Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Lisa Raymond Wins Post Endorsement But Why?
My friend Lisa Raymond was endorsed by the editors of the Washington Post yesterday as the school board candidate that should win the District 3 seat which represents Wards 5 and 6 (The Doar School is in Ward 5).
I think I know why the Post made this choice. If you go to her web page (lisaraymond06.org) you will see that Lisa's goal, once elected, would be to make "the traditional public school system the first choice for DC families." Now why in the world would she want to do that? Why then did she spend 8 years working with the Cesar Chavez? So that parents would pick their neighborhood school.
One of the great things going on in D.C., despite all the negative reports about education here, is that now parents have perhaps the greatest options in the nation as to where they can send their kids. They can pick between 51 charters and, through the voucher program, many quality public schools which their children can attend for free.
Let's assume for a second that by some miracle that no one yet has been able to do, she is able to dramatically improve the quality of DCPS? Does it then necessarily follow that a family in Ward 8 should pick the school down the block instead of the William E. Doar, Jr Public Charter School for the Performing Arts even if the one around the corner does not offer visual art, theater, dance, and music?
Let me go further. I think it is arrogant to conclude that anything one politician will do can and should drive the decision making of parents as to the best possible place for educating their child. I guess that's why I'm not running.
PermaLink | 6:47 AM |
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I think I know why the Post made this choice. If you go to her web page (lisaraymond06.org) you will see that Lisa's goal, once elected, would be to make "the traditional public school system the first choice for DC families." Now why in the world would she want to do that? Why then did she spend 8 years working with the Cesar Chavez? So that parents would pick their neighborhood school.
One of the great things going on in D.C., despite all the negative reports about education here, is that now parents have perhaps the greatest options in the nation as to where they can send their kids. They can pick between 51 charters and, through the voucher program, many quality public schools which their children can attend for free.
Let's assume for a second that by some miracle that no one yet has been able to do, she is able to dramatically improve the quality of DCPS? Does it then necessarily follow that a family in Ward 8 should pick the school down the block instead of the William E. Doar, Jr Public Charter School for the Performing Arts even if the one around the corner does not offer visual art, theater, dance, and music?
Let me go further. I think it is arrogant to conclude that anything one politician will do can and should drive the decision making of parents as to the best possible place for educating their child. I guess that's why I'm not running.
PermaLink | 6:47 AM |
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