The New York City United Federation of Teachers, with its opposition to a strong Race to the Top application and more charter schools has gotten national attention, to the embarrassment of New York State. First by Time magazine (here), and now in today's Washington Post editorial.

The Washington Post noted that failure to raise the charter cap in New York and to remove the ban on student test data "may well doom" the state's Race to the Top application. It went on to admonish U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan that if he's serious about his reform program, "he can begin by tossing out New York's bid and challenging it to do better." Ouch.

This nationally-recognized disgrace by the UFT and its state parent, NYSUT, may not embarrass the unions or cause them to change their behavior. But it should cause state policymakers to rethink what they do on the unions' behalf.

Peter Murphy
for The Chalkboard
(see me Twitter @ PeterMurphy26)