Michael Cohen, Jobs for the Future and The Aspen Institute
December 2001
Many believe that U.S. high schools urgently need reform and have not gotten enough attention. It's good that the thoughtful Michael Cohen, former assistant secretary of education (for elementary/secondary education), has turned to this sizable challenge. His new 22-page report, jointly published by Jobs for the Future and The Aspen Institute, begins the process by sketching three sets of strategies. One involves fine-tuning and expanding some current reforms. The second entails changes in high-school graduation requirements. The third, called "laying the groundwork for transformation," though skeletal in this version, heads toward tougher territory such as new governance structures, performance contracts for new high schools, and collateral changes in certification, finance, etc. All in all, a worthy start. You can find a PDF version at http://www.aspeninstitute.org/ecs/pdfs/highschools.pdf.
