I have no strings to any teacher or special interest group, and while I hate John White, because of his absurd and destructive policies, I love my state and the decent folks at DOE that still cling to the hope they will be able to survive White and restore education.

I was not fired from DOE, I quit with a glowing review and was urged/invited by folks to return, but I knew I had to help fight off this Reform plague first to save our teachers, our schools and our students from those who would try to harvest them like tobacco or soybeans.

Unlike many of the folks who serve on BESE or who work for White tell us what parents want from their public schools systems I actually have kids int he public schools systems and I do not agree with their conclusions that are paid for by outside interests.

White has tried to describe me as a disgrunted ex-employee, but I am a disgruntled taxpayer and Louisiana citizen, and I continue to help folks at my job, and folks in the district a year and a half later. I fight for them every day, 365 days a year, with more passion and commitement than I have ever had for just about anything in my life.

I think people are expressing their frustration at the situation. Young inexperienced women are being promoted to positions way outside of their experience, in part, because of the way they look and dress, in part because they belong to a TFA cult and in part because they have no Louisiana roots and will be loyal to those that put them in positions of power beyond their level of experience. I say this because these are 24 and 25 year olds with 2 years of teaching experience, without current certifications, being put in charge of evaluation systems for all teachers. They are tasked with instructing folks with 20+ years of experience how to be better teachers based on the misguided principals of the day, that are not backed by research, just by billionaires and BS.

Surely this can’t be good for your cause of trying to dispel a negative stereotype that women get positions not because of what they know, but how they look and who they know? If you believe women should not be treated as sex symbols, or by their appearance, but based on their accomplishments, how does it look that most of the 50+ year old women who were at DOE with decades of experience and masters and PhDs in education, are being discarded like dirty laundry, while DOE is made over to resemble a twenty something singles mixer filled with overdressed, over scented, young men and women with next nothing in the way of experience and qualifications? These replacements have degrees in political science, 5 week training courses, and maybe one decent year of teaching under their belts before they are catapulted to directors, assistant superintendents and section leaders.

I have no problem with young men and women dressing professionally, and working their way up based on their accomplishments, i do have a problem with them getting jobs over much more qualified and experienced people because of the way they look and who they know. When that happens, criticism of them for the way they dress and their lack of experience and insinuations about what “other” qualifications got them the job should be expected.

I worked with both sets of folks before i left, and so I can speak from experience. Most of these mannequins had no experience, they were way under qualified, and their presence was insulting to folks who had dedicated their lives to education; the shitty pay and poor treatment for decades – only to be passed over by little girls playing dress-up.

Most of the people replaced were older women with much more experience and much less makeup and without the stiletto heels. I respected them, because they didn’t overdo it, they dressed professionally, and they knew their stuff. Save the low cut tops, high heels, short skirts, and heavy make-up and perfume for the bars and mixers, or expect a little criticism. They “earned” much worse than that with their attitudes and dubious ascension methods.

I have no problem with having a nuanced discussion about what makes a good teacher, TFA or no, or what makes a good administrator, teaching experience or no. But what those teachers or administrators wear and how old they are is irrelevant. The only thing that matters is how good they are at serving students and getting things done in a positive way.