Ten quotes that stick in my head from the panel discussion of former Milwaukee Public Schools superintendents at the Law School on Monday evening:
Robert Peterkin, superintendent from 1988 to 1991: “This is a town that loves politics as a blood sport.”
Peterkin on school reform when he was in Milwaukee: “We should have done it twice as much, twice as fast, and twice as deep.”
One of the insights of Public Choice theory (a way of viewing political actors as self interested agents) is that intensely interested parties may often be able to exercise disproportionate influence over public policy to benefit their own interests at the expense of the common good. This proposal to vest greater control over local school districts and school boards with the state Superintendent of Public Instruction strikes me as a prime example.
I have no idea whether placing MPS under the responsibility of the Mayor would have helped what every one agrees are completely unacceptable outcomes. The idea was to place responsibility for the schools with a public official to whom more people pay attention and whose election and re-election is more salient, i.e., more people pay attention. School board races attract few voters and tend to be denominated by those who are self interested in the status quo or in particular proposals for reform. This results in a weaker demand for acountability on the part of the general public. If the mayor had to run for reelection based, in part, on the performance of the schools, it is more likely that something would get done.
One of the arguments against the takeover, however, is that it would diminish the voters’ direct control over the schools.
Another serving of educational food for thought:
1) Nobody seems to know where the current tumult around low performing schools is heading, but wherever it is, it looks like people will get there quickly. There is as much as $45 million in federal aid on the table to do something about schools in Wisconsin that are getting the weakest results. The state Department of Public Instruction put five schools in the most severe bracket, another seven in a second-from-the-bottom tier, and more than two dozen in a third group. All are in the Milwaukee Public Schools system. The federal Department of Education requires that the schools in at least the two lowest groups make major changes – start all over or get rid of much of the staff or similar steps. Now, as part of the process, MPS administrators have issued a request for proposals for professional firms to provide “transformation reform frameworks” for eight large high school buildings. School Board President Michael Bonds said Thursday that the Board had not approved the idea of getting bids for overhauling the schools and he does not know what will result. The eight schools are Vincent, Custer, Madison, Bradley Tech, Pulaski, Washington, Bay View, and South Division. You have a plan for what to do with those schools? Get moving. You’ve got until 2 p.m. April 12 to submit it to the MPS purchasing office.
2) I really should set the record straight: Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett spoke out on the need for changes in the health insurance choices for MPS employees before I did.