Composition of Chancellor Klein's "Children First" Working Groups

Introduction

The Children First initiative of NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Joel Klein started in October, 2002. Ten working groups were formed, but the names of these working groups were not publicized and the composition was literally kept secret. The present information is offered to the Web-reading public as a result of several FOIL/FOIA requests to the New York City Department of Education.

Those Freedom of Information Law requests asked for the composition and charge of the working groups and for copies of the reports of some of the groups. A reply was promised for early February, 2003, but a DOE letter dated Feb 4 from Ms. Susan Holtzman, DOE Central Records Access Officer, provided only the composition of the groups. A repeat request for the charge to the working groups and the reports of selected working groups returned the information that the working groups operated without formal charge and that the literacy, numeracy, and special populations working groups did not produce reports.

We find it remarkable that Chancellor Klein and Deputy Chancellor Lam selected a uniform curriculum for their school system, the size of that of a small country, through such a cavalier process. Further down we also raise a question about the technical competence represented in the numeracy working group. (We do so without prejudice to the literacy group.)

According to Ms. Holtzman's Feb 4 reply, the positions within the DOE of the various Chairs of the Working Groups are:

• Michele Cahill: Senior Council on Education Policy
• Diana Lam: Deputy Chancellor for Teaching and Learning
• Tony Shorris: Deputy Chancellor for Operations and Planning
• Kathleen Grimm: Deputy Chancellor for Finance and Administration

The names and composition of the ten Working Groups follow below.

A group of New York City HOLD representatives had a conversation with Mr. Evan Rudall of the Children First Numeracy Working Group. We understood him to be the Chair of the Numeracy working group, but the DOE's reply to the FOIL request shows that this is not technically correct, and in fact, Ms. Diana Lam is or was the Chair. This might be of some formal significance. Having the Deputy Chancellor as Chair of the Numeracy working group (and the Literacy, the Special Populations, and the Secondary School Restructuring working groups) may provide the formal justification for these groups operating without charge and without producing a report.

The following abbreviations are used in the affiliations.

• DOE: New York City Department of Education
• ABT: Abt Associates, Inc.
• CASES: Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services
• CSA: Council of School Supervisors
• CUNY: City University of New York
• DOHMH: NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
• UFT: United Federation of Teachers

Composition of the Working Groups

Further comments

Some additional information about some of the members of the working groups follows. The information is in most cases taken from Web sources, and must not be taken to be authoritative. The Numeracy working group is of particular interest to New York City HOLD, and we also pay attention to some of the non-DOE influences on the Children First process.

The Numeracy Working Group

(Please note: Information gleaned from the Web. It is not authoritative and not necessarily correct or complete or up-to-date.)

• Diana Lam (DOE). Deputy Chancellor for Teaching and Learning. Has exposited on bilingual education and literacy. For elementary mathematics, imposed the Everyday Mathematics curriculum in her earlier position in San Antonio, TX, and selected TERC Investigations in her position in Providence, RI.
• Evan Rudall (DOE). Came to NYC DOE in the fall of 2002 from a co-Director position at Roxbury (MA) Prep Elementary School. Has a Liberal Arts background, and a Masters in Education from Harvard.
• Erica Shatz (DOE). Math and Science Coordinator, CSD1 (old structure). Member of the advisory committee of the "New Visions" Middle Schools Mathematics Standards project.
• Jaime Aquino (DOE). Deputy Executive Director for Division of Instructional Support. Member of the advisory committee of the "New Visions" Middle Schools Mathematics Standards project.
• Felix Vazquez (DOE). Superintendent, CSD32 (old structure).
• Marcia Lyles (DOE). Superintendent, CSD16 (old structure). In a Message to the Community at the start of the 2002-2003 school year she presented her plans and visions. They involve a "balanced phonics and whole language" approach to early literacy, portfolio assessment for all grades, and a critical thinking approach to middle school literacy. About mathematics she writes: "Math is a major challenge citywide. We have convened a District Math Task Force to help assess our programs and provide guidance and direction for the district. Last year, we completed and disseminated our Math Curriculum Alignment and Pacing Calendar. We implemented a structured 60-minute math workshop that includes journal writing, independent and group activities, guided math, shared math, math read aloud's and working in math learning centers. Last year, we provided schools with math libraries to support literacy and numeracy. Our Best Practices checklist helps to keep our instruction aligned. Our children participated in activities such as the Stock Market Game and Econo Bowl to complement the math programs."
• Linda Curtis-Bey (DOE). Director (Interim Acting), Office of Math, Science and Technology.
• Aminda Gentile (UFT). Director, UFT Teacher Centers Professional Development Program.
• Michael Schlar (CSA). Director of the Bill and Melinda Gates NY TALKS State Challenge project; Former Principal of MS51.
• Naomi Isaac Simpson (UFT). National Urban Alliance for Effective Education, engaged in teacher professional development in NYC.
• Erica Walker (Columbia University). Postdoctoral Fellow at Teachers' College, Columbia U.
• Lucy West (Metamorphosis, Inc.). Previously the Math coordinator in CSD2 (old structure). Degrees in theater arts and in early childhood education.

We are not aware that any of the members of the Numeracy working group have a BA or BS in mathematics, science, or engineering, and we do not know if any of the members of this group would be qualified to teach high school mathematics.

Other outside names

(Note again: all information gleaned from the Web. It is not authoritative and not necessarily correct or complete or up-to-date.)

• Deanna Burney (UPenn). Burney has collaborated with Richard Elmore and Tony Alvarado on the High Performance Learning Communities (HPLC) research project on CSD2 instructional and administrative reforms, in association with Lauren Resnick's Learning Research and Development Center (LRDC) at the University of Pittsburgh. Burney and Elmore co-authored numerous HPLC papers on District 2.
• Norm Fruchter (NYU). Director of NYU's Institute for Education and Social Policy.
• John Garvey (CUNY). Director of Collaborative Programs, CUNY Office of Academic Affairs.
• Lauren Herko (Independent Consultant). Apparently a student in the Master of Public Administration program at Columbia University.
• Beth Lief (Independent Consultant). Also found on the Web at Public Education Network, and previously President and CEO of New Visions for Public Schools.
• Courtney Welsh (Independent Consultant). Presumably the Executive Director of the Harlem Educational Activities Fund Harlem Center.

(Return to Children First page or to the New York City HOLD Web site or to Links, Articles, Essays, and Opinions on K-12 Education.)