It is a feat that Evanston Superintendent Eric Witherspoon is always bragging about in our alumni newspaper. But as the school has gotten more diverse, it has achieved the highest ACT scores (above the state and national averages) in its 135-year history for several years now. Today, Evanston High is even more diverse: Blacks are 28 percent, Hispanics are 18 percent, Asians are nearly 6 percent and whites are 43 percent. But that is not, and never was, the world we live in. It would be easy if school districts only had to admit children from well-fed, affluent families where standard English is spoken. In order to do that, school officials must take children where they are, and not where they want them to be. It means that teachers must commit to educating every child to his or her potential. Those two propositions - that schools can operate on inadequate funding to produce properly-educated students, and that diversity spells disaster - are both inherently false.Įducators often talk about achieving excellence for all students, but that requires hard, hard work. And those parents must also immediately condemn anyone who bemoans the fact that school districts are becoming more diverse, equating diversity with low test scores and failing schools. Parents of school-aged children in the Kansas City metro area should pay close attention to the discussions and maneuvering in the state legislatures concerning school funding - especially that from elected officials who are determined to starve schools of resources and justify it by saying more money does not result in better outcomes.
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