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PART 2,
QUESTIONS ABOUT COMMUNITY SCHOOLS/OPEN AREAS
(From Heather
Martens, Kingfield)
Following is
resident Sarah Parsons' dispatch on Dennis Schapiro's
comments regarding the Kingfield-East Harriet open area in particular: Mr. Schapiro noted that he wouldn't be able to give a definite answer on the topic right now. He said, "I know this group and the district have been getting into a lot of negotiation and Kingfield and East Harriet have put together a good group to negotiate. My guess is that that will go on for some time. My guess is that there's no money for new construction. I don't see a silver bullet out there that's going to do it, but I know the district wants to negotiate, and I don't think it's a done deal." Mr. Schapiro asked what options the committee was interested in. Regarding increasing the size of Burroughs (one suggested remedy), he said, "I would stay open to things, but in general I don't like the idea of making elementary schools bigger and bigger. There is a little bit of research out there that shows that students do better in smaller schools. I would like to start somewhere where you could have smaller schools." Mr. Schapiro asked why the committee has not been interested in Lyndale School. (He used to live near Lyndale and his son attended there for a time.) He said, "I know Lyndale has an image problem, but having parents who are willing to make a commitment to a school is a terrific resource. To some extent, the quality of the schools depends on the commitment of the parents -- that's true with many of our most successful schools." He said he would like to see more discussion of Lyndale as a possible solution. Mr. Schapiro also noted that there is a larger problem of having a "dual school system" of schools with parents who care a lot and are very involved and schools that are unacceptable to these parents. "That's something we need to look at too," he said. Mr. Schapiro noted that he would like to see a solution that will work for both the district and the Kingfield and East Harriet neighborhoods. "When you have parents from these neighborhoods whose kids are spread out around the city and the parents are unhappy, that's not a good situation. These are parents who are a terrific resource for the city." Resident Carolyn Stark had the following email exchange with Ross Taylor: I have several questions to ask of you. 1. How do candidates view community schools in general? Favorably 2. If you support the current community school model, why do you support it? From the Quality Schools Study several years ago, the citizens indicated that they wanted a combination of magnet and community schools. I support their wishes. 3. What would you tweak? We need to do more than tweak. For openers, we need to develop a vision for community schools. We need to overcome the mistaken idea held by some that magnet schools are more deserving of financial support. 4. Do you see closing "open areas" as a priority? Closing open areas is a goal. We need to work with community to determine how well and how soon we can accomplish it. Given budget constraints (scarce funds for new school construction, and most of that going to serve a pressing north-side need), how would you alter the current community-school network to close open areas? We need to engage the communities involved to provide input for a plan. Your interest in improving our schools is very much appreciated. Ross Taylor Resident Doug McCarron's dispatch after speaking with candidate Kathy Kosnoff: I spoke with Kathy Kosnoff last Saturday, Oct. 20. In response to the question of if closing open areas is a priority, Kathy stated that there are 20 open areas in Minneapolis. Kingfield/East Harriet is simply more vocal about this issue than other open areas. She feels that the three choice solution (two community, one magnet) is a fair compromise. According to Kathy, of the 52 Kindergartners from Kingfield that enrolled this school year, 38 received first choice, 12 received their second choice. This is 96% overall placement of children in first or second choice schools. Kathy does think that in the future, this policy of three choices should be monitored and that the parents from the open areas should have a way to communicate to the school board how well it is working. At a school board candidate forum on Oct. 22, resident Doug McCarron asked about "open attendance" areas and how important the candidates thought it was to get designated community schools for these areas. Here is his summary (he paraphrased what he heard): 1.. Patrick Peterson - Said that the open areas should be closed. He stated that the three guaranteed choices is a band-aid solution. He would work with neighborhood businesses to lease facilities for classes to establish neighborhood schools in open areas. 2.. Kathy Kosnoff - The open areas do not justify more schools. A community school in the Kingfield neighborhood is not an option. She feels that the three choice solution (two community, one magnet) is a good solution. Stated that 73% of Kingfield kindergartners received their first choice. 3.. Evelyn Eubanks - The open areas are mostly in more affluent neighborhoods. She would like to see city wide school choices granted along the lines of the three guaranteed choices given to students in open areas. She feels that students in closed areas are faced with attending sub-standard schools, without other public school options. The competition under a three-choice policy for all would motivate those sub-standard schools to improve. 4.. Ross Taylor - Feels that all students should have additional choices. 5.. Dennis Schapiro - Rather than providing more choices for students in closed areas, create school environments that all students have confidence in. Closing Kingfield/East Harriet open area is not a priority. 6.. Sharon Henry Blythe - We need to fix the schools we have. But feels that there should be additional choices for all of the neighborhoods in Minneapolis, not just open areas. * * * |
