Well, as Paul Harvey used to say, here's the rest of the story. Both moves put them out of compliance with the state and the district has now lost its accreditation, which could potentially lead to the dissolution of the district.Īt this point, you are probably thinking, interesting story but what's it got to do with me? There are plenty of stories of malfeasance in school management right here in Tennessee, why cross state lines? Note here, this is why it is important to have an agreed-upon scope of work - cough, cough, ahem, MNPS.īased on the report, the Adams County School Board used that report to issue a work-stoppage order and try to sever the relationship with MGT. The consultant instead took it on their own to write a report evaluating MGT and eventually recommending ending the partnership. This summer, with MGT slated to enter its third year out of a contracted four of oversight, Adams 14 hired a new superintendent - Clark County's Cheif Academic Officer Karla Loria.Īmong Loria's first actions was to contract a consulting company to design a transition plan for MGT and the district to share responsibilities. Per the Denver Post in 2018 the state action came in response to the 13-school district having received the lowest two ratings - “Priority Improvement” or “Turnaround” - in the state’s accountability systems for eight straight years, requiring the education board to intervene under state law. In 2014, a federal investigation found patterns of discrimination against Hispanic students.
Adams 14 became the first district in Colorado to suffer this fate when in 2019 the state appointed MGT to oversee operations in an effort to improve student learning.Ī small district outside of Denver in Commerce City, Adams 14 serves approximately 6600 students, 87% of whom are Hispanic and 77% are eligible for free and reduced lunch.
Embedded in their tale is a potential blueprint that could be used by Tennessee's legislators in their growing desire to take over Metro Nashville Public Schools and Shelby County Schools.Ĭolorado has a law on the books that allows for the appointment of a third party to oversee a district's day-to-day activities if that district is found to be consistently falling short of prescribed annual measurements. Today's anecdotes will serve to illustrate my point.Īs of late, I have been keeping a close eye on going ons in Adams 14, a school district in Colorado. Classroom teachers and principals will invariably put kids' needs above their own, while administrators and bureaucrats will routinely do the opposite.
Over the last decade of writing this column, several consistencies have emerged. Over the years, I have become increasingly jaded in my thinking about public education. Three ingredients that'll likely influence the tenor of today's article.
Let me give you a little fair warning, I'm writing today's thoughts from the couch while listening to records with a splitting headache. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists, and will persist." - Dwight Eisenhower "In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex.