CGR believes that with more information and broader perspective, people can make better decisions.  The economic realities of local school district budgets highlight this need.  For that reason, we’re starting our education blog with this piece—designed to provide context for the complex and tough decisions that face us now.

And let’s be honest—these decisions are really, really hard because we all care deeply and have strong opinions about educating our kids.

With spring comes the state budget dance: New York State fails to pass a budget on time, school districts plan cuts in teachers, sports and music, and then, just when you think you can’t stand any more bad news, voila! Pennies fall from heaven (or, at least, the state or federal governments) and the cuts go away.

But this year is different: the state is really and truly broke and the federal stimulus money has been spent. States and school districts around the country are involved in common-sense and innovative budget-trimming. New York must follow suit.

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Teaching middle school in tough schools with gang activity provided countless teachable moments on “listening to your conscience,” “thinking for yourself,” and “considering the consequences of your actions.”  As adults, we were constantly reminding our kids to quit whining about whose fault something was, grow up, do the right thing.  Then in 2003, faced with fiscal crisis and threats of 1,200 midyear layoffs, we members of the Baltimore Teachers Union were asked to vote on whether to accept 8 days of furloughs or a pay cut.

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CGR empowers the Rochester community to engage in informed debate, make wise community decisions, and hold our leaders accountable.

Our current partnership with Rochester City School District—acting as the public’s representative, documenting and reporting honestly on district progress, shortfalls and roadblocks—is an exciting new way of achieving our mission. Many in our community have lost faith in the district’s ability to significantly improve outcomes for our children. Yet our City’s future depends on its success.

When Superintendent Brizard and the Board of Education launched their strategic plan, they engaged us to assess the implementation of that plan. Foundation and donor funds also support this work. We have two main roles:

1. CGR acts as a mirror to the District, asking questions, sharing observations, identifying roadblocks.

2. CGR is a reputable and regular communication channel to the community. To many, RCSD must earn its credibility back, and the community needs more than annual test scores and graduation rates to assess its progress. Look for blogs, formal progress reports, and public forums on the District’s progress. With all that’s going on with education at the state and national levels, we hope to offer helpful context and analysis.

The work of reforming a school district is urgent, complex and just plain hard.  CGR believes that by providing information, explanation and perspectives to the community, we can be a catalyst in moving education in Rochester forward.

Who are we?

Prior to our lives as CGR researchers, we were:  a teacher, an economist, a reporter, a pastor, a youth worker, a professor.  We are parents of RCSD students and of home schoolers.  We are City and suburban residents and we are all passionate about education in Rochester. (See our bios.)