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A rare perspective from a woman from a community much like ours:
Chances are that some of the 25 percent of American children on food stamps are attending school in a neighboring district, where the vast majority of students come from disadvantaged backgrounds. But these kids might as well live in another country for all the attention the parent volunteers at most middle-class schools pay them. I’ve never received a note in my inbox requesting I read stories to boys and girls whose parents don’t speak English, or to raise funds for schools where more children receive federally subsidized lunches than not. The only time I hear about poor kids is when our school holds its annual coat and food drives.Maybe we need to create sister-school designations in Loudoun to encourage parents to volunteer at schools with higher populations of economically disadvantaged students. This was exactly the plea made by Catoctin and Balls Bluff elementary schools in Leesburg this spring, and pledged by Tolbert & Frances Hazel Reid if I recall correctly. How is that working out?
[Why I'm Sick of Volunteering at My Kids' Wealthy School]
12/10 Update: A little birdie whispered in my ear that it's neither accurate nor polite to refer to schools as rich and poor, which I did in the original version of this post. The birdie is correct, I meant no offense by my shorthand reference and I have rephrased it.
9 Comments:
It's not working out. Remember the FHR PTA volunteered to throw money at the problem? As soon as the decision was made not to redraw the Leesburg boundaries, the offer mysteriously disappeared.
We wouldn't need to pair wealthy and poor schools if the School Board did their job to ensure that one or two schools did not serve as a dumping ground for the most needy students in Leesburg while creating a "private" school that draws from the most affluent neighborhoods in Loudoun County.
-Greg Kelly
Leesburg is not that big - there is NO REASON for 2 of the 8 schools to bear such a financial and low-volunteer burden, when the other 6 schools do not have these problems.
Catoctin and Balls Bluff have not asked to be paired with wealthier schools, just that our boundaries within Leesburg be balanced and fair. It is not a matter of proximity, it's a matter of fair districting. Look at the map.
Our PTAs have met, and it has certainly helped me realize what our school is missing that these other schools have. Catoctin's test scores are the lowest in Leesburg (below County average in every test). Our PTA budget is anywhere from $25,000-$50,000 LESS than the other 6 schools. Our volunteer base is much smaller. I suppose another school could give us money or volunteers, but why, when all the School Board has to do is BALANCE LEESBURG!
Jill Drupa
I believe the concerns represented in Leesburg are valid and part of the solution might exist in boundary adjustments. Everyone needs to pay attention to the boundary policy changes being proposed that would, if approved by the Board, move demographic balance down on the list of priorities, behind proximity and HOA influence.
Parent groups could work together to share resources. There is inherent awkwardness in approaching other communities with either requests or offers of support that might require a third party instrument to help facilitate communication between school communities.
Doesn't Vermont require schools to share the funds raised by volunteers with the rest of the state? Because of the difference in wealth b'twn places like Stowe and White River Jct?
It is sad that children are caught in the middle of the political horse trading that goes on. Personal agendas and hubris should not trump what is in the best interest of educating all children. The imbalances must be addressed now and cannot wait another two or three years.
I encourage everyone to thoughtfully read this article that captures the state of many LCPS schools and share it with friends, as I did.
Experience as a PTA president (former),organizer, and volunteer in EL supports the author's perspective. While there have been some initiatives addressing ESL family literacy in one cluster, the overriding tunnel-vision mindset focuses on "our students" and the others exist only during charity drives, if at all.
John's revival of a proposal to create sister-school partnerships is an innovative way to assist within the community, even if you don't live on "that" side of town, or your children don't attend "those" schools.
Loudoun's overwhelming growth has created a community that's hard to recognize from the one I moved into 20 years ago. It's time to rediscover community despite boundaries.
I don't have a problem with schools helping schools with volunteer work, but I have a problem sharing funds between schools.
How do you decide how much goes to each school? Also, now instead of supporting one school, a parent now needs to support two (or more)??? I'm not sure how that would go over.
Funny when I lived in Fairfax county I was the room mom for my child's 3rd grade class. There were 25 kids in the room and only 7 had English as their first language. I went in to the classroom every Tuesday and planned every party and every classroom "extra" activity. I made phone calls to every parent- regardless of the language spoken. Sometimes many many phone calls. Sometimes parents want to participate but they feel afraid because the don't understand the language, they don't understand the culture- because in their country there was no volunteering, or simply they don't have the time because of the work schedules they had. But not one complained about being asked and not one refused to participate in an activity- whether it be baking something, sending in something or whatever. The parents in the "poorer" schools do have alot to offer, they just need to be asked. And as far as money goes- there are MANY things that can be done to get money for schools that don't have it- asking for donations or sponsorships goes along way.
If there is a way to balance the enrollment and to create diversity amoung all the schools- that is a great thing but not at the expense of shipping the kids everywhere and having strange overlapping boundaries.
Hi
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