How the DC education system is structured - and why oversight of the mayor on DCPS is needed

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to add that the Chancellor is forcing all high schools to abide by the (awful) 4x4 schedule...this schedule is terrible for many students (and teachers) yet the schools do not have a choice....YET the "application schools"--such as Walls--do not have to abide by it. Guess where the Chancellor's daughter goes?

again why would a school board fix this?

What a strange question. They would provide oversight. They would demand explanations and data backing up the decision.

Unitary executive control of schools is not the norm; just look at the counties that surround us. They have elected school boards and superintendents as administrators. Checks and balances.

the council provides this oversight. it’s not unitary executive control. there are checks and balances now.

and btw - the bills on the table reduce oversight by creating independent bodies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to add that the Chancellor is forcing all high schools to abide by the (awful) 4x4 schedule...this schedule is terrible for many students (and teachers) yet the schools do not have a choice....YET the "application schools"--such as Walls--do not have to abide by it. Guess where the Chancellor's daughter goes?

Does his ‘daughter’ also go to Banneker? Because they are not on the 4x4 either. . .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Yeah I think a data reporting agency for schools, that was actually full of people who know how to collect and report data, with some legislation about how hiring and firing couldn’t be done by elected officials, seems like an option.

Not a terrible idea, but the problem is really the power to obtain information. Does this data reporting office have subpoena power? If not, it's pointless as the mayor can just stonewall it.

All right, then give them subpeona power.

All they can do is report, not change policy. And the stuff they report on is set by a list generated by SBOE / Council / Mayor, and is only up for alteration every (idk) 5 years. That way it stays out of political gaming. SBOE/Council/Mayor can request special reports but those don't have to be honored (and should just be based on resources available).

[Anonymous]

Every thread get hijacked by the “school reopening/WTU sucks” posters. I am so annoyed by you people! Anything you’re for I just become against because you’re angry bitter morons!

[Anonymous]

I would support an inspector general under the elected attorney general whose recommendations were legally required to be addressed would work

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Every thread get hijacked by the “school reopening/WTU sucks” posters. I am so annoyed by you people! Anything you’re for I just become against because you’re angry bitter morons!

I'm not seeing that ...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to add that the Chancellor is forcing all high schools to abide by the (awful) 4x4 schedule...this schedule is terrible for many students (and teachers) yet the schools do not have a choice....YET the "application schools"--such as Walls--do not have to abide by it. Guess where the Chancellor's daughter goes?

Does his ‘daughter’ also go to Banneker? Because they are not on the 4x4 either. . .

Right, Banneker is exempt too--they exempted all application schools. No explanation of why. Those schools get autonomy to decide their own schedule. "Regular" DCPS high schools do not. No explanation.

[Anonymous]

I'm not sure OP understands the concept of an executive branch of government. Are you aware that the heads of all the federal agencies also serve exclusively at the discretion of the President? Is that also a problem for you?

I'm just not understanding why, if you hate Bowser so much, you're focusing your efforts on this crazy bad governance idea instead of just.... voting someone else into office.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Every thread get hijacked by the “school reopening/WTU sucks” posters. I am so annoyed by you people! Anything you’re for I just become against because you’re angry bitter morons!

I'm not seeing that ...

Yeah I'm not either.

"Hijack" commenter is projecting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Every thread get hijacked by the “school reopening/WTU sucks” posters. I am so annoyed by you people! Anything you’re for I just become against because you’re angry bitter morons!

There hasn't been a single mention of the WTU in this thread. You are the first.

So I wonder why.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure OP understands the concept of an executive branch of government. Are you aware that the heads of all the federal agencies also serve exclusively at the discretion of the President? Is that also a problem for you?

I'm just not understanding why, if you hate Bowser so much, you're focusing your efforts on this crazy bad governance idea instead of just.... voting someone else into office.

Yeah, it's like wanting to elect the Cabinet. We don't want that because we want things to at least marginally function.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The current situation in DCPS is:

There is a state education agency, like a state department of education. This agency is OSSE. The mayor appoints the OSSE head and has complete control over OSSE: the OSSE head serves at the mayor's pleasure.

DCPS is headed by a chancellor. The mayor appoints the chancellor and has complete control over DCPS: the DCPS Chancellor head serves at the mayor's pleasure.

Both DCPS and OSSE report to the Deputy Mayor for Education. Currently ex-McKinsey consultant Paul Kihn. The mayor appoints the deputy mayor for education and the deputy mayor for education serves at the mayor's pleasure.

Additionally, important during COVID times:
The agency responsible for health is DC Health. The mayor appoints the DC Health head and has complete control over DC Health: the DC Health head serves at the mayor's pleasure.

Do we see the problem here?!?!?!

The mayor has total control over every education agency.

When stuff goes wrong, the mayor and chancellor and DME can just.... lie about it. In fact, they DO lie about it.

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What we need is more democracy. We need an elected head of education who is not the mayor. Directly elect the DCPS Chancellor.

OR, we need OSSE split off from mayoral control so they can exert oversight over the mayor when her people are making mistakes and lying about them.

What would operating schools in COVID look like with disjointed agencies all responding to a different manager/oversight body?

[Anonymous]

I get that people are mad about some things, but I'm not seeing actual proposals that would change those things.

Also I don't get it: the SBOE and Council do have oversight roles on a number of topics. Is the issue that their recommendations can be ignroed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I get that people are mad about some things, but I'm not seeing actual proposals that would change those things.

Also I don't get it: the SBOE and Council do have oversight roles on a number of topics. Is the issue that their recommendations can be ignroed?

E.g., https://sboe.dc.gov/page/accountability-and-assessment

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would support an inspector general under the elected attorney general whose recommendations were legally required to be addressed would work

DC has an inspector general who can and does do accountability work on DC schools.

Legally requiring implementation of recommendations falls to the Council. They can do that now.