52 CHAMBERS STREET

NEW YORK, NY 10007

June 15, 2006

Empowerment Schools are schools at which principals have greater autonomy in exchange for agreeing

to take on greater responsibility for producing results in terms of student academic achievement. While

Empowerment Schools will be different in terms of accountability, goal setting, and autonomy—and will

have different support structures than other schools—they are not dissimilar from other schools. Like

most public schools in the City, these schools accept students who fall into their zones. They take all

students, including English Language Learners and Special Education students. And, like all New York

City public schools, they must follow City, State, and federal standards.

Empowerment Schools will build on the record of success demonstrated by schools in the “autonomy

zone” pilot program, which was launched in the 2004-2005 school year. The Department of Education is

expanding this initiative because of principal satisfaction, demand from other schools to participate, and

the strong results achieved by schools in the pilot program.

Autonomy zone pilot schools outperformed citywide averages in their first year 2004-2005, as well as

their own past performance prior to entering the zone. Twenty-two of the 26 participating schools met

their performance targets (85%).

No, this is an evolution. At first, the Mayor and the Chancellor had to stabilize the school system. Now

that the system is stable, the Department of Education is ready to devolve power and decision-making to

schools—an important part of the Children First vision from the beginning.

There will still be 10 regions next year. They will continue to support the vast majority of New York City

public schools.

There will be no differentiated enrollment policies for the empowerment schools. Schools will admit

students in the same way as the regions.

Principals are required to consult with parents. This can be done through school leadership teams, parent

associations, or separate meetings with parents or their representatives.

Community district schools designated as Empowerment Schools will remain part of their community

districts, and parents from those schools will be eligible to serve on Community Education Councils. The

powers and duties of Community Education Councils will be unchanged.

Yes.

Yes.

Parents can continue to go to the CEC for assistance. Plus, network support leaders and their teams will

be responsive to parent concerns. And, as always, parents will be able to go to parent support offices,

the Office of Parent Engagement for support. Or, they can call 311.

Principals have a week, from June 12 through June 19, to consult with their school communities

(teachers, staffs, parents) before signing the Performance Agreement. While parents must be consulted,

this is ultimately the principal’s decision. This mirrors the decision-making process in place in all New

York City public schools.

Yes.

Yes. Empowerment Schools will accept students the same way as schools throughout the City. There

will be no differentiated enrollment policies for the empowerment schools.

A total of 353 schools expressed interest in becoming Empowerment Schools.

A total of 331 schools were invited to become Empowerment Schools.

Members of the Chancellor's senior leadership team reviewed the applications. Admission was based on

a number of factors, including past performance, attendance, compliance data, and principals’ responses

to questions about how they would benefit from additional autonomy and accountability.

Schools invited to become Empowerment Schools represent every borough and every region.

Specifically

Brooklyn 85 26%

Bronx 108 33%

Manhattan 99 30%

Queens 38 11%

Staten Island 1 0%

Pool 331 100%

R1 52 16%

R2 46 14%

R3 20 6%

R4 15 5%

R5 15 5%

R6 29 9%

R7 9 3%

R8 34 10%

R9 63 19%

R10 44 13%

D75 1 0%

D79 3 1%

Pool 331 100%

Schools invited to become Empowerment Schools come from every grade level, with particularly strong

representation at the elementary and high school levels. Specifically:

Elementary 91 27%

K-8 5 2%

Middle 53 16%

K-12 2 1%

Secondary 39 12%

High 140 42%

Special Education 1 0%

Pool 331 100%

Principals have a week, from June 12 through June 19, to consult with their school communities

(teachers, staffs, parents) and decide whether or not they will accept the invitation to become

Empowerment Schools. If they accept, they must sign a Performance Agreement. In the summer of

2006, principals will set individualized targets for student progress with the office of the chief

accountability officer (Jim Liebman). At the end of each school year, schools will be assessed and

graded on the basis of whether they were able to meet these targets. This June, schools will choose

teams, or “networks,” with up to 20 other schools. These networks will select “network support leaders,”

which will serve and help the schools. The new structure will be up and running by September, when

school opens for the 2006-2007 school year.

The performance agreement is a standard document that must be signed by all schools that want to be

Empowerment Schools. It is in effect from the 2006-2007 school year through the 2009-2010 school

year. It lists their autonomies, their responsibilities, expectations regarding student achievement, and

rewards and consequences for meeting or not meeting these expectations.

Empowerment School principals have authority to make decisions on:

approval by the DOE

alternative for approval by the DOE

based on whether they meet their targets. They are also assessed with Quality Reviews.

Empowerment Schools that receive a grade of “C” for fewer than three years will have been deed

to have met their responsibilities.

children with all learning needs, including special education students and English language

learners).

quality reviews will be eligible for rewards and recognitions, including extra funding. Schools that receive

a grade of D or F on their progress report or a grade of C in three consecutive years are subject to

consequences (interventions, leadership changes, school closure).

This is a four-year agreement.

In the worst circumstances, where schools do not evidence either progress or capacity to make progress

over time, leadership changes will be made; and ultimately, schools may be closed.

Yes. The Empowerment School performance agreement is a value-added school assessment, evaluating

schools on the basis of both their own past performance and the performance of a like-populated cohort

of schools.

The terms of the performance agreement can be amended annually. Principals who wish to opt out can

petition the CEO of Empowerment Schools between July 1 and July 15 each year.

Yes, unless the new principal chooses to opt out.

In general, schools are at the top of the new Empowerment School hierarchy and all organizational

structures exist to service schools. Each group of 20 schools has a small network support team. Also

serving all empowerment schools is an integrated service center, which administers operations,

suspension support, special education, legal issues, compliance, and the market.

Schools will be able to choose their own networks. Networks need not be based on location, but they

could be. Principals could unite because they have similar thoughts about education or because they

cater to certain populations or age levels of students.

Offices will be located throughout the City.

These schools will be supported by the Empowerment Schools network support teams. The CEO of

Empowerment Schools and the Department of Education's Chief Accountability Officer will also help

ensure that the schools are complying with rules and regulations, meeting their performance targets, and

receiving the support they require.

About $50 million will be cut from the regional budgets. This amount is consistent with the cost of

supporting the Empowerment Schools if they remained in the regions. Additionally, about $30 million will

be cut from central budgets. Some of this money will flow into a new, leaner “bureaucracy” to support

Empowerment Schools. The majority of these freed-up resources will go to Empowerment Schools

themselves, to support school programming. The additional money in Empowerment School budgets will

represent the value and cost of what these schools used to receive regionally or centrally. These dollars

were spent on behalf of the schools. Now they will be spent by the schools on the services that the

schools need most to support their students.

About $49 million is going to empowerment schools, about $15 million is going to accountability and

leadership development, and about $16 million is going to form the Empowerment School support

system.

About 350 overall. Most of the money saved will be sent to schools, where it will be spent on student

programming and the educators who interact directly with children.

Empowerment Schools will receive varying amounts of additional money, depending on the size of their

student bodies. Schools will receive a base of $75,000 in new discretionary funding, plus extra money

depending on the number of students. An average Empowerment School will receive an additional

$150,000 in new discretionary funding and will have access to an additional $100,000 in newly

unrestricted funds, which were previously tied to specific programs and positions.