By @BginKC

My husband is a teacher. Specifically, he is a high school teacher and his students are, in order to get into the school where he teaches, “at risk.” Because of his profession, the name “Michelle Rhee” is an epithet in our house, so there was no small bit of crowing on his part that this morning he learned, via Facebook, that the Missouri leader of her group is stepping down.

Lea Crusey, state director for Students First, will be leaving thast position over the summer. She and her husband are moving to Washington, DC.

In the last few years Students First has emerged as one of several reform groups in Missouri. They have generally been at odds with the teachers’ unions as they push for systemic reform. And they have found the Republican leadership – especially in the House – to be supportive of that effort. [emphasis added]

Reform…reform…they keep using that word, but I do not think it means what they think it means…

Unless “reform” has been redefined to mean “destroy teacher tenure.” That is really the only “reform” they have on their agenda. The fact that they are anti-teacher puts the lie to their very name. You can not, by definition, put students first if you are trying to destroy teachers.

There has been no announcement of a successor yet, so it remains to be seen whether the group will promote someone who is already in the Capitol and knows the secret handshake and the passwords to get in to the private soirees, or whether they will move in someone from elsewhere in the organization who will have to get their legs on the run.