Waiting in Pittsburgh: Why won't local schools partner with Propel to help disadvantaged students?
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The new film "Waiting for Superman," which opens in Pittsburgh this weekend, already has created a stir nationally. Producer and director Davis Guggenheim, whose previous credits include the film version of Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth," has now zeroed in on the misery of American families whose children are assigned to failing public schools. The film follows five students and their families in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles as they seek one of the coveted spots in a high-performing public charter school.
The film includes a sad Pittsburgh segment, as Bill Strickland, CEO of the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild and Bidwell Training Center, describes what it was like to come out of Oliver High School, identified as an example of one of the country's many "drop-out factories." The scene ends with a shot of Western Penitentiary, where Mr. Strickland says many of his classmates ended up.
In Pittsburgh, as in other cities and poor rural areas across the United States, thousands of families are assigned by geography to schools where few students succeed. And powerful forces in public education often prevent these families from pursuing a better option. I know this situation all too well because I am president of the board of trustees of Propel Schools, which operates six nonprofit public charter schools in Allegheny County.
Compared to their peers in the school districts where they live, Propel students are 35 percent more likely to be at grade level and African-American students are 52 percent more likely to be at grade level. Despite intentionally targeting students in need -- 75 percent of Propel students are economically disadvantaged -- Propel is attaining academic achievement typical of middle-class districts and in some cases even better.
Students at Propel McKeesport scored 90 percent proficient or advanced on state tests, which is consistent with performance levels at top-performing school districts like North Allegheny, Fox Chapel and Mt. Lebanon, despite the fact that 84 percent of Propel McKeesport students are economically disadvantaged.
The U.S. Department of Education recently recognized these achievements with a highly competitive $3.4 million award to permit Propel to replicate its model. The demand is obvious: 2,000 children attend Propel schools, but another 2,000 are on Propel waiting lists.
One might think that, given this proven record of success, local educators would be inviting Propel into their communities. On the contrary, traditional public school districts throughout the area have sought systematically to block Propel's expansion. Every district where Propel has tried to develop a school has opposed it, first by the local school board denying the initial charter application, and then fighting Propel's charter application at the state appeal board and, in two instances, even taking the case to Commonwealth Court.
First Published October 13, 2010 12:00 am
