John Deasy and the Impossible Job
A few years ago I sat with a group of urban district leaders in a noisy L.A. restaurant, leaning forward to hear every word from the new Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent, John Deasy. Deasy had, admirably, given up a comfortable job at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to get back into the […]
Charter Schools and New York City Education Reform
New York City mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio has promised to reverse his predecessor’s policy of providing facilities rent-free to charter schools. His reasons? First, charter schools have financial advantages, including money from foundations. Second, teachers and principals in traditional public schools are annoyed by having to share facilities with charter schools. This proposal, and […]
Portfolio Governance Reforms: Why We Shouldn’t Wait
People who see the portfolio strategy as a threat and those who see it as an opportunity both want to know: What’s the evidence that it works? The concept is still relatively new, and it will take a while to build a robust evidence base. But that doesn’t mean that cities desperate for viable solutions […]
Evidence Matters: Proving Whether School Reforms Make a Difference for Kids
When people lament that innovation is not possible in “regular” districts—ones that are overseen by elected school boards and working with active teachers unions—we at CRPE often point to Denver Public Schools. We’re not alone in noticing Denver—cities around the country have heard about its energy, new ideas, and solid implementation. Last year alone, more […]
Charter Schools: Special Needs “Served Well Here” or “Need Not Apply”?
One of the most important challenges for governing city schools in an era of choice is protecting the interests of students with special needs. These kids are often desperate for better options, but also vulnerable to being pushed out of schools that don’t want them. The fact that charter schools tend to enroll a smaller […]
Will New York Reforms Survive?
Michael Bloomberg’s final term as New York City mayor will soon end. Will the nationally influential education governance changes he introduced end too? From the tone of the now-concluded Democratic primary, one might expect so. The winner, Bill de Blasio, condemned recent actions by Bloomberg’s Department of Education as “a cynical effort to lock communities […]
Good Governance Starts and Ends with Strong Schools
CRPE is a policy shop. We study governance systems and propose policy solutions at the systems level, but I start every presentation about CRPE’s work with this list of the attributes not of effective systems, but of effective schools. I also tell new CRPE employees that one of the most important reports they can read […]
Conflicts of Interest in Governance
Elected school boards are a cherished community tradition in public education and they provide voice to many big and small community interests. But sometimes these political functions undermine their ability to improve opportunities for students. Both operating and overseeing schools can lead boards to protect the schools they run even when they are not working […]
Nashville Forecast: Cloudy with a Chance of Charter Schools
In the last few years, those at the helm of the Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) have become increasingly hostile to the city’s fast-growing charter school sector. Last year, the school board refused (despite a directive from the state to approve) a charter application from Great Hearts Academy, a respected Arizona charter management organization. This […]
City Spotlight: Denver
Beginning this month, one city or metropolitan area will be profiled in each Compact Newsletter. This special spotlight will highlight ongoing district or charter reforms in a specific city. First up is Denver! Through Denver’s district-charter collaboration project, entitled “Compact Blue”, district and charter partners are working to transform school practices and performance through Peer-to-Peer […]
