If the Somerville school system is failing that many families, and the superintendent doesn't even seem to have any interest in changing to meet these families' needs, then the only right thing to do is to grant the charter.
As long as it's not one of those for profit evil things, of course. :-)
Yes, it would be great to fix the schools that already exist, but with local politics that's rarely possible. Independent schools are far easier to change and mold to the needs of the students who go there.
And yes, the mainstream schools will lose funding, but they will also have fewer kids to serve, thus evening things out fairly well. And empty school spaces can be turned into more open ended community spaces that serve the city even more. Creating maker spaces, continuing ed classrooms (there's a huge shortage of public spaces for teaching in Somerville!), and even funky things like Sprout, Parts and Crafts, and perhaps non-profit incubators.
no subject
As long as it's not one of those for profit evil things, of course. :-)
Yes, it would be great to fix the schools that already exist, but with local politics that's rarely possible. Independent schools are far easier to change and mold to the needs of the students who go there.
And yes, the mainstream schools will lose funding, but they will also have fewer kids to serve, thus evening things out fairly well. And empty school spaces can be turned into more open ended community spaces that serve the city even more. Creating maker spaces, continuing ed classrooms (there's a huge shortage of public spaces for teaching in Somerville!), and even funky things like Sprout, Parts and Crafts, and perhaps non-profit incubators.