Learning Curve

If anything is clear after spending an hour with Syracuse City School District Superintendent Sharon Contreras, it is that she did not come here to run the fourth-largest school district in the state, outside of New York City. She came here to transform it. 

Moving into a new town seems to have gone smoothly for Contreras, who transferred to the Salt City last summer from Providence, R.I., where she served as chief academic officer for a district with 23,500 students, a similar demographic mix as the Syracuse schools, which serve approximately 21,000 students. 

Contreras is a native of Long Island. She attended Binghamton University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in English literature, and received her master of arts in English literature and master of science in educational administration from the University of Wisconsin. She spent four years teaching in Rockford, Ill. Contreras is currently completing her doctorate in educational leadership and policy studies, also at Wisconsin.

Since her selection to succeed the retiring Daniel Lowengard as CEO of the district, she has found herself in a whirlwind of meetings and social activities, most of them school-related. She officially took over on July 1, 2011. “I’ve been overwhelmed by the graciousness of people here,” says Contreras. “I’ve felt very welcomed. People have shared information with me, given me background and history, and helped me understand the expectations for education in this community.”

Contreras, 42, who is in her first assignment as a superintendent, was a frequent visitor to Syracuse in the past, dropping off and picking up her niece, who graduated from Syracuse University in 2009. Now, she says, it’s a totally different experience. She loves the town and its many restaurants (Pastabilities is her favorite, she admits after some cajoling) and her Park Avenue neighborhood, where she bought one of the high-tech Five Sisters Victorian homes within walking distance of downtown.

If the welcome is overwhelming, so is the challenge Contreras faces. She takes over a district that graduates less than 50 percent of its high school students, and that is facing almost certain cutbacks in state funding.

She also takes over a district with a unique opportunity. Syracuse is the first city in the United States where the Say Yes to Education Foundation has set up shop districtwide. Say Yes, which played an important role in the search that brought Contreras to Syracuse, promises college or vocational scholarships to all graduating seniors, and it sets up support services so that students can make it through to earn their diploma.

With her first Syracuse spring at hand, Superintendent Contreras sat down with The New Times for an interview.

Q: Syracuse is sometimes known for being pessimistic. We have even been described as a town with an inferiority complex. Do you find us optimistic or pessimistic?

A: When you speak to parents they are optimistic, because they have to be. They really believe things will get better. There is quite a bit of pessimism when you talk to others who are not in the schools and don’t see our excellent teachers and wonderful programs.

Q: What has most surprised you?

A: Nothing has surprised me, really. Urban school systems are very similar. The situation we face here is similar to what we face in other schools in America. I’ve been most excited by the energy in the schools. Our teachers are very energized: They want good schools. 

Q: But this is New York, and your first time operating in the legal framework New York state has set up for education. How is that going?

A: I think that there are more laws here protecting adults. New York state does have a lot more laws and regulations. They can make it hard to relieve an ineffective employee of their position. The system in some ways is set up to support adults more than the children.

Q: When you heard Gov. Andrew Cuomo say that he is going to be the lobbyist for the children, that students do not have a lobbyist, how did that strike you? 

A: I don’t think it’s accurate to say that the kids don’t have a lobbyist. Teachers and administrators, parents, school board members all lobby for children. We lobby in different ways, but we do lobby for children. I do like it that he is trying to focus on the needs of our students, and I do hope the governor will listen to educators before making decisions that will affect the lives of our students and our teachers.

Q: What about the big issue of the day: teacher evaluations? There is the model in New York City where the evaluations are all over the Internet, and the governor has made teacher evaluations one of his stipulations for state aid.

A: For the 2011-2012 school year, our plan {for teacher evaluations} has been approved. It is fair to teachers, and it promotes the professional growth of our teaching staff. This evaluation process is not intended for parents; it is for teachers. I don’t think you motivate people to improve by beating them down. I am disappointed to see it all over the media, the newspapers, and on the Internet. Our evaluation tool focuses on professional practice. It looks at classroom observation. I think we’re further along than most districts in training for our teachers.

We have extensive training for teachers. We require that the administrators conducting the evaluations take training, because sometimes we find that teachers feel that administrators are not prepared to conduct their evaluation. 

Q: Is that accurate?

A: It can be accurate, for example, when you have an English teacher trying to assess the content of the teaching of the physics teacher.

Q: What are the goals for our schools?

A: Every school is expected to improve by 3 percent, which means that elementary school ELA (English Language Arts) and math scores go up 3 percent, and in the high schools, 3 percent is the target for improving in the promotion rates and ELA and algebra Regents rates. 

Q: That 3 percent is annual?

A: That’s for this year; next year it may or may not exist. Next year we have to renegotiate that with the union. We are successful for this year; in order to receive funds for next year we have to submit a new plan.

Q: How are things with the Board of Education?

A: We are doing very well. We have the same focus and the same outcome in mind—that is to improve the quality of educational programming and student outcomes. We have a new board, and we are working to make sure we are all on the same page, with lots of orientation to make sure they understand all facets of our system. This is a very smart board, and they are all on the same page, all child centered—and that is not always the case. They will play a key role in the transformation of the school district.

Q: You pretty much sent them to school as soon as you got here? 

A: (She laughs.) Well they have not started their training yet, but they will be going to policy governance training.

Q: Was that your initiative?

A: It is. It’s the Center for Reform of School Systems. It’s called Reform Governance in Action, and it helps school boards to understand how they can transform urban school systems through policy governance. This is a board with a lot of new members. The training focuses on Reform, Governance and Action, and it helps the Board of Education understand how they can transform schools. To focus on transformation of the schools, not on the flavor of the milk served in the cafeteria, which teacher should be where, who the principal is, that type of thing. Most people don’t understand the role of a school board. Once you go through reform governance training, you focus on outcomes, and you hold the superintendent accountable for his or her decisions on staffing.

Q: Why was this a priority for you?

A: Because most people don’t understand how a school board can function collectively to transform a district. It was a priority for me that the school board understands its role. 

Q: Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner and Dan Lowengard had a particularly difficult relationship, which many observers felt stalled progress on key issues. How are things with you and the mayor?

A: Wonderful. We meet monthly. We discuss everything from finances to facilities and we are working jointly to improve the schools. I have nothing but positive experiences with the mayor.

Q: Would the schools be better off with a system of mayoral control or more state control? Would your job be easier—would the schools be better?

A: I don’t think so. Some districts do perform well with mayoral control, but we are working well together to improve the performance of our schools. There is no magical formula in types of governance. I think it is a matter of how you work together to improve student outcomes.

Q: Do you think we still need a school board?

A: Yes. When you think about it, school boards are one of the last bastions of democracy. They represent the people’s will. They are essential for the improvement of schools.

Q: What about the governor’s budget? Does that keep you up at night?

A: I’m deeply concerned. We are working very hard to advocate for $200 million of the competitive funds to be moved over into the general fund for high needs districts. This district cannot survive if we have to eliminate another 350 to 450 positions. 

Q: That’s a pretty serious statement: “This district cannot survive.”

A: It cannot. Where do you get those positions? It would be in the classrooms. That would be what we would be discussing. You would be talking about increasing class size. If you raise class size in our district to the level that would be required, you couldn’t even get the desks into the classrooms. It’s not good for kids. I’m very hopeful that our legislators understand that and will push for those funds to be reallocated. (In the budget that passed the Legislature on March 28, the $200 million was reallocated, but the Syracuse City School District is still facing a $32 million budget shortfall.)

Q: We’re at a crisis again this year, but it’s almost as if that word has lost its meaning. It’s become a catch phrase: “Crisis in urban education.” Can you define for us what you see as the nature of that crisis? 

A: I believe that when you cannot provide a high-quality education for every student, that means your gifted students, your special education students, underperforming students, then you have a crisis. 

We have to do more to advocate for all students. Some districts focus only on the high performers. Some criticize urban districts for focusing exclusively on underperformers. We have to make sure that every student who comes through our doors receives a high-quality education and we cannot compete with one another, we can’t say that the small pool of money should go to my child, or to special education. We have to find ways to serve all of our students.

Q: Does that mean more money?

A: In some cases more money, in other cases it means that you make sure to use what you have more efficiently. That means evaluating programs, and that is difficult to say: This is what we’ve been doing for 15 years, but we have to rethink it.

Q: I don’t think that’s the problem in Syracuse. It’s more that people have seen things come and go and they’re still waiting to see results.

A: But that is a form of inefficiency.

Q: That leads me to Say Yes. How do you see Say Yes contributing to your concept of transformation?

A: What we are taking about is transformation. Say Yes is absolutely essential. They have expanded our horizons to embrace “post-secondary success.” They provide services that are critical to ensuring success. Their focus is on success in life: That’s what we all want for ourselves and our children. They provide services critical to ensuring that success. Any district worth its salt would have these programs: social work, legal services, health care and help with socioeconomic issues. I don’t see these as extra; they are critical to any district that seeks to be high-performing. As educators we so often say that we can’t focus on education if these other areas aren’t addressed. Say Yes seeks to support us so we can do what we do best, and that is to teach.

Q: A student is not just a series of components. A student is a human being. You can take care of the legal issues, the health issues, nutritional issues, but can you provide love? Can you replace what a student should get but doesn’t get from family? 

A: We certainly can’t replace family. I’m not sure the issue is a lack of love. Certainly there are some students who experience dysfunction in their homes. What we see is abject poverty. Poverty so severe that parents are not able to give kids what they need to flourish. What Say Yes does is give parents access to the services that they need. 

Q: What about the costs of the Say Yes supports? Say Yes was paying for these services, but each year the district has to take on 20 percent of the costs, and this year I believe we are paying 60 percent of those costs, next year it will be 80 percent. Are we going to continue to be able to fund that?

A: I am committed to Say Yes and to funding those services. Maintaining those supports is a priority. We need additional funding from the state. The entire system is at risk with the annual cuts to education. 

Q: Do you feel confident that the funds will be available?

A: I think the Legislature will do the right thing and will increase funds to high-needs districts.

Q: And if they don’t, are you prepared to tell the residents of the city that we have to pay more? Would you make the case for a property tax increase?

A: Yes. I certainly am prepared to make the case.

Q: I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard anyone say that. Usually the answer is that an increase in the tax rate will just drive people out of the city.

A: You asked me would I make the case. I didn’t say I would be successful. (Laughter.)

Q: When will we start to see people moving back into the city based on the Say Yes promise?

A: Ultimately, when you see improved outcomes. People want great school systems.

Q: When will that be: two years, five years?

A: We are starting to see improvements—increase in graduation rates and a lowering of the dropout rate. It is going to take some time. We are talking about systemic change. It’s like turning the Queen Mary. There’s a lot of underperformance. There are lots of pieces to put in place: curriculum, technology, instruction. It is a lot, and you can’t fix all that at once. So right now we’re working on evaluation and improving teacher quality and effectiveness. The other areas that need focus, like improving services to English-language learners, like improving students, we haven’t engaged in that work yet. You can’t focus on everything at one time.

Q: Finally, a personal question. You live with a disability. Can you tell us about that?

A: It doesn’t bother me to talk about that. I talk about it all the time. Yes, I have severe profound hearing loss, a result of a sensory neural condition. It is genetic and has gotten worse year to year. I’ve gone from being a hearing person to one who can hear very little. I’ve become very sensitive to people with disabilities because I really struggle. When I have meetings, staff will put me in a cafeteria or a gymnasium, which is very hard for me to hear. 

Yesterday we had a meeting in one of the buildings, and someone said, “Well I don’t want to use a microphone.” And I had to say that, if that’s the case, then I can’t hear you. People don’t think about people with disabilities.

Q: You’re wearing a hearing aid now?

A: Without a hearing aid, I can hear very little. It started in my early 20s, but I started noticing the decline about five years ago, and then it quickly declined, to where now I can barely hear speech.

Q: Do you talk to the kids about this?

A: I talk to kids about it all the time. They get it much easier than adults. It has been a life-changing experience. When I’m invited to meetings, I have to wonder if I’ll be able to hear. I was lobbying in Albany last week, and that was a humiliating experience. They had me in a room with a very high ceiling and I did not hear a word and they kept asking me questions, and I had to keep telling them that I simply could not hear them. Finally Pat Body, the vice president of our board, had to translate for me every word. Those kinds of moments are still humiliating to me.