THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 3, 1994 TAG: 9407020188
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH THIEL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 76 lines
The School Board on Thursday touched again on two of the most controversial educational proposals in recent city memory, advancing one, while going back to the drawing board on another.
First, the board approved a further component of its contentious plan to stop elementary school busing for desegregation in September 1995 and allow students either to attend their community schools or schools of their choice around the city, an idea called open enrollment.
The board agreed to a set of open enrollment guidelines: students who are zoned for their community schools will be guaranteed spots at those schools; second priority will be given to students who want to stay in the schools they were enrolled in as of last month, even after they are rezoned to their community schools; any remaining slots will be given to students who choose to use the open enrollment system and attend schools out of their zones.
The board approved the guidelines on the condition that Superintendent Richard D. Trumble return later this summer with an acceptable plan for how children will be awarded or denied their choices of schools under the open enrollment plan.
Board members said they want to be sure the system was fair and objective, not just decided on a case-by-case basis. Trumble has suggested a variety of possibilities, such as a lottery system or a computer that could make random selections from among the students that apply to go to schools of their choice.
Meanwhile, without a vote, the School Board gave its nod to Trumble's plan to reject proposals from four private companies vying to take over management of some of the city's elementary schools.
Trumble, who a year ago proposed the idea of privatizing schools to see if new management styles could boost student achievement, said he will seek better plans from the companies and submit them to the School Board, probably by late this summer.
Dotty Dray, vice president of the Portsmouth Education Association, which has opposed the privatization idea, criticized the latest move.
``Enough is enough,'' said Dray, who teaches at Cradock Middle, one of the schools targeted in the original privatization proposal. ``We've been tortured all year long about whether it was going to happen. And now we find out that not only is it not over, they want to start all over again.''
Trumble said it would be better to take a little more time and get good proposals from the companies than to rush through the process now.
In other business, the board:
Approved a plan to close S.H. Clarke Vocational Training Center and the New Directions Center. Plans are to spend about $1 million renovating the building over the next year, converting it into an elementary school that would open in September 1995.
Two other special centers, the Emily Spong Center and the Mount Hermon Elementary Education Center, will be converted to elementary schools by September 1995, but will remain open in the coming school year.
Approved a new system for assessing the job performance of school principals. The Principal Performance Assessment System will measure school leaders' abilities in such areas as instructional leadership and communication skills.
On the assessments, principals will be awarded points for each of their professional strengths. Based on the number of points they earn, they then will be rated on a scale ranging from ``excellent'' to ``unsatisfactory.''
Reviewed a proposal to offer a Crimestoppers program in schools, where students could call a hotline and offer anonymous tips about crimes committed in schools. Police officials who presented the plan offered seed money to get it started, and said it has been highly successful in other school systems around the country.
Trumble said he thinks it would promote character and civic responsibility in students. Trumble said he would bring a more specific plan for a student crime line back to the board, perhaps as soon as the board's next workshop Aug. 25.
KEYWORDS: PORTSMOUTH SCHOOL BOARD PRIVATIZATION PORTSMOUTH SCHOOLS by CNB