Category Archives: Uncategorized

(Community Matters) Steven gave the keynote at this year’s showcase – a bit about it in Silicon Hills. 

(Community Matters) Nearly 3 years ago, Janet Harman and Jennifer Esterline as the KDK-Harman Foundation (& quickly joined by Jason Sabo of Frontera Strategies) had the idea of organizing private family foundations to advocate for public education funding and policy. This has been realized as the Texas Education Grantmakers Advocacy Consortium. During the prior & last Texas legislation sessions, we’ve represented the largest consortium of private foundations advocating at the Capitol. We have made a difference and do take some credit for the restoration of public education funding and the promotion of favorable legislation.

At this morning’s Follow-Up Friday (just some of my short notes):

• Speakers: Jennifer Esterline, Jason Sabo, Rep. Mark Strama, Dr Uri Treisman (UT Dana Center), Dr. Patricia Lopez (UT, Tx Center for Education Policy), Allen Weeks (Save Texas Schools), Larkin Tackett (IDEA Public Schools), Morgan Smith (Texas Tribune)
• HB-5 morphed into an acceptable bill, though lifting of requirements for testing in 11th and 12th grade could signal end of accountable teaching in those grades at less mission-driven schools
• NPEA study showing Texas educational achievement – African Americans’ 4th highest in country; Hispanics 6th highest; Anglos 8th – overall, Texas 30th. It’s in the demographics
• The disagregation of accountability in performance reporting during the 90s has led to our dissatisfaction w/ performance – gives us important insight
• Tx SAT scores have remained flat despite change in demographics in test takers – suggesting we’re doing better
• HB 742 not funded but important – summer programs that extend the classroom, engage & reward the best teachers and apprentice new teachers
• Children at Risks study of impact of 2011 cuts on 400 ISDs and 65% of all Texas student population (which launched and seed funded thru KDK) had a substantial impact on the dialogue this session – fact & research based
• Education governance is increasingly removed from local communities
• Lack of citizenship training in schools
• Corporatazation of reform makes it all about money
• “how do we ensure children are prepared to live in the worlds they inhabit” .  . . vocational, community, virtual
• Opportunity & threat: redefinition of high school and college readiness
• Military is increasingly a family business – more than 50% of military personnel are from military families. History suggest a military so segregated from civilians is not a good thing.

(Community Matters) from Politico Playbook:

SAUSAGE-MAKING – WSJ A1, “Traders Pay for an Early Peek at Key Data,” by Brody Mullins, Michael Rothfeld, Tom McGinty and Jenny Strasburg : “Economic reports from public universities, trade groups and other nongovernmental organizations can move markets as surely as official data from the U.S. government. But unlike government reports, where pains are taken to make certain no one gets them ahead of time, few rules control release of nongovernmental economic reports. Unknown to many investors, selling early access is routine. … Besides the [University of] Michigan consumer-sentiment survey, reports released early to paying customers include a Chicago-based barometer of business activity and a widely followed manufacturing index from the Institute for Supply Management … Other organizations, including trade associations and private research firms, sell data that move industry-specific stocks and futures markets on everything from agriculture to truck sales. …

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(Community Matters) In WAPO, an underreported but important new administration initiative, publicly funded preschool for 4 year olds. 

In many ways, it’s hard for politicians to argue against the idea of helping small, wide-eyed children who leap with excitement at the alphabet song. But the dividends that come from preschool investment — higher rates of high school graduation and employment, lower rates of incarceration and teen pregnancy — don’t materialize until years down the line, way past the next election. And the idea of funding preschool by nearly doubling the federal tobacco tax — from $1.01 to $1.95 per pack of cigarettes — is anathema to many Republicans.

(Community Matters) not that there aren’t vulnerabilities, there definitely are, including Europe, a softening SE Asia and a looming GOP manufactured debt limit crisis . . .

The NYSE 1929 to June 12, 2013

The NASDAQ 1979 to June 12, 2013

The S&P 500 1980 to June 12, 2013

(Community Matters) I’m not gonna automatically believe reports about what Snowden is or isn’t doing, has or hasn’t done. Not saying our gov’t or the US intelligence community is running a disinformation campaign, but we’ve been known to do this.

The South China Morning Post published another article early Thursday morning local time about its exclusive interview with Edward Snowden, the person responsible for leaking top-secret information about the National Security Agency’s secret surveillance programs. The Post reported that Snowden said that the U.S. government “had been hacking into computers in Hong Kong and [in China] for years.”

(Community Matters) Edward Snowden, the young man who divulged the NSA’s broad data collection on American’s telephone calls, emails, dropbox and google docs, being described by David Brooks. Brooks description of Snowden as beholden to the CIA and Booz Allen for the “breaks” they gave him even after he failed to graduate from high school, community college or university . . . forgive me, but I doubt either the CIA or Booz Allen were giving the man a break. I find it hard to believe they didn’t employ him because he was smart and because they thought they were getting more than they were paying. The condescension in Brook’s column reminds me of a recent conversation where a friend derided a government official as someone “who’s never made more than $150k” in their life – openly suggesting that this was evidence that this person wasn’t worthy of government authority. I still feel bad for not speaking up against this comment, as if I didn’t say anything while someone said something derogatory against someone for the color of their skin or because they did or didn’t have a penis.

Amy Davidson in The New Yorker does well at taking on Mr Brooks point by point.

NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden: ‘I don’t want to live in a society that does these sort of things’ – video

(Community Matters) Was just discussing the efficacy of this a few weeks ago – Blue Birds, Red Birds, Yellow Birds. NYT: Grouping Students by Ability Regains Favor in Classroom

And, I acknowledge the risks. Growing up, I’d always been in the advanced groups until the fourth grade when a reading teacher put me in the second group. My mother found this unusual so met with the teacher. My last name suggested to the teacher I might not be up to speed in reading. I was returned to the accelerated group and made an A.

(Community Matters) Steven and I have been talking about this for a couple of years now – not only farming but butchering, baking, fishing . . . the migration by smart, well-educated, success-driven young people to these vocations. That they can make a decent living selling their wares in Central Texas is encouraging.

AAS story Loans helping new, urban-area farmers (pic by Ralph Barrera, AAS) 

Coupled with our interest in farmers and artisans is an interest in cooperatives. There’s a resurgence in this business organization structure in our country, and there’s organized opposition by big banks and other businesses against them as their market share increases. Steven serves as treasurer of the Wheatsville Coop board. I’ve recently offered to engage with UFCU.

(Community Matters) 

(Community Matters) WSJ: Truth About Millennials: Less Entitled and More Cynical than You Think.

(Community Matters) Lori Hawkins in the AAS: Capital Factory: Center of Austin’s startup scene