"Social Justice Derailed Charter Schools": Education Expert Makes Controversial Claims on Tucson Radio
Pioneer Institute scholar Stephen Wilson argues charter schools were closing achievement gaps until "social justice education" took priority after 2020's racial reckoning.
Based on the Wake Up Live with Chris DeSimone podcast for 3/19/25.
😽 Keepin’ It Simple Summary for Younger Readers
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🎙️📻 In Tucson, people on a radio show discussed how to help all kids 📚👧👦 learn better in school. One guest said special schools called charter schools 🏫 were helping kids from poor neighborhoods do just as well as kids from wealthy neighborhoods 💪🏿💰. He thought schools should focus on teaching reading, writing, and math basics ✍️🔢 instead of talking about social issues 🌍🗣️. Another guest talked about who shot President Kennedy many years ago 🤔🔫, which is something many people still wonder about. The radio hosts seemed disappointed 😞 that new information released by the government didn't solve the mystery completely 🕵️♂️❓.
🗝️ Takeaways
🎯 Pioneer Institute scholar Stephen Wilson claims charter schools were closing achievement gaps until a shift toward "social justice education" following 2020 racial justice movements.
📊 Wilson challenged the notion that children from poverty cannot learn, citing charter school success with disadvantaged students.
🏫 Amphi School District reportedly increased reading proficiency from 4% to 30% after returning to phonics-based instruction.
🤖 Despite his conservative stance, Wilson expressed concern that AI in education might create a two-tier system where "wealthy will continue to have human teachers and low-income kids will be plunked in front of a device."
🔫 Conservative commentator Barney Brenner attempted to debunk JFK assassination conspiracy theories using the Zapruder film.
🕊️ Brenner made controversial claims about Gandhi's success being due to British "civilization" rather than his methods.
📉 The newly released JFK files appear to contain few revelations despite conspiracy theorist excitement.
Radio Waves and Rogue Views: How Conservative Radio Exposes Its Own Contradictions
In this week's episode of "Wake Up Live with Chris DeSimone," the airwaves buzzed with a fascinating juxtaposition of educational theory and conspiracy nostalgia that left this listener's progressive heart both amused and alarmed.
As I tuned in on March 19, 2025, I was treated to the intellectual whiplash of hearing genuine concerns about educational equity, immediately followed by JFK assassination theories that have been reheated more times than last week's leftover pizza.
Academic Ambitions and Charter School Champions: Stephen Wilson Takes the Mic
The show welcomed education scholar Stephen Wilson from the Pioneer Institute, whose credentials include developing Massachusetts' 1993 Education Reform Act and running charter schools in Brooklyn. Wilson's passion for education reform was evident, though his framing revealed the classic conservative tendency to seek market solutions for systemic problems.
Ah yes, because nothing says "equal opportunity" like privatizing one of our most fundamental public services!
Wilson painted a before-and-after picture of charter schools that would make any infomercial producer envious. According to his narrative, urban charter schools had been creating educational miracles prior to 2020, successfully closing achievement gaps for Black and Hispanic students. Then came what Wilson dramatically described as the "racial reckoning" following George Floyd's murder.
"What we could have done was doubled down... Instead, we walked away from it," Wilson lamented, attributing the change to a shift from academic excellence toward "social justice education" and "social-emotional learning."
Heaven forbid we teach children about structural inequality or help them develop emotional intelligence alongside their multiplication tables.
To Wilson's credit, he forcefully challenged the persistent narrative that children from impoverished backgrounds cannot achieve academically. "We now know that particularly in high-performing urban charter schools, you can take students from abject poverty and have them perform as well or better than students from a well-to-do setting," Wilson stated. "That is now a proven fact."
Even progressive listeners might find common ground with Wilson here. The expectation that all children can learn and succeed regardless of background is foundational to educational equity. His advocacy for what he calls a "no excuses" approach—where educators take responsibility for student success rather than blaming external factors—contains kernels of wisdom buried beneath the charter school evangelism.
When host DeSimone mentioned Arizona's educational landscape, Wilson acknowledged the state's leadership in academic freedom regarding school choice. The discussion highlighted Amphi School District's remarkable turnaround after they admitted failure in teaching reading and returned to phonics-based instruction. Their third-grade reading proficiency reportedly jumped from an abysmal 4% to a still-concerning-but-improved 30%.
"Figures that have a lot of influence recently in social justice education and turning away from academic education like Ibrahim Kendi say that testing is racist and the very concept of a standardized test is racist," Wilson claimed, before dismissing such criticisms as "profoundly silly."
Interesting how he fails to mention the documented racial biases in standardized testing or acknowledge that assessment can be improved without being abandoned entirely.
Wilson's perspective on educational technology was refreshingly cautious for a conservative voice. "I'm actually very worried about AI and teaching," he admitted. "My worry is that the wealthy will continue to have human teachers, and low-income kids will be plunked in front of a device where they're already spending eight or nine hours a day."
Barney Brenner: Presidential Pontifications and Conspiracy Corrections
The second segment featured local political commentator Barney Brenner, whose presidential rankings read like a conservative talk radio greatest hits album. His worst presidents list? Woodrow Wilson, Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Jimmy Carter, and Andrew Johnson.
I'm shocked—SHOCKED—that four out of five of his worst presidents are Democrats. What are the odds?
When Nixon's name came up, Brenner offered this gem: "Well, actually one of the best in history for foreign policy." He credited Nixon with negotiating an end to the Vietnam War, conveniently glossing over Nixon's role in prolonging the conflict and sabotaging peace talks before his election.
The conversation took a decidedly conspiratorial turn when the hosts discussed the recently released JFK assassination files. Brenner attempted to prove, using the Zapruder film, that Kennedy was shot from behind—consistent with the official narrative about Lee Harvey Oswald.
"The reason people think he was shot from the front is this next frame where his body stiffens obviously after he's hit, and his body goes back," Brenner explained, attempting to dispel the grassy knoll theory.
Nothing says "credible analysis" like a radio guest squinting at a laptop screen trying to analyze blood spatter patterns from the 1960s.
Perhaps the most revealing moment came when Brenner shared his perspective on Gandhi's nonviolent resistance: "Gandhi is properly portrayed as a wonderful international figure... But the reason he was able to do that is he was up against the British... a civilized society."
This colonialist perspective continued with: "Had he been going up against the Nazis, he had been dead on day two... The fact that he was protesting against a civilized society and government enabled him to get his message out."
Yes, because the British Empire—responsible for countless famines, massacres, and exploitation across the globe—was just so "civilized" in its brutality. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre says hello.
Desert Paradoxes: Arizona's Educational Experiment
Behind the ideological posturing, there are real Tucson children whose educational futures hang in the balance. Our region's educational landscape reflects the broader tensions playing out nationally—a push for "choice" that often masks disinvestment in public education.
The conversation about Amphi School District's reading program reveals our educational system's failures and possibilities. Their honest assessment and course correction should be applauded, though the starting point of 4% proficiency should alarm every Tucsonan, regardless of political affiliation.
What neither Wilson nor the hosts acknowledged is how Arizona consistently ranks near the bottom nationally in per-pupil funding. While they celebrate "school choice," our state legislature chronically underfunds the public schools serving most of our children.
When Wilson mentioned Mississippi's "literacy miracle," moving from 49th to "the best reading state in the country" despite low per-pupil expenditures, he conveniently omitted that Mississippi made this progress through massive, targeted investment in reading instruction—not by diverting funds to private alternatives.
Conspiracy Confusion: Still Distracted After All These Years
The JFK segment illustrated how conspiracy theories continue to distract Americans from addressing real, systemic issues. While Brenner confidently asserted Oswald acted alone, the show's hosts seemed disappointed that the newly released files contained few revelations—"a little Geraldo opening up Al Capone's vault," as DeSimone put it.
This fascination with decades-old conspiracies comes at a time when our democracy faces genuine threats—voter suppression, extreme polarization, and the influence of dark money in politics.
Yet conservative media continues to direct attention backward rather than forward.
Hope in the Desert: Where Do We Go From Here?
Despite the sometimes frustrating perspectives aired on "Wake Up Live," there were moments of genuine concern for educational quality that transcended political boundaries. Wilson's insistence that all children can learn at high levels, regardless of background, is a principle progressive educators have championed for decades.
For Tucsonans concerned about education, there are concrete ways to get involved beyond the charter-versus-public binary presented on the show:
Join your local school site council or attend school board meetings to advocate for evidence-based reading instruction and equitable resource allocation.
Support organizations like Literacy Connects that provide tutoring and reading support to children regardless of what type of school they attend.
Contact your state representatives about Arizona's consistently low education funding and demand adequate resources for all schools—charter and district alike.
Volunteer as a reading tutor in schools serving our most vulnerable communities.
The path to educational equity requires both high expectations AND high support—not an either/or proposition. By demanding both academic rigor and addressing children's social-emotional needs, we can create schools that truly serve all Tucson's children.
What are your thoughts on charter schools versus traditional public education? Has your family had experiences with either model that shaped your perspective? Leave a comment below and join the conversation about how we can move education forward in the Old Pueblo.
Do you think media coverage of conspiracy theories distracts from more pressing current issues, or does investigating historical mysteries serve an important purpose in maintaining government accountability? Share your perspective in the comments!
Notable Quotes:
"We now know that particularly in high-performing urban charter schools, you can take students from abject poverty and have them perform as well or better than students from a well-to-do setting. That is now a proven fact." — Stephen Wilson, discussing charter school performance
"What we could have done was doubled down... Instead, we walked away from it." — Stephen Wilson, claiming charter schools abandoned academic excellence for social justice education after 2020
"I'm actually very worried about AI and teaching. My worry is that the wealthy will continue to have human teachers and low-income kids will be plunked in front of a device where they're already spending eight or nine hours a day." — Stephen Wilson, expressing concern about technology in education
"Gandhi is properly portrayed as a wonderful international figure... But the reason he was able to do that is he was up against the British... a civilized society." — Barney Brenner, making a controversial claim about Gandhi's success
"Nixon... actually one of the best in history for foreign policy." — Barney Brenner, offering a controversial assessment of Nixon's presidency
"The reason people think he [Kennedy] was shot from the front is this next frame where his body stiffens obviously after he's hit and his body goes back." — Barney Brenner, attempting to debunk JFK conspiracy theories
People Mentioned:
Stephen Wilson (Education Scholar, Pioneer Institute): "The schools that stay true to their mission of academic excellence continue to tower over all the other schools in their districts."
Chris DeSimone (Host, Wake Up Live): Compared the JFK files release to "Geraldo opening up Al Capone's vault."
Barney Brenner (Local Political Commentator): Ranked the worst U.S. presidents as "Wilson, Biden, Obama, Carter, Pierce, Johnson."
Ibram X. Kendi (Author, mentioned by Wilson): Wilson claimed Kendi says "testing is racist and the very concept of a standardized test is racist."
Lee Harvey Oswald (JFK Assassination): Described by Brenner as being "under surveillance by the CIA 59 days before the assassination."
Mahatma Gandhi (Indian Independence Leader): Brenner claimed his success was because "he was up against the British... a civilized society."
Richard Nixon (Former President): Described by Brenner as "one of the best in history for foreign policy."
Woodrow Wilson (Former President): Described by Brenner as "a racist" who screened "Birth of a Nation" in the White House.
John F. Kennedy (Former President): Described as having "lowered [taxes] from 91 to 70, the highest rate."
