The Delaware Department of Education’s draft School Performance and Support Framework establishes five levels of intervention, beginning with support for all schools and escalating to possible state receivership — the highest level of state control. Image created based in photo courtesy of the Red Clay Consolidated School District using AI on 10/11/26

Draft five-tier plan could give education officials new authority over struggling schools, but some changes would require legislative approval. Public comments are being accepted through Nov. 20.

DOVER, Del. — Delaware education officials are proposing a new system that could eventually allow the state to take control of persistently struggling public schools, giving the Department of Education greater authority over school leadership, staffing, curriculum and spending when repeated improvement efforts fail.

The proposal represents a potentially significant change in how Delaware holds public schools accountable for student achievement. It also raises questions about local school board authority, taxpayer costs and how much power state officials should have over schools that consistently fall short of expectations.

The Delaware Department of Education’s draft School Performance and Support Framework establishes five levels of intervention, beginning with support for all schools and escalating to possible state receivership — the highest level of state control.

But the department acknowledges that some provisions cannot take effect without additional legislative or regulatory authority.

“Enactment and implementation of some elements of this framework will require legislative or regulatory action,” the draft states.

The proposal is open for public comment through Nov. 20, with a final virtual town hall scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 17.

A new approach to school accountability

Delaware already measures school performance through its Delaware School Success Framework, which evaluates academic achievement, student growth and other indicators.

The proposed framework would establish a more structured process for what happens after a school is identified as needing improvement.

Rather than simply identifying low-performing schools, the state would establish expectations, provide support, monitor results and increase intervention when schools fail to demonstrate meaningful progress.

The department says the objective is to intervene earlier and help schools improve before more aggressive state action becomes necessary.

The proposal establishes five tiers:

• Tier 1 — Universal Expectations: Establishes baseline instructional and operational expectations for all schools.
• Tier 2 — Targeted Support: Provides additional coaching, assistance and monitoring to schools showing early signs of performance problems.
• Tier 3 — Comprehensive Support: Introduces more intensive improvement planning, resources and oversight for schools with significant or persistent academic challenges.
• Tier 4 — Directed State Intervention: Gives the Department of Education a more active role in directing improvement efforts, including state-approved turnaround strategies and increased monitoring.
• Tier 5 — State Receivership: Would permit the state, subject to applicable legal authority, to assume substantial responsibility for improving a school that continues to underperform despite previous intervention.

The department emphasizes that the proposal is intended to strengthen local schools, not automatically move them toward state control.

What would a state takeover mean?

Under the proposed receivership provisions, Delaware could appoint a state receiver or recovery leader to oversee improvement efforts at an individual school.

Depending on the authority established by law and the receivership order, responsibilities transferred to the receiver could include selecting and evaluating principals, determining staffing assignments, directing school-improvement spending, choosing curriculum and instructional materials, and managing certain operational decisions.

Local school boards and superintendents would retain responsibilities not specifically transferred to the state.

Importantly, placing an individual school into receivership would not automatically mean the state assumes control of its entire school district.

The framework also allows the department to examine district or charter school governance, staffing, finances and leadership when those conditions appear to contribute to a school’s poor performance.

A district-level review, however, would not automatically trigger districtwide receivership.

The department describes state receivership as a temporary intervention designed to restore school performance and ultimately return responsibility to local leadership.

How quickly could the state intervene?

The draft establishes annual reviews intended to prevent schools from remaining indefinitely in improvement programs that are not producing results.

A proposed implementation timeline identifies three accountability cycles as the earliest possible progression from Tier 2 targeted support to Tier 5 receivership.

However, more detailed provisions describe an initial Tier 4 intervention period of up to two accountability cycles and identify two consecutive cycles without meaningful improvement as one possible reason to consider receivership.

The department has not publicly reconciled how those provisions would work together in determining the earliest possible takeover.

The final timeline would also have to account for applicable legal requirements and federal school accountability rules.

Under the proposal, school placement and escalation decisions would consider multiple measures, rather than relying on a single standardized test score.

Those measures could include academic achievement, student growth, chronic absenteeism, literacy screening results, graduation rates, teacher vacancies, educator retention and evidence that required improvement strategies are actually being implemented.

Safeguards for school boards and communities

The proposed framework includes procedural safeguards intended to make intervention decisions more transparent.

School districts and charter schools would have opportunities to submit evidence about their performance and improvement efforts.

The department would provide written explanations for placement decisions, establish conflict-of-interest protections and create a reconsideration process.

Those safeguards remain under development and would undergo additional legal and stakeholder review before final adoption.

Parents and community members also would receive public school profiles showing why a school was placed in a particular intervention tier, what support it is receiving, whether improvement is occurring and when the next review will take place.

The department also proposes holding itself accountable by documenting the assistance it provides and measuring whether state support commitments are fulfilled.

Questions about costs and local control remain

Although the draft describes extensive monitoring, technical assistance, intervention teams and potential receivership arrangements, it does not provide a comprehensive estimate of the cost to implement the system.

It also does not identify which Delaware schools would be most likely to enter the highest intervention tiers.

Those omissions leave important questions for taxpayers, parents and local school boards.

How much additional state spending would the framework require? Would participating districts need to redirect existing resources? Who would have final authority over staffing and instructional spending when the state takes a more active role?

And perhaps most significantly, what safeguards would prevent state intervention from continuing longer than necessary?

The proposal could create a policy debate over the appropriate balance between state responsibility for student achievement and the authority of locally governed school districts.

State officials would have to demonstrate not only that schools are failing to improve but also that additional state intervention offers a credible path toward better student outcomes.

Lawmakers may have the final say

Some elements of the framework could proceed under the Department of Education’s existing authority, according to the department.

Others, particularly those involving greater state control, may require legislative or regulatory changes.

The draft specifically anticipates circumstances in which additional statutory authority would be necessary before a school could enter receivership.

That could bring the proposal before the Delaware General Assembly in 2027, although no specific enabling legislation or legislative timetable has been announced.

The department has already consulted district superintendents, charter leaders, educators, school-improvement officials, the Delaware State Education Association, the State Board of Education, the Delaware PTA and other education stakeholders.

Additional revisions and stakeholder discussions are expected during the 2026-27 school year.

Public has until Nov. 20 to respond

The Department of Education is accepting comments from parents, educators, school board members, students and community members before developing final recommendations.

A virtual public town hall is scheduled for Nov. 17.

The department says its goal is to provide stronger support earlier and resolve performance problems through the lowest level of intervention necessary.

Whether the final plan accomplishes that goal — and how much authority the state ultimately receives — will depend on decisions still to be made.

For Delaware families, the central question is whether a more aggressive accountability system will translate into better teaching, stronger schools and improved outcomes for student

TO GO: Delaware School Performance and Support Framework

What: Public review and comment on Delaware’s proposed five-tier school-improvement and intervention framework.

Virtual town hall: Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2026, 6 to 7:30 p.m., via Zoom.

Public comment deadline: Friday, Nov. 20, 2026.

Who can participate: Parents, students, educators, school board members, charter school representatives and Delaware residents.

Review the proposal: https://education.delaware.gov/community/spsf-framework/

Submit comments: https://education.delaware.gov/forms/spsf-feedback/

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