school

Last week, we attended a meeting for prospective parents of our local elementary school. I attended this meeting last year and was very impressed with the school, but I wanted to go again because a) M will actually be in Kindergarten next year, so it's time to start getting to know the school, and b) I wanted Wes to have a chance to see the school so I'm not the only parent doing school things.

Last year was the principal's first year, and the meeting focused on the new organic garden, the IB curriculum, and the PTA's efforts to improve the school lunches (including the possibility of serving produce grown in the school's garden in the cafeteria). A few parents spoke about their decision to pull their kids out of the fancy private schools to attend this public elementary. No wonder I was in love with the school then!

Those things are still going on, I think, although you wouldn't know it from this year's meeting. Apparently it was guided by questions the principal received last year from prospective parents, because this year's meeting theme was apparently, "We have black and Hispanic kids at this school, but we're still a great school!!!" No kidding. And yes, the room was overwhelmingly filled with white people.

Our school is in a wealthy (and mostly white) neighborhood, but the lower half of the district (where we live) is more diverse, economically and culturally. The upper half of the district is mostly homes worth half a million or more (on up into the millions), and the lower edge homes probably sell (on average) for around $300,000 and below, including some well below (a trailer park in the industrial district, for instance, and some less expensive homes near the university). The population of the school is about 1/3 white, 1/3 African-American, and 1/3 Hispanic, and somewhere around 30% of the kids are on free/reduced lunch. For me, this is a huge benefit, because I prefer for my kids to go to a school that actually resembles the real diversity of America, racially and economically, but we were planning on going to public school regardless. The other local elementary schools in the rich neighborhoods are mostly white, very wealthy and have little diversity (from what I hear). The governor's mansion is in one of those districts, so this is the super-fancy set for the most part. They also have higher test scores and are the "name" schools in the area. One reason prices are so high is probably partly because of the reputation of those schools.

I'm not a test score junkie. I realize that there many more aspects to a good school than the test scores. But apparently lots of parents call the principal to ask why the scores at our school are a little lower than the other nearby schools. It seems they may also ask why the children of color are there, because one "myth" the principal addressed was "Kids from other parts of town are bussed in." The principal noted in his talk that he "gets this question a lot," but "these kids live in the district and we're glad they're here!"

I can't even imagine calling up the principal of the school to essentially ask, "hey, why are all these Black and Hispanic kids here????" The speakers at the meeting essentially tiptoed around the issue directly, but talked about how great it was that their kids get to go to school and be with kids who are "different" (the one story about the kindergartener who returned to school after his boating accident in a wheelchair was, I think, meant for us to feel all warm and fuzzy about the school, but while I sympathized with the injured child and the tragedy of his accident, Wes and I were in hysterics as the speaker tried to get us to understand how great it was for her daughter to have been exposed to this "diversity"!).

I feel a little sorry for the principal. It's a big deal for kids whose parents can afford to send their kids anywhere to choose the public school. And from what I hear, he's an excellent principal, and I don't think these are his issues, just the ones he's been bombarded with.

It does kind of freak me out that people are that willing to reveal their racism. I guess I always assume it's more undercover than that. But I guess it's good to know. Boy, am I sheltered.

But hey, there's a huge participation in the PTA, so I won't feel like I have to volunteer for everything that happens. And seriously, there's tons of cool stuff. The gifted ("challenge") program starts in first grade and does everything from claymation movies to robotics. There is a new science lab for the whole school. I'm sure every parent in the room thinks *their* kid is going to be in the challenge program, and I'm no different, but even if M doesn't get in, I think she'll be well-served there. She's very excited about the science lab.

I'm going to register for a tour and talk to the principal about substitute teaching there next year. It would be much more convenient than my current sub gig, and I'd get to know the school better. Wish me luck!