>>I have participated in the discussion about education topics on this list quite >extensively since I joined it about a month ago. Where have you been?<<
Actually working on the issues. I am the Deputy Director for a alternative school within the Minneapolis Public Schools, President of the local chapter and Vice President for the region for Morehouse College's national alumni association, President of the Mpls/St. Paul UNCF Interalumni council and a board member of Loring Nicollet Bethlehem Community Centers which have alternative schools and have worked with a number of notables and organizations on educational testing disparities, achievement gap, resource allocation. I even helped with the reopening of St. Peter Claver Catholic school in St. Paul. I could go on, but that's not really my point. My point is let's deal with the issues. I'm not certain if you're actually reading your notes Doug, but you keep taking quotes out of context and much of the statements are inflammatory. For example, in your December 5th reply you said: "By implication, if your kid doesn't turn out fine, it's probably because the parents are falling down on the job." standing alone like that, one would assume that you were saying the same thing that you're accussing Lynnell of. More quotes: "Other kids are doing bad because of their lazy, shiftless parents." "...the "academic achievement gap" between white and black students, for example, can be completely eliminated without also eliminating poverty and racism." These are all things that you've said, and when taken out of context as you seem to be doing with Lynnell and now my comments, they can portray you in a different light than someone who actually cares about the school system and is a lifetime member of the NAACP. You didn't like Lynnell's article, that's your prerogative, but instead of attacking her for your interpretation of what was or wasn't in the article, why don't we take the ideas you think were missing and start talking about the nature of the problems and what the solutions are? Let's talk about the differences in resources that you mentioned between Edina schools and Minneapolis schools. How can we address this? What about the achievement gap between students of color and students in poverty and white or rich students? What do you think are some good, attainable measures for addressing that? As a candidate for school board what can you do to address these things? I'd be real interested to have a discussion that centers around the issues and maybe in here we can develop some good solutions that someone will carry to the school system. Jonathan Palmer Stevens Square-Loring Heights _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
