Weekend Reads: How $90 million from Bill Gates spurred sweeping changes in one school district

  • In 2009, philanthropists pledged more than $100 million to improving teaching in Memphis. As the money runs out, here’s a look at what’s changed. (Chalkbeat)
  • Arne Duncan has a new job: He’ll be helping “disconnected” youth in Chicago find work. (L.A. Times)
  • Problems with the way a Brooklyn school handled an eighth-grader’s rape allegation echo criticism that colleges and universities are facing. (Buzzfeed)
  • Indeed, K-12 schools are increasingly under fire for the way they respond to students who say they were raped. (Huffington Post)
  • How stereotypes about black femininity might be hurting black girls at school. (The Atlantic)

We interrupt this weekend reading list to bring you the following announcement: Chalkbeat is exploring an expansion to Detroit! Read our first newsletter and subscribe to learn more.

  • A teacher whose 24-year Teach For America relationship has spanned corps member to critic recaps the group’s recent convention. (Gary Rubinstein)
  • How one district is getting students engaged by recruiting them individually to join clubs. (Chalkbeat)
  • Another look at how charter schools are rethinking rigid discipline amid criticism and unintended consequences. (The 74 Million)
  • Deciding whether to send a sick kid to school involves balancing germs and grit. (Well)
  • Two New York City principals say their school could be a model for how states use new flexibility. (American Educator)
  • The way a brawl at a Detroit school was handled raises questions about the role of school police. (Vice)