Commenters on the Get Schooled blog had a range of reactions to a proposal by Gov. Nathan Deal to follow the example of Louisiana and Tennessee and allow recovery school districts, in which low-performing traditional public schools are converted into charter schools and moved from their local districts to a state "recovery" district. The most notable example is New Orleans, where low-performing schools were transferred to a recovery district after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
HowdyJune: School districts such as DeKalb's should not be allowed to get to the brink of losing accreditation before strong remedial action is taken. I think that is the concern of Gov. Deal. Although Gwinnett appears to be an exception, it just seems that large school districts invite mismanagement, bureaucracy and mediocrity. I like the idea of charter schools because they are smaller, seem to have a better focus on serving kids and their community, and are much better managed, focused on results and much more responsive.
Jerry: I must admit I'm absolutely fascinated the tea partiers clamor for greater central control of schools, given their resistance to federal authority. So, it's OK for the state to seize control from your community, but it's not OK for the feds to bully their way into state affairs?
Newsphile: While our Cherokee schools are ranked nationally as good performers, Deal funneled our tax dollars to a for-profit in Florida to run the local charter school. The charter is performing below expectations, didn't add high school grades as promised, closed its library, etc. There is no way I want a state-managed school district. Deal has proven more than once his eagerness to extend his power. I don't need to have it proven to me again.
Colonel: Frankly, I don't trust the state (or any level of government) to be able to find its own backside if it were sitting on both its hands. That said, this holds promise … maybe just a flicker, but promise.
Edu: A promising idea. So now, the usual anti-reform crowd will do its utmost (above and below) to pour cold water all over it. Parents making choices based on their child's needs will never be acceptable. Period.
InTeach: Another one of Deal's great ideas. … How this is supposed to save money, I am not sure.
Astro: Not totally familiar with the Louisiana version of this (other than the great success of the New Orleans charter transformation), but I'm in Tennessee a lot, and parents there sing Gov. Bill Haslam's praises for it. A lot of mossback administrators have moved on to greener pastures because they are made redundant by the program in Tennessee. Teachers like it because they are pretty much left alone. They compare the teaching experience to like being an instructor in college. Memphis — with a lot of demographics similar to Atlanta's — has been ground zero, and the early results are encouraging.
