Monday, July 8, 2013

Is the diversity policy causing school closings?

This one’s over at the Patch.

(There is a method, by the way, to this cross-posting madness. Posts that are mainly of local interest, I usually put on the Patch. Posts that are more focused on issues of broader concern – for example, authoritarian schooling, standardized testing, local control, democratic process, etc. – I usually put over here. I also happen to prefer this platform for any post that uses a lot of graphics.)
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am not so sure about this theory. If closing SINA schools were the goal of the district, wouldn't Twain,Kirkwood and Wood be at the top of their list to close? Even if a new school were built on the southeast side, I could only see Wood students becoming redistricted.

Chris said...

Anonymous -- Thanks for commenting. I don't mean to suggest that the district is willing to stop at nothing to meet the diversity goals-- only that part of the appeal of building *two* 500-kid schools on the east/southeast sides is that the resulting redistricting will help meet the goals. The cost of building those new schools is the main argument for closing existing schools (and, of course, closings will necessitate even more redistricting). I can't help but wonder if the desire to achieve the diversity goals is one reason why people haven't been more apt to scrutinize the consultants' capacity and enrollment calculations.