Fenty Takes Hands-On Role as Opening Nears
Successful School Year Crucial to His Policies

By David Nakamura
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 21, 2008

Mayor Adrian M. Fenty visited Browne Educational Center in Northeast recently with two friends: Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee and facilities chief Allen Y. Lew.

This was no leisurely tour. The three leaders had come to see why renovations had bogged down.

Browne is among several schools that will accept hundreds of additional students this year as part of a massive overhaul of the 49,000-student system. The system has been losing 3,000 students a year, prompting Rhee to close 23 school buildings.

At Browne, to accommodate the new students, Lew recently ordered additional contractors to finish adding a science lab and renovating bathrooms.

"We're going to a school where things are not going as fast as we wanted them to," Fenty said. "I want to see how we're doing."

Fenty's second year in charge of D.C. public schools begins Monday, and he wants to avoid a setback. In addition to closing the 23 schools, Rhee fired 98 central office workers, named 46 new principals and is in the middle of negotiating what could be a revolutionary, and controversial, merit-pay system with the teachers union.

If his focus last year was to support Rhee as she began making major changes, Fenty (D) now wants to focus the administration on school reform. Principals met recently with workers from parks and recreation, health, procurement and police. It was meant to send a message that principals should expect help from all city agencies, Fenty aides said.

Mary Levy, who has long monitored D.C. schools for the Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, said she is nervous about the changes and whether the administration can open schools smoothly.

"They did it last year, but it will be a lot harder this year," she said. "They've taken on so much more because of the closings. And they've fired some good people."

Meanwhile, D.C. Council members, including Chairman Vincent C. Gray (D), have complained that the mayor has left them out of his reform efforts. In a letter last month, Gray challenged Fenty and Rhee to provide a master education plan and a facilities modernization plan to the council.

"One full year into the reform effort, however, we do not have either of these, and that is leading to growing concern over the direction of the reform effort," Gray wrote.

This summer, Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) held up about $8 million in construction funds Lew needs to complete the summer repair program. Lew has warned in a letter to Gray that the holdup could result in safety concerns in some school buildings and stop work on roofs, bathrooms and heating systems.

"I do not have the luxury of saying anyone is preventing me from doing my job," Fenty said, when asked about the council's actions. "The citizens of the District of Columbia elected me to do a job. I've got to get it done."

Pressed to address the council's complaints, Fenty said: "I can't reiterate enough that our job is to get things done, including briefing council, keeping the council informed. To the extent that hasn't occurred as much as it should have, it's my fault 100 percent."

In addition to the principal's meeting, the system is launching programs to provide "wraparound" services to troubled youth. There will be additional counselors and training for police officers about school safety.

Fenty, who meets with Rhee twice a week, said that his message to his education aides is: "Let me know what else you need to have the schools even more ready."

The administration was buoyed by recent increases in standardized test scores for math and English for elementary and high school students, but Fenty and Rhee have a long way to go. The scores are still low compared with national standards and surrounding jurisdictions.

As part of their plan, the mayor and chancellor have attempted to position themselves with other big-city educators, especially Joel Klein, the chancellor of the New York City schools. Rhee worked with Klein during her time as director of the New Teacher Project, and it was partly on his recommendation that Fenty hired Rhee.

In the spring, Fenty and Rhee joined Klein and the Rev. Al Sharpton at an education conference in Memphis to talk about the need to close the achievement gap among black and Hispanic students. On Sunday, the foursome will reunite in Denver, on the eve of the Democratic National Convention, for a panel discussion.

The exposure is aimed at helping Fenty and Rhee win attention and garner national support -- including financial donations from major foundations and, perhaps, a wave of new teachers and administrators.

Fenty said he wants to "provide information to the country about what you're doing and how you could use their support." He also said that he has sought the "best practices" from other jurisdictions to bring to Washington.

"The goal is to have schools as ready as humanly possible," said Fenty, who will return with Rhee to be in town for Monday's school system opening, "and for kids to get as excellent an education as they possibly can."