Giving Compass' Take:

• The author discusses the state-run school districts that are undergoing turnaround efforts, particularly in the state of Tennessee, and the challenges associated with these underperforming schools. 

• How does community involvement affect turnaround efforts for state-run school districts? 

• Read more about what Sharon Griffin is doing specifically to turnaround Tennessee's school districts. 

Sharon Griffin, the third superintendent to serve Tennessee’s state-run Achievement School District (ASD), has been on the job for six months and has spent much of that time connecting with the Memphis community, streamlining the central office, and listening to school leaders and teachers about what is and isn't working in the district, Chalkbeat reports.

Griffin, who is billed as a turnaround expert, faces a tough challenge as the state-run school district has seen only nine of the 30 schools in the district advance out of the bottom 5% in the state in a six-year period. In addition, none of the schools had more than 20% of students testing at grade level or above in English or math during the most recent round of state tests. Through collaborative efforts, Griffin is currently working to improve the district by building stronger community connections.

In Tennessee, the state has tried two approaches: the ASD mentioned in the article, and the Innovation Zone – or iZone. Schools in the iZones are governed by their local districts, but are allowed greater autonomy and financial support than traditional schools. According to report released earlier this year by Vanderbilt University, schools in the iZones are showing marked improvement in test scores while schools in the ASD are not.

The concept of a state-run district is the last, desperate approach some states take to improve low-performing schools. Turnaround efforts are not new to schools and some methods have shown more success than others. "State-run districts are most effective when they motivate local districts to do what they should have done but either wouldn’t or couldn’t," the article says. "Possible education department action can strengthen the hands of local reformers and weaken the position of district leaders who refuse to change."

Read the full article about state-run school districts by Amelia Harper at Education Dive