School takeovers,
firings not likely

State-approved private firms
would help, not control, schools
that need "restructuring"

Public schools across Hawaii will find out this week whether they face the toughest sanction under federal law for failing to reach academic targets.

Will principals and teachers lose their jobs because of low student test scores? Will a private company take over their schools? In Hawaii, at least, the answer is no -- despite fears on some campuses.

Federal law allows both sweeping options as a means of "restructuring schools," the stiffest penalty facing low-performing schools. But neither is on the agenda here.

The No Child Left Behind law, which directs schools to meet academic goals or face sanctions, also prohibits actions that violate contracts or local laws. Because Hawaii principals and teachers are protected by union contracts, staff changes can be made only after "due process" -- not simply on the basis of student test scores.

Instead, struggling schools in Hawaii will "restructure" with the help of a private company selected by the complex area superintendent, who will take a stronger role in running the school as part of a "state takeover" option allowed under the law. A second possibility for such schools is to convert to charter status and elect their own local school boards.

"This is not about punishing the schools," Superintendent Patricia Hamamoto said last week. "This is about improving the quality of education for the kids."

Given that all public schools in Hawaii are already run by the state, the threat of a "state takeover" may sound redundant.

But Hamamoto said Hawaii's approach complies with the law's requirements, because the complex area superintendent, rather than the principal, will make the critical decisions, and private contractors will ensure comprehensive change on campuses.

"The state funds the schools in Hawaii. However, the principals have been able to make many, if not all, of the decisions in implementing programs, choosing textbooks, school reform models," she said. "If the results aren't coming, we need to take dramatic steps to do things differently to get the results we want. That's the change in governance."

The news that the "biggest stick" of the law -- replacing staff -- won't be swung in Hawaii comes as a relief to principals and teachers, who have been uncertain what to expect in the "end zone" of the No Child Left Behind law.

"I'm so glad the state is looking through a more supportive lens than some other districts on the mainland," said Ruth Silberstein, principal of Palolo Elementary School. "They know how hard the schools are working."

Forty of Hawaii's 285 public schools are possible candidates for "restructuring" next month for falling below academic targets for several years. Schools on the watch list have been tracking student performance over the course of this school year, in hopes of making enough progress to get a reprieve. Hamamoto will announce Thursday which schools are to be restructured.

"One of the good things about the way the state is setting this up is that it is not throwing out the baby with the bath water," said Disa Hauge, principal of Maili Elementary School. "They are bringing in providers to work with us."

Students at her Waianae school have made "tremendous gains," she said, more than doubling their reading scores on last year's Hawaii State Assessment. But one group of students fell just short of the target in math, putting her school on the list for possible restructuring.

"I'm very confident that we will do what it takes to raise student achievement," she said. "Nobody has the magic bullet, but maybe all together we will figure it out."

Earlier this month, administrators gathered to hear sales pitches from the three private companies bidding to work as "restructuring" providers: America's Choice, Edison Schools and ETS Pulliam.

Edison, the nation's largest charter school operator, is best known for taking over schools and actively managing every aspect of campus life, from choosing principals and teachers to setting spending priorities. But it has a new division, known as Edison Alliance, that works as a partner with schools rather than as a boss.

"We work very intensely with the school on student achievement, but we're not involved in selection of staff and management of budget," said Chris Whittle, CEO and founder of the company. He said the new approach had notable success in Philadelphia schools last year.

While this is Edison's first foray into Hawaii, America's Choice has been tried by various local public schools, some of which have made great strides, others with little success. Company President Judy Codding said the reform model works well when it is comprehensively applied, but "it's only as good as its implementation."

"We took on eight of the lowest-performing schools in Mississippi and were able to get seven out of the eight off the watch list," she said. "There is no reason not to produce that kind of achievement in Hawaii. If the schools take it seriously, with our support the school should make dramatic improvement in a very short period of time."

The third company, ETS Pulliam, combines academic coaching with a sophisticated data system that focuses instruction on standards and regularly assesses student performance. The company was formed last year when Educational Testing Service acquired The Pulliam Group, a major provider of restructuring services for schools in California.

All three "restructuring" companies come at substantial cost. Contracts could range from $200,000 to $400,000 per school per year, depending on how many schools each provider handles and whether travel costs are included, according to estimates given to the Department of Education.

With a limited supply of funds, some principals are concerned they may lose resources as a result.

Restructuring costs will be covered by federal funds for high-poverty schools and professional development, money that principals have used in the past to hire academic coaches as well as staff to lower class size.

"I could lose positions, I could be looking at larger class sizes," Hauge said. "Federal money that had been used for direct resources for kids in the school will be removed, and the provider that comes in, with their own notions of what we need, will be responsible for the whole package."