Why did former Cincinnati superintendent fail?

No, it wasn’t because of Cincinnati’s parochialism. Or bully unions. Or that she came in as an outsider. If she had simply taken the time to study and understand that a culture had set in going back to the 1970s, she might have succeeded.  Look. Superintendents of large urban districts always start in a hole. Data says they survive their assignments from somewhere between three and five years. Wright lasted only two, but it was because she didn’t understand the simple meaning of collaboration. A culture of collaboration began to build as far back as 1977 when the newly installed Cincinnati Federation of Teachers (CFT), an affiliate of the huge urban national American Federation of Teachers, led a successful 19-day strike that began a rightful demand that the teachers of the district, the ones closest to the pedagogy and the children, and by far the largest block of influence on schooling, have a significant say in the direction of the district and its policies.  And instead of just salaries, benefits, working conditions and out of pocket expenses, teachers in 1977 and during the years that followed began to clearly state that collaboration was the key to the district’s success. It...