Sunday, December 04, 2005
I'm So Glad The DC Stadium Deal Has Been Worked Out
Late Order, Faulty D.C. Enrollment Figures Cited in Textbook Delays
By V. Dion Haynes
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, December 4, 2005; C06
Delays in delivering new textbooks to D.C. public schools appear to stem from multiple problems, including the size and late date of the order, inaccurate student enrollment projections and the lack of a computer system to keep track of shipments.
After maintaining for weeks that delivery of new math and English books to the system's 59,000 students had gone smoothly, school officials acknowledged last week that there were breakdowns in the process and that some children still do not have the materials.
Preliminary results of a continuing audit show that about 14 percent of the 147 schools have not received all their books, Meria J. Carstarphen, chief accountability officer, said. The school board late Thursday ordered Superintendent Clifford B. Janey to conduct the audit after The Washington Post reported that many parents and teachers were still complaining of students lacking books. The board gave Janey until Friday to complete the audit.
Although such complaints had surfaced earlier in the school year, Janey and his staff had insisted that the books had arrived on time. When classes opened Aug. 29, Janey said schools had received 95 percent of the books they ordered. But Carstarphen said Friday that the 95 percent figure actually was the percentage of schools that had either new or old textbooks on opening day.
"Board members are very upset," said school board member Tommy Wells (District 3). "I had been led to believe this was not a systemic problem and children had received their books...
School's Overruns Offer Lesson for Repairs
D.C. Council to Vote on Massive Renovation Project, Reviving Criticism of Past Budget Debacles
By David S. Fallis and Dan Keating
Washington Post Staff Writers
Sunday, December 4, 2005; C01
McKinley Technology High School sits on a hill in Northeast Washington, a $73 million campus of imposing brick and stone. But resurrecting the once crumbling and empty school cost taxpayers $21 million more than expected, making it one of the most expensive school construction projects in the city's history.
The complicated story of why McKinley went so far over budget offers a lesson during the current debate on whether the city should raise an additional $1 billion to renovate its aging schools.
The D.C. Council is scheduled to vote tomorrow on a proposal by council member Kathy Patterson (D-Ward 3) to generate the funds by imposing new taxes on parking, cigarettes and commercial real estate. The proposal has resurrected criticism of past construction efforts that have gone over budget, and some business leaders want assurances that won't happen again...
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By V. Dion Haynes
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, December 4, 2005; C06
Delays in delivering new textbooks to D.C. public schools appear to stem from multiple problems, including the size and late date of the order, inaccurate student enrollment projections and the lack of a computer system to keep track of shipments.
After maintaining for weeks that delivery of new math and English books to the system's 59,000 students had gone smoothly, school officials acknowledged last week that there were breakdowns in the process and that some children still do not have the materials.
Preliminary results of a continuing audit show that about 14 percent of the 147 schools have not received all their books, Meria J. Carstarphen, chief accountability officer, said. The school board late Thursday ordered Superintendent Clifford B. Janey to conduct the audit after The Washington Post reported that many parents and teachers were still complaining of students lacking books. The board gave Janey until Friday to complete the audit.
Although such complaints had surfaced earlier in the school year, Janey and his staff had insisted that the books had arrived on time. When classes opened Aug. 29, Janey said schools had received 95 percent of the books they ordered. But Carstarphen said Friday that the 95 percent figure actually was the percentage of schools that had either new or old textbooks on opening day.
"Board members are very upset," said school board member Tommy Wells (District 3). "I had been led to believe this was not a systemic problem and children had received their books...
School's Overruns Offer Lesson for Repairs
D.C. Council to Vote on Massive Renovation Project, Reviving Criticism of Past Budget Debacles
By David S. Fallis and Dan Keating
Washington Post Staff Writers
Sunday, December 4, 2005; C01
McKinley Technology High School sits on a hill in Northeast Washington, a $73 million campus of imposing brick and stone. But resurrecting the once crumbling and empty school cost taxpayers $21 million more than expected, making it one of the most expensive school construction projects in the city's history.
The complicated story of why McKinley went so far over budget offers a lesson during the current debate on whether the city should raise an additional $1 billion to renovate its aging schools.
The D.C. Council is scheduled to vote tomorrow on a proposal by council member Kathy Patterson (D-Ward 3) to generate the funds by imposing new taxes on parking, cigarettes and commercial real estate. The proposal has resurrected criticism of past construction efforts that have gone over budget, and some business leaders want assurances that won't happen again...
PermaLink | 4:36 AM |
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