D.C. Council Chairman Kwame Brown gave me serious grief last week for failing to mention in an article his work around school reform. He says he has advocated for better classroom teachers, for renovated facilities and for more parental involvement. “I’m out there fighting all the time,” he told me, noting this week he kicks off a series of meetings he hopes will result in a comprehensive middle-school strategy for the city.
That’s all good. He should be commended for starting a dialogue about the importance of middle schools.
But, my criticism of Brown and other middle-class blacks is that far too many of them have abandoned their neighborhood schools, fleeing to charters or out-of boundary DCPS facilities. Their exodus leaves communities, particularly those in Wards 5, 7 and 8, bereft of important leadership critical to significant and lasting reform.
Brown lives in Ward 7. He sends his children to school in Ward 3. He called their education a private matter. But he said they previously attended Langdon Elementary School in Ward 5 and charter schools before going to the area my colleague Harry Jaffe calls Upper Caucasia.
“[I’m] the first chairman with young children in D.C. Public Schools. I am professionally and personally invested in DCPS outcomes,” said Brown.
Currently, the District has three separate public schools systems — charters and two versions of DCPS. Despite news reports to the contrary, none is performing at an optimum level.
Still, the charter system has hundreds of individuals promoting its products. There has been much celebration for select traditional schools — mostly those in Ward 3.
But that other version of DCPS, principally in predominantly black communities like those east of the Anacostia River, never seems to draw praise. That’s not because there aren’t institutions worthy of accolades.
Consider, for example, Sousa Middle School in Ward 7. It has been renovated. This year there is a new interim principal. And it has witnessed impressive growth: In 2008, only 23 percent of students were proficient in reading. In 2011 the number was up to 40 percent. Three years ago only 17 percent of its students were proficient in math. By 2011 the number was up to 53 percent.
Sousa is on an upward trajectory. With strong parental involvement — particularly that of middle-class blacks like Brown — it can move from good to great, rivaling schools in Wards 2 and 3.
If the black middle class won’t voluntarily return to the ‘hood, elected officials might consider creating an enterprise zone for DCPS, similar to what has been available to developers who locate in economically depressed communities. Tax credits and other incentives could be provided to middle-class families who enroll in neighborhood schools, particularly in Wards 5, 7 and 8.
Effective choice requires a truly healthy education system. That’s difficult to achieve in predominantly black communities if middle-class parents continue to decamp.
Jonetta Rose Barras’ column appears on Monday and Wednesday. She can be reached at [email protected].
