This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Feb. 22, 2011 - Not long ago, readers of a story that said the superintendent of St. Louis Public Schools would be serving for six years could be forgiven for thinking it was a misprint.
Shouldn't that be six superintendents in one year, not one superintendent for six years?
But Tuesday's announcement that the district's Special Administrative Board had extended the contract for Kelvin Adams for three years, through 2014, is a sign of what Adams calls a new emphasis on accountability and continuity. His new contract (PDF) calls for his salary to remain at $225,000 a year, though he may be eligible for merit bonuses or raises in the future.
"I think people are hopeful," he told the Beacon. "I think stability is important. When you wake up in the morning and have the same board and the same superintendent in place, I think that's important. That provides hope.
"I'm glad the board has the confidence to keep me around for three more years."
Hope had been in short supply in the years before Adams was hired by the SAB in the fall of 2008. Infighting by the School Board, a revolving door in the superintendent's office and the takeover of the system by the state combined to portray the city schools as a case study in futility.
Working with the board, Adams has moved to slash spending to balance the budget, close under-performing schools and, perhaps most important, try to change a culture where too often, falling short was seen as good enough.
"In just over two years," said Melanie Adams, vice president of the SAB, "Dr. Adams has improved academics and stabilized the district's finances. He has the St. Louis Public School district moving in the right direction, and the Special Administrative Board is very pleased to have him leading the district for another three years."
Those three years promise to be as busy -- and perhaps as controversial -- as the first years of Adams' tenure as superintendent. Next month, the boad will vote on a package of initiatives he made public last month, including more scrutiny for poorly performing schools, allowing eighth-graders to choose whatever high school they want to attend, expanding tuition-free pre-school and having the SLPS system sponsor charter schools.
New landscape of Charter schools
That last proposal has prompted criticism from various quarters, including Rebecca Rogers, who is president of the elected city School Board. She and others worry that charter schools will drain resources from the district's existing schools. Rather than start new schools, they say, why not work to make existing ones succeed?
Historically, Adams said, that concern may have had merit, but since Missouri first instituted charters, which currently enroll about 10,000 students in St. Louis, the landscape has changed.
He said he is meeting with various groups -- teachers, students, administrators and others -- to get their feelings about his proposals, but in the end, he has to be most concerned about whether schools are educating children well enough to pass state tests and regain accreditation for the city.
"The issue for me is high-quality schools," Adams says. "Charters push the district in that direction. As an educator, that's what you want to see happen. The challenge is to have some level of accountability.
"Resources are an issue. We can talk about money all day and all night. But I'd like to change the conversation from money to accountability."
If the SAB approves his proposal, Adams said the district could sponsor charter schools and may even run some itself, with the first schools possibly opening in the fall of 2012. But he also said he has already heard from some outside management firms expressing interest in becoming involved in any charter expansion that might occur.
"I even got an e-mail the other day from a teacher at one of our high schools who asked: How about having our school becoming a charter school, with the teachers running the school?" he said.
The possibility of closing failing schools has also attracted a lot of attention, Adams said, but it's an issue that is not always well understood. Such authority lets the district look closely at why a school isn't making the grade, then impose whatever changes are needed to prompt improvements.
"Sometimes it's leadership," Adams said. "It may not be the principal; maybe the principal hasn't been there long enough to have the time to get the right teachers in place. You have to look at it case by case, and you have to look at the data to see where the changes need to be made."
Legislation on education
Education policy is a big topic this year in Jefferson City. Besides expansion of charter schools, both within St. Louis and Kansas City, the only places in Missouri they are allowed now, and to other cities as well, lawmakers are talking about vouchers, open enrollment and more.
One bill would institute a so-called trigger provision, where a school would have to be closed or transformed if more than half of the parents with students enrolled there signed a petition.
Adams said he understands the frustrations that would give birth to such actions, but he isn't convinced that such a play is the best route to better classrooms.
"If 50 percent of the parents are not happy with a school," he said, "that same 50 percent should see how they can make that school better. I know they're trying to solve the problem, but I'm not sure that's the best way to do it."
Another topic affecting the St. Louis schools that has drawn the attention of lawmakers is a court case that could let St. Louis students attend any St. Louis County district they want -- with the SLPS paying the bill because it is unaccredited.
The case, which is working its way through the courts, has prompted Sen. Jim Lembke, R St. Louis County, to introduce legislation that would exempt St. Louis Public Schools from such responsibility as long as it is governed by the SAB. A hearing on the bill is scheduled for Wednesday.
What Adams and the SAB are looking forward to, of course, is the day that the board is not needed any longer because the St. Louis schools have regained accreditation. No one is saying that job will be easy or quick, but Adams says there has been steady progress -- improving test scores in almost all grades in almost all subjects, fewer dropouts, more students graduating and better marks in general.
"All the indicators show we are moving in the right direction," he said. "We see growth. We see progress taking place."