Private schools, African American males and American Promise

Last week I went to Trinity Episcopal School to see  "American Promise,"  the latest education film to spark a national buzz.  (The Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture is showing it Nov. 9.)

The documentary takes on the challenges of African American males through the eyes of two boys who enroll as kindergartners in Manhattan's elite Dalton School. Filmmakers Michele Stephenson and Joe Brewster spent 13 years tracking the educational path of their son Idris and his friend Seun.

As a journalist and a parent,  I was fascinated by the chance to watch them morph from little boys cutting up in the back seat to young men heading into their separate futures. Viewers see them struggle with race-consciousness and parental pressure, learning disabilities and family tragedy, social acceptance and college admissions.

Unlike other recent education movies, such as "Waiting for Superman,"  a documentary about the Harlem Children's Zone,  or  "Won't Back Down,"  a dramatized story based on the push for parent trigger laws,  this one doesn't seem to be promoting any one solution or point of view.  One young man sticks with the mostly-white private school,  which his parents hope will be the ticket to Ivy League education and opportunity.  Another goes to a mostly-black public high school.  It wasn't clear to me which student was better off in the end.  The message can be elusive;  a New York Times movie review described the film as exasperating and intellectually murky.

But it can also be a starting point for discussion of real-life challenges that defy simple answers,  where race and class get tangled up in individual circumstances.  That's the hope at Trinity,  which filled the 500 seats set up in its gymnasium for the screening.

We've been hearing a lot about the challenges of African American males in public schools.  Trinity,  a religious school on the northeastern edge of uptown Charlotte,  also sees diversity as a crucial part of its mission.  Every year the school brings in speakers or programs designed to open minds and discussions,  not only among Trinity faculty and families but at other schools and in the broader community.

Spruill

Jabari Spruill, head of Trinity's middle school, says The Dalton School deserves kudos for opening itself to such scrutiny.  "If this film was made at Trinity,  what would Trinity families say?"  he asked.  In upcoming sessions for faculty and parents,  he'll use the film to launch that kind of talk.

Spruill agreed that  "American Promise"  doesn't offer a simple blueprint for improving the educational success of young black men.  But he said it does raise important questions.  For instance:  What kind of numbers does it take to make diversity succeed? (Trinity is about 20 percent nonwhite).

 Idris and Seun appeared to be among a handful of nonwhite students when they started at Dalton.  In the film,  both talk about feeling like they're always in a racial spotlight at Dalton,  and the parents wonder how much their son's challenges are coming through a racial filter.  Spruill says Dalton has made changes:  This year's kindergarten class at Dalton was 50 percent black or Latino.

The discussion about diversity,  cultural competence and African American males has been most visible in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools,  for obvious reasons.  It will be fascinating to see how a private school with a thirst to explore  "the way that race and class and education intersect in different ways"  contributes to the community's thinking.

Will vouchers spur new schools?

Will North Carolina see a spurt of new private schools opening in 2014-15,  when $4,200  "opportunity scholarships"  become available for low-income students?

Superintendent Heath Morrison,  no fan of sending public money to private schools,  says the Florida system that served as the model for North Carolina's new vouchers sparked a round of new private schools,  some of which closed or did a poor job of educating students.  Jonathan Sink,  the CMS legislative liaison,  said he'd expect to see area churches open schools to take advantage of the scholarships.

Morrison noted with skepticism that $4,200 a year isn't enough to cover tuition at most private schools in the Charlotte area.  The most prestigious schools,  such as Charlotte Country Day,  Charlotte Latin and Providence Day School,  run about $20,000 a year.  A study by the pro-voucher Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina pegged Mecklenburg's median tuition at $7,750 to $9,565,  depending on grade level.

Franz

Tom Franz,  head of Trinity Episcopal School in uptown Charlotte, says the scholarships will help students from families of modest means get an education at established, successful private schools.  Trinity,  where tuition is about $15,000 a year,  provides financial aid to many students,  he said,  but it's seldom enough to cover the family's full need.  A state scholarship coupled with Trinity's aid might help more students be able to stay for several years.  "This is the kind of thing that makes it doable and affordable for families,"  Franz said.

Everyone's still figuring out the details of the new program,  but Franz said it appears to be similar to the privately-funded Children's Scholarship Fund,  which he considers a successful approach.  Most independent schools aren't interested in government money if it comes with strings attached,  Franz said,  but the opportunity scholarships appear to leave the decision-making to the independent boards that run the schools.

Franz agrees with Morrison that the opportunity to get public money may inspire new schools to open,  and that some of them may be poor quality.  The same could be said of new charter schools springing up,  he said  --  some will be excellent and some will be weak.

Charter schools,  like traditional public schools,  must give their students state exams and be rated on the results  (A-F letter grades will debut in August 2014).  Morrison questioned why private schools that take tax money won't be held to the same accountability standards.

Darrell Allison,  president of PEFNC,  says vouchers aren't likely to inspire successful students to leave good public schools.  Instead,  he says,  it's a chance for students who aren't thriving to leave schools that aren't serving them well.  And his group contends that if a student gets a better education for $4,200 in public money  --  compared with more than $8,000 per pupil in public schools  --  it's not only a good deal for the family but for taxpayers.