Father Michael Pfleger, a Roman Catholic priest and social activist in Chicago, was interviewed last month by Fox News. His honest commentary on the character assassination of Rev. Jeremiah Wright, the villainization of Minister Louis Farrakhan, and America’s false image of Dr. Martin Luther King is well worth watching.

St. Louis Public Schools Superintendent Diana Bouriaw is one of 17 applicants to be the next head of the Cincinnati Public Schools, according to a Cincinnati newspaper.

Bourisaw, who has led SLPS since July 2006, decided not to re-apply for her job after the Special Administrative Board unexpectedly announced they were searching for a new superintendent.

Considering the relatively small group of educators with experience leading urban districts, Bourisaw may have an advantage on her competition for the Cincinnati job. In fact, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer, several school board members there have specifically said experience in a large, urban setting is a high priority for the roughly 34,000-student district. Bourisaw is just one of seven applicants from school systems with more than 20,000 students. Enrollment in SLPS was 32,135 last year.

If you can’t beat ‘em, get ‘em to join. That may be the thinking over at the American Federation of Teachers.

Long the vocal opponents of the charter school movement, the teachers’ union AFT Local 420 will announce Tuesday that they are embracing one such school: the Construction Careers Center high school, whose teachers will be joining the union as part of an agreement quietly reached last month.

AFT Local 420 will represent the roughly 30 teachers and aides working at Construction Careers, whose charter is sponsored by St. Louis Public Schools.

The Construction Careers Center, located at 1224 Grattan, just east of Lafayette Square and west of Soulard, was established as the first charter high school in the country focused on preparing students for jobs in the construction industry and has an 88 percent employment rate for its graduates. Teachers at the school make an average annual salary of around $42,000.

Last month, the anti-war women group CODEPINK St.Louis drove through the night to New Orleans for V-Day, the 10th anniversary of Eve Ensler’s “The Vagina Monologues”, and to share in the struggle and celebration of 1,200 women who returned to New Orleans after being previously displace by Hurricane Katrina.

Is Hillary Clinton trying to sabotage Barack Obama so she can come back in 2012?

I believe so.

Respected Congressman James Clyburn (D-SC) thinks so:

The Post-Dispatch’s Bill McCulloch believes it too:

It became clear a couple of months ago that Barack Obama was going to get the nomination. Given the way the delegates are allotted on a proportional basis rather than on a winner-take-all basis, Obama’s lead became insurmountable during his winning streak. And there was never a realistic hope that the superdelegates would overrule the will of the voters. If they did, there would be chaos. The party would risk alienating its single most faithful bloc — African-Americans.

So let’s play chess. Let’s look ahead. Let’s assume that Obama wins the nomination. If you are the Clintons, what then?

You’ve got to hope that he loses the general election. If he wins in 2008, he’ll run for re-election in 2012. That means the next chance for Hillary would be 2016. She’ll be 69 by the time that election comes around. (She’ll be 61 in October of this year.) Chances are, her time will have passed.

So what do you think?

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People will be taking their hopes and frustrations about public education to the streets, rallying against reform efforts that include any kind of privatization.

“Free, public education is the cornerstone of a democracy,” reads the e-flyer. “Public education is under siege by those seeking to privatize it for a profit. Together, we will call for a more equitable system of public education for all and ensure literacy as a basic civil right.”

The Defend Public Education Rally will take place Wednesday, April 30, starting at 6:00 PM at the Old Courthouse downtown. It will feature Thunderheart, a group of traditional Native American drummers, and speakers, including:

• Rebecca Rogers, Literacy for Social Justice Teacher Research Group, Acting for a Better Community Committee, Professor of Education, UMSL
• Ora Lewis-Clark, YMCA Literacy Programs, Advocate for Adult Literacy Education
• Donna Jones, Parent, member of the Elected School Board, St. Louis Public Schools
• Chad Beffa, SLPS parent, public school advocate, and candidate for State Rep (67th District)
• Byron Clemens, Regional Vice President, AFT Missouri
• Jackie Taylor, Literacy President Group
• Chuc Smith, Instead of War and Retired SLPS Math Teacher
• Cynthia Peters, World Education and The Change Agent

Report by Special PubDef Correspondent David Chilenski

Friday, Sports4Kids wrapped up its demo week at eight locations in the St. Louis Public Schools. The 12-year-old nonprofit which first started in the San Francisco Bay Area is now looking to bring a unique brand
of recess play to St. Louis and New Orleans next year.

Sports4Kids focuses on reducing conflicts during school recess. “You ask a principal or a teacher and they’ll tell you the bullying, arguments and fights all start at recess,” said Calvet Liburd, a Washington D.C. site coordinator for Sports4Kids. Liburd was in St. Louis this week for the demo.

“Our school staff is impressed with the organization and how they integrate sports and play into the curriculum,” said Principal Carey Cunningham of Simmons-Marshall Elementary School.

Sports4Kids focuses on public elementary schools with at least 50% of the children in free or reduced lunch programs. A trained staff member works at a school every day to provide fun and safe structured activities and conflict resolution strategies during recess and after school.

Sports4Kids is hoping to be in eight St. Louis elementary schools next fall. They are now hiring. Click here for more info.