Kelvin Adams signed a three-year contract Friday to be the next superintendent of the St. Louis Public Schools.
The Special Administrative Board of the district has agreed to pay Adams a base salary of $225,000. He also could receive bonuses based on the number of schools in the district that make adequate yearly progress under Missouri assessment standards and based on increases in student enrollment.
The SAB selected him from three finalists chosen during a national search conducted over the summer.SAB member Melanie Adams, who headed the search committee, said Kelvin Adams’ colleagues described him as child-focused, dedicated, ethical, honest and someone who can build and motivate a team. Kelvin Adams served as the director of human resources for the St. Louis Public Schools from 2006 to 2007. Since then he has been serving as chief of staff of the Recovery School District in New Orleans.
SAB president Rick Sullivan said Adams is known in New Orleans as a hard worker and he is respected there.“We can document Dr. Adams’ hands-on role in improving student achievement, as well as his commitment to students,” Sullivan said.
Adams said student achievement will be his foremost priority and he looks forward to working with the SAB to change how the district is managed.“I am excited because I know they are committed to public education in this area and they are committed to student achievement,” Adams said.
Adams will wrap up business in New Orleans before starting here as superintendent in mid-October. He said he will spend some time evaluating the resources of the district and he recognizes in addressing a master plan there could be some downsizing of the district. However, he rebuffed the idea that the administration should focus on operating a smaller district. He said he believes that focusing on student achievement could create a school system that would attract students back from charter schools and other schools, which would increase enrollment. Adams said he would institute many of the reforms used in New Orleans schools in seeking to improve St. Louis schools. He said he expects the task of improving the district to be more like a marathon than a sprint. He committed to stay through the three-year contract.“I bring a commitment and a mission focus to student achievement and I bring a temperament I believe will work well with the community and the SAB board,” he said. Courtesy of Shawn Clubb, South Side Journal.
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Missouri Commissioner of Education Welcomes New SLPS Superintendent
Commissioner of Education D. Kent King today welcomed Kelvin Adams who has been selected as the new superintendent of the St. Louis Public Schools.
The appointment of Dr. Adams was announced last night by Rick Sullivan, chair of the Special Administrative Board that has governed the St. Louis school district since last summer, as a result of the district’s loss of accreditation.
Adams was employed by the St. Louis Public Schools during the 2006-07 school year but is currently working as chief of staff of the Recovery School District in News Orleans.
“We are eager to work with Dr. Adams, school personnel and other leaders in the St. Louis community to help the school district restore public confidence and boost academic performance. I know Dr. Adams recognizes the challenges he will face,” King said.
“It is critically important for the St. Louis Public Schools and the Special Administrative Board to create an effective leadership team that can focus on a concise agenda for improvement. The appointment of Dr. Adams is an important step in that process,” King said. Courtesy of DESE Home Page
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
The appointment of Dr. Adams was announced last night by Rick Sullivan, chair of the Special Administrative Board that has governed the St. Louis school district since last summer, as a result of the district’s loss of accreditation.
Adams was employed by the St. Louis Public Schools during the 2006-07 school year but is currently working as chief of staff of the Recovery School District in News Orleans.
“We are eager to work with Dr. Adams, school personnel and other leaders in the St. Louis community to help the school district restore public confidence and boost academic performance. I know Dr. Adams recognizes the challenges he will face,” King said.
“It is critically important for the St. Louis Public Schools and the Special Administrative Board to create an effective leadership team that can focus on a concise agenda for improvement. The appointment of Dr. Adams is an important step in that process,” King said. Courtesy of DESE Home Page
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
New SLPS leader looks to road ahead
St. Louis — The ink barely dry on a three-year, $225,000 annual contract, Kelvin Adams sat down to lunch Friday with a table of McKinley Classical Junior Academy middle school students, the first step on what he promises will be a long journey toward restoring the district's accreditation and credibility. His next steps on the road ahead, Adams said in introductory remarks to the media and a handful of staff in the McKinley library, will be an evaluation of the progress the schools are making toward improving achievement in a district stuck at the bottom of the state's benchmarks for learning.Reform in urban districts, he cautioned, is at best a long and laborious process."It is not a sprint, it is a marathon," said Adams, who will depart a post as chief of staff of the Recovery School District of New Orleans when he begins his new duties Oct. 20.
Navigating that course will require Adams to work with a governing body, the Special Administrative Board, that operates under a unique set of rules. Traditionally, elected school boards establish the policy that is then carried out by a superintendent and his or her staff.The St. Louis panel maintains that its designation as an appointed administrative board allows it to involve itself in the day-to-day operations of the district.The perception that a board is crossing the "firewall" separating administration from policy has caused more than a few superintendents — including Creg Williams from St. Louis two years ago — to part ways.Adams said he is confident that he and the administrative board can resolve any differences that might arise about his duties."I think we can be flexible working together," he said in a brief interview before heading to the McKinley cafeteria. "Obviously, the SAB wants more input than a traditional board would have, but I don't foresee any problems in terms of running the district."
Adams' appointment continued to draw praise from various corners on Friday, including the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the agency that led the state intervention and appointment of the administrative board. "It is critically important for the St. Louis Public Schools and the Special Administrative Board to create an effective leadership team that can focus on a concise agenda for improvement. The appointment of Dr. Adams is an important step in that process," said State Education Commissioner D. Kent King, in a statement.
The support for Adams was accompanied by the hope that he end a cycle of instability that has seen eight people sit in the superintendent's office since 2003."We hope that Dr. Adams will provide the dynamic leadership qualities that his predecessors lacked and that the result will be significant gains in academic proficiency for St. Louis schoolchildren," said William L. Taylor, the lead attorney in the desegregation case that continues to play a role in the structure of the district. "We trust that he has made a commitment to stay long enough to make real progress."Some have expressed concern that Adams might later seek to return to New Orleans as the city's school superintendent, should the position open up. Rick Sullivan, the chief executive officer of the St. Louis schools, said Adams has measures in his contract to keep him here for the full three years of the pact. Courtesy of Steve Giegerich, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH.
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
Navigating that course will require Adams to work with a governing body, the Special Administrative Board, that operates under a unique set of rules. Traditionally, elected school boards establish the policy that is then carried out by a superintendent and his or her staff.The St. Louis panel maintains that its designation as an appointed administrative board allows it to involve itself in the day-to-day operations of the district.The perception that a board is crossing the "firewall" separating administration from policy has caused more than a few superintendents — including Creg Williams from St. Louis two years ago — to part ways.Adams said he is confident that he and the administrative board can resolve any differences that might arise about his duties."I think we can be flexible working together," he said in a brief interview before heading to the McKinley cafeteria. "Obviously, the SAB wants more input than a traditional board would have, but I don't foresee any problems in terms of running the district."
Adams' appointment continued to draw praise from various corners on Friday, including the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the agency that led the state intervention and appointment of the administrative board. "It is critically important for the St. Louis Public Schools and the Special Administrative Board to create an effective leadership team that can focus on a concise agenda for improvement. The appointment of Dr. Adams is an important step in that process," said State Education Commissioner D. Kent King, in a statement.
The support for Adams was accompanied by the hope that he end a cycle of instability that has seen eight people sit in the superintendent's office since 2003."We hope that Dr. Adams will provide the dynamic leadership qualities that his predecessors lacked and that the result will be significant gains in academic proficiency for St. Louis schoolchildren," said William L. Taylor, the lead attorney in the desegregation case that continues to play a role in the structure of the district. "We trust that he has made a commitment to stay long enough to make real progress."Some have expressed concern that Adams might later seek to return to New Orleans as the city's school superintendent, should the position open up. Rick Sullivan, the chief executive officer of the St. Louis schools, said Adams has measures in his contract to keep him here for the full three years of the pact. Courtesy of Steve Giegerich, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH.
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
Recovery district loses key leader
Kelvin Adams, the Recovery School District administrator long touted as a top choice to succeed Paul Vallas as superintendent, will leave New Orleans for the chief job in the St. Louis school district. Adams, a native of New Orleans who worked his way up through the school system, served most recently as Vallas' chief of staff.
While Vallas and State Superintendent Paul Pastorek said they are confident that Adams' departure will not disrupt the district's momentum, the city will lose a veteran administrator who earned the trust of many educators working in the schools. Vallas often said he hoped Adams would succeed him. He said Friday that he plans over the next couple of months to look for someone else to groom as the next superintendent.
Vallas' own contract ends in June, and rumors have swirled that he might run for elective office in Illinois, his home state, although he said Friday that he would be open to staying with the RSD beyond this school year. Vallas is a Chicago native, and his family still lives in the Chicago area.
Adams' leaving "is going to set me back a little," he said. "Obviously, we want to bring someone in who we really can groom to be superintendent." But Vallas added that "we have a lot of really high-quality candidates for his slot, and the bench has gotten considerably deeper" over the past year. He said Friday that Rayne Martin, the chief information officer for the RSD, will fill in as interim chief of staff. Martin, 34, is a Shreveport native recruited by Vallas to the district. Adams could not be reached for comment Friday. He told reporters in St. Louis Friday morning that he will most likely start his new job the week of Oct. 20. He makes an annual salary of $170,000 in New Orleans. In St. Louis, he will have a three-year contract and an annual salary of $225,000.
Pastorek called Adams "a special guy" who is "not easily replaceable." He added that a chief criterion in finding a replacement will be whether the person "believes in the kind of reforms that Paul has put in place and will sustain them." Courtesy of Sarah Carr of The Times-Picayune
SLPS ParentsMovement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
While Vallas and State Superintendent Paul Pastorek said they are confident that Adams' departure will not disrupt the district's momentum, the city will lose a veteran administrator who earned the trust of many educators working in the schools. Vallas often said he hoped Adams would succeed him. He said Friday that he plans over the next couple of months to look for someone else to groom as the next superintendent.
Vallas' own contract ends in June, and rumors have swirled that he might run for elective office in Illinois, his home state, although he said Friday that he would be open to staying with the RSD beyond this school year. Vallas is a Chicago native, and his family still lives in the Chicago area.
Adams' leaving "is going to set me back a little," he said. "Obviously, we want to bring someone in who we really can groom to be superintendent." But Vallas added that "we have a lot of really high-quality candidates for his slot, and the bench has gotten considerably deeper" over the past year. He said Friday that Rayne Martin, the chief information officer for the RSD, will fill in as interim chief of staff. Martin, 34, is a Shreveport native recruited by Vallas to the district. Adams could not be reached for comment Friday. He told reporters in St. Louis Friday morning that he will most likely start his new job the week of Oct. 20. He makes an annual salary of $170,000 in New Orleans. In St. Louis, he will have a three-year contract and an annual salary of $225,000.
Pastorek called Adams "a special guy" who is "not easily replaceable." He added that a chief criterion in finding a replacement will be whether the person "believes in the kind of reforms that Paul has put in place and will sustain them." Courtesy of Sarah Carr of The Times-Picayune
SLPS ParentsMovement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
What is the role of Dr. Adams in New Orleans Recovery School District?
Kelvin Adams has been the chief of staff for the Recovery School District in New Orleans since 2007. He coordinates the day-to-day operations for this school district with 12,500 students in 33 schools with more than 2,000 employees and an annual operating and capital budget of $300 million. More than 86 percent of the students are eligible for free/reduced lunch and 99 percent are members of a minority group.
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
School superintendent picked
The Post-Dispatch has learned from multiple sources that the Special Administrative Board tonight will name Kelvin Adams, the chief of staff for the Recovery School District of New Orleans, the St. Louis Public Schools eighth superintendent since 2003.
Adams had a brief stint with the St. Louis schools in 2006-07, overseeing the district's middle and high schools and serving as the interim director of human resources. He succeeds Diana Bourisaw who left the position in July.
Adams won out over the two other finalists the administrative board brought to the city two weeks ago for what amounted to a public audition for the job. Former Providence, R.I. superintendent Donnie Evans and Eric Becoats, a high-level administrator with the Guilford County Schools in Greensboro, N.C. were the other two finalists selected in a nationwide search from a pool of over 30 applicants. Of the final three, Adams was the only candidate with previous experience in St. Louis — he supervised the district’s middle and high schools and also served as the interim director of human resources during an 11-month stay that ended in April, 2007.
He also has background working in a district, New Orleans, that is under state control. In meetings with the media and the public, Adams indicated a willingness to lead a district that co-exists with charter schools. Charters, publicly-funded schools that are governed independently, have drained the St. Louis schools of students and resources over the past eight years. Critics maintain charters threaten the traditional public education system. Adams said he would use competition from charter schools to strengthen the city schools.
Before coming to St. Louis in 2006, Adams served as the associate dean/interim dean and charter school liaison for the College of Education at Southern University in New Orleans. Addressing his management style, Adams said earlier this month that he is partial to a "quasi-governance model" that makes building principals more accountable for student achievement. "The principal is the key lever to change," said Adams, a one-time high school principal himself.
Adams, who holds a doctorate in "Educational Leadership in Administration" from the University of New Orleans, is the first superintendent hired by the appointed administrative board, which assumed governance of the district following a state intervention that removed the elected board 15 months ago. He succeeds Diana Bourisaw, who departed in July after the administrative board redefined her role and requested that she reapply for her job. Rick Sullivan, Richard Gaines and Melanie Adams maintain the designation "administrative board" grants the panel permission to involve itself more in the day-to-day operations of the district. In traditional governance, the elected board establishes policy that is then carried out by the superintendent and administrative staff. Kelvin Adams said he has no problem with the operational set-up in St. Louis. Quietly determined during his most recent visit to St. Louis, a resolved Adams told the public and media he was aware of what lies ahead in a district struggling to regain its accreditation. Despite his lack of experience handling a district, Adams said earlier this month that he is prepared for the challenge."There will be improvement, there has to be improvement, otherwise there is no need for me to be here," he said two weeks ago.
Courtesy of Steve Giegerich, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 09/25/2008.
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
Adams had a brief stint with the St. Louis schools in 2006-07, overseeing the district's middle and high schools and serving as the interim director of human resources. He succeeds Diana Bourisaw who left the position in July.
Adams won out over the two other finalists the administrative board brought to the city two weeks ago for what amounted to a public audition for the job. Former Providence, R.I. superintendent Donnie Evans and Eric Becoats, a high-level administrator with the Guilford County Schools in Greensboro, N.C. were the other two finalists selected in a nationwide search from a pool of over 30 applicants. Of the final three, Adams was the only candidate with previous experience in St. Louis — he supervised the district’s middle and high schools and also served as the interim director of human resources during an 11-month stay that ended in April, 2007.
He also has background working in a district, New Orleans, that is under state control. In meetings with the media and the public, Adams indicated a willingness to lead a district that co-exists with charter schools. Charters, publicly-funded schools that are governed independently, have drained the St. Louis schools of students and resources over the past eight years. Critics maintain charters threaten the traditional public education system. Adams said he would use competition from charter schools to strengthen the city schools.
Before coming to St. Louis in 2006, Adams served as the associate dean/interim dean and charter school liaison for the College of Education at Southern University in New Orleans. Addressing his management style, Adams said earlier this month that he is partial to a "quasi-governance model" that makes building principals more accountable for student achievement. "The principal is the key lever to change," said Adams, a one-time high school principal himself.
Adams, who holds a doctorate in "Educational Leadership in Administration" from the University of New Orleans, is the first superintendent hired by the appointed administrative board, which assumed governance of the district following a state intervention that removed the elected board 15 months ago. He succeeds Diana Bourisaw, who departed in July after the administrative board redefined her role and requested that she reapply for her job. Rick Sullivan, Richard Gaines and Melanie Adams maintain the designation "administrative board" grants the panel permission to involve itself more in the day-to-day operations of the district. In traditional governance, the elected board establishes policy that is then carried out by the superintendent and administrative staff. Kelvin Adams said he has no problem with the operational set-up in St. Louis. Quietly determined during his most recent visit to St. Louis, a resolved Adams told the public and media he was aware of what lies ahead in a district struggling to regain its accreditation. Despite his lack of experience handling a district, Adams said earlier this month that he is prepared for the challenge."There will be improvement, there has to be improvement, otherwise there is no need for me to be here," he said two weeks ago.
Courtesy of Steve Giegerich, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 09/25/2008.
SLPS Parents Movement to Support Dr. Kelvin Adams.
RSD Chief of Staff Kelvin Adams named Superintendent of St. Louis schools
ST. LOUIS -- Kelvin Adams, an executive for the school district in New Orleans, was chosen Thursday to lead St. Louis public schools, becoming the beleaguered district's eighth superintendent since 2003.
Adams will get a three-year contract. Terms were not immediately announced. He was expected to be in St. Louis today. St. Louis school district spokesman Patrick Wallace said "I believe he is going to start in mid-October." Adams has never been a superintendent but was the only one of the three finalists to have previously worked in St. Louis. He is currently chief of staff for the state-run Recovery School District, which operates and oversees most New Orleans public schools. His selection was approved in a unanimous vote by the three-person state-appointed board that oversees the district.
"Even though he does not have that experience, I am satisfied he can do the job here that needs to be done," board member Richard Gaines said. The district received 35 applicants for the position. In addition to Adams, other finalists were Eric Becoats, co-interim superintendent of Guilford County Schools in Greensboro, N.C.; and Donnie Evans, a former superintendent in Providence, R.I.
Adams couldn't be reached for comment Friday. But earlier this month, Adams said the St. Louis job presented a "unique opportunity." "It's a district that's ripe for change," he said. "It's ripe for reform."
In New Orleans, Adams is the second-in-command behind Recovery School District Superintendent Paul Vallas, who runs the roughly 12,500-student district. He is a well-liked central office administrator and a former principal of Marion Abramson Senior High and Fannie C. Williams Middle School. He has spent virtually his entire career in New Orleans, except for the brief stint in St. Louis in the 2006-07 school year when he served as executive director of human resources. Adams, who holds a Ph.D. from the University of New Orleans, graduated from John McDonogh Senior High.
Prior to the announcement, Vallas had said publicly that Adams was his top choice as a successor. Vallas' two-year contract expires on June 30. State Superintendent Paul Pastorek, however, has said Adams is "on the list and a presumptive favorite."
St. Louis Special Administrative Board member Rick Sullivan praised Adams as a "hands-on" administrator who has played a key role in helping to revitalize the New Orleans district devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. "Everything we found, the man has an unblemished record," Sullivan said.
The St. Louis district, the largest in Missouri with about 28,000 students, is similar to the post-Katrina landscape in New Orleans. In Missouri, the state took control in June 2007 to try and turn around the district long troubled by budget problems and poor academic performance. While the state board runs the district, an elected board still exists, though with no real power.
Unlike St. Louis, the Orleans Parish School Board, which governed the entire system before the state takeover in 2005, retained some governance power and controls five directly-run schools and oversees a dozen charter schools. In St. Louis, a three-member board appointed by the governor, mayor and president of the city's Board of Aldermen governs the district. In Louisiana, the state school board controls policies for public schools statewide, which diminishes its attention to New Orleans.
In St. Louis, Diana Bourisaw began as superintendent in 2006 before the state took control. As a result, the new three-member Special Administrative Board decided to advertise the position and asked her to reapply. She declined, and left the job in July. Interim superintendent John Wright did not apply for the permanent position. Peter Downs, president of the elected school board, said none of the three finalists were acceptable. "They should turn around and ask Bourisaw to come back, and if she says no, they should ask Dr. Wright to stay on, and ask an experienced local educator to take the job," Downs said.
Courtesy of Jim Salter, The Associated Press, Friday September 26, 2008, 7:36 AM.
SLPS Parents Movement for Dr. Kelvin Adams.
Adams will get a three-year contract. Terms were not immediately announced. He was expected to be in St. Louis today. St. Louis school district spokesman Patrick Wallace said "I believe he is going to start in mid-October." Adams has never been a superintendent but was the only one of the three finalists to have previously worked in St. Louis. He is currently chief of staff for the state-run Recovery School District, which operates and oversees most New Orleans public schools. His selection was approved in a unanimous vote by the three-person state-appointed board that oversees the district.
"Even though he does not have that experience, I am satisfied he can do the job here that needs to be done," board member Richard Gaines said. The district received 35 applicants for the position. In addition to Adams, other finalists were Eric Becoats, co-interim superintendent of Guilford County Schools in Greensboro, N.C.; and Donnie Evans, a former superintendent in Providence, R.I.
Adams couldn't be reached for comment Friday. But earlier this month, Adams said the St. Louis job presented a "unique opportunity." "It's a district that's ripe for change," he said. "It's ripe for reform."
In New Orleans, Adams is the second-in-command behind Recovery School District Superintendent Paul Vallas, who runs the roughly 12,500-student district. He is a well-liked central office administrator and a former principal of Marion Abramson Senior High and Fannie C. Williams Middle School. He has spent virtually his entire career in New Orleans, except for the brief stint in St. Louis in the 2006-07 school year when he served as executive director of human resources. Adams, who holds a Ph.D. from the University of New Orleans, graduated from John McDonogh Senior High.
Prior to the announcement, Vallas had said publicly that Adams was his top choice as a successor. Vallas' two-year contract expires on June 30. State Superintendent Paul Pastorek, however, has said Adams is "on the list and a presumptive favorite."
St. Louis Special Administrative Board member Rick Sullivan praised Adams as a "hands-on" administrator who has played a key role in helping to revitalize the New Orleans district devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. "Everything we found, the man has an unblemished record," Sullivan said.
The St. Louis district, the largest in Missouri with about 28,000 students, is similar to the post-Katrina landscape in New Orleans. In Missouri, the state took control in June 2007 to try and turn around the district long troubled by budget problems and poor academic performance. While the state board runs the district, an elected board still exists, though with no real power.
Unlike St. Louis, the Orleans Parish School Board, which governed the entire system before the state takeover in 2005, retained some governance power and controls five directly-run schools and oversees a dozen charter schools. In St. Louis, a three-member board appointed by the governor, mayor and president of the city's Board of Aldermen governs the district. In Louisiana, the state school board controls policies for public schools statewide, which diminishes its attention to New Orleans.
In St. Louis, Diana Bourisaw began as superintendent in 2006 before the state took control. As a result, the new three-member Special Administrative Board decided to advertise the position and asked her to reapply. She declined, and left the job in July. Interim superintendent John Wright did not apply for the permanent position. Peter Downs, president of the elected school board, said none of the three finalists were acceptable. "They should turn around and ask Bourisaw to come back, and if she says no, they should ask Dr. Wright to stay on, and ask an experienced local educator to take the job," Downs said.
Courtesy of Jim Salter, The Associated Press, Friday September 26, 2008, 7:36 AM.
SLPS Parents Movement for Dr. Kelvin Adams.
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