The Answer Sheet - School Survival Guide for parents (and everyone else).

Posted at 09:51 AM ET, 05/12/2013

Another name for Ezra Klein's 501c4 list: Rhee's StudentsFirst

By Valerie Strauss

Why should Michelle Rhee get to push public policy through her tax-subsidized organization that receives private money from secret donors?

By Valerie Strauss | 09:51 AM ET, 05/12/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Michelle Rhee, StudentsFirst, Tax Dollars Subsidize Her Group

Posted at 10:11 AM ET, 04/14/2013

Probe of past D.C. test cheating called 'impractical' (update)

By Valerie Strauss

The D.C. Council's Education Committee will discuss the standardized test cheating scandal at a previously scheduled hearing on Thursday that, ironically, was intended to be about about test security .

By Valerie Strauss | 10:11 AM ET, 04/14/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Better Late Than Never, D.C. Schools, Michelle Rhee, Standardized Tests, Test Cheating

Posted at 05:14 PM ET, 03/29/2013

Michelle Rhee, a private school parent?

By Valerie Strauss

The very outspoken Michelle Rhee appears to be uncomfortable talking about where her children go to school in Nashville. Public or private? And why does it matter?

By Valerie Strauss | 05:14 PM ET, 03/29/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Michelle Rhee, She Won't Say

Posted at 10:58 AM ET, 03/18/2013

Bill Maher takes on Michelle Rhee

By Valerie Strauss

Bill Maher had clearly done some homework when he sat down to talk to ber-school reformer Michelle Rhee on his HBO show.

By Valerie Strauss | 10:58 AM ET, 03/18/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Bill Maher, Challenges Her Rhetoric, Michelle Rhee

Posted at 01:08 AM ET, 02/05/2013

Jon Stewart tests Michelle Rhee, defends teachers (update with video)

By Valerie Strauss

on Stewart invited Michelle Rhee on "The Daily Show" Monday night and, while he didn't skewer her the way some Rhee critics would have liked, he kept challenging her about whether her brand of school reform unfairly targets teachers. He also said what Rhee and other reformers could take to be something of a slight: There has been "no real innovation in education since John Dewey."

By Valerie Strauss | 01:08 AM ET, 02/05/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: He Challenges Reforms, He Defends Teachers, Jon Stewart, Michelle Rhee, Polite But Challenging, School Reform

Posted at 05:42 PM ET, 02/04/2013

Michelle Rhee's memoir: What you can learn from reading it

By Valerie Strauss

Michelle Rhee's memoir, "Radical" is coming out on Tuesday and you may be wondering what, if anything, you could learn from reading the book. Plenty of things, like, for example, how the first time she fired someone was as a college sophomore while she managed a deli named Grumpy's, how she got "huge, crazy red welts" on her body from stress when she was a young teacher, and how she watched Teach For America founder Wendy Kopp dance "without much success at rhythm" at a TFA event.

By Valerie Strauss | 05:42 PM ET, 02/04/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Michelle Rhee, Who Actually Wrote It?

Posted at 03:37 PM ET, 01/16/2013

Michelle Rhee and the missing memo

By Valerie Strauss

There's a new twist in the story about whether or not there was cheating on standardized tests in D.C. public schools during the period when Michelle Rhee was chancellor.

By Valerie Strauss | 03:37 PM ET, 01/16/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Michelle Rhee, Standardized Tests and Cheating, What Does It Say?

Posted at 12:15 AM ET, 01/09/2013

Ravitch on Rhee

By Valerie Strauss

The PBS show "Frontline" on Tuesday night aired John Merrow's documentary on Michelle Rhee, which focused on the 3 1/2 years she was chancellor of D.C. Public Schools. There is sure to be a variety of opinions on what it said and what it didn't say. Below is the reaction of education historian Diane Ravitch, the preeminent voice in the growing opposition to Rhee's style of school reform.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:15 AM ET, 01/09/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: D.C. Public Schools, Michelle Rhee, Reaction to Frontline Profile

Posted at 02:06 PM ET, 01/07/2013

Michelle Rhee's new state reform report card

By Valerie Strauss

StudentsFirst, her lobbying organization that has taken aim at teachers unions, just released a "reform" report card that grades states on whether they have followed the reforms that she likes. That means that D.C. schools did better than Maryland and Virginia. Really. Here's more about the report card and what else Rhee is up to.

By Valerie Strauss | 02:06 PM ET, 01/07/2013 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: How DC, How Powerful Is She, MD scored, Michelle Rhee, School Reform, VA

Posted at 10:58 AM ET, 11/29/2012

Updated: Michelle Rhee writes a zealot's manifesto,' er, memoir

By Valerie Strauss

Michelle Rhee has written a memoir that gives her version of reality about the years (2007-2010) that she ran D.C. Public Schools and became a national leader of corporate-based school reform. The book is due out next year but Washington City Paper's Loose Lips has already read it and describes it in less than flattering terms. Here are some of the highlights.

By Valerie Strauss | 10:58 AM ET, 11/29/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: D.C. Public Schools, Michelle Rhee, Rhee-visionist History

Posted at 07:00 AM ET, 02/28/2011

Debating Michelle Rhee

By Valerie Strauss

Here's a look at the two central questions posed by "The Bee Keeper," the new book about Michelle Rhee: Why do D.C. schools perform so much worse than many other big city school districts? Was Rhee’s the right approach to improving the schools?

By Valerie Strauss | 07:00 AM ET, 02/28/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Michelle Rhee, Richard Kahlenberg | Tags: michelle rhee, richard whitmire, school reform, slate magazine, studentsfirst, teacher assessment, the bee eater

Posted at 11:00 AM ET, 02/27/2011

2 false claims that drive school reform

By Valerie Strauss

"Accountability" and "merit" are compelling concepts, especially when we are talking about adults who are charged with educating our children. But the concepts have been misused in school reform, writes an educator.

By Valerie Strauss | 11:00 AM ET, 02/27/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Accountability, Charter schools, Guest Bloggers, Performance pay, Teacher assessment | Tags: accountability movement, charter schools, geoffrey canada, merit pay, michelle rhee, performance pay, school choice, teacher pay, teachers, waiting for superman

Posted at 01:18 PM ET, 01/29/2011

Does Kaya Henderson want to run D.C. schools?

By Valerie Strauss

It just may be that Kaya Henderson, the interim chancellor of D.C. schools who was tapped to succeed Michelle Rhee, doesn’t want the job permanently.

By Valerie Strauss | 01:18 PM ET, 01/29/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: arne duncan, d.c. schools, d.c. superintendent, kaya henderson, michelle rhee

Posted at 05:00 AM ET, 01/26/2011

Things I’m sick of hearing

By Valerie Strauss

It’s time for school reformers to find new ways to attack their critics. It’s getting tiring hearing the same old refrains, which go something like this.

By Valerie Strauss | 05:00 AM ET, 01/26/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Achievement gap, Achievement gap, Achievement gap, Achievement gap, Achievement gap | Tags: charter schools, data-driven reform, michelle rhee, president obama, school reform, standardized tests, teachers unions

Posted at 10:30 AM ET, 01/25/2011

Why Oscar snubbed ‘Superman’ -- deservedly so

By Valerie Strauss

The documentarians get it: “Waiting for Superman” was not a good/accurate enough documentary to be nominated for an Academy Award.

By Valerie Strauss | 10:30 AM ET, 01/25/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform | Tags: academy award nominations, academy awards, davis guggenheim, diane ravitch, documentaries, feature documentaries, films that were snubbed, inside job, michelle rhee, movies snubbed, oscar nominations, oscar snubs, oscars, randi weingarten, superman, waiting for superman

Posted at 12:57 PM ET, 01/22/2011

What Rhee’s comments about her children say about her

By Valerie Strauss

Amid the national debate about "Tiger Mother" Amy Chua's parenting style, let's look at what Michelle Rhee recently said about her own children and what those comments reveal about Rhee and her views about education.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:57 PM ET, 01/22/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Michelle Rhee, Michelle Rhee | Tags: amy chua, battle hymn of the tiger mother, chinese mother, education in finland, finland schools, grade retention, michelle rhee, parenting styles, rhee and soccer, soccer, social promotion, south korean schools, tiger moms, tiger mother

Posted at 12:35 PM ET, 01/21/2011

Say it isn’t so on IMPACT, Mayor Gray

By Valerie Strauss

Here’s why I was so disappointed to a plan by D.C. schools officials to have the flawed IMPACT teacher evaluation system reviewed by a Harvard think tank.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:35 PM ET, 01/21/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools, edulabs, harvard research, harvard thinktank, harvard university, mayor gray, mayor vincent gray, merit pay for teachers, michelle rhee, performance pay, teacher assessment, teacher evaluation

Posted at 12:05 PM ET, 01/21/2011

How Teach for America sees itself

By Valerie Strauss

Here, from the Teach for America website, is a detailed job posting that explains a lot about how the organization sees itself in the world of school reform.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:05 PM ET, 01/21/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Achievement gap, Achievement gap, Achievement gap | Tags: achievement gap, closing achievement gap, leadership for educational equity, michelle rhee, teach for america, teach for america job posting, teach for america jobs

Posted at 09:49 PM ET, 01/20/2011

Rhee moving organization to Sacramento

By Valerie Strauss

Michelle Rhee is moving her new organization to Sacramento, where her fiance is the mayor.

By Valerie Strauss | 09:49 PM ET, 01/20/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Michelle Rhee | Tags: kevin johnson, mayor kevin johnson, michelle rhee, michelle rhee and students first, rhee and johnson, rhee moves to sacramento, rhee organization moves, sacramento, sacramento and rhee, students first

Posted at 05:00 AM ET, 01/19/2011

Is Rhee's key D.C. reform being tossed?

By Valerie Strauss

While Michelle Rhee is busy trying to build up a national organization to take on the teachers unions, back in Washington D.C., where she was chancellor for 3 1/2 years, the new mayor may be on the road to taking apart her signature reform.

By Valerie Strauss | 05:00 AM ET, 01/19/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: IMPACT, IMPACT evaluation system, IMPACT teacher evaluation, d.c. schools, kaya henderson, mayor vincent gray, michelle rhee, school reform, teacher assessment, teacher evaluation, vincent gray

Posted at 11:00 AM ET, 01/05/2011

A satirical look at Rhee's 'Students First' (or how students fell to a tie for third)

By Valerie Strauss

Here's a satirical look at Michelle Rhee's Students First campaign. Students, it seems, have fallen from First.

By Valerie Strauss | 11:00 AM ET, 01/05/2011 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Laugh and cry, Laugh and cry | Tags: edtweak, education tweak, michelle rhee, students first

Posted at 12:00 PM ET, 12/18/2010

Will firing 5-10 percent of teachers make us Finland?

By Valerie Strauss

Michelle Rhee and Bill Gates like to say that our public schools would become high-performing if we only fired the bottom 5-10 percent of teachers. Here's an examination of that notion.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:00 PM ET, 12/18/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Research, Research, Research, Research | Tags: assessing teachers, bill gates, eric hanushek, evaluating teachers, finland, michelle rhee, shankar blog, teachers

Posted at 04:25 PM ET, 12/15/2010

What Rhee wrought

By Valerie Strauss

Anyone who thinks that Michelle Rhee was a whiz as chancellor of D.C. public schools and should be heading a national "reform" movement ought to read about a high school she attempted to “transform” in the nation’s capital.

By Valerie Strauss | 04:25 PM ET, 12/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools, dunbar, dunbar high, dunbar high school, friends of bedford, michelle rhee, rhee, school reform, school transformation, transformation schools

Posted at 05:00 AM ET, 12/08/2010

A primer on (and problems with) market-based reform

By Valerie Strauss

Here's a primer on market-based school reform, the vision of its proponents and why their agenda is not the best thing for children.

By Valerie Strauss | 05:00 AM ET, 12/08/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: andy smarick, arne duncan, checker finn, chester finn, democrats for education reform, dfer, fordham institute, geoffrey canada, green dot charter schools, harlem children's zone, jeb bush, joel klein, kipp, kipp schools, market-based reform, michael bloomberg, michelle rhee, richard barth, rick hess, rick scott, school reform, steve barr, wendy kopp, whitney tilson

Posted at 04:40 PM ET, 12/06/2010

Michelle Rhee, celebrity, goes national

By Valerie Strauss

Running the Washington D.C. schools wasn’t a big enough platform for the super star Michelle Rhee. She's onto her next act.

By Valerie Strauss | 04:40 PM ET, 12/06/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Educational leadership, Educational leadership, Educational leadership | Tags: joel klein, michelle rhee, public schools, school reform, students first

Posted at 01:02 PM ET, 12/03/2010

What is Michelle Rhee up to in Florida?

By Valerie Strauss

What is Michelle Rhee up to by taking an unpaid, advisory position on the education transition team of Florida Gov.-elect Rick Scott?

By Valerie Strauss | 01:02 PM ET, 12/03/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Educational leadership | Tags: bush and rhee, florida schools, jeb bush, michelle rhee, rhee and education, rhee and florida, rhee in florida, rick scott, steven colbert, the colbert report, washington d.c. schools

Posted at 05:43 PM ET, 12/02/2010

Rhee joins Florida governor-elect's transition team

By Valerie Strauss

Florida's governor-elect, Rick Scott, has put former D.C. chancellor Michelle Rhee on his education transition team.

By Valerie Strauss | 05:43 PM ET, 12/02/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: florida, michelle rhee, rhee and florida, rhee going to florida, rick scott, scott hires rhee

Posted at 10:30 AM ET, 12/02/2010

Rhee, Ackerman and 'cultural competence' in urban reform

By Valerie Strauss

Are any school superintendents who helicopter into big cities for a few years "culturally competent" to do the job well?

By Valerie Strauss | 10:30 AM ET, 12/02/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: arlene ackerman, michelle rhee, philadelphia schools, public schools, school reform, the notebook, washington d.c. schools

Posted at 03:20 PM ET, 11/16/2010

Some advice for Cathie Black on NYC schools job

By Valerie Strauss

Cathie Black is doing her homework to gear up to be the chancellor of New York City schools, including reaching out to Michelle Rhee and others for advice. But why would she want the job given that intense opposition has arisen because of her lack of credentials?

By Valerie Strauss | 03:20 PM ET, 11/16/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Educational leadership | Tags: broad foundation, cathie black, cathleen black, david steiner, eli broad, hearst magazines, joel klein, mayor bloomberg, michael bloomberg, michelle a. rhee, michelle rhee, new york city schools, nyc schools, waivers

Posted at 01:00 AM ET, 11/15/2010

Are Rhee and Florida interested in each other?

By Valerie Strauss

The talk in education circles in Florida is that the governor elect, Rick Scott, may be looking for a new education commission and one name that seems dominant in the discussion is Michelle Rhee, who just resigned as Washington D.C. Schools chancellor.

By Valerie Strauss | 01:00 AM ET, 11/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Educational leadership | Tags: arne duncan, florida, florida education, florida education commissioners, florida governor, florida schools, george bush, george w. bush, jeb bush, michelle a. rhee, michelle rhee, rhee, rick scott

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 11/09/2010

Harvard’s strange ‘Strange Bedfellows’ education event

By Valerie Strauss

You might think, or at least I would, that a ticketed discussion at the Harvard University Institute of Politics on education would include people with different views. But with Michelle Rhee, Jeb Bush and John Podesta as the panel, the "discussion" will sound more like an echo chamber.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:00 AM ET, 11/09/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform | Tags: arne duncan, charter schools, education department, harvard, harvard university, institute of politics, iop, jeb bush, john podesta, margaret spellings, michelle rhee, no child left behind, obama education reform, president obama, race to the top, school reform

Posted at 11:30 AM ET, 11/06/2010

How Bill Maher got D.C. school reform wrong

By Valerie Strauss

The myth-making about the course of D.C. school reform and why Mayor Adrian Fenty was voted out of office in the nation’s capital continued last night, this time on HBO’s “Real Time With Bill Maher.”

By Valerie Strauss | 11:30 AM ET, 11/06/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: adrian fenty, bill maher, d.c. schools, hbo, mayor fenty, michelle rhee, real time with bill maher, school reform, the wall street journal, the washington post

Posted at 03:30 PM ET, 11/02/2010

What Michelle Rhee did in D.C.: Point by point

By Valerie Strauss

Here's a final critique of Michelle Rhee's legacy as chancellor of D.C. public schools, point by point, by a former D.C. schools student and teacher.

By Valerie Strauss | 03:30 PM ET, 11/02/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools, diane ravitch, michelle rhee, naep, rhee's legacy, standardized tests

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 11/01/2010

Is D.C.'s teacher evaluation system rigged?

By Valerie Strauss

A professor writes about teacher evaluation systems: "The pendulum has simply swung from one end of absurdity to the other; if many systems have historically rated 99 percent of teachers 'satisfactory,' ... we now have in D.C. a system that declares exactly 50 percent of teachers ineffective or minimally effective."

By Valerie Strauss | 06:00 AM ET, 11/01/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Teacher assessment, Teacher assessment, Teacher assessment | Tags: d.c. and impact, impact, michelle rhee, nyc teacher ratings, rhee legacy, teacher evaluation, teacher ratings, value added measures, value-added

Posted at 09:57 AM ET, 10/29/2010

What Rhee's successor should do first

By Valerie Strauss

Michelle Rhee rather gracelessly delivered a parting shot to teachers on her way out of the building, telling them to watch their backs because the teacher evaluation system that she created, IMPACT, can tell who’s good and who’s not. Unfortunately, that’s not quite accurate. It's an unfair system open for abuse and Rhee's successor should move to fix it. Now.

By Valerie Strauss | 09:57 AM ET, 10/29/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: IMPACT, d.c. schools, kaya henderson, michelle rhee, performance pay, teach assessment, teacher evaluation, teacher preparation

Posted at 10:41 AM ET, 10/21/2010

Kudos for D.C. school meal program but hold applause for Congress

By Valerie Strauss

D.C. public schools officials deserve an ovation for a new program to feed dinner to about 10,000 students in an effort to help improve childhood nutrition and ensure that kids don’t go hungry. But let's hold the applause for Congress.

By Valerie Strauss | 10:41 AM ET, 10/21/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools, dinners at school, food stamps, healthy meals, hunger, michelle rhee, nutrition, obama administration, school breakfast, school dinners, school lunch, school meals, school nutrition act

Posted at 09:17 AM ET, 10/17/2010

Rothstein: Why teacher quality can't be only centerpiece of reform

By Valerie Strauss

Richard Rothstein on the Klein/Rhee manifesto: "Making teacher quality the only centerpiece of a reform campaign distracts our attention from other equally and perhaps more important school areas needing improvement, areas such as leadership, curriculum, and practices of collaboration.... ut most important, making teacher quality the focus distracts us from the biggest threat to student achievement in the current age: our unprecedented economic catastrophe and its effect on parents and their children’s ability to gain from higher-quality schools."

By Valerie Strauss | 09:17 AM ET, 10/17/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform | Tags: achievement gap, joel klein, manifesto, michelle rhee, poverty, richard rothstein, school manifesto, school reform, teacher quality

Posted at 11:34 AM ET, 10/16/2010

Supt. Ackerman's critique of 'manifesto'

By Valerie Strauss

Philadelphia Schools Supt. Arlene Ackerman writes why she doesn't agree with the "reform manifesto" approved by 15 other big city school district chiefs.

By Valerie Strauss | 11:34 AM ET, 10/16/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform | Tags: arlene ackerman, charter schools, joel klein, manifesto, michelle rhee, school reform, teachers

Posted at 11:35 AM ET, 10/15/2010

The limits of Moco schools' economic integration study

By Valerie Strauss

There are big limits to the study released today showing that several hundred low-income students who went to school in low-poverty schools in Montgomery County did better on standardized math tests than kids who went to high-poverty schools.

By Valerie Strauss | 11:35 AM ET, 10/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Equity, Equity, Equity | Tags: casey foundation, david berliner, economic integration, high-poverty schools, low-income families, michelle rhee, moco schools, montgomery county schools, poverty, standardized tests

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 10/15/2010

Are we still capable of educating for 'us-ness?'

By Valerie Strauss

Educator Marion Brady writes: Maintaining a viable democracy requires an educated citizenry willing, able, even eager, to talk about matters like these, matters having to do with who we are as a people, why we do the things we do, and where we’re headed. Those conversations require at least some understanding of the past, national character, economics, politics, government, science, religion, and so on-intellectual tools that allow us to trace the trends of our era, the curves of history, the causes and consequences of change. Those were the kinds of conversations thoughtful educators used to try to encourage ... Now, not so much."

By Valerie Strauss | 06:00 AM ET, 10/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: common standards, gettysburg address, joel klein, marion brady, michelle rhee, ronald reagan, school reform

Posted at 01:41 PM ET, 10/14/2010

Michelle Rhee's greatest hits

By Valerie Strauss

Here are some of the most memorable things that Michelle Rhee said during her tenure as chancellor of Washington D.C. schools. I think my favorite is the one about taping students' mouths shut.

By Valerie Strauss | 01:41 PM ET, 10/14/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools, greatest hits, michelle rhee, rhee, rhee quits, rhee's greatest hits, rhee's tenure, school reform

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 10/13/2010

A different vision from a different superintendent

By Valerie Strauss

Jonathan P. Raymond, superintendent of Sacramento schools, offers a starkly different vision of school reform than that portrayed in a manifesto signed by 16 of his colleagues, including the soon-to-be-departing Michelle Rhee of Washington D.C.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:00 AM ET, 10/13/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: School turnarounds/reform | Tags: jonathan p. raymond, klein rhee manifesto, manifesto, michelle rhee, reform manifesto, sacramento schools, school reform, supt. raymond

Posted at 05:30 AM ET, 10/13/2010

Rhee’s big legacy: Being a whirlwind

By Valerie Strauss

She came in like a whirlwind, kicking up dust wherever she went, and now, Michelle Rhee, all-powerful chancellor of D.C. public schools, is leaving after three years, securing her place in the history of D.C. public education as, well, mostly a whirlwind.

By Valerie Strauss | 05:30 AM ET, 10/13/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools, michelle rhee, michelle rhee quits, michelle rhee resigns, reformer quits, reformers, rhee leaving, rhee quits, rhee resigns, school reform

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 10/12/2010

'Manifesto' should be resignation letter

By Valerie Strauss

Educator and researcher Kevin G. Welner writes that none of the reforms discussed in a "manifesto" for school reform by Joel Klein, Michelle Rhee and 14 other schools chiefs are grounded in research and are nothing more than fads and gimmicks.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:00 AM ET, 10/12/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: charter schools, fixing schools, joel klein, klein manifesto, klein rhee, manifesto, merit pay, michelle rhee, obama and school reform, obama and schools, president obama, reform manifest, rhee manifesto, school reform

Posted at 02:55 PM ET, 10/09/2010

The bankrupt 'school reform manifesto' of Rhee, Klein, etc.

By Valerie Strauss

There are so many things wrong with the new “school reform manifesto” signed by 16 school district chiefs -- including New York’s Joel Klein and Washington’s Michelle Rhee -- and published in The Washington Post that it is hard to know where to start.

By Valerie Strauss | 02:55 PM ET, 10/09/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: School turnarounds/reform, School turnarounds/reform | Tags: baltimore contract, baltimore schools, council of great city schools, joel klein, klein and rhee, michael casserly, michelle rhee, reform document, reform manifesto, school manifesto, teachers, teachers and assessment, washington post

Posted at 01:03 PM ET, 09/26/2010

Will Rhee be a footnote in school reform history?

By Valerie Strauss

Like Hugh Scott, the first African American superintendent in Washington D.C., Michelle Rhee will be a footnote in a doctoral dissertation on the D.C. schools a generation from now, educator Larry Cuban writes.

By Valerie Strauss | 01:03 PM ET, 09/26/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: $100 million and newark, $100 million newark schools, adrian fenty, gray and schools, larry cuban, mark zuckerberg, michelle rhee, newark schools, rhee and fenty, rhee and vincent gray, school reform, teacher assessment, teachers, will rhee stay, zuckerberg and newark

Posted at 01:30 PM ET, 09/23/2010

Ravitch: Why Fenty, Rhee really lost

By Valerie Strauss

Diane Ravitch, writing about Mayor Adrian Fenty's loss, says: "Journalists attributed Fenty’s loss to the power of the teachers’ union, but such an explanation implies that black voters, even in the privacy of the voting booth, lack the capacity to make an informed choice. When the Tea Party wins a race, journalists don’t write about who controlled their vote, but about a voter revolt; they acknowledge that those who turned out to vote had made a conscious decision."

By Valerie Strauss | 01:30 PM ET, 09/23/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Diane Ravitch, Diane Ravitch, Diane Ravitch, Diane Ravitch | Tags: D.C. schools, Diane Ravitch, adrian fenty, bill perkins, democrats for education reform, dfer, fenty loses, gray rhee, gray rhee summit, michelle rhee, school reform, tea party, teacher unions, vincent gray

Posted at 01:02 PM ET, 09/21/2010

Oprah and her warrior woman, Michelle Rhee

By Valerie Strauss

When Oprah Winfrey aired “Waiting For Superman - The Movie That Can Transform America’s Schools,” on her television show, viewers should have realized that they were watching an entertainment show with a show woman -- not an educator -- as host. Guests Michelle Rhee, Bill Gates and Davis Guggenheim all played their parts, not letting facts get in the way.

By Valerie Strauss | 01:02 PM ET, 09/21/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: bill gates, bill gates and oprah, d.c. schools, davis guggenheim, guggenheim film, michelle rhee, michelle rhee and oprah winfrey, oprah, oprah and gates and rhee, oprah and rhee, oprah show, oprah winfrey, rhee on oprah, school reform and rhee, waiting for superman, waiting for superman and rhee, will rhee go?, will rhee stay?

Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 09/20/2010

Has education reform jumped the shark? A teacher says 'yes'

By Valerie Strauss

A veteran teacher looks at recent events in the education world and concludes that yes, indeed, education reform has jumped the shark, and the signs of its collapse are everywhere.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:00 AM ET, 09/20/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: anthony cody, arne duncan, bill gates, education nation, gates on oprah, michelle rhee, nbc education nation, oprah, race to the top, rhee on oprah, teachers and reform, teachers town hall

Posted at 04:00 PM ET, 09/16/2010

Why 'Waiting for Superman' premiere was chilling

By Valerie Strauss

Something chilling happened at the Washington D.C. premiere of "Waiting for Superman" that involved Michelle Rhee and the A-list audience.

By Valerie Strauss | 04:00 PM ET, 09/16/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: adrian fenty, al franken, arne duncan, charter schools, d.c. schools, david axelrod, fenty and gray, george miller, melody barnes, michelle rhee, movie premiere, obama and refoms, obama reform, president obama and school reform, research and education, research on charter schools, rhee and gray, superman film, superman premiere, teachers and unions, vincent gray, waiting for superman, what will rhee do?, when will rhee leave?, who will replace rhee

Posted at 10:33 PM ET, 09/15/2010

Is that so, Chancellor Rhee?

By Valerie Strauss

So, it turns out, the problem with school reforms in D.C. -- which contributed to the defeat of D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty in the Democratic primary -- wasn’t that some of them were punitive and nonsensical. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee said in an interview today that the people just didn’t get it. It’s the people’s fault.

By Valerie Strauss | 10:33 PM ET, 09/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: adrian fenty, d.c. schools, gray and fenty, is reform dead?, michelle rhee, msnbc, rhee, rhee and blame, rhee interview, school reform, vincent gray, will rhee stay

Posted at 08:48 PM ET, 09/15/2010

Rhee should stay or go, not be a lame duck

By Valerie Strauss

Oh no. Two D.C. Council members are essentially during Vincent Gray, the man expected to be Washington D.C.’s next mayor, to turn D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee into a lame duck.

By Valerie Strauss | 08:48 PM ET, 09/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. election, d.c. schools, d.c. vote, gray and rhee, gray wins, is rhee leaving, is rhee staying, michelle rhee, vincent gray

Posted at 02:00 PM ET, 09/15/2010

Meier: Trust and skepticism in public schools

By Valerie Strauss

Renowed school reformer Deborah Meier looks at the issue of what "well-educated" really means and how we get there.

By Valerie Strauss | 02:00 PM ET, 09/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: adrian fenty, deb meier, deborah meier, michelle rhee, school reform

Posted at 06:40 AM ET, 09/15/2010

What Gray, Rhee should do now for D.C. schools

By Valerie Strauss

D.C. school kids and parents and teachers don’t need uncertainty about who is going to be in charge of the system. That means Vincent Gray and Michelle Rhee have to figure out quickly if they can work together or not.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:40 AM ET, 09/15/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. school reform, fenty loses, gray and rhee, gray wins, is rhee leaving, michelle rhee, rhee and fenty, rhee and gray, what now for d.c. schools, will rhee leave?

Posted at 01:02 PM ET, 09/12/2010

If Rhee leaves ... if Rhee stays

By Valerie Strauss

If D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee leaves, the schools won't crumble. If she stays, and there is a good argument to be made for consistency in leadership, she should broaden her view of how to evaluate teachers and schools.

By Valerie Strauss | 01:02 PM ET, 09/12/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: IMPACT, NAEP, Rhee and IMPACT, d.c. school reform, d.c. schools, fenty and gray, future of D.C. schools, michelle rhee, rhee and fenty

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 09/09/2010

Rhee in D.C.: The myth of the heroic leader

By Valerie Strauss

A former superintendent and Stanford professor emeritus writes that the heroic view of superintendents breaking china in order to build a better district for students—an image loved by media and the public—is a sure-fire recipe for disappointment and cynicism over turning around failing schools.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 09/09/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: fenty and rhee, larry cuban, michelle rhee, michelle rhee and adrian fenty, rhee and d.c. schools, will rhee stay or go?

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 08/30/2010

Education implications of D.C. mayoral primary

By Valerie Strauss

Frederick Hess looks at the three education takeaways from The Washington Post poll showing D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty behind his challenger in the Democratic primary.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 08/30/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: adrian fenty, d.c. mayor, d.c. mayor's race, d.c. public schools, d.c. schools and rhee, fenty and rhee. mayor's race, fenty poll, frederick hess, mayor's poll, michelle rhee, rick hess, washington post poll, will rhee stay?

Posted at 11:00 AM ET, 08/18/2010

Should Rhee stay or go?

By Valerie Strauss

Educator Sam Chaltain looks at the pros and cons of Rhee staying as D.C. schools chief as a decisive election approaches.

By Valerie Strauss | 11:00 AM ET, 08/18/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. election, d.c. schools, michelle rhee, rhee and d.c. schools, rhee and fenty, sam chaltain

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 08/10/2010

The truth behind the get-tough success stories in school reform

By Valerie Strauss

A teacher takes apart the myths surrounding Joe Clark and his baseball bat, Michelle Rhee and her broom, and the whole notion that bullying tactics can actually improve a school long-term.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 08/10/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: joe clark, joe clark and baseball bat, michelle rhee, rhee and broom, school leadership, urban school reform

Posted at 07:08 AM ET, 07/31/2010

Do we need another hero?

By Valerie Strauss

Does education reform really need more heroes?

By Valerie Strauss | 07:08 AM ET, 07/31/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Guest Bloggers, Guest Bloggers | Tags: ed week, guest bloggers, jay mathews, lean on me, michelle rhee, school reform, sousa middle school

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 07/16/2010

A parody: Baseball phenom to run D.C. schools

By Valerie Strauss

Here's a news parody that manages to include D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, Washington Nationals pitcher Stephene Strasburg, and LeBron James.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 07/16/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: d.c. schools, lebron james, michelle rhee, news parody, parody on d.c. schools, reforming d.c. schools, rhee and fenty, stephen strasburg

Posted at 04:30 PM ET, 07/13/2010

Rhee’s problem with D.C.’s new test scores

By Valerie Strauss

D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee has a problem, and it’s not the fact that elementary school standardized test scores just went down (at, it is worth noting, a bad time for Mayor Adrian Fenty, who appointed her and is seeking re-election).

By Valerie Strauss | 04:30 PM ET, 07/13/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: CAS scores in d.c., d.c. CAS, d.c. schools, d.c. standardized tests, d.c. test scores down, d.c. test scores mixed, d.c. test scores rise, fairtest, michelle rhee and reform, monty neill, rhee and test scores, tmichscho

Posted at 04:30 AM ET, 07/01/2010

Why Rhee's mayoral comments are troubling

By Valerie Strauss

D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee's all-but-direct threat to quit if Fenty loses to D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray in September’s Democratic Party raises a troubling question about her priorities, not to mention her reluctance to admit that she might not have all the answers to fixing D.C. schools.

By Valerie Strauss | 04:30 AM ET, 07/01/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: michelle rhee and d.c. mayor, michelle rhee and fenty, michelle rhee and vincent gray, rhee and d.c. mayor, rhee and d.c. schools, rhee and fenty and gray, rhee and quit, rhee's threat to quit

Posted at 01:58 PM ET, 06/17/2010

Randi Weingarten: Rhee is wrong

By Valerie Strauss

The teachers union president whom D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee highly praised in an op-ed article this week -- the one in which she tells New York schools boss Joel Klein that he has a lot to learn from hr -- is taking strong issue with Rhee’s advice to Klein.

By Valerie Strauss | 01:58 PM ET, 06/17/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: aft president randi weingarten, d.c. schools chancellor michelle rhee, d.c. teachers contract, michelle rhee and joel klein, randi weingarten and michelle rhee, rhee and klein, rhee gives advice to klein, rhee op-ed, weingarten and rhee, weingarten op-ed

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 06/14/2010

Rhee and her advice to NY: Hubris, or what?

By Valerie Strauss

In what could easily be seen as an astonishing act of hubris, D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee has offered a lot of unsolicited advice to New York City Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, the man who recommended her to D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty to run the city schools.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 06/14/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: michelle rhee and d.c. contract, michelle rhee and new york daily news, new d.c. teachers contract, rhee and advice and klein, rhee gives advice to klein, rhee's advice to klein

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 06/08/2010

Study: N.Y. teacher performance pay program flops

By Valerie Strauss

On the heels of a study about an ineffective program in Chicago linking student test scores to teacher pay, here's another one, with the same results, from a New York program. Do you see a pattern?

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 06/08/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: No Child Left Behind, No Child Left Behind, No Child Left Behind | Tags: d.c. teachers contract, merit pay, michelle rhee, nclb, performance pay, teachers, teachers performance pay, test scores and pay

Posted at 07:31 PM ET, 05/20/2010

D.C.'s NAEP scores: Don't get excited

By Valerie Strauss

To hear all the crowing about rising standardized test scores in D.C. public schools, you might think it was the first time that this had happened in the District and that Chancellor Michelle Rhee has worked some sort of minor miracle. It isn’t so.

By Valerie Strauss | 07:31 PM ET, 05/20/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: D.C. schools and NAEP, D.C. scores rise, Michelle rhee, NAEP scores, TUDA and D.C., TUDA scores, rhee and schools, rhee and scores

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 05/20/2010

Charters should leave D.C. teachers contract alone

By Valerie Strauss

Public charter school advocates are, not surprisingly, upset about a proposed new contract that will significantly boost the salaries of unionized teachers in traditional D.C. public schools. But D.C. school system officials have it right: They shouldn’t be.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 05/20/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: charter schools, d.c. charter schools, d.c. public schools, d.c. teachers contract, michelle rhee, teachers contract, washington teachers union

Posted at 12:36 PM ET, 04/29/2010

The surprising educator on Time’s list of influential people

By Valerie Strauss

A surprising addition to Time magazine's 2010 list of most influential people is the one educator included--and no, it is not D.C. Schools Superintendent Michelle Rhee, who has become the darling of school reforms nationwide. Neither is it Education Secretary Arne Duncan.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:36 PM ET, 04/29/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Time magazine, deborah gist, michelle rhee, most influential list, most influential people, time list of influential people, time mag's list of influential people

Posted at 06:16 PM ET, 04/28/2010

Yes and no on D.C. teachers contract funding

By Valerie Strauss

Yes, the contract that D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee negotiated with the Washington Teachers Union should be approved. But no, the city should not allow itself to be beholden to private foundations who have offered to donate $64.5 million to help pay for teachers raises.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:16 PM ET, 04/28/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: Chancellor Michelle Rhee, D.C. schools, D.C. teachers, D.C. teachers contract, d.c. teachers contract, foundations and teachers contract, private foundations and D.C. teachers contract, rhee and contract, rhee and gandi and contract, teachers contract, teachers contract and D.C., teachers contract in trouble

Posted at 11:00 PM ET, 04/16/2010

Rhee and the confounding mess in D.C. schools

By Valerie Strauss

Somebody has to intervene fast to figure out who is going to be paid what, and how, in D.C. schools before the budgeting process becomes a comic farce. Perhaps it already is.

By Valerie Strauss | 11:00 PM ET, 04/16/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: chancellor rhee and budget, d.c. schools and budget, d.c. schools and rhee, gandhi's letter, gandhi's letter to rhee, michelle rhee, rhee and budget, rhee and gandhi

Posted at 04:48 PM ET, 04/13/2010

Rhee back in trouble with D.C. teachers

By Valerie Strauss

It would be best for D.C. kids if Michelle Rhee’s reform effort actually works in improving schools. It’s just hard to see how that is going to happen when she keeps landing herself in situations that only increase people’s mistrust of her.

By Valerie Strauss | 04:48 PM ET, 04/13/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: Chancellor Michelle Rhee, D.C. schools, D.C. schools and budget, D.C. teacher firings and Rhee, D.C. teachers, D.C. teachers and Rhee, D.C. teachers contract, Rhee and D.C. Council, Rhee and D.C. teachers, Rhee and controversy, teacher layoffs and D.C.

Posted at 12:00 PM ET, 04/09/2010

Rhee's biggest, and most costly, failing

By Valerie Strauss

A former school superintendent, teacher and now a university professor writes about the biggest failing of D.C. Schools Superintendent Michelle Rhee, and why it may ultimately lead to her departure from the city.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:00 PM ET, 04/09/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools, D.C. Schools | Tags: D.C. public schools, D.C. teachers pact, Larry Cuban, Michelle Rhee, Rhee and teachers

Posted at 09:29 AM ET, 04/07/2010

The lesson in Rhee’s deal with the WTU

By Valerie Strauss

There is a great lesson in the proposed pact struck by D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee and the Washingotn Teachers Union. And no, it is not that people will take desperate measures to shore up their positions before an election.

By Valerie Strauss | 09:29 AM ET, 04/07/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: Chancellor Michelle Rhee, D.C. schools, D.C. teachers, D.C. teachers union, Rhee makes deal, teachers and Rhee

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 03/22/2010

Inexcusable: Empty promises to a D.C. school

By Valerie Strauss

What can you say after you say that D.C. school officials have yet again let down a school community that has been trying for years to get decent conditions in which its students and young children can learn each weekday? A lot.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 03/22/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: Chancellor Michelle Rhee., D.C. public schools

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 02/01/2010

Should Rhee ignore the new poll?

By Valerie Strauss

If I were D.C. Schools Superintendent Michelle Rhee, I wouldn’t care much about a new Post poll that shows declining support among parents in the city. Monday’s Post has details of a new poll largely about Mayor Adrian Fenty but that also includes questions about Rhee, and it shows the popularity of both officials down from where it was two years ago.

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 02/01/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: michelle rhee

Posted at 10:10 AM ET, 01/28/2010

Rhee: In her own words

By Valerie Strauss

Nobody is immune from saying things they don’t mean--but it is probably a good idea to watch what you say when you work in the public eye. A reader put together this list of quotes from D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, suggesting a record of inconsistencies that go beyond the most recent controversy surrounding her word. Rhee got into trouble recently over remarks to a magazine that teachers laid off last October had had sex with children and hit kids. After my colleague Bill Turque wrote about the comments, it came out that one of the 266 teachers had been accused of having sex with a student. Here is the list of Rhee quotes, with links. What do you think?

By Valerie Strauss | 10:10 AM ET, 01/28/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. public schools, michelle rhee

Posted at 03:15 PM ET, 01/26/2010

Rhee still perplexing

By Valerie Strauss

Now that we know why D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee told a magazine that some laid off teachers had had sex with children and hit them too, I’m still perplexed. I wonder why Rhee didn’t tell District residents about this when the layoffs happened last October. I wonder why she didn’t try to explain herself immediately when the controversy over her magazine comments first became public within the last week.

By Valerie Strauss | 03:15 PM ET, 01/26/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools chancellor michelle rhee

Posted at 03:22 PM ET, 01/25/2010

Rhee in trouble; Gray not helping

By Valerie Strauss

What was she thinking? Even for D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, who routinely attracts controversy, this time she really stirred up unnecessary trouble by telling a magazine that some of the teachers that she laid off last year because of budget cuts had been having sex with children and hitting them. Really? I can’t figure out if Rhee actually likes stirring up controversy or just muddles her way into it--or both--but in this instance, whether it was a hasty remark she didn’t intend to make or an intentional bomb, I don’t see a good way out. Why didn't she do something about it earlier?

By Valerie Strauss | 03:22 PM ET, 01/25/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: dc public schools, michelle rhee, sidwell

Posted at 10:10 AM ET, 01/25/2010

Rhee D.C.’s person of the year?

By Valerie Strauss

Let’s congratulate D.C. Schools Chancellor for being named the Federal City Council’s Washington D.C.’s Person of the Year. Now let’s look at the rationale behind the decision, explained in an advertisement in yesterday’s Washington Post on page B2, the second page of the Outlook section--and see whether it holds together. It was signed by Frank Keating, the president of the Federal City Council and former governor of Oklahoma.

By Valerie Strauss | 10:10 AM ET, 01/25/2010 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. public schools, michelle rhee, school reform

Posted at 12:10 PM ET, 10/31/2009

Enough feuding! It's time for a D.C. schools summit

By Valerie Strauss

I just may scream if I hear one more person invoke what is “best for the kids” in the growing conflict between D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee and her critics....It’s time for someone to make a high-level intervention and put a stop to this feuding. I’d vote for the man who hired Rhee in the first place and made her more powerful than previous schools chief. That would be Mayor Adrian Fenty.

By Valerie Strauss | 12:10 PM ET, 10/31/2009 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: D.C. Schools, Mayor Adrian Fenty, Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee

Posted at 04:44 PM ET, 10/02/2009

What's Going On In D.C.?

By Valerie Strauss

It sounds like a great plot to a movie for kids: A security company that provides guards to public schools goes bankrupt overnight. Anxiety and confusion rule the day when kids go to school and discover that about 300 guards aren’t there. Some kids even get sent home because nobody can monitor the entrances! What fun! But, as we know, this did just happen in Washington D.C. And once again we find ourselves asking: Who in the city could or should have foreseen this and why didn’t they?

By Valerie Strauss | 04:44 PM ET, 10/02/2009 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, D.C. Schools Chanceller Michelle Rhee, D.C. schools

Posted at 01:44 PM ET, 09/22/2009

A Troubling Trend in D.C. Schools

By Washington Post Editors

Reporters like to declare a trend when they see at least three examples of the same phenomenon. Based on the rules of trends, The Answer Sheet sees a troubling trend involving D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee and what seems to...

By Washington Post Editors | 01:44 PM ET, 09/22/2009 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: d.c. schools, mayor adrian fenty, michelle rhee

Posted at 05:20 PM ET, 09/17/2009

The Same Story in D.C.

By Valerie Strauss

Here we go again: The D.C. school system starts the new year with high hopes, and in just a few weeks questions are raised about suspicious erasures on standardized test scores, and, now, there are budget problems that may force teacher layoffs. So who in the city government could have and should have foreseen this financial situation in time to stop principals from filling teacher vacancies this past summer and making other decisions that may now have to be reversed?

By Valerie Strauss | 05:20 PM ET, 09/17/2009 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: D.C. Schools | Tags: chancellor michelle a. rhee, d.c. schools, mayor adrian fenty

Posted at 06:30 AM ET, 09/08/2009

CHECKING IT OUT: What's a ‘highly skilled’ teacher in D.C.?

By Valerie Strauss

Back in the day at Everglades Elementary School in Miami, I had a fifth-grade teacher named Berry Shaw. She was known as the second toughest--read that, second meanest--teacher in the place, and I quaked on the first day of class....

By Valerie Strauss | 06:30 AM ET, 09/08/2009 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Categories: Teachers, Teachers | Tags: D.C. schools, Highly Skilled Teachers, Michelle Rhee, Teachers

The Answer Sheet: michelle rhee