Some advice for the Detroit Public Schools

Detroit Free Press Editorial:

Now that Connie Calloway has been ousted as superintendent by the Detroit school board that hired her less than two years ago, a group of prominent local citizens is offering the DPS board some unsolicited advice about finding a good successor.

It won't be easy, given the mess the district is in and especially given the board's reputation as an employer and the state's impending appointment of a powerful financial manager to get the DPS books in order. Here's the text of a letter the group sent Tuesday to DPS Board President Carla Scott. The names of the signers are at the bottom.

Dear Honorable Carla D Scott, M.D.:
We are united in a fervent belief that a dynamic public education system is both imperative and possible here in Detroit. Because of that belief and our commitment to public education, we have conducted extensive research, both individually and collectively, to identify the dynamics that have enabled other urban districts to achieve turnarounds in the education they provide their students.

Clearly, a cornerstone of any successful school district, large or small, is aneffective superintendent who is focused on improving achievement scores, graduation rates and other critical indicators of performance.

Our kids need all of us working together to fix a broken system. Including these criteria in your selection process can help assure that we are working together with the single focus of improving the education that our children receive.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at December 24, 2008 1:01 AM
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