Even Don Whatley, former president of the Albuquerque Teachers Federation, believes Mayor Martin Chavez has done the right thing in hiring former teachers union lobbyist Paul Broome as the mayor's education coordinator.

The mayor's move to influence policy decisions within the Albuquerque Public Schools system is controversial, from the perspective of a turf-conscious APS. The state's largest school district talks a good talk when it comes to improving accountability within the education system but still waxes nervous when it comes time to put pencil to paper.

Apparently, like the rest of us who are on the outside of APS looking in, Chavez is mad as hell and not going to take it anymore. More precisely, the mayor is concerned about the negative effect on local economic-development efforts brought on by a poorly performing public education system and the lack of achievement many students exhibit as they progress through APS.

"The proficiency levels that Albuquerque youngsters are demonstrating in math and science are consistently poor. They are absolutely dismal," Broome says.

He points to statistics he obtained from the state Public Education Department that show only 21 percent of APS 6th-graders are performing at a proficient level in math and 29.2 percent of APS 6th-graders are performing at a proficiency level in science.

With $16 million of APS programs funded by the city of Albuquerque's general fund - programs such as elementary and middle school after-school initiatives, and high school drop out prevention programs - Chavez has a right to speak up, stir the pot and ratchet up the bar.

When companies look at our local work force and make decisions on whether to set up shop or expand an existing operation, they look for explanations from the mayor and the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce. They don't pick up the phone and call APS Superintendent Beth Everitt.

The strategy for improving APS has changed out of necessity, because reform measures up to this point have not yielded results, and Albuquerque students are still falling woefully behind when gauged by national and international standards.

APS must constantly be reminded that it does not operate in a vacuum, and school officials must be more open to changes within the system, which will positively affect student achievement.

APS is a diffuse, fractured structure, making it difficult to assign blame or accountability within the system. The Chamber of Commerce and mayor are held accountable, while the APS superintendent can simply point her finger at the Albuquerque Board of Education. The school board points its finger at the governor over funding issues. The teachers union points its finger at charter schools, and parents point their finger at teachers, resulting in an APS strategy akin to circling the wagons and hunkering down.

"We're just going to keep pushing as best and as hard as we possibly can," Broome says.

Bullington is a senior policy adviser for the Brownstein, Hyatt and Farber law firm. He welcomes comments at jdbullington@gmail.com