she is the president of the baltimore teachers' union. you have so many titles. i tried to pick and choose them. this is a short version. she's also the president of the american federation of teachers in maryland. and she's the past president of metro baltimore alliance of black school educators and a current board member. and i believe, you know, we are so thrilled she could join us today to talk about the anti union initiatives that swept the nation, as well. and to, you know, celebrate her as a labor leader and tireless fighter for fair wages and improved working conditions for teachers throughout the country. thank you. please welcome marietta english. >> thank you. thank you for this opportunity. there is an anti union movement across this country. i'm not going to talk about the initiatives, but i will talk about some of those things that have happened across this country. the attack on unions which represent women is an attack on women. when wisconsin's governor, scott walker, administration targeted teachers, unions and nurses' unions, they exempted the m

and they haven't done it because it's in the grip of the teachers union. good teachers, awful union. >> you say awful union. >> yeah. >> any time you attack a teachers union, the response is that you're going after the teachers themselves. >> yeah, well, that's why i say good teachers. >> how do you separate that message, though? how do you get that message out? not just to the voters of new jersey, but also, also to the teachers? >> well, because you keep saying it over and over again. and they'll mischaracterize you and mischaracterize me. when i talk to working teachers around the state. and i say i'd like to pay you more for your excellence. i'd like to make sure that we don't guarantee somebody a job after three years and one day even if they're not performing.

union level? not at the teacher level, at the union level with regard to vouchers? >> they have made it very clear to me and to the legislature that that is an unacceptable alternative. and they will fight in every way they can. >> all vouchers. >> all vouchers of any kind. pilot program of any kind. no chance, that's what they've said.

and they haven't done it because it's in the grip of the teachers union. union. >> you say awful union. >> yeah. >> any time you attack a teachers union, the response is that you're going after the teachers themselves. >> yeah, well, that's why i say good teachers. >> how do you separate that message, though? how do you get that message out? not just to the voters of new jersey, but also, also to the teachers? >> well, because you keep saying it over and over again. and they'll mischaracterize you and mischaracterize me. when i talk to working teachers around the state. and i say i'd like to pay you more for your excellence. i'd like to make sure that we don't guarantee somebody a job after three years and one day even if they're not performing. i want you to be held accountable. great teachers have no worry about being held accountable. and what i say to them all the time about their union is, you should have a union as good as you are and you don't. >> and by the way, let's say for the record here, not all unions, mike barnicle are created equally. there

, yes, we were going to go forward and apply for the grant was a deep conversation with our union and teachers and the administration at the school of whether this was an opportunity or whether it was going to be jumping through hoops, and we did a pretty amazing process at the front end where the union leadership and i went and sat with the small group of teachers who explored what it meant to apply for the grant and evaluated the different options, but we had the entire staff sitting while we sat in a fish bowl and figured out what was the opportunity and what were the challenges and what was the go forward strategy and the union and i said you figure out what you want, we'll leave and remove the barriers, and that's what we did. i would say that's a huge piece of the success is that school owning the strategies and feeling like they're driving what the work is that's going, not being prescribed from some place else. >> what was your expectation for change going in. >> i didn't believe it was going to be the kind we have seen. it has been transformational change. i hope we're on a path we co

just deciding to go forward and apply for the grand was a deep conversation with our union and teachers and an administration at the school about whether this was an opportunity and whether it was going to be jumping through hoops. we did an anazing process where the union leadership sat with a small teacher and explored the valuation different options. we had the entire roosevelt sfaf while we sat and figured it out. i would say that's a huge piece of what the success has been is that school owning the strategies and feel being like they're driving what the work is that's going on, it's not being prescribed from someplace else. >> and again, what was your expectation going in? >> i didn't believe it was the kind we've seen. it's been transformational. >> open up the audience. any questions for any of our panelists. >> i guess we have mike here. do we have another one? start right here. i see two up front. hi, i'm a northeastern graduate and i'm curious to find what stereos types you were confronted with at your school and i'd like you to look at your cripple curriculum and tell me if y

also the teachers union. it is interesting because i saw an article on february 26th talking about -- they said the average california household is on the hook for $35,000 for unfunded liability which goes to 307 $9 billion. the way that they make their money is through investments and real estate like this project. also other sort of investments in the market. because as we know, the market has not done as well, a lot of the funds are not doing well. then i went to look at the california teachers retirement system and i wanted to find out what their monthly benefit was and is $3,300 a month. it is not like the teachers are getting huge amounts of money. they are actually protecting a shortfall. this project is one of the ways in which the teachers union can afford to pay their teachers. i have a lot of teachers in my family. this is a different thing than what i was thinking. people are talking about the waterfront plan. in the update, it said that this site should be mixed use development and that was somet

those federal teachers unions have too much power. in some cases, they overwhelm the states. they overwhelm the local school districts. we have got to put the kids first and put these teachers unions behind. >> do you still support no child left behind? >> i support the principle of having states test their kids and one of the things president bush did that i supported, and i did support no child left behind and do support, continuing to test our kids. i want to know which school districts are succeeding and which ones are failing and where they are failing, i want there to be action taken to get the teachers unions out and to get the kids once again receiving the education they need. so i like the idea of testing our kids. no child left behind needs to be changed. i think it's pretty significant ways before it's reauthorized. but i do support the testing that's been associated with that program and i'm glad president bush pushed for that. >> governor, on the stump, you criticize rick santorum for his answer in a recent debate, taking one for the team. that was casting his vo

new jersey governor chris christie and caused some friction with the teachers union. >> i don't bash . i bash the bad guys. that's what my job is to do. my job is to lift up the great people and weed out the bad ones. we're not going to help our kids [ inaudible ] they will never recover academically. >> reporter: he does not mince words when talking about the ongoing anti-christie media blitz snooze spend $30 million or whatever you wasted to put the stupid billboards up and down the turnpike why wouldn't you give that back to the first year teacher you're pulling out of their salary and can barely pay their rent. >> he considers himself a warrior against the status quo. >> if you're supporting great things, then i stand beside you. but if you're enabling bad things to happen to kids, you're darn right i stand across you. >> we will speak live with the superintendent coming up ahead on "morning joe." still ahead on "way too early" why are you awake? your home school tweets, texts and e-mails are next, "morning joe" live from fort lee high school, now moments away. [ male announcer ]

diablo school district into the teachers' union. t come to an agreement. the two big issues are getting a raise. the district wants to give teachers a onetime raise its 3% and also wants teachers to agree to possible for low days. the teachers' union does not want to agree to any furlough days ahead of seeing the state budget. >> there is a difference between need and want. they did not need for low days, they want them so that there is no possibility of there being any problem in the district. >> 200 teachers are expected to pass the district meeting voicing their outrage over these contract negotiations. we will be very and to bring you the latest. >>pam: a census of man is facing three years probation for hitting and killing a woman while he was riding his bike. this is the victim. she was hit last july on the embarcadero. he pleaded guilty. the victim's family asked prosecutors not to seek jail time. police in the petaluma are looking for thieves who stole little league equipment over the weekend. jeff bush shows you what was sto

one of the teachers union bosses talked to me. him about you and he said you just made people mad. >> upset, families, students and teachers. a lot of people got fired. she said they deserved to be fired. the system needs changed. many thought she needed to be fired. >> john: you did quit before you were fired when the mayor lost. you said we are going to make it better for the kids. you thought people would like that bucks the voters didn't? >> people did like n it in many ways, we reverse add 41-year decline in the in the district. for the first time in four decades in my last year, we actually grew the public confidence and trust in what we were doing because people saw the shakeup. that what was necessary to improve outcomes. unfortunately a lot of people didn't like the fact that we were impacting the security of the contracts and jobs in the district. >> john: people didn't like it are the organized unions who have money to give the campaign? >> in fact the american federation of teachers put a million dollars in the boss's c

. >> my question, i want to bring in a live wire here which is the teachers union. it hasn't really been touched. i think manufacture us know that the pension, the cost of the pension is for the teachers is higher than what's being spent on education. so obviously there's a disconnect there. the question i have is if we're not looking at that or should we welcome at that. if you were given the opportunity to redesign how education would be done in this country, what would it look like? i've heard so far first get rid of liberal arts. that's quite extreme. and then i heard, you know, go become a u.p.s. driver. and i don't -- i don't really get a comfortable feeling with that solution. so i -- >> most of them have liberal arts degrees anyway. >> i'm just saying, we have smart people in this room. what would you do? how would you redesign our educational system? and i just threw in that variable of the teacher's union if you choose to touch that. >> thank you. that's a big apple. >> first of all, i don't think people that work for government should be allowed to unioniz

i want action taken to get the teacher union's out and get the kids receiving the education they need. i like the idea of testing their kids. no child left behind needs to be changed before it is authorized. but i support the testing and i am glad president bush pushed for that. >> bret: on the stump, you critized rick santorum for an answer taking one for the team. that was casting his vote for no child left behind. you have been on that team? >> guest: well, i have no problem supporting things i agree with, right? i was not critizing rick santorum for supporting no child left behind. but for him saying he opposes it and against his principles and he voted for it anyway. that? in my opinion is not leadership we need. we have a couple of guys who run against me that spent their life in the legislature. nothing wrong with that. but that's not what we need in washington. we need someone to go up against president obama who has real experience as a leader and understands how the economy works. henot because he debated in congress. but he lived it in the private sector. i have. that's the

you have a program -- [talking over each other] >> try to negotiate with teachers union to pay a $20,000 bonus to a teacher that gets ranked at the top of their profession two years in a row to say thank you and keep them from being hired away or going into another profession. most teachers went into teaching when they didn't have alternatives. today women have more alternatives and it is more a woman's profession. if you look at the classroom you still see women for the first time having alternatives and we have to retain them. forgiveness of loans is to let them take a profession where we don't have to pay back their loans. let them go into a profession where the compensation is with recognition and respect and pleasure of knowing you are making a difference but you have to pay back the loan so we're trying to help with that but in this end we don't have a problem recruiting teachers. the real reason they want to teach is we have a school system that is really changing and making a difference. are we any place where we want to be? no. but we have to make sure we keep the best teachers

i want to bring in a live wire -- the teachers union. it has not been touched. had think many of us know that across the pensions is higher than what is being spent on education. obviously, but there is a disconnected their -- disconnect there. if you're given an opportunity to redesign our education is done, what would it look like? i have heard, first, get rid of the liberal arts. i've heard go become a ups driver or whenever. [laughter] i don't really get a comfortable feeling with that solution. >> most of us have liberal arts degrees, anyway. >> there are enough smart people in this room. what would you do? how would you redesign our education system? i just threw the variable of the teachers' union. >> first law, i did nothing people who work for the government should be allowed to unite. the whole thing is corrupt from the beginning. it is a terrorist organization. [laughter] the biggest losers are the parents to get a lousy education and the parents are stuck with the bill. any government-george loans for higher education, universities have no choice but

of but the teachers' union says that puts an unfair burden on the other schools. >> reporter: armed with a bull horn, teachers took over the school board seats. carlos garcia, waiting on the other side of the room while it went on. >> today i got a pink slip in the mail. and you told me that my services were no longer needed. >> i enjoy the annual process of watching half the staff at my school, my neighborhood school, be laid off. >> we came in here tonight, collectively, and we were chanting something interesting. it was get some guts, and stop the cuts. >> reporter: teachers picketed outside the meeting, upset that 14 low-performing schools will be spared from layoff, meaning they say the other schools will have to absorb the loss of even more teachers. >> it's like you're bailing out other schools by putting water into our schools so we sink faster. >> it's divide and conquer. what about the students and teachers at eldorado, which has been struggling for years? >> reporter: the 14 schools are located primarily in the bay view and the mission, and more than $7 million has been spent

but the fact is, the teachers unions in many cases, particularly in california, have been an impediment to that. we've challenged the issue of seniority as an example. we've got great teachers, but they're evaluated purely on how long they've been there. when you're assigned or promote ordinary laid off. so we've had to lay off with all the cuts some of our best teachers, because of seniority and tenure. where it's taken -- it's the only factor, and there aren't other factors in evaluating our teachers. it's very difficult to dismiss teachers. you know, i tell people, if i had a third term, which i don't, and i ran for a third term, and i said, vote for me, i've been here the longest, everyone would look at me with a stared glaze. the fact is, we have teachers in our schools today who are there because they've been there the longest. and while there are a lot of great teachers, we need to work with our teachers unions to be able to have the flexibility to put the best teachers in our classrooms, and particularly, in the most difficult classrooms in our urban schools. >> let me ask you a

you know, teachers unions have imopposed any competition.y've lined up right down the line. >> let me ask you. two other things. we're talking about tax. they're iffing to favor the government union. the keystone, i don't understand. all these private sector blue collar union workers who would be there in favor of keystone. they want to drill for the pipeline even while the union leadership is opposed to keystone. this is something -- why would they want to do that? keystone is in their interest. they have blue collar jobs. keystone pipeline. >> most of the unionized workers in the united states now work for the government. i think, you know, they see kind of a lot of left wing groups as being in sync that, they work together arm and arm in with a lot of other issues, and i think they see where the future is. private unionizations kept on declining over time. you haven't seen that decline in the public sector. it's basically grown. it's already majority public, and it's going to get even more that way. >> finally, john. other issue that bugs

during the ten tour the city school district made gains in test scores and he is fighting the teacher's union deciding to skip junior teachers working in low-achieving schools. >> we've invested $2 million on training those teachers. they are showing growth in some schools and student achievement that. is the kind of people our children need. >> what is significant is nearly 500 other teachers will get pink slips tomorrow. the school board expected to pick the new superintendent. >> judges in sacramento today asking for an immediate halt to a computer upgrade that. sounds unusual but judges say the system is poorly conceived and badly designed and a train on the -- drain on the courts. >> and you can do a lot of thing was $2 billion, we can keep every court in this state open that women can get domestic violence restraining orders and people can get judgments in their family law cases. criminals and victims can get their day in court there is a lot of things you can do with $2 billion. >> there is calling the system more than adequate to do the job. >> and coming up we'll check in one more ti

our federal grant supports schools, leaders, teachers, unions and local partners in the community to undertake this challenging work. we're seeing some very encouraging signs of progress in this first year of data from our sig schools, which actually few experts anticipated. but before i talk about that data, i want to put in context what we're seeing. the starting premise for the sig program is unfortunately painfully self-evident. the united states simply cannot meaningfully boost graduation rates and prom ace quality education to every single child without ending the cycle of failure in our chronically low lf performing schools. tragically not just for a few years but literally for decades children have been cheat out of a world class education in the underperforming schools. states and district officials have traditionally tinkered in these schools instead of treating them as the educational emergencies that they are. and from the moment i became the ceo of the chicago public schools in 2001, i had so many people tell me that not much could be done to transform a failing school a

the american federation of teachers, a union of professionals.he singapore tourism board, there is something for everyone. singapore airlines, a great way to fly. punsan corp., forging a higher global standard. and the rotendaro family trust, the ctc foundationtheafo communication is and the american life tv network. to begin our education about cyprus, i talked with dr. hubert faustmann of the university of nicosia. >> what is modern day cyprus? it is a place with fantastic weather, a divided country which is plagued by political conflict that has not been able to be resolved in more than 30 years or 40 years now. this dominates many aspects of life on the island like the tourism sector, the booming economy in the south, and a less-booming part in the north or the turkish cypriots live. >> a look at a map and you have to know you are looking for to see the island country. once you get a fix on it, it is in a very, very strategic location. >> it has always been and that was rather a curse than blessing. it has been too weak to defend itself. the

the american federation of teachers, a union of professionals. the singapore tourism board. there is something for everyone. singapore airlines, a great way to fly. punsan corporation, forging a higher global standard. and the rotondaro family trust, afo communications, and in the american life tv network. tourism in cyprus, is it very important? >> it is one of the important sectors of the economy for many, many years. it is 11% gdp. with the measures that the government is taking now, it will boost tourism in cyprus. >>cypress is known for its beautiful sea, beautiful beaches. it has much more to offer them and see and son can we have culture, religion. we have sports tourism, medical tourism. we have alternative types of tourism that we believe will develop much more in the years to come. >> what are the other sectors? you mentioned 11% for tourism. where the other sectors that contribute -- what are the other sectors that contribute to the gdp? >> services contributes 80%. tourism is out of this. there is financial services, accounting, audit

and the teachers' union. i also come out of a personal note. both of my children were raised in san francisco public schools. i have two grandchildren selected the public school that they are going to. i have a daughter-in-law who teaches in one of these own schools. we are all committed to public education. we are all committed to the children. we must do it fairly, justly, and we must do it by the union's recommendations because it is the union that looks out for our children above and beyond all else. 500 layoff notices is unconscionable when there are $55 million in that return fund. if this is not the time -- if this is an emergency, it is time to use the reserve fund for this emergency. thank you. [applause] >> good evening. my name is kevin. i'm here to speak on behalf of my local. we are here in support for the teachers. you are very popular tonight. i am glad that you are making this movie. tonight, you started by talking about what happened to sacramento. at the same time, what are you doing? the la

suze orman, our labor secretary, the teachers' union head, the pulitzer prize winner, and the colleges and college president. we are glad to have you here for our look at women, children, and poverty in america. >> every community has a martin luther king boulevard. it's the cornerstone we all know. it's not just a street or boulevard, but a place where walmart stands together with your community to make every day trucks making a difference every day -- >> making a difference every day. pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. [applause] >> this conversation would not be possible were it not for the generous support of the american federation of teachers. [applause] i can jump right to this because the link between a lack of quality education and poverty is so well established but is one thing we do not have to debate. even republicans agree there is a lamink. the question is what is a link between poverty and a child ability to learn. >> let me start by saying thank you because we do not ever talk about poverty and not, and the fact you're making this a priority so we shine the l

now the teacher's union is criticizing the move and they are bracing for what could be more than an $80 million loss over the next two years. >>> they sparked a lockdown, nobody was found despite an exhaustive search. maria saw a man holding a rifle after she picked up her 11-year- old daughter for an after school program. for an hour they sat in a locked classroom until the school was cleared. >> it was very stressful because for me, the thought was what would have happened if he closed the door and you know the worst. >> parents and students were reunited at 7:00 last night. officers scoured the campus and they do believe there is no longer a threat. >>> time now 4:34, today the family of a young victim will gather for a private memorial service. she vanished in 1985 after she cut school. she was last seen with wesley howard shermantine. wesley howard shermantine is now convicted of her murder and is linked to many others. they were led to her body and the teen's mom said the discovery gives her closure in a long nightmare. >> it feels great, it is like giving birth to her all over ag

the teachers' union says there is an unfair burden on schools. >> teachers took over the school boardts before the start of the meeting. superintendent carlos garcia waited along the side of the room, speaker after speaker >> today i got a pink slip in the mail and you told me that my services were no longer needed. >> i am watching half the staff at my school, it is the school and teach and the school where my children go, >> we came in here tonight collectively and we were chanting something interesting. it was get some guts and stop the cuts. >> teachers are picking up said that 14 schools will be spear from layoffs meaning they say if the other schools will have to observe the losses of the more teachers. if >> this is the wrong way. it is divide and conquer. >> the district says the 14 steered schools are located primarily in bayview and mission and more than 7 million has been sent on hiring and training the staff in hopes of improvement. >>james: another rally held in union city, teachers there are also protesting cuts and layoffs. >>mark: here is a live look at the james lick.

the american federation of teachers, a union of professionals. the singapore tourism board, where there is something for everyone. singapore airlines, a great way to fly. busan corp., forging a higher global standard. the ctc foundation. a f o communications. and the rotondaro family trusts. >> if anybody is taking notes, i want to have everybody know it was 1900 for through 1914 that the canal was built? >> yes. >> and then the united states controlled until, you said, 1999. >> correct. >> and now, they have turned it back over to the authority of the government. >> it is not politically correct to say -- >> oh, let's not be politically correct. >> [laughter] now it is run a lot better. in more respects, more money, more efficient. >> what does it cost to take a ship through the canal? >> about $250,000. >> really? >> and now it will be three times that, the bigger ones. >> it could be a $750,000 trip because of a number of containers. >> yes, and the secret was -- and i'm not sure how to explain. the americans had another vision. it is not that