Better or Worse, It's Rhee's School System Now

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A Look Back at Michelle Rhee's First Year as Chancellor of D.C. Schools

In 2007, D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty appointed Michelle A. Rhee as the chancellor of D.C. Public Schools. Critics have questioned Rhee's qualifications and her aggressive revamp of the troubled school system.

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"What we know is that the quality of teachers that we have in the system will make or break us," Rhee said recently at an event in Chicago. "We can have pretty, shiny buildings, great curriculum and programs, but unless we have unbelievable educators in the system, it's all going to be for naught."

She would use compensation packages exceeding $100,000 a year in salary and bonuses to attract a new crop of teachers. She is seeking a contract with the Washington Teachers' Union that would give its members the option of making higher salaries in exchange for relinquishing tenure and seniority protections.

The union has expressed strong objections to the proposal. If it fails, Rhee said last week, she would use teacher evaluations and a new certification process to get rid of teachers who don't meet her expectations.

First she has to get through opening day.

Rhee is attempting to avert start-of-the-year problems that have weakened the credibility of previous schools chiefs. She said 99.9 percent of textbooks are in place. High school schedules are done, and all principal and assistant principal vacancies are filled. And despite renovation delays, she said she expects all schools to be ready today.

Still, not everyone is optimistic, particularly about some of the 28 schools undergoing consolidations related to campus closures.

Among the skeptics is Maria P. Jones, who has a daughter entering kindergarten at Burroughs Elementary in Northeast. Burroughs is expanding to take students from Slowe Elementary, which is closing, and to extend enrollment through eighth grade.

Jones said Rhee's staff had ignored parents' requests for a new gym and additional sports and extracurricular activities to accommodate middle-schoolers. She also said parents weren't allowed to play a role in creating the culture of the new school.

"It's like ushering in a scary era where we don't have a say in what's going on," said Jones, who chaired the Burroughs restructuring team, a panel that advises the principal. "It just feels like the people are losing their voice . . . that we're losing a grip on democracy."

Unilateral Power

Rhee was able to move so quickly because of the unilateral power granted her by Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, who has staked his political future on fixing the schools, which he won control over in June 2007. Fenty (D) has given her political cover by warning agency heads that they risk losing their jobs if they tell her no.

Under the new governance system, Rhee reports only to Fenty, not a school board.

Critics argue that the structure has resulted in a scaling back of checks and balances, due process for employees and opportunities for the public to have a meaningful say.