Just For Today

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New Yorkers have a reputation for skin so thick it feels like rock so we adore anything that undermines this idea and confirms our secret view of ourselves as neighborly and congenial. It’s the social equivalent of owning a really docile Rottweiler. This trust-filled warmth also serves as a salve against urban haters. People who don’t develop an instant taste for New York? Well, clearly they’re just visiting the wrong parts. The problem now is that we’re confusing humanity with safety… There’s a real tinge of the smug to this “the world is my safe deposit box” mentality. It’s a luxury to blithely trust that everything will work out in your favor regardless of precaution, a luxury commonly reserved for the very young or the very super-model-y.

Sloane Crosley, New York Is Yours For The Taking (via nogreatillusion)

05/11/13

One Year Better: America’s Best High Schools

It’s that time again…America’s Best High Schools time. The list this year is really phenomenal. It’s expanded to 2,000 schools. Nearly 50% more schools applied to be on the list. The methodology was tweaked every-so-slightly, strengthening the metric by which we measure schools. And it includes an interactive, which has been a goal since I first helped to put the list together in 2011.

Just like last year, the process was rewarding and challenging. This was the first time I was the only person to put the list together, which was certainly the biggest hurdle.

Ultimately, the list is about the schools. At the risk of sounding trite, many of the teachers and administrators of the nation’s top schools work incredibly hard with very few resources and little pay off. There isn’t a blueprint for making students learn or care about learning.

At it’s core, the list is meant to spotlight great schools. I think it’s getting there.

05/6/13