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.
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