Wanted: Public School Teachers. Salary: $125k

There's a new charter school going up in Manhattan in September 2009 with a revolutionary plan: pay teachers what they're worth.

The big picture, of course, is to help at-risk children succeed with the best teachers. Attracting those teachers, however, to work as hard as they'll need to is the challenge. So the head of The Equity Project Charter Schoolin Washington Heights plans to open with only a principal and no viceprincipal to cut administration costs. He'll offer new teachers a$25,000 starting bonus. Sounds more like a corporate model rather thana public school one.

I like it, though: Why not treat schools like businesses, in administration at least if not in the curriculum?