My first and most important goal is to accelerate gains in student performance. We have to roll up our sleeves. We have to redouble our efforts.

The pattern that you will find in the people I appoint is they have extraordinary people skills,

Art, music -- all those things that we all know contribute to the full development of a young person and can actually accelerate gains in academic areas -- we can't just put those aside,

If I bring everybody in, they'll get the message that they're ready to go back out and say, 'This is the hill we're going after,' ... I'm a good listener and I value the things employees and parents would want to say to me.

We have to roll up our sleeves

There is a just a lot of buzz around charters here – it's as if charters are the only option for change, ... Other ways could be explored.