March 13, 2004
Grandview signs on with Newton Learning, by Joe Robertson

The small schools movement is a very powerful reform movement, says Rodriguez Jones. There may be instances where it hasn't worked well, but it's not the case at her school. "It's much better. I think part of the strength of reform autonomy is that, at small schools, teachers have a lot more to say about what happens."

It just goes to show the good that follows when foundations make the effort to involve all stakeholders in deciding how to use the money that's available. The question was: Should the Grandview School District import a new summer school program?

While voters elected board members to make these kinds of decisions, there were certain youthful experts in the audience Monday night, listening to Newton Learning's sales pitch. After hearing company representatives tout curriculum that includes hands-on experiences like go-cart building and $100 incentive rewards for perfect attendance, board President Allen Meyer made consultants of three Boy Scouts.

"Mike? Jake ...?" he said to two of them, "What do you think?"

The Scouts, a bit unnerved that their merit-badge assignment might involve real policy decisions, nodded sheepish approval. (They also confessed that they already had summer plans, being Scouts.)

In the end, the actual policy makers voted unanimously to take on Newton's program, betting on its promises of expanded curriculum, greater student participation, and improved academic performance.

"We can quadruple your summer-school attendance," boasted Orlo Shroyer, Newton representative and former Missouri deputy commissioner of education.Newton promises growth with incentives and recruiting efforts that already have brought hundreds more students into summer school programs in recent years in Raytown, Hickman Mills and Independence.

Newton Learning — the summer school division of New York-based Edison
Schools —now is partners with more than 70 districts across Missouri, Shroyer said. Early concerns that had caused some districts to hesitate in hiring Newton have subsided as more districts have come on board, he said.

In the past, school boards have questioned whether schools should import curriculum rather than make their own. They've pondered the wisdom in promising family gift cards up to $100 as rewards for attendance. Some of the questions surfaced again briefly in Grandview.

"We can't teach kids if they're not there," Shroyer said in defense of the incentives. The program "is getting kids prepared for life", where there are rewards when you are "on time, do the work and follow the rules."

And the reviews from surrounding districts have been favorable. Board members in Hickman Mills, who had been skeptical, monitored that district's program last summer and came back impressed. Newton will hire Grandview teachers and administrators to run the classrooms and schools. The high school program will begin June 7 and run through July 2, while the elementary and middle school program will run from June 7 to July 9.

Newton's program has been a financial hit in Missouri because the state pays higher per-pupil reimbursements to encourage summer-school programs. Newton has been making its profits, and school districts have been boosting their budget balances, even while paying the incentives to families and higher-than-usual salaries for teachers and principals.

State budgets are under strain, and Missouri legislators continue debates over education funding. Changes in the state's summer-school reimbursement formula could cut into Newton's and the school districts' money-making opportunities.

But Newton guarantees that the company will at least cover the school district's cost, even if state funding is slashed. It was enough to persuade Grandview administration, its board, and the Scouts.