Book Review: "The Prize" by Dale Russakoff
Dale Russakoff’s The Prize – a chronicle of the education “reform” efforts in Newark, NJ that were supposed to be a model for the nation -- is as remarkable for what it doesn’t report as it is as for what it does.
Russakoff, formerly a reporter for the Washington Post, tells the story of the effort to remake Newark’s schools following a highly publicized donation in 2011 from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The $100 million gift (which was nearly doubled by matching grants) provides a catalyst for Newark’s Mayor, Cory Booker, and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to implement a series of changes in the city that are often referred to as “corporate education reform”: charter school expansion, teacher merit pay, and the closing or reconstitution of “failing” schools.
This trio, aided by NJ Education Commissioner Chris Cerf, take advantage of Newark’s status as a state-operated district to impose their agenda on the city’s schools. Confident that parental “choice” and promises of transformation will be enough to generate local support for their plans, they recruit a small army of consultants, pollsters, and advisers, all happy to get their share of Zuckerberg’s money.
While Russkoff does a good job of documenting the political plays and backroom deals that follow from the donation, she does miss a few critical details. Cerf, for example, had led a consulting firm, Global Education Advisors, just prior to his appointment as commissioner by Christie. GEA was the firm that drafted the initial plan for transforming Newark into a “portfolio” district of both charter and district schools.
At first, Cerf claimed that he was only minimally involved in drafting the blueprint; later, when confronted by the Star-Ledger (Newark’s hometown newspaper), he changed his story and admitted he had much more say than he originally let on. The potential conflict of interest, along with Cerf’s changing story, instantly called into question the credibility of
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