Schools the City Can Build On

Students from across the city apply to the school to specialize in one of three areas: biotechnology, information technology or broadcast production. Yesterday they clutched orange class schedules as they bumped elbows in the hallways.

Janey said McKinley will be a guide as he works to improve several low-performing high schools, including Eastern on Capitol Hill, which he plans to close for about 18 months next year for renovations. It will reopen as the D.C. Latin School for grades six through 12.

In October, Janey will announce plans for transforming Ballou and Anacostia senior high schools in Southeast Washington into specialty schools. Both failed for four years to meet academic goals under the federal No Child Left Behind law.

"Opening a new school with an old tradition -- we will do the same at Eastern," Janey said.

McKinley Principal Daniel Gohl said students have proven that they have prowess in areas other than technology. The school's debate team has collected numerous trophies from competitions in New Jersey and Philadelphia. Social studies classes have taken trips to Senegal, Japan and Egypt. Broadcast students will be presenting their films at the Harlem International Film Festival, Gohl said.

"I'm proud of them. They've done tremendous things," he said.

Brightwood Elementary

Natural light streamed through large windows at Brightwood Elementary. A new foyer sparkled with yellow potted flowers, and every teacher's classroom had a telephone and Internet hookup.

The school, built in 1926, has undergone a $15.5 million renovation that included an addition with a gymnasium and offices.

"It's the vision for every school," Principal Wanda Fox said as she walked through the building, watching students settle into their classrooms.

Janey said Brightwood will be a model for the $1 billion school modernization plan, approved by the council in the spring. The project, he said, stayed within its budget and was completed on time.

School system officials said the project is the first example of how they plan to modernize aging school buildings. Brightwood used to have one bathroom, on the first floor. Now there's a bathroom on each of the building's three floors.

KIPP DC: Will Academy

Jessica Cunningham, standing before fifth-graders in a class at KIPP DC: Will Academy, looked like the principal in her gray business suit and pumps, but she sounded more like a cheerleader.