Special Report: Plugged-in groups snag $40M in no-bid Boston schools contracts
Worried experts, parents see a ‘privatization’ trend
Cash-strapped Boston schools have inked $40 million worth of no-bid contracts with plugged-in “strategic partners” in recent years, raising concerns that a lack of oversight has allowed politics and money to trump performance in the city’s neediest classrooms.
A Herald review of two dozen Boston Public Schools contracts signed since 2011 — totaling about $40 million in commitments — revealed some politically wired board members, spotty outcomes and services that one leading expert says could be handled in-house. The contracts include:
• A $9.5 million contract with City Year through 2017 to expand their “Whole School, Whole Child” program, which pays young classroom tutors $282 weekly stipends “to impact the drop-out rate and academic achievement.” In 2012, five of 12 district schools hit their improvement target for all students; that dropped to four out of 20 in 2013 and 2014; and five out of 21 in 2015. Prior City Year contracts with BPS were signed by then-superintendent Carol Johnson. She now sits on City Year’s national board of trustees, which doesn’t handle BPS contracts.
• A $1.6 million contract with Teach Plus through 2017 to place its “Turnaround Teacher Teams (T3)” in high-needs schools. Two schools that started the program last year, Channing and Winthrop, did not meet their overall improvement targets for 2015, and another, Mattahunt, saw no improvement over two years. Michelle Boyers, a former top official in BPS Human Resources and the Orchard Gardens school, helped to launch the firm and chairs its board. Former state education commissioner David Driscoll is on the board.
• A $2 million contract with Achievement Network through 2016 to conduct assessments and coaching “geared toward improving student performance” in 24 schools. So far, nine met their improvement targets for all students in 2013; four in 2014 and two in 2015. Former interim superintendent and Boston Latin School headmaster Michael Contompasis was a longtime Achievement Network board member, but recused himself from voting on the BPS contract. He is also a $120,000 consultant for Mass Insight Education, which has a $450,000 contract with BPS to help more students access advanced courses.
• A $1 million contract running from 2013 to 2016 with Blueprint Schools Network to implement changes at two struggling schools, the Elihu Greenwood and English High, including “high dosage” tutoring and “building a pipeline of teachers and leaders.” Last January, $462,000 was added to the contract, which is partially funded by grants, to compensate Blueprint “math fellows,” who make $21,000. Despite the outside help, Elihu Greenwood closed last year, and English did not hit its improvement target for all students in 2013, 2014 or 2015.
• A $325,000 contract with the National Center on Time and Learning, founded by former gubernatorial candidate and venture capitalist Chris Gabrieli, to expand the school day and implement its “Effective Time Use Audit Tools.” NCTL employs former state Senate President Robert Travaglini as a $121,000 senior director.
The Herald review comes amid a pitched battle over school funding for next year, with BPS facing a projected $40 million shortfall and an expired teachers contract. Special Report: Plugged-in groups snag $40M in no-bid Boston schools contracts | Boston Herald:
