leadership

February 21-23, 2013
Los Angeles, California

Indiana’s new schools superintendent, Glenda Ritz, is making some allies in the Statehouse: Republican legislators who pushed the education-reform laws that triggered a wave of voter discontent that carried the Democrat Ritz into her new job.

Philadelphia's Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. announced the proposed closures of 37 school buildings, plus multiple other changes to the cash-poor Philadelphia School District. He is proposing the buildings listed for closure, around 20 elementary schools, a handful of middle schools, and about 10 high schools, shut their doors in June, according to sources and documents obtained by The Inquirer. The schools are in nearly every part of the city and include well-known ones with long histories.

Florida's interim education commissioner told worried lawmakers on Thursday that glitches in the first release of scores under the state's new teacher evaluation system are being fixed and that there's no reason to delay its implementation. The Department of Education took down a website showing nearly 97 percent of Florida teachers were rated "effective" or "highly effective" in the last school year within hours of putting it up on Wednesday.

The leader of Indiana's Senate Education Committee said Tuesday that Republicans shouldn't change the state schools superintendent position to one appointed by the governor following the election of a Democrat to that office. Republican Sen. Dennis Kruse said he would oppose any effort to make the job an appointed one, at least until incoming schools Superintendent Glenda Ritz's term expires in 2016.

Texas Education Commissioner Michael Williams announced today he's stripping all power from El Paso Independent School District trustees, citing a lack of trust from the community they represent. Williams plans to appoint a five-member board of managers to replace the school district's seven elected trustees, who have come under fire for failing to catch a districtwide cheating scheme devised by former Superintendent Lorenzo Garcia.

United Teachers of Dade President Karen Aronowitz is announcing Monday that she will not seek a fourth term at the helm of the union, which represents some 21,000 teachers and 11,000 other school employees in Miami-Dade.

Bills expanding the reach of Detroit's Education Achievement Authority to become a statewide school reform district are progressing in the Michigan Legislature's lame duck session. The House and Senate education committees Thursday adopted amended versions of the bills, but are working out details about how failing schools could leave the EAA.