Redesigning Denver’s Schools

[...]they had partnered with the reporters to collect and analyze the data. [...]unlike some outsiders who try to impose business or military discipline on chaotic systems, he took office with an articulated theory of change and a mandate to implement it. [...]Boasberg was aiming for transformation, not simply tweaking around the edges. A core idea in Boasberg’s theory of action was that traditional districts disempower their most important assets—teachers and school leaders—by treating them like cogs in a compliance machine. [...]Boasberg led a variety of policies aimed at setting clear performance expectations and using accountability to improve teacher and principal quality. According to some observers, Boasberg became more reluctant to relinquish control to schools over time, especially as the impact of such decisions on the district’s central office grew. In a state that embraces school choice, the market provides some clues as to changing demand. Since the 2008–09 school year, the number of students choosing to attend DPS from another district has grown at a faster rate than students opting out of DPS schools—though more students continue to choose other districts each year than choose to attend DPS schools from elsewhere.