Even as CPS opens more new schools, children with special needs have a tougher time finding options. Placements in private therapeutic schools are scarce, and some charters are reluctant to enroll them.
Right Now On Notebook
By:
By:
By:
By:
Current Issue
Checking Out The New Catalyst
By: Alexander Russo / November 05, 2007
No surprise, the first thing to catch my eye is the wonkiest of the stories: Top schools grow less diverse. "The biggest drops are in the highest performing schools—Young, Jones, Lane, Payton and Northside—where the black student population has declined by 10 percent since 2000." As always, I love the neighborhoods stories (and the maps!). This one is about Albany Park (Albany Park: A legacy under pressure), and includes an update on the ASPIRA- Haugan thing. What did I learn from Comings and Goings? There are some new Broad Fellows at the Board to do their evil work. Vivian Loseth won an award. Michael Lach has changed to a new job. And more - contracts and all of that stuff. Also as usual, the cover package -- a series of stories on middle school interventions (Building up the middle) -- seems the least engaging part. I want them to be doing more sexy, investigative things -- digging deep, mucking around, posting secret documents -- in a balanced way, of course. Or more embededed school-level reporting. But that's just me.
Checking Out The New Catalyst
Random thoughts on the article Top Schools Grow Less Diverse:
As I understand it, the percentage of African-Americans in the city and in CPS are both shrinking relative to other groups, most notably Latinos. Could the shrinking numbers of black students at the selective enrollment high schools be a function of that trend?
Don’t proximity to a school for convenience and the city’s segregated nature play a big role in this issue? The SEHSs with the lowest percentages of black students (Lane Tech and Northside) are also deep in the heart of neighborhoods with low African-American populations.
Doesn’t the accompanying graphic reflect that the percentage of black students at all the SEHSs is down just a hair from seven years ago, and is actually up from 2006? This doesn’t seem to be a strong illustration of the problem.
Why is there no concern expressed over making Lindblom, King and Brooks more racially diverse