Lisa Fleisher of the Wall Street Journal reminds us what investigative reporting looks like.

In New York City, we nearly forgot, especially since Michael Winerip of the New York Times was taken off the education beat.

Fleisher filed a Freedom of Information Act request to find out whether top officials at the New York City Department of Education receive job evaluations. As we know, the Bloomberg DOE evaluates everyone in its reach.

Except those at the top of the DOE.

“Top administrators at the city’s Department of Education haven’t been subject to formal evaluations during the Bloomberg administration, a break from past practice and an unusual occurrence among school districts across the U.S.

“The disclosure follows the culmination of a yearslong battle by Mayor Michael Bloomberg to implement tougher teacher and principal evaluations in the district.

“Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott, who has been on the job since April 2011, said formal job reviews weren’t necessary because he informally evaluated his staff daily, and he was evaluated daily by the mayor. Teachers, he said, were in a different position.

“They’re in front of the classroom and teaching our children, and we need to have a sense of how well they’re doing,” he said. “With us, we’re not teaching children directly, we’re setting policy. And I don’t think it’s hypocritical at all.”

As Leona Helmsley once famously said, “Only the little people pay taxes.” Apparently, under Bloomberg, only the little people get job evaluations.

The following officials are exempt:

“In a response dated June 11, the department’s public-records officer said no evaluations had been created since at least 2001 for the following positions: chancellor, chief of staff, chief academic officer, senior deputy chancellor, chief schools officer, chief operating officer, chief financial officer, deputy chancellor and general counsel. Mr. Bloomberg has appointed three permanent chancellors.”