From the NYT:
"Decades of academic studies point to the corroding effects of segregation on students, especially minorities, both in diminished academic performance and in the failure to equip them for the interracial world that awaits them. "
All but one or two of the students quoted in the article express a preference for greater diversity.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/13/education/at-explore-charter-school-a-portrait-of-segregated-education.html?_r=1
- A similar resegregation appears to be taking place in PPS.
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From the article, a response of a parent being interviewed:
. . . "Would she prefer an integrated school? “I can’t say that I would.” . . .
. . . “Color for me is not an issue,” Ms. Maijeh said. “As long as the learning is up to par.”
The question, in Pittsburgh, that must be examined: Is the learning (in our Black schools) up to par?
The answer, in PPS, is a resounding "NO."
There is no way that the majority of White parents are going to let white kids willingly go to a NonMagnet public schools in a all black neighborhood. And I dont believe that white kids should be forced either. Parents will only be drawn to quality programs like Capa or Obama. And do you Blame parents. The district has not figure out how to help Black schools or Black kids and from what Ive seen it turns away the most valuable assets. The People. Look at those schools in Homewood and the Hill.
So with that being said we must help one another stenghten the schools that are in these Black neighborhoods by including the people that care about those schools or have a deep commitment in helping them achieve sucess. And there are people other than just Black that do care and have had sucess with it too.
PPS needs to engage people who live there, the community! Duh, thats a given. Grab a hold of the alumni or people who want to be there. Pay people extra as a insentive to take on the harder issues that soround poverty this situation, which is mainly poverty driven. And please help the people who did not go there or live there feel welcome and comfortable helping.
How did capa work in homewood as far as diversity? And what hasnt it worked on the hill with Uprep and with Westinghouse in Homewood. Uprep and Westinghouse both are susposed to be college prep programs right? Plus Westinghouse was a single gender school like central catholic or ellis schools for the girls correct?
If so, why havent these schools been able to attract White students? Is it the school, adminstrators, neighborhood, or programs?
Those who were involved at the time say that CAPA in Homewood was diverse. There was a lot of parent and community involvement and so it offered what people wanted. At U Prep and Westinghouse, in contrast, there were community meetings but much less real parent and community decisionmaking.
The District does not permit schools to propose "what people want." The hold a meeting just so that they can say they had community input.
At a recent meeting at one of the school's mentioned, Dr. Lane stated that she could not allow a school with such low scores to make decisions or change the District plans.
Unbelievable statement since the achievement could hardly be worse (under District management) and, in fact ANYTHING with community support should be given and chance and the support to change that horrible status quo.
I been in PPS along time. We had all black schools that was off the charts. One that comes to mind was Lincoln E.S. they had a GREAT principal/leader in DR HOLLY. We need more like her and let the PPS ADMIN Stay out of them running the schools.
Schenley, of course, was a great example of how a school could be integrated and perform better than expected. It offered several different programs, including robotics, and had all the amenities associated with a bigger school -- sports, music programs, electives, clubs, etc.
Because of the feed-in of the IB program it also successfully attracted kids from private schools for high school.
But, of course, we were told that the highest African_American PSSA scores outside of CAPA were...well, they didn't talk about that in their desire to close it down and open what they had to know was going to be an all-black school (UPrep).
Anyone with ANY experience in the district over the last 6+ years knows that something the district calls "college prep" or "rigorous" or "academic" means just the opposite.
Student hospitalized after fight at Oliver High School
WPXI Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Public Schools spokeswoman Ebony Pugh said the student was taken to an area hospital Monday by paramedics. His name and condition have not been ...
http://www.wpxi.com/news/news/local/student-hospitalized-after-fight-oliver-high-schoo/nN6L9/
This ahould be a seperate thread.
Truly sad that it takes a whole day for the media to be handed this story.
When concerns a teacher, fsst media insertions has headline news.
Any pertinent information regarding circumstances surrounding this Oliver incident?
Perhaps, we can give the Linda Lane administration for trying (perhaps not) but, what is very, very clear is that this administration does NOT know how to get results for African American students. There can be no doubt about that so why not let the communities design schools that will work. The Lane administration will be able to take the credit for their success. Surely, the communities cannot do worse than PPS is doing right now. It's a win win.
There are more Regina Holleys out there. Give them the opportunity to educate kids, successfully!
The enclosed nrewspaper tidbit has
some interesting excerpts-but one excerpt seems to been funneled by the faltering PPS ADM and used by local county private sectors to make a case today May 15, 2012 wirh APlus Schools.
Excerpt
"Thus, if Pittsburgh's veteran teachers have performed poorly and are still in the classrooms, the fault lies with those who now wish to pass the onus of poorly performing schools on to those who have spent decades of dedicated teaching."
Explains the Faison, King, Arlington beacles with low performing scores as low performing schools that are being rescued by Dr. Lane and APlus.
Teacher evaluations
Pittsburgh Post Gazette
... reading for all school directors (particularly those representing the Pittsburgh Public Schools) and all school superintendents and administrators.
http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/opinion/letters/teacher-evaluations-635929/
The enclosed nrewspaper tidbit has
some interesting excerpts-but one excerpt seems to been funneled by the faltering PPS ADM and used by local county private sectors to make a case today May 15, 2012 wirh APlus Schools.
Excerpt
"Thus, if Pittsburgh's veteran teachers have performed poorly and are still in the classrooms, the fault lies with those who now wish to pass the onus of poorly performing schools on to those who have spent decades of dedicated teaching."
Explains the Faison, King, Arlington beacles with low performing scores as low performing schools that are being rescued by Dr. Lane and APlus.
Teacher evaluations
Pittsburgh Post Gazette
... reading for all school directors (particularly those representing the Pittsburgh Public Schools) and all school superintendents and administrators.
http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/opinion/letters/teacher-evaluations-635929/
Excellent example of unequal opportunities written by a Pittsburgher. I included the first paragraph.
http://kathrynspeaks.wordpress.com/2012/05/13/college-access-as-social-justice/
College Access as Social Justice
If you haven’t already guessed from my previous posts, I’m a huge proponent for the U.S. public school system. Due to my beliefs, many of my nonprofit activities are aligned with helping public school students in Pittsburgh. However, being a part of a college and community collaborative has its benefits and challenges. We are committed to community outreach but we have not established an objective or goal for educational social justice. For example, we host a college fair every year and invite the Pittsburgh Public high schools. It is a major challenge for high school counselors to register their students for the event, although we may call 3-5 times. Some of my colleagues recommend that we no longer invite schools based on their poor behavior for not registering students on time.
I am at the juncture of let's get over the social injustice of PPS students with counseling for higher learning.
Equlity has changed in higher leaning and financial latitudes to get ahead.
PPS is at fault for cutting counseling an social workers and career counseling in varied fields.
One poster made a vlid point on another thread about the need for welders.
Counselors are not geared to send 100% of their student population to colleges.
Many students are not prepared to take the rig cur of courses in fields where are needs.
There are no immediate needs in the US for teachers and it is showinf across the country with huge layoffs.
What can be an answer IB and CAPA are great schools-but the career chocies for many high school grads that go to college-the easy courses to get through.
The colleges need to adress the mounds of debt that students have with no jobs.
And as parents we need to instill in our kids-you need to be employed when you graduate from college in a career that you can handle and work to make a decent living. Not just with a piece of paper paifd with mounds of debt that states a degree that can be worthless.
College is not the answer for all.
Many women and white women are out of work because the quota ratio and yes it still exists-many are seeing this with the recent NOW meeting in PGH.
So there are statistics out there that can easily refute the social justice or 10 years ago it was called social injustice.
It is my understanding that the Homewood Alumni and the hill communities and their leaders had several meetings with Dr. lane. this was done before she put the failed reform programs in their schools and neighborhoods. I was told she ignore them because they were made up of largely African Americans and she has no confident in them. This is not right.
She lacked regular contact with her own people in her travels and in education because of where she grew up and taught and worked. But this is no excuse for not reaching our and trying to understand and relate. We messed out on valuable input from grass roots people for this disconect she has with her own. We are not getting the indirect benefits of having a African American superintedent in this regards. She has not more insight that a non African American person who woul have to souround him or herself with people who do relate. At least in that case one would know they need help. We asumed she did not and it has hurt our district and our kids.
Good points. Cte with a job ready skill is the way to go for a lot of people. But Dr lane feels that all high school students should go to college and does not realize that all people are not college material and some do like working with there hands and can make a good living in the trades. PPS used to have a proud history of preparing students for the trades, many of which helped to bulid this city. Infact she doesnt even realize the trademen she used when she had a problem with her house can from pittsburghs ovt program. Wow, now isnt that something.
The best way to keep our higher achieving schools and maintain our way of life is to demand PPS help the lower achieving schools or they will close them and send the underprepared and unhappy students to us. When students are force out of their own neighborhood to go to a school in a place they dont want to be, they bring problems and trouble with them. So lets fix their schools before they ruin ours.
We are all in this together.
Well said. And I do get it too.
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