THE SCHOOL Reform Commission took a dramatic step forward Wednesday when it took back six schools run by the so-called education management organizations.
Some EMOs haven't lived up to expectations in turning around low-performing schools. So, after six years of watching this experiment, the SRC pulled EMOs out of six schools, placed 20 others under one-year contracts and put 12 in three-year deals.
With the school budget tighter now than six years ago, the district no longer has the luxury, patience or money to wait to see if things improve. Studies have shown that privately operated schools had the lowest academic improvement compared with district-managed or charter schools.
But for the SRC, it goes beyond EMOs. The district made it clear that all its schools - including charters - will get the same intense scrutiny.
Welcome, Arlene Ackerman.
We applaud the district and its new CEO for being firm and decisive. And for providing additional help to the low-performing schools - teacher coaches, parent-outreach workers, more professional development.
It also shows something else: What appears to make schools work is not necessarily outside management, but inside strength: Strong principals, a stable staff, engaged parents and teachers, and strong oversight.
The district's interventions are similar to what it used for its "restructured schools" - another ingredient of the diverse-model mix - before it shut down the Restructured School Office in 2005. Until then, restructured schools had shown significantly positive academic growth.
The EMOs weren't exactly playing on a level field when they took on these schools, but they knew that going in. They have no say in curriculum choices, or in teacher or principal selection. And they say that academic measurements used by the school district and feds don't adequately reflect the progress being made at their schools.
So a third of the 38 privately managed schools are working well enough to have their full contracts restored. Should this number be higher? Is it about right for the kind of experiment the SRC is engaged in? What should our expectations be?
These are complicated questions, and we're not sure anyone has the answer right now. But we're relieved that the district is beginning to give us the shape of an answer in its tough scrutiny of results, and in its insistence, despite one member's preference to wait, to move ahead and make the necessary changes. *