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Ackerman praised as new chief of Philadelphia schools
Ohanian Comment: Why Is Corporate America Bashing Our Public Schools? provides information on what corporate-lead leadership in the San Francisco school had done to community-based programs before Ackerman arrived and a brief history of Ackerman's devotion to the test prep highway--in Washington D. C. and in San Francisco. Note her close connection to the Broad Foundation below.
See Kathy Emery's Education and Democracy.
Ackerman always seems to land on her feet. When she and the school board in San Francisco parted company, she left with the tidy sum of $375,000 in severance pay, moving on to Teachers College to teach people how to be superintendents.
Here you can get two very different portrayals of Ackerman.
By Susan Snyder
If Arlene Ackerman, the new Philadelphia schools CEO, comes to Philadelphia with any baggage, it's the reputation of having ruffled some school board members and union officials in San Francisco, where she was superintendent for six years.
But at yesterday's formal announcement of her selection, even that was something to praise.
"You show me a big city school superintendent who hasn't had a run-in with some particular constituency, and I'll show you somebody who never tried to accomplish anything," Mayor Nutter, joined by Gov. Rendell, said during a news conference at City Hall.
Nutter, Rendell and Sandra Dungee Glenn, chairwoman of the School Reform Commission, said they were impressed with Ackerman's ability to improve student achievement, work with diverse groups and ferret out corruption. Dungee Glenn said she also admired a funding system that Ackerman developed in which more resources were directed to needier schools.
"I think that's something that would fit well in this district," Dungee Glenn said.
Ackerman, who has spent 38 years in public education, is expected to receive unanimous approval from the school commission. The vote could come next week, but more likely will wait until March, Dungee Glenn said.
In a telephone interview, Ackerman, an education professor at Columbia University's Teachers College, said she was excited to return to an urban district where the leadership seemed united.
"Everybody seems to have the same agenda, the same goals. They're all aligned with what I like to do," Ackerman, 61, said. "I'm ready to roll up my sleeves."
She called those who had concerns about her time in San Francisco a "very vocal minority."
"I would ask people in Philadelphia to reserve judgment until they get to know me," she said.
Ackerman will face many challenges immediately. Contract negotiations are under way this month with the five unions, including the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. There are plans to overhaul the 70 lowest performing schools and decisions to be made on whether private companies will continue to have a role in managing some schools. And a new budget season looms.
Ackerman was not in Philadelphia for the news conference; she was on business at the Los Angeles-based Broad Superintendents Academy, where she trains candidates who have little or no experience in education for top school jobs.
She is likely to start work in the 167,000-student district in March, but won't be on board full-time until later in the spring, Dungee Glenn said. She must finish obligations at her Columbia job.
Details of her contract are still being negotiated. Dungee Glenn said her salary would be comparable to that of other large urban superintendents. The job in Philadelphia currently pays $275,000. The commission will seek a long-term contract, possibly five years, Dungee Glenn said.
In San Francisco, some critics complained that Ackerman had an "autocratic" style and didn't involve the community enough when making plans to overhaul the worst schools. Some local education advocates saw this as worrisome.
But Nutter and Rendell said they had talked with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who told them that some of Ackerman's disputes were with members of the Green Party, an environmental and social justice group. Nutter cited one conflict over "irradiated meat."
"None of those are tremendously big issues here in Philadelphia," Nutter said.
San Francisco also has an elected school board, which saw turnover during Ackerman's six-year tenure, running through 2006, Nutter said. Philadelphia's School Reform Commission, in contrast, is appointed by the governor and mayor.
Dungee Glenn - who held a separate news conference later in the afternoon - said commission officials interviewed many people around the country about Ackerman and for every critic found admirers. "I think what we found is a very balanced picture of a woman who was in a tough position," Dungee Glenn said.
Ackerman's pick culminates a seven-month search and included interviews with finalists by a 45-member citizens advisory committee.
Before her stint as superintendent in Washington, Ackerman was a top level administrator in Seattle's public schools and taught in the St. Louis area, where she was born and raised.
Ackerman has a bachelor's in elementary education and a master's in educational administration and policy. She also has a master's and a doctorate in education administration, planning and social policy from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education.
She was one of two finalists for the job, which drew nearly 40 applications. The other was Leroy D. Nunery 2d, a former executive for Edison Schools Inc.
Asked if still interested in having his budget secretary, Michael Masch, work in the district, Rendell said: "It will be up to Dr. Ackerman to put her team in place."
Tom Brady, interim chief executive officer, will be welcome to remain as chief operating officer, Dungee Glenn said. He has a contract that runs into 2010.
— Susan Snyder
Philadelphia Inquirer
2008-02-20
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/20080220_Ackerman_praised_as_new_chief_of_city_schools.html
INDEX OF OUTRAGES
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