Is there a better way to create desegregated neighborhood schools?
“Demographic changes are doing it themselves. I was the vice principal at Garfield High School between ’69 and ’76, and at that time I think probably 98 percent of black kids did live in the Rainier/Central district, but I don’t think that’s the case now. “Personally, I hope we don’t ever desegregate to be desegregating. I hope we do it around academic reasons, and social-cultural has to be part of the whole school setting, but we need to focus everything on what’s best for kids so they can succeed. [Note: the years he was vice principal at Garfield have been corrected since this was originally published] Q: Though some gains have been made on standardized tests, academic performance remains low on a districtwide basis. How can scores be improved? A: “While test scores are really important, they are not the only way to judge schools. All standardized tests don’t really measure what educators and many others think are necessary. A lot of standardized tests are racially biased and cultur
