In 2018, in the wake of Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza’s passing comment about the need for a “transformational contract”, I wrote about what that kind of contract should look like. I described a thin contract. Fast forward almost two years and as contract negotiations fail to even get off the ground, RI education commissioner Angelica… Continue reading A Thin Contract Is Exactly What Providence Schools Need
It is impossible to even ponder a successful turn-around of the Providence Schools System without major changes to the current teachers’ contract. The now notorious report out of Johns Hopkins was clear in its contention that the collective bargaining agreement plays a central role in the district’s dysfunction. Not the only role but a central role. The… Continue reading Providence Teachers Union Has Demands But Still Has Not Answered These Questions
Ever have those moments when something seems so crazy and so wrong that you fall into that trap of optimism and naïveté, convinced that finally you have found something about which there will be universal agreement? I certainly have moments like that. And it happened this weekend when I discovered and subsequently shared the fact… Continue reading Providence Teachers’ Contract Does Not Require Teachers to Attend Parent-Teacher Conferences
Rhode Island Education Commissioner Angelica Infante-Green has finally announced who will take the reins of the Providence Public Schools in the wake of the Johns Hopkins report and subsequent state takeover. His name is Harrison Peters and he comes to Little Rhody by way of Florida. Infante-Green didn’t sugarcoat the challenges that await Mr. Peters… Continue reading Providence Finally Has a New Superintendent
By Shannon McCloud I’ve written for Motif for a few years now, but this right here is by far the hardest piece I’ve ever tried to compose. You see when I’m not writing articles or reviewing theater, I’m teaching. I’m an English Language Arts teacher in a high school. A high school in Providence. And wow, do I… Continue reading Guest Post: A Providence Teacher Weighs in on State Takeover
Jorge Elorza is probably the only Mayor in the country who has direct access to one of the best and one of the worst performing school systems in the state in their own city — and yet he has made the calculated decision not to lead on connecting and collaborating to maximize the impact of… Continue reading With a Waitlist of over 3,000, Elorza Can Finally Lead By Opening Up Additional Seats at Achievement First
By Vesia Hawkins Vesia Hawkins is a mom and a grandma and a fierce education advocate in Nashville, TN. She is especially focused on the issue of literacy as well as helping parents to understand how their children are *really* doing in school. This piece could absolutely have been written about Providence—some of the acronyms… Continue reading This Story from Nashville Could Have Been Written About Providence Too—Except Our Reading Scores are Even Worse
The room’s total capacity was 188 people. Providence is a district of 25,000 students and 3,000 staff. It is located in a part of the city where streets are narrow and parking is very limited—especially when Michael Bublé is performing and it’s opening night for Hamilton. But Good School Hunting has already addressed why all… Continue reading The Night They Voted To Allow the State to Take Over Providence Schools
Last night was a much anticipated meeting of the Rhode Island State Board of Education meeting—it’s impossible to imagine that those in charge did not expect a large crowd. The agenda included a vote on whether or not to allow Angélica Infante Green, the state education commissioner, to take over the Providence Schools. But somehow,… Continue reading This Is Not What Public Service Looks Like in 2019
Just weeks after the scathing Johns Hopkins report on the Providence Schools, Rhode Island’s new Education Commissioner has officially requested to take over the Providence Schools. Below is a copy of her official request (hat tip to Steph Machado of WPRI for sharing this document on Twitter.)
