A One-Track System
Wednesday October 21, 2009 | DC Metro
For years, an Arlandria group known as Tenants and Workers has been calling attention to disparities in the city’s school system. Their efforts culminated in 2007 with the release of a report titled "Obstacles to Opportunity," a document the group issued along with George Mason University sociology professor Tony Roshan Samara and the Advancement Project. The report drew attention to what its authors called "a two-track system," one in which a privileged white minority receives an education that sets them on a path for college while black and Latino students are marginalized or ignored.¨
"I felt like they didn’t have high expectations of me," said Ingris Moran, a 2008 graduate of T.C. Williams High School who helped write the report. "I certainly didn’t feel like people were pushing me to go to college."
¨But Moran’s concerns were dismissed by administration officials, who bristled at the conclusions in the study and criticized its authors of not consulting them during the analysis. Director of Secondary Programs Margaret Walsh issued an official response, issuing a point-by-point refutation of the study’s findings. Her memorandum accused the authors used selective citations of a student survey to make sweeping conclusions, ultimately concluding that the report "would not pass the lowest benchmarks for university research."
"I felt they were engaged in a cover-up," said Jennifer Granado, another student involved in putting together the 2007 report who is now a senior at T.C. Williams. "Frankly, I was disappointed in how the school system responded."
FLASH FORWARD to 2009. The school system now has a new superintendent and three new School Board members. Suddenly, the dynamics have changed. Instead of resisting the conclusions in the report and denying its methodology, school officials have made an abrupt about-face. On a gusty afternoon along Arlandria’s main drag on Mount Vernon Avenue last week, administration officials gathered with the School Board chairwoman and leaders in Tenants and Workers to sign a memorandum of understanding. The agreement calls for improved cultural competency, development of individualized plans for students in need and the encouragement of a culture of parent involvement..
"Today is about turning the page," said Superintendent Morton Sherman, who is now in his second year in office. "We should have never gotten to the point where we are questioning each other’s motives."
The agreement between the school system and tenants and workers offers a truce of sorts in the midst of an ongoing battle for improved achievement. Standardized testing data released last month by the Virginia Department of Education shows black and Latino students in Alexandria continue to score below the statewide average. The city has the highest dropout rate in Northern Virginia, and a report issued by the department in April showed that one out of four Hispanic students at T.C. Williams drops out of high school.
"You have my commitment that we will never let that happen again," Sherman told the largely Hispanic crowd. "Common sense says that we should not even needed this agreement."
¨FOSTERING A SENSE of "cultural competency" is one of the main goals of the memorandum of understanding signed last week. To accomplish this, the document calls for a series of "community walks" in which administration officials visit Latino neighborhoods in the city to experience social conditions firsthand. The document also calls for recruitment of a more diverse teaching and administrative staff as well as workshops on cultural topics such as food, religious traditions and cultural heritage.
"With this agreement, Alexandria is establishing itself as a national leader," said Jim Freeman, a lawyer with the Advancement Project. "These challenges are not unique to Alexandria, and this agreement will serve as a model for how people can come together and provide access."
The agreement also commits the Advancement Project to quarterly meetings with school officials to implement the newly created "individualized student education plans," which are designed to help students who are failing in one or more class. The memorandum of understanding also calls for training for what it refers to as "significant others" who will act as mentors and be charged with guiding the student through implementation of the plan.
"We want to develop a system where there’s a responsible adult to direct students toward college," said John Liss, director of Tenants and Workers United. "This takes us away from the two-track system where some students were being encouraged to go to college while others were not."
PART OF THE AGREEMENT is aimed at fostering a culture of parent involvement in the school system, a frequent topic of conversation among school officials who see this as the key to improving achievement in Alexandria. The text of the agreements commits Tenants and Workers United to increasing support for tutoring as well as organizing parents to encourage their participation in the school system. But those involved with writing the 2007 report warn that drawing attention to problems will not be easy.
"There’s an unfortunate and common paradox when people start to get involved," said Freeman. "Parents are criticized for not being involved, but when they start to go to School Board meetings they’re dismissed as troublemakers."