« Biblical ignorance |
Main
| It must be Friday the 13th »
May 13, 2005
The push to appoint California boards
The California School Boards Association reports that Eli Broad, founder of the Broad Foundation, is currently pushing for legislation in that state that would require mayoral appointments of the governing boards and superintendents of four large urban school districts in California: Fresno, Los Angeles, Oakland, and San Francisco. According to Broad's proposal, board members and superintendents would serve "at the pleasure" of the city's mayor. Although the proposed bill appears to impact only four districts at this time, it could set a dangerous precedent for school districts and county offices of education throughout California, said CSBA Executive Director Scott P. Plotkin. A key Plotkin point: Crucial to school success is leadership and accountability separate from the mayor's office. Read more here.
Here is a good account in the Los Angeles Times of the issue of school takeovers nationally. "Michael Kirst, professor of education and business at Stanford University, said such factors as a school system's academic and financial track record, the political climate and even the personality and priorities of the mayor help shape the nature and outcome of a mayoral takeover," the paper reports. " ... Kirst said it is clear that mayoral control has brought financial stability and other improvements to Chicago but said it is impossible to determine whether the academic gains can be attributed to the mayor.
"'When it comes to student achievement, the big question is always, "What causes what?" There are so many factors, so many things going on that you can't really say' whether it was mayoral control that raised the test scores, Kirst said."
Posted May 13, 2005 12:00 AM
BoardBuzz Feed
