UPDATE: Now, the NJEA leader wants CHRISTIE to resign. Here's our full story in Thursday's paper.
WESTFIELD - Gov. Christie today called for the resignation of a leader of the state's largest teacher's union in the wake of the union leader's seemingly dismissive remark about poor children in failing school districts.
"Life's not always fair," said New Jersey Education Association executive director Vincent Giordano on a program that aired earlier this week on NJTV (see video below).
At a news conference after a town hall meeting this morning that was called specifically to address the comment, Christie -- who has long feuded with the NJEA -- came out swinging.
"Vince Giordano has given voice to what the teacher's union really think when it comes to our children who are less fortunate, their families, and what kind of opportunities they should have," Christie said.
He called Giordano's statement "outrageous" and said he was "disgusted" by it.
The comment came when Giordano was asked about the proposed Opportunity Scholarship Act, which would provide tax breaks to companies that fund scholarships so poor children in failing districts can matriculate elsewhere. Christie endorses the proposal.
"We don't think that public funds raised through public tax dollars ought to be diverted to private businesses," Giordano said on the show.
Interviewer Rafael Pi Roman pressed the issue, saying that only the well-off can afford to send their children to better schools, leaving the poor to get a lesser education.
Giordano responded: "Life's not always fair and I'm sorry about that, but to suggest that we take money from taxpayers and give it to certain taxpayers to use to educate their kids outside of the public school just seems to me to be [wrong]."
Giordano was out of the office sick today and unavailable for an interview. But NJEA spokesman Steve Wollmer said the comment, which was made a minute before the end of the interview, was a "misinterpretation."
"When he really meant is that with poverty in urban districts, life isn't fair for these kids," Wollmer said.
"These kids didn't choose what happened to them, and that's not fair, but it's even more unfair to impose school vouchers and airlift 10 percent of the kids out and leave 90 percent of the kids with even less money. And that's the type of answer Vince was trying to get into, but the show was drawing to a close and it got wrapped up and that was it."
Wollmer noted that Christie has cut hundreds of millions of dollars in education funding.
These cuts were due in part to the loss of $1 billion in federal stimulus money, Christie’s office said, and the state now actually spends more money on education than when he took office.
These cuts were due in part to the loss of $1 billion in federal stimulus money, Christie’s office said, and the state now actually spends more money on education than when he took office
These cuts were due in part to the loss of $1 billion in federal stimulus money, Christie’s office said, and the state now actually spends more money on education than when he took office.
"So this governor wants to match up his commitment to urban education with the NJEA?" Wollmer asked. "He better think twice before we really start rolling out the record on that. He's more interested in funneling money out of urban education and into the pockets of millionaires in the form of tax breaks."
Watch New Jersey Capitol Report with Steve Adubato & Rafael Pi Roman Ep.181 on PBS. See more from New Jersey Capitol Report.
Believe me, I am not in favor of teachers unions and I hope someday they will be abolished. However, I do not find Giordano's comment to be offensive. It is true; live is not always fair and some people have to work harder than others to succeed. We have far more urgent problems than to spend time on this incidence; let's move on and better utilize our time.— oneway- Hey oneway, try teaching in an inner-city school sometime, you'll see why teacher's unions are necessary. Without them you would have no teachers keeping the kids off the streets.— revolter
- Come again? The teachers union is needed to keep inner-city kids in school? Explain that bit of nonsense to me.— Stop.Enough.
- ....the teacher's union guy is in the protected class that supports plug to plug and outlet to outlet relationships....unlike the CNN guy, nothing will happen to him....it is called hypocrisy.....— most_of_the_commentors_here_are_losers
- When I was 17 years old I got my first real job, I saw an add in the newspaper that said, " Artist wanted" for dental lab. I didn't know what a dental lab was, until I saw what they were doing, ( sculpturing in wax ) I fell right into it. The manager of the Denture department ( Archie ) liked what I was doing and asked the owner to place me in the waxing department. But there was another person who wanted the position. Archie said I should get the position 'cause I was far better then she was and an asset to the Dental Lab. The reason why I didn't get the position was, she was there 3 months longer then I was. A union doesn't give the person who does a better job, the position, unless they're there longer, not because they're better at what they do. This was the last time I involved myself with a commie socialist union. I won't allow myself to be lowered to union mentality
- That guy is such a jerk. Christie that is.— slanted and enchanted
- What a joke. The union heads care about lining their own pockets. Revolter is a perfect example of the self-serving idiots who think a union is necessary to teach in a school. Teachers should be paid as professionals-the best teachers would make more money, the starting salaries would increase. Does anyone think that most of the inner city schools are learning anything? The unions have made things much worse by providing no incentive for teachers to get better. Giordano is an arrogant jerk.— shirleyf
- The guy should not quit....he should stay....and he can be a poster child and daily reminder of what teachers unions are all about. Education is no longer about children & learning, education is about adults & money.— kelprod2
- I was going to congratulate you, kelprod. but let me clarify first... you are saying teacher unions are actually about kids, and that this union guy is actually in support of quality public education for all children, right? so he'd be a good representative to stand up to Christie's business talks, public education can take a walk stance, right? say it is so... i can't take another heartbreak kp2... *Teacher unions protect teachers from the gristly business side of educational systems that can (and have) worked to teachers' professional detriment. No union, no protection, any slob can roll over an educator with no obstacles. DUE PROCESS and such....
— Pluski - I was going to congratulate you, kelprod. but let me clarify first... you are saying teacher unions are actually about kids, and that this union guy is actually in support of quality public education for all children, right? so he'd be a good representative to stand up to Christie's business talks, public education can take a walk stance, right? say it is so... i can't take another heartbreak kp2... *Teacher unions protect teachers from the gristly business side of educational systems that can (and have) worked to teachers' professional detriment. No union, no protection, any slob can roll over an educator with no obstacles. DUE PROCESS and such.... — Pluski
Comment removed.- good god... you and kp, we do agree that the slobbery, and the blatant neglect and robbery of public education funds for the benefit of the choice selection few is a SIN and definitely unamerican... — Pluski
- Without the teachers union, we can ask the best and brightest teachers in the toughest schools and pay them more for doing it.
Now there is no incentive to teach there and most teachers choose not to.
This is not Rocket Science.— factsfirst - Do you really think the best and brightest people are going into the field of education? The philosophy in this country is those who can do and those who can't teach. You couldn't pay enough money to people to teach in the roughest schools. You are living in a dream world if you think students from Harvard, Yale, Pennsylvania, MIT or any of the top schools are going to waste their time working for a public that has such an anti education philosophy. They will apply their skills to make big bucks in the business world not in some inner city school. You are darn lucky anyone wants to deal with the economic, societal, social and educational problems in the toughest schools. — mindstorms
- "we can ask the ... in the toughest schools"? what do you mean ask them in? More like make them go. Tough schools are "tough" because the kids are allowed to run the show, teachers get no help, and the whole thing is impossible. most teachers are caring, competent, and committed. Otherwise they wouldn't last. Problem is they have no authority to teach and uphold rules. You must not understand incentives for teachers. the incentive is getting the job done. — Pluski
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