From the G Bitch Spot, here’s an excerpt from her excerpt:
When D.C. was teetering on the edge of insolvency in 1996, Congress forced the city to cede much of its home rule authority to a Control Board, which removed the superintendent of schools and all members of the elected Board of Education (the city’s first popularly elected body). The Control Board then named a retired U.S. Army general to oversee the schools, established an appointed Emergency Board of Trustees, and handed over facilities management to the Army Corps of Engineers—which did no better with the district’s school buildings than with the levees of New Orleans (56).
(Source: El-Amine, Zein, and Lee Glazer. ” ‘Evolution’ or Destruction?: A Look at Washington, D.C.” Keeping the Promise?: The Debate over Charter Schools. Eds. Leigh Dingerson, Barbara Miner, Bob Peterson, and Stephanie Walters. Rethinking Schools: Milwaukee, WI, 2008: 53-66.)
So, yes, it’s time we give the Army Corps its own charter school in New Orleans. The Corps could provide students the inside dope on how to corner a market without having to exhibit any real expertise in the area (lesson plan: How To Get Over). We could give the students little army uniforms with bars and medals and sharp hats that’ll demonstrate how to garner respect just by looking the part (lesson plan: You Are The Look). You know they’d be well funded (schools made out of newspapers) and have a killer swim team (lesson plan: Swim For Your Life).