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Missouri Education Commission Says KCMO School Accreditation At Risk

Missouri Education Commissioner Chris Nicastro
Missouri Education Commissioner Chris Nicastro

By Dan Verbeck

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kcur/local-kcur-983547.mp3

Kansas City, Mo. – Twenty-four hours of furor and uncertainty over Kansas City schools continues. KCUR's Dan Verbeck reports the Kansas City Missouri School District's accreditation and local control may be at stake.

"Not impossible!" Words of Missouri's Education Commissioner that Kansas City schools might lose accreditation next month, due in large part to upheaval from Wednesday night's resignation of Superintendent John Covington.

Commissioner Chris Nicastro told KCUR Thursday afternoon that stable leadership is vital to keeping schools viable.

"Irrespective of hour smooth the transition is and I know that John and others will be working very hard to insure a smooth transition, just the fact that you're changing leaders is going to cause some blip in that progress and that's what really concerns me," says Nicastro.

The district will learn September 20, 2011 whether it has lost accreditation. Any chance for state takeover would be two years from that point.

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