Criticisms of Allan Lew

Yesterday, I posted on the appointment of Allan Lew to head up Mayor Adrian Fenty's school modernization project. I think this is a good choice and shows a distinct vision that Fenty has--that is not all about teachers and students, but also about the actual facilities themselves.

But Sara Mead at The Quick and The Ed had an additional point:

And don't get me started on the "community activists" who are finding fault with Lew because he lacks experience in education. The guy's in charge of buildings, not instruction. He needs construction background, project management skills, and political and bureacratic savvy. The evidence suggests he's got them. What he needs to know about education he can figure out on the job. Did you hear the Nats owners bitching that Lew never played pro baseball?

Mead is talking about this quote:

Parent activists cautioned that renovating schools is not the same as building an office or stadium because schools must be tailored to the academic needs of students. For example, does the school need additional area for computers or more open space for group projects?

"It's not just a technical thing of knowing how to build a building and get it done," said Marc Borbely, an activist who worked with Fenty when he was on the council to get the school modernization fund approved. "To build a school, something has to be tailored to what the school community wants and needs. It's a really different process of designing, and that's a concern."

In this case, Lew has more expereince with schools than with ballparks. Presumably Lew went to school and I am assuming he has a family (I could be wrong) and his kids went to school. In fact, I would dare say that Allan Lew knows more about building schools than any parent "activist" in DC.

Oh and "tailoring" a school is a bad idea in terms of construction. Tailoring means more costs on the front end and constantly reconfiguring the school later as "needs" change. Better to have a flexible structure that the teachers and school administrators can tailor as needs fit without costly construction.