Sophomores read in an Air Force ROTC class in their school uniforms, which are color-coded by grade at Wendell Phillips Academy High School in Chicago, Illinois. They also wear ID badges that include their daily schedules on the back. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
'If students come back, and the school looks like it did when they left, then right there you’ve started off on the wrong foot,' says principal Terrance Little, who is helping spearhead the turnaround effort for Wendell Phillips Academy High School. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
Special educator Kimberly Broughton helps Trenton in history class. The school's teaching staff, except for two ROTC teachers, was replaced as part of a turnaround strategy. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
A security guard (in black) watches as 10th graders, in their blue uniforms, change classes at Phillips. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
All students are required to use these clear backpacks as a safety measure and to speed up entry into the school as all belongings are searched upon entry. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
Teacher Alexis Wieselman (c.) gets help in a physical science class from Michael Troop (l.), an instructional coach. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
Gamal, a sophomore, enjoys a moment in a science class at Phillips, where reforms are showing some progress. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
Air Force ROTC teacher Theodore Peters, one of only two instructors to survive when new management took over the school, teaches drivers’ ed. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
A Phillips Academy student practices in beginning band class, part of a revival of the music program at the school, which includes among its graduates Nat King Cole. Melanie Stetson Freeman/Staff
President Barack Obama gives a speech about education at TechBoston Academy in Dorchester, Mass., with Melinda Gates and Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, on the stage. The president's remarks were intended to energize the students and encourage investment and attention to education in the US. Ann Hermes/Staff
Students at TechBoston Academy in Dorchester, Mass., applaud President Obama as he touts education on a recent visit. Ann Hermes/Staff
Miami-Dade County Public Schools has been steadily chipping away at the achievement gap. After being a finalist four other times, the district won the Broad Prize for Urban Education on Tuesday.
In Florida’s Miami-Dade County Public Schools, schools are slowly but steadily chipping away at the achievement gap, especially for Hispanic and black students.
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