It's been kind of hard to tear attention away from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Heath Morrison's sudden departure this week (Here's the latest, in case you're not up to speed).
But students are still in classrooms and issues that faced the district in September and October are still relevant now. One of those is school overcrowding and enrollment growth. You'll recall that this issue reared its head just a few weeks ago when CMS put out its early projections for the 20th day of school. The district said it had thousands more students than it expected to have. The district as a whole grew by about 2,500.
I was able to dig up school-by-school data to find out where the growth in CMS occurred. I compared the official 20th day numbers the district posted recently with the first principal's monthly report from the last school year.
Here are the five schools that had the largest increase in students by percentage, and the five schools that lost the most. I chose percentage because the schools that had the largest increases in number of students all tended to be high schools (since they have more students in general).
Largest increases:
1) Garinger High, up 365 students, or 26%
2) Allenbrook Elementary, up 77 students, or 16%
3) Dilworth Elementary, up 89 students, or 15%
4) Sterling Elementary, up 78 students, or 13%
5) Sedgefield Middle, up 84 students, or 13%
Garinger grew significantly after the board voted in February to send most traditional high school students at the Cochrane Collegiate Academy to Garinger to create the iMeck magnet program. Allenbrook Elementary is in west Charlotte, and Sterling Elementary is at the intersection of South Boulevard and I-485.
Largest decreases:
1) Winget Park Elementary, down 535 students, or 54 percent.
2) Cochrane Collegiate Academy, down 275 students, or 28 percent.
3) Hawthorne High, down 43 students, or 24 percent.
4) Cato Middle College High, down 40 students, or 20 percent.
5) Berewick Elementary, down 102 students, or 15 percent
Palisades Park Elementary opened this fall in the Steele Creek area to relieve the overcrowded Winget Park. For the explanation on Cochrane, see above. Hawthorne High transitioned from being an alternative high school to a medical career magnet.
Overall, 90 schools grew, and four were new. You'll notice that Olympic High's schools are a little funky because they changed up some classifications.
Posts
91 comments:
cms is the laughing stock of the state caught with their pants down on the morrison firing and the weak lies that followed after that crushing defeat tuesday.
there is no other way to look at it and clearly they want a new flavor as superintendent. cms attorney battle led the charge with mccrea and the usual minions.
on another note why did obama and holder stop the fbi investigation in its tracks at cannon only? did they find out a lot more than they wanted?
foxx and watt in on it too with barnes?
morrison was the guinea pig like gorman.
and since when are apartments a building boom as frazier's diversion indicates? apts only bring in tons of unwanteds to hasten the pace toward the inevitable new detroit of the south. where is new business? where are new jobs?
bj
I would like to see enrollment numbers per overcrowded school. We are busting at the seams in south charlotte.
.
SEDGEFIELD MIDDLE IS EXAMPLE OF NO COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN CMS AND CITY
HIGHER ACHIEVING STUDENTS
Sedgefield is going to go from the bottom of the performance heap to the top of the list of best schools. Why? Because the City of Charlotte created a whole new town within a town: SouthEnd. The new residents are much different than the ones two blocks over on S. Tryon.
For signs of this new life just go to the intersection of Poindexter and S. Blvd around bell schedule time at Sedgefield. Students stream from the new Condos along the Blue Line. Often you’ll find them hanging out in the McDonalds at that intersection. Also include the Burger King at Marsh Rd.
FAILURE
However, this is a sign of failure by CMS and the City to manage growth…absolutely no coordination between the two about the pressure that was going to happen at Sedgefield. Wonder if those new SouthEnd residents would be happy if CMS had to send their children over to Marie G. Davis?
MARIE G. DAVIS IS THE SOLUTION
CMS tore-down the old MGD and built a beautiful school that had absolutely no nearby students. Its boundaries and classification have changed several times. At the moment it is a military magnet. In less than 5 years it will probably be a K-8 school serving those students who can’t fit into Dilworth, Sedgefield, AG and those who years ago would have gone to Spaugh.
Bolyn McClung
Pineville
.
...One of those is school overcrowding and enrollment growth. You'll recall that this issue reared it's head just a few weeks ago when CMS put out its early projections for the 20th day of school. The district said it had thousands more students than it expected to have.
Here we go again with the "OMG we're so overcrowded" BS.
Dunn, looking at the numbers you posted for growth and declines above, CMS actually has 302 FEWER students in that scenario.
Adding up the "growth", you get 693 more students in those schools.
Adding up the declines, you get 995 FEWER students in those 5 schools.
All CMS is doing is swapping spit between those schools, creating more classroom space in those schools where students were taken out.
I'm going to keep hammering the MIE/Coulwood debacle until people's heads explode. This is a perfect example of total mismanagement of CMS resources and tax dollars and willful overcrowding in one school while draining another.
And Ann Clark says she's going to "restore trust"?...That is so laughable. She's been part of the FAILED CMS experiment for how long now? Why hasn't she been a crusader or whistle blower and blown the lid off the shenanigans herself before now? My trust in her is as much as I have in Morrison or any of the BOE members.
Here's another farce in all this.
Gorman closed schools to save money during the budget crisis. Students were reassigned to schools that were in some cases underutilized, but when Morrison came in, he started opening these schools back up. Now CMS is telling us they are overcrowded again?
Ann Clark will be no different than the last 10 superintendents.
Until we get people who are willing to get over race, income, geography and "diversity" and restore discipline in schools and ENFORCE it, not one thing will change.
Oh and Dunn? One more thing and this includes Ann as well.
For years I have been reading on this blog countless comments from teachers and other employees about how principals, zone superintendents and other CMS admin have been treating them with disrespect.
Now there is horror and jaw dropping disbelief that our wonderful CMS Superintendent was doing the same thing?
Many readers have insisted on the Observer Education staff investigate these allegations, but I don't recall ever seeing an in-depth report on this culture going on within CMS.
Maybe now would be a good time to consider it.
White Wash pure and simple. Many still upset about not getting the loser from Memphis.
Will the last common sense person turn out the light as they leave CMS.
Teachers can be fired on the spot by CMS but they have to put in a 30 day notice if they expect to ever work in education around here again.
How does Morrison effectively quit within less than a week ?
Nice job Board of Education. When is the next election ?
Teachers need too come together and vote the school board out. The Ivory Tower has been bullying teachers for years. I have seen principals yell at teachers. This is BS..
From what I hear the new Ivory Tower recruits liked Heath. They have just left the schools and the classroom. They liked how he was getting them out of their cubicles and into the roles of teacher support. Heath wanted the redundant useless paperwork too stop. Ann and her coven never have seen paperwork they didn't like. The old guard didn't like having to dirty themselves in schools. I Never saw Peter Gorman in schools with students, unless it was a scripted event. Heath was about students and teachers. Wake up folks!!
Andrew, the eye opening story for overcrowding is the classrooms in the non-urban schools. When classrooms are so full that students do not have desks and the teacher can not move around to help with questions, then you have the disaster of educating the group of kids who have the best chance of saving this country.
Lastly, do you hear the drums beating yet for a black superintendent?
Wiley is correct. Case in point, Cornelius Elementary 2008-2010.
http://www.wbtv.com/story/10002630/cornelius-es-teachers-want-principal-out
http://www.charlottepulse.com/archive_papers/lnhw/lnhw2008_09_12.pdf
http://corneliustoday.com/older-archives/Bye_Bye_Burford-a-668.html
Wiley, Amen regarding your MIE/Coulwood comment! There was no detailed budget attached to that proposal either.
The MIE Coulwood thing is just crazy. 8yr olds are going to lunch @10:30 and not being dismissed until 3:45. 9&10 yr olds are in the old trailers by the side parking lot all day locked out of the main building. They knock on the side door of a K or first day class to be let into the building to use the bathroom. And this is being done in the name of "saving the school" from the influx of charters. Who wants to send there kids to a place like this? They claim to be the premier school in NW Charlotte... Ha!!
For those of you who didn't see my comments over a year ago about the MIE/Coulwood joke, here's the gist of it.
MIE was overcrowded from day one. At one point, there were over 24 mobile classrooms at MIE with people screaming about overcrowding.
MIE sits on a little over 16 acres of land. Couldwood sits on almost 31 acres with sports facilities, which MIE does not have.
Now, CMS in their infinite dumb wisdom is making MIE into a K-8 STEM and also Couldwood a STEM, yet is LOSING students. These two schools are 8/10ths of a mile apart.
In order to accommodate all those kids at MIE, guess what? MORE MOBILES.
To top that off, MIE will use Couldwood's athletic facilities.
Way to go CMS and BOE!
Stay thirsty my friends...
Andrew, which CMS schools are overcrowded and over enrollment? I know of several in south charlotte that would be on the list.
Without a doubt Battle and McCrea and the usual suspects already lined up Morrison's replacement in the works for 2 yrs now. Morrison was never anything but a fill in token for 2 yrs but the mid term caught them of guard.
Everybody knows hometown "Mo" is next up unless their plot causes to much of a swirl while they rig another faux interview process.
They still have trusty ole card if there is to much heat but that is doubtful since the obligatory CO article and cartoon pretending to act shocked has already run. So predictable. Nice try.
Inching more and more towards the new Chocolate City as ex-Big Easy mayor Ray Nagin called his hometown but now ironically in jail like another
ex-mayor on his way.
BOE- why was Heath guilty before proven innocent? The BOE is hiding something.
Now I am mad, really mad and I am going to turn up the heat to HIGH and some people are not going to like it from the School Board to the Principals and Administrators.
You better get your act together because there will be no shortage of people willing to help me fry some butt.
10:27, welcome to the world of Mecklenburg County, the BOE and the underworld of community organizers. The uptown crowd is always nervous when it comes to decisions affecting blacks in this community. They are scared of any angst exposed in the public media about how blacks may feel any victimization in this community.
This is of black oriented politics as exposed in the Detroit bankruptcy proceedings and the current Washington executive branch. Deflect, ignore, and if pressed by the court, flood Congress with 64K pages about Fast and Furious, and yet to begin Benghazi, IRS, etc. now that the Senate will be engaged in 2015.
Wonder if we will ever get to hear Heath's side of the story?
Wiley,
I can't speak to much of what you are saying regarding CMS or the state of west side schools, however I think you are absolutely correct with this statement, you nailed sir!
"Until we get people who are willing to get over race, income, geography and "diversity" and restore discipline in schools and ENFORCE it, not one thing will change."
Wiley, I think you will see that 30.5% number shrink, in most of the CMS schools, it already has. Look at Harding, West Charlotte, West Meck, Garinger, North Meck, Vance and Mallard Creek.
Hopewell is well on it's way to joining that esteemed group of schools at the bottom of the ladder. The middle class, for the most part, has left CMS, as a consequence, CMS will continue to struggle!
There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things. For the reformer has enemies in all those who profit by the old order, and only lukewarm defenders in all those who would profit by the new order, this lukewarmness arising partly from fear of their adversaries … and partly from the incredulity of mankind, who do not truly believe in anything new until they have had actual experience of it.
– Niccolo Machiavelli
We'll never learn what Dr. Morrison did, yet, anyone coming in the change the CMS culture is going to have a challenge on their hands....
Wiley,
There are two middle schools in SOuth Charlotte that feed Ardrey Kell High School: JM Robinson and Community House Middle School.
JM Robinson has an enrollment of 1,077 students, and Community House has an enrollment of 1,577.
Why CMS is loading CHMS with 50% more students then JM is beyond me. This directly and very negatively affects the educational experience of the children attending CHMS.
We realize there is no plan to build another MS in the South Charlotte area to relief CHMS of this burden, yet why can't CMS balance the student load more equitably between the two schools?
Jay M. Robinson Middle School
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Jay+M.+Robinson+Middle+School/@35.063336,-80.783309,969m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x885427bf38986fd3:0xce6912b83d1300a4
Community House Middle School
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Community+House+Middle+School/@35.036157,-80.823885,970m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x885682b19fce615d:0x6d2932062806ff4d
All one needs to do is look at the Google map view of each of these middles schools to see there is room next to each for expansion.
So, why is one so severely overcrowded?
We always hear about the overcrowding but never about the schools thate are underutilized.
Whitewater sat there vastly underutilzed until Gorman closed schools and forced the issue.
Yet all we hear is "explsove growth" or we need to pass more bonds....the cycle never ends...
CMS schools are in trouble Wiley, you have eluded to this in many well written posts.
I would suggest people refer to this Charlotte Observer article from Nov 2013. While the report did not intend to do so, it demonstrates the relationship between low test scores and demographics. In essence, the schools with more white kids perfomed much better than the schools with more black kids.
Morrison eluded to this in one of his last comments published in the CO. He commented that if he could get better students attending some of the lower performing schools, then those schools would perform better. In reading between the lines, he was basically saying CMS needs more whites kids in the schools.
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/11/10/4455377/cms-high-schools-lagging-in-new.html
3:43,
Great point.
Some even suggested the "white" students are "educational resources" for the "non-white" students, and thus the never ending demand to "diversify" the CMS classrooms.
3:43 and 4:23,
What everyone misses is that the "white" student population is declining in CMS, and at some point there won't be enough white students left to make a difference.
WHY IS THE AUDREY KELL HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL DOING COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIP MEETINGS IN HIS SCHOOL'S NEIGHBORHOODS?
Could it have anything to do with the drug problem at his school?
Ardrey Kell School Leadership Team Meeting Minutes September 10, 2014
Mr. Switzer will be speaking to the Bridgehampton neighborhood on October 6. Need contacts in Ballantyne Country Club, Providence Country Club, Weston Glen, Stonecreek Ranch, etc. to set
up future town hall type information sessions.
Ardrey Kell School Leadership Team Minutes August 27, 2014
Community Relationships
• Parents to reach out to other AK families in their neighborhoods
• Schedule “Town Hall” meetings – Mr. Switzer to come out to neighborhoods to meet with parents
ARDREY KELL HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL DAVID SWITZER TO VISIT OUR NEIGHBORHOOD
Wednesday, November 5th at 6:30 p.m.
Stephenson Room at Ballantyne Country Club
Mr. Switzer encourages AK parents in our neighborhood to participate in this event to find out about what’s going on at our high school, ask any questions you may have, and learn more about his goals & plans for the 2014-2015 school year.
um, what fire is he trying to put out?
Move Elon Park to JM Robinson!
Ann Clark is not CHANGE
She is part of the old gaurd and will go along to get along. She is part of the white wash crew that helped destroy and effective leader.
Many in the community can read between the lines even without the public having information but from the CMS side of things.
Change will be coming in the form of votes and teacher walk outs in the future.
The Observer has so much work to do with CMS. I think not only do you continue to put as much heat on CMS about Heath leaving as you can but I really think you need to investigate the free lunch program and look it the corruption there.
We live in the Mallard Creek High School zone and having basically a 50% of students in this program makes absolutely no sense. Every house zoned for that school is $180,000+ and you do have a few apartments zoned to that school. The fraud that I know is going on with that program makes it very hard to believe anything these schools do.
So maybe you can "start from the feet up" as they say.
TO: ANON 4:59
If you're going to make boundary recommendations, at least make ones that are geographically correct.
Elon students would have to ride past Community House to get to Robinson.
Polo Ridge is on Tom Short Rd. That road dead-ends on Ballantyne less than a mile from Robinson.
However, there is no solution for the increasing student population that stretches from Elizabeth Lane ES to Ballantyne ES save new construction. Some might say it stretches to new Bain ES.
The best solution would be the one used by the County in 2006 when it sold COPS to fund new construction in the Ballantyne area. Of course the County swears it won't use COPS again. That leaves 3/5th bonds and Paygo...or on the very fringe Public/Private partnerships.
In order for the public to convince the county to build more schools faster, there must be a well-informed public.
Bolyn McClung
Pineville
.
Take a look at this election map and you'll see why CMS is and will be in decline for sometime to come.
An island of blue surrounded by a sea of red.
http://www.politico.com/2014-election/results/map/senate/north-carolina/
Where are you going ot get the money? Keep raising taxes?
anon 4:58
Have you ever seen Up in Smoke?
Bolyn McClung,
Polo Ridge already feeds Jay M Robinson MS.
Plenty of room for trailers there where the woods are right ext to the school....
Does it really matter if Elon Park has to pass CHMS? What other options are there? NONE-because you know they won't build another MS in south charlotte. Unless you want to go all crazy and change a lot of boundaries including adding a lot more to South Charlotte Middle. What are they at now? 700?
Why is CHMS the dumping ground in South Charlotte? UNFAIR
Can someone ask the AKHS principal why students eat on the floor for lunch and there aren't enough desks in classes?
Anon 4:26pm...
'Some even suggested the "white" students are "educational resources" for the "non-white" students, and thus the never ending demand to "diversify" the CMS classrooms.'
And to think that we actually look down on "primitive" people for sacrificing their most perfect children to the gods.
We're so much more civilized now, aren't we?
Wiley,
'Until we get people who are willing to get over race, income, geography and "diversity" and restore discipline in schools and ENFORCE it, not one thing will change.'
So true.
But the real problem is that so many people benefit from things this way that it is very unlikely to change.
And anyone who tries is likely to be drawn and quartered.
The Machiavelli quote above (that's Makaveli for the "urban" crowd) comes to mind as a timely reminder.
Public schools are just part of the welfare state mechanism now.
If people aren't on the dole, they're part of the support staff for the dole and so benefit that way (CMS IS one of the largest employers in the county for those who may doubt this.)
Which brings up the problem of people knowing how to vote themselves more of other people's money.
Which is yet another secondary root of the problem why things aren't likely to change.
7:13
You fail to mention that South Charlotte M.S. has a "split-feed" assignment plan between South Meck. and Providence High.
Are you suggesting a "triple split-feed" assignment plan for South Charlotte M.S. between South Meck, Providence High and Audrey Kell?
Oh, and let me remind you. The neighborhood directly across the street from Calvary Church off of Hwy. 51 happens to be assigned to their "neighborhood school" - Myers Park High.
Not likely your dog's gonna' hunt anytime soon.
Alicia
It seems as if CMS is run about as effectively as the Charlotte Observer.
What reporter is on the education beat now? When will they get someone to do some actual investigation and not rely upon the information that comes from the PR department? How can one of the largest employers in Charlotte get away with having the leader be dismissed and all for what? The Charlotte Observer si going to report that he called a secretary names? Really? Is the secretary inept? Did he have to kick a little but for a change in the Ivory Tower? Did a leader actually ask someone to get off their but and do something? How long did Ann Clark know about the costs overunns and what did she do about it? How many projects in CMS have had cost overunns in the past? What is Shelia Shirleys role in all this and when did she know about the overunns?
Is the next job for Andrew Dunn in the PR department of CMS?
Is the next
8:29, do not forget to in include the Department of Social Services and the support staff of most of the city and county government.
Lastly, wonder why city bonds never fail? Most that vote, do not pay property taxes directly. And most of us that are taxpayers, also have to up our share to pay for all the Section 8 vouchers here.
The district said it had thousands more students than it expected to have. The district as a whole grew by about 2,500.
Did CMS "really grow"?
If you go back to 2005 and go forward with all the future plans for buildings, enrollment etc., CMS should have about 160,000 students by now.
They constantly missed their mark.
Regarding those 2,500 "extra students", they were always there, right?
Initially it was projected that CMS would lose that many - mainly due to CMS putting out a terrible product many parents don't want to have their children a part of and said they would opt for charters as an alternative.
So the numbers didn't pan out.
CMS then decided it wants to be in the charter-like business as well.
I wonder why?
Hey South charlotte, sit down, shut up and pay your taxes.
Alicia 8:40, no I think some have suggested in the past to just move some of JM Robinson to S Char MS, the ones going to ProvHS already. Then move some of the Commhouse MS kids to JM robinson, the ones who go to AKHS. It could work.
Alicia-I could care less if a school has a three way split on to high school. I am more concerned with the overcrowding of Community House. Apparently CMS isn't though.
I'm also concerned about students eating their lunch on the floor and teachers not having enough desks. Too bad no one else is.
Dunn-great personalized learning story. NOT
Local tv reporter mice scamper to the rescue as a few teachers now claim to be dissed to yet cant explain why nobody said a word until after Battle and McCrea got caught red handed. Who ratted? (Morrison?) (Gorman?)
Has any school attorney or board bank accounts been audited? Anybody been paid off ?
Its not like there has been a shortage of pay for play or payoffs as of late in high places. Will they voluntarily turn over their records?.
Was 5'7" 140 lb Morrison such a big bad boogy man as they say with no real proof? Wheres the video? Any recordings? That's weird if such a big problem.
And Morrison had a clean spotless record at Reno Washoe school system for many yrs and other places? Same for Gorman.
Do the good ole boys & girls not have to rig the gap to keep those ransom billions rolling in plus keep the plebes fighting?
If the gap closes the money closes equally does it not?
How would Jesse & Al or Barack & Eric shake down all those mean nasty money grubbing capitalist Wall St corps if not for the trusty trillion dollar prize ransom "gap" or "card" ?
These shysters make the mafia look like choirboys. The game is rigged and race is big business in America. WC Fields said a sucker is born every minute.
Suckas ...
7:51 You suggest moving the kids at Robinson who will attend Providence to South Charlotte Middle to free up space for more Ardry Kell kids. You might want to look closely at the assignment map for Robinson. The Providence bound kids all live off of Ballantyne in neighborhoods across the street from Robinson, with many of them walking to school. (Sidewalks recently put in on Ballantyne to make this safer). Are you suggesting that walkers should become bus riders? This situation reminds us of how siting, planning, and assignment were done here for many years. Let's not go back there (although I think those who predict that another middle school will not be built in far south Charlotte despite the need are probably right--again vestige of past assignment battles)!
Andrew, Could you please find out which of Morrison's pet projects will stay and which will go with him?
Hint: Personalized Learning???
Hey Anons 7:56 and 9:34, the story on personalized learning is not dead. The Morrison news overtook it this week. I also want to make sure the program is still on course with the new superintendent.
I also want to make sure the program is still on course with the new superintendent.
Which program Andrew?
Personalized learning, Anon 9:44.
Why do you want to make sure the program is still on course with the new superintendent?
I didn't realize you had a dog in the hunt!
Anon 9:49, no dog in the hunt for me. If CMS is deciding to scrap personalized learning, it's a much different story than if it's still on track.
Why dont you personally learn what the heck is going on at the Board of Education and at the Ivory Tower for a change. Stop relying on misinformation,false statistic data and PR smoke.
Oh, silly me!!
I thought you had an personal interest in Personalized Learning continuing.
My bad for not realizing the material Personalized Learning gives you to work with.
When can we expect you to report on what it's actually doing to Hawk Ridge Elementary School and not simply repeating talking points provided to you by the school staff?
In the Wall Street Journal this morning:
States Told To Set Plans For Equality In Teaching
~~The Excellent Educators for All Initiative~~
...On Monday, federal officials told states to use federal data and their own analysis to come up with solutions for poor and minority students. A white student is four times less likely than a black or Native American student to be in a school with more than 20% first-year teachers and three times less likely than a Latino student, according to the US's Civil Rights Data Collection.
"We want great talent in the classroom regardless of where the classrooms are" said Catherine lhamon, assistant secretary for civil rights in the Department of Education...
Interesting how this will play out in CMS.
Another wasteful, federal government edict that has ZERO chance of being implemented or having any success.
I'm still waiting on what the definition of "great talent" - is...
CMS has appx. 43,500 white students out of 145,000 total students and 160 +/- schools.
Again, CMS is running out of white kids.
Here are the enrollment numbers for the South Charlotte middle schools mentioned earlier from the CO link below.
School: Community House Middle
Asian: 14.0%
Hispanic: 10.7%
Black: 13.0%
White: 59.6%
Enrollment: 1638
School: Robinson Middle
Asian: 14.3%
Hispanic: 6.4%
Black: 8.3%
White: 68.7%
Enrollment: 1101
School: South Charlotte Middle
Asian: 9.9%
Hispanic: 7.3%
Black: 11.6%
White: 68.1%
Enrollment: 881
Community House Middle School is larger and more diverse as well.
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/06/06/4959114/charlotte-mecklenburg-school-demographics.html#.VGIsYPnF98F
Looking at the enrollment numbers from the South Charlotte high schools, it's easy to see AKHS and SMHS have far higher student counts compared to PHS.
Seems as though Robinson Middle, South Charlotte Middle and Providence High School could relieve the South Charlotte middle and high schools of some of their overcrowding.
School: Ardrey Kell High
Asian: 13.3%
Hispanic: 7.1%
Black: 12.9%
White: 63.9%
Enrollment: 2511
School: Providence High
Asian: 9.2%
Hispanic: 5.6%
Black: 8.7%
White: 72.9%
Enrollment: 1972
School: South Mecklenburg High
Asian: 3.1%
Hispanic: 25.1%
Black: 28.4%
White: 40.0%
Enrollment: 2710
Butler has 500-700 fewer students, as well......
School: Butler High
Asian: 3.9%
Hispanic: 16.6%
Black: 30.9%
White: 44.0%
Enrollment: 2056
Andrew,
What is the chance of an article highlighting the CMS schools that are well beyond their original intended student limits?
This article is great in its' highlighting of the student growth in these schools, but fails to address the subject of the severe overcrowding that exists in too many CMS schools.
Here are the CMS schools that grew the most
How about the following article:
Here are the CMS schools that cannot grow anymore.
The numbers presented by some of you with regards demographics at of the high schools on the south side relate to my post from yesterday at 3:43. look at the demographics of these schools and then compare them to the test scores of those schools.
CMS has lost white families in large numbers and continues to do so by not addressing the issues that are important to them. Over crowding being one of them!
CMS has lost white families in large numbers and continues to do so by not addressing the issues that are important to them. Over crowding being one of them!
CMS' sales tax initiative failed at the polls Tuesday, so they'll conjure up some new scheme to shake the suburban money tree, yet the needs of the crowd they're shaking down will be left un-addressed and the "white flight" will continue.....
1:22 and 3:43,
Your points are all well made.
Yet, CMS couldn't care less, because the inner city, urban crowd's needs supplant those of every other demographic group represented in CMS - and thus the declining numbers among those who can leave.
CMS,
Instead of changing the approach to teaching every other year or so, how about working harder to achieve more equitable student/teacher ratios across the district?
Leave the basics alone!
Community House Middle
2014 Enrollment: 1750
2013 Enrollment: 1630
Student Increase: 120
Increase: 7%
Jay M Robinson Middle
2014 Enrollment: 1101
2013 Enrollment: 1106
Student Decrease: -5
Decrease: 0%
South Charlotte Middle
2014 Enrollment: 856
2013 Enrollment: 887
Student Decrease: -31
Decrease: -3%
Ardrey Kell High
2014 Enrollment: 2701
2013 Enrollment: 2518
Student Increase: 183
Increase: 7%
South Mecklenburg High
2014 Enrollment: 2913
2013 Enrollment: 2732
Student Increase: 181
Increase: 7%
Butler High
2014 Enrollment: 2081
2013 Enrollment: 2069
Student Increase: 12
Increase: 1%
Providence High
2014 Enrollment: 1991
2013 Enrollment: 1993
Student Decrease: -2
Increase: 0%
AKHS could have 5,000 and so could CHMS. CMS still would not lift (ha ha-lift) a finger to assist.
Doing a story on personalized learning so late in the year after people have been begging for it seems odd. Parents have already donated big bucks on carpet and chairs Dunn. Too little too late.
So think about it, Comm house MS is almost as big as Providence HS, give it another year and it probably will be.
Wiley, don't be too sure that CMS won't try to move the "good" teachers to lower performing schools via govt edict. Now those schools will get 3x the money and the good teachers. Just watch the mass exodus then.
7:51
I'm just pointing out the absurdity.
Also, you'd be foolish to underestimate the strong political influence of South Meck., East Meck, Providence and Myers Park who all desire exactly the same thing for their high schools that "racists" in the Ballantyne area desire. In the end, it's all about securing the most educated families.
Messing with South Charlotte Middle School's current assignment plan is a minefield of complication impacting at least three high schools.
Get ready to fasten your seatbelt.
Alicia
Wiley,
"A white student is four times less likely than a black or Native American student to be in a school with more than 20% first-year teachers and three times less likely than a Latino student, according to the US's Civil Rights Data Collection."
I wonder how much of that is due to things like Teach For America and other "heroic" attempts to educate the urban crowd.
And, of course, the other types of incentives (such as hardship pay, or whatever they call it) specifically designed by the gubmint bureaucrats to encourage people (most likely YOUNG people) to teach in urban schools.
Of course, there is the "experience" factor that probably inspires many older, more experienced teachers to run from the "problem" (having probably experienced a taste of it before).
Will anyone sort THAT out for us?
This sort of "statistical" discrimination BS stinks of "disparate impact", doesn't it?
Maybe the whole TFA was a scam to get these kinds of statistics for someone to "do something about".
It wouldn't surprise me as our gubmint often causes its own problems in order to expand its various fiefdoms.
Remember, y'all:
"I'm from the gubmint and I'm here to help..."
Alicia,
I hope you are not calling the people in Ballantyne racists, I hope you made the comment in the spirit of sarcasm.
I pointed out the relationship between low academic performance and minorities for a reason. White families and middle class families in general have been leaving the cms system for years. As a result you have the majority of the schools in CMS serving mostly minority children, thus those schools struggle. With respect, please don't say how charters are better, they aren't. The same article I provided in my post from 3:43 also includes charters, and guess what, the charters that focus on minority students have shown abysmal results as well.
Anon 1:38pm.
"Yet, CMS couldn't care less, because the inner city, urban crowd's needs supplant those of every other demographic group represented in CMS - and thus the declining numbers among those who can leave."
Of course.
Because that's where there's more political "hay" to be made.
No one rises to the top by catering to those who are capable of helping themselves.
The surest way to the "top" of the education heap nowadays is to have some miraculous story about how you can "save" the urban crowd.
Even (or especially) if they don't want to "save" themselves.
No one gets rich, famous, or powerful (or even the occasional lucrative speaking gig) by improving education for those at the top (or even middle) of the heap.
Because our government is all about the numbers (of votes) and most of the numbers are at the bottom of our society now.
Oddly enough, the real money in gubmint for most bureaucrats comes from catering to the 99% (not the 1% as many would like us to believe).
Even though they are USING MONEY from the 1% (or, realistically, the 20%).
Most clever educrats know on which side THEIR toast is buttered.
And unlike most of us, it's the bottom.
Shamash,
It's not that complicated.
The quality of any school can be determined by the percentage of teachers who have their own children enrolled at the same school they teach at.
Teachers will not enroll their own children at a marginal school. In fact, teachers are less likely than anyone to risk sending their own children to a school loaded with 22-year-old TFA domestic peace corps recruits or Project "LIFT Way" Stepford employees.
Alicia
Alicia,
"The quality of any school can be determined by the percentage of teachers who have their own children enrolled at the same school they teach at."
Now THAT would be an interesting statistic. And it makes sense from my experience as well.
Of course, enough teachers would need to have school age children for that to be significant.
Shamash, you bring up a good point about TFA's I never could understand. I saw one report a few years after CMS started using them and the only area they were any better than the traditionally trained teacher was middle school math. Then when I thought about it some more, I realized the demographics had more to do with I would bet. As our infamous Ms Leake would say, when are the teachers going to look like the students they teach.
Secondly, TFA teachers put a huge workload burden on the rest of the teachers especially their assigned "mentor".
Lastly, TFA's are exactly the last people Judge Manning said should be put in these urban classrooms. Just when they've acquired enough experience to be any good, the vast majority is gone. Many of these did their "time" just to get their student loans paid off. Don't get me wrong here though. Most were the brightest and best in their colleges. But with the job market the way it was, the carrot with debt being paid off and some resume enhancement some companies talked about being interested in, the obvious is what happened.
So as we've seen from the late "Strategic Staffing" program, the TFA program, and Project Lift, there have no sustained programs dreamt of with unlimited funding that have pulled off this new Obama-Holder directive.
So if you think teachers left CMS due to pay or whatever, you've seen nothing yet like the exodus you will see if they try to force school assignments.
So the community organizers better get their kids straightened out and force them to behave civilized if they want to see any betterment in their lives. But of course they will not because the community organizers would have no relevance if they can no longer scream victimhood. Welcome to Detroit of the South.
Shamash,
In my mid-20's before having children, I very distinctly remember coming home from my new job at a high school in Prince George's County MD and informing my husband that I would NEVER send our future children to the school I worked at. It was that bad despite the fact that I loved what I was doing - teaching dance.
My father (a retired public school superintendent) and husband strongly encouraged me to quit the job I had in Prince George's County MD after visiting the school I taught for.
Where teachers send their own children to school is an interesting matter.
Alicia
Prince George's County presented me with a teaching award after working for the system less than 6 months.
My gold plague - which I still have - reads Alyshia.
Alicia
8:59 Alicia, I would not agree with your statement. I personally know several CMS teachers who send their kids to Non-cms schools. And the teachers I know who's children attend "their" school is mostly due to family convenience.
Apparently not everything is rosy in the burbs, why else would a busy HS principal feel compelled to have neighborhood meetings in south charlotte? Is this the new community outreach/teacher home visits we've been hearing about?
No, it's due to the lack of respect by the overindulged students, and the dismal lack of character shown by students and parents that have led to so many "social" problems in and out of school. The urban areas may have their own issues, but the burbs are full of problems and a basic apathy on the part of students and parents.
Glad I don't have a dog in the hunt here.
To the comments about the overcrowding at some of the schools in south Charlotte, there are so many new homes and apartments being built in the Comm house and ardry kell area I don't know where all those new kids will go to school.
Take back our schools...
I would classify a LOT of what I see in the public schools today as PR stunts with little intent to expand them into real workable solutions to so many problems.
There are just so many little projects out there that don't seem to be designed to help students as much as the careers of the educrats whose names are assigned to them.
It's a bit sad but public education has become a quick road to fame and riches for the few who are willing to play that game.
It's all about giving the crowd what it wants to hear in most cases, too.
Just look at all the "supermen" and "courageous conversations" and similar bright shiny trinkets that fill the (over-)paid speaking circuit.
Everyone who wants to be at the top seems to be clamoring to be part of some "high profile" project or the other to get their name out there.
And to move on to the higher bucks, of course. As a consultant, or founder of some "movement" or the other.
Because that's how the REAL game of "education" is apparently being played today.
It reminds me a bit of the "megachurch" and "prosperity" thing that hit a certain subset of religion not so long ago.
People just instinctively seem to know where there is money to be made.
And I don't think it was always like that.
Take back our schools...
"As our infamous Ms Leake would say, when are the teachers going to look like the students they teach. "
I really don't have a problem with that.
Provided the courts don't then turn around and decide that "disparate impact" has resulted in a "poorer" education for those teachers and students who "look like" Ms. Leake.
Because I'm always suspicious that change directed by all those good social-engineering intentions won't get the best results.
It's a bit like putting those TFA newbies in the "needy" schools and then complaining about the "needy" schools having the least experienced teachers.
Well, big DUH on that one...
If you start putting all the black teachers in the black schools again, that starts looking like re-segregation.
And one side of their mouth says that's bad, while the other supports MORE of it?
Typical double-bind mindset.
If my kids were struggling, I'd rather them have the most qualified teacher, but, then I'm funny that way.
I don't think the politicians out there really care about the final results in education as much as the political hay they can make from all the fuss over "issues" they create.
Andrew, are any of the schools with the largest student increases over capacity or over enrollment?
Post a Comment