District Reform

Thomas Alsbury
North Carolina State University
College of Education - Educational Leadership & Policy Studies
Campus Box 7801-608M Poe Hall
Raleigh, NC 27695-7801
(919) 513-4321

Antonia Cortese
Executive Vice President
American Federation of Teachers
555 New Jersey Ave. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20001
(202) 879-4400

Kacey Guin
Center on Reinventing Public Education
University of Washington
2101 N. 34th St., Suite 195
Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 616-1642

Frederick M. Hess
Director of Education Policy Studies
American Enterprise Institute
1150 Seventeenth St. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 828-6030

Meredith Honig
Assistant Professor and Co-Director
Center for Education Policy and Leadership
University of Maryland
2202 Benjamin Building
College Park, MD 20742
(301) 405-5579

Jessica Levin
Chief Knowledge Officer
The New Teacher Project
304 Park Avenue South, 11th Floor
New York, NY 10010
(212) 590-2484

Brian K. Perkins
Department Chair, Educational Leadership
Southern Connecticut State University
501 Crescent St.
New Haven, Conn. 06515
(203) 392-5341

Marla Ucelli
Director, District Redesign
The Annenberg Institute for School Reform
320 West 13th St., 6th Floor
New York, NY 10014
(646) 486-8179

U.S. Census Bureau Fact Finder
Web site offers tons of hard data and downloadable databases on education, families and related issues.
6/14/2007

Ann Rubenstein Tisch, Young Women's Leadership School of East Harlem, founder and president of the Young Women's Leadership Foundation, which develops public schools for girls, 212-207-3221.

SchoolMatters.com Gives Access to Wide Range of Education Data
Standard & Poors created SchoolMatters.com to give the public access to education data at the national, state, district and school level. Everything from enrollment statistics and student proficiency information to No Child Left Behind results and staffing trends is available on the site.

Do School Districts Matter to Education Reform?
EWA held a regional seminar on district reform issues on Jan. 20-21, 2006 in Baltimore.? To read more about the speakers or view slideshows of the lectures, click here.

FEC's Campaign Finance Disclosure Data Search

Find out who's giving money to which candidates, read summary reports about the political parties and more at the Federal Election Commission's Campaign Finance Disclosure Data Search Web site.

How to Fix Our Schools: A Manifesto

As educators, superintendents, chief executives and chancellors responsible for educating nearly 2 1/2 million students in America, we know that the task of reforming the country's public schools begins with us. It is our obligation to enhance the personal growth and academic achievement of our students, and we must be accountable for how our schools perform. Signed by 16 urban schools superintendents, Washington Post, Oct. 10, 2010

Southern Regional Education Board's Goals for Education Report
The Southern Regional Education Board has released its 2010 state progress reports. Click on member states to see data and other presentations.July, 1, 2010

The Condition of Education
The percentage of public schools where more than three quarters of students are eligible for free or reduced price lunch - a key indicator of poverty - has increased in the past decade.IES National Center for Education Statistics, May 2010

Don't Leave Accountability Behind: A Call for ESEA Reauthorization
A new report argues that, despite the promise of education reform efforts such as Race to the Top and the state-led common standards movement, improvement can only be sustained if Congress and the Administration update and improve the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), currently known as the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Alliance for Excellent Education and the Aspen Institute’s Commission on No Child Left Behind, March 1, 2010

The Role of School Districts in Education Reform
Watch Chester Finn and Gordon MacInness discuss the role of school districts in education reform. Sara Mead, of the New America Foundation, serves moderator for the discussion. December 9, 2009

 Lost Opportunity: A 50-state report on the "Opportunity to Learn in America"

The Schott Foundation has released a report finding 84 percent of states fail to provide students with a proficient public education system. Lost Opportunity: A 50-state report on the "Opportunity to Learn in America" finds minority and low-income students have only half the opportunity to learn in our public schools as their white peers. The foundation says the federal government must make access to higher quality learning a guaranteed right for all Americans by establishing an accountability system to track student access to educational resources. 6/2/2009

Changing the Game: The Federal Role in Supporting 21st Century Educational Innovation
In a report released by the Brookings Institution, New America Foundation's Sara Mead and Education Sector's co-director Andrew Rotherham proposed that the federal government provide funding for innovation and experiment.
12/12/2008

The Misplaced Math Student: Lost in Eighth-Grade Algebra
The Brookings Institution analyzes the disadvantages of eighth graders taking Algebra I when they are not prepared. Tom Loveless, senior fellow and director of the Brown Center on Education at Brookings, is the lead author of the report.
by Brookings Institution , 12/12/2008

Facing the Future: Financing Productive Schools
The Brookings Institution and the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington released the final report of a six-year study examining the finances of K-12 school districts.
Center on Reinventing Public Education - Paul Hill, Marguerite Roza, and James Harvey, 11/12/2008

Why Rural Matters 2007
Why Rural Matters 2007 is the fourth in a series of biennial reports analyzing the importance of rural education in each of the 50 states and calling attention to the urgency with which policymakers in each state should address rural education issues.
The Rural School and Community Trust - Jerry Johnson and Marty Strange, 10/23/2007

Are Private High Schools Better Academically Than Public High Schools?
The study released by the Center on Education Policy (CEP) examines 12 years of data that finds students who attended private schools didn't have much of an advantage over their peers who attended public high schools in regard to test scores, career happiness, and civic engagement. Family involvement is key and the study finds that low-income students from urban public high schools generally did as well if they had a good support system.
Center on Education Policy (CEP) - Harold Wenglinsky, 10/10/2007

Important, But Not for Me: Kansas and Missouri Students and Parents Talk About Math, Science and Technology Education pdf
The study released by ublic Agenda is based on a 10-year project to improve math, science and technology education in the Kansas City region.
Public Agenda - Alison Kadlec and Will Friedman, 9/24/2007

Open to the Public: How Communities, Parents and Students Assess the Impact of the No Child Left Behind Act 2004 - 2007 The Realities Left Behind pdf
This report summarizes the opinions that the Public Education Network culled from students, parents and community leaders who participated in 25 public hearings, forums, focus groups and online surveys on NCLB held over three years across the country. Their view was that NCLB must have a more compelling vision, strong policies to support it, and greater public engagement.
Public Education Network - Anne Lewis, 7/30/2007

The Condition of Education 2007
High school students in the United States are taking more courses in mathematics and science, as well as social studies, the arts, and foreign languages, according to an analysis of high school student coursework that is highlighted in this government report. Statistics on student achievement, school environment and a wide range of other topics related to early childhood education through postsecondary education are also included.
by National Center for Education Statistics, 5/1/2007

Tough Choices or Tough Times
A bi-partisan commission, comprised of former Cabinet secretaries, governors, college presidents and business, civic and labor leaders, is calling for a total shakeup in how America educates its people. Its findings include ending high school at 10th grade, revamping and reducing pension systems, collective bargaining at the state -- instead of local -- level.
by The New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce , 12/15/2006

Urban Districts: 2005 Science Assessment
Ten urban school districts volunteered to have their results on science portions of the National Assessment of Educational Progress published as part of an experiment to compare urban districts to the rest of the country. Some urban districts do better than others, but as a whole, not as well as the rest of the country.
11/20/2006

L.A. Story: Can a Parent Revolution Change Urban Education's Power Structure?
Steve Barr, the founder and chief executive of a nonprofit network of Los Angeles charter schools, is rallying thousands of mostly Latino parents to the cause of school reform and using that political clout to force changes in the 727,000-student Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), the nation's second-largest school system.
Education Sector - Joe Williams and Tom Mirga, 7/25/2006

The Condition of Education 2006
The 2006 Condition on Education summarizes important trends and developments in education. The report includes 50 indicators in five main areas: (1) participation in education; (2) learner outcomes; (3) student effort and educational progress; (4) the contexts of elementary and secondary education; and (5) the contexts of postsecondary education.
National Center for Education Statistics - Patrick Rooney, William Hussar and Michael Planty, 6/1/2006

The Education Flatline: Causes and Solutions pdf
With the release of its annual Child and Youth Well-Being Index (CWI), the Foundation for Child Development and Kenneth Land of Duke University found that once again children's performance in the education domain was flat - a trend that has continued for 30 years. This report recommends four areas of reform - preK-3 implementation; charter schools; national standards for curriculum, and tests; and the training of high quality teachers.
Foundation for Child Development - Ron Haskins and Isabel Sawhill, 3/28/2006

Executive Agendas: Education Week reviews the 2005 education agendas and outcomes for all 50 governors pdf
In a study of the 2005 education agendas and outcomes of all 50 U.S. governors, Education Week found that most focused their efforts on policies related to high school and preschool.
Education Week - Alan Richard, 3/22/2006

Strong Foundation, Evolving Challenges: A Case Study to Support Leadership Transition in the Boston Public Schools pdf
Among the urban school districts in this country, the Boston school district stands out for its stability and success. This report examines the district's accomplishments and challenges that lie ahead.
Annenberg Institute for School Reform - The Aspen Institute's Education and Society Program, Annenberg Institute for School Reform, 3/20/2006

Educational Equity, After Katrina
The devestation caused by Hurricane Katrina exposed the race and class divide that plagues America's educational system. What will it take to achieve educational equity? A realization that the solution involves more than financial resources.
Voices in Urban Education - Robert Rothman, 3/1/2006

Unintended Consequences: The Case for Reforming the Staffing Rules in Urban Teachers Union Contracts pdf
This report focuses on the contractual staffing rules governing "voluntary transfers" and "excessed teachers" and how these rules undermine the ability of urban schools to hire and keep the best possible teachers for the job.
by Jessica Levin, Jennifer Mulhern and Joan Schunck, 2/15/2006

Board-Savvy Superintendent: Whose Job Is It To Lead Reform?
McAdams draws on the existing confusion amongst education board members and superintendents about governance roles when a school district is low-performing and the public is demanding reform.
The School Administrator - Donald R. McAdams, 5/1/2004

In Memphis Classrooms, the Ghost of Segregation Lingers On

Manassas, an all-black, nearly all-poor school, has a lot going for it: a new building, a new set of intensely dedicated teachers who willingly work on Saturdays, and the attention — and money — of national foundations and advocacy groups. The school could be a poster child for the “no-excuses” education reform movement, which argues that schools and teachers should be able to help all students succeed, regardless of the challenges they face outside of school. But the reforms that drove its success are now up in the air. Sarah Garland, The Hechinger Report, Feb. 14, 2012

Education Gap Grows Between Rich and Poor, Studies Say

Education was historically considered a great equalizer in American society, capable of lifting less advantaged children and improving their chances for success as adults. But a body of recently published scholarship suggests that the achievement gap between rich and poor children is widening, a development that threatens to dilute education’s leveling effects. Sabrina Tavernise, The New York Times, Feb. 9, 2012

Big Expansion, Big Questions for Teach for America

By 2015, with the help of a $50 million federal grant, program recruits could make up one-quarter of all new teachers in 60 of the nation’s highest need school districts. Christine Armario, Associated Press, Nov. 27, 2011

Troubled Schools in Houston Try Mimicking the Charters

In the first experiment of its kind in the country, the Houston public schools are testing whether techniques proven successful in high-performing urban charters can also help raise achievement in regular public schools. Sam Dillon, The New York Times, Sept. 6, 2011

Rookie Teachers Asked to Help Louisville's Troubled Schools

In Kentucky, Jefferson County Public Schools is relying heavily on teachers with no experience to help turn around seven chronically low-performing schools that were ordered to overhaul their staffs. Antoinette Konz, Louisville Courier-Journal, July 24, 2011

Dell Foundation Launches Tool to Connect Student Data

The Austin, Texas-based Michael and Susan Dell Foundation is hoping its new Ed-Fi data standard, released this morning, will allow educators and researchers to access information on kindergarten through 12th grade from state and local systems even before the systems have been aligned. Sarah D. Sparks, Education Week, July 19, 2011

Teachers From Low-Performing Schools Face Stigma On Job Search

In a bizarre game of musical chairs, nearly 1,000 Los Angeles teachers — who are guaranteed jobs somewhere in the school system — have been hunting for a school that wants them. And hundreds of them have to counter a stigma that they are undesirable castoffs, because they previously worked at low-performing schools that are being restructured. Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, July 8, 2011

Investigation into Atlanta Public Schools Cheating Finds Unethical Behavior Across Every Level

Across Atlanta Public Schools, staff worked feverishly in secret to transform testing failures into successes.Special investigators describe an enterprise where unethical — and potentially illegal — behavior pierced every level of the bureaucracy, allowing district staff to reap praise and sometimes bonuses by misleading the children, parents and community they served. Heather Vogell, Atlanta Journal Constitution, July 6, 2011

From One Struggling School to Another

More than half of the teachers pushed out of seven underperforming schools in Boston last year now work at other low-achieving schools across the city that are also under pressure to improve, according to a Boston Globe analysis. James Vaznis, Boston Globe, July 5, 2011

Young D.C. Principal Quits and Tells Why

The dysfunction Phoebe Hearst Elementary Principal Bill Kerlina encountered in D.C. public schools led him to quit this month, fed up and burned out. Bill Turque, Washington Post, June 25, 2011

Diane Ravitch, the Anti-Rhee

Somewhat improbably, this former education official from the first Bush administration has emerged as the most media-savvy progressive critic of the reform campaign embraced by everyone from Education Secretary Arne Duncan to billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates—a campaign that, in the public mind, is perhaps most associated with former D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee. Dana Goldstein, Washington City Paper, June 24, 2011

The World's Schoolmaster

How a German scientist is using test data to revolutionize global learning. Amanda Ripley, The Atlantic, June 2011

Changes At R.I. School Fail To Produce Results

For the last year, Central Falls High School in Rhode Island has been under a microscope. Long considered one of the poorest-performing high schools in the state, administrators abandoned a proposal to fire all the teachers as long as they agreed to a so-called "transformation" plan. Now, as the school year winds down, that plan is in shambles. Claudio Sanchez, NPR, June 13, 2011

Teachers Speed-Date For Jobs In Rhode Island

Earlier this year, the city of Providence, R.I., fired all of its nearly 2,000 teachers, shut down five schools and consolidated some programs. Most of the fired teachers were rehired, but when the dust settled, 400 teachers were left without jobs. To give them a chance to apply for 270 positions elsewhere the district, Providence officials are using an unusual device. Elisabeth Harrison, NPR, June 12, 2011

New Force in Illinois Quickly Pushes State Toward School Reform

In short order, Stand for Children tapped into a network of the city's rich and powerful — including billionaires with names like Pritzker, Crown and Zell — to raise millions of dollars. The stockpile of money is geared toward influencing elections and paying an all-star lineup of lobbyists across the political spectrum to prod lawmakers to act on issues that previously failed or were thought to be undoable. Ray Long, Chicago Tribune, June 11, 2011

Diplomas Count 2011: National Graduation Rate Rebounds

A new national report from Education Week and the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center finds that the nation’s graduation rate has increased significantly, following two consecutive years of declines and stagnation. With this dramatic turnaround, the nation’s graduation rate stands at 72 percent, the highest level of high school completion in more than two decades. Education Week, June 9, 2011

Good School/Bad School

How do you judge if a school is good or bad? A strong leader, great teachers, a diverse curriculum and happy children can all be indicators that a school is good — but when state and federal policymakers evaluate schools, they typically consider just one piece of evidence: test scores. Cat McGrath and John Merrow, Learning Matters, June 3, 2011

How Bumping Adds to School Layoff Chaos

It's a phenomenon that echoes last-in-first-out layoffs for teachers. Yet bumping, a process that allows seasoned school workers to grab the jobs of the less experienced when their jobs are cut, happens to workers who don’t teach, and tends to attract less attention. Emily Alpert, VoiceOfSanDiego.org, May 23, 2011

In North Jersey, Teacher Tenure is No Sure Thing

Districts throughout North Jersey are denying the prize of tenure to some educators who, school officials say, aren't performing up to standards, based on interviews with the leaders of more than a dozen North Jersey districts.Leslie Brody, North Jersey Record, May 22, 2011

A National Disgrace

Dan Rather reports on Detroit Public Schools, following two girls and their mother as the girls try to get an education in the school system. He also looks at other aspects of Detroit's dysfunctional school system. Dan Rather Reports, HDNet, May 16, 2011

Back to School for the Billionaires

They hoped their cash could transform failing classrooms. They were wrong. Newsweek investigates what their money bought. Rita Beamish, Center for Public Inquiry, May 1, 2011

Charter Schools Suffer Leadership Shortages

Unlike traditional public schools, most charters don’t have the resources of a school district — such as recruitment teams or pools of resumes — to find new leaders quickly. And turnover at the top level in charters is high. Sarah Butrymowicz, Washington Post, April 24, 2011

In New York’s Schools Chief, a Knack for Quiet Conciliation

All along, his trademark has been forbearance, and in his new role as New York City’s schools chancellor, Dennis Walcott will test whether the nation’s full-tilt approach to urban education reform is ready for a different kind of leader. David M. Halbfinger, Javier C. Hernandez and Fernanda Santos, New York Times, April 25, 2011.

Future Foggy as Rochester Superintendent Departs

He closed failing schools, overhauled the budget and pushed to tie teacher salaries to performance, but as Jean-Claude Brizard departs Rochester, some wonder if education officials will continue the controversial work he started. Tiffany Lankes and Brian Sharp, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, April 19, 2011

Singled-out L.A. Unified Teacher Shares Skills With Colleagues

Miguel Aguilar was cited as among L.A. Unified's most effective in an L.A. Times article on the 'value-added' evaluation method. Since then, many at his Pacoima school have adopted his methods. But budget cuts threaten his job. Jason Felch, Los Angeles Times, April 3, 2011

'Value-Added' Teacher Evaluations: L.A. Unified Tackles a Tough Formula

Los Angeles school district leaders are poised to plunge ahead with their own confidential 'value-added' ratings this spring, saying the approach is far more objective and accurate than any other evaluation tool available, despite its complexity. Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, March 28, 2011

Evaluating New York Teachers, Perhaps the Numbers Do Lie

You would think the Department of Education would want to replicate Stacey Isaacson — a dedicated teacher who has degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and Columbia and works long hours every school day — and sprinkle Ms. Isaacsons all over town. Instead, the department’s accountability experts have developed a complex formula to calculate how much academic progress a teacher’s students make in a year — the teacher’s value-added score — and that formula indicates that Ms. Isaacson is one of the city’s worst teachers. Michael Winerip, New York Times, March 6, 2011

U.S. Plan to Replace Principals Hits Snag: Who Will Step In?

The aggressive $4 billion program begun by the Obama administration in 2009 to radically transform the country’s worst schools included, as its centerpiece, a plan to install new principals to overhaul most of the failing schools. That policy decision, though, ran into a difficult reality: there simply were not enough qualified principals-in-waiting to take over. Sam Dillon, New York Times, Feb. 7, 2011

Can Rhee's Reforms Work Without Rhee's Toughness?

Michelle Rhee left her D.C. schools post only a few months ago, but around the country a conventional wisdom has already settled in: Rhee had the right idea but the wrong approach. Richard Whitmire, The Washington Post, Jan. 21, 2011

New school data reveal worrisome trends

As a group, Illinois' public school children are fewer in number, increasingly poor, more diverse and more likely than in recent years to spend the entire school year at the same building, according to new data. Tara Malone and Darnell Little, Chicago Tribune, Jan. 23, 2011

Los Angeles Names New Schools Chief

John Deasy, 50 years old and a former official at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will succeed Ramon C. Cortines, 78, who has headed the nation's second-largest school system for two years and said he planned to step down this year. Stephanie Banchero And Tamara Audi, The Wall Street Journal, Jan. 12, 2011

Without Aid, Detroit May Close Half of its Public Schools

Under Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb's plan, Detroit Public Schools would slim down from 142 schools now to 72 during 2012-13. Bobb is attempting to slash a $327 million deficit in the district to zero over the next several years. Jennifer Chambers, The Detroit News, Jan. 12, 2011

Educators Regroup in Recession's Aftermath

States and school districts have seen their tax bases wither over the past two years, and the financial picture looks bleak for years to come. At least 46 states, plus the District of Columbia, struggled to close budget shortfalls heading into fiscal 2011, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a research organization in Washington. Sean Cavanagh, Education Week, Jan. 5, 2010

60 First Graders, 4 Teachers, One Loud New Way to Learn

Instead of assigning one teacher to roughly 25 children, the New American Academy in Brooklyn began the school year with four teachers in large, open classrooms of 60 students. The school stresses student independence over teacher-led lessons, scientific inquiry over rote memorization and freedom and self-expression over strict structure and discipline. Sharon Otterman, The New York Times, Jan. 10, 2011

Poll: Most want easier way to fire bad teachers

An overwhelming majority of Americans are frustrated that it's too difficult to get rid of bad teachers, while most also believe that teachers aren't paid enough, a new poll shows. Associated Press, Dec. 14, 2010

Bob Edwards interviews Interim CEO of Chicago schools Terry Mazany

Terry Mazany is the interim CEO of Chicago Public Schools, the third largest district in the country. When he was appointed in November, Mazany immediately announced that he will not keep the post after a new mayor is elected in 2011. Edwards talks with Mazany about his top priorities over the next few months, the most pressing issues facing the district, and collaborating with the teachers' union. Bob Edwards Weekend, Dec. 30, 2010

Jeb Bush's Influence on Education Policy Spreads

In state capitals across the country, numerous lawmakers and officeholders say they are determined to follow the ambitious and often polarizing education blueprint fashioned by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, a Republican, during his two terms as Florida’s governor. Sean Cavanagh, Education Week, Dec. 29, 2010

Kentucky Auditors Put Microscope on 3 Low Performing Louisville Schools

Doss, Fairdale and Seneca high schools — among six Jefferson County schools recently placed on a list of Kentucky's 10 “persistently low achieving” schools — are under the microscope this week by auditors who will judge whether the staff at each school has the leadership and teaching capabilities to raise low test scores. Chris Kenning and Antoinette Konz, Louisville Courier-Journal, Dec. 8, 2010

California's Parent Trigger

On a recent afternoon in Compton, Mary Najera of Boyle Heights is making a sale in the peach-colored dining room of a tidy home. But she isn't selling cosmetics or Tupperware. She's pitching to a young mother a radical new tool of school reform in California — the Parent Trigger. Patrick Range McDonald, LA Weekly, Dec. 9, 2010

A Mission to Transform Baltimore's Beaten Schools

Not everyone likes Baltimore Schools Superintendent Andres Alonso’s methods, and many find that his brassy self-confidence can grate. But few are arguing with his results. Since he was hired, the city's dropout rate has fallen by half, more students are graduating and for the first time in many years, the system has gained students instead of losing them. Sabrina Tavernise, The New York Times, Dec. 1, 2010

New Latino Majority Creates New Challenges for California Schools

With the news that Latinos, for the first time ever, have become the majority in California’s public schools, researchers and educators called on the state to do more to help these students get an education that prepares them for the 21st century. Rupe Dev, New America Media, Nov. 21, 2010

Atlanta Superintendent to Step Down

Embattled Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall announced Saturday that she will step down in June, ending a remarkable 11-year tenure that won praise nationally but soured under the glare of a test-cheating investigation. Kristina Torres and Heather Vogell, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Nov. 21, 2010

NYC Schools Chancellor Joel Klein Resigns

For the past eight years, New York City has been a testing ground for urban education reform. As a result, Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Chancellor -- Joel Klein -- became one of the most influential school reformers in the country. He is stepping down. Beth Fertig, WNYC, Nov. 10, 2010

Sci Academy a Bright Spot in New Orleans School Landscape

New Orleans Charter Science and Mathematics Academy -- known as Sci Academy -- is posting the best test scores of any high school in the city outside of Lusher and Ben Franklin, both of which have selective admissions. Many of the city's other non-selective high schools, particularly those run by the Recovery School District, are languishing. Cindy Chang, The Times-Picayune, Nov. 7, 2010

Rethinking the School Desk

Where, and how, are you sitting as you read this article? Are you in a chair that is not so hard as to dig into your butt? Are you at a desk or table that you can reach without slouching down or scooting to the edge of your seat? Are you comfortable? If so, chances are you are not an American schoolchild. Linda Perlstein, Slate Magazine, Oct. 26, 2010

An Offer They Couldn't Refuse

Unlike other school districts, Charlotte-Mecklenberg recruits top-performing principals to turn around its failing schools. It is an ingenious school-turnaround strategy that is garnering praise from education-reform advocates like U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and the Aspen Institute. It’s also giving the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district a serious shot at winning the coveted $2 million Broad Prize for Urban Education later this month. Pat Wingert, Newsweek, Oct. 12, 2010

Michelle Rhee Resigning as D.C. Schools Chancellor

D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee announced Wednesday that she is resigning at the end of this month, bringing an abrupt end to a tenure that drew national acclaim but that also became a central issue in an election that sent her patron, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, to defeat. Tim Craig and Bill Turque, Washington Post, Oct. 13, 2010

Pastorek Presents Plan for Eventual Return of New Orleans Schools

Louisiana State Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek presented his recommendations on whether 68 New Orleans schools should stay in the Recovery School District or return to local control. By Cindy Chang, Times-Picayune, Sept. 16, 2010

Progress slows in closing achievement gaps in D.C. schools
After two years of progress, Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee's effort to narrow the vast achievement gap separating white and African American students in D.C. public schools has stalled, an analysis of 2010 test score data shows. Bill Turque, Washington Post, August 27, 2010

Region's Schools Turn Storm's Havoc Into Transformation
When Hurricane Katrina swept through the Gulf Coast town of Pass Christian, Miss., wiping away an elementary and a middle school, community leaders used the destruction as a chance for a new start. Christina Samuels, Education Week, Aug. 25, 2010