Lewis C. Solmon, a former education school dean who the led the growth of the influential Teacher Advancement Program, died Dec. 17 as the result of a stroke. He was 65.
An economist, Mr. Solmon was the executive officer of the Higher Education Research Institute and headed the graduate school of education at the University of California, Los Angeles. He joined the Santa Monica, Calif.-based Milken Family Foundation in 1997 to focus on teacher quality. In 2000, the foundation launched the Teacher Advancement Program, which seeks to reorganize schools to create new incentives and supports for teachers.
TAP has served as the model for performance-pay plans in Chicago, Minnesota, and Philadelphia. More than 180 schools across the country belong to its network.
When he died, Mr. Solmon was the president of the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching, which operates TAP.
