Takeovers

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School & District Management Panel: Phila. District Should Question Private Management
Some privately managed public schools have not delivered the same rates of improved achievement as those run by the city district.
Lesli A. Maxwell, March 1, 2007
4 min read
School & District Management What Helped in Philadelphia?
It’s been five years since the Philadelphia school district was taken over by the state and became a national laboratory for using outside groups to run schools. That milestone is being marked chiefly by disagreement over whether the experiment has worked.
February 12, 2007
2 min read
John H. Estey, right, the chief of staff for Pennsylvania Gov. Edward G. Rendell, works with fellow members of the board of control for the Chester-Upland school district at a Jan. 18 meeting. Mr. Estey was appointed to the position this month by a judge, with support of the governor. The state has been in court seeking a greater role in managing the district, which is one of its lowest-performing.
John H. Estey, right, the chief of staff for Pennsylvania Gov. Edward G. Rendell, works with fellow members of the board of control for the Chester-Upland school district at a Jan. 18 meeting. Mr. Estey was appointed to the position this month by a judge, with support of the governor. The state has been in court seeking a greater role in managing the district, which is one of its lowest-performing.
Michael Branscom for Education Week
School & District Management Governor Wages Battle for Control of Pa. District
The governor's chief of staff is appointed to the control board of one of the state's worst-performing school districts.
Catherine Gewertz, January 23, 2007
4 min read
School & District Management St. Louis District Seen as Target of State Action
The St. Louis school district begins the new year facing likely state intervention, following a task force’s proposal for the locally elected school board to be stripped of its authority and for an appointed board to run the system on an interim basis.
Jeff Archer, January 9, 2007
3 min read
School & District Management Mayor of L.A. Appeals Ruling Against Law On School Governance
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has pledged to move ahead with planning for the cluster of 36 “mayor’s schools” that he hopes to be directly overseeing by the start of the next school year.
Lesli A. Maxwell, January 9, 2007
4 min read
Adrian M. Fenty was sworn in on Jan. 3 as mayor of the District of Columbia.
Adrian M. Fenty was sworn in on Jan. 3 as mayor of the District of Columbia.
School & District Management New D.C. Leader Explains School-Control Plan
Newly elected Mayor Adrian M. Fenty has called for a sweeping overhaul of the District of Columbia public schools.
Lesli A. Maxwell, January 5, 2007
3 min read
School & District Management Power Shift on L.A. Schools Called Complex
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has won his hard-fought political battle to gain partial control over Los Angeles’ public schools, but securing meaningful reforms in classrooms is likely to prove far more difficult for the charismatic politician, experts say.
Lesli A. Maxwell, September 19, 2006
4 min read
Assemblyman Dario Frommer, D-Glendale, left, and Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, watch as the votes are posted on Nunez's measure, to give Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa greater control over the Los Angeles Unified School District, during the Assemby session held at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2006.
Assemblyman Dario Frommer, D-Glendale, left, and Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, watch as the votes are posted on Nunez's measure, to give Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa greater control over the Los Angeles Unified School District, during the Assemby session held at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2006.
Rich Pedroncelli/AP
School & District Management Calif. Lawmakers Grant L.A. Mayor Partial Control Over School System
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa yesterday won final approval from California lawmakers to take partial control over his city’s sprawling school system. The plan would give him considerable sway over the hiring of the superintendent, but falls short of the strong mayoral control in cities like New York City and Chicago.
Lesli A. Maxwell, August 30, 2006
2 min read
School & District Management L.A. Mayor Seen as Poised to Get His Way on Schools
After months of political wrangling and a pitched battle with school officials, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s bid to assume partial control over the nation’s second-largest school district was on the verge of final approval by California lawmakers last week.
Lesli A. Maxwell, August 29, 2006
3 min read
Mariah Lyons, 10, waits to be registered at Clark High School, one of many public schools in New Orleans that are being run directly by the state of Louisiana under an unconventional arrangement taking place in the city.
Mariah Lyons, 10, waits to be registered at Clark High School, one of many public schools in New Orleans that are being run directly by the state of Louisiana under an unconventional arrangement taking place in the city.
Lee Celano
School & District Management With an Unusually Hands-On Role, State Feels Its Way in New Orleans
A year after Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc on New Orleans, the state of Louisiana finds itself in the highly unusual position of essentially starting from scratch—and directly operating—a batch of public schools in the city.
Erik W. Robelen, August 25, 2006
8 min read
Ninth graders at Patterson review algebra in a test-prep session. In the foreground is a flier stating they "must pass to graduate."
Ninth graders at Patterson review algebra in a test-prep session. In the foreground is a flier stating they "must pass to graduate."
Sevans/Education Week
School & District Management Hard Work, Frustration Mark Baltimore’s Patterson High
Fed up with a decade of low test scores, Maryland's state board of education tried to expand its role in low-performing Baltimore schools.
Catherine Gewertz, April 25, 2006
8 min read
School & District Management L.A. Mayor Seeks Role in District
After months of deliberations and promises of dramatic change for Los Angeles’ embattled schools, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa last week called for California lawmakers to put his office in charge of running the day-to-day operations of the nation’s second-largest school district.
Lesli A. Maxwell, April 25, 2006
6 min read
Federal Baltimore Takeovers Prevented
The Maryland legislature’s success in blocking a state takeover of low-performing schools in Baltimore under the No Child Left Behind Act raises the prospect of political resistance in other states that might attempt such intervention.
Vaishali Honawar, April 17, 2006
7 min read
Federal Md. Lawmakers Fight School Takeover Plan
The U.S. Department of Education upped the ante in the battle over Baltimore schools last week with a threat to withdraw Title I funds from Maryland if the state fails to move forward with a plan to restructure 11 low-performing schools under the No Child Left Behind Act.
Vaishali Honawar, April 11, 2006
6 min read