So the rumors were true. CMS chief Peter Gorman really is trying to shake up CMS sooner rather than later. The blueprint for change has some positives — the autonomy from the Ed Center suggested by the CMS Task Force and a promise of more disciplinary support for teaching staff — but those changes have to actually happen.
Then there is the continued focus on ordering staff into bad schools. Hopefully, Gorman included that to placate the sociopaths who insist that nutty idea will somehow magically fix chronic underperformance. At any rate, that clearly should come last in the menu of reforms.
Giving principals more authority to hire and fire teachers is key. Giving principals more authority to set discipline for their schools is also vital. That means no second-guessing from the Ed Center or the School Board. Let’s see how that works.
And this rating system idea. Well, that should be fun too. Will CMS really slap a negative tag on a school like West Charlotte which struggles to attain minimal goals every year? Somehow I think the ratings will have quite a curve — lotsa As, Bs, a few Cs — and no Ds or Fs.
As ever, this plan will no doubt require more money to implement — anything CMS does requires more money. This is where the School Board has to be careful.
