MEDIA WATCH: Is America finally learning to reject Chicago's 'education' experts? Connecticut rids itself of AUSL's Terrence Carter a few months after ejecting Paul G. Vallas
Before we review the final chapter in the fraudulent career of "doctor" Terrence Carter, who almost got to be the superintendent of the New London, Connecticut public schools, people in Chicago should ask themselves why Carter's expensive frauds were not exposed locally here long before he went out of the city and tried to push his frauds beyond the Chicago City Limits. And a major answer is that for more than 20 years, Chicago's corporate media have enabled the frauds of corportae "school reform", Chicago style. From the Chicago Sun-Times through Catalyst (the corporate mouthpiece that still touts itself as an "independent" voice of education), reporters have been ordered to ignore the escalating fraudulent claims and fraudulent resumes of those who became the leaders of the nation's third largest school system. And that problem remains, even as Connecticut can prize the fact that it has skeptical reporters (as opposed to corporate "reform" touts) and school leaders (not only in New London, but earlier in Bridgeport, which dumped Paul Vallas) who don't simply buy the nonsense that for too long has launched careers from Reno and Madison to the White House out of Chicago's various hoaxes, frauds, and straight-faced lies.
But as the school year begins in Chicago, there may be hope. On the last day of August, the Chicago Tribune began exposing the fraudulent career of Rahm Emanuel, albeit only in part. Whether the Tribune or anyone else will get to clear the table of every out-of-town fraud hired at six-figure salaries to rule over Chicago's public schools is another question. After all, once you've accepted the fact that there was no one in Chicago capable of running Chicago's school system since Rahm Emanuel took over in May 2011 (first Rochester's Jean Claude Brizard, then Michigan and Ohio's Barbara Byrd Bennett), what does it matter that the nation's third largest school system hires its "Chief Accountability Officer" from Tennessee, its "Chief Network Officers" from places like Ohio, and its "Chief of Innovation and Incubation" from Michigan. Of course, one of the launching pads for the Terrence Carter fraud was Chicago's Academy for Urban School Leadership (AUSL), the fraudulent "turnaround" outfit that currently has a stranglehold on tops positions at CPS. Board of Education President David Vitale was on the Board of AUSL before he was tapped by Rahm to be Board President, and Tim Cawley, the insufferably arrogant "Chief Administrative Officer" currently at CPS was an executive at AUSL before May 2011, when he moved over to that $200,000 a year job at CPS (while getting the residency rule waived so he could continue living in the tony northern suburbs...).
Connecticut continued its record for rejecting Chicago's fraudulent education exports on August 28, 2014 when the New London Board of Education rejected the attempt by former Chicago AUSL leader Terrence Carter to become the New London schools superintendent. Carter, who never taught in Chicago but was promoted to be principal of Barton Elementary School from outside the system and who also served as an administrator at the Academy for Urban School Leadership (AUSL), was exposed as a fraud by the Hartford Courant newspaper. In several investigative stories, the Courant established that Carter had lied on his resume, claiming a doctorate that he didn't have. The last straw came a few weeks ago when the date when he supposedly was to receive a doctorate in education from Lesley University came and went.
Above, the first page of the five-page resume that Terrence Carter submitted with his application for the job of superintendent of the New London public schools. It eventually resulted in two lengthy investigations, both of which exposed Carter as a fraud. First a newspaper investigated Carter's claims to be a "doctor." Then the school district hired a law firm to review the claims of holding a "doctorate" and additional charges that Carter had also been a plagiarist. The 20-page report from the law firm hired by the New London Connecticut school board to check on the media accusations of fraud (claiming a PhD he didn't have) and plagiarism against Chicago's Terrence Carter was an expensive lesson that needs to be re-learned by every school district from Reno Nevada and Madison Wisconsin to New Bedford and Sarasota that have recently hired Chicago's non-teaching "educators" to head their districts. Perhaps the rejection of Paul Vallas and Terrence Carter by Connecticut will turn the tide against the naive (and sometimes craven) school boards that hired the Rick Milllses and Pedro Martinezes of Chicago to run their school systems, only to find out too later that Chicago's Broad Foundation vetted "educational leaders" are generally as fraudulent (albeit not as blatant) as Terrence Carter was finally exposed as being.The latest news from Connecticut may come as a surprise for anyone in Chicago who follows the news, since the Carter story, which has been in the media in Connecticut for more than two months, has been ignored in Chicago. One of the problems facing school districts across the USA who are being asked to evaluate former Chicago schools administrators for jobs is that Chicago's corporate media haven't bothered to examine the credentials of those at the top of CPS since corporate "school reform" was launched in Chicago in 1995.
Earlier this year, the Bridgeport Connecticut had gotten rid of former Chicago Schools "Chief Executive Officer" Paul G. Vallas after litigation established that Vallas, who had been Chicago's CEO from 1995 to 2001, did not have a Connecticut credential to serve as a school administrator in the state. Vallas had made a last minute attempt, supported by the state's schools chief, to cobble together a phony (literally, by telephone) set of coursework to qualify for the credential.
After Vallas's attempt to continue in Connecticut became more and more stormy, Vallas's political career was saved when Illinois Governor Pat Quinn selected Vallas to be his candidate for Lieutenant Governor. Since the initial announcement of the Vallas selection, Quinn has systematically avoided doing public appearances with Vallas because of the former Chicago schools chief's toxic reputation among teachers in the nation's third largest school system.
Still, as the school year begins for 2014 - 2015, Connecticut remains the only state where education leaders and reporters have routinely exposed the frauds perpetrated by former Chicago schools "leaders," who have for years been utilizing their Chicago credentials to get executive jobs. These people have generally been hired despite their lack of teacher (or in most cases, principal) experience in Chicago's classrooms and schools. Usually, the selection is done after only the most cursory checking of actual credentials on the part of local school boards, whose members often hire search firms to do the job and don't critically examine the "Chicago Boys and Girls" with so much as a simple Internet search.
The most famous Chicago fraud is, of course, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who was plucked from obscurity by then Mayor Richard M. Daley and made Chicago schools CEO following the Vallas ouster in June 2001. Duncan has never taught in a real public school or been a school principal. Duncan was nevertheless was dubbed by President Barack Obama to become the nation's education chief and a member of the President's Cabinet after Obama's election in November 2008, and for several years, Duncan's claims and work were uncritically reported in the news columns of The New York Times and other leading corporate media. Other Chicago frauds are still in power in Wisconsin, Nevada, Florida, Massachusetts, and elsewhere. According to local teachers and others in those school districts that have hired the "Chicago Boys and Girls" -- Chicago "educators" who have never taught -- the main qualification for the jobs outside of Chicago has been the "Chicago aura." Apparently there is a national feeling (among some school board members outside Chicago) that anyone who has had an executive job in Chicago's public schools since 1995 (when corporate school reform began) has become, de factor, a proven education leader.
[img=7542]Prior to the 2014 Connecticut actions, only Minnesota has uncovered a fraudulent Chicago export, but too late to prevent its having spent hundreds of thousands of dollars. Three years ago, Minneapolis hired former Chicago schools "Network Chief" Rick Mills, who was supposed to take a top job in education in that school system. It was only after hiring Mills that the school district discovered that Mills had no education administration credentials or experience at the local school level in Chicago. Mills had been hired by Paul Vallas to run Chicago's ROTC and expanding military high schools program after Mills retired from the U.S. Army, and was eventually made a Chicago "Network Chief" -- with power over more than a dozen real public high schools -- before decamping to the Minnesota job. After Minneapolis discovered the lapses in Mills's credentials, Mills was able to get hired as superintendent of the public schools in the Sarasota area in Florida, where he currently works amid growing controversy.
Terrance Carter's ouster from Connecticut came after a school board meeting in New London on August 28 2014. He had applied for and been offered the superintendent's job in New London, Connecticut. According to local news in New London, the board of education Thursday night voted 6-0 against entering into a contract with Terrence Carter, whom it had previously named the district's new superintendent.
Carter, for a time referred to as "a highly touted Chicago school administrator," was selected in June. But the board postponed a vote on awarding him an employment contract in late July in the wake of revelations in The [Hartford]Courant that Carter had used "Ph.D." and "Dr." with his name for at least five years despite not having a doctorate from an accredited college. Following the initial revelations of Carter's lies, readers of the news were treated to a series of retreats and feints as the former Chicago admistrator tried everything to keep his job, but was exposed one lie after another.
In addition to the revelations about his fraudulent claim to have had a doctorate in the Courant, Carter was also exposed for apparent plagiarism. The "Day", an online news service in New London, reported that large portions of Carter's New London job application essay were identical to language in articles published on the Internet.
The New London board voted on August 28 after going into in executive session to receive a report from law firm Shipman & Goodwin, its legal counsel. The legal report had been ordered July 24 to investigate the media reports. Anthony Shannon, a Shipman & Goodwin lawyer, said Thursday that the investigation corroborated the facts laid out in the media.
"As a result of this investigation, we have concluded the concerns set forth in the media are grounded in fact and are not mere speculation, hearsay, or unfounded information from Internet searches," the legal report states. "Moreover, neither the responses by Mr. Carter nor any documentary or other evidence contradicts the findings concerning Mr. Carter's use (or misuse) of the titles Dr. and/or Ph.D prior to his achieving � a doctoral degree from an accredited college or university."
The law firm said it didn't agree with Carter's claim that his use of others' work in his application "is not plagiarism," a contention that it said "reflects poorly on any person seeking to lead an academic enterprise."
FINAL HARTFORD COURANT ARTICLE ON THE DEMISE OF 'DR' TERRENCE CARTER...
New London Board Votes Against Giving Contract To Carter. August 28, 2014|By JON LENDER and KATHLEEN MEGAN, jlender@courant.com
NEW LONDON � The board of education Thursday night voted 6-0 against entering into a contract with Terrence Carter, whom it had previously named the district's new superintendent.
Carter, a highly touted Chicago school administrator, was selected in June. But the board postponed a vote on awarding him an employment contract in late July in the wake of revelations in The Courant that Carter had used "Ph.D." and "Dr." with his name for at least five years despite not having a doctorate from an accredited college.
Additionally, the Day of New London reported that large portions of his New London job application essay were identical to language in articles published on the Internet.
The board voted Thursday after convening in executive session to receive a report from law firm Shipman & Goodwin, its legal counsel, which it ordered July 24 to investigate the media reports. Anthony Shannon, a Shipman & Goodwin lawyer, said Thursday that the investigation corroborated the facts laid out in the media.
"As a result of this investigation, we have concluded the concerns set forth in the media are grounded in fact and are not mere speculation, hearsay, or unfounded information from Internet searches," the report states.
"Moreover, neither the responses by Mr. Carter nor any documentary or other evidence contradicts the findings concerning Mr. Carter's use (or misuse) of the titles Dr. and/or Ph.D prior to his achieving � a doctoral degree from an accredited college or university."
The law firm said it didn't agree with Carter's claim that his use of others' work in his application "is not plagiarism," a contention that it said "reflects poorly on any person seeking to lead an academic enterprise."
Shannon told reporters the board "apparently did not believe" that Carter's explanations and answers were satisfactory.
Carter did not attend the meeting.
"In my professional opinion [the report] reaches a conclusion that was probably presupposed and does not have the substance to back it up," said Carter's lawyer, William McCoy. He would not comment on whether Carter would pursue legal action.
Carter's problems began about a month after New London announced he would be the new superintendent when The Courant reported on July 18 about Carter's long-standing use of Dr. with his name. That story reported that Carter provided The Courant with a transcript of courses he said he took to obtain a doctorate in 1996 from Lexington University � which doesn't have a campus and had a website offering degrees for several hundred dollars with the motto "Order Now, Graduate Today!"
Questions about Carter deepened when a national research organization provided The Courant with a copy of a biography that it says Carter submitted to the American Institutes for Research in 2011, including the claim that he had a doctorate from Stanford University, which he does not. The Courant also reported that the biography he submitted to the school board was largely identical except for the Stanford reference.
Shipman & Goodwin cited the two biographies in its report.
"A pdf comparison of the biography submitted to the institute in 2011 and that submitted to the New London board of education illustrates that they are markedly similar in wording, type face, and the picture of Mr. Carter. The only difference is the bio submitted to New London does not include a reference to the doctorate from Stanford," the report states.
Carter said he never claimed to have a doctorate from Stanford, but the report said that "the credible evidence leads us to conclude that Mr. Carter sent this email to [the institute] with the biographies indicating he possessed a Ph.D from Stanford."
As to Carter's use of wording from Internet articles in his application essay, the report said "based on our review of Mr. Carter's application and our review of documents containing language identical to Mr. Carter's application, the evidence leads inescapably to the conclusion that these documents were sources from Mr. Carter's application."
It continues that "one of the most concerning examples is Mr. Carter's assertion [in the job application] in which he claims to have raised exactly the same amount of money ($20,217) in [a] fundraiser in 2012-2013 as did a fundraiser that was conducted in California in 2008-2009" that was written about in an article posted on the Web, the report stated.
Asked about the similarity by a Shipman investigator on Aug. 20, Carter "stated that this was a typographical error, oversight on his part, because his fundraiser actually raised closer to $40,000," the report states.
Carter explained one of his many uses of Dr. in past years by saying his mother "referred to him as Dr. on his taxes, which he further claims she compiles on his behalf," the report said.
PHOTO CREDIT FROM NEW LONDON. Attorney Anthony Shannon, center, and Attorney Christopher Engler, right, of Shipman and Goodwin in Hartford carry boxes with copies of the report on the investigation of Terrence Carter as they and New London Board of Education members Rob Funk, left, and Sylvia Potter, back center, and the rest of the board leave the lecture hall to go upstairs for an executive session at the Science and Technology Magnet High School in New London Thursday, Aug. 28, 2014. Photo: The Day
By: Susan Ohanian
phony resumes
I wrote the Lesley college dean, advising if the college didn't want to face embarrassment Terrence Carter's work should be studied very carefully. I doubt that my words counted nearly as much as those of U.S. Rep. Rob Simmons, who wrote the same thing to the college president. He cared because his wife had just received a Ph.D.
Isn't it past time for Chicago to investigate who else with a phony resume is in charge of closing schools and dumping teachers?