Going Public: Priorities and Practice at the Manhattan New School

How do you create a public school, for a diverse population of children, that is rigorous, nurturing, joyfully literate, and successful by many standards? At the Manhattan New School, Shelley Harwayne has accomplished all this and more. In Going Public, she reveals what happens when she, a literacy expert, accepted the role of principal at a New York City public school and attempted to live up to the words, "Practice what you preach."

Brimming with practical advice, each chapter clearly identifies top priorities of the Manhattan New School community, as well as those practices that have enabled staff and family members to turn their dreams into a reality. You'll learn more about schoolhouse basics such as creating a nurturing social tone, selecting new teachers, developing curriculum, creating assessment tools, meeting standards, and providing worthwhile professional development. You'll also discover helpful advice on some surprising topics: creating bulletin boards that teach, learning students' names, keeping up with housekeeping, and inventing new ways to reach out to parents.

Going Public is a resource that you'll refer to again and again. "Reader's Guides" highlight the priorities and practices contained in every chapter. There are also bulleted lists of important ideas and suggestions, actual letters on a wide range of topics, and illustrative student work. The appendix alone contains dozens of useful and easily reproduced artifacts, including staff meeting conversation starters, interview questions for prospective teachers, and bibliographies of books for children and adults.

Teachers, administrators, parents, and staff developers will find Going Public an invaluable guide to creating a school committed to the very best public education has to offer.