An Important Day for D.C. Schools?

Washington, D.C., Mayor Adrian Fenty will sign legislation today adding him to the ranks of mayors who have taken control over their cities' public education systems. The D.C. Council passed the legislation last Thursday. Congress must also approve the law before it takes effect, but is expected to do so with no problems.

I want very much to believe Fenty and his team can bring meaningful improvement to my city's public schools, which so desperately need it. And there are reasons to be hopeful: The team Fenty has assembled to work on this is good. And the hearings that led up to this legislation gave voice to public and political leader frustration with the city's schools that I hope can translate into political will for reforms.

But public education in the District of Columbia faces serious challenges, and the city has a history of failed reform initiatives and governance changes that failed to deliver promised improvement. And the hard work only begins when Fenty takes the reigns. I have two main causes for concern right now.

The first is with the "let's all get along" attitude Fenty's projected throughout this process: offering the City Council increased control over the school budget, the press conference he had Friday with school board chair Robert Bobb and current superintendent Janey, at which they all expressed a desire to hold hands and work together. Now, obviously this approach makes sense if you're trying to pass legislation giving you the right to take over the schools. And there are ways in which Fenty's willingness to play well with others on this is admirable. Too often efforts to improve urban schools get killed by personal and political feuding among individual elected officials trying to advance their own agendas. Fenty's efforts to make nice with the council, the current board and Janey suggest he's rejecting the dictatorial and polarizing approach NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg has taken in running that city's schools. BUT, one of the major challenges to improving education in D.C. has been that too many entities and individuals--the superintendent, the school board, the council, the chief financial officer, the mayor, Congress--have both an agenda and a say in how the schools are run, and that mess of competing forces has made it virtually impossible for the school system to get sustained focus on a coherent reform agenda. One of the major benefits of mayoral control would be to give the system a single ultimate point of authority and accountability, but that benefit disappears if Fenty lets himself get pulled in a bunch of directions trying to keep all those groups on board with his reforms. So far, the only people who've really had a lot at stake here have been the school board, Janey and a handful of home rule activists. But what happens when the Mayor needs to do something that's controversial and counter to the interests of significant groups within the school system, and they get their councilmembers involved? Improving the city's schools will require the political will to do difficult things even in the face of serious political opposition. What Fenty's encountered in the takeover ain't got nothing on what he could face when it comes time to actually take action: Does he have the will to stand up to that?

But that's nothing compared to my second concern: What is Fenty's team going to do? I don't believe there's anyone on this earth who can honestly say that they know how to fix the mess that is DCPS today. I've got some thoughts on things that might be beneficial; so do a lot of other people. But no one's ever fixed an entire system like D.C. to the point where we can honestly say we're happy with the outcomes it's delivering for most kids. There are no guarantees any of these things people might propose will actually work. When I think about what this all means forthe futures of kids in this city--which is what really matters here--that's what really worries me.

Two things worth reading this week if you're interested in this issue:
Rick Hess on Mayoral Control
Andy Smarick on Urban Superintendents