Reply to New Wilson Principal and the Beacon paper

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Reply to "New Wilson Principal and the Beacon paper "

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[quote=Anonymous]Her placement at Wilson was a marriage of convenience. Take it from a parent who has BTDT with DCPS principal hiring at more than one high profile school. I wasn't on the panel for this principal, but it sounds a lot like some others I have dealt with. The hiring process post-Rhee, at least on PowerPoint presentations from DCPS, is more professional and inclusive. And Henderson should get credit, IMO, for getting rid of some serious bad apples and undoing some bad models that Rhee didn't for whatever reasons.

[b]However[/b], DCPS has yet to become the destination of choice for the best-and-the-brightest administrators. The performance-based 3 year contracts and MJP fellowships should, in theory, help develop and retain strong school leaders [b]eventually[/b].

This is what we were told, unofficially, by DCPS hiring staff. They keep a few principal candidates from "urban" or school reform backgrounds in the pipeline because low-performing schools will always need leaders looking to "close the achievement gap." Wilson was not on their radar, given the urgent need in 40/40 schools, but they had to put in someone who was vetted. Based on parent and student activism, Roosevelt could wait, but Wilson could not.

The other part of the equation is getting ambition people from out of the region who may not realize (or haven't done their homework) on the instability of education reform and politics in DC. I've seen quite a few candidates who were sold a bill of goods to follow Rhee and/or Henderson to be at the supposed forefront of education reform in the nation's capital. It's been disappointing to see how many candidates, even within the city, don't do their homework on the demographics and culture of the schools they could lead.

DCPS, as a system, has to keep a pipeline of administrators in place until there's a more stable professional career path in the city. Cahill's resignation was unanticipated, as other schools like Oyster-Adams and Powell. DCPS went to its pipeline to sell high-profile posts to known, vetted candidates. Whether or not the potential hires knew what they were getting into.

Addressing the Yale-or-Jail outcomes of Wilson will take a lot more leadership than that from someone who's concerned with the student paper.

Don't be shocked if she leaves before the end of the school year to return to Ohio or Colorado for "personal" reasons or if DCPS asks her to lead Roosevelt or another school that "aligns with her skills."

Signed, 
BTDT Parent of DCPS students[/quote]

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