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Youngstgown schools' academic plan’s aim to engage public OK’d
By Denise Dick
Youngstown
The state superintendent approved a portion of a plan to engage the community in the city school district’s academic recovery.
The remainder of the document won’t be voted upon by the Academic Distress Commission overseeing the district until March 15.
The panel previously had approved the community- engagement portion, which calls for the Wean Foundation to use a consultant to develop a plan to increase community expectations and aspirations for high student achievement.
Wean, which offered its support to the effort, has said it plans to use the Harwood Institute for Public Innovation, based in Bethesda, Md. to accomplish that.
At a commission meeting Thursday, Adrienne O’Neill, chairwoman, read an email she received from Stan Heffner, state superintendent of public instruction, saying that he approved that section of the plan. Although Heffner previously had said that he wanted an updated recovery plan in place by the end of this month, the email also said that the commission could take additional time.
Included in the draft proposal that the commission expects to vote upon next month is a provision that the commission itself monitor the plan, at least monthly. That’s a departure from an earlier suggestion of hiring a liaison to work with the district, commission and school board to monitor the plan.
“I think it’s good that we take responsibility for this plan and if it becomes too unwieldy to us, we can bring in other people,” said Michael Garvey, commission member.
Members Betty Greene and Susan Moorer agreed.
The panel heard a presentation from KnowledgeWorks, a Cincinnati-based education reform group, that recommends what representatives call a “restart” of the school system.
The KnowledgeWorks recommendations include a $450,000 per-school price tag for professional development over four years. The group also offered to work to bring in outside money, if its plan is implemented.
O’Neill said some of the organization’s recommendations are included in the commission’s draft plan, but she said more information is required to determine if the commission has the power to implement all of the recommendations.