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School Committee to Roslindale parents: Tough it out
By adamg on Thu, 03/04/2010 - 8:27am
The Globe reports the Boston School Committee last night put off any action on a proposal that would turn the Irving Middle School into a sort of Roslindale-only destination for the neighborhood's K-5 schools, after civil-rights activists complained it would mean a return to neighborhood schools. Parents argued Roslindale is one of the city's most diverse neighborhoods and that it is the only neighborhood in the city without K-8 schools. Also, Roslindale schools would remain open to students from other parts of the West Zone.
Ed. note: Yes, we live in Roslindale, but the issue doesn't affect us directly because the current busing system means the kidlet goes to a school in another neighborhood. But props to neighbors who are willing to invest their time and effort to help turn around what has traditionally been an underperforming school.
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Comments
Link?
Considering how much grief you give the Globe about lacking links in articles about web content....
Anyway, the issue in Roslindale really applies to the entire West Zone, because any kids from the zone may end up in a Roslindale kindergarten, which automatically means they will have to again go through a lottery for 6th grade. Roslindale schools draw from the entire zone (19% of Roslindale school students live in Roxbury for example). The idea of Irving priority for Roslindale schools is that the lottery shouldn't happen twice. A student who gets into a K-8 school has a guaranteed seat for 9 years. The discrimination lies in the lack of such a guarantee for all students.
The irony is that all of this opposition to narrowing the student pool regards a school that nobody wants their kids attending in the first place. If the Irving were oversubscribed, I would be more open to arguments against this idea.
Link's right there
You had me worried there for a second - there's a link to the Globe report right in the first sentence (the word "reports," in fact). Did you by chance read the Globe story before my post? If so, I might need to brighten up the color of "visited" links.
Yeah, I was also struck by the whole damn-those-parent-who-want-to-do-something sort of tone. And, as you mentioned, the fact that this isn't really a neighborhood-school issue as a zone issue (since, as you note, Roslindale elementary schools, with the exception of that new BTU pilot school, are not limited to Roslindale residents).
My mistake!
The link is the same color as the rest of the text in my browser. Great -- how many other links have I missed? As to your question, I knew about the article but didn't see it on Boston.com, so I came to UniversalHub figuring you'd have posted something about it. Then I searched harder at boston.com and found the article.
People who believe in the importance of community input should consider attending next week's meeting. Opponents will be out in force because they are professionally organized. The plan in question was developed in partnership between parents and the superintendent. It's a step in the right direction and will likely yield some positive results at the Irving.
How blue is my valley?
Which browser do you use? Obviously, links that don't look like links do nobody any good.
Firefox 3.5.8 I'm noticing
Firefox 3.5.8
I'm noticing other links now by checking over words like "report," but they all look like black text.
Context dependent
I've noticed that occasionally too. It depends on how much black text surrounds the link (more black non-linked text = link blends in more) and I think it occasionally depends on what letters are in the link text...some seem to be more obviously colored than others. The link color is just *that* close to black text, I think. If you lightened it some, I think it'd improve how easy it is to discriminate it.
Blecch, and thanks
Will start playing with colors tonight.
Harrison Bergeron
This reminds me of a short story by Vonnegut.
No, you're not allowed to make a school better, because then somebody else's school would be worse in comparison.
Mediocrity will be strictly enforced.
Yup
That seems to be how it's working out thus far. Sigh.
Roslindale K-8 Pathway Proposal PASSED
I thought you might want to know that the school committee voted unanimously tonight to pass the K-8 proposal which the Superintendent proposed with the support of the IAG. :)
The Roslindale schools now have their K-8 pathway!!
Karen Kast-McBride
Irving & Mozart Parent
IAG Member