D.C. Schools Chancellor Antwan Wilson started on Feb. 1. “I have spent the past few months hearing ideas from students, families, and community members and now I am excited to get the work started. I know, and for years D.C. schools have been proving, that children from every background can succeed when they are given access to a high-quality education and when they are surrounded by adults who support and care for them,” Wilson said at a press conference at Alice Deal Middle School with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) and D.C. Deputy Mayor for Education Jennifer Niles.
Antwan Wilson said he wants to incorporate several changes in the D.C. Public Schools System to prepare students for the world. (Courtesy photo)
Wilson was announced as the next chancellor for the public school system by Bowser on Nov. 22, 2016, at Eastern High School. He is the former superintendent of the Oakland Unified School District and worked as an assistant superintendent in Denver as well as a principal and classroom teacher.
Wilson will preside over a school system that consists of 61 elementary schools, 12 middle schools, 15 high schools, 10 education campuses that combine grades in middle and high schools, two adult education schools, and one special education school. The District’s public school consists of approximately 48,000 students according to statistics compiled for the 2015-2016 school year that are 64 percent Black, 18 Latino, 13 percent White and 4 percent Asian and other races. School system statistics from school year 2014-2015 indicate that 76 percent of students are on free or reduced meals.
As of 2015-2016, 60 percent of District high school students attend college, according to statistics from the District of Columbia College Access Program. This is close to the national average of 69 percent.
Nevertheless, the academic achievement gap between Black and White students is wide. On the 2015 National Assessment of Educational Progress tests administered to fourth and eighth graders only 14 percent of Blacks were registered as “proficient” in reading and 13 percent in math, whereas Whites were 79 percent “proficient” in reading and math.
Bowser said that Wilson has the leadership tools to help close the academic gap and could be an inspirational figure. “Not only is Chancellor Wilson an experienced leader, he is a role model for our students,” the mayor said. “His success shows that with hard work, they too can achieve whatever they set out to do.”
Niles agreed with the mayor, saying, “Wilson is the next chapter for our D.C. public schools.”
Bowser said it was appropriate that Wilson was at Deal that day to congratulate DCPS “Teacher of the Year” Jan Schuettpelz, a science teacher and advisor for the “Girls STEM” and Mighty Girls Book Club.”
“I am glad that we could kick-off Chancellor Wilson’s first day by celebrating one of D.C.’s best teachers,” the mayor said.
During his remarks, Wilson didn’t introduce any programs or initiatives but articulated his philosophy on education and how that will impact DCPS. “I am joining an amazing team of educators and together we are going to build on DCPS’s successes while moving our schools and communities forward,” the chancellor said. “Students love to come to school and to be met and greeted by people who care about them. We expect them to graduate, be successful and be involved.”
He said he visited the Ron Brown College Preparatory High School, the District’s public all-boys institution; Ballou High School and Wilson High School’s robotics team. “At Ballou, there is a program known as the brilliant brotherhood of young men committed to academics and at Wilson, there is an effort to have the robotics team to reflect what the rest of the school looks like,” the chancellor said.
Wilson said he got into education “to transform it and I want to see every child get a great public education.”
“We want to prepare students for the world they are going into,” he said. “We want to emphasize STEM and engage the students in their studies because the more students come to school, the less likely they are going to get in trouble.”
One of Wilson’s duties will be to negotiate a new contract for the school system’s teachers and he said he is looking forward to working with the Washington Teachers’ Union. “I started out as a teacher,” he said. “We want to build on the compensation that they are getting. I have met with Elizabeth Davis, the president of the teachers’ union a few times.”