Front Page  news  metro

Friday, September 3, 2004

Ex-APS Boss Brad Allison Selling Real Estate in N.Y.

By Russell Contreras
Journal Staff Writer
    If he makes it there, he can make it anywhere.
    Brad Allison, the former chief of Albuquerque Public Schools who left the district amid clouds of controversy, is now a real estate agent in New York City.
    Allison is employed by Brown Harris Stevens, a Manhattan-based firm that's been in business since 1873.
    According to the company's Web site, Allison "started his real estate career with 10 years as a CEO of large urban school systems in Chicago/Milwaukee megalopolises and in New Mexico."
    "Recently," the Web site says, "he started a business devoted to developing entertaining and informative programming for a nationally broadcasting education station."
    "As a former superintendent of schools," the Web site adds, "he knows well the details of frequent moves to and from urban environments."
    The former APS superintendent now lives in New York City's Upper West Side, the Web site says.
    It is unclear when Allison moved to New York or when he started his new job.
    The new Big Apple resident did not return phone calls Thursday.
    Allison resigned from APS in 2002, signing a settlement with the district worth $383,000. Board members listed 38 reasons for wanting to fire him, including being insubordinate and creating potential legal problems for the district.
    Allison blamed his behavior on abuse of alcohol and sleeping pills. In a good-bye letter published by the Journal, Allison said his personal hero was the character Luke Skywalker from the movie "Star Wars" because Skywalker "is the archetype of heroism."
    Just after his resignation, Allison told KOAT-TV that he wanted to stay in Albuquerque and find a new job.
    Allison became APS superintendent in 1998 with a bag of lofty goals. He promised to reduce the district's dropout rate to zero by 2005, and sought to offer merit pay for teachers who worked in low-performing schools.
    A Journal analysis from 1998 to 2001 showed that, during Allison's tenure, APS students improved in reading, test scores, graduation rates and dropout rates.