Mayoral Control in Seattle Public Schools

So I haven't heard much lately about new Seattle mayor Mike McGinn wanting to take direct control of the Seattle School District, the way things have happened in New York and Washington D.C. My guess is that it was something easy to say during the campaign, but that the reality of running a large city is going to make the schools one of the things he passes on.

I thought of it recently after reading this quote from Michelle Rhee, the chancellor of the DC Public Schools:

Ms. Rhee observed that she has what she sees as an advantage over many urban superintendents: The mayor controls the city's schools, and the chancellor answers to him, rather than having to run major policy changes through a school board.

Remember, too, that popular State Representative Ed Murray was making noise about this back in 2006.

There's no fire here; there's not even really any smoke. That said, it's something at the periphery worth keeping an eye on.