Cleveland Seeks Move From Zero

District launches drive to advance in ratings.

Having failed every requirement of its state’s accountability system, the Cleveland school district is mobilizing to improve both its performance and its image.

“This district is in need of credibility, and, quite frankly, in need of proving we can achieve an outcome if we lay it out,” said Eugene T. Sanders, who became the district’s chief executive officer July 1.

That’s why he announced on Aug. 18 that his top priority is to move the district up from the fourth to the third category of five state ratings by the end...