Calling for stable funding streams, Hite will attach a price tag to his new action plan
by Dale Mezzacappa on Feb 17 2014 Posted in Latest news
Superintendent William Hite, seeking to demonstrate that the District is moving forward despite profound financial woes, has released an updated “action plan” for improving city schools.
The 42-page plan takes aim at four “anchor goals” that Hite calls both “aspirational in scope and urgent in nature,” including having 100 percent of 8-year-olds reading on grade level and 100 percent of students graduating with college or job-ready skills.
To achieve this, the plan also sets aspirational goals around human capital and fiscal support. It calls for 100 percent great teachers and principals and 100 percent “of the funding we need for great schools.”
Hite said that this Action Plan 2.0, like Action Plan 1.0 he released a year ago, “is meant to prioritize the work of individuals who work in the District … to align the work of everyone … to support” these goals.
The document, which includes no deadlines or timelines, is designed to “communicate a set of bold expectations for all of our students,” Hite said in a Friday afternoon conference call with reporters. “This talks about a vision, grounded in the fact that it is really important for the School District to deliver on the right of children to a quality education regardless of where they attend school.”
But crucial components needed to make the plan effective – how to obtain more resources from reluctant state and city officials as well as more flexibility from labor unions in how schools use time and deploy staff -- are still up in the air.
In an effort to get sufficient revenues to implement the plan, Hite intends to attach a price tag. He said the District would later this week release a financial