A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

UNITED STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
THE SECRETARY

May 1998

Dear Citizen:

We know that in countless communities, low-performing schools can and are being turned around. Our task is to make every public school a quality environment that focuses on teaching and learning. If we do not make that effort, we are sending a devastating message to children about our commitment to their well-being and to the nation?s future.

That is why I am pleased to respond to the President's directive with a guide for turning around low-performing schools. This guide speaks to leaders who want to improve low-performing schools by making fundamental changes that create a safe, orderly environment that focuses on high standards of teaching and learning for all students.

There is little doubt that some of our schools are failing to provide the kind of educational experience we want for our children. In too many of these schools, expectations of students are low, teachers and parents are frustrated, and academic performance is poor. Particularly in our nation?s highest-poverty urban schools, where two-thirds of the students fail to meet even minimum standards of achievement, the need for change is urgent.

This guide highlights how state, district, and community leaders can help schools control their school environment and focus on high academic standards of teaching and learning, build commitment for fundamental improvement, and implement strategies to raise student achievement. The guide also examines approaches that many states and districts are using to intervene in persistently low-performing schools. From Kentucky to Texas and Boston to San Francisco, public leaders are raising their expectations for students and schools, supporting systemwide reforms that work, and demanding school and student accountability for performance. Across the nation, there are examples of schools that, with a bold set of strategies, are focusing all their efforts on learning and improving student achievement. Turning around low-performing schools is hard work, but it is the responsibility of each and every community in America.

There is no one place to lay the blame for low-performing schools. Many problems -- poverty, limited resources, family stress, poor teacher training, unsafe learning environments, and other factors -- contribute to frustration on the part of teachers, disillusionment on the part of communities, and discouragingly low levels of student achievement. While these problems are serious and highlight the complexity of the challenges facing schools, they cannot thwart our efforts to improve our schools. In addition to investments in current U.S. Department of Education programs, such as Title I, Goals 2000, and the new Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration Program, the President has proposed a set of initiatives to provide additional resources and opportunities for improving the quality of schools, including:

• class size reduction to a national average of 18 students per class in the early grades through additional financial aid to schools throughout America;

• school construction and renovation to help modernize school buildings through interest-free bonds to support a high-quality teaching and learning environment and to alleviate classroom overcrowding;

• Educational Opportunity Zones to help high-poverty urban and rural districts implement some of the kinds of policies highlighted in this guide that support school accountability and improvements in student performance;

• 21st Century Community Learning Centers to fund school-community partnerships to build or expand after-school, extended learning programs for school-age children; and

• the America Reads Challenge, an initiative that encourages school and community partnerships to provide quality reading instruction through linking in-school and out-of-school reading programs.

For a copy of the full guide, please call the Department of Education at 1-800-USA-LEARN.

Our society is only as strong as the education of our people. Let us raise our expectations of our schools. Let us dedicate ourselves to ensuring that all schools provide children with the skills they need to be successful and productive citizens. Let us work together to turn around low-performing schools.

Yours sincerely,

Richard W. Riley

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