Tension flare as officials defend their school support systems | GothamSchools

Tension flare as officials defend their school support systems | GothamSchools:

Tension flare as officials defend their school support systems

by Rachel Cromidas

Councilman Jackson waives at Shael Polakow-Suransky (far right) during a hearing on the networks.

Facing criticism that the Department of Education does not hold the organizations responsible for supporting schools accountable for their success, Chief Academic Officer Shael Polakow-Suransky told members of the City Council today that the opposite is true.
In fact, he said during a heated hearing about the department’s network support structure, he has changed the leadership of 15 of the department’s 55 networks.
“Fifteen of those [former network leaders] are people that I did not have confidence in and we wanted someone to do better,” Polakow-Suranksy told the city council members during a lengthy hearing. ”There is very clear accountability.”
That revelation was one of many data points he and other top officials shared this afternoon at a City Council