The Black eye in New York City's Education

Good job New York City!
    Cathy Black was granted the waiver needed in order to become New York City's first female School's Chancellor DESPITE the fact that she does not have any educational experience and DESPITE her appointment of a more qualified candidate as Deputy Chancellor.  Ahhh.... the magic of the golden knee pads!
    There were numerous protests in opposition of Ms. Black getting the waiver needed for the position of Chancellor.  Correction.... there were numerous SMALL protests in opposition to the waiver being granted.  What was needed was a mass protest involving all parents, teachers, administrators, community leaders, and anyone and everyone that has a passion or love for the educational system.  New York City should have been shut down completely!  Instead, the small protests went unheard and the waiver was granted. 
    This illustrates my point... parents and community leaders need to become more involved in our educational system as a whole.  Public schools and charter schools that are Department of Education chartered need to pay close attention to the transition that is about to take place the next coming school year.  Many of our schools, particularly in the underprivileged communities, are falling victim to the rising standards and the lack of resources that are keeping our American children far below par in comparison to those in other thriving countries.  Our parents, community leaders, and those in the educational sector must step up and take the extra steps in order to keep our children in this educational game of "cat and mouse".  Our parents need to be a teacher at home.  The education that a parent can teach a child goes far beyond that learned in any classroom in any educational establishment.  Our community leaders  need to pressure city governments to not use our children as pawns in this politics vs. education chess game and ensure that everything possible is done to keep our schools open.  Mentors and other members of the educational sector should open themselves, along with their experience and knowledge, to offer assistance to those youth that are having difficulties in certain subjects and educational topics. Our communities must do more to get more.
    This is going to be the biggest test for the upcoming Mayoral election.  Our voices can be heard loud and strong by opposing any candidate that is in favor of Mayoral controlled schools.  The power of the vote isn't illustrated strong enough or used very often, but if this new candidate does not perform to her fullest intent, then the power and voice of the vote will receive a new wind... raising higher than any flags can fly.

It takes a Public village to raise a child

       In recent months and years, there has been a lot of chatter concerning the state of our educational system today.  Since the introduction of charter schools to the New York City educational system, there has been an ongoing debate as to whether or not charter schools are better for our children than public schools.  While parents and community leaders are entangled in this debate, more and more public schools wind up on the chopping block allowing charter schools to infiltrate and take over the vacant spaces left behind.  I can remember a time in which a child's education was a collaborative effort.  The teachers worked with the parents to ensure that their children got the best quality education.  Times have definitely changed. There is a new separation in order, and it's becoming a cancer in our educational system.  The separation: money vs. quality. 

    Many of our charter schools are privately funded.  This means more opportunity, more programs and more educational resources than that of the public schools.  Sounds good, right? Here's the monkey wrench: Your child has to be accepted via lottery.  That means a "random drawing" exists to choose which student attends which school.  Any child not accepted to a school must register their child to their local public school, if there is one to register to.  There are five charter schools appearing to every one public school that closes. The gut-wrenching fact is that most of the public schools that are being closed are in the minority communities.  Why is that??... because the collaborative effort to educate our children has dissolved and disappeared. 

    In order for our public schools to prosper, parents must get involved in any way possible.  Getting involved means more than being at the school volunteering or joining a PTA, it means getting your children up on time to go to school;making sure that they have the tools needed to have a successful day;checking homework and classwork and ensuring that it's complete;sitting down with your children and discussing the days events and keeping on top of  your child's progress; attending open school nights and meetings, even to the point of making random visits to your child's teacher to check on his/her progress; keeping on top of the teachers and administration to ensure that the safety and well being of your child's education  is not being compromised; and most importantly making your voice heard at all costs.  By keeping a constant presence in the schools, there can be no excuse for a child's failure.  The more children succeed, the less chance of school closures and charter school invasion in our communities.   

   Not only do we need our parents to be a constant force, but we need our community leaders involved with the effort to keep public schools open in our communities.  Our Councilmen, Assemblymen, and Congresspersons need to get heavily involved in maintaining free and unbiased access to education for our next generation.  By uniting with the parents of the community, it can happen and make a strong difference in the progression of our youth.                                                                

    I am not against charter schools at all.  I am against, however, the sudden invasion that has taken place in our impoverished communities.  Public schools have been a way of educational life for many years.  If the lack of community involvement continues, there will be an overwhelming stronghold in the education system that will not be able to be reversed.  I am charging parents, educators, and politicians of our impoverished communities to band together to give our children a chance at success.  The wealthier communities could care less if our children are educated or not. Fear is not stricken with violence, the strongest fear is stricken with intelligence!