States

R.I. Schools Chief Helps Deliver New Funding Formula

June 17, 2010 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Whether you agree with her policy positions or not, it would be hard to deny that Deborah A. Gist, Rhode Island’s education commissioner, is having quite a run as that state’s schools chief.

In today’s good news for Gist, Rhode Island, for the first time in nearly two decades, will have a statewide funding formula for public schools that supporters say will bring equitable funding to districts that serve large numbers of poor students.

That victory comes on top of a string of other thorny issues where we’ve seen Gist prevail: setting the highest test-score requirement for those who want to enter Rhode Island’s teacher training programs and crafting one of the more aggressive teacher assignment reforms in the Race to the Top competition. That plan would ensure that no student would be taught by a teacher deemed “ineffective” for more than one year and would ban districts from assigning ineffective teachers to low-income, low-performing or high-minority schools. Gist is also working on doing away with the practice of principals being forced to take teachers that they don’t want because of seniority rules.

Of course, Gist is best known outside Rhode Island for her staunch support for the firings of all the teachers at the low-performing Central Falls High School earlier this year. That episode put low-performing schools in the national spotlight as President Obama praised the move and teachers’ unions assailed it.

And there was that ego-boosting placement of Gist on the 2010 Time 100 list. Gist will mark her first year anniversary on July 1.

Related Tags:

A version of this news article first appeared in the State EdWatch blog.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Disrupting PD Day in Schools with Continuous Professional Learning Experiences
Hear how this NC School District achieved district-wide change by shifting from traditional PD days to year-long professional learning cycles
Content provided by BetterLesson
Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Teaching Webinar
Teacher Perspectives: What is the Future of Virtual Education?
Hear from practicing educators on how virtual and hybrid options offer more flexibility and best practices for administrative support.
Content provided by Class

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

States DeSantis to Expand Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' Law to All Grades
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ' administration is moving to forbid classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades.
3 min read
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media in the Florida Cabinet following his State of the State address during a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives Tuesday, March 7, 2023, at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media in the Florida Cabinet following his State of the State address during a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives Tuesday, March 7, 2023, at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla.
Phil Sears/AP
States Here's How 4 States Spent Their ESSER Money
The Council of Chief State School Officers highlighted how state education agencies have used federal pandemic aid.
5 min read
States What the Education Secretary Said School Leaders Should Prioritize Right Now
Miguel Cardona, in a pair of speeches, urged K-12 leaders to lean into efforts to support student mental health and academic achievement.
5 min read
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona delivers a speech during the “Raise the Bar: Lead the World” event in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 24, 2023.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona speaks at the “Raise the Bar: Lead the World” event in Washington, on Jan. 24, 2023. Cardona spoke to state superintendents and school district leaders in speeches at the Council for Great City Schools and the Council of Chief State School Officers on March 20, 2023.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
States Should Superintendent Salaries Be Capped? Some States Are Considering It
Superintendent pay is under constant scrutiny, and proposals come up occasionally to cap it. But they rarely gain traction.
6 min read
Photo of dollar bills frozen in ice.
iStock / Getty Images Plus