An important and insightful study from the Fordham Institute, authored by Rick Hess, Stafford Palmieri and Janie Scull:

The answer: New Orleans, Washington, D.C., New York City, Denver, and Jacksonville.

The question: Which cities are in the mix when it comes to being the "Silicon Valley" of K-12 schooling? Or, more simply: If you're a problem-solver with some successes under your belt, where will you be most welcome?

Cities rounding out the top ten include Charlotte, Austin, Houston, Fort Worth, and San Francisco.

What's all this about? Check out my new study, America's Best (and Worst) Cities for School Reform: Attracting Entrepreneurs and Change Agents, coauthored with the talented Stafford Palmieri and Janie Scull and published today by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute. It reports the fruits of an extensive effort to gauge reform environments by rating the nation's 25 biggest cities (and five smaller cities touted as reform hotbeds) in the areas of human capital, financial capital, quality control, municipal environment, charter school environment, and school district environment.

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The Nation's Best (and Worst) Cities for School Reform

By Rick Hess on August 24, 2010 7:35 AM | 1 Comment | No Recommendations

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