Suzanne Kelly wrote:
Greetings.[snip]
Earlier this week Russell Peterson raised concerns about whether high
achievers in Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) are being neglected as the
district focuses on students who are currently not on track. He
correctly observed that we have not published a formal "plan" for high
achieving students similar to the "Twelve Point Plan" announced this
week to bolster the academic achievement for students of color. A review
of district achievement data for many (certainly not all) African
American, Native American and Latino students clearly supports an
urgent, citywide call to action on their behalf. I urge list readers to
visit our web site - www.mpls.k12.mn.us - to read the full text of the
plan and the superintendent's announcement. Our strategic direction and
plan for addressing the needs of high achieving students is outlined
below. It's long, so I warn those of you who aren't particularly
interested in the topic to check out now. Much of this information was
jointly released last winter with the Chamber of Commerce and The
Minneapolis Foundation in our report, Measuring Up. Those who make it to
the end and have additional questions should feel free to e-mail me
directly or call the MPS Communications Department at 612-668-0230.
Thanks for your continued interest in MPS.Services for gifted students in the Minneapolis Public Schools
Minneapolis Public Schools. Expect Great Things.
I find it astounding that a representative of MPS would respond
to the
concerns of a parent with such bureaucratic mumbo jumbo. It's
really
scary.
If you read Ms. Kelly's response carefully you may notice that any
one individual student may receive no benefit from the programs
cited. In other words, there could be thousands of students falling
between the cracks. What is needed is not a motley set of programs,
but one which will reliably identify gifted children at any grade
level and provide appropriate instruction and resources.
At the very least Ms. Kelly should have provided the parent with
a referral and steps that could be taken to help his child.
Mike Atherton
Prospect Park
Ward 2
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~athe0007
