Up North Progressive
Politics and commentary for Northern MichiganOptometrist, Charter School Manager, and Now Convicted Felon Can Be Added To His Curriculum Vitae: The Continuing Story of Dr. Steve Ingersoll
Wednesday , 11, March 2015 Dr. Ingersoll, Section 16 1 CommentToday in federal district court Steve Ingersoll was found guilty on 3 of 6 fraud charges. His literal partner in crime, Roy Bradley, was found guilty of a sole count of fraud. The wives and sibling also named in the indictment were acquitted. Ingersoll is still free on bond, and will be sentenced on June 16, 2015. While we wait to see if Ingersoll spends any time in prison for his white collar crime, Let’s take a look at the aftermath of what he has spent the past two decades doing.
Ingersoll got into the for-profit charter school racket in the 1990’s. According to a teacher who worked for him, his shell game with taxpayer money even happened back then. Defrauding the government out of money was nothing new to him, and despite Dan Quisenberry’s laughable quote in the Bay City Times, the fact that this case eventually ended up in court had nothing to do with excellent oversight and accountability of the authorizer. Lake Superior State University had documentation from Grand Traverse Academy’s lawyer and Mike Flanagan that there was a problem with Ingersoll’s finances and Lake Superior State University did absolutely nothing to stop Ingersoll. It took a federal indictment to reign him in.
LSSU did such a good job with their program of oversight and accountability they chartered another for-profit charter school in Bay City for Ingersoll, where a contractor with a track record of hiring homeless people off the street and paying them under the table with cash removed asbestos illegally. This means there are school children breathing air inside a building where asbestos particles float around to be inhaled. Bradley was found guilty of that in an earlier trial, but he’s in the process of appealing that decision.
The state of Michigan needs to reconsider allowing more for-profit charter schools to open. Ingersoll is one person out of many currently taking state and federal money to operate these schools, and it’s obvious from what just happened with one charter school manager that there is no accountability and oversight happening at all. Millions in taxpayer money gone, and what is there to show for it? Charter schools that rank at the bottom in academic achievement and a curriculum that includes controversial, unproven vision therapy touted to cure ADHD and Autism. Bay City Academy seems to be subconsciously admitting something with this kindergarten round up poster recently posted online, don’t you think?
Graymont Makes Third Offer for 10,000 Acres of State Owned Land: You Still Have Time To Contact The DNR
Tuesday , 10, March 2015 DNR, Environment 17 Comments
On March 6, 2015, British Columbia-based limestone company Graymont submitted a third revised proposal to purchase 10,000 acres of state forest land that spans three Upper Peninsula counties. The royalty for the limestone is still 30 cents per ton. Changes to the proposal include the value of the timber on the land in the price, and allowing the public and the DNR mediation and arbitration over land use. The changes to the proposal meet the approval of the DNR commission, and Keith Creager will make his final decision on March 19.
The economic development fund Graymont offered to the town and school district in Rexton is still in place. The amount of the grant would be $100,000 per year for five years starting in 2015. On the application, Graymont doesn’t know if they own the mineral rights to the land or not, and they still offer no business plan for how many jobs the mining operation would create for the community. Unlike in January, this third proposal has been approved, which means the state may agree to sell the Canadian company 10,000 acres of land that belongs to the people of Michigan.
What will the region look like if Graymont wins their bid? About 2,000 acres of the land will be open-pit mines. 7,000 will be used for underground mining. The proposal mentions dolomite as well as limestone extraction from the land. The 7,000 acre parcel would still be under the management of the state, however Graymont wants to reserve 400 acres of that land for infrastructure.
Graymont’s proposal includes relocating trails used by the public so people can still access the parts of the land Graymont will allow the public to use. Once mining operations are completed, Graymont will give the state “Right of First Offer” to buy the land back.
Considering the amount of money Graymont will potentially make if their proposal is accepted, they stand to make a lot more money that 30 cents per ton and half a million dollars to pay off the citizens of Rexton. Wetlands are going to disappear, and people’s air and water quality are going to suffer. The parcels of land Graymont wants spans over three counties. This is a major mining operation that will permanently change the landscape.
People wishing to leave comments with the DNR can still do so until March 19. You can write to Keith Creagh by email at DNRGraymontProposalComments@michigan.gov or mail a comment to Customer Service Center, ATTN: Kerry Wieber, 8717 N. Roscommon Road, Roscommon, MI 48653. If you haven’t done so yet, please take the time to email or write and let your voice be heard.
President Obama Isn’t Black Enough To March In Selma According To Dave Agema.
Monday , 9, March 2015 History Nerd, Tea Party Leave a comment
Dave Agema just doesn’t know when to quit. You would have thought his New Year’s online foot in mouth problem would have been enough to convince him that when it comes to talking about race, he always comes off sounding like a big ol’ bigoted racist. No, he didn’t learn his lesson, because this afternoon he posted another screed on Facebook accusing the president of not being black enough to qualify to march in Selma on the 50th anniversary of the first march.
He begins by pointing out that the Republican party “obolished” slavery, but forgets to mention that of the three amendments to the constitution, the 14th, he and his conservative friends want to do away with it. Seems odd that the party of anti-slavery as he claims wants to undo their good anti-slavery work. The SOUTHERN Democrats did not do it because they weren’t Republicans, and they were bitter and angry about the Civil War. You also can’t help but notice that while he’s ranting about President Obama not being black enough, he can’t help but jab at the new president of the Michigan Republican Party, Ronna Romney McDaniel, by mentioning how Republicans were pushing against the Mormon practice of polygamy at the same time.
But just how much not black enough is President Obama? Dave Agema it seems has done some research:
Obama is 50% white, 43.75% Arabic and 6,26% black.
That makes 100.01% Good math skills, Dave! Where does he even get numbers like this? Must be from the same research that shows the president’s birth certificate will never be real enough, no matter how much the state of Hawaii says it is.
So not only are Democrats horrible racists, but we elect a president who claims to be a black man but can’t possibly be a black man, because his dad and step dad were Muslim and communist and comminist. That last one is something completely new, but it must be bad because one of Obama’s dads did it.
What Agema forgets, or possibly just wants to “SPIN” about how not racist Republicans are is that starting in the 1960’s and picking up momentum in the 1980’s was this very real thing called the Southern Strategy. A large migration of Southern Dixicrats, Jim Crow segregationists and people still bitter and angry about the Civil War switched parties. All of those racist people who didn’t want to end slavery and filibustered the Civil Rights Act became Republicans and voted for Ronald Reagan.
And now today, Republicans want to repeal the 14th amendment, gut the Voting Rights Act, and scream how their taxes are too high, which is just a dog-whistle for economically enforcing Jim Crow in the United States.
Nice Try, Dave.
A Special Kind of Stupid: @Todd_Courser @GaryGlennUS @CindyGamrat and the Obtuse Electoral Vote-Rigging Bill
Sunday , 8, March 2015 Presidential Primary 2016, Tea Party, Tealiban 4 Comments
Back in November Pete Lund came up with a really bad idea. Let’s split the electoral votes Michigan has in the presidential election between the winner and runner up. That way, the state becomes even more irrelevant to candidates who need to win the most electoral votes to make it to the 270 finish line and become the next President of the United States.
Michigan has 16 electoral votes, and despite losing votes due to shrinking population the state is still an important “swing state” in the presidential election. This means presidential candidates will come to Michigan and campaign more than other states where there are fewer electoral votes. HB 4310 if it were to become law would cause the opposite to happen. What’s the point of coming to Michigan to campaign when the most electoral votes you are guaranteed to win out of 16 is 11? This means Michigan will have the electoral power of a state like Oregon, which has 2 million registered voters. Michigan as 7.3 million registered voters. The Republicans in Michigan want to disenfranchise 5 million Michigan voters.
Why would tea party legislators want to do this? Because making millions of votes in Michigan not count means their garbage tea party candidate has a better chance of winning the state, or at least the majority of electoral votes in the state. They really believe this will help Michigan look better in the election. They’re wrong.
Here is what was said about this stupid idea in November on Up North Progressive:
House Bill
59744310 is not about making Michigan more enticing in a national election. The purpose of this stupid idea is to figure out a way to make sure a Republican wins more electoral votes in Michigan even if the Democratic candidate wins more popular votes. The Nerd said he would veto this bill if it makes it to the governor’s desk, but you can’t trust Snyder with anything he says. He likes lying to the people of Michigan too much when it suits him.
And the same holds true three months later. The Republican Party has nothing to offer the American people except a terrible ideology that embraces racism, hatred of women, unfair labor practices that put more people in poverty, and increased isolation in a world that grows more globally aware every day. Real election reform that fights the fraud Cindy Gamrat, Todd Courser and Gary Glenn want includes no-reason absentee voting, legislation to end gerrymandering of districts (and makes terrible bills like HB 4310 more desirable to the GOP), and possibly even state-wide vote by mail, which would ensure the most voter participation and render Republican election fraud obsolete. It takes a special kind of stupid to dredge up a really stupid idea like HB 4310, but consider the source.
Tom Casperson Just Can’t Take No For An Answer: SR 9 Approved To Support Construction of Marquette County Road 595
Saturday , 7, March 2015 Environment 1 Comment
On March 3, 2015 a Senate resolution co-sponsored by Tom Casperson and Patrick Colbeck was adopted. The resolution supports the Marquette County Road Commission’s lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency’s ruling denying them building County Road 595 in 2013. Eagle Mine says they need the new road because it’s a shortcut to the Humboldt Mill 21 miles away. The only problem with this shortcut is it also cuts through the Dead River, the Yellow Dog Watersheds, The Mulligan Creek headwaters, Voelker Creek, Wildcat Canyon and other federally protected wetlands.
Now it appears that Tom Casperson and the Marquette County Road Commission think a few resolutions will make the Environmental Protection Agency back down and allow the road to be built, despite public outcry from residents and property owners. Others who oppose the road being built include the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, The Marquette County Board of Road Commissioners. and Save the Wild UP, which claims that the county road commission is attempting to circumvent federal regulations and go ahead with the road project.
The road would jeopardize waterways, ground water and drinking water for the local community. The road would also be almost exclusively used for commercial traffic from Eagle Mine. In 2012 when discussion about the proposed road took place, the issue with protecting wetlands and providing alternative routes were discussed, but nothing that satisfied current wetland protection regulations. The US Fish and Wildlife Service and US Army Corps of Engineers asked the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to deny construction of the road, because of the negative impact on protected wetlands.
Now in 2015 the Marquette County Road Commission considers a lawsuit against the EPA and Casperson pushes resolutions to support the road. Eagle Mine promised when they were approved to go into business that they would haul the ore from the mine to a railroad line and move the ore by rail to Humboldt Mill. Rather than make the mine owners keep their promise, Casperson and Colbeck want to undermine the EPA and build a road the feds have already told them they can’t build.
Eagle Mine needs to keep their promise and use the railroad to haul their ore, not destroy wetlands by building a road they were already told once they can’t build. Political theater supporting corporate interests should not be our elected official’s primary purpose.
Jay McNally Doesn’t Want To Answer Questions About Tea Party Charter School
Friday , 6, March 2015 Section 16, Tea Party 2 Comments
It’s fun to watch people who deserve attention finally get it. Especially Jay McNally, Pasquale Battaglia, John Conely and Nick Fiani; all members of the team working to make American Christian Academy American Classical Academy Lindbom Classical Academy Livingston Classical Academy a reality in Brighton.
Except these guys don’t like the attention they’re getting. They don’t seem to understand that once they take public money to open a school, the community has every right to know what they’re doing with their tax dollars. It’s almost as if they were unprepared for what it means to open a for-profit charter school in the first place. They certainly don’t know how to handle the media when they’re asked perfectly reasonable questions. Even more puzzling when the guy answering questions is supposed to be a professional in journalism and public relations. His refusal to answer questions from WHMI and instead reply with a “I’m not going to answer your questions” response however can give us some insight into what the problem is. Let’s take McNally’s response line by line.
In the past few days I have been repeatedly misquoted by WHMI
“WHMI has been reporting facts that I don’t agree with.”
… and have tried to correct factual errors by corresponding with the news director to no avail.
“The news director at WHMI is not Roger Ailes, thus has no interest in providing the proper spin on facts in the way we’re accustomed to our “news” being delivered, preferably with an attractive blonde female.”
Thus, at this time, we decline to answer WHMI’s questions. Most news organizations allow feedback through letters to the editor or in a website combox…
“i.e. Fox News, The Blaze, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, and local talk radio that carries Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity provide the kind of echo chamber we’re used to enjoying.”
Thanks to Saint Ronnie Reagan, news organizations are no longer required to allow equal time for opposing views. The fairness doctrine was a good thing, but Republicans didn’t think so. That’s why they got rid of it in 1987 and WHMI doesn’t have to allow you feedback if they don’t feel like it.
but not WHMI.
Praise Saint Ronnie!
When asked if there was a way for us to present information to WHMI that will not be edited or censored, the news director replied, “As far as a method to convey your message without editing, purchasing advertising is your only avenue.”
Yay, capitalism!
The radio station did nothing wrong, and don’t have to give the whatever classical charter school a platform. If they don’t like having to pay for advertising, they could, you know, answer the questions provided by WHMI. They’re four questions, and none of them are hard to answer.
Unless the “God and country education project” has something to hide.
Game, Set, Match: The Continuing Story of Dr. Steve Ingersoll (But continuing how much longer?)
Thursday , 5, March 2015 Dr. Ingersoll, Section 16 Leave a comment
Yesterday the Up North Progressive had the pleasure of eating lunch with a group of dedicated public school education professionals working at a juvenile detention program. While chatting over our turkey soup, pork fried rice, and pizza, a quick browse through the local headlines brought up the most wonderful news: Testimony from an attorney who had represented Grand Traverse Academy in the past that Steve Ingersoll had told the school board of the for-profit charter school, Grand Traverse Academy, he needed help from them reclassifying money he took from the for-profit charter school on their books because he couldn’t pay then back and pay the taxes on it. This excellent news had to be read twice it was that good, and then shared with the other teachers eating lunch.
The teachers had all heard of GTA, and some of them knew about the fraud trial. The Up North Progressive gave them a quick recap of the investigation, how taxpayer money had been shuffled around to make it disappear from the books and reappear in Ingersoll’s personal bank account for decades, and now testimony had been offered that he knew he was stealing money from GTA and even asked the board to cover it up for him. They were all shocked of course, because anyone working in public education knows how for-profit charter schools siphon money away from public schools leaving less for public schools to effectively educate, while people such as Steve Ingersoll treat our tax dollars like his personal bank.
The discussion shifted to how Ingersoll is an optometrist not an educator and how he used his for-profit charter schools to push his vision therapy, IVL, as an alternative to special education services and his claim that IVL cures ADHD and Autism. The special ed teacher sitting at the table looked up from their lunch and smiled, “We’ve had a couple of kids from GTA come here. They were not cured.”
Let Dr. Steve Ingersoll be the poster child for School Choice. He’s certainly earned it.
Our Christian School Was Never A Christian School: Isn’t Lying One of the Thou Shalt Nots?
Tuesday , 3, March 2015 Section 16 2 Comments
Yesterday Jay McNally of American Christian Academy American Classical Academy Lindbom Classical Academy Livingston Classical Academy wrote a rebuttal to Eclectablog after a series of articles were published on the blog reporting the treatment of Glenn and Sue Ellen Ikens after they tried to enter the Lindbom Elementary School last Saturday for an “open to the public” open house. McNally called Ikens a unionist (as if belonging to a union is a crime), and claimed he was behaving in a threatening manner that made the owner of the building, our friend Pasquale Battaglia, call the police.
The rebuttal goes on to say that no one from Eclectablog ever spoke to Battaglia or anyone else involved with opening their for-profit charter school. As for the term Tea Party Charter School, that was the title given to the first article published on Up North Progressive about Battaglia and his plans to open his school in Brighton. The purpose of that article was to showcase Battaglia’s rampant racism, homophobia, hatred of Islam, and his blatant disrespect for the president and first lady on social media. Essentially, anyone who doesn’t fit into Battaglia’s narrow fundamentalist Christian ultra nationalist ideology deserves his abuse as far as he’s concerned. And he wants to open schools where children will be taught this same bigotry and ignorance.
I have briefly exchanged words with Battaglia over social media. He used the word progressive against me as if it were an insult, asked me if I was Anonymous and did I just get back from Ferguson, and then told me the reason Jefferson sent the Navy to fight the Barbary Wars was to destroy Islam.
Jay McNally also insists the charter schools they want to open in Brighton, Warren, and Ann Arbor were never intended to be Christian schools. Up North Progressive has already written about the origins of the “classical” academy model and offered evidence to prove McNally’s statement is false. But if that’s not enough, then by all means, let’s go to the source.
On October 21, 2011, Pasquale Battaglia wrote a blog on the Lapeer County Tea Party Patriots website with the title, “The God and Country Education Project.” This is also part of the title of an 80 page ebook on Amazon written by Matthew May being sold for the bargain price of $5.99. There are no reviews and it’s non-existent in site rankings. Battaglia rambles through the blog with plenty of grammatical errors and jarring turns of phrase, but through it his intentions for his for-profit charter schools are clear. He states that, “schools of choice will not be a good choice as long as there was a government hand on the curriculum and the purse strings.” He is correct of course, as schools of choice will never be a good choice, but it’s ironic that he eschews government involvement in his schools while he’s begging the government to fund them.
Battaglia then gets all nostalgic, describing a scene from Little House on the Prairie where the school was a perfect harmonious microcosm of the local community and, “the first and foremost “text book” was always the Holy Bible.” So much for claims that Battaglia’s tax-funded schools will be non-religious.
The real meat of this blog however is his reasoning for doing this. Battaglia believes if he can open these schools nationwide then children can be indoctrinated into fundamentalist Christian ultra nationalist ideology, and those “classical” academy children will grow up to be god-fearing patriotic voters. He wraps up his blog quoting Samuel Adams and Joseph Stalin. Still haven’t figured out which one is God and which one is country.
Battaglia, McNally and everyone else involved with this for-profit charter school can make the case that they really intended all along for their school to not be a religious school, but Hillsdale College is a college with a far-right fundamentalist Christian doctrine. The classical academies they have opened with the Barney charter school project make no effort to hide the fact they are Christian in origin and use curriculum that teaches creationism. Honestly, who do they think they’re fooling? Glenn and Sue Ellen Ikens, and the other people of the Brighton community who don’t want Battaglia’s schools to open know the truth. That is the reason why the people behind Livingston Classical Academy feel threatened.
If nothing else, Battaglia hasn’t toned down the hate and vitriol on his twitter account.
1994 Michigan Militia “Brass Roots” Plaque Installation Bill Reintroduced To The Michigan House
Saturday , 28, February 2015 Tea Party Leave a comment
In 1994, Libertarian Senate candidate Jon Coon held a rally on the Michigan capital steps. 10,000 people, many of them from the Michigan Militia, attended the event. Along with speakers such as Ted Nugent, Gary Stewart of Speak Out America, and Ray Southwell of the Michigan Militia. Hundreds of pounds of spent brass shell casings were donated and melted down into the above plaque. For 21 years, 2nd amendment fans have worked to get the Brass Roots plaque placed permanently on the Michigan capital lawn as a memorial for those who refuse to give up their guns.
The mid 1990s were a tumultuous time in the United States. After the 1993 standoff at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, and the bombing of the federal government building in Oklahoma City in 1995, many people believed the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms was going to take away people’s guns. This led to a blatant misinterpretation of the 2nd amendment of the U.S. Constitution and groups of people who liked wearing military gear and carrying guns began to pop up around the country. The Michigan Militia became infamous when the FBI and BATF arrived at a Decker farmhouse to arrest co-conspirators Terry and James Nichols, the brothers who assisted Timothy McVeigh in making the fertilizer bomb that destroyed the federal building in Oklahoma, and took McVeigh with them to at least one Michigan Militia meeting.
The new bill trying to get the plaque out of storage is HB 4240. Introduced on February 25, 2015, it is part of a bill amending the Michigan State Historic Site Act. This bill, like the bill introduced last year numbered HB 5595 is sponsored by Martin Howrylak. Last year’s bill never got out of committee.
In the 21 years since the plaque was made, not one law infringing on second amendment rights has happened in this state, or anywhere else in the United States. We can still buy and own guns despite the FBI and BATF existing. In fact, many of the laws that gave the BATF their teeth have been throttled by Republican politicians through NRA lobbying. In 2015 we have people carrying assault weapons into grocery stores and restaurants, insisting not allowing them to do so infringes on their 2nd amendment rights.
HB 4240 hopefully will end up just like previous bills to put this plaque created by the likes of Ted Nugent and the Michigan Militia on the lawn of our capital – mothballed.
“Efficacy of the Curriculum is Relevant to the Charges”: The Continuing Story of Dr. Steve Ingersoll
Saturday , 28, February 2015 Dr. Ingersoll, Section 16 1 Comment
Up North Progressive recently had the distinction of being featured on Diane Ravitch’s blog this week. The Steve Ingersoll trial received much deserved national exposure when two teachers’ accounts of their experiences working for Dr. Ingersoll, published on this blog, was quoted by MSU Music Education Professor, Dr. Mitchell Robinson. More people need to know the state of for-profit charter schools in Michigan, their lack of oversight from authorizers, and the continued operation of poor-performing “schools” receiving our tax funds.
The comments on Ravitch’s blog were especially revealing. One commenter has experience with the machine Ingersoll used at LDA to test students’ eye movements and prescribe Integrated Visual Learning:
Back in 1968, I was a reading specialist who worked in a federally funded project. We were “encouraged” to use this same tracking approach. It was called a Controlled Reader. There were probably 1,000-2000 kids we serviced. Everyone had to use these machines for part of their instruction. At the end of the project, reading eye cameras were used to track the eye movements as children read texts. The result of this research study was that there was no significant difference between groups who used the machines and a control group.
If only it were possible to discover if Dr. Ingersoll’s controlled reader machine was from the 1960’s.
It’s important to bring up IVL again because this week during the ongoing trial in Bay City, Ingersoll’s ‘innovative’ curriculum came up after reading Cole Waterman and Miss Fortune’s most recent accounts of the ongoing proceedings. The Smart Schools model was brought up by prosecution and defense.
During the hearing, the government argued that the efficacy of the curriculum—that is, the successes of the Smart Schools model—was irrelevant to the charges in the indictment. Defense counsel for Steven Ingersoll claimed that the information may be “relevant to his state of mind but that the issue of relevancy should be determined during the trial”. Ludington agreed, noting that a relevancy determination would depend on the factual situation presented at trial.
It appears that IVL may be used as part of the defense to prove that Ingersoll’s vision therapy has beneficial results; that his claims of curing 90% of children with ADHD attending his school were so successful, that they were taken off Ritalin. What evidence can the defense provide to prove IVL’s success? The only study available to the public is the 20 year old “Brighton Study” which has never been peer reviewed and as far as anyone knows, has never been independently researched to find if the initial results were even accurate. Of the people so far willing to disclose their observations about IVL in Ingersoll’s schools, they were unimpressed, never saw anyone cured, or found their children’s academic achievement falling behind their peers in public schools. This has never stopped Ingersoll from claiming that IVL is superior to current, research-based Special Education programs used in schools nationwide today.
The large gains made by the IVL and syntonics combined group may indicate a dramatic new avenue to be used as a special education intervention.
In actuality, Ingersoll and his IVL partner, Dr. Mark Noss believe IVL should replace Special Education. From what limited access to IVL is available, and from what those who have experience with it have said, it’s doubtful Ingersoll’s brand of vision therapy can claim to be very successful.
Using the efficacy of Steve Ingersoll’s curriculum to prove he’s not a fraud will be entertaining at least. Thank you, Judge Ludington for allowing the defense to present this incredible evidence. More on the trial will be posted here when available.