It’s very trendy to say that New Year’s resolutions are passé. Perhaps. Many now write about New Year’s “intentions.” That’s fine. Either way, Great Schools for All sees this new year as a crucial one not only for our work, but for the students in our communities. So whether resolutions or intentions, here is a …
Great Schools for All communications team member Marta Driscoll interviewed Clay Osborne recently. Osborne, a member of the Strategy Team, is currently President of True Insights Consulting, which offers executive and performance coaching for businesses and other organizations. Clay also worked as the Vice President for Human Resources at Bausch + Lomb, the Deputy County Executive for …
A successful integrated school requires more than diverse students Read More »
I’m still reflecting on the powerful words Nikole Hannah-Jones left with us at her Oct. 26 lecture: “Whose children should be sacrificed?” Hannah-Jones, an investigative journalist for The New York Time Magazine, writes often on civil rights issues, notably on the changing shape of school segregation in America. She’s working on a book dealing with …
We can choose to end segregated schools; will we? Read More »
Rochester City School District Superintendent Barbara Deane-Williams is reportedly considering opportunities for the district’s future in a more comprehensive way. Deane-Williams, and members of her staff, will conduct a series of public engagement sessions throughout the community in October and November. The listening tour, called 30,000 Voices/Building the Path Forward is set to kick off at 2pm Thursday, …
Attend a 30,000 Voices/Building the Path Forward listening event Read More »
For at least 25 years, I’ve been outraged at the way we have structured our public schools in Rochester, and across New York. We have one system of schools (suburban) for middle class and more affluent kids, mostly white kids. In that system, nearly everybody graduates high school on time and goes on to …
School diversity and teacher diversity both necessary Read More »
Please join us for a community event on October 26 featuring Nikole Hannah-Jones, a nationally recognized investigative journalist who covers civil rights for The New York Times Magazine. This event is an important milestone in an ongoing community conversation on how we can dramatically restructure education in our community so it works for all students. …
Save the date – An evening with Nikole Hannah-Jones Read More »
As you know by now, at its June 27 meeting, the city school board passed a resolution that commits the district to an “exploration of possible regional schools, as envisioned by Great Schools for All coalition, and the impact that a regional school (or several regional schools) might have on existing facility and zone capacity.” …
RCSD resolution, Regents’ policy statement are groundbreaking Read More »
On Tuesday June 27, the Rochester Board of Education approved a resolution that commits the district to working with wiling suburban partners to investigate the development of regional magnet-type schools that would offer students the well-known advantages of a truly diverse education. We see this is as an important step forward and worth celebrating by …
A breakthrough: RCSD to consider interdistrict schools Read More »
For all its charms and its rich history, Rochester is not known for being bold when it comes to social change—not since the abolitionists and suffragists called our city home in the 19th century. A lot of people here recognize the need for change if we are to reverse the effects of decades of concentrated …
Dallas schools seek diversity; time for Rochester to do the same Read More »
In a previous blog I wrote about win-win thinking and the need to look beyond the data and stereotypes (or generalizations if you prefer a less divisive term) on poverty and race to think critically about how socio-economically and racially diverse magnet or county wide schools could benefit children from both urban and suburban families. …
Let’s not talk about diversity as a ‘win-lose’ proposition Read More »
