Today, Michelle Rhee, the Chancellor of DC Public Schools stepped down. Rhee has long been a divisive figure in DCPS often clashing with the local union as a result of a new evaluation system and the firing of more than 200 DCPS teachers. The news on its face is a setback to all the reforms that Rhee instituted in her 3 year tenure as Chancellor.
However, her replacement, Kaya Henderson shares much in common with Rhee in terms of the new evaluation system. Rhee and Henderson also worked together at The New Teacher Project. They share the belief that the teacher is an important component to student success. Vincent Gray who defeated Adrian Fenty in the primaries and is thought to be the next Mayor of DC mentions in the Washington Post that ""We cannot and will not return to the days of incrementalism". This seems to indicate that the reforms of the last three years are here to stay, at least for the time being.
The majority of news coverage seems to suggest that Rhee's divisive nature and her association with a lame duck mayor are the reason for her departure. However, the New York Times casually slips in another possible reason for Rhee's transition "Replacing Ms. Rhee, who is Korean-American, with Ms. Henderson, who is black, is expected to ease racial tensions." It is interesting to note that the New York Times fails to elaborate on this point, nor does anyone else interviewed comment on this as a factor. To what extent does the race of the leader of a school system affect student achievement? I am not aware of any data that answers that question. I do think it has more to do with the political climate than anything else.
Does this mean that Rhee has failed or that she is out of the field of education reform? I don't believe so. I think that what Rhee has done is nothing less than bold and innovative. This is a turning point in her career as an education reformer. I predict that Rhee will continue in education reform at a more holistic and national scale. She seems to be at her best when she shakes up the status quo with her take charge attitude. The question is, can she build the political capital to be a staying force in the long run.
So what does this mean for Baltimore? It puts a little bit of pressure on Alonso and his tenure in Baltimore. Rhee's departure also narrows the lens of school reform to those at the top? Just how much of a difference does the school leader make? What has Alonso done in Baltimore and will he stay?
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