School Board News
The school board voted to close 12 schools and create 4 magnet schools. These schools will be 7-12th grade. Wallace will be a science and math academy, West Side will be for gifted and talented students as well as a leadership academy. Roosevelt will be reopened as a career center. Wirt is one of the schools that will be closed and then reopened as Emerson VPA. All of these secondary schools will have to be reconfigured to accommodate these programs. At the November 10th finance committee, it was suggested that students will have to test to see if they have the aptitude for the specific academies. If there are too many applicants for any one academy, students may be put in a lottery to see who could attend. As presented, this plan proposes that local students would have to qualify to attend their local secondary schools. There will also be a cost to reconfiguring the schools to keep the 7th and 8th graders separate from the high school students. Students will be bussed all over the city at what cost. Where will special needs students go? Other issues: Research shows that for a magnet school to be successful, it must have the support of the community and the teachers. It also states that teachers must be trained so that they have the skills needed for these magnet schools. Has the school board hired a consultant to see if these proposals are feasible in a school district our size? Is there any other school district with only magnet schools? If a key factor for the success of a magnet school is community support, that support is lacking in the 1st District. Parents want their children to go to their local school. The school board would get more support from the parents if they would change their plan to having a school within a school, also known as themed schools. For our community this would mean having the Emerson students come to Wirt. Another plan that is being proposed by the president of the teachers’ union would have Roosevelt become the middle school for the entire district since it is the most central school. Keep Wirt, West Side and Wallace open either as comprehensive high schools or themed schools. This plan alleviates some of the concerns parents, students and teachers have expressed about having middle school children attend the same school as high school students. This plan would mean there would not be a need for reconfiguring the buildings. As residents of the 1st District, we need to become involved in education issues even if our children are grown. First and foremost, we pay for these decisions with our property taxes. We all understand that parents with young children want good schools. Too many of them leave Miller when there children reach school age or send them to other school districts. This creates a less stable community. Good schools help all of our property values. It is not enough to say that the Gary Community Schools are inadequate. Attend school board committee meetings at 620 E. 10th Pl. This is where the community can ask questions and effect policy. For a full schedule follow this link: http://www.garycsc.k12.in.us/BoardMeetings.php
Story posted: 11/1/2008
The school board voted to close 12 schools and create 4 magnet schools. These schools will be 7-12th grade. Wallace will be a science and math academy, West Side will be for gifted and talented students as well as a leadership academy. Roosevelt will be reopened as a career center. Wirt is one of the schools that will be closed and then reopened as Emerson VPA. All of these secondary schools will have to be reconfigured to accommodate these programs. At the November 10th finance committee, it was suggested that students will have to test to see if they have the aptitude for the specific academies. If there are too many applicants for any one academy, students may be put in a lottery to see who could attend. As presented, this plan proposes that local students would have to qualify to attend their local secondary schools. There will also be a cost to reconfiguring the schools to keep the 7th and 8th graders separate from the high school students. Students will be bussed all over the city at what cost. Where will special needs students go? Other issues: Research shows that for a magnet school to be successful, it must have the support of the community and the teachers. It also states that teachers must be trained so that they have the skills needed for these magnet schools. Has the school board hired a consultant to see if these proposals are feasible in a school district our size? Is there any other school district with only magnet schools? If a key factor for the success of a magnet school is community support, that support is lacking in the 1st District. Parents want their children to go to their local school. The school board would get more support from the parents if they would change their plan to having a school within a school, also known as themed schools. For our community this would mean having the Emerson students come to Wirt. Another plan that is being proposed by the president of the teachers’ union would have Roosevelt become the middle school for the entire district since it is the most central school. Keep Wirt, West Side and Wallace open either as comprehensive high schools or themed schools. This plan alleviates some of the concerns parents, students and teachers have expressed about having middle school children attend the same school as high school students. This plan would mean there would not be a need for reconfiguring the buildings. As residents of the 1st District, we need to become involved in education issues even if our children are grown. First and foremost, we pay for these decisions with our property taxes. We all understand that parents with young children want good schools. Too many of them leave Miller when there children reach school age or send them to other school districts. This creates a less stable community. Good schools help all of our property values. It is not enough to say that the Gary Community Schools are inadequate. Attend school board committee meetings at 620 E. 10th Pl. This is where the community can ask questions and effect policy. For a full schedule follow this link: http://www.garycsc.k12.in.us/BoardMeetings.php
Story posted: 11/1/2008
