April 6, 2013

How One School Superindentent Avoided Facing Jail...and Another Didn't

By M. Catharine Evans and Ann Kane
Atlanta's now-disgraced former school superintendent Beverly Hall faces 45 years in prison.  Her high-stakes testing strategy led to a massive cheating scandal which took over ten years to uncover.  D.C.'s former chancellor, Michelle Rhee, also employed the same testing tactics during her tenure from 2007 to 2010 and had her own cheating scandal, with 103 schools flagged.  So why isn't Rhee facing the same outcome as Hall? Rhee not only emerged from "investigations" of D.C. Public Schools unscathed, but boldly continues to travel the country, repeating the story of dramatically improving students' test scores. This tale of two autocratic superintendents shows just how important one's political connections really are.  Hall's investigation went to the governor of Georgia; Rhee's investigation went all the way to the Department of Education.  But Rhee had the support of President Obama and the Secretary of Education. Here are Rhee's own words in January...(Read Full Article)