D.C.’s School Report Cards Set a New Standard for Community Engagement

As parents dropping our children off at school, many of us may wonder, will they have a good day? Will they do their best? Will…

Coffee Break: Tim Daly on How EdNavigator Helps Parents Make School Choice Work

Three years ago, Tim Daly and two colleagues left TNTP (The New Teacher Project) and launched a new effort called EdNavigator. The organization aims to…

Our Cities Can Help Lift Young People Out of Poverty When They Invest in Their Skills and Education

In recent years, our nation’s cities have attracted young people who are poised to thrive. High achievers—whether they are super-lawyers, political powerhouses or star chefs—flock…

Calling Out Silence on the D.C. Graduation Scandal

The selective outrage of partisan ideologues in the education space is a well-known phenomenon and nowhere is that more on display than in the muted…

This Is What It Really Looks Like to Transform a School

After nearly two decades in education, I’m still not certain what the term “reform” actually means. The concept itself is elusive, concurrently everywhere and nowhere.…

Principals From Charter and District Schools Come Together to Better Serve Students

A recent article in U.S. News and World Report highlighted the importance of charter-district collaboration and encouraged the incoming Trump administration to make it a…

I Had to Go All the Way to Ireland to See That We’re Getting Separation of Church and State Right in Our Schools

Sometimes it’s worth looking at our education system through the lens of other nations (I swear I am not going to write about Finland!). We…

How Meaningful Teacher Evaluation Systems Help Improve the Teacher Pipeline

Teacher evaluation reform, improving schools’ measurement of who is doing a good job in classrooms and who isn’t, has been nothing if not controversial in…

VIDEO: The Danger of a Single Story and How Common Core Can Help

In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s seminal TED Talk The Danger of a Single Story, she argues against using one anecdote to come to any general conclusion…

Coffee Break: Kaya Henderson on Smashing Disbelief, Lessons for Reform and Beachside Sunsets

Following the departure of Michelle Rhee, Chancellor Kaya Henderson has brought leadership strength and stability to District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS). And the bold reforms and academic…