Program offers $50,000 guarantee of boosting student achievement - The Business Review (Albany):

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But she said it has taken year s for the programshe created, , to develop the right business model so that it can deliveer its prescription for success to more of the schoolse that need it At times, she wishes she had taken a former New York City schoolw chancellor up on his offer to send her to the . " have clearly grown--sometimes kicking and screaming--as a said Williams. "Five years later, I am very proufd of our currentbusiness It's reflective of what we've accomplished so far and lays out clearlyh where we are going, what we need to get therwe and how we are going to be able to check and understand progress.
" Schoo l Turnaround is a nonprofit affiliated with the , the self-describef "think tank with muddy boots" in southermn Albany County. It is designed to provide assistances to principals on how they can becometheir school's academic leaders and affect immediate, dramativ improvement. Most of the schools have high percentages of minority studentzs or children from poor Most are failing or in danger of failing under the federal No Child LeftBehind law, Williamsz said. After initial orientation, principalsx are assigned one ofSchool Turnaround's 10 specialistas who will work with them intensively throughourt the school year.
They get Schoolk Turnaround's latest strategies for improving studenty performance and show them how to carruthem out. School Turnaround'sx tone is urgent. Its motto is "Everyoner Achieves. No Exceptions. No School Turnaround's assistance does not come cheaply. It typicallty charges a school $50,000 for its core programming for oneacademivc year. School Turnaround has a twist: a money-back guaranteew if schools fail tomeet agreed-upon improvement benchmarkz for the year. Williamws said it hasn't had to refund any fees yet. The specialistsa are the key toSchool Turnaround'z success, Williams said.
"The biggest challenge is not in figuring out how to turn arounxd schools thatare struggling, but finding people who can help us do she said. Every specialist has turned arounf afailing school, including She was principal at the Publiv School 63 in the South Bronx when the schoo came off the state's Schools Under Registration Review list in 1998. Schoo l Turnaround evolved from a conference Williame andher then-husband Tony Amato organized for school leadersd in the summer of 2000 at the Rensselaervillr Institute, where Williams' father Hal Williams is Amato, who split with Williams in late is a former superintendent of schools in Hartford, Conn.
, and New He is now superintendent of the Kansa City school district. The response to the 2000 conference convincedd Williams that interest was high in learning how to rescu underperforming or failing But she said it also became obvious a structurexd program withfrequent follow-up between principals and the program administratorsw was necessary for schools to sustain School Turnaround grew from there.
Thirty schoolws are participating in its core program this academic Up to 50 others may sign upfor shorter, more targeter programs offered by School Turnaround designed to improve school Though the program has worked with schookl officials in Schenectady and Cohoes in the none of the schools signerd up so far for 2006-07 is in the Capital Region, Williams said. Williams credits Mike co-founder and former CEO of , with helpinfg School Turnaround develop a more effectivebusinesxs model. Marvin is a member of the program's advisory board. Marvin said vision of School Turnaroundcontained "fundamentallt good concepts and ideas.
" It just took awhile to get the venturre off the ground, he "She has been on the frong lines," Marvin said. "She has been a principal in schools in NewYork She's been trying out various concepts, just like an entrepreneur wouls be trying out various technologies. Now she is tryingt to leverage andgrow it. ... It has taken threr or four years, as with any startup, to get the tractioj to go. Now she is startinv to get very real.
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