Daley gives vote of confidence to Huberman

Sun-Times:

Responding to a report that federal authorities are investigating admissions practices at Chicago’s selective schools, Mayor Daley said he has “full confidence” in schools chief Ron Huberman, who is already looking into the problem.

“No one should use money or clout or influence to get their child into a public school,” said Daley.

“I have full confidence in Ron Huberman.”

The Chicago Public Schools’ inspector general has been asked to investigate how kids were picked for admission to some of the city’s most coveted public schools — a process around which controversy has long swirled.

It's not just using clout to get into our city's best schools, it's also grade changing:

In May, explosive allegations surfaced that staff at Chicago's Simeon High School in 2007 had inflated the grades of now-Chicago Bulls player Derrick Rose during his senior year, boosting his chances of playing college ball.

Grades for four students were changed, a report by the inspector general for the Chicago school system found.

But the inspector general couldn't figure out who did it. At least seven people at Simeon could access student grades and records, the inspector found. And the password used to make changes was routinely shared among Simeon staff.
...
The new schools chief unveiled a series of initiatives to prevent tampering with CPS records -- grades, attendance, transcripts, enrollment and student health. He has focused on deliberate tampering, as well as clearing up errors and inconsistencies in data entry, particularly in attendance records, across schools.

This includes greater whistleblower protections, prohibitions on sharing passwords and "data quality" grades for each school, with low scores flagging a school for training. Huberman also plans regular audits, including weekly reviews of unusual grade changes -- a move designed to catch grade boosting. There also will be new training so staffers are clear on how to use -- and not to use -- the district's data management systems.

In announcing these changes, Huberman emphasized that most employees handle data fairly and responsibly. We hope he means it. The last thing CPS needs is a crackdown that makes life more difficult for staffers who've done nothing wrong.

Via CapFax morning shorts!