“Suck It Up!” Angry Colorado Soccer Moms Ready For Ed Secretary Duncan Today

What’s the most stupid thing a politician can do? How about pick a fight with moms?

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan brought political lunacy to a different level when he played the race card by tagging “white suburban moms” as his lame defense of Common Core testing failure:

“It’s fascinating to me that some of the pushback is coming from, sort of, white suburban moms who — all of a sudden — their child isn’t as brilliant as they thought they were and their school isn’t quite as good as they thought they were, and that’s pretty scary,” Duncan told a group of state school superintendents, according to the Washington Post. Read the rest here.

Well, Duncan has poked parents in the eye from coast to coast with that arrogant statement. And “suburban moms” in Colorado are bringing soccer balls and protest signs to give Duncan a warm welcome today; as he is scheduled to shake paws and kiss babies with fellow Common Core supporter- (CO) Governor Hickenlooper:

And here is the full itinerary of Duncan’s Colorado activities, just in case there is a sudden “schedule change.”

U.S. Department of Education
Office of Communications & Outreach, Press Office
400 Maryland Ave., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20202

MEDIA ADVISORY
Event Dates: May 8-9, 2014
Contact: Press Office
(202) 401-1576 or [email protected]

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to Visit Schools in Longmont, Denver and Falcon to Highlight STEM, Race to the Top, and Innovative Principal and Teacher Leadership Programs

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will travel to Longmont, Denver and Falcon, Colo., on Thursday and Friday, May 8-9, for several events that highlight excellence in education, teacher and principal leadership, and the importance of community involvement in our schools. Media availabilities will follow each event.

First, at 9:40 a.m. on Thursday, Duncan will join Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia for a visit to Skyline High School, where he will tour a classroom and take part in a Partners in Progress town hall to hear from students, teachers, administrators, community leaders, and business and industry partners about the encouraging progress they’ve made through their Investing in Innovation (i3) and Race-to-the-Top district grant projects. They will discuss partnerships they have developed to expand their STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education, develop personalized learning opportunities, and help Skyline students be prepared for success after high school.

At 12:40 p.m., Duncan will join Colorado Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia and Metropolitan State University of Denver President Stephen Jordan for a roundtable discussion with young Latino men about their lives and ladders of opportunity that have helped to steer them on the road to success. The discussion, hosted by the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics (WHIEEH) and moderated by WHIEEH’s Deputy Director Marco Davis, is part of President Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper initiative that works in partnership with foundations, businesses and others to build on approaches that help young men of color reach their full potential.

At 3:10 p.m., Duncan will participate in a panel discussion, moderated by Denver Public Schools’ Superintendent Tom Boasberg, on principal leadership at Academia Ana Marie Sandoval. Some 10-15 principals from Denver schools will participate on the panel, where they will discuss their model to support and train great principals, and Duncan will share information about the Department’s new Teach to Lead initiative.

On Friday, May 9, at 9:40 a.m., Duncan will join U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet and Denver Mayor Michael Hancock in a Teach to Lead roundtable discussion with some 10 teachers at the Mathematics and Science Leadership Academy, a K-5 teacher-led school in which teachers have taken on new leadership roles to better support students.

At 1:10 p.m., Duncan will participate on a panel discussing issues facing military connected students at Falcon High School in Falcon, Colo. The audience will be comprised of military connected parents, administrators, community members, and service members, who will hear the panel discuss college- and career- ready standards as well as a host of issues related to the high mobility of military connected students. Falcon High School is a member of the Military Childhood Education Coalition’s Student 2 Student program and has been successfully training its students – military and civilian alike – to provide peer support to their highly mobile students as they transition to and from the school.

Event One

WHO:
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
Colo. Gov. John Hickenlooper
Colo. Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia
St. Vrain Valley Schools Superintendent Don Haddad

WHAT:
Classroom tour and Partners in Progress Town Hall
Media avail

WHERE:
Skyline High School
600 E. Mountain View Ave.
Longmont, Colo.

WHEN:
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Town Hall: 9:40 a.m. MT
Media avail: 11 a.m. MT

Event Two

WHO:
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
WHIEEH Deputy Director Marco Davis
Colo. Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia
Stephen Jordan, president, MSU Denver

WHAT:
Discussion with young Latino men as part of My Brother’s Keeper initiative
Media availability

WHERE:
Metropolitan State University of Denver
Student Success Building – 4th floor
890 Auraria Pkwy
Denver, Colo.

WHEN:
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Discussion: 12:40 p.m. MT
Media avail: 1:50 p.m. MT

Event Three

WHO:
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
Denver Public Schools Supt. Tom Boasberg

WHAT:
Principal Leadership roundtable discussion

WHERE:
Academia Ana Marie Sandoval
3655 Wyandot Street
Denver, Colo.

WHEN:
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Roundtable: 3:10 p.m. MT
Media avail: 4:20 p.m. MT

Event Four

WHO:
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
Denver Mayor Michael Hancock
U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet

WHAT:
Teach to Lead roundtable discussion

WHERE:
Mathematics and Science Leadership Academy
451 S. Tejon St.
Denver, Colo.

WHEN:
Friday, May 9, 2014
Roundtable: 9:40 a.m. MT
Media avail: 10:50 a.m. MT

Event Five

WHO:
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
Chief Education Officer Peter Hilts, Falcon School District 49
Assistant Superintendent Monty Lammers, Falcon Zone, Falcon School District 49

WHAT:
Military-connected roundtable discussion

WHERE:
Falcon High School
10255 Lambert Road
Falcon, Colo.

WHEN:
Friday, May 9, 2014
Roundtable: 1:10 p.m. MT
Media avail: 2:20 p.m. MT

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