Watch out Massachusetts; your little neighbor to the south is poised to become the next big school reform powerhouse. The Ocean State already benefits from forward-thinking governor Don Carcieri and entrepreneur-turned-school-reformer Angus Davis. Well, they've been looking for a butt-kicking state superintendent to round out the trio and have found her: Deborah Gist, who is currently the District of Columbia's "state superintendent."
The main thing to know is that Gist has been quietly revamping D.C.'s teacher certification and evaluation system to focus on crazy notions like quality, performance, and effectiveness. No doubt she'll bring this thinking to Rhode Island, where the outgoing state superintendent has laid down an ultimatum around these issues, at least for the city of Providence.
So will DC be left in the lurch? Not necessarily; I'm hearing that Kerri Briggs, formerly an Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education under Margaret Spellings, will be taking Gist's place.
