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The rising tide in action

Back in March, we noted a Massachusetts school district that took a much more sane response when faced with an exodus of children due to public school choice: figure out how to improve and keep the kids!  Now we find that the district is walking the talk:

Students are opting out of the Pittsfield schools at a far greater rate than they are opting in, costing the city roughly $840,000 this year. Now, the School Committee must decide what to do about it.

The committee spent $24,000 on a study to determine why 233 children used the state’s school-choice program to leave the district for schools in Lenox, Great Barrington and Williamstown, among others.

Pittsfield attracted just 65 students via school choice, creating a net loss of 168. Each student takes $5,000 in state funds with them, and special-education students leave with even more.

Mayor James M. Ruberto, who holds a seat on the seven-member School Committee, said the city must have a focused discussion on school choice, and hopes the study will be the starting point.

"This brings attention to the issue. We have data that is current and fresh, and more than just anecdotal. Will it help? Absolutely, because it will force us to look at the education system like parents look at the education system," Ruberto said. (emphasis added)

This happened because of school choice, not in spite of it.  It’s kind of obvious the administrators weren’t taking this kind of approach before.  But when kids (and, by extension, money) started flowing out of the district, suddenly the administrators were made to care.  Go read the whole thing.