Seeking Turkish Teachers...

Americans need not apply

We checked the unemployment rate in North Carolina, and as of January 2012, it stood at 9.9%.

That being said and coupled with the Raleigh Triad Math and Science Academy’s employment advertisement (as found on their website) for “math and science” teachers, and a “business administrator,” (aka -- keepers of the Tuzuk money), it is safe to assume that it is once again time for the yearly recruitment and influx of Turkish H1-B visa holders.

It’s tradition, just like Punxsutawney Phil popping out every Ground Hog’s Day.

The boys traditionally “advertise” for those specific positions around this time of the year because they need to apply for work visas for their boys in Turkey in order to make sure they have them all “placed” by April or May. The American teachers on the other hand, usually do not get their “placements" (aka contracts) until June or sometimes July.

It’s kind of a way for the boys to lord their employment over their heads until they know that at that late date the antsy American teachers cannot finds jobs elsewhere.

But back to the 9.9% unemployment in North Carolina. Granted, not all of the percentage of unemployed might be qualified to teach – but then again, how many of the Turkish guys that they are importing are? How many of those guys have graduate teaching degrees or credentials – or for that matter speak English proficient enough that their students can actually understand what they are “teaching?

So here’s our guess – which is hardly a novel one – the boys will once again pretend to interview qualified American candidates (if they do at all), and then once again tell the Department of Labor that they simply cannot find any qualified American candidates, and are instead forced to bring Turkish guys/gals over on H1-B visas to teach the undereducated American kids (due to the massive shortage of qualified American teachers....)

It's double whammy time again for the Americans – jobs usurped by Turkish employees and American tax dollars paying for the Turkish "teachers" H1-B fees. Can it get any better?

Sure it can, for instance, the boys’ Sweetwater school in Florida is recruiting Turkish teachers – because -- according to them -- there must be a crushing need for learning Turkish in Florida schools. And by the way, Florida also shares an unemployment rate of 9.9%, so perhaps there really is a huge shortage of Turkish teachers there…

So let’s lay bets on the fact that the jobs advertised (math, science, Turkish teachers and business manager) will be filled by Turkish guys or gals by the beginning of the 2012-13 school year.

Is anyone home at the Department of Labor and Homeland Security?

Because if they are – they might want to take a closer look at the vast number of H1-B visas that they are rubberstamping for all of those “highly-qualified and skilled” Turkish workers who apparently, must be far more superior than the American teachers standing in the unemployment lines wondering how their taxes went to pay for Turkish teachers.

We are including an article written by the Independent Weekly and published on January 12, 2012, and whose subject is that of the Triad Math and Science Academy in North Carolina. In particular, there seems to be the familiar buzz about the “relationship” between the Fetullah Gulen and the Gulen-inspired charter schools (that’s a bit redundant -- isn’t it?)

So if you are an unemployed teacher in any of the states that the 130 Gulen-inpired schools are doing business in, we encourage you to check the school websites and those of their "management" companies and apply for the advertised positions, especially the science and math ones.

Better yet, contact our website and give us feedback on the interview process and the outcome.

And don’t forget, they are looking for Turkish teachers in Florida…

Triad Math and Science Academy

“Questions loom about group proposing Raleigh charter school.” Independent Weekly (NC), 1/25/2012,

An accomplished charter school in Greensboro is eyeing the former Exploris Middle School in Raleigh for a new campus that could open this fall. But parents have raised questions about the quality of some of its teachers, many of whom are from Turkey. Those Turkish ties have also led to speculation that Triad Math and Science Academy (TMSA) could be part of a larger network of schools affiliated with the Islamic Gülen movement, an allegation that school officials and supporters vehemently deny...

But parents and former employees have concerns they hope state decision makers and the school will address before the charter is approved. They include the school's use of international teachers and staff visiting on visas, some of whom lack the English skills to adequately teach their classes; and classroom management, particularly for some international faculty. And then there's what a former TMSA employee called the "elephant in the corner."

Several times since TMSA opened in 2008, parents and former employees have speculated that TMSA is linked to Fethullah Gülen, a controversial Islamic preacher whom religious scholars regard as promoting a moderate form of Islam...

Charter schools suspected of Gülen ties are cookie-cutter K–12 academies focused on math, science and engineering, founded by highly educated Turkish scientists and businessmen. Many of the founders have advanced degrees but often limited experience in education. In addition to being founded by Turkish nationals, the schools often spend thousands of dollars to sponsor H1B visas for international faculty and staff, mostly from Turkey.

TMSA fits the model. The board that founded the school in 2008 had five members, three from Turkey, according to their résumés. A fourth board member had a Turkish spouse, and was also the lone member of the board who had a background in education. The board now has seven members, the majority of them from Turkey, according to their résumés...

TMSA also has eight international teachers on visas, including five from Turkey. All together, TMSA has 10 Turkish or Turkish-American employees, of 57 total, including the principal and assistant principal. Since it opened, TMSA has sponsored 17 visas for teachers, at a cumulative cost of $25,500, Orak said. For the past two years, the school has had an annual operating budget of about $4 million, he said...

State Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, toured TMSA last week, and questioned Orak about the availability of local teachers. Since 2008, more than 2,100 public school teachers have been laid off and the state has eliminated more than 6,100 teaching jobs, including 187 in Guilford County.

"I have a neighbor whose wife is going to China to teach physics," Harrison said after the tour. "It seemed odd to me that you wouldn't be able to hire a qualified teacher to teach math and science when we have qualified math and science teachers here going abroad because they can't find a job."

Many international teachers who have arrived at TMSA have such poor English skills that they can't do their jobs effectively, parents said...

But despite the concerns of some community members, TMSA's administration has never held a meeting with parents or teachers to openly address the concerns, Orak said...

Even if the allegations are untrue, the school—at the very least—is facing a major public relations problem. [Joel] Medley, the state director of charter schools, said he visited the school last week and asked again about the issue. "I just asked if they were going to respond to the allegations," Medley said. "It's out there." School officials need to be more proactive in addressing it, he said.