DumpVilma
06-26-2005, 07:37 PM
Dear Editor,
Assistant Superintendent Susan Agruso is irresponsible to suggest that racial bias may lead to higher suspension rates for African-American students as opposed to Caucasian students. If she, and The Observer, would look further, the suspension rates parallel those of the criminal justice system’s rates for incarceration of African-American males versus their Caucasian counterparts. In our society, the majority of crimes are committed by African-American males; therefore, the majority of those in our jails are African-American. This number is not because of a bias of our court system, but because of the high rate of poverty and diminishing level of education within certain sects of the African-American community.
From my experience in CMS’s classrooms, those students who caused the most disruptions, got into the most fights, and disobeyed most of the rules were students who came from poverty. Additionally, when I tried to speak with the child’s parent, my calls were often ignored, my concern was disregarded, and I found that the child often came from a single-parent home. Unfortunately, there are a disproportionate number of African-American students who live in poverty and/or come from a single-parent home. This is the more appropriate correlate for why African-American students are more likely to be suspended than to their Caucasian counterparts.
To accuse administrators or teachers of racial bias as the root cause of this alarming number only guarantees that the attention needed to correct this problem will be misdirected. While the suspension numbers may decrease because administrators will be afraid to suspend a student because of an unfounded bias, the general order and climate of the school will decrease drastically because there will be more lawless students confined in the school building.
Unfortunately, many people will take this letter as a Bill James-esque rant against African-Americans or single-parent homes; however, it is not. Certainly not all African-Americans live in poverty or are poorly educated, just like not all Caucasians are wealthy and have a university education. Certainly there are students who come from single-parent homes who succeed in the classroom; however, the combination of the two, poverty and single-parent status, may lead to a greater disrespect for authority.
If you look at the schools with the highest suspension rates – West Meck, West Charlotte, Garinger and Waddell – these are schools with many students who come from poverty (look at the free/reduced lunch percentage for the school), and, I would surmise, homes with only one parent. Are these facts racially biased? Where is the racial bias that there are fewer students who attend Myers Park on free/reduced lunch, as opposed to the percentage of students on free/reduced lunch at West Meck or West Charlotte?
The Observer only contributes to this problem by not only printing Agruso’s comment, but also highlighting it in the article. Moreover, the contention that it would be better to have these lawless children in the classroom as opposed to the streets is absurd. Why should disruptive students be allowed to interfere with the education of those students who see the school as a place for learning? The rights of society must be placed before those of any individual.
Jonathan C. Golden
Assistant Superintendent Susan Agruso is irresponsible to suggest that racial bias may lead to higher suspension rates for African-American students as opposed to Caucasian students. If she, and The Observer, would look further, the suspension rates parallel those of the criminal justice system’s rates for incarceration of African-American males versus their Caucasian counterparts. In our society, the majority of crimes are committed by African-American males; therefore, the majority of those in our jails are African-American. This number is not because of a bias of our court system, but because of the high rate of poverty and diminishing level of education within certain sects of the African-American community.
From my experience in CMS’s classrooms, those students who caused the most disruptions, got into the most fights, and disobeyed most of the rules were students who came from poverty. Additionally, when I tried to speak with the child’s parent, my calls were often ignored, my concern was disregarded, and I found that the child often came from a single-parent home. Unfortunately, there are a disproportionate number of African-American students who live in poverty and/or come from a single-parent home. This is the more appropriate correlate for why African-American students are more likely to be suspended than to their Caucasian counterparts.
To accuse administrators or teachers of racial bias as the root cause of this alarming number only guarantees that the attention needed to correct this problem will be misdirected. While the suspension numbers may decrease because administrators will be afraid to suspend a student because of an unfounded bias, the general order and climate of the school will decrease drastically because there will be more lawless students confined in the school building.
Unfortunately, many people will take this letter as a Bill James-esque rant against African-Americans or single-parent homes; however, it is not. Certainly not all African-Americans live in poverty or are poorly educated, just like not all Caucasians are wealthy and have a university education. Certainly there are students who come from single-parent homes who succeed in the classroom; however, the combination of the two, poverty and single-parent status, may lead to a greater disrespect for authority.
If you look at the schools with the highest suspension rates – West Meck, West Charlotte, Garinger and Waddell – these are schools with many students who come from poverty (look at the free/reduced lunch percentage for the school), and, I would surmise, homes with only one parent. Are these facts racially biased? Where is the racial bias that there are fewer students who attend Myers Park on free/reduced lunch, as opposed to the percentage of students on free/reduced lunch at West Meck or West Charlotte?
The Observer only contributes to this problem by not only printing Agruso’s comment, but also highlighting it in the article. Moreover, the contention that it would be better to have these lawless children in the classroom as opposed to the streets is absurd. Why should disruptive students be allowed to interfere with the education of those students who see the school as a place for learning? The rights of society must be placed before those of any individual.
Jonathan C. Golden