Norfolk (Va.) Schools Tell Board Makeover Is Under Way

From revamped student achievement testing to an employee pay scale study and scrutiny of teacher absenteeism, the division is undergoing a sweeping makeover to improve its schools' success, administrators told the School Board at a retreat Saturday.

The first gauge of whether progress is being made will come around March 1. That's when a second round of districtwide benchmark testing will show if student scores have gone up under a new regimen that includes "safety nets," including homework clinics in each school.

"We have a lot to accomplish, and much of it is going to be incremental," said Superintendent Samuel King, who took charge in July.