shotbanner.jpeg

March 03, 2006

Down The Ratlines

I've always felt it was one of the Democrat party's great weaknesses; the urban African-American base over which the party needs to maintain absolute control to survive, is up in arms over the miserable state of public education.

I've come to believe that this is the GOP's great unexploited opportunity; getting out ahead of the Dems on education, especially in the cities (and Cities) where African-American parents swing far to the right of the average urban parent on school issues - to the point where they're abandoning the public schools faster than the rest of us.

Katherine Kersten addresses this issue in yesterday's Opinion Journal.

Something momentous is happening here in the home of prairie populism: black flight. African-American families from the poorest neighborhoods are rapidly abandoning the district public schools, going to charter schools, and taking advantage of open enrollment at suburban public schools. Today, just around half of students who live in the city attend its district public schools.

As a result, Minneapolis schools are losing both raw numbers of students and "market share." In 1999-2000, district enrollment was about 48,000; this year, it's about 38,600. Enrollment projections predict only 33,400 in 2008.

Public school apologists respond "it's just the way the cities are going!".

Probably not:

A decline in the number of families moving into the district accounts for part of the loss, as does the relocation of some minority families to inner-ring suburbs. Nevertheless, enrollments are relatively stable in the leafy, well-to-do enclave of southwest Minneapolis and the city's white ethnic northeast. But in 2003-04, black enrollment was down 7.8%, or 1,565 students. In 2004-05, black enrollment dropped another 6%.
Now, I think that most of the traditional measurements for schools - test scores, especially - are pretty useless. So, in a sense, are graduation rates, which measure domestic turmoil and cultural values on education as well as the school system's effectiveness.

Still...:

Black parents have good reasons to look elsewhere. Last year, only 28% of black eighth-graders in the Minneapolis public schools passed the state's basic skills math test; 47% passed the reading test. The black graduation rate hovers around 50%, and the district's racial achievement gap remains distressingly wide.
And then there are the personal recommendations:
Louis King, a black leader who served on the Minneapolis School Board from 1996 to 2000, puts it bluntly: "Today, I can't recommend in good conscience that an African-American family send their children to the Minneapolis public schools. The facts are irrefutable: These schools are not preparing our children to compete in the world." Mr. King's advice? "The best way to get attention is not to protest, but to shop somewhere else."
With all due respect to the teachers who read this space (Flash and, incidentally, my father), it's almost as bad in Saint Paul.

Yep - my dad was a high school teacher for going on four decades. My mother's parents were also both teachers; Grandma Pat retired as a junior high English teacher, and Grampa Don taught science for a while until changing careers. So I grew up steeped in the culture of the public school. Until about ten years ago I personally was one of those Republicans who was a big public-school proponent.

So the public schools had to work mighty hard to alienate me.

They finally did it; I (and my ex-wife) have pulled my son out of the public school system; with any luck, my daughter will follow soon. More on that later.

Kersten notes the local phenomenon that's absorbing some of the refugees; the charter school system:

While about 1,620 low-income Minneapolis students attend suburban public schools, most of the fleeing minority and low-income students choose charter schools. Five years ago, 1,750 Minneapolis students attended charters; today 5,600 do. In 2000-01, 788 charter students were black; today 3,632 are. Charters are opening in the city at a record pace: up from 23 last year to 28, with 12 or so more in the pipeline.

According to the Center for School Change at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute, Minneapolis charter school enrollment is 91% minority and 84% low-income, while district enrollment is 72% minority and 67% low-income. Joe Nathan, the center's director, says that parents want strong academic programs, but also seek smaller schools and a stable teaching staff highly responsive to student needs. Charter schools offer many options. Some cater to particular ethnic communities like the Hmong or Somali; others offer "back to basics" instruction or specialize in arts or career preparation. At Harvest Preparatory School, a K-6 school that is 99% black and two-thirds low income, students wear uniforms, focus on character, and achieve substantially higher test scores than district schools with similar demographics.

The public school systems have been attacking charter schools for a long, long time; school district PR offices (school districts need PR offices?) ensure that charter school difficulties get plenty of media coverage (while, naturally, the growing catastrophe of the Minneapolis and St. Paul systems is spun to favor the all-stifling bureaucracy as much as possible).

Why? Oh, why do you figure?

Since the state doles out funds on a per-pupil basis, the student exodus has hit the district's pocketbook hard.
And the school system bureaucracy, as usual, is worthless:
The school board has promised to address parent concerns, but few observers expect real reform. Minneapolis is a one-party town, dominated by Democrats, and is currently reeling from leadership shake-ups that have resulted in three superintendents in the last few years. The district has handled budget cutbacks and school closings ineptly, leading some parents to joke bitterly about its tendency to penalize success and reward failure.
While conservatives (and some teachers) rail about the teachers unions, administrations bear a huge share of the blame.

But we'll be going more into that later. Back to politics:

The city's experience should lead such states to reconsider the benefits of expansive school choice. Conventional wisdom holds that middle-class parents take an interest in their children's education, while low-income and minority parents lack the drive and savvy necessary. The black exodus here demonstrates that, when the walls are torn down, poor, black parents will do what it takes to find the best schools for their kids.
Is anyone at the MN GOP listening?

Posted by Mitch at March 3, 2006 06:56 AM | TrackBack
Comments

Sure Mitch. The fact that Republicans have a hard time pulling in more than 10% of African-American votes is one of the *Democratic* Party's great weaknesses. I guess that makes right-wing religious kooks and militia members the next big growth area for liberal Democrats.

Posted by: angryclown at March 3, 2006 08:15 AM

The problem is that many (note qualifier) Black people are unwilling to listen to a White Man say pretty much anything.

If a respected Black man such as Bill Cosby speaks the truth, it causes most Blacks to have an uncomfortable moment, but very few lash out at him as an "Oreo" or "Uncle Tom."

If a White Man were to speak the truth to a Black audience, the message would be lost in the clamor over the "inappropriateness" of the messenger.

The GOP's challenge is to find young, smart, articulate Black people and lavish money on them to nurture their political careers. We need our own Barak Omabas, JC Watts, Lynn Swans.

.

Posted by: nathan bissonette at March 3, 2006 08:25 AM

Some French dude said: "The problem is that many (note qualifier) Black people are unwilling to listen to a White Man say pretty much anything."

Heehee! Gee, I wonder why African-Americans don't vote with guys like you. I'd think your observation would be an enjoyable topic of conversation, you know, if they'd even listen to a white guy in the first place. Or you could take a page from your fellow wingnuts on another thread here and talk about how the Civil War wasn't about slavery.

Posted by: angryclown at March 3, 2006 08:36 AM

AC,

Do you take this apparent reading disability of yours out on assignment with you?

"The fact that Republicans have a hard time pulling in more than 10% of African-American votes is one of the *Democratic* Party's great weaknesses."

That's not what I said. I said that the Dems (and DFL's) "All public, all the time" education focus, and inner city Afro-Americans' growing disenchantment with it, is the weakness.

I don't so much mind the constant hijacking of threads, Vobo, as much as I do the fact that you sometimes bring as much attention to detail to the issue as does, say, John Zogby.

Posted by: mitch at March 3, 2006 09:21 AM

It's true. Angryclown does tend to highjack threads, for which I apologize. Angryclown has excellent reading comprehension, though. Angryclown is only 37, but reads at the level of a 40-year-old.

You know, it occurs to me that Angryclown may be making a pest of himself. Should Angryclown give up Shot in the Dark for Lent?

Posted by: angryclown at March 3, 2006 09:41 AM

Angryclown is always welcome; while your pestilence ebbs and flows, that is indeed why I have a comment section. The Clown should, of course, expect the occasional rhetorical pimp-slapping.

My original point: While black do vote broadly left, they differ *sharply* from their white lefty counterparts in the city (and Cities) on this issue.

As you will do doubt find when Clownito starts school one of these next years.

Posted by: meeyotch at March 3, 2006 09:51 AM

That should, of course, say "While *black people* do vote broadly left..."

Posted by: Myatch at March 3, 2006 09:54 AM

As a parent of a child who finished at a Minneapolis Public High School and a child who graduated from a private high school, I am in a good position to comment on this article.

The public schools push a hard liberal bias, force students to conform to a politically correct agenda from from spirituality. The values taught are those from high atop the liberal establishment. Kids are encouraged to bash Bush and republicans and conservative Christians and pro-lifers, etc.

Private schools which have much similarities to charter schools reflect the values of their sponsors. In my case, the sponsors are the paying parents and churches.

The cost per pupil was significantly lower than the public school. This indicates that money is not a good predictor of quality. Most HS principals can tell you the same as I am about to tell you. The best predictor of quality is parental involvement. When a school reflects the values of a parent, they are much more likely to get involved. That is the reason for success and the reason that children are flocking to charter and private schools and flourishing there.

This may represent the biggest threat to the liberal establishment in many years. The children previously under their thought control are being freed. I have heard liberals rail about kids moving to private schools. Well guess what sweetie, you are reaping what you sowed.

Posted by: BJB at March 3, 2006 01:07 PM

Yes Mitch, I'm sure that most blacks favor private schools, and tax right offs for those who use them, the neo-non solution to public education. After all, those Urban African Americans I'm sure are all ready to pony up the 14k for Minnehaha or 16k for Breck. The solution is to do AWAY with broad public funding - and have everyone pay "as they go", because we KNOW just how well that worked for literacy rates in 1800.

Mitch, you've landed back on PlanetMitch again, and you need to bring the oxygen bottle next time you go.

Beyond all that, things like "Willie Horton" adds, complaints about welfare mommma's (i.e. double speak for lazy blacks), the blaming of people (like blacks) who are in the middle class of simply "not working hard enough" to be rich, and very much things like disenfranchising a bunch of voters in Florida (improperly) the vast majority of whom were black, these have most of the African American community looking at the Republican Party and saying, "Gee you use me as a racist froth point, I think maybe I'll vote somewhere else."

But explain to me Mitch, how exactly does the Democratic party enforce this "control"? You're saying they BUY?? it?? Hmmm.. you mean like tax cuts for your benefactors, which are ALSO buying patronage, or HUGE corporate welfare... yeah...
Pot, this is Mr. Kettle err... Berg, you might want to meet him.

PB

Posted by: pb at March 3, 2006 02:47 PM

"Yes Mitch, I'm sure that most blacks favor private schools, and tax right [sic] offs for those who use them, the neo-non solution to public education. After all, those Urban African Americans I'm sure are all ready to pony up the 14k for Minnehaha or 16k for Breck."

I have this acquaintance (Angryclown and I) who seems to think the same way; that the only alternative in education is some tony private academy.

It's not true!

" The solution is to do AWAY with broad public funding - and have everyone pay "as they go", because we KNOW just how well that worked for literacy rates in 1800."

Actualy, P, there's a disturbing little fact here: since the dawn of compulsory education, a little over 100 years ago, overall functional literacy rates have not risen in this country at anywhere near the rate one would expect.

Seriously; the people who are illiterate today are the same ones who were illiterate 100 years ago.

But again, P, you are reading words into my mouth - and I *strongly* suspect you never read either my post or the Kersten piece, given that everything you've said has not even been close enough to the topic to qualify as a "tangent".

"Mitch, you've landed back on PlanetMitch again, and you need to bring the oxygen bottle next time you go."

Well, let's hold off on that until the rush shipment of smelling salts gets to Planet P. *Try reading the article*.

"Beyond all that, things like "Willie Horton" adds, complaints about welfare mommma's (i.e. double speak for lazy blacks), the blaming of people (like blacks) who are in the middle class of simply "not working hard enough" to be rich..."

...are completely irrelevant to the conversation.

"and very much things like disenfranchising a bunch of voters in Florida (improperly) the vast majority of whom were black,"

And nonexistant.

"these have most of the African American community looking at the Republican Party and saying, "Gee you use me as a racist froth point, I think maybe I'll vote somewhere else."

No, P - at the moment, they don't. Because this is an area where the GOP, especially in the Twin Cities, has NOT exploited a golden opportunity. Note - it's a *criticism* of the GOP, for the benefit of the morons out there (I'm not talking about you, P - I'm talking about pinheads who think I "parrot" GOP talking points) who were unclear on the concept.

"But explain to me Mitch, how exactly does the Democratic party enforce this "control"?"

Oh, puhleeze. Obtuse much?

The Democrat party waves around entitlements, and wraps itself in the mantra of "the party of education", all the while flogging a system that is an utter failure by any rational measure.

"Pot, this is Mr. Kettle err... Berg, you might want to meet him."

And if you do, perhaps you could run over to PB's office and give him a copy of the reading material at hand - my original post, and Ms. Kersten's article. It'd help the conversation a whole lot.

Posted by: mitch at March 3, 2006 03:18 PM

PB,

Just to help focus your reading (for the first time) of the material at hand: look for the actual schools that are referred to in the Kersten article, as well as mine.

Ask yourself "are these tony private schools with five-figure tuition bills"? Or are they, perhaps, maybe, something else.

Just a suggestion.

Go forth.

Posted by: mitch at March 3, 2006 03:20 PM

Give up Shot in the Dark for Lent?

No. Certainly not.

Not just for Lent.

.

Posted by: nathan bissonette at March 3, 2006 04:44 PM

There was an interesting article in PiPress two Sundays ago that is more or less on topic.

http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/local/13900696.htm

A money comment:

Right now less than 5 percent of students of color earn a bachelor's degree from a Minnesota college within 10 years of their freshman year in high school, a recent Citizens League report noted. Many won't graduate from high school at all.

Posted by: paddy at March 3, 2006 04:50 PM

Sorry French dude. Like that mean old guy who accidentally shot that other old dude in the face, I've got a constituency of one. As long as Mitch says I'm welcome, I'm never EVER LEAVING!

Posted by: angryclown at March 3, 2006 05:29 PM

No Clown, I think the French dude was implying that Lent was not enough of a reason to give up this exceptional forum.

Posted by: Kermit at March 3, 2006 06:27 PM

Thank you!
[url=http://hpengtjo.com/drdn/mwgn.html]My homepage[/url] | [url=http://uemxmjjw.com/wjwf/nmqr.html]Cool site[/url]

Posted by: Zane at April 4, 2006 02:19 AM

Good design!
My homepage | Please visit

Posted by: Lori at April 4, 2006 02:20 AM
Post a comment









Remember personal info?
hi