Pratt School, in SE Mpls, probably has limited interest to many on the list. However, I'd like to comment briefly on Michael Atherton's post. He states below that Pratt would be highly subsidized by other schools in the Minneapolis school district, and that historic preservation is a sham effort to save this "subsidized" school.
Mr. Atherton's criticism is premature at best, and the "other public school parents in the District" whom Mr. Atherton advises to keep their wallets at the ready for the benefit of Pratt can take a deep breath. In accepting at face value the MPS finding that Pratt is cross-subsidized by the other schools in the district , Mr. Atherton seems to have abandoned the laudable skepticism of bureaucratic institutions that typically he wields with such delectation. In February, when affected communities throughout the city fought the hastily forwarded school closure plan, we were dismissed by many as people of selfish interest standing in the way of necessary steps toward the long-term health of the district. Those who were roused to action, however, recognized that the plan was rushed forward by the interim administrator, so much so that it violated very minimal state laws for public notice, and was based on limited and often inaccurate data. Many of those with whom I worked to oppose the plan did not and do not object to the notion of strong steps, even where they might injure our own interests; what we objected to was that the proposed plan was random and capricious, seeming to pull its elements out of a hat and based on unexplained and obscure assumptions, in part because it did not even ask affected school communities whether the data and circumstances ascribed to their schools were correct. As a Pratt supporter and parent, I do not believe that my children should be guaranteed the existence of Pratt School regardless of the economics. But it is not yet known if Pratt is "cross-subsidized," and if so whether to a significant or problematic extent. We in the Pratt community have been working since March to obtain accurate and representative school financial data and assess them (not a simple task). In the process we have observed flaws, some substantial, in the numbers and the analysis on which the MPS closure proposal was based. I, and I think my compatriots, recognize that Pratt School has to be financially viable in order to make the claim that the MPS should commit to sustaining it. In the coming weeks we will determine what the facts are; but at present there is no basis for the conclusion that Pratt is subsidized. (I'll also note that Pratt is not a school of "80 students," as Mr. Atherton characterizes it; it is a new and growing school with a most recent year's enrollment of 80-90 students, but that will accommodate about 120 pupils when full, a fact that changes the economics considerably.) Preservation is not a sham issue. The 1896 building is beautiful, rock-solid and central to our neighborhood. As an important element of the city's history, it also has value to the community that the MPS doesn't necessarily take into account when it is just taking its properties to the pawn shop for short-term cash. The value of preservation alone would not necessarily support keeping open a school that is pouring money down a hole, were that the case, but it certainly is part of the equation and one more reason why these decisions require care. Chuck Holtman Prospect Park Date: Mon, 28 Jun 2004 08:55:10 -0500 From: "Michael Atherton" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [Mpls] Pratt Building Named as Endangered Historic Site To: "'mpls-issues'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Craig Cox wrote in The Minneapolis Observer: > SCHOOL NAMED AS ONE OF STATE'S 10 MOST ENDANGERED HISTORIC SITES > Pratt Community School, one of 10 Minneapolis schools slated to be > closed this fall due to budget cuts, has shown up on another list: > One of the state's 10 most endangered historic sites. > The Preservation Alliance cited the 106-year-old school for its > importance in the history of the neighborhood, Alliance board member > Will Stark told Jim Thorp in the Southeast Angle. Stark said inclusion > on the list will help raise awareness of the threats to the building. > Closing the school would be "devastating," said Pratt parent Darin > Warling. "This community was built around the school, the [Prospect Park United > Methodist] church, and the park. Remove one of the legs of the tripod and the > whole thing falls." Although, I support the preservation of the Pratt building, the closing of Pratt Elementary would have little impact. The elementary school has only been reopened for four years and currently enrolls only 80 students, it is in effect subsidized by other schools in the District. The campaign to save Pratt has included a number of misrepresentations as to the quality of the school based on a disproportional representation of White and Asian students. Potential buyers have stated that they intend to maintain the exterior of the building as is and there is a plan by some parents in Prospect Park to replace the District school with a charter if the School Board decides to close Pratt as planned and the Mayor has promised to help encourage a transfer of ownership that would allow a charter school to use the building. The sky is not falling in Prospect Park and neither is the Pratt building. The question is whether other public school parents in the District want to pay to maintain an elementary school of 80 students as a sham excuse for preservation. Michael Atherton Prospect Park REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
