Tonight on The NewsHour: Michelle Rhee, Episode 6
This just in (via e-mail from the NewsHour PR dept.):
Friends,
When we decided to follow rookie superintendent Michelle Rhee one year ago, we had a feeling that we'd have a good story on our hands. After all, 37-year-old Rhee was new to Washington, a Korean-American in a predominantly African-American city who had never been a superintendent before (or even a school principal!).
She was also the 7th leader in 10 years to try and turn around Washington's failing schools-and she was the first to do so under the charge of the city's mayor, with no school board to answer to. But even we were surprised at what unfolded as Rhee fired more than 15% of her office staff, removed 36 principals and 22 assistant principals, and announced plans to close 23 underenrolled schools, all before the last day of school.
Now she's promising to radically change 27 more schools before opening day at the end of August, and finish negotiations with the teachers' union on a new contract that she says will be unlike anything the country's seen before.
Tonight on The NewsHour, we'll sit down with Rhee---and her critics---to reflect on the year.
Thoughts on the other five episodes? Missed 'em? Find them here.
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5:31 pm
I think the whole series has, for a national program, done a pretty good job of capturing what is going on there... but then again, I would say that.
6:40 pm
I would love to see Michelle Rhee become a President of the U.S. someday and turn the nation around.
10:22 am
Best moment from the segment: Rhee accepting the title of benevolent dictator. I have to say that John Merrow has done some really interesting work with this series and last night's was among the best. Would have been nice to hear more from Parker or those in the union who think Parker's been too soft on her, but, overall, nice work.
3:20 pm
I think Rhee is more clever than a snake. She is stingy with teacher contract negotiations and teachers' pay (even though this money is tax payer money), however she takes home one fourth of a million per year + bonuses as well as the people she has hired to help her "exit" those that she does not like or do not agree fully with her own system of operation, which is kinda like this" Hmm! I do not like your face or your attitude!! Out!!. I do not understand why African Americans are allowing Rhee to do what she is doing in DC. She is an outsider and she does not follow protocol, she is very authoritarian and honestly I think she should be professional in all her affairs which she lacks. It seems that she is dealing with machines instead of persons. Rhee needs to remember that Fenty is not going to be the Mayor for ever especially now that he can not even control the crime in DC.