A crack in the KIPP facade?

Study Finds High Dropout Rates for Black Males in KIPP Schools. A new study out of Western Michigan University takes KIPP to task. Beyond high drop out rates, the report concludes that KIPP schools enjoy a significant funding advantage over other schools thanks to private donations. The full 39-page report is here.

Now, before anyone starts pulling down the walls of KIPP schools across the country, it is worth reading KIPP's response. Link. It is actually very open and honest. It's defensive, of course, but not the type of blanket denial of culpability we're used to in official responses to criticism. The Western Michigan study has some problems, most notably, the incomplete data with which they started.

You can't write this stuff

Yet another news story on McKinley Tech. The investigator assigned to the McKinley Tech case was fired by DCPS for lying. Story here. Given that police investigators routinely lie to people to obtain information, it's interesting (and commendable) that DCPS would take such a principled stance.

All that glitters is not gold

Is it scandal season or something? It now appears that many DC schools may have doctored DC CAS answer sheets. In the case of Noyes Education Campus, test scorers noted an abnormally high rate of wrong-to-right erasures. One classroom averaged 12.7 wrong-to-right erasures per student versus the district-wide average of less than 1 erasure. Here is a link to several internal DCPS documents discussing Eraser-gate. Thank goodness for FOIA.

McKinley spirals out of control

More news on McKinley Tech: the principal has been suspended for allegedly ordering some student transcripts be doctored with grades for courses they never took. Sounds like par for the course to me. I've seen and heard of schools doing all kinds of shady things to get kids their diplomas. Also, as a result of the investigation into the missing AARP money, an employee was fired and arrested for stealing 10 laptops.

Aggregation

Here's what's going on in DC schools. My apologies for the dearth of good news--don't kill the messenger.

Thomson Elementary schoolers were caught eating and snorting cocaine. WTF. Link.

Federal prosecutors are investigating what happened to $100,000 awarded to McKinley Tech. The money came from the AARP and was supposed to create a program to have high schoolers teach senior citizens how to use the internet, or something. Link.

If this academy's a-rockin' don't come a-knockin'. The Rock Creek Academy is being investigated for all kinds of misconduct, and yes, some of it is sexual. DCPS didn't pay special education attorneys all that money for this kind of education! Link.

An opinion on school truancy. It's an important issue that deserves more attention but the author lost me with: "These are not kids who cut class to rent 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off.'" Huh? I'm pretty sure a kid has not cut class to rent Ferris Bueller in 23 years. Damn kids, with their heavy metal music videos and Donkey Kongs. Link.

Kaya Henderson plans to reform schools unto death. Link.