Detroit Public Schools Tries Something New: A School Run by Teachers , July 8, 2010, Detroit Free Press
Detroit Public Schools is set to open its first school without a principal -- teachers will be running the day-to-day operations and making all pertinent decisions.
They won't have to wait for the central office's OK to purchase needed items or increase their emphasis on fractions or writing, for instance.
Founded on the belief that those within the building know best what their students need, Barbara Jordan Elementary will be the district's first teacher-led school, open only to students whose parents agree to be involved. State officials know of no teacher-led schools in Michigan.
The Detroit school, for students in kindergarten through fourth grade, is modeled after teacher-led schools in Boston, Milwaukee, Denver and Los Angeles.
It's too early to know test results, said Michael McLaughlin of the Boston Teachers Union School. But he can name one indicator of the Boston school's success: "The families in the area, they're clamoring to get into this school."
In Detroit, the high-profile experiment in school reform could have long-reaching implications, said Keith Johnson, president of the Detroit Federation of Teachers.
"It's an unprecedented opportunity," Johnson said. "We cannot fail."
Less bureaucracy at school could make it easier to educate students
Summer has barely begun, but Ann Crowley can't wait for school to open in the fall.
The 22-year veteran teacher and administrator is part of a new experiment in Detroit Public Schools -- a school run by the teachers.
Her enthusiasm is obvious and contagious.
"I returned to the classroom to better meet the needs of the children, right at the ground level," said Crowley, who expects to teach at Barbara Jordan Elementary. "That's what this school is all about."
She's part of a DPS group called Detroit Children First, which is made up mostly of teachers. It has been asking for a teacher-led school for years.
With the backing of the Detroit Federation of Teachers, it convinced the district's emergency financial manager, Robert Bobb, to let it run a school that bypasses layers of bureaucracy that can often slow decision-making. It is a school where the staff makes all the decisions, from lessons to hiring to building repairs…
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