School "Reform" Gets Worse for Workers

A bad situation got much worse late yesterday when City Council Chair Vincent Gray disclosed his long-awaited school reform proposal. Gray's proposal would strip hundreds of DC school workers of their rights by creating an "employment without tenure" status. Echoing "the draconian reform bill championed by Mayor Fenty and Chancellor Rhee," Metro Council President Jos Williams termed the proposal "totally unacceptable" in a statement Monday night. "If the Chancellor gets this unilateral power, school leaders throughout the region will be close behind, demanding it for themselves," warned Council COPE Coordinator Rick Powell at last night's Council Delegate meeting.  Meanwhile, as the DC City Council gets ready for a showdown on school reform today, Harry Thomas Jr., will introduce the union-backed alternative school reform legislation today, co-sponsored by Councilmember Marion Barry, with several other Council members leaning towards supporting the bill.