AZ Dept of Ed bureaucrat continues to attempt to smear anti-Common Core teacher

hupp-emailsBy Brad McQueen

How should a Department of Education react when it’s been revealed through emails to be petty, punitive, and petulant towards a teacher with whom it disagrees?

If you are the AZ Department of Education’s Director of Communications Jennifer Liewer you show no contrition or apologize for conspiring against a teacher who criticized the Common Core, rather you choose to continue to deceive, smear, and divert as she did an article recently published in an Arizona newspaper on Wednesday.

Jennifer Liewer did try to divert by announcing that low-level Department of Education employee Angela Escobar had been “disciplined” for her f*cktard comment she sent in an email in response to hearing me giving an interview where I was expressing my anti-Common Core views.

Wow! Action has been taken, so let’s all move on, there’s nothing to see here? Fat chance.

Escobar is still employed with the Department of Education and Liewer refused to describe what form of discipline Escobar received. Arizona taxpayers have the right to know.

Neither was discipline action nor termination of employment offered to the high level employees, who are just below the Superintendent of Public Instruction on the food chain, who conspired to discredit me and succeeded in blacklisting me from summer contract work with the Department of Education. Jennifer Liewer is included in this group.

You can read more about their email exploits on taxpayer time in my previous article.

In an attempt to smear my credibility and integrity, Jennifer Liewer claims that, “McQueen had ‘hundreds of e-mails’ that another person obtained under the state public-records law in March.”

Jennifer knows all too well that the Arizona Daily Independent requested emails on my behalf as I was suspicious as to who ordered Director of PARCC Assessments Sarah Gardner to make her call of intimidation into my classroom. She did this in response to my anti-Common Core op-ed published in the AZ Daily Independent and republished in other news outlets.

Jennifer Liewer goes on to further attempt to question my integrity by claiming that all those emails of conspiracy she and her cohorts were sending about me occurred while, “McQueen was being paid by the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, or PARCC, to review questions for an exam based on the new standards.”

She knew this to be untrue, in fact, her co-conspirators at the Department of Education had already taken me off any and all test work groups as retaliation for my opinions against the Common Core. I worked on the Common Core/PARCC test in 2013.

Perhaps Jennifer was trying to imply that I was acting in secret agent fashion, working on the PARCC while writing my anti-Common Core book and articles? Nice try.

Lastly, Jennifer Liewer knowingly misrepresented the truth (she lied) when she claims that “staff reached out to McQueen after reading and hearing his comments about the new standards and assessment… he did not respond.”

Other than the call of intimidation made by Sarah Gardner, the Department of Education has never contacted me to apologize for its clandestine behavior. If Jennifer Liewer can show me the communications that they sent to me I will correct the record.

You see, according to these tyrant bureaucrats, teachers and taxpayers don’t rate an apology or an admission of guilt.

Now we get to more emails. First, we will focus on some “important” information that yet another Associate Superintendent seems to think she has on me that may be the answer to everyone’s prayers. Then we will focus on Jennifer Liewer’s lead role in coordinating the effort against me. Finally, we will look at the heads-up the conspirators at the Department of Education were given about the Request for Information (RFI) that was submitted to them.

Associate Superintendent (there’s seems to be an abundance of these) Leila Williams is almost giddy as she finds an email sent to her by another Associate Superintendent, Sarah Galetti, who seems to have some “information that might be useful” to her to possibly use against me. Perhaps this will put an end to my pesky disagreeing with the Department of Education once and for all?
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EMAIL #1

From: Williams, Leila (Assoc Superintendent)
Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2014 12:04 PM
To: Gardner, Sarah (AZ Director of PARCC Assessments)
Subject: FW: article and interview

FYI I missed this email interesting

Leila
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EMAIL #2

From: Galetti, Sarah (Deputy Associate Superintendent)
Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 7:30 PM
To: Williams, Leila
Subject: article and interview

Hi Leila,

I just found another “Brad McQueen” article. Actually, it is the same article that appeared in the Arizona Daily Independent last Saturday – but with a different title. It’s actually not worth looking at since it is the same article and I wouldn’t want to give anyone the satisfaction of getting a “click” – but wanted you to know. I think Kathy also sent you the radio interview he did as well.

It is quite unfortunate, and I was shocked, actually. I would like to talk with you about this though as I have some information that might be useful to you. Give me a call on my cell if you get a minute this weekend or sometime next week. 602-77*-**** Hang in there. Sarah
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Notice that Sarah Galetti feels sorry for Leila Williams, not sorry for the kids of Arizona who she and all these other bureaucrats are inflicting Common Core upon. Now Sarah Gardner licks her lips in anticipation about the “information” they may now have on me. I visualize a group of witches huddled around a caldron for some reason.
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EMAIL #3

From: Gardner, Sarah
To: Williams, Leila
Date: Wed 3/5/2014 12:28 PM
Subject: Article and interview

Let me know what you find out about what “information that might be useful to you” means. J
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The “information that might be useful” I guess didn’t pan out because they continued their pursuit of discrediting me.

Jennifer Liewer was very involved in coordinating this effort to respond to my anti-Common Core op-ed and begins the search for other teachers who have worked with me that can possibly discredit me. She also notifies Leila Williams of a reprinting of my op-ed.
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EMAIL #4

To: Williams, Leila
Sender: Jennifer.Liewer@azed.gov (Director of Communications ADE)
Subject: Item development and review team members

Do you have a list of members for the PARCC item development team? Also, here is an op ed (written by Brad McQueen) that ran in the cap times today.

Thanks,

Jennifer
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Jennifer Liewer is the one who brings in an outside, private pro-Common Core advocacy group, Expect More Arizona to help go after me, the public school teacher who dared to express his anti-Common Core opinions. She brings in Christie Silverstein, Vice President of Public Engagement for this group.

Jennifer Liewer continues the search for a teacher to write an op-ed closely with Christie Silverstein who is feeling the pressure to find a teacher and write the op-ed for them to be printed.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL #5

From: Liewer, Jennifer
Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 1:28 PM
To: Williams, Leila
Cc: Morley, Stacey; Gardner, Sarah
Subject: RE: Item development and review team members

Sarah,

Where can I call you this afternoon?

Expect More (Christie Silverstein) would like to work with another member of this group that might be able to provide a different perspective for print.

Jennifer
_____________________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL #6

From: Christie Silverstein [Christie@expectmorearizona.org]
Sent: Monday, March 03, 2014 4:46 PM
To: Liewer, Jennifer
Subject: RE: Item development and review team members

Hi Jen,

I still haven’t heard back from (name omitted) yet from the email I sent on Friday. Do you know if Sarah was able to connect with her directly? Ideally, we need to get this piece drafted by tomorrow to submit on Wednesday morning to make this week’s print edition.

Christie
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At long last Christie Silverstein finds a teacher and “helps” her write the op-ed and submits it to a local newspaper. The coordinator Jennifer Liewer then sends out a celebratory email to all the conspirators to pat them all on the back.
______________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL #7

From: Christie Silverstein [mailto:Christie@expectmorearizona.org]
Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2014 9:31 AM
To: Liewer, Jennifer; Morley, Stacey
Cc: Williams, Leila; Gardner, Sarah
Subject: AZ Cap Times – just submitted a guest commentary from (name deleted)

FYI – I have been working with (name deleted) to draft a guest commentary for this week’s Arizona Capitol Times. We finished it up last night and I sent it in this morning. I’ll give the editor a call a little later today to see if he’s able to fit it in the print edition.

Christie Silverstein
______________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL #8

From: Liewer, Jennifer [mailto:Jennifer.Liewer@azed.gov]
Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2014 10:43 AM
To: Christie Silverstein; Morley, Stacey
Cc: Williams, Leila; Gardner, Sarah
Subject: RE: AZ Cap Times – just submitted a guest commentary from (name omitted)

Thank you Christie (Silverstein) for stepping up and helping with this. I can’t tell you how much we appreciate your efforts to get this turned around in such a short time period. There is definitely two sides to the story in this situation and your diligence to work with (name omitted) will ensure the other side of the story is told. Since I was in Prescott visiting schools the past two days, I am grateful for your assistance.

Jennifer
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Jennifer Liewer was even involved in deciding whether to have Sarah Gardner make a call into my classroom in attempt to intimidate me. They changed their mind about the call, but Sarah didn’t get the email and had already made her call to me, oops.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL #9

From: Williams, Leila
Sent: Friday, March 07, 2014 12:48 PM
To: Gardner, Sarah
Subject: RE: Brad

So am on a call with Stacey, Jennifer (Liewer) and the Public engagement taskforce (Christie Silverstein). While we are concerned we might want to still reach out to him… But don’t make the effort right not …we can talk more about this.

Leila
Leila Williams, PhD
Associate Superintendent
Quality Assessment and Adult Education
(602) 364-2811
Leila.Williams@azed.gov
_____________________________________________________________________________________

The Request for Information (RFI) was eventually received by the Department of Education and Jennifer Liewer instantly decides there’s a political motive. “How dare anyone request information from us, it must be for a nefarious purpose,” she seems to say.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL #10

From: Liewer, Jennifer
Sent: Friday, March 14, 2014 12:37 PM
To: O’Brien, Carrie
Subject: FW: who do I submit RFI’s to?

This request came through Elliott. Not sure if there is a back story to the request but seems politically or RFP related… (RFP refers to the now controversial process of selecting a Common Core test for AZ which the ADE is in the middle of)

Can you assist me with the request?

_____________________________________________________________________________________

The Request for Information eventually finds its way to Carrie O’Brien, Director of Legal Services, who seems pretty put-off that her Friday is interrupted, “So much for a relaxing Friday,” she complains. I assumed that if you received a request for the emails of employees you would just go to the Information Technology (IT) department and have them gather all the emails right away.

Ms. O’Brien seems to be giving the targets of the information request a heads up as to what she will be gathering and how she plans to gather it. Something doesn’t smell right to me, but maybe this is standard operating procedure.

Here’s the email:
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EMAIL #11

From: O’Brien, Carrie (Director of Legal Services & Data Privacy Officer)
To: Williams, Leila (Leila Williams, Assoc. Superintendent)
Subject: PARCC-related records request
Sent: Fri 3/14/2014 1:00 PM

Hello Leila.

So much for a relaxing Friday…

Please see the request (for information)below. I’d like to talk to you about how I pull records since this affects much of your staff. I left a message with Lori and will come to find you this afternoon.

Carrie
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Carrie O’Brien then emails a heads-up to Sarah Gardner about the information request and also tells her that she will consult with her before anything is released. Again, something smells very fishy to me, but perhaps this too is standard operating procedure to alert the target of an information request.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL #12

From: O’Brien, Carrie
Sent: Friday, March 14, 2014 2:06 PM
To: Gardner, Sarah
Subject: Record request

Hello Sarah.

I am forwarding to you a rather voluminous records request that includes you. I met with Leila about this request. I will work with IT to pull the records and then connect with you before anything is released. I expect that will take several weeks.

Carrie
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Rereading these emails is actually pretty painful to me and I get no pleasure from sharing them. But Arizona taxpayers need to know what their “employees” at the Department of Education have been up to on their dime. These people must also be exposed to the disinfecting effect of sunlight on their reprehensible behavior.

I just happen to be one person telling his story and I’m sure there have been countless others who have felt the tyranny of these bureaucrats. I am also certain, judging by the emails I have received, that this tyranny is being replicated across the country in many more states.

I encourage all parents and concerned citizens to speak up to these tyrant bureaucrats and seek their removal from their positions. Arizona and America’s teachers deserve better, parents deserve better, and our kids deserve better.

bradBrad McQueen is a former Common Core insider and current public school teacher in Tucson, Arizona and is the author of the anti-Common Core book “The Cult of Common Core”. Connect with Brad at cultofcommoncore@gmail.com

 

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About Letter to the Editor 171 Articles
Under the leadership of Editor in Chief Huey Freeman, the Editorial Board of the Arizona Daily Independent offers readers an opportunity to comment on current events and the pressing issues of the day. Occasionally, the Board weighs-in on issues of concern for the residents of Arizona and the US.