D.C. schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, appearing before a Senate panel Thursday, defended the school system against a congressional report critical of her reforms.
The report, drafted by the Government Accountability Office, commended steps the public schools have taken since coming under mayoral control in 2007, but criticized a lack of foresight in the often hurried implementation of new initiatives.
Rhee, who took the helm in 2007, acknowledged that many in the system have felt overwhelmed, but emphasized a sense of mission.
“When you come into the lowest-performing school district in the country where things really were so dysfunctional and there’s so much work to be done, we had a lot of enthusiasm for trying to tackle as many of those challenges as we could as quickly as we could,” Rhee said.
The panel of senators reserved harsh judgment for the chancellor, and allowed her ample time to discuss the need for other changes that are under way.
Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, and Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., empathized with Rhee in her struggle to craft a contract with the Washington Teachers Union that would allow more flexibility in firing bad teachers.
“What’s the rationale for transferring poor performers from one school to another?” Voinovich asked.
Rhee described a contract that in certain cases guarantees teachers a job in the district even when principals don’t hire them back.
“We don’t think this is a system that is thinking about the best interest of student achievement at its core, and is detrimental to a culture of accountability,” Rhee said.
She said district and union officials hope to strike a deal before the beginning of the school year.
The report also criticized her failure to involve “stakeholders” like teachers and parents in much of her early decision making.
Anne Martin, executive director of D.C. School Reform Now, agreed but added that the district has been doing more to reach out to parent and community groups.
“At times it’s felt very top-down,” Martin said. “But I think they’re showing a better understanding that people will be more responsive to policies they feel they’re a part of.”
Rhee told The Examiner she had a frustration with the report for at times focusing on some imperfections instead of acknowledging new efforts that need time to succeed.
“Overall my feeling is that we can only benefit from having external eyes coming in,” she said. “Overall these things are helpful.”
