More Resources Report Secretary's Remarks

U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige offered tips and promising practices on implementing public school choice that can be found in Creating Strong District School Choice Programs, a new publication released today by the Department's Office of Innovation and Improvement.

Under No Child Left Behind (NCLB), if a school with disadvantaged students fails to meet its academic achievement targets for two consecutive years, that school is defined as "in need of improvement." At this point, parents must have the option of moving their child to a public school in the same district that has met its achievement targets.

The guide shares practical advice and concrete examples from five school districts that have been successful in creating and expanding public school choice initiatives and making them work for students and parents. It also has information on how to avoid some of the pitfalls that school districts may face in addressing the needs of all students, a requirement under NCLB. The guide is the first of six booklets on promising and innovative education practices to be released this year.

"In the past, we have watched as isolated islands of educational improvement emerged," Paige said. "This promising practices book, along with the rest in the series, will help end that isolation and build bridges to those islands so we may learn from one another and turn our good intentions into positive results.

"This public school choice publication shows that superintendents and districts are indeed fulfilling their responsibilities and making choices available to families so that the school system truly serves the needs of the students. The experiences of these districts can inform the work of others. By taking lessons from these case studies, districts can avoid starting from scratch."

The secretary launched the publication in Milwaukee, one of five districts profiled in the guide that were selected because of their prior experience with school choice. Some, but not all, have received grants from the Department through the Voluntary Public School Choice or Magnet Schools Assistance Programs. The other districts highlighted are: Cambridge, Mass; Desert Sands, Calif.; Mesa, Ariz.; and Miami-Dade County, Fla.

In Milwaukee, for example, the Milwaukee Public School System improved the letter it sends home to parents alerting them of their options, deleting "legalese" that was in the previous year's version and making it more readable. Milwaukee's "Frequently Asked Questions" and "Parent Letter and NCLB Transfer Request Form" are both included in the guide as models for other districts to use. Milwaukee also is listening to parents' ideas and concerns and creating more K-8 schools, adding specialty programs and before- and after-school programs, and increasing neighborhood safety.

The guide provides advice in four basic areas, suggesting the "first steps" to take and how to "go deeper." The four key actions in implementing public school choice are helping parents make informed choices, building school district infrastructure, supporting schools, and improving programs over time.

Among the first steps to take to inform parents, according to the publication, is for school districts to implement a multi-faceted communications strategy on the NCLB choice options. To enhance school districts' infrastructure, suggestions include determining space and transportation options and starting new schools and programs.

The publication further calls for supporting schools by preparing them to communicate with parents and helping them to market their programs. It highlights the importance of informing front-line teachers and principals of the district's choice options,
because these are the people most likely to receive questions from the parents. Finally, to help improve their programs over time, administrators should conduct surveys about parental satisfaction and the reasons they chose the school they did, and replicate successful and popular schools.

"The overall message of this publication is that implementing an effective school choice program can be done," said Nina Rees, deputy under secretary for Innovation and Improvement. "We're confident that the information in this guide will help school districts across the nation create and maintain successful programs in their communities."

Creating Strong District School Choice Programs is available online at http://www.ed.gov/admins/comm/choice/choiceprograms/index.html.

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