‘Empowerment’ initiative raises local concerns

By Daniel Kittredge
Posted 5/18/16

A proposal to create “empowerment schools” in Rhode Island drew criticism from Cranston Public Schools officials on Monday, with questions raised over the financial and educational consequences …

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‘Empowerment’ initiative raises local concerns

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A proposal to create “empowerment schools” in Rhode Island drew criticism from Cranston Public Schools officials on Monday, with questions raised over the financial and educational consequences of the initiative.

“This particular act leaves us with more questions than answers … There’s quite a few things in here that are concerning,” School Committee Chair Janice Ruggieri said during the committee’s meeting at Western Hills Middle School.

“At this time in Cranston, we have so many good things going on … I would be concerned to take on another very large initiative,” Superintendent Jeannine Nota-Masse said.

Commissioner of Education Dr. Ken Wagner unveiled the “empowerment schools” initiative in his first State of Education address to the General Assembly on March 30, describing the concept as “[giving] neighborhood schools – our teachers and principals – more authority to make decisions about things that directly affect their students, things like teaching materials, the school day, and personnel.”

“To truly reimagine our schools, we need to give principals and teachers more flexibility to meet the needs of their students. They know their kids best. Too often we’ve taken a top-down approach and we’ve said, ‘Here’s the right way to do things – and if you don’t agree, we will force you to do things our way,’” Wagner said. “We cannot change a school by mandating excellence. The only people who can create that culture of excellence and continuous improvement in schools are the people who work in the school day after day, closest to the action or, as the governor says, ‘Where the magic happens.’”

Wagner said participation in the initiative would be “completely voluntary,” with teachers and district officials needing to provide approval. Gov. Gina Raimondo’s proposed state budget for the coming year includes $1 million for school and district teams to design “empowerment plans,” along with $1 million for “teacher and principal leadership pipelines” and $750,000 for “expert classroom teachers to provide statewide instructional leadership.” Lawmakers are also being asked to approve the School and Family Empowerment Act as part of the budget process.

Liz Larkin, president of the Cranston Teachers’ Alliance (CTA), was the most pointed Monday in her criticism of the proposal. She credited Wagner for having an open door to educational leaders, but suggested the initiative will prove more beneficial to allies of the governor, First Gentleman Andy Moffit, and Commerce Secretary Stefan Pryor than to local classrooms.

“It’s all about the money, not about the kids,” she said.

Larkin asserted that under the provisions of the initiative, the “empowerment ends” for teachers and principals after the initial vote to become an “empowerment school.”

“It pumps you all up to think you’ll have a voice,” she said.

Larkin also pointed to the deep financial difficulties Cranston’s schools have faced in recent years, and a resurgence that has seen the district pursuing several major initiatives for the coming year, including the expansion of all-day kindergarten and the transition of sixth-graders back to the middle school level.

“We’re having success everywhere we go, and I’m sick and tired of them saying we’re failing … I feel we really don’t need empowerment because we’re already empowered,” she said.

Kathleen Torregrossa, secretary of the CTA and the district’s teacher evaluation and professional development coordinator, asserted that the “empowerment” plan does not adequately ensure students have qualified teachers for specific subjects. She also described the proposal as vague.

“The details are just not there,” she said.

Daniel Wall, the Ward 6 representative on the committee, echoed that criticism.

“The devil’s in the details … While this might sound good in theory, there’s not really a lot of meat in here,” he said. “I think this is the wrong time.”

Citywide representative Michael Traficante worried the “empowerment” initiative would create a “school district within a school district” and “play havoc with the collective bargaining process.”

“We’re just not ready to handle this at the present time … Let some other school take the lead, and then we’ll look at it then,” he said.

No formal action was taken, nor resolution considered, as part of Monday’s meeting. The topic had been placed on the evening’s agenda for discussion purposes.

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