EVENTS

Date:	Thursday, June 5, 2008
Time:	4:45 PM -- 6:00 PM
Location:	Wohlstetter Conference Center, Twelfth Floor, AEI 1150 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036

Klein Stresses Empowerment and Accountability to Improve New York City Public Schools

WASHINGTON, JUNE 7, 2008 -- New York City's Department of Education is empowering school leaders and implementing accountability measures that will place its public schools on a path of positive results, said Joel I. Klein at the American Enterprise Institute on June 6. In a speech detailing his record as schools chancellor, he outlined how he has addressed the challenges of the nation's largest urban school system and pointed to marked improvements in student achievement--including double-digit gains in reading and math for some grades.

Since Klein became chancellor in 2002, he has been a lightning rod for criticism. Plucked from a career as an antitrust and appellate lawyer and business executive by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and lacking a background in K-12 education, Klein faced an uphill battle to implement dramatic change. He described the process of school reform as "creative destruction," echoing early-twentieth-century economist Joseph Schumpeter--a fitting allusion, given Klein's emphasis on offering choices and promoting educational entrepreneurship. "We want New York City to be the Silicon Valley of charter schools," he said. But as established interests are upset, he added, the reform process "is going to be noisy."

A consequence of Klein's controversial tenure is that he is often praised more outside of New York than within it. In 2007, for example, the New York City schools won the prestigious Broad Prize for Urban Education. But according to the New York Sun, more New Yorkers disapprove of his job performance than approve. Teachers unions have resisted his attempts to introduce merit pay, and parents at some schools have expressed disapproval over budgetary issues and the loss of local control. During his speech, however, Klein pointed to figures showing that low-income parents--those historically most affected by under-resourced schools and who were in 2002 very displeased with their children's schools--have today reached parity with middle- and high-income parents in terms of satisfaction.

Klein described the two main phases of his tenure so far. During the first phase, he concentrated on gaining control of the system and bringing unity to a district long marked by structural decentralization.  To do so, he focused on cutting and restructuring bureaucracy, recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers and principals, and expanding choices for students and their families. Klein also underscored the importance of promoting "equity" within the school system, allocating more resources for poorer schools--a move that has drawn criticism from some parents.

According to Klein, the second phase was intended to move schools "from the stability we created to the dynamism we need." Here, Klein stressed "empowerment" (giving principals more control over decision-making, including finances, personnel, and instruction) and, "accountability" (tying rewards and sanctions to school-wide test results and other measures of student achievement). He also instituted cash rewards for high-performing schools, fought to remove poor and incompetent teachers from the classroom, and established plans to close chronically failing schools.

What have been the results of Klein's reforms? He offered several data points to show that New York is on the right track. Four-year high school graduation rates have jumped by 9 percent since 2002. Klein also pointed out that since 2003, fourth-grade math scores have risen by 12 points, and fourth-grade reading scores have risen by 14 points on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). During this period, New York public school students' scores have increased faster than many other urban school systems in the state. Klein was also proud to show a 14 percentage point improvement among fourth-grade African Americans on reading and math NAEP scores--outpacing the rest of the nation and lending support to Klein's equity initiatives. Eighth-grade NAEP scores, however, have been less impressive. Math scores have grown only a few points, and English scores have fallen slightly since 2003.

But Klein was optimistic that the institutional changes he has overseen will endure. By offering parents choice and schools flexibility, he said, the culture in New York City's schools is changing, focusing firmly on improving student achievement (and with documented success to that end) rather than protecting the status quo. Klein summed up his reason for making "noisy" but important changes: "In my bones, I know that education can be transformative."

--EVAN SPARKS

For video, audio, and more information, visit www.aei.org/event1720/.

AEI's Education Policy Studies program is a national leader in research on school reform. Frederick M. Hess, director of education policy studies, is the author or editor of Educational Entrepreneurship (Harvard Education Press, 2006), Tough Love for Schools (AEI Press, 2006), Urban School Reform (Harvard Education Press, 2005), and Common Sense School Reform (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004). Earlier this year, AEI hosted innovative D.C. schools chancellor Michelle Rhee, who spoke on her experiences in reforming urban schools. Klein has previously spoken at an AEI conference on educational innovation.

For more information about education policy studies at AEI, contact Morgan Goatley at mgoatley@aei.org or 202.828.6031.

For media inquiries, contact Véronique Rodman at vrodman@aei.org or 202.862.4870.

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