District Administration - October 2011 - (Page 84)

Changing of the Guard in Florida will have the leadership style to embrace our ideas and concerns and give them thoughtful consideration.” Florida has gained notice around the country for major changes to K12 education enacted under former governors Jeb Bush and Charlie Crist. The state began grading schools’ performance in 1999, long before No Child Left Behind took effect, ended social promotion of elementary school students, and launched more than 400 charter schools. On the state’s A+ Plan for Education, the percentage of schools receiving an A or B rating rose to 79 percent in 2009 from 21 percent in 1999. On the National Assessment of Educational Progress, the state’s fourth-graders reading at or above grade level rose to 70 percent in 2007 from 53 percent in 1998. Graduation rates rose to 76 percent in 2008-2009, up from 55 percent in 2000, the lowest percentage in the country at the time. Quality Options With just a few weeks on the job, Robinson says he favors options but knows most children will be educated in traditional public schools and is concerned first and foremost about quality. Noting that he denied three-quarters of the charter school applications that came before him in a prior role as a member of the Georgia Charter School Commission, Robinson says he wants to make sure would-be operators have both high educational and financial standards, and that whatever distinguishes them “is meeting a real need.” “I don’t want to see the expansion of charters for the sake of charters,” Robinson says. “I’m not a rubber-stamp guy. I’m much more interested in having good schools, not just different types of schools with different names.” Robinson said the same thing over the summer when he met with attendees at the Florida Association of School Administrators conference, says Ronald Blocker, superintendent of Orange County Public Schools. “He shared with us that he is a huge proponent of school choice, but he would want responsible choice and responsible options,” Blocker says. “That to me 84 October 2011 From left to right, Bambi Lockman, the DOE Bureau of Exceptional Student Education chief, Jean Miller, Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice deputy director and Lois Tepper, general counsel, greet Commissioner Robinson. was not only enlightening, it was encouraging. I’ve long wanted a level playing field and accountability to go both ways.” Montford says his members support charters but want to ensure a level playing field between them and attendance-area porations to get tax savings to fund the education of Title 1 students and students with individual education plans (IEPs)— the latter expanded this year to include those with 504 plans, which apply to students with special needs not acute enough “That to me was not only enlightening, it was encouraging. I’ve long wanted a level playing field and accountability to go both ways.” public schools. “We know they can be a very valuable alternative,” he says. “What causes superintendents concern is how difficult it is to remove charter schools that are not performing. … We’ve got some wonderful charter schools. They are part of the team.” Robinson’s background in charters and school choice will mesh well in Florida, predicts Alberto Carvalho, superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools, of which about 10 percent are charter schools. “The commissioner comes into an environment that’s very pro-choice, where charter schools have proliferated aggressively, where even some degree of vouchers are noticeable through the scholarship programs,” he says. “The traditional onesize-fits-all model is pretty broken.” By “scholarship programs,” Carvalho refers to two programs that enable cor- —Ronald Blocker, superintendent, Orange County Public Schools to qualify for IEPs. The program for Title 1 students, called the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program, was established in 2001. The McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program gives parents a choice between public and private schools; more than 22,000 Florida students with special needs attended private schools on the scholarship last year. Charter Hype? The scholarship programs have generated some controversy. Some, like Margaret Smith, superintendent of Volusia County Schools, see them as tantamount to vouchers, given that the corporate tax breaks enable students to attend private or parochial schools. “The term ‘scholarship’ is always used instead of ‘voucher’ in Florida,” Smith says pointedly, adding, “What I would express to our new chancelDistrict Administration

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - October 2011

District Administration - October 2011
Contents
From the Editor
Letters
News Update
Transportation Update
District Profile
Administrator Profile
Building a Blended Learning Program
How Are Science Fairs Fairing?
A New Age for Algebra
Early College High Schools
Changing of the Guard in Florida
CIO News
How Much Computing Power Do You Need?
An Unconventional Approach to 1:1
New Books
Problem/ Solution
Research Center
Product Focus
New Products
Professional Opinion
Going Mobile
Online Edge

District Administration - October 2011