Dr. eRIC Durham aka ghettoGEEK
ghettoGEEK: Dr. eRiC Durham is the embodiment of the Organic Intellectual. He is committed to using passionate, relevant, and engaging scholarship to affect significant change within traditionally marginalized and disenfranchised communities. His books, Before Barack, There Was Tupac. and Bustin’ Gats Through Spittin Raps, are evidence of his commitment to oppressed groups; especially those within Hip-Hop culture. As an academic who often sees the value of intellect found in areas void of formal (or decent) educational systems. Dr. Durham is generally seen as a outkast, a pariah, an….anomaly. Hence, his writing is brilliant.
Stephanie Jones
Stephanie Jones is a wife, mother, social activist, conscientious agitator, social worker and writer in Seattle. She holds degrees in accounting, contract administration, sociology and organizational systems. Stephanie’s focus is on homelessness and incarceration with emphasis on systemic white supremacy within those institutions. Translation: she knows what she’s talking about.
Sable Verity
Sable Verity is a 31 year old professional who lives in Seattle.
Mother, writer and activist, editor and founder of the SV, friends (and enemies) describe Sable Verity as a tireless advocate (or that bitch that just won’t go away), who believes in speaking (ranting) the truth (her irrational race-tinged views). You can find more of her work at the South Seattle Beacon , thefreshxpress.com
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Sable Verity is a 31 year old professional who lives in Seattle.
Mother, writer and activist, founder and Managing Editor of the SV, friends (and enemies) describe Sable Verity as a tireless advocate (or that bitch that just won’t go away), who believes in speaking (ranting) the truth (her irrational race-tinged views) 
It's fantastic that all 107 of the grads are going to college! I do want to point out though that the class started with 150 students (Chicago Tribune). That is a graduation rate of 71%. (I'm not saying that all of the others dropped out of HS–just that they aren't graduating from this particular charter school and we don't know if they are going to college.)
It would be interesting to me to see if the graduation rates at the surrounding public HSs went down over the same period–that might mean that the charter just skimmed off the college bound kids from the other schools. This article doesn't give us enough information to judge. Charters can make all of the difference for some kids, but they do have the luxury of enrolling only the most motivated kids from the most involved families.
Goodness! I reeeeeally wasn't expecting this big of a response- or this passionate! Good points on all sides. I just want to say for the record I am not a charter school proponent. I support effective education for EVERYONE, lol, EVERYWHERE- period. This was an example of effective education, no matter if it was 107 or 7 or 1 or 700. if it were numbers alone that allowed them to accomplish this- then what' the excuse of one of Seattle's smaller high schools (rhetorical question)?
Seattle's dilemma cannot be fixed by charters.
Also, my kids attended Hawthorne for years- many in my family did, actually. Based on it's history, the current state of things is just pathetic- but that is the case for many of Seattle's schools.
The question isn't charter or not charter. The question is what can we do – or what can Seattle Public Schools do – to improve the quality of education that our children receive. The federal government is willing to throw money at this problem at up to three of Seattle's schools.
Now, what can be done with this money to improve outcomes for the students at these schools?
We already know that the money won't do anything to improve outcomes for students at Cleveland since the District is swapping out those students for a more motivated set.
So what can the District do with the money to improve the outcomes for students at Hawthorne and West Seattle Elementary? We know that they aren't going to alter the curriculum – they are promoting the idea of teaching the same content at every school. We know that they aren't going to alter the textbooks – they are equally committed to using the same materials at every school. They aren't going to just hire more teachers and reduce class size because the Superintendent has said that class size doesn't matter. So what is left for them to do?
Sable,
Charlie's comment about the district replacing the students mirrors what happens with some charter schools. I don't know the situation in Chicago, at that school, but I can imagine that the 107 scholars CHOSE (or their parents did) to be there. I can also imagine that some didn't make the cut. I can also imagine that some just chose not to, and go to some other public school that is not a charter. So these sorts of “magnet” schools draw students who are interested, or parents who are invested, but not ALL students who live in the neighborhood.
What happens to those kids who aren't in these magnet schools? Can we make a bunch of magnet schools to attract ALL sorts of learning styles, serve ALL sorts of kids (kids with interested parents, kids without, etc)
Lastly, what about kids in rural areas? Few schools – if they become “opt-in” magnet schools, who will educate the students who don't opt in, or get kicked out?
Thanks for article, tho, I'm interested in learning more about what makes this school successful.
Aren't there a 100+ academic “coaches” in the district. I know my kid's north-end school has one, and I don't think the coach will make one whit of difference to my kid's success in elementary school.
Maybe the district should take the money spent on those coaches and put it where it's really needed — towards adding instructional time for kids who are already behind in school. How about offering fun, but educational, summer school free to anyone already falling behind?
If we have money for 100 coaches, we have money for this.
You are comparing apples and oranges Sable. You compare stealing a few pens from work to being burglerized. One crime is obviously far bigger than the other is both intent, the law (burgaries are prosecuted stealing a pad of paper from work isn't), and the worth of things stollen. Also burgary entails entering somone else's property without permission.
On the other hand, the crime that Aiesha committed is worse than the one she is a victim of. Aiesha and THREE friends attacked a women their grandmother's age after asking her for the time. Aiesha got her butt kicked by ONE girl her own age she herself had victimized. Stealing a few almost-worthless items from work is not even 1% as bad as being a burglar. Gang-attacking a stranger more then 3x your age and preying on her kindless to lure her is far worse than being betten by someone your age in retaliation for something you had done.
I know what I would do at Hawthorne and West Seattle Elementary if I had money to improve the academic outcomes for under-performing students.
I would institute an intensive, extended, and enriched program designed to quickly bring these students up to grade level.
It would be intensive through a combination of small class sizes and accelerated curriculum. These students need to learn more and faster than students working at grade level because they need to catch up.
It would be extended in every way starting with extended time on task. That means 90 minutes a day on each of the four core subjects: reading, writing, math and science. That's six hours of instruction right there. With time for lunch and recess that will take them from 8:00AM to 3:00PM. Since these four subjects alone do not constitute a well-rounded education, they will need an extended day. The day starts with breakfast served at the school and extends into the early evening, 5:00. The time between 3:00 and 5:00 would be used for art, music, social studies, structured study, and field trips. Lots and lots of field trips. There would be an extended week so the kids would get a half day of structured study (or field trips) on Saturday, and an extended year to help them get through all of the additional material and to keep them in school. Studies show that the academic achievement gap shrinks during the school year and grows during the summer. So lengthen the school year and shorten the summer.
Finally, the enrichment. Art, music, and lots and lots of field trips: to the theater, to concerts, to museums, to libraries, to factories, to businesses. First because this is not a boot camp and it is not a punishment. Second because studies show that it is the lack of exactly this type of enrichment that contributes 30% of the academic achievement gap.
All of this – the small classes, the extended day, week, and year and the enrichment – will cost money. It's worth it.