The headline in the February 12 Washington Post shouldn’t surprise anyone who has looked carefully at the consequences of segregating low-income and minority children: “How segregated schools turn school kids into criminals,” it said. The story looks at what happened when a lawsuit in the early 2000s effectively dismantled a highly successful school integration program …

Integration improves more than test scores and graduation rates Read More »

  Ten’s of thousands of white residents flee the city in the 1960s and ‘70s lured by attractive federal mortgage subsidies, tract housing, green spaces, and new highways. In a generation the racial make-up of the school district flips from two-thirds white to over two-thirds black. Thinly veiled racist redistricting and banking practices push black …

In Review: ‘Who’s In Charge of America’s Schools?’ Read More »

“When I think back on all the c*** I learned in high school; It’s a wonder I can think at all.” —”Kodachrome” by Paul Simon (1973) Those lyrics (listen here ) spoke to me the moment I first heard them, 43 years ago. Not because I had a terrible high school experience, but because I could relate …

We learn best with ‘a little help from our friends’ Read More »

When I was in high school at Edison tech, I worked as a cashier at a neighborhood meat market. I remember walking to work one day and observing that the sun doesn’t seem to shine much here… I also remember thinking, I really don’t like this job very much, but how else was I going …

Don’t let the problem define you—start with the end in mind Read More »

I lived in Chicago, for 17 years. One of the local icons was The Second City, a comedy institution of mystical reputation. You might know The Second City as the launching pad for many great comedic talents who first found their way to Saturday Night Live and then to cinema stardom. John Belushi. Gilda Radner. …

Our educational future depends on a ‘Yes, and’ approach Read More »

Who are we? Better yet, who do we want to be as a community? Seriously, are we ready and willing to take the steps needed to solve the problems of poverty and decline that have beset us now for more than a generation? Or, will we once again, take comfort in stereotypes and settle for …

Is Rochester finally ready for bold changes? Read More »

I recently read two articles that gave me pause. The first, “How Woodrow Wilson Shut the Door on K-12 Education for African Americans,” discussed the significance of recent protests at Princeton University by students who have urged the trustees to change the name of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Wilson supported the …

The race factor in the challenge of socioeconomic integration Read More »

This video, by Stanford University sociologist Prudence Carter, explains why diversity in schools does not equal true integration. As we’ve learned from our research of other places that have achieved socioeconomic integration, real success requires building inclusive school communities. Prudence Carter explains that when she quotes a 15-year-old student she interviewed: “If you want to …

Diversity is not enough Read More »

My husband and I have been going back and forth on whether to keep our daughter in a Montessori school for one more year, her kindergarten year, or to just send her to the neighborhood public school. I really wanted her to round out the Montessori school curriculum and finish the program so that she …

The business case for school diversity Read More »