I don’t have time to research the ins and outs of Rhode Island’s laws dealing with the quality of public education, but it seems to me that the following addition to the section on “intervention and support for failing schools,” introduced in the Senate (PDF) by Senators Ruggerio, Badeau, Ciccone, Lanzi, and Tassoni, would arguably forbid changes in an area that is especially likely to contribute to schools’ problems:

Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter or otherwise affect the rights, remedies, and procedures afforded school or school district employees under federal, state or local laws (including applicable regulations or court orders) or under the terms of collective bargaining agreements, memoranda of understanding, or other agreements between such employees and their employers.

So if union contracts are strangling a school’s budget and limiting the administration’s ability to handle teachers in such a way as to ensure dedicated and effective performance, that reality must be off the table should the board of regents find it necessary to take the school over?