Contact Mike Matthews, President Red

Clay Education
Association/Mike Kempski,
President Christina Education
Association
Telephone 302-547-4774
Email downwithabsolutes@gmail.co
m

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CHRISTINA AND RED CLAY TEACHERS TAKE VOTE OF NO

CONFIDENCE IN DELAWARES EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP
Local Associations call for more true collaboration and end to the test
and punish directives of the Department of Education Press
conference scheduled for March 12 at 5:30pm
Wilmington, DE,

Teachers in the Christina and Red Clay

Consolidated School Districts recently passed resolutions of no confidence in the

Secretary of Education, Mark Murphy, the Department of Education, and the State
Board of Education. Citing a list of serious concerns from Priority Schools to how
Race to the Top money was spent teachers in both districts are questioning the
educational leadership in Delaware.
Its reached a critical mass in our districts where our teachers feel like theyre
being marginalized by a process that does little in the way of looking for real
solutions to meet the needs of our students, said Mike Matthews, president of the
Red Clay Education Association and co-author of the resolution.
Teachers continue to have an erosion of confidence in Delawares educational
leadership as the state goes further down a path of using standardized test scores
for reasons that could be damaging to schools.
Rather than using standardized test scores to identify areas of growth for schools
and then providing support, said Christina Education Association Vice President and

co-author of the resolution, Jackie Kook, weve seen our State go down a dangerous
test and punish path that, in the end, does little more than label and stigmatize
our neediest schools and the students and educators within.
The resolution passed by both locals calls out comments made by Sec. Mark Murphy
in a December News Journal column in which he claimed children at some of our
schools are not learning, without providing meaningful evidence or context. The
resolution also calls for more rigorous oversight of the Department of Education by
the State Board of Education, namely calling for the Board to be a body elected by
the people as opposed to appointed by the Governor.
Teachers and community members will be on hand to provide testimony
and speak to the resolution passed by both local associations, which
represent more than 2500 teachers. The press conference will be held in
the Warner Elementary Library on March 12, 2015 at 5:30pm.
###
If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Mike Matthews,
President Red Clay Education Association/Mike Kempski, President Christina
Education Association at 302-547-4774 or email at downwithabsolutes@gmail.com.

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