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Randi –

Let me remind you what you said in your August memo to journalists:

“Many [of the Desert Trails] parents report feeling deceived by the for-profit charter-backed organizers who came in to gather petitions. They actually sued to take their signatures back when they found out they were being used to give their school away to a charter company."

Your response ignores the fact that your for-profit charter organizers are imaginary. It was I – and other parents from Desert Trails Parents Union – who went door-to-door collecting signatures for our Parent Trigger petition. We were the ones who knocked on doors, stood outside our school collecting signatures and worked long hard hours, often in the snow, hail and freezing cold, to make it happen. There was no for-profit company collecting signatures. You know that. This company is imaginary. It does not exist. You made it up because it supports your conspiracy theory.

I’m deeply offended by your continuing assertion that members of the Desert Trails Parents Union, an independent non-profit organization, were unthinking stooges working for an imaginary for-profit business. We are trapped in a failing school. We want a great school for our kids. You have never visited our school, talked to our parents and teachers, or met our kids. I don’t need you to tell me from the other side of the country what my motivations are. I am doing this for my child and all the children of Desert Trails.

You also say Parent Revolution and Ben Austin support for-profit charter school operators. You may not be aware of a recent opinion editorial in the Detroit Free Press from Ben opposing a proposed Michigan Parent Trigger law because it allows for-profit charter school operators, and you also may not be aware that Parent Revolution and the Desert Trails Parents Union have a history of opposing for-profit charter schools.

We have tried to work collaboratively with the teachers union to reform our failing school, even proposing a solution for Desert Trails based on contracts that your union has negotiated in other school districts. We seek collaboration because we can’t have great schools without great teachers. But we also can’t work with leaders who make up conspiracy theories to distract from the reality that our school is failing and the parents are demanding something better for our kids.

When you make up conspiracy theories that makes you a conspiracy theorist. You may want to rely on conspiracy theories because it helps your political argument. We don't seek conspiracy theories or political arguments, we seek partnerships and common sense solutions that make our horribly failing school better for our kids.