Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

+47389

Thank you for this important context. We absolutely should not return to having a powerful SBOE.

+47390

Hilarious that this is probably lot 5 people giving off each other thinking they’re making a powerful statement

It must be hard being a lot 4 person.

Typo police it’s like we’re in 2009. Sounds like my point stands

You got me! I concede! Your point (which was what?) stands! Over there, in a field, looking forlornly at the the happy couples walking by, wondering what it did wrong to be so miserable and alone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

+47389

Thank you for this important context. We absolutely should not return to having a powerful SBOE.

+47390

Hilarious that this is probably lot 5 people giving off each other thinking they’re making a powerful statement

It must be hard being a lot 4 person.

Typo police it’s like we’re in 2009. Sounds like my point stands

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

+47389

Thank you for this important context. We absolutely should not return to having a powerful SBOE.

+47390

Hilarious that this is probably lot 5 people giving off each other thinking they’re making a powerful statement

It must be hard being a lot 4 person.

Typo police it’s like we’re in 2009. Sounds like my point stands

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not the OP, but some things I'm pulling out as I do the reading that OP posted:

"On average, districts under mayoral control also focus on teachers: A greater percentage of their total staff is teachers, producing lower student-to-teacher ratios. Relative to the largest city districts, mayor-led districts have less central office staff and administrators as a percent of their total staff. This prioritization on teaching and learning might be an important factor in contributing to higher student achievement, as discussed below."

"Mayor-controlled districts have seen increases in student achievement
Although other factors are important, the ultimate measure of any change in our education system is whether it improves student learning and achievement. In Boston, Chicago, New York City, Washington, D.C., and other cities, mayoral control is associated with just that. Students saw improvements—in some cases significant improvements—on both state assessments and on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a test administered nationally to fourth and eighth graders. Looking at the National Assessment of Educational Progress scores, for example, the percentage of Bostonian fourth graders proficient in math went from 12 percent to 33 percent—an increase of 21 percentage points—under mayoral control. Similarly, the percentage of fourth graders in Washington, D.C. that were proficient in reading went from 10 percent to 20 percent—an increase of 10 percentage points—after the city moved to mayoral control."

"Some of the most notable gains in achievement were among minority and lower-income students."

Have you looked at the central office budget in DC? Bc you are speaking in general tones about things that are not true here. Teachers are not being given additional benefits or salary due to mayoral control

They aren’t, but watch this narrative take hold and take over DCUM.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

+47389

Thank you for this important context. We absolutely should not return to having a powerful SBOE.

+47390

Hilarious that this is probably lot 5 people giving off each other thinking they’re making a powerful statement

It must be hard being a lot 4 person.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

+47389

Thank you for this important context. We absolutely should not return to having a powerful SBOE.

+47390

Hilarious that this is probably lot 5 people giving off each other thinking they’re making a powerful statement

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

+47389

Thank you for this important context. We absolutely should not return to having a powerful SBOE.

+47390

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

+47389

Thank you for this important context. We absolutely should not return to having a powerful SBOE.

Anonymous wrote:It might be worthwhile, if you haven't been in DC that long, to understand the Fenty/Rhee changes (I write this to any interested party, not in response to an individual post upthread).

https://www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-04-20/michelle-rhee-set-national-example-of-education-reform-in-washington-dc

From 2017, talking about 2007:

"Ten years ago this week, the Council of the District of Columbia passed the D.C. Public Education Reform Amendment Act, which gave then-Mayor Adrian Fenty control over public education in the nation's capital. In doing so, it unleashed new reform energies in Washington, D.C., accelerated efforts already underway and had impacts that extend well beyond the district's 10 square miles.

The act abolished the District of Columbia's elected board of education and created a new office, the chancellor, who is appointed by the mayor, serves as the chief executive officer of the District of Columbia Public Schools, the public school district in Washington, D.C. Fenty selected Michelle Rhee as Washington's first chancellor, and this galvanized education reformers nationally.
...
Following her appointment, she closed nearly two dozen schools, primarily those with low enrollments and outdated buildings. This was a painful but fiscally and educationally essential step in a district that had lost more than 100,000 students since the 1960s.

Rhee also created IMPACT, a new teacher evaluation system that assessed teacher performance based in part on how much their students learned, and negotiated a new union contract that tied teacher pay to evaluation ratings, allowed teachers who earned multiple low ratings to be dismissed and provided hefty bonuses to those who earned the highest ratings. Subsequent research found that IMPACT has in fact improved the quality of teachers in DCPS, by prompting low-performers to leave the system and high-performers to stay and improving performance of high-performers.

These reforms came at a political cost: Fenty lost his re-election bid in 2010 (although other factors played an important role there), and Rhee subsequently left D.C. But her successor, Kaya Henderson, maintained and built on her reforms.

And this sustained reform effort has paid off for students: According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test used to track trends in achievement nationally and across jurisdictions, DCPS students made significant gains in reading and math from 2007 to 2015. In 2007, DCPS students scored at the bottom of large urban school districts nationally. In 2015, they score at the national average for large urban districts in fourth-grade reading and math, and slightly below it in eighth grade. Moreover, from 2011 to 2015 DCPS made larger gains than any other large district in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading."

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jeff directed this here, so I'll stick it here instead:

https://twitter.com/mattyglesias/status/1450150223771275264

I can't figure out how to link a screenshot, but Yglesias says ending mayoral control is a bad idea, and provides reasons.

I think this was to be expected, given the Weeds episode about school reopenings.

+1

Lotta good points here.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a DC Council hearing on October 26 to discuss ending mayoral control of DCPS. Please sign up to testify against ending Mayoral control. There is no rational for ending Mayoral control other than giving more power to outside organizations over DCPS. Nobody has made the case for why the current management of DCPS needs to be change. Indeed - every single other public work is administered directly by the Mayor.

Mayoral control is DIRECTLY related to school reopening after covid. Without mayoral control, I do not believe DCPS would have opened at all last year, similar to SFUSD.

More information:https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/chicago-schools-lori-lightfoot-mayoral-control/2021/02/18/ff452110-7158-11eb-93be-c10813e358a2_story.html

This is old research, but it explains the issue of mayoral control of schools, and why it is beneficial:
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/education-k-12/news/2013/03/22/57723/top-5-things-to-know-about-mayoral-control-of-schools/

Washington Post on the current efforts in DC: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/undermining-mayoral-control-of-dc-schools-wont-make-things-better-for-students/2021/03/07/0fcb87d4-7bbf-11eb-b3d1-9e5aa3d5220c_story.html

You can sign up to submit written or oral testimony here: Sign up here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdUODdcp7a-VInaR5aSlR4_wEqL46YZ4bj65-LjKWTXMowpZQ/viewform?fbzx=-6710434939403137657

First of all - it's "RATIONALE" not "rational"

secondly -- Mayoral control has been an unmitigated failure. Public schools have become politically driven rather than focused on better student outcomes across the board. Thanks for the heads up so I can testify to end Mayoral control.

You'll need to go into a bit more detail about A) what exactly you mean by "politically driven" and B) why ending mayoral control -- and handing over control to an elected school board -- would make it less politically driven? Or do you just mean something like making the Chancellor only dismissable for cause?

I don't "need" to do anything

Educators should drive decision making on policy. Educators should run schools and school boards are far more accountable to citizens than a mayoral appointees. Political appointees cut out meaningful and necessary voices in the process with little real accountability to school communities. I guess there's accountability if you game the boundary system for your own kid, but there's no accountability for failing to deliver better outcomes for students, however desperate the effort to quantify any measurable "success" through questionable metrics (spoiler alert -- rich kids test better than poor kids).

no no nonono no no no. educators are not experts in education policy. sorry, no. i say this as a person who is a former teacher with a degree in education who now works with experts in ed policy and ed research.

Yeah, it's an odd article of faith among teachers -- most of whom have less experience with public policy or management than your average adult -- that "educators" are the only people qualified to make any decisions about schools, from budgeting to facilities planning to HR.

Of course, because they spend their lives among children, teachers are some of the least qualified folks to make these decisions. I'd way rather have decisions about policy made by someone who studied and works in the field of POLICY than someone who spends their day teaching multiplication tables. I'd rather have decisions about accounting and finance made by an accountant than someone who teaches about primary colors all day. Call me crazy.