A proposal made earlier this year for a military academy within the Rochester City School District continues to draw support and criticism.
School board President Van White recently sought advice from Paul Vallas, a nationally-known superintendent who has worked with the Chicago, Philadelphia, and New Orleans school systems. Vallas is both hailed and derided for opening numerous charter and military schools.
White is pursuing answers to tough questions raised by the school board after the release of a feasibility report on the proposal earlier this year. Finding funding for the school is the biggest concern, he says.
“Paul knows the various revenue sources available for something like this,” he says.
White is exploring a possible collaboration with the Greece school district, but that idea is only in the discussion phase, he says.
The city school board has heard from anti-war activists who are passionately opposed to a military academy. And some board members aren’t enthusiastic about it, either.
Board member Liz Hallmark questions the need for any new school, given that the district’s student population is shrinking.
And the district is trying to shift to a restorative justice school culture, which contrasts sharply from the disciplinary approach favored by military academies, Hallmark says.
The full board has never had an open discussion about the proposal, she says. And she’d prefer that any recommendation for a new school come from the superintendent, she says.
But White is convinced that some parents and students want a more structured environment. And some suburbanites may be willing to consider the city school district if there’s a military academy, he says.
A military school isn’t for every student, but it’s an alternative choice, White says.
“I have a job to make sure every student graduates, and for some, this is a positive option,” he says.
This article appears in Dec 28, 2016 – Jan 3, 2017.
It is a huge waste of time that will never happen. The talk from Mr. White is now sooooo old. No has faith in any of his ideas. This school is not needed and never had any chance to happen. He knew this but he pushed it because it shows some attempt to promote change. The RCSD has never been in such bad shape.
Gotta Say It.
Not sure if you realized it but it took more than a year for our collaboration with this region’s largest employer (U of R) to officially begin at East High School. There were times where some, like yourself, said what the Board of Education was attempting to do with the U of R at East “will never happen”. But they were wrong. Others had the “faith” which you claim is lacking.
They had faith, not in me, but in a thoroughly vetted and sound idea that was led (not by one person) but many. A community of people. Thankfully, because of that faith, we are seeing signs that East (which at the time was the largest and worst performing high school in our District) is finally turning the corner.
The other thing you are wrong about is that you assume that I am supporting this proposal because “it shows some attempt to promote change.” “Gotta Say It” (whoever you are) you obviously do not know who I am. That’s simply not how I do things. There have been multiple studies and multiple survey’s which show that this community would welcome such a school. So it would appear that many others do not share your view that type of school is “not needed”.
Perhaps their view points are based on the numerous examples of military academies (NOT charters but regular traditional public military academies run by regular school districts just like ours) across this country where cohorts (made up of demographics VERY similar to ours) graduate at a rate of 90 % + each and every year.
So no… this is not for “show”. This proposal is very real and should be consider seriously if for no other reason than our District only graduates 50% of our students on time. This is a shameful fact and it requires the serious and thoughtful consideration of every idea that can have an impact on our students lives in an immediate as well as in an incremental way.
Finally, Gotta Have It, whatever your true identity, you seem to have developed a jaded view of politicians. That’s truly unfortunate and sad. But here’s the thing – I have never looked at myself as a politician. Rather I consider myself to be a public servant. And while we might not always agree on everything, I feel safe in saying that my colleagues on the BOE look at themselves as public servants as well.
It is a distinction (politician vs. public servant) worth understanding. Politicians focus on “the show”. Public servants focus on evidence of success. I am confident that after we have gathered all the facts and data, our BOE will decide what is best for our students rather than what is best for adults. I don’t know what their decision will be but I do know this… The decision will not be about the show but rather it will be about success.
Respectfully,
Van Henri White
Faith has nothing to do with this. You guys are leasing the University of Rochester’s name. Give any other institution $10 million like you did the U of R and you will have more takers. And before you brag about East, why not allow the public and press inside to see for themselves? Everyone knows you guys have circled the wagons to make things appear like they are swell. As I said, there only a handful listening anymore and none of them are parents or kids stuck in your system.