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Post by T-Rex91 on Mar 9, 2011 9:50:59 GMT -5
Can someone shed some light on this for me please?
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Voters in Memphis have approved disbanding the city's school system and forcing the county to take over its education.
With all 185 precincts reporting Tuesday night, about 67 percent of voters approved the referendum to dissolve the Memphis City Schools system, while about 33 percent voted against the measure.
About 71,000 of 422,000 registered Memphis voters, or about 17 percent, cast a ballot in the election, a low turnout considering the heated discussion surrounding the schools merger issue.
Memphis Mayor A. C. Wharton spoke positively about what the surrender would mean for the city and county, NBC station WMC
"It's not a time to celebrate because the rough part of the journey just begins," Wharton said. "There might be some choppy seas and some rough air, but in the end, once this is all done, I think we'll be a stronger city and county as a result of this."
The cash-strapped Memphis City Schools board voted last December to surrender its charter and turn over control to the more successful Shelby County system, which includes public schools outside the city limits.
Opponents argue that the move was made without planning, and could stretch resources to the point that jobs could be cut.
A diverse group of Memphis-area ministers came out in support of consolidation, while local union chapters and a separate contingent of Memphis-area religious leaders opposed the merger.
The move was prompted by city school board members, the Memphis Commercial Appeal reported.
The state Legislature's Republican majority would grant the all-suburban Shelby County Schools special school district status, which city board member Martavius Jones, a financial adviser, said could lead to education taxes rising in Memphis while falling in the suburbs.
Surrendering the city schools charter effectively will lead to the consolidation of the city and suburban schools.
Memphis City Council chairman Myron Lowery said on Tuesday: “I voted equal opportunity for all the students in Shelby County. They should all be afforded the same opportunity for advancement under a unified school system.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Post by Chal™ on Mar 9, 2011 10:28:56 GMT -5
#1: You could remove the ads, 91? Had me confused for a lil minute. lol
#2: It isn't as cut and dried as this article is making it out to be.
#3: With proper planning, this could have been a good idea, but the way they went about doing things, it sucks.
Explanation: Basically, the problem is that city schools are understaffed and the kids are undereducated. The budget gets smaller every year. they cut more jobs and programs and the kids are suffering. This is mainly because although people are working in the city, they pay taxes in the county. County schools have the higher budgets, better curriculum, more teachers, better options, etc. And they are very strict on the zones. If you don't live here your child can't come here. By combining the two, they have the opportunity to restructure the school system and hopefully those city kids will be allotted the same opportunities that were offered to the county.
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Post by T-Rex91 on Mar 9, 2011 11:22:13 GMT -5
MY BAD CHAL!
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Post by Chal™ on Mar 9, 2011 11:40:01 GMT -5
LOL!!! ;D
I was like Iraq? Huh?? What theat got ta do with tha school?
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Post by Cambist on Mar 9, 2011 12:06:29 GMT -5
I agree with Chal on the notion that done correctly, this could be a great idea. Schools in the city would get a boost if they became part of a larger pool of money.
If not done correctly, under NCLB, this could be an absolute disaster where failing schools have their budgets cut and that money could be funnled to suburban schools.
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Post by T-Rex91 on Mar 9, 2011 12:10:00 GMT -5
^^^^^ or as is happening here in one of our local school districts, all of the schools being closed to generate savings are in southside minority populated areas while the northern portion flourishes. Consideration is not being given to what types of commutes that will create for the students or whether the schools could have been improved.
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Post by Rare_Commodity on Mar 9, 2011 12:21:16 GMT -5
Last night I watched the movie "Waiting for Superman" and it discussed this same type of situation. It is actually quite sad what the people are doing to the systems. It supposed to be about the children but in the end it is more about the adults and what they want.
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Post by T-Rex91 on Mar 9, 2011 12:24:29 GMT -5
OMG, that damn movie had me in tears. I cannot imagine being 8 and feeling like my whole future depends on a lottery and me being lucky enough to get picked for a good school. Crazy.
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Post by Rare_Commodity on Mar 9, 2011 12:41:44 GMT -5
I can't lie icried too. Especially when they didn't get chosen to attend the charter or private schools. I understand what the Chancellor lady was trying to do by firing the principals and things like that. TENURE I don't exactly understand why that is still around...and the school on the East Coast where teachers just SIT and wait for their hearing while still getting paid. Crazy. Our Systems are failing us.
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Post by Cambist on Mar 9, 2011 13:07:02 GMT -5
True, but when you live in a city of 676,000 and only 17% of registered voters show up to vote? I estimate that over 400,000 residents in the city are African American...I wonder how many of those who live in the city actually got out to vote. That is why people can be treated so badly.
If I whipped out my Dick and pissed on your car every day before I walked into the office because 1) it was convenient, and 2) I knew you wouldn't say anything, then why stop? Those in the suburbs KNOW that the per student spending in the City is probably higher than in the county (just because the cost is higher) so they want access to that money without actually having to accept any of those students.
We have to wake up and start giving a shit about our kids. Americans also have to wake up and realize that money is making decisions, not because "that's how it is" but because the people don't give II shits.
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Post by Cambist on Mar 9, 2011 13:48:51 GMT -5
How do you create a system that controls for parental involvement? How do we design an education system that educates each kid regardless of what happens when they get home?
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Post by T-Rex91 on Mar 9, 2011 13:55:28 GMT -5
That was the one big gap in the Superman movie, parental involvement. If we could design entire districts with active and involved parents rather than just individual schools, we could GREATLY improve the quality of education. At the schools that succeed (i'm talking primarily charter and private), parental involvement is a requirement. If the parents aren't there, the kids can't be there either.
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Post by Chal™ on Mar 10, 2011 10:16:51 GMT -5
It's really sad because these kids are getting the short end of the stick. [Some] parents these days could care less about how their kids are doing at school. Some use work as an excuse. "I can't keep taking off work to run to the school everytime the call me." Ok, if you can't go, have someone in the wings who can. Kia has to work from 7-3:30 most days. If something happens, Ja's school is less than 5 minutes from my house and less than 10 minutes from my job. You best believe they know Auntie Chal.
A lot of these parents wouldn't attend the meetings that led up to this decision. They basically said, "My vote won't count. They gonna do what they wanna do anyway" It was that kind of thinking that got us to where we are now. Not knowing what's going to happen to our schools. Not know how this will affect our kids' educations. And pretty much being uninformed about things we should know like the back of our hands.
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Post by Rare_Commodity on Mar 10, 2011 11:56:42 GMT -5
Society has placed emphasis and importance on the wrong things versus truly important things such as education, health, and financial security/independence. Back in the day education was important now the morale seems to have dropped. I am trying to figure out where did the breakdown come from? When and where did we drop the ball and devote less attention to our kids, their education and/or our own? Parents blame it on external forces its the systems fault and rarely look at internal factors. The system blames it on the parents. I believe its a two-way street but we are caught in this hampster wheel not really going anywhere.
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Post by Cambist on Mar 10, 2011 14:18:18 GMT -5
The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America says that "We the People...do ordain and establish this Constitution" "in order to ...establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare...."
India spent the last 30 years working its plan to become a destination for business by concentrating on education. China has/is investing billions of dollars in education and infrastructure so that it not only has a educated population but also a way to move them around efficiently.
China is also investing in Africa for several reasons.
We are the only highly industrialized country thats breaking it's neck to keep from looking forward. Our energy policy is unsustainable, our infrastructure is on par with many 2nd world countries, our education system is a laughing stock, our health care system is a cruel joke...oh, but we now have 201 more billionaires than we had last year. 1,010 in 2010 to 1,211 in 2011...so like Charlie Sheen...we must be winning!!
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Post by ReignMan19 on Mar 10, 2011 15:51:11 GMT -5
Greed is what fuels the USA. Education keeps the class divide wide. The lack of education keeps a large population of working and poorer class people. Which keeps the higher class smaller and able to attain more.
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Post by Rare_Commodity on Mar 10, 2011 16:20:49 GMT -5
I completely agree that we have become a land of greedy people. Greed (one of the seven deadly vices) is killing our nation. We need to get back to the basic fundamentals. Princeton professor Cornel West said ".... In Finland there are 2 teachers in classrooms of 14. Teachers receive the salaries of many of our businesspeople. 15% of their college graduates teach in schools rather than make their way to Wall Street to be millionaires. They reflect a fundamentally different set of priorities in America. And if we don’t adapt to those priorities, we will continue to scapegoat, demonize & thereby undercut the morale of our teachers." www.facebook.com/notes/dr-cornel-west/my-critique-on-waiting-for-superman-and-the-education-debate/10150089733233351 |
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