By Smita Ghosh

Nashville residents are skeptical of district promises in new desegregation plan… Tennessee researchers find that state’s schools remain “separate and unequal”… Missouri court hears arguments on wording of anti- affirmative action ballot initiative for 2010….The American Prospect advocates interdistrict transfer programs… Staten Island parents note lingering racial inequality in treatment in schools… California schools and districts brace for budget cuts… Troubling NAEP score analysis reveals stagnance of high school performance.

Trust is an issue with Metro’s school rezoning plan

The Tennessean – May 18, 2009

Some Nashville residents, including Marilyn Robinson of the local NAACP, are skeptical of the district’s new student assignment plan, particularly of the district’s promise to devote resources to schools in low-income neighborhoods.  The district has promised $5.3 million to 10 schools, most of which are in North Nashville, seeking to fund a 5 percent pay increase for teachers, smaller classes, additional social workers and school counselors.  The atmosphere of mistrust arises from the fact that the district has reneged on some components of the 1998 desegregation agreement, including a promised lab school and funding for enhanced education programs.

School Desegregation: 55-Year Progress Report

Channel 9 – May 18, 2009

Researchers at the Ochs Center For Metropolitan Studies find that a “separate and unequal” education system still exists in Tennessee, 55 years after the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision.  Ochs Center officials blame Tennessee’s district-based school funding formula, which gives more tax dollars to rural schools than those in urban and suburban areas.

Anti-Affirmative Action Suit Heard

KMWU – May 19, 2009

On May 19, a County Judge in Cole County, MO heard arguments from two organizations regarding Secretary of State Robin Carnahan’s description of the MoCRI’s anti-affirmative action ballot initiative.  The Missouri Civil Rights Initiative argued that Secretary of State Robin Carnahan distorted the original intent of their ballot question, while the ACLU is suing because Carnahan’s language isn’t “strong enough.”  Carnahan removed the phrase “preferential treatment” from the MoCRI’s original language.

Across District Lines

Tapped/American Prospect – May 18, 2009

Reviewing Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s decision to enroll his children in Arlington, VA schools, Dana Goldstein discusses the importance of interdistrict transfer programs.  Goldstein claims that “research shows that the educational outcomes for middle-class kids who attend ‘bad,’ socioeconomically integrated schools are similar to those of middle-class kids who attend ‘good,’ mostly white schools with little discernible poverty,” and advocates federally- supported programs that allow all families to “share the fruits of suburbia.”

Brown’s Promise Unfulfilled for Staten Island Pupils, Forum Told

Staten Island Advance – May 20, 2009

At a May 19 forum on Brown v. Board of Education, Staten Island parents and community members gave examples of educational inequality based on race. Many parents said their children get treated differently by teachers because of their race. Parents also said they felt unwelcome in their children’s schools and left out of important decision-making procedures, and wanted the city to hire teachers of color and mandate diversity training for existing school staff.  Parents also complained of racial inequality in special education assignments and discipline decisions.

Schools Prepare for Devastating Losses of Funding

The Los Angeles Times – May 21, 2009

After voters rejected ballot measures on May 19 that would have restored state funding for schools, educators across California are preparing to increase class sizes and cut jobs and programs to accommodate $5.3 billion in budget cuts over the next 13 months.  The Los Angeles school board, which is scheduled to vote on a final budget by July, may eliminate summer school, reduce after-school programs and switch some employees to a 10-month work year.  Other districts are considering filing for bankruptcy, an action that would, in previous years, have lead to a loan from the state, though this might now be impossible.

The Mystery of the Stagnant Teenager

The Seattle Times – May 18, 2009

The editors of The Seattle Times review the 2008 results of the National Assessment of Educational Process (NAEP) and find that, in comparison to results in the 1990s, student performance on Math and Reading exams has improved for fourth and eighth graders, but not among students in high school.  The editors wonder why educational benefits seem to be lost for teenaged children.