In mid-January, the office that deals with high school restructuring itself was restructured for the second time since it was created a year ago.
No longer a free-standing unit, high school restructuring now is a responsibility of the Office of Accountability. Powhatan Collins retains the title of high school reorganization director but reports to Chief Accountability Officer Pat Harvey. And Beverly LaCoste, who was named director of high school restructuring last summer, has been transferred to the Office of School Leadership Development. She now handles professional training programs for high school teachers and principals.
A year ago, Collins, then a regional education officer, was tapped to head up a new Office of High School Services and Support. Within months, a number of the office’s responsibilities were transferred to other departments. For example, the alternative schools program was placed in the Office of Specialized Services.
Cozette Buckney, chief of staff to CEO Paul Vallas, says the latest change was made to eliminate duplication. “It’s nothing dramatic or sinister,” she says. ” Now that we have a [high school restructuring] plan, the plan cannot exist outside of everything else.”
For more information:
High School Transition
Melissa Roderick, University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration, (773) 702-3364.
Eric Camburn, Consortium on Chicago School Research, (773) 702-3364.
Ninth Grade Success Academy
James McPartland, Center for Research on the Education of Students Placed at Risk, Johns Hopkins University, (410) 516-8808.
William Morrison, Patterson High School Ninth Grade Success Academy, Baltimore, Md., (410) 396-6997.
Detroit 9th-grade Initiatives
Eddie Green, Detroit Public Schools Area E Superintendent, (313) 494-1092.