A belated push to save Harriet Tubman
Sun photographer Algerina Perna and I went yesterday to a community meeting at Harriet Tubman Elementary, where we found a dozen staff members, parents and neighborhood residents brainstorming to try to save the school before the April 28 board vote on the reorganization plan.
The group is rushing to submit something to the board this week with ideas for recruiting more students to the Sandtown school, recommended for closure because of low enrollment and academic performance. Tubman has 190 students enrolled and space for 360, according to the system. Last year, its MSA scores took a big dive; the third-grade reading pass rate was 37 percent; in math, it was 40. Fourth and fifth grades were somewhat better. The staff members at the meeting said there's been a turnaround this year under the leadership of a new principal, and they haven't had a chance to show it.
One question I had for Lou Fields, a community activist who organized the meeting: Why didn't this group attend the COMAR hearings? He said -- echoing complaints at the hearings -- that the locations at Poly and Lake Clifton made it difficult for west-side residents to attend. He said the room was packed when Tubman had its own meeting with system officials earlier in the month.
Fields argues that the way the school closure proposal was announced was hurtful to the parents and students who learned of it on the news. He says the school, home of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra's OrchKids program, is a bright spot in a blighted neighborhood.
Most of the concerns I heard during the hour I stayed were social rather than academic: the gang-infested neighborhoods kids would have to walk through to get to their new schools, the trouble parents would have getting there. One teacher said she's worried about disruption in the mental health services that more than half her class receive. The group was searching for a hook, something it could do to make the case that it has to stay open.
There was talk of a public relations campaign, of recruiting parents who will pledge to send their children to Tubman next year, of sprucing up the school and asking Dr. Alonso and board members to visit. But I'll be surprised if the plan changes this late in the game.
Baltimoresun.com's 
Comments
At this meeting, we discussed many great ideas to make HARRIET TUBMAN ELEMENTARY a better school although it is already among the best in the state.
See videos of parents, students, community, clergy and school volunteers at HTES on April 2, 2009 after hearing on the news about Dr. Alonso's proposal to close Tubman Elementary.
We believe the process is flawed and does not permit sufficient time for hte school and community to respond before the vote deadline scheduled for April 28, 2009.
Posted by: lou fields | April 21, 2009 8:30 AM
By now anyone in the school system should know that this is how the board has and will continue to operate.
Parents, Teachers and the Community are never given an appropriate heads up as to what may occur at a school until they have already had their meetings and then bring it to a board meeting after the media tells it or too much whispering about it.
This practice will continue which is why no one really trusts the powers that be on North Avenue. This goes for the staff, parents the community and most importantly the students.
You cannot expect to have trust with so much back door politics continuing,
As with previous closings this has nothing really to do with the children but with property.
Posted by: Calamity | April 21, 2009 3:38 PM
The information was presented on March 5, 2009 and they are now just started a defense? Is it too little, too late? Far to many parents walk around with their heads in the ground when it comes to issues about BCPSS. Then when something happens to their school they act surprised and offended.
Posted by: OverTheTop | April 21, 2009 4:25 PM
" Calamity In support of your conclusion." As any engaged and seasoned parent, citizen and public school education advocate knows Truth, Trust and public citizen team work communication outreach is not the systemic strength priority of the board of school commissioners BOSC.
Major evaluation concern as the number#1 "Weakness" for the BOSC.
Posted by: My Opinion | April 23, 2009 8:36 AM