Conference presentation on criminal defendant Ref Rodriguez

Legal scholar Robert D. Skeels gave a twenty minute talk on criminal defendant Refugio “Ref” Rodriguez of the California Charter Schools Association at a conference on school privatization on October 1, 2017.

Conference presentation on criminal defendant Ref Rodriguez

Criminal defendant Ref Rodriguez, an introduction

Corporate charter school mogul Refugio “Ref” Rodriguez has been in the news lately. First, for his being elected President of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board of Education. Second, he is facing criminal charges of three felony counts, including conspiracy and perjury, and 25 misdemeanor counts of assumed name contribution.

Who is this rising star of the California Charter Schools Association? How did he end up on LAUSD’s board despite having never attended, nor worked at a public school? Why are these charges no surprise to Los Angeles public education activists? All of the questions and more answered in a talk by Robert D. Skeels at 2:30 PM during Defend Public Education NOW’s Opposing Charter Schools Conference. This talk, and topic, is one of many at the event.

Conference: Opposing Charter Schools
Saturday, September 30, 2017 from 11 AM — 4 PM
Southern California Library
6120 S Vermont Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90044

Robert D. Skeels is a Juris Doctor candidate specializing in education policy and the law. His work appears in a range of publications including Jacobin, Truthout, and CounterPunch. He is one of the contributors for schoolsmatter.info

Criminal defendant Ref Rodriguez, an introduction

Admitting no wrongdoing, Ref Rodriguez and Jacqueline Elliot resigned from all PUC Corporate Charter Boards

Admitting no wrongdoing, Ref Rodriguez and Jacqueline Elliot resigned from all PUC Corporate Charter Boards #LAUSD pic.twitter.com/xGZ5PQpmxz

— RDSkeels4Schoolboard (@RDSkeels4LAUSD) July 7, 2015

Admitting no wrongdoing, Ref Rodriguez and Jacqueline Elliot resigned from all PUC Corporate Charter Boards... by Robert D. Skeels

Admitting no wrongdoing, Ref Rodriguez and Jacqueline Elliot resigned from all PUC Corporate Charter Boards

Schools Matter: What are Ref Rodriguez's ties to the Gülen cult, and why is the Armenian community supporting Bennett Kayser?

First published on Schools Matter on April 23, 2015

---

“Review of the financial statements and accounting records noted: non-disclosure of related party transactions; failure to maintain required fund reserves; failure to appropriately apply accrual basis of accounting; lack of monitoring of cash receipts and deposits process; lack of documentation for disbursements; lack of control over journal entries, and lack of adequate training for the accounting staff.” — Los Angeles Unified School District, Office of the Inspector General

Refugio "Ref" Rodriguez is arguably as secretive as the Gülen religious cult. Secrecy isn't the only thing the two charter giants have in common. While there's no direct evidence of collaboration, there is plenty of circumstantial evidence connecting these charter conspirators.

Rodriguez's charter empire and Gülenist movement are both funded by Walmart fortune heirs. The LA School Report blog's Vanessa Romo wrote about Rodriguez's corporate charter network on January 20, 2015:

"All got their seed money from the biggest players in education reform — either the Walton Family Foundation or the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He [Ref Rodriguez] says all but a handful of PUC schools out-perform the surrounding public schools." [emphasis mine]

The same Walton Family Foundation funds the largest chain of privately managed charter schools in the United States, namely the Gülenist Movement:

"The Walton family, founder of Wal-mart, the worldwide retail giant, has donated millions of dollars to schools considered to be associated with the Gülen community." [emphasis mine]

The common thread is Walmart fortune heiress, Carrie Walton Penner. She is currently the California Charter Schools Association's (CCSA) Board Vice-Chair (term ending 6/30/2017). Her close friend Rodriguez was a CCSA Board member from 2005 to 2009. Her mutual funding of both Rodriguez's lucrative PUC corporate charter network, and the Gülen charter school network (including Magnolia charters) is undisputed.

Another strong piece of evidence is that Magnolia branches of the Gülen charter school network bloomed under Rodriguez's CCSA board tenure. No less than five Magnolia schools were opened during the Rodriguez era:

1. 2007 Magnolia Science Academy – 2 Valley (MSA-2)
2. 2008 Magnolia Science Academy – 3 Carson (MSA-3)
3. 2008 Magnolia Science Academy – 4 Venice (MSA-4)
4. 2008 Magnolia Science Academy – 5 (MSA-5)
5. 2009 Magnolia Science Academy – 6 Palms (MSA-6)

The proliferation of Gülen charter schools under Rodriguez's CCSA board term might explain why he has remained silent as to the serious charges of malfeasance against those schools. Rodriguez, who claims he wants to see "bad charters shut down," would do well to read Scott M. Folsom's sage words on the acts committed:

"Parental Choice does not give the right to parents to choose to send their kids to a bad school -- whether the school is bad because it does a crummy job of teaching students or managing the public's funds."

The fact that Rodriguez has been endorsed by long-time Gülenist supporters Monica Garcia and Caprice Young doesn't bode well for him offering any defenses. The latter is now a Gülen employee.

The unequivocal support of Los Angeles' Armenian community of Rodriguez's opponent, the Honorable Bennett Kayser, may be the most damning piece of evidence. Magnolia is tightly aligned with the Gülenist Pacifica Institute. In 2011 Armenian groups protested the organization's ties to Turkish groups denying the 1915-1918 Armenian genocide. That Ref Rodriguez and Monica Garcia are closely aligned to genocide deniers should concern voters to no end. Following is a press release announcing an Asbarez.com article discussing Kayser's broad support by Armenians.

---

Vote. Give. Do. | Asbarez.com

Garen Yegparin, a journalist of Asbaraz Armeian news, wrote an excellent piece on the importance of voting, donating, and volunteering for your local candidates over the next few weeks.

Yegparin specifically writes about Bennett's race and what is at stake this Tuesday, May 19th: 

"But perhaps the most subtly important LA election is for the school board’s District 5 seat. Bennett Kayser, the incumbent running for reelection placed second, and faces a very strong challenger in the runoff. Kayser’s opponent is supported with serious money from the charter school movement (specifically, the California Charter Schools Association Advocates and its various tentacles), the same people from whom the Turkish Gulen movement has benefitted as it successfully encroaches on LAUSD schools."

"Consider that when all the spending in this race is added up (by the candidates themselves and independent expenditure committees for and against the candidates) Kayser’s opponent comes out 43% ahead in dollar terms! This is very unusual. It is more commonly the incumbent that has the money edge. It speaks to how much Kayser is being targeted." 

"We should be assisting him as much as possible. Unfortunately, his district covers areas which are not home to very many Armenians, which speaks to the principled nature of his stance. So that leaves volunteering (making phone calls or walking neighborhoods) and campaign donations, both of which can be done through the Kayser’s website, www.bennett2015.com."
 

Bennett Kayser is endorsed by the Armenian National Committee of America Western Region and the Armenian Council of America.  Kayser will also carry a resolution at the next LAUSD Board Meeting recognizing the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

**Click here to read the rest of the article on Asbarez.com**

**Click here to donate to Bennett's campaign**

**Click here to volunteer for Bennett's campaign**  

Paid for by Re-Elect Bennett Kayser for School Board 2015 - General – 419 North Larchmont Blvd., #37, Los Angeles, CA 90004 – ID #1375891 – More information available at Ethics.lacity.org – Bennett2015.com – (323) 535-9930

Schools Matter: What are Ref Rodriguez's ties to the Gülen cult, and why is the Armenian community supporting Bennett Kayser?

Patch: Ref Rodriguez and PUC's abject 50% CSU proficiency

First published on Echo Park Patch on February 4, 2015

---

PUC's 50% CSU proficiency. These are Ref Rodriguez's best results with cherry picked students and extra funding?

Rather than running for school board Ref Rodriguez and his corporate charter cronies should be more focused on their own schools, which despite their marketing claims of “college ready”, are doing far worse than LAUSD public schools as a whole. For example, in 2013 students from Rodriguez’s Early College Academy for Leaders and Scholars (ECALS) took the California State University (CSU) entrance exams. Half of those taking the test FAILED to test proficient in either mathematics or English. That fifty percent that failed had to take remedial high school classes. If that’s the best that so-called “high performing” chains like PUC can do, then we need to revisit this whole handing public money over to private entities. Fifty percent remediation rates isn’t about “lifting kids out of poverty”, it’s taking advantage of students so that charter executives can grow their bank accounts.

Patch: Ref Rodriguez and PUC's abject 50% CSU proficiency

K12NN Wire: Ref Rodriguez doesn't get to claim he's never heard of California Charter Schools Association

First published on K12NN Wire on February 2, 2015

---

"There's never a short supply of People of Color willing to tokenize themselves, and prosper, at the expense of marginalized millions." — Professor Khaled A. Beydoun, Critical Race Theorist

The Deasy (LA) School Report blog posted an entry in which Ref Rodriguez tries to distance himself from California Charter Schools Association's widely condemned campaign literature. His equivocating quotes deserved a response. Here is an edited version of my commentary on that post.

---

The well-heeled Refugio "Ref" Rodriguez's PUC Corporation Charter Schools have been dues paying members of the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) since their founding. In fact, CCSA lists 14 of Rodriguez's lucrative PUC schools as CCSA members. Moreover, Rodriguez is close friends with nearly all of the CCSA's board members, including their Secretary, Ana Ponce of the CNCA Corporate charter chain. So when Rodriguez talks about "the sponsors" of the reprehensible mailer attacking the Honorable Bennett Kayser, he isn't talking about some third party organization doing an Independent Expenditure (IE) that he has no relationship with. Instead Rodriguez is talking about an organization that he is a long standing member of, that his corporate charter chain pays dues to, and that is comprised of his business colleagues and close friends.

Rodriguez's weakly worded "criticism" of his trade association's repugnant and reprehensible mailer is nothing more than crocodile tears. How dishonest is it of him to pretend like he has no ties to the CCSA? His inaction in this regard amounts to a tacit endorsement of CCSA's mailer.

The only good faith means by which Ref Rodriguez could disassociate himself with his CCSA's IE is by following the example of the Honorable Dr. George McKenna. Namely, McKenna's principled and unequivocal condemnation of the mailer and the CCSA's SuperPAC, the demand that they withdraw their endorsement, and the demand that his name not be used in any more CCSA/Rodriguez campaign materials. Only then can Rodriguez claim that he opposes the deplorable and dishonest messaging his colleagues are mailing out to voters.

About California Charter Schools Association (CCSA)

Some background information on CCSA, the trade industry organization Rodriguez' schools belong to.

• The California Charter Schools Association was founded by bigoted nativist Steve Poizner. Poizner is on record as saying he wanted to "resurrect Prop 187", and a quick perusal of his campaign materials from his failed gubernatorial bid reveals a platform not unlike that of the Minutemen or the Klan. Poizner served on the CCSA Board of Directors for many years, if I recall correctly, right up until he ran for governor.
• The UCLA Project for Civil Rights has found that charter schools have revived Jim Crow style segregation. Los Angeles charter schools are particularly egregious in this regard.
• The LAUSD Office of Independent Monitor (OIM) has found repeatedly that students with disabilities are "significantly underrepresented" at Los Angeles charter schools.
• CCSA's Board Vice Chair is Carrie Walton Penner (her late father, John Walton holds an "In Memoriam" seat). These, of course, are the Waltons of Walmart infamy, an oppressive enterprise whose record on race issues is spotty at best.

K12NN Wire: Ref Rodriguez doesn't get to claim he's never heard of California Charter Schools Association

Stop corporate charter school greed, stop Ref Rodriguez!

Revenue Hungry Charter School Executives Like Puc's Ref Rodriguez Use Money For Kids' Classrooms On Advertising!

Ref Rodriguez and his fellow well paid PUC executives squander tax payer money for advertising instead of the classroom. Rodriguez is wrong for LAUSD and wrong for our students! Because there's essentially no oversight or financial transparency for these privately managed corporate charter schools, there's a dearth of information on how they're spending our funds. Rodriguez's glossy, four-color ads could have paid for a lot of supplies for public school students. Bright Star Charter School Corporation also uses money for advertising instead for kids in the classroom. These revenue hungry charter chains also claim "waiting lists." If that's true, then why the need to advertise?

Stop corporate charter school greed, stop Ref Rodriguez!

Stop corporate charter school greed, stop Ref Rodriguez!