stanford was seen as a charismatic, popular leader, and - in his first year on the job - was credited with helping to raise more than $2 million in private donations to support district initiatives. dropout rates in seattle schools declined and sat scores rose during his tenure. the seattle school board reported that stanford had met all ten of the goals they had established on his hiring. some teachers, however, criticized stanford's emphasis on standardized testing and he was forced to back down from an initiative to allow corporate sponsorships of extracurricular programs in the face of parent opposition. several of stanford's proposals, such as introducing school uniforms and restricting the issuance of driver's licenses to students known to affiliate with gangs, never gained traction.