“I began to think of school as a prison camp, and my duty was to disrupt, subvert and/or escape. But, of course, there was no escape. I felt I should make some kind of statement. I decided to deliver two tons of horseshit to my housemaster. Just one of those spur-of-the-moment ideas that comes with no logic in tow, but a great deal of emotional momentum.”
― Bruce Dickinson, What Does This Button Do?: An Autobiography

Wednesday morning, I took a phone call from a reporter in Chicago.

They were looking for background on former MNPS Deputy Superintendent Sito Narcisse.

Let that sink in for a minute.

Now look—I’m not here to pretend Sito Narcisse is some sort of villain. He’s not. In my experience, and in the experience of many others in Nashville, he’s a nice enough man. Personable. Approachable. The kind of guy who can sit across from you, nod along, and make you feel like he’s hearing every word you’re saying.

But leadership isn’t about being likable.

And when it came to his time in MNPS, the results just weren’t there. Not close. Not even in the same neighborhood. The execution was lacking, the follow-through inconsistent, and the outcomes—particularly for the students and schools that needed the most support—never matched the promises.

At some point, you have to separate personality from performance.

Because being well-liked and being effective are two very different things.

And in Nashville, whatever goodwill existed on the former couldn’t overcome the reality of the latter.

And that’s what makes what comes next so hard to square.

Somehow, some way, Narcisse has gotten himself named as a finalist for the Chicago Public Schools superintendent job—one of the largest, most complex, most politically charged education leadership roles in the country.

And I’ll be honest with you—that was one of those moments where you just kind of lean back in your chair, shake your head, and ask yourself:

What are we even doing here?

Why am I doing this?

Why do any of us pay attention?

Because Narcisse hasn’t exactly been operating in the shadows. This isn’t some unknown rising star. He’s been in the game for over 20 years.

Two decades.

Two decades of decisions, outcomes, leadership moments—good, bad, and otherwise—all sitting out there, fully available, one Google search away.

And yet…here we are.

The Résumé vs. The Reality

After leaving MNPS, Narcisse landed in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana. That was supposed to be his next act, his opportunity to lead, to build, to prove.

Instead, he didn’t even make it through his initial contract.

Three years in, Narcisse decided he deserved a raise. Not just any raise—a 22% increase.

Now, I don’t know about you, but when you’re mid-contract and asking for a bump like that, you better have results that jump off the page.

The school board didn’t see it that way.

In fact, their response was about as polite as you can make something that’s fundamentally not polite at all:

“Now that you mention it…we’re not even sure we want you back.”

And they didn’t.

A year after he left, the district found itself without a superintendent again. And in a twist that almost reads like satire, Narcisse offered to return—to step in, to “serve,” to guide the district until a replacement could be found.

You can probably guess how that went.

“No thank you.”

Twice.

And Now…Chicago?

Which brings us to today.

Narcisse is now a finalist for the Chicago superintendent position.

Let’s look at the field.

• Dr. Macquline King — current interim CEO of Chicago Public Schools

• Dr. Sito Narcisse — well…you’ve just read the résumé highlights

Remember that old Sesame Street song?

🎵 One of these things is not like the other… 🎵

Yeah. That.

Next steps include interviews with the mayor and community meetings, with a goal of hiring someone in April.

So yes—this is real.

This is happening.

Representation, Optics, and Strategy

There’s another layer here.

Many in Chicago are raising concerns about the lack of a Hispanic candidate in the finalist pool. And that’s not nothing.

Across the country, school systems are becoming increasingly diverse, and leadership often struggles to keep pace with that demographic reality.

According to Chalkbeat, citing a 2025 study by the Council of the Great City Schools:

• About 20% of superintendents were Latino

• Roughly 45% were Black

• Around 30% were white

• And just 4% were Latina women

That last number should stand out.

So yes, representation matters. It’s part of the conversation whether people like it or not.

And Narcisse? He’s not unaware of that dynamic.

He’s married to a Hispanic woman, Maritza Gonzales. The two came to Nashville around the same time, and if memory serves, were married within months.

They even missed part of that first school year—on their honeymoon.

Now look—I’m not here to judge anyone’s personal life. That’s not the point.

But in a process like this, where optics, narratives, and positioning matter?

I would fully expect that relationship to be part of how Narcisse frames himself in this moment.

That’s not cynical.

That’s just how this game is played.

The Bigger Problem

And here’s the thing—it would be easier to dismiss all of this if Narcisse were an outlier.

He’s not.

This happens all the time.

Education leadership has created a system where administrators can leave one district under a cloud—poor results, strained relationships, questionable decisions—and then reappear months later in a bigger district, with more money, and more authority.

Rinse.

Repeat.

And then people act surprised when the outcomes don’t change.

The question is whether Chicago decides to push him across the finish line.

We’ll see.

Meanwhile, Back in Tennessee…

While Chicago sorts through its leadership choices, the Tennessee General Assembly is sprinting toward the end of session.

And if it feels fast, that’s because it is.

Election year.

Every day in session is a day not spent fundraising, campaigning, or positioning for what comes next.

So things are moving.

Quickly.

A Rare Win for Teachers

Let’s start with some good news—at least depending on your perspective.

The so-called PECA bill failed to advance out of committee in the Senate.

If passed, the bill would have:

• Eliminated collaborative conferencing

• Limited teachers’ ability to meet with labor representatives inside schools

In short, it would have further weakened organized teacher voices in Tennessee.

Union members went all in this weekend—a full-court press.

And for now?

It worked.

The bill is stalled.

But let’s not pretend this is over. These ideas don’t disappear. They regroup.

Next year may be a very different story.

Testing, Testing…Always Testing

If there’s one issue getting real traction this session, it’s testing.

And about time.

We test too damn much.

And increasingly, lawmakers—Republicans included—are starting to say that part out loud.

One bill that did advance would loosen TCAP requirements for students participating in voucher programs.

Under Senate Bill 1585, schools in the Education Savings Account (ESA) program could choose to administer a “nationally standardized achievement test” instead of TCAP.

That’s a shift.

Private schools in the program have been required to give TCAP since 2022. This would change that.

Meanwhile, students in Tennessee’s newer Education Freedom Scholarship program? They’re already not required to take TCAP.

So what’s the rationale?

According to Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson (R-Franklin), it’s about alignment—reducing confusion by making the programs consistent.

Critics see it differently.

They argue this is about hiding results.

Because when you standardize testing across systems, you create comparability.

And comparability can be uncomfortable—especially if outcomes don’t match the marketing.

Supporters counter with a different metric:

Parent satisfaction.

They cite a 91% approval rate among families using voucher programs.

And in their view?

That’s success.

The Pilot Program That Might Matter

Then there’s Representative Greg Martin (R-Hixson), who has introduced legislation to actually study the impact of reducing testing.

His proposal:

A two-year pilot program involving students in 10 of the state’s highest-performing districts, examining whether fewer mandated tests might lead to better academic outcomes.

Now look—there are valid criticisms here.

But I’ll say this:

The man’s heart is in the right place.

As Martin put it:

“Students, families, and educators widely agree that the level of standardized testing occurring in Tennessee Public Schools is just too much.”

He’s not wrong.

In some grades—particularly K–8—students can take up to 22 standardized tests a year across subjects.

Twenty-two.

At some point, you have to ask:

Are we measuring learning?

Or replacing it?

The Observer Effect Problem

There’s a concept in science called the observer effect—the idea that measuring something can change the thing being measured.

That’s where we are with testing.

When everything becomes about test performance, instruction shifts.

Teaching becomes test prep.

And test prep is not the same thing as learning.

Now, last year, Tennessee Department of Education officials testified that increased testing rigor helped drive the state’s rise on NAEP rankings.

Tennessee jumped nearly 20 spots nationally.

That’s real.

But let’s not pretend we’re operating in a controlled lab environment.

Students are not static variables.

They’re influenced by:

• Instruction quality

• Family dynamics

• Economic conditions

• Sleep

• Nutrition

• Peer environments

So when someone says, “It’s the tests that did it,” I can’t help but laugh a little.

Because unless you’re controlling for everything else—which we aren’t—you’re making an argument, not stating a fact.

Transparency…Or Something Like It

Representative William Slater (R-Gallatin) isn’t sold on Martin’s pilot.

He argues it won’t provide enough data to guide statewide policy, especially since it focuses only on high-performing districts.

That’s a fair critique.

Instead, Slater supports House Bill 2277, which would require districts to publicly post all local assessments they administer each year.

And here’s where things get…confusing.

Because I could have sworn we already did this.

Jennifer Smith and Larry Proffitt worked with then-Representative Sheila Butts on legislation requiring districts to list assessments and who mandates them.

I thought that passed.

Apparently?

Not so much.

Which leads to a strange reality:

The tests are mandatory.
The transparency isn’t.

And that, more than anything, tells you where we are.

Rutherford County and the First Amendment

Finally, let’s talk about Rutherford County.

Because if there’s one issue guaranteed to light a fire, it’s books.

The county library board voted 8–3 to move 132 books—many with LGBTQIA+ themes—from the children’s section to the adult section.

Not remove.

Move.

That distinction matters.

Then came the response.

Library Director Luanne James pushed back, stating she is:

“professionally and ethically bound to uphold the First Amendment”

She called the decision “viewpoint discrimination” and argued it violates the community’s right to information.

A Couple of Thoughts

First:

132 books.

That’s not a handful.

That’s not a couple of titles that slipped through.

That’s a collection.

And I have a hard time believing anyone—anyone—has read all 132 of those books closely enough to make individual determinations about each one.

Which raises a bigger question:

How did we get here?

Because a public library, by definition, is supposed to reflect its community.

So either:

• A small group has pushed the collection too far in one direction

• Or another group is reacting too strongly in the opposite direction

Maybe it’s both.

What the First Amendment Actually Says

Second—and this part matters—we’ve got to be careful with how casually we throw around “First Amendment.”

Here it is, in full:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

That’s it.

Nowhere in there does it explicitly guarantee a right to access information in any specific format, location, or section of a public library.

And no—it doesn’t say you can’t move a book from one shelf to another.

Again:

The books are being moved.

Not removed.

You can still read them.

You might just have to walk a few more steps.

Where This Is Headed

Now look—I understand why people are frustrated.

These are cultural battles playing out in public institutions.

They’re messy.

They’re emotional.

And they’re not going away anytime soon.

But if we’re going to invoke constitutional arguments, we owe it to ourselves to do so carefully.

Because the First Amendment is serious.

It deserves more than being pulled out every time we don’t like a decision.

The Through Line

If there’s a common thread running through all of this—from Chicago to Nashville to Rutherford County—it’s this:

We keep confusing process with outcomes.

We assume:

• The right résumé equals the right leader

• The right test equals real learning

• The right policy equals the right result

But reality doesn’t work that cleanly.

It never has.

And until we start being honest about that—about the gaps, the contradictions, the uncomfortable truths—we’re going to keep seeing the same cycles play out.

Different city.

Different bill.

Different headline.

Same result.

One Last Thing

This isn’t corporate media.

There’s no team.

No budget.

No handlers.

It’s just me—trying to keep up, trying to keep you informed, and trying to say what others won’t.

If you value that work:

Venmo: @Thomas-Weber-10
Cash App: $PeterAveryWeber
Tips: Norinrad10@yahoo.com

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Categories: Education