no equality in
the DC Voting Rights bill. Freed slaves did not seek second class
representation in Congress. Dr. King, Rosa Parks, and Paul Robeson would
never have shouted “One vote or die!”
Emancipation Day has been a local holiday since 2005 due to the
responsiveness of then-Member of Council Vincent Orange, and Mayor
Anthony Williams, to the advocacy of students of DC history and social
justice activists. The Compensated Emancipation Act was signed April 16,
1862, nine months before President Lincoln issued his Emancipation
Proclamation, which applied to slaves bound in the states and
territories in rebellion. In the District, the act offered compensation
for the loss of services to the “owners” of over three thousand
bondsmen, women, and children. It is still the only offer of federal
restitution for the manumission of slaves to the powerful, slave-holding
class dominating Washington locally and the US Congress.
Recently, Emancipation Day has been a successful, inspiring holiday
replete with parades, street bazaars, forums, and historical pageantry.
Originally an observation of a milestone in DC history in which a
sitting president actually engaged forcefully in the key conflicts
roiling the capital district, EHN, DC Vote and LCCR now want to capture
and direct the celebratory energies that built the holiday into a
lobbying effort to support the so-called DC Voting Rights initiative. An
analysis of the DC Voting Rights bills easily reveals four critical
shortcomings: 1) a single vote in the House of Representatives will give
the District not one scintilla of additional control over our local
affairs. Isn’t greater control the point of the democratic system?; 2)
Congress will still have and exercise its discretionary authority over
the District’s budget, legislation, and judicial matters. No other
Representative in Congress is exposed to such arbitrary Congressional
meddling; 3) the seat created by the DC Voting Rights measure would be a
shamelessly unequal position when compared to all other voting seats in
Congress. There will be no DC delegation of Senators and
Representatives. There will be no additional Electoral College vote; and
most importantly, there will be 4) no respect for the action taken by
the people of the District in 1982 when voters ratified a Constitution
for the State of New Columbia. Is there no shame in this attempt to
ignore the ballots of the people of the District?
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Dear City Council, Please Raise My Taxes
Kristin Mikolaitis, Save Our Safety Net, kristin.mikolaitis@gmail.com
In Mayor Fenty’s proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2011, he deploys
an assortment of fee hikes, mass layoffs, and drastic funding reductions
in order to close a budget deficit of more than $500 million. When
releasing the budget, the mayor claimed with pride that it includes no
tax increases. And indeed, Mayor Fenty campaigned on a pledge not to
raise taxes. However, he took office before an unprecedented economic
meltdown. With tax day upon us, and as the mayor’s budget heads to the
city council for its consideration, we should reconsider the
contributions that each DC resident is asked to make.
DC’s income tax structure is progressive, but just barely. DC
residents currently pay a 4 percent tax on income up to $10,000, a 6
percent tax on income between $10,001 and $40,000, and an 8.5 percent
tax on income above $40,000. As a DC resident with an income in the
highest 5 percent of taxpayers, I am concerned to see the tax rate
structure stay the same in the face of massive budget cuts to programs
that help low-income DC residents.
In the course of the recession, more than $100 million has been cut
from programs that help DC’s low-income residents. The mayor’s
FY2011 budget would continue this trend: he has proposed to cut nearly
$7 million from adult education and vocational training and at least $4
million from child care support for working families. Meanwhile, the
proposed budget maintains reductions in funding for affordable housing
and emergency shelter, despite the fact that the number of homeless
families has doubled in the past year. By cutting the budgets of
programs that can help our most vulnerable neighbors make it through the
turmoil of a severe recession, we are withdrawing our investment in the
economic recovery of our community.
The city has other options. By making the income tax structure more
progressive and increasing the amount of tax paid by the highest-earning
5 percent of DC residents, the city could raise the revenues necessary
to save vital programs. The addition of two new tax rates — 9 percent
on income between $200,001 and $1 million and 9.4 percent on income
above $1 million — would generate approximately $40 million during
FY2011. This revenue would be enough to restore most, if not all, of the
mayor’s proposed cuts to safety net services. (For more information,
visit http://www.saveoursafetynet.com.)
This measure would marginally increase my tax burden. But it would
also help ensure that people in my community can find safe, affordable
homes. It would ensure that my neighbors are receiving the education,
training, and child care that they need in order to find and keep good
jobs and spend their wages in local businesses. I moved to DC to put
down roots in a thriving, diverse, and socially responsible metropolis.
At a time when unemployment is more than twice as high as it was before
the recession, I’d consider a higher share to be a fair price to pay.
A good investment in a great city.
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Sexual Violence Has to Stop
Richard Urban, rurban@RUforDC.com
The person alleged to have murdered Tanganika Stanton in September
2008 was acquitted on Tuesday (http://tinyurl.com/y59covt).
This murder is referred to as the “Hamburger Murder” because
Tanganika refused to make a hamburger for a male who approached her, and
refused to give him her phone number. This is not about a hamburger, it
is about a sexual advance turned down. In 2004, just a few blocks from
where I live in northeast, Myesha Lowe was killed (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A35405-2004Aug2.html).
Allegedly, the killer had returned, as in Tanganika’s case, after a
sexual advance was refused.
Sexual violence of all kinds must be repudiated, whether rape, other
domestic violence, incest, or sexual harassment. How can we foster
respectful relations between the sexes? Abstinence-centered sex
education inherently teaches about character and respect for the
opposite sex. Handing condoms to youths does not teach about respect and
self-control, but teaching youth about waiting to have sex does. Self
discipline, respect for others, and unselfishness are qualities of
character that are taught in abstinence-centered sex education programs.
Abstinence-centered sex education is not just about stopping HIV/AIDs
or reducing teen pregnancies, although it is effective in doing that (http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/164/2/152?home).
It is about creating respectful relationships between the sexes and
building a community where there will be more stable families in the
future as more youth wait until marriage to have sex.
###############
Two issues have come to define my campaign for mayor of the District
of Columbia — same-sex marriage and illegal immigration.
On the first issue, same-sex marriage, because of my religious
beliefs I define traditional marriage as a union between a man and a
woman. However, I support civil unions without discrimination. After
engaging countless members of the GLBT community, as a member of
Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the term “marriage” is the real
issue. Even in the GLBT community it’s split. I have found that some
don’t care what it’s called, just as long as they receive the same
benefits as heterosexuals; and others believe anything separate cannot
be equal. I agree with the first group and believe it is possible to
have ‘marriage’ for heterosexuals and ‘civil unions’ for
homosexuals with both groups enjoying the same benefits under the law.
Now that same-sex marriage is legal in the District of Columbia, it’s
really a moot point. As mayor, I will focus my attention on establishing
zero tolerance on gay bashing, the investigation/prosecution of these
hate crimes and bullying in our public school system, because today’s
bullies become tomorrow’s bashers.
The second issue is illegal immigration. I have written about this
issue since 2007 and in each article I have clearly stated that we have
an addiction to cheap labor. This addiction has a crippling affect on
our economy; it keeps wages low and unemployment high. Illegal
immigration has an adverse effect on the unemployment rates of all
Americans but particularly blue-collar Washingtonians. One of the
primary reasons the District is experiencing record unemployment is
because employers have been allowed to exploit undocumented workers at
the expense of paying a fair living-wage to DC constituents. For an
example, a journeyman carpenter is paid $35 per hour on a union
construction site in DC, but contractors are getting away with paying
undocumented workers $8-10 per hour for the same work. This hiring and
continued exploitation of undocumented workers is not only illegal; it’s
immoral, and must be stopped. Our local politicians and union leadership
have allowed this practice for as many years as they have been in
office.
I look forward to debating the issues over the next five months of
the campaign. I urge you to visit our campaign web site at http://www.leoalexanderformayor.com
and invite you to attend the next meet and greet in your community. This
Saturday, April 17, we will be at Ward 3’s Bambule, 5225 Wisconsin
Avenue, NW, from 3:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Change is coming to DC!
###############
Look to today for examples of streetcars and overhead wires, not
sixty years ago. The model for limited overhead wiring infrastructure to
power streetcars comes from Portland, Oregon, which has a modern form of
streetcar, and even Philadelphia, which, where it uses streetcars, uses
the PCC streetcar from the 1930s. In either case, there is not a web of
overhead wires.
Perhaps technology will allow for the implementation of streetcars
that can meet today’s health and safety requirements with underground
wires. I don’t understand ultracapacitor technology; maybe it will
work. Otherwise, underground wires and battery-based systems won’t
work at least for some time, given the distances that must be covered
and the demand for service. People who suggest diesel technology (such
as a recent letter in the Washington Post) fail to understand
that reducing the use of oil, not to mention noisy engines, ought to be
a mobility priority. But there ought to be a recognition that every car
on the city’s streets is a reduction in the quality of life overall.
Every car trip we can interdict through better transit improves the
quality of life for DC citizens, whether or not they use transit —
reduction in traffic and traffic congestion on the city’s streets pays
off in a multitude of ways.
In any case, my sympathies are with historic preservationists (I
consider myself one) and others who oppose overhead wires for
streetcars. But my practical bent, and the recognition that the city’s
current and future competitive advantages rest upon the continued
strengthening and expansion of transit, means that I accept the need for
compromise, given the essential fact that the city needs even better
transit in order to remain competitive within the region as a place to
live, to locate business, to conduct commerce, and to visit. Looking to
the past, while failing to plan for the city’s future, and at the same
time failing to recognize and acknowledge that the city is not an island
but one municipality within a very competitive metropolitan area ought
not to be celebrated.
Today’s Post has an article about how bad commuting is in
the region, that streets are seriously congested. But the article fails
to acknowledge that except for a limited number of the streets in DC, DC
proper is a great place to get around; there is limited traffic on the
city’s streets for the most part. “Why” is the question people
ought to be asking. The answer is simple — in the center city,
especially at the core — transit works! And we need more of it, not
less.
###############
In Sunday’s edition, Gary left out one reason Ms. Rhee will be
leaving at the end of the year. “Reform” has tied her fortunes to
that of the mayor — who has a about as much chance of remaining in
office as Mayor Kelly did in 1994.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Innovators of Social Consciousness in African
American Art, April 17
Shyree Mezick, shyree.mezick@dc.gov
Black Artist of DC presents the 2010 James A. Porter honorees, “Setting
the Pace: Innovators of Social Consciousness in African American Art,”
on Saturday, April 17, 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m., at the Howard University
Gallery of Art. Come celebrate and experience a historic tribute to
master artists, Elizabeth Catlett, Dr. Floyd Coleman, and Dr. Jeff
Donaldson, in addition to acknowledging art collector, educator, and
cultural philanthropist, Ms. Peggy Cooper-Cafritz.
Named in honor of the pioneering art historian and professor, the
James A. Porter Colloquium is the leading forum for scholars, artists,
curators, and individuals in the field of African American Art and
Visual Culture. To support the continuation of his legacy, the DC
Commission on the Arts and Humanities joins the Black Artists of DC and
Howard University in collaborative partnership to host our April Art
Salon. This unique event will celebrate an exhibition of works by the
esteemed honorees and will cross pollinate scholars, collectors,
administrators, and supporters of the Washingtonian creative
communities.
A special address will be given by Dr. Anne Ashmore-Hudson, Chair of
the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (DCCAH) in addition to
remarks by Commissioner Marvin Bowser, DCCAH, Tritobia Hayes Benjamin,
Ph.D, Associate Dean for the Division of Fine Arts, Howard University,
Dr. Gwendolyn Everett, Ph.D Chair of the Department of Art, Howard
University and Exhibit Coordinators for Black Artist of DC, Amber
Robles-Gordon, President and Akili Ron Anderson, Board Member. Special
guests include the honorees, Dr. Floyd Coleman and Ms. Peggy Cooper-Cafritz.
We would like to also extend a special thank you to the collectors
generously loaning artworks to this exhibition: Dr. Floyd W. Coleman,
Howard University Department of Art, Jameela Donaldson, Esq., and the
estate of Dr. Jeff Donaldson, Rev. Douglas E. Moore, and Dr. Doris
Hughes-Moore (providing artworks by Elizabeth Catlett).
Prior to the reception, Art Salon attendees are invited to a Graduate
Student Open Studio, to be held in the Howard University Fine Art
Atelier between the hours of 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. The atelier is located
at 2467 Sherman Avenue, NW, on the campus of Howard University. For more
information, contact Zoma Wallace at zoma.wallace@dc.gov
###############
Health Care Reform: The Role of Women and the
Impact on Women, April 20
Patricia Bitondo, pbitondo@aol.com
Marcia Greenberger founded the National Women’s Law Center over
thirty-five years ago, and is its co-president. Ms. Greenberger is a
recognized expert on sex discrimination and the law, and has
participated in the development of key legislative initiatives and
litigation protecting women’s rights, particularly in the areas of
education and employment, health and reproductive rights, and family
economic security. Examples of her work include the recent Lilly
Ledbetter Fair Pay Act; the Pregnancy Discrimination Act; the Civil
Rights Act of 1991, providing critical protections against sexual
harassment on the job; and Supreme Court victories strengthening
protections for students and teachers against sex discrimination in
schools. The New York Times described Ms. Greenberger as “guiding
the battles of the women’s rights movement.” She has received
professional honors and awards too numerous to mention, including the Washingtonian
Magazine citing her as one of Washington, DC’s, most powerful
women and as a “Top Lawyer.”
She will speak at a luncheon at the Woman’s National Democratic
Club, 1526 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, on Tuesday, April 20. Come prepared
to learn and to ask questions of this expert. The bar opens at 11:30
a.m.; lunch will be at 12:15 p.m. Members, $25; nonmembers, $30; lecture
only (no lunch), $10. Reserve no later than April 19. Register at https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5880/p/salsa/event/common/public/?event_KEY=16460
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Perceptions of Justice, April 20
Joyce Little, Jalittle2010@yahoo.com
The American Bar Association, Judicial Division Lawyer’s
Conference, invites you to Perceptions of Justice: A Town Hall Dialogue
on Color, Ethnicity, and the Courts, a Conversation with the Community.
Tuesday, April 20, 3:00 p.m.-6:30 p.m., in the Old Council Chambers, One
Judiciary Square, 441 4th Street, NW.
This will be a program bringing together diverse members of the
community, legal profession, and local leaders to talk, reflect and seek
solutions regarding the divide between reality and perception of our
justice system. Join us for an honest and vital discussion focusing on
solutions. The program is open to the public and free of charge to all
attendees.
Moderators: Professor F. Michael Higginbotham, University of
Baltimore School of Law, Baltimore, MD and The Honorable Allen J.
Webster, Jr., Los Angeles County Superior Court, Compton, CA. For more
information, contact Fairleyg@staff.abanet.org.
###############
DC Board of Education Public Meeting, April 21
Beverley Wheeler, beverley.wheeler@dc.gov
The DC State Board of Education (DCSBOE) will have a public meeting
to vote on the proposed Accountability Workbook. Additionally, the
Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) will give
presentations to the State Board on testing policies, enrollment audit
findings, and the NCLB Report Card. The public meeting will be held on
Wednesday, April 21, at 5:30 p.m., at 441 4th Street, NW, in the
District of Columbia State Board of Education Chambers, located on the
lobby level of the building.
Constituents who wish to comment at the meeting are required to
notify the State Board of Education in advance by contacting the
Executive Director, Beverley Wheeler, by phone at 741-0884 or by E-mail
at Beverley.Wheeler@dc.gov
twenty-four hours before the scheduled meeting time. Please provide one
electronic copy and bring fifteen copies to the hearing for the State
Board members to view. The meeting will air live on District Knowledge
Network (DKN) Comcast Channel 99, RCN Channel 18, and Fios Channel 12.
###############
National Building Museum Events, April 22-25
Johanna Weber, jweber@nbm.org
April 22-25, 11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., 2010 Smithsonian Craft Show
Begins. The National Building Museum welcomes the annual Smithsonian
Craft Show, which features the work of artisans from across the nation.
For more information, visit http://www.smithsoniancraftshow.org.
April 23, 11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., Meet the Artist: Andrea Panico.
During this special trunk show, meet jewelry designer Andrea Panico of
Pico Design and see items from her collection, Little Architecture,
modern jewelry for design conscious women. Free. No registration
required. Trunk show will be held in the Museum Shop. At the National
Building Museum, 401 F Street, NW, Judiciary Square Metro station.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — HELP WANTED
I am looking for someone to mow my small back yard and do some
occasional weeding this summer. I will pay twenty dollars for mowing the
back yard and fifteen dollars an hour for weeding. Summer before last,
these tasks took between four and six hours weekly — not a big
commitment.
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