The more things change the more they remain the same

I am not one to traffic in rumors, although collecting and trading information is always helpful. Last year I communicated a rumor about the DC Public Schools and its facilities, because of the provenance of this particular information chain, the crediblity of the discussants, and because of how things tend to work within DC's political and development industry milieu.

So I sent this out to a couple neighborhood e-lists, in November 2005:

One piece of the latest under the table political scuttlebutt is that Congress is considering creating another Control Board to take over the DC Public School System. This would allow for the Federal City Council supported new group to take over managing the school property portfolio, and would allow them to release properties to either developers or charter schools without much interference.

It generated some interest from some journalists, and a spirited email from the Executive Director of the Federal City Council, demanding to know who told me, saying:

If you know who has started this untrue rumor would you please let me know so I can disabuse them of this nonsense!

as well as communication from the EdBuild organization (the director is now the incoming Deputy Mayor of Economic Development for the city).

Today's article in the Post, "D.C. Schools Considering Unusual Deal With Nonprofit," makes me wonder, did EdBuild dial down its ambitions given some of the publicity, or is it in for the long haul?

From the article:

The D.C. Board of Education is considering a no-bid contract with a little-experienced but politically connected organization to upgrade academics and facilities in some low-performing schools. EdBuild, which was started by an associate of both Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) and Mayor-elect Adrian M. Fenty (D), is seeking a contract to provide services to three schools for an as-yet unspecified amount...

But school board member William Lockridge (District 4), who supports EdBuild's efforts to improve academic performance, opposes the proposal to manage construction projects. Lockridge, the only board member to speak against the proposal, said about 65 companies with extensive construction experience have contracts to oversee modernization of about 100 city schools.

The 65 companies were hired "based on their prior experience and projects they had done in the past and their financial stability," Lockridge said. "They are large companies. They have a track record. Why was EdBuild chosen when that is not their niche?" He said EdBuild, which began operating in September 2005 and has focused on teacher training, lacks the experience to manage construction projects.

Index Keywords: education; Growth-Machine