Superintendent Brizard Says There is a "New Day" ROCHESTER, NY (WXXI) - Rochester City School District Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard says the district's Central Office is in much better shape to bring about positive change this year.

Over the past several months, Brizard has cut well over one-hundred administrative positions. But the changes don't stop there.

"I don't know if people know, there are certain individuals at Central Office that counted their worth by the number of ceiling tiles they had in their cubicle," says Brizard. "We found that fascinating. So we've moved people, we are going to redo all the cubicles to make sure they are uniform."

Brizard says this is the start of an ongoing effort to change the workplace culture at the district's main office.

"Right now the Central Office, although not perfect, is a much better organization than it was before. But again, our daily practices will begin to impact a culture change. But people know there is a new day at 131 West Broad Street."

There are also changes in store for students this year. He says the students will receive much more individualized attention from adults, including himself.

In a recent survey of dropouts, teens said the number one reason they stopped going to school was because they did not feel their teachers cared about them. Brizard says that didn't surprise him.

"I think what students meant to say is they never connected to an adult at a high school. Our high school structure in this country does not lend itself to kids connecting with adults. We've got to change that."

Brizard says he plans to spend a lot of time visiting classrooms, an effort he began this week.

Watch the entire interview with Jean-Claude Brizard on Need to Know, tonight at 9 pm on WXXI-TV, Channel 21, Cable 11. Or listen on WXXI-AM 1370 on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. © Copyright 2009, WXXI