It's a little like asking former teachers what you can expect from a new student.

Judging by comments from city, state and national union leaders who worked with him in Chicago, Arne Duncan, the new U.S. secretary of education, is bold, unconventional and has the potential to be a powerful force for welcomed changes when it comes to rewriting the No Child Left Behind Act.

Duncan, however, has also been a controversial figure, threatening to sue the federal agency he now heads, closing low-performing schools and forcing staff to reapply for their jobs, advocating for charter schools, pushing performance pay for teachers and for sex-segregated education.

"Since becoming CEO of the Chicago Public Schools (in 2001), Arne Duncan has grown in his awareness of the problems facing America's public education system," said Marilyn Stewart, president of the Chicago Teachers Union. "With this background, he is well-positioned to assume a national role in addressing the many issues that affect the day-to-day teaching of our nation's school children ... we urge him to give proper voice to the input of classroom teachers."

While the 32,000-member CTU has certainly not always agreed with the 44-year-old Harvard grad, Stewart credited Duncan with working with the union on several innovative initiatives such as the Fresh Start Schools, a team approach to helping low-performing schools.

Another promising labor-management initiative, Stewart said, was the Chicago Teacher Advancement Program, which offers school-wide performance incentives for improvements and professional training opportunities for teachers.

In Chicago, Duncan has shown his willingness to make decisive, bold changes, setting his sights on reducing the dropout rate, curbing school violence and creating successful new schools.

To boost attendance, he sent district representatives to students' homes to urge them to attend and offered tickets to sporting events to lure students to school. He also launched a pilot program to pay students for good grades.

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten noted one of Chicago's standout programs is a form of community schooling that brings a variety of wraparound services under the school roof, including tutoring, recreational and social service programs that extend through the evening. Duncan has also pushed hard to expand pre-school enrollment.

A longtime friend and basketball buddy of President Obama, Duncan will inherit significant baggage from the failed policies of the Bush administration. NCLB is underfunded by $71 billion, and in this economic downturn states will be hard-pressed to make up the difference.

Duncan, who has called for doubling funding under NCLB, threatened to sue the federal agency when it tried to withhold funding for supplemental educational services.

The DOE eventually relented and Duncan convinced the agency to allow Chicago public school employees to continue to provide tutoring services for 50,000 students under NCLB.

"That local flexibility will be essential if NCLB is to perform as intended," said Illinois Federation of Teachers President Ed Geppert. "We look forward to working with Secretary Duncan to rework and properly fund the law."

This could be "the beginning of a promising new period for public education in this country," said National Education Association President Dennis Van Roekel. "For too long, federal education policy has been about teaching to the test, and Arne Duncan could use his new position to move beyond those failed policies."

"The education secretary should deeply value public education, understand what works for schools and students, and collaborate with teachers and other community partners to improve education for all children," Weingarten said.

"Arne Duncan has exhibited these qualities in Chicago and we look forward to being a partner in that collaborative process on a national scale," she said.

— Sylvia Saunders