Charter boom could begin
Mayor wants school options
March 28, 2007
Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick could find plenty of allies in his efforts to bring more charter and private schools to Detroit -- and the school district's declining enrollment could open the door to many more charter schools in the city.
"It doesn't signal an end to the mayor's patience with Detroit Public Schools," mayoral spokesman Matt Allen said of Kilpatrick's comments Monday that he is speaking to charter and private school operators about opening more schools in Detroit.
Kilpatrick cited school closings in areas where the city is planning new housing developments as another reason why he wants to step into the city's education system. To keep families in the city, he has argued, more options -- including trade and technical schools -- should be available, Allen said.
"It can be done by Detroit Public Schools in charters now, but they're not," Allen said.
Already, Grand Valley State University is working to open several new charters in Detroit, and Wayne County Community College stands to be able to charter an unlimited number of schools in the city if DPS enrollment drops below 100,000 students.
WCCC Chancellor Curtis Ivery noted that there is no prohibition on WCCC chartering schools just outside the city, and while he hasn't discussed charter schools in the city with Kilpatrick, he would be interested.
"That would not be something I would initiate, but as we look at solutions, I think all options should be on the table," Ivery said.
Would they compete with DPS if enrollment crosses that threshold?
"It would be a partnership between the schools, the college and the stakeholders," Ivery said. "DPS should have a significant role in defining that partnership."
The state could change the enrollment figure that allows WCCC unlimited charters in Detroit -- and has in the past. Prior to 2000, the trigger was 120,000 students.
And even if enrollment doesn't fall, a 2003 state laws allows for up to 15 charter high schools in Detroit as long as there is a sponsor who wants to help the city. The term "high school" is somewhat misleading, in that these schools could have grades K-12.
Grand Valley State University is in negotiations to open the first of these schools, sponsored by philanthropist Robert Thompson, according to its charter school director, Edward Richardson. If all 15 schools opened, they could take another 25,000 or more students from DPS.
Competition from charter schools is blamed for much of the exodus of 9,000 to 10,000 students annually from the city's schools. DPS enrollment is about 119,000 students, down from 180,000 a decade ago.
The uncertainty about whether schools will remain open from one year to the next only accelerates the drop, as jittery parents look elsewhere.
DPS is considering what it calls theme schools, but that plan has been stalled while the district decides whether to close schools next year
Doug Ross, head of University Preparatory Academy, a charter school sponsored by Grand Valley State, said Tuesday that the mayor has offered to help him open four new schools in fall 2008, including two elementary schools, a middle and a high school -- all concentrating on math and science.
"He has offered to help us find sites for the different schools," Ross said.
Detroit school board President Jimmy Womack didn't fault Kilpatrick for his statement, saying the mayor is "doing what he's got to do." Kilpatrick hasn't talked to him about bringing in more charter schools, Womack said, but he has discussed his concern about providing quality schools.
"Most people move out of the city to provide a better life for their families, and you hear people constantly talking about moving to a city with better schools," Womack said. "My job as board president is to make Detroit Public Schools the best option for parents."
Contact PEGGY WALSH-SARNECKI at 586-469-4681 or pwalsh@freepress.com. Education writer Kristen Jordan Shamus contributed.
Copyright © 2007 Detroit Free Press Inc.
Kilpatrick seeks charter schools for good of city
March 28, 2007
The knee-jerk reaction would be to say the mayor has lost his mind. The quick hit would be to say the mayor is opposed to the survival of the city school district.
Neither is true.
But that's the way it is with an issue such as charter schools, which feed at the same public trough that city and county school systems do.
But here's the thing: Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick isn't losing his mind; he's losing the city -- if he doesn't do something about education. His mission is fueled by the demands of companies that want to move here, the need for Detroit children to be more competitive nationally and globally -- and by an education transition team he formed that has recommended Kilpatrick pursue the establishment of 50 charter schools in the city.
The mayor hasn't decided anything. But he is talking openly about how all children, not just those in Detroit Public Schools, are his responsibility.
And he's right.
Allowing the establishment of charters and other schools that work, that are effectively planned and that operate like businesses with goals, accountability and balanced budgets, would:
• Offer choices to new residents who aren't going to send their children to the Detroit city schools and may not move to the city without that choice.
• Offer choices to residents looking to leave Detroit.
• Move some students out of the city schools, helping the district to right-size itself financially for the first time in 20 years. Carol Goss, president of the Skillman Foundation, which funds effective education, was a member of that transition education team.
"We're undertaking this initiative to transform the way people think about high schools," said Goss, who added that the foundation just awarded a grant to New Detroit to send city stakeholders around the country to visit schools that work. They will be guided partly by a list of such schools from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Of 32 on that list, two are in Michigan -- Northville High School and Henry Ford Academy in Dearborn. Goss and her team already visited another, the Denver High School of Science and Technology, a charter school where ninth-graders take physics.
"Forty-five percent of the kids in that school are (eligible for) free- and reduced lunch," she said.
Forcing the district to consider children and curriculum instead of jobs and contracts is the only way to improve the schools.
For years, the Detroit school board has operated under the misconception that bigger is better and only a large system that gets lots of dollars will work. Detroit doesn't need more money. It needs to spend better the money it has.
The transition team's recommendations, which were compiled in December but have not been made public, also include operating smaller high schools and creating smaller learning environments for all students.
The committee, a group of education, union, community and business leaders that included Detroit Public Schools Board President Jimmy Womack and then-Superintendent Bill Coleman, made several recommendations, but the most controversial was the charter school proposal, which was opposed by Womack and Coleman.
"We made a point of saying that we could support all the other recommendations except charter schools," Womack said. "Dave Bing recommended charter schools, but Bill Coleman and Jimmy Womack did not. We were real clear. If there is so much support for charters, why not put them in West Bloomfield?"
The mayor will have his hands full, but our children are worth it.
Contact ROCHELLE RILEY at 313 223 4473 or rriley99@freepress.com.
Copyright © 2007 Detroit Free Press Inc.
Schools chief is ready to lead
Superintendent faces challenges
March 28, 2007
South Lake Schools' new superintendent faces the daunting task of trying to manage budget cuts while continuing to offer programs for the district's 2,500 students.
Deborah Thompson, formerly South Lake's director of human resources and curriculum, said she's up to the challenge.
Thompson, a Detroiter who spent nearly three decades with the 119,000-student Detroit Public Schools, was chosen by South Lake's Board of Education last week from among four finalists. The 57-year-old will replace Bill Putney, who is to retire June 30 after 37 years with South Lake Schools.
One of Thompson's greatest strengths, said Putney, is her hands-on approach to problem solving. As curriculum director, Thompson worked to establish a global education project for middle school students, setting up courses in Mandarin and a cultural exchange with students in China.
"It's been a phenomenal experience for our students," Putney said.
Though the district might have to cut as much as 5% from its $23-million budget this year, Thompson said she'll continue to push for programs that help prepare students for the changing economy.
"St. Clair Shores is very dependent on the auto industry," she said. "We're going to have different challenges in educating our children and helping our parents realize their kids cannot do the same thing as they did."
But her first step, she added, will be meeting with administrators, teachers, students and parents to seek their feedback.
"Our job truly is to serve the community," she said. "You can't serve the community if you don't truly know what the community wants."
Thompson received a bachelor's degree in English, French and social studies from Wayne State University in 1973 and a law degree five years later from the same institution.
She will receive a financial package that totals $130,000 the first year and jumps to $144,000 by the conclusion of the 3-year deal. She'll also receive annual raises.
Contact SHABINA S. KHATRI at skhatri@freepress.com.
Copyright © 2007 Detroit Free Press Inc.
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