Archive for January, 2008
NAACP Meeting With Superintendent
Pat,
When you and the organization’s president meet with the superintendent on Friday, please give her a copy of the Thursday, January 24, 2008, St. Petersburg’s Times article, http://www.sptimes.com/2008/01/24/State/Students_to_feel_crun.shtml “Students to feel crunch.” At the bottom of the article is data from the Florida Board of Governors, the organization that provides oversight for the State University System. The last group of figures show enrollment for the system from 1997 through 2006.
Click here for a Word document showing the number of blacks who received bachelor’s degrees from Florida’s public universities during the same time period. Briefly, less than 2,000 black males and less than 4,000 black females receive bachelor’s degrees annually from a system that has an enrollment approaching 300,000 college undergrad and graduate students. (Anyone want to guess how many black males from zip code 33610 are among the total students enrolled at USF? Does 27, including 4 freshmen, sound about right?)
There may be something that the NAACP and the nation’s eighth largest school district can do together to raise the volume on community-based discussions and ACTIONS related to getting students prepared for college. The gist of the Times article is that the wide-open access gates to state universities are about to close!
Article excerpt: “Better to give a high-quality education to fewer students than a mediocre degree to the masses, they say. The proposal to be considered today would direct all 11 universities to “align” their enrollment with the money available, even if it means admitting significantly fewer students starting this fall and laying off faculty members in the months to come. ”My hope would be that we tie enrollment to the funding available,” said Roberts. “Because the reality is, if you admit students who don’t get a quality education when they attend, you’ve done them a disservice. You cannot keep growing enrollment to the detriment of the students.”
In His Service,
Jason
1 comment January 24, 2008
A Better America Is King’s Legacy
The recent dust-up between presidential candidates Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama over the role of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in passing the 1964 Civil Rights Act was unfortunate but timely, occurring as it did a few weeks before the nation honors the civil rights leader on this national holiday.
A majority of Americans were not yet born when King was killed, so many fail to appreciate how their lives have been influenced by him. Children off from school today never had to attend segregated schools, sit in the back of a bus or drink from “whites only” or “colored only” drinking fountains. Neither have they ever been legally barred from a hotel or restaurant because of their race.
The America they know is more enlightened and more just, thanks in no small part to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.The nation still faces problems, but it remains the envy of the world in making diversity work. That is part of King’s legacy, and why he is honored today.
Add comment January 21, 2008
Affirmative Action and the PSAT
We are a proud people. When we screw up royally we are big enough to admit it and take affirmative action to fix it.
Long ago (in the 1960’s and 1970’s), affirmative action was a primary tool available to help black people access America’s unlimited opportunities. By the 21st century, commentaries about affirmative action have little value. We expect those who wish to access America’s unlimited opportunities to do the hard work and make the relationships with those who can help us “live our dreams.”
A PSAT Freebie The School Board of Hillsborough County pays for high school freshmen to have access to the PSAT for free in October. The State of Florida pays for all high school sophomores to take the same test for free as well. The College Board gets $12 for each student taking the test. The PSAT Score Report can give an indication of how well a student is doing towards developing the critical reading, math, and writing skills required for college access and success.
Officials at most if not all high schools arrange a time to distribute the PSAT Score Report to parents and students in January. These officials can explain what the information in the report means. With this and other information provided during the sessions, a “go-to-college wannabe” can get a clearer picture of the preparation required to get there. There are educators present during these sessions who have a sign on their foreheads, “Establish relationships with us and we will help you get there.”
It will take a new brand of affirmative action on the part of leaders in the black community to guide parents and students toward these resources. Marching and singing in January and February are great. But will “marching and singing” result in parents and students sitting down with educators to discuss the PSAT Score Report? Until it does, the College Board and its associates will be marching and singing …all the way to the bank!
In His Service,
Jason
Add comment January 18, 2008
Superintendent’s Bonus and Minority Academic Achievement
Thanks for sharing Marilyn Brown’s article about superintendent’s bonus with those on your email list. I attended the School Board meeting on Dr. King’s birthday (January 15). It is a small thing–but significant to me–that three others who have an interest in promoting academic excellence in zip code 33610 sat through most of the four-plus hour meeting with me. There are 20 more scheduled School Board meetings this calendar year (2008 School Board Scheduled Meetings). I suspect that there will be a number of other articles in the press again this year that make us wonder “How did our children get left behind while others reap the benefits generated by Title I and other funding provided to educate low-income, minority, and, indeed, black children in key urban zip codes?” Maybe we can get the Florida Sentinel to publish numbers of folks from our community who attend each of the remaining 2008 School Board meetings and write an editorial in early 2009 about the impact our presence has on the bonus the superintendent receives next year. More importantly, the editorial might highlight some of the exceptional academic opportunities available in all public schools that the black community helped guide parents and students toward.
School Chief Earns $37,620 In Bonuses
By MARILYN BROWN, The Tampa TribunePublished: January 15, 2008 TAMPA – Hillsborough Schools Superintendent MaryEllen Elia will make $290,518 this year after adding a bonus for improved student performance during 2006-07. http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/jan/15/me-school-chief-earns-37620-in-bonuses/?news-metro
Add comment January 16, 2008
Florida’s Council on Social Status of Black Men and Boys Releases First Annual Report
http://myfloridalegal.com/webfiles.nsf/WF/JFAO-7AVKYG/$file/FinalReport.pdf
Pages 25-35 of the report at this link describe the environment in which black boys learn and provide some researched outcomes. None of the committee’s recommendations “at this time” embraces the concept of paying close attention to black males with strong reading skills in urban zip codes where there are a large number of black faith-based organizations.
=======
Phone: (850) 245-0150
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum and Levi Williams, Chairman of the Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys, today announced that the Council has released its first annual report. The report covers the topics addressed by the Council’s five subcommittees on improving economic outcomes, foster care and families issues, education outcomes and health status and developing legislative review.
http://myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/newsreleases/B20CCBCCC280D205852573D1005331A5
Add comment January 16, 2008
1975 Plus 33 Years
The Sunday, January 13 Washington Post included a feature on US Army Lieutenant General Lloyd J. Austin III http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/12/AR2008011202394.html?referrer=emailarticle.
General Austin graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point in 1975, the same year that I graduated from the University of Notre Dame. Edward Maney, a high school classmate of mine from Sam Houston High in San Antonio graduated with General Austin from West Point.
Edward eventually became an Army chaplain. His last assignment was as chief of chaplains at Fort Sam Houston were he oversaw the ministry serving servicemembers recovering from Iraqi and Afghanistan war injuries at Brooke Army Medical Center in our hometown. He now leads a Baptist congregation in the zip code (78220) where I grew up.
General Austin “stayed the course.” As I read the Washington Post feature, I realized that the story has some lessons for others. Before General Austin entered West Point as a plebe, folks in the black community were talking about racism, civil rights, and what is wrong with America. Thirty-three years later, those same discussions continue.
I do not have exact data, but the Army commissioned less than 250 Regular Army Infantry second lieutenants in 1975. It established a roadmap, expecting some of us would journey along a challenging path. A few would eventually become generals, prepared and qualified to respond to the national security challenges of the early 21st century. Lloyd is about to assume the day-to-day oversight of US military operations in Iraq.
General David Petreaus, commander of US Forces Iraq, had to approve Lloyd’s assignment as his deputy commander. David graduated a year before Lloyd from West Point. He and I served together in our first Army assignments in Vicenza, Italy. Over the years, both David and Lloyd remained on a path preparing them for their current challenges. Each had mentors along the way investing their time, talents, and skills.
Thomasville, Georgia where Lloyd spent his high school years is 133 miles from Chauncey, Georgia where my late father grew up and where our family still holds reunions on Thanksgiving Day. We can be thankful to live in a country where mentors mold black males “from the sticks (country)” to go on to make significant contributions to the nation.
Perhaps we can put a check in this “I Have a Dream” box in celebration of Dr. King’s birthday!
Add comment January 15, 2008
Sharing The Dream Speech
This is the text of the “I Have a Dream” speech.
http://www.usconstitution.net/dream.html
Black men in the Coalition of Youth Activities had the opportunity to give personal copies of it to children at Carl Sagan Academy, a charter middle school in zip code 33610 on January 11.
Add comment January 11, 2008
Sharing an Attitude
Attitude This came as “My Friday Story,” a weekly email that Ms. Pat Spencer sends out. Pat PSpenFla@aol.com is the executive secretary for the local Tampa – Hillsborough County Chapter of the NAACP.
Add comment January 11, 2008
January 10 HOPE Community Center Fellowship
Student Participants HOPE Community Center Fellowship 1 10 08
Middleton High Freshmen Nicolas Rivera and Evan Regateiro; Hampton University Freshman Phoenix Raines; University of Tampa Senior Sierra Mims; University of Notre Dame Senior Justin Gray
The HOPE (Help Our People Excel) Community Center turned the lights on for us so that we could have yet another monthly fellowship to discuss academic excellence in zip code 33610.
Freshmen in Hillsborough County Schools are receiving their scores this month from the PSAT that they took in October 2007. Nick and Evan shared their scores with us and described the environment in which they took the test in October.
The college students were able to give them some insights about how to successfully navigate the complex and oftentimes challenging public education system.
This was the fourth monthly fellowship to promote academic excellence in zip code 33610. Nick and Evan are putting in the time now so that by the end of the year, they will be able to guide others who follow them toward academic excellence.
In His Service,
Jason
Add comment January 11, 2008
Black Male High School Students – Zip Code 33610
This is raw data from a Request for Information. It shows the number of black male high school students from zip code 33610 in East Tampa and the high schools they attend.
Some number of the young men have strong reading skills. Perhaps, the School District of Hillsborough County will help us identify who they are. We want community leaders and members to be aware of the students capable of taking rigorous academic classes.
Add comment January 10, 2008
