What’s the message Buffalo Students First is sending to voters this weekend promoting the incumbent candidates, three days before the school board election? That depends on where you live in the city of Buffalo.

First, here’s a mailer sent by Buffalo Students First to voters in the 144th Assembly District, represented by Sam Hoyt. The message on the back begins: “The politicians and special interest groups want to take over control of our schools. We can’t allow that to happen…”

If that’s the case, what does one make of  this mailer sent by Buffalo Students First to city voters in the 141st Assembly District, represented by Crystal Peoples? Voters there, primarily African-American, received an open letter from Mayor Byron Brown, Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples, and State Senator Antoine Thompson, endorsing the incumbent slate of Florence Johnson, Catherine Collins, and Chris Jacobs.

Are Brown, Peoples, and Thompson not politicians? And is Buffalo Students First and/or the Buffalo Niagara Partnership  not a special interest group? News Flash: THE POLITICIANS AND SPECIAL INTERESTS CURRENTLY HAVE CONTROL OF OUR SCHOOLS. And it’s clear they will spend a great deal of money in the hope of keeping it that way.

The blatant hypocrisy displayed by Buffalo Students First in sponsoring these two divergent messages should be offensive to every voter in the city. But there’s plenty of shame to go around here. Why would Brown, Peoples, and Thompson lend their support to a slate of candidates in an election that is held in May for the express reason that it should not  be political?

And why would the Buffalo Niagara Partnership hide behind a phony name like Buffalo Students First, when it is clear that they are directly involved in the funding of this campaign that preaches two different messages to urban voters based largely on the color of their skin? The evidence of their involvement is here in this one-page financial disclosure form, signed by Glenn Aronow, Director of Government Relations for the Buffalo Niagara Partnership.

Then there’s Saturday’s Buffalo News, which contains this editorial endorsing the incumbents.

(While writing this blog, I have received a report from a resident of University Heights that all the cars in the neighborhood had anonymous flyers on the windshield this morning, referencing this Buffalo News endorsement of the status quo.)

“Ideally, a School Board member encompasses a strong work ethic, willingness to do the necessary homework and the ability to ask the right questions and to come to a fair decision without undue political influence. Florence Johnson, Christopher Jacobs and Catherine Collins have done so, and deserve to continue in their current roles,” the News editorial staff opines, apparently with a straight face.

Is it not interesting that their very own columnists have offered contrary opinions? Consider Rod Watson’s May 29, 2008 article that begins, “Despite the many things the Buffalo Board of Education is probing in the McKinley High School fiasco, one critical issue has yet to surface: What to do about board members who appear to lie to the public?”

Or Donn Esmonde, who wrote on April 16, 2008: “Put the pieces together, and you get a picture of what happens when a school system is run by the integrity-lite and the ethically challenged. They all will tell you that nothing matters more than the kids. Amazingly, their noses do not grow an inch when they say it.”

Watson summed it up also on July 3, 2008 in an article entitled: School Board lacks guts to do right thing. He begins: “Of all the reforms possible in the wake of the McKinley High School fiasco, the most obvious has yet to be mentioned: Students need a union. And lobbyists. And bigger allowances, so they can make campaign contributions to buy off legislators who write the laws that Buffalo school officials are hiding behind to avoid holding anyone accountable.”

“You can thank the unions and their grip on Albany’s legislative machine, as well as their intimidating ability to affect a School Board candidacy in elections with miniscule turnouts,” he continues.

Shall we also thank the editorial staff of his paper for their ability to try to do the very same thing?

Tuesday’s school board election will be decided by city voters. It should be decided by the parents of children who attend classes every day in the city of Buffalo, and by every city resident who recognizes the critical importance of improving the quality of education for the children of our impoverished city—where only 46% of students graduate from high school in four years—a number that has worsened over the past five years under the the questionable guidance of the incumbent at-large school board members, who now seek an additional five years to finish the job.

Their biggest success, they claim, is a $1 billion “state of the art” school renovation project that is so hopelessly out of touch with progressive green-building standards that the electrical bills to run the buildings will be an albatross around taxpayers’ necks long into the future.

The title of the Buffalo News editorial nails it on the head: Tuesday’s Buffalo school board vote will determine future of district.

Wouldn’t it be a surprising miracle if, when voters step into the booth this Tuesday, May 5, they remember the little voices of the children who deserve so much better, and forget the propaganda dumped upon them by business people from Niagara Falls and the suburbs, who would have us believe that things are just fine in the Buffalo Schools?

Vote!

According to documents obtained by Artvoice today, Buffalo Students First has spent $30,036 to advance the campaigns of Buffalo school board incumbents Catherine Collins, Chris Jacobs, and Florence Johnson, as of April 30.

Buffalo Students First is described by Buffalo Niagara Partnership Director of Government Relations Glenn Aronow as “a coaltion of businesses, community organizations and stakeholders, and school choice advocates that support progressive reforms and policies in educating Buffalo school children.”

Among the beneficiaries of BSF’s expenditures is Unity Coalition, Inc. The group received $4,000 from BSF between March 5 and April 3. According to records filed with the Erie County Clerk’s Office in 1995, Unity Coalition, Inc., was formed “to promote political action and awareness, and to do any other act or thing incidental to or connected with the foregoing purposes or in advancement thereof.”

The unity coalition incorporation documents were signed by Arthur  O. Eve, Jr., who is currently in line for the position of Democratic Deputy Commissioner of Elections.

In other important school board election news, the Erie County Board of Elections has indicated that any voters who have already submitted absentee ballots for disqualified candidate Fred Yellen may still cast a vote for another candidate by doing so at their designated polling place on the day of the election. We are awaiting word from elections officials on how else any such absentee voters can change their vote, now that their candidate is out of the running.

Yellen was scratched from the list of candidates last Saturday, April 25, after an objection to his signature petitions was filed by Herbert Bellamy, Jr—notarized by Aronow.

The Buffalo school board election is Tuesday, May 5—now just four days away.

The Coalition for Economic Justice has put together an informative piece of literature for city voters, in preparation for the May 5 Buffalo School Board Election, one week from today.

Seven of the original nine candidates responded to questions that were posed by moderator Allison Duwe at the candidates forum sponsored by CEJ at the True Bethel Baptist Church on April 21.

Incumbent Florence Johnson did not attend the event, so there are no responses from her. Challenger Fred Yellen did attend, and provided thoughtful answers—however, he was scratched from the ballot on Saturday, April 25, after a successful signature petition challenge from Herbert Bellamy Jr. and Buffalo-Niagara Partnership Director of Government Relations Glenn Aronow.

Visit the Coalition for Economic Justice Web site to download the School Board Voter’s Guide, or simply click here.

Get educated about the candidates, and get out and vote on Tuesday, May 5.

On Saturday, Fred Yellen was scratched from the list of school board candidates for having insufficient signatures on his nomination petitions. Count this as a win for Herbert Bellamy, Jr., and Buffalo-Niagara Partnership Director of Government Relations Glenn Aronow—whose signatures appear on the specific objections paperwork, filed April 18.

The Buffalo-Niagara Partnership backs the incumbent slate of Collins, Jacobs, and Johnson through a “coalition” they call Buffalo Students First. Aronow claims they have also raised money and donated staff assistance to these candidates.

Challengers Rebekah Williams and John Licata’s petitions were still being challenged as of this morning. In the event they too are struck from the ballot, the field would shrink from nine candidates to six, one week before the election. This would leave Patricia Devis, Rosanna Hampton, and Bryon McIntyre as the only challengers to Collins, Jacobs, and Johnson.

No challenges were ever filed for the signature petitions of the incumbents.

Don’t forget tonight’s candidates forum at the Polish Cadets Hall, Grant and Amherst Street, 7-9pm.

Election Day is next Tuesday, May 5. In the last at-large Buffalo school board election, in 2004, fewer than 13,000 people voted. That’s only around 8% of registered voters. The winners will serve Buffalo’s schoolchildren for the next five years.

Last Friday, we reported about the petition challenges submitted against every single challenger in the May 5 Buffalo School Board election. Thanks to a comment on our blog from Chet Morton, we learned that Glenn Aronow—the man who notarized all the challenges—is the Director of Government Relations for the Buffalo Niagara Partnership (pictured).

By Monday, I was on the phone with Aronow, asking if he could explain why a group known as Buffalo Students First shares the same address (665 Main Street, Suite 200) as the Partnership. Buffalo Students First put out this slick mailer endorsing Catherine Collins, Chris Jacobs, and Florence Johnson for the at-large seats on the board.

He explained that he was in Washington, DC, and couldn’t talk. I asked him again on Tuesday. He said he’d call me when he got back to town. I called him Thursday, and he told me not to call him on his cell phone anymore. He said he was at a lunch, and couldn’t talk to me. He reminded me that he told me he’d call me when he returned from DC. I asked him if he was in town. He said yes. I pointed out that he didn’t call me.

Aronow then called back later, and said he’d send me an email response to my questions: What is Buffalo Students First, and why all the aggressive challenges to every school board candidate who is not an incumbent?

Here is his reply:

Buffalo Niagara Partnership:

The Partnership, which is made up of approximately 2,500 local employers, has been involved in elections at all levels of government for many years. Our organization has supported races for Buffalo Public School board for approximately 10 years. We’re a regional organization, but understand Buffalo is at our region’s core  — and the success or failure of the Buffalo Public Schools is directly linked to how the city fares. Improving public education is a also priority of our members for a specific business reason: they need a workforce that is prepared to compete both locally and in a global economy. The Partnership strongly supports candidates Chris Jacobs, Florence Johnson and Dr. Catherine Collins. We’ve helped raise money for these candidates and have donated some staff time to assist with the campaigns, and the efforts of the coalition, Buffalo Students First.

Buffalo Students First:

The Buffalo Niagara Partnership is a supporter of Buffalo Students First, which is a coaltion of businesses, community organizations and stakeholders, and school choice advocates that support progressive reforms and policies in educating Buffalo school children.  Buffalo Students First advocates for and supports programs and policies that improve how education is provided in Buffalo’s Public Schools. Buffalo Students First is supporting candidates in this year’s school board election that share the coalition’s vision for education and putting Buffalo school children first.
Petition challenge:

There are very clear laws and procedures to be a candidate for any elective office in New York State, including Buffalo school board. Obtaining the required amount of vaild petition signatures is a basic legal requirement to get on the ballot that all candidates are fully aware of. When there is overwhelmingly clear evidence that signatures are not vaild or obtained in a fraudulent manner, those signatures should be challenged, and that’s what we did. To ensure fair elections, candidates should and must abide by the same laws and procedures.

Glenn Aronow
Director, Government Relations
Buffalo Niagara Partnership
665 Main Street, Suite 200
Buffalo, NY 14203-1487
P: (716) 852-7100, ext. 236
C: (716) 628-1367
F: (716) 852-2761

The Partnership extends its thanks to the member businesses in its Leadership Circle. These companies represent the Partnership’s most significant financial supporters.

They also advocate squashing the campaigns of any and all challengers. Click here to see the specific objections Herbert Bellamy filed against candidate Fred Yellen, notarized by Aronow.

But what is Buffalo Students First? There don’t appear to be any records at the state or county level showing that it’s a political committee, or an LLC, and there’s no DBA or assumed name certificate on file. Are there any actual students involved with Buffalo Students First? Or is it just a surreptitiously named gang of “businesses, community organizations and stakeholders” throwing their money around to advance the status quo of a struggling urban school district with a disastrous dropout rate in the third poorest city in America? Does every member of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership want to stand up and take credit for stifling this opportunity for the community to select a change when they step into the voting booth?

This morning, school board challenger Bryon McIntyre and community activist Peter A. Reese filed a complaint with the Erie County Board of Elections, requesting an investigation into the involvement of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership through Buffalo Students First in the ongoing Buffalo School Board Election process. The election is May 5.

I went down to the Erie County board of elections today and bought $1.75 worth of public documents.

Click here and you can have the same information for free. You’ll learn that of the nine candidates running for the three at-large board seats, only the three incumbents—Catherine Collins, Chris Jacobs, and Florence Johnson—have not had objections filed regarding their nominating petitions.

Who filed the objections to the challengers’ paperwork? Herbert Bellamy Jr., Elaine Mootry, and Cassandra Cosby. Bellamy objects to the petitions submitted by Patricia E. Devis and Frank Yellen. Mootry objects to the petitions submitted by Rebekah A Williams and John B. Licata. Cosby objects to the petitions submitted by Rosalind J. Hampton and Bryon McIntyre.

Interestingly, all the paperwork was notarized by Glenn S Aronow, all on the same day: April 13.  Coincidence?

I could only find a phone number for Mootry, and when I called, someone told me she wasn’t home and didn’t know when she would be back. While trying to find contact information for Aronow, I came across his facebook page.

Granted, he’s just the Niagara county notary who witnessed the petitions, but isn’t it interesting that, according to his facebook page, he’s a fan of another facebook page called Chris Jacobs—Supporters for Buffalo Public School Board, and also a fan of the facebook page called Catherine Collins, Chris Jacobs & Florence Johnson for Buffalo School Board.

Petitioners have until Monday, April 20 to list reasons why they are petitioning the paperwork of every single candidate who is not an incumbent. And since these clarifications are valid if they are postmarked by April 20, we won’t know until the middle of next week what, if anything, they were suspicious of regarding the challengers’ petitions. By then, the actual election will be less than two weeks away.

The Buffalo School Board has fiscal oversight to the tune of over $1.5 billion yearly.

We’ll be following up in the coming weeks to let the less than 5% of registered voters who typically turn up for Buffalo school board elections get a feel for the challengers. In the meantime, here’s just one little reminder of the kind of leadership our current at-large school board representatives have given us.

Join us as we take a little walk down memory lane in the coming weeks, revisiting more of the work Collins, Jacobs, and Johnson have done “for the children.”

And remember, with this big a field and so few voters, anything can happen once educated citizens pull the curtain on the voting booth. They might even decide it’s time for a change.