April 7 2009  Rochester, NY -   From court case to court case:  Brown vs. Board of Education; Sheff vs. O'Neill (CT); Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE) vs. State of NY; to Paynter (G.R.A.C.E.) vs. State of NY; people of good conscience, of all colors and backgrounds have been fighting for decades to wipe out segregated schools, and fight for all school children to be provided a "sound and basic education" (as guaranteed in the New York State Constitution).   The results of these four cases have been incredibly mixed.

In the year of President Barack H. Obama, our urban public schools in this country are in a sorry state.  Sure, there have been some limited local successes; the Rochester City School District (RCSD) can quote chapter and verse about which schools have seen marginal scholastic increases over the past several years.  But everyone knows, whether by fact or gut check, what the statistics bare out:  Suburban districts in Monroe County far and away provide a better education than does the RCSD.  And to accompany that reality is this:  Suburban students start out in elementary school with greater advantages, in the classroom and at home, than does the average RCSD child.

I've driven nearly every inch of Monroe County, including the City of Rochester, and what I've witnessed is this:  We have a first-world suburban county surrounding a third-world declining city.  However, there are notable exceptions:  Park and East Avenues; The Strong Children's International Museum of Play; Parts of Corn Hill; the East End, anchored by the Eastman School and Theater, Spot Coffee, the Little Theater, and Two Vine; the Maplewood Neighborhood; and, the Browncroft Neighborhood.  My apologies to other urban bright spots I've neglected to mention, yet mentioning them would not substantially alter the fundamental problem at hand:  Urban education in Rochester (yes, in America) does not work.

For instance, in the 'first-world', at Pittsford's Allens Creek Elementary School, 97% of fourth graders passed the state's English Language Arts (ELA) exam.   By comparison, only about 57% of RCSD fourth graders, on average, passed the state ELA exams (third-world).  The English Language Arts (ELA) statewide exam began in 1999.

According to a Democrat & Chronicle article dated 9/22/06:  "Students in Monroe County's suburban districts out performed state averages on English Language Arts (ELA) assessment tests given in the 2005-6 school year for the third-eighth grades". However, ELA passing rates in City of Rochester schools between grades 3-8 were, on average, as low as 39%. 

Students in the RCSD fared even worse when we look at statewide math exams.  In the 8th grade, in the City of Rochester, students taking the statewide math exam flunked 80% of the time (2005 passing rate: 19%; 2006 passing rate: 20%).  In 2006, the passing rate for grades 3-8 in urban Rochester averaged only 33%.  In all districts, at all grade levels, whether we're looking at math or English, suburban students consistently scored higher on all these exams.  Why?

It Matters Who Your Neighbors Are     It turns out that despite widespread social criticism of the old adage and call to arms, "Keeping Up with the Jones", it really does matter who lives in your neighborhood, and with whom you rub elbows.  Take local high school graduation rates, for example.

Though slowly improving (important to note) the City of Rochester's (RCSD) high school graduation rate is about 52%.  So then, how does the RCSD graduation rate compare with our first-world suburban districts (an incomplete sampling follows):

*  Greece District:  92%

*  Webster District:  94%

*  Fairport District:  99%

One high school in particular was noted nationally.  Newsweek Magazine reported that Pittsford Sutherland High School recently ranked as the 61st "Best High School" in the U.S.  In fact, Pittsford is one of the best educated towns in all of New York State.

According to a recent article in the D & C, of those adults over the age of 25 with at least a bachelors degree, Pittsford was the second best educated municipality in all of New York State.  Among those with advanced college degrees in the 25 and up category, Pittsford dropped only one place, to third best educated municipality in the Empire State.  And remember, despite struggles to sustain even minimal population growth, New York State still boasts an enormous population (nearly 20 million, or third most populous state in the nation).

Solutions?  Good Luck     Despite the victory in state court of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE) suit against the State of New York, its legal remedy--more money for depressed urban school districts--has become a 'political football', much like what happened in Sheff vs. O'Neill (CT).  It's relatively easy for higher state courts to find for educational plaintiffs when the prescription for failing urban schools is cast as an inadequate source of financial support relative to need, and compared to top suburban districts.  But like Sheff (CT), the CFE suit is typically a hollow victory--a state court agrees with the plaintiff's logical arguments for more money for New York's failing urban districts, yet educational experts generally agree that money alone will not touch the real problem.

Our lawsuit, Paynter vs. State of New York (a.k.a. the Greater Rochester Area Coalition for Education, or GRACE), lost because it was too explicit, and therefore too close to the bone:  Plaintiffs alleged that New York State's refusal to provide the constitutional guarantee of a "sound and basic" education to all of our state's school children brought to mind uncomfortable solutions that middle class Americans (in this case, New Yorkers) are unwilling to face:  The Curse and Destiny of Geography.

Because about 90% of RCSD students are eligible for the reduced lunch program (a fraction of suburban students are), this statistic is one of many tell tale signs that geographic segregation is a disaster, especially for those on the 'other side of the tracks'.  Did you know that about 90% of low income African-Americans & poor Latinos live in the City and not the suburbs?  But when we look at the geographic breakdown of low income whites of non-Hispanic dissent, the numbers change radically:  It's about 50-50, City to suburbs.  That means, at least in Monroe County, it's not "all about economic class these days"; a politically correct left wing bromide purported by those who are fearful of talking about race in America in the age of Barack Obama.

But in the end, as long as we keep low income, usually children of color, poor performing students away from their better performing, usually white suburban counterparts, graduation rates and test scores will never change significantly, especially for the RCSD students.  Segregation never works, unless you inhabit the 'right' side of the tracks.

Christopher J. Wilmot served in the Monroe County Legislature from 1996-2005.  He is a founder of the GRACE lawsuit (Paynter vs. State of New York), which lost along racial lines in our state's highest court, 4-1.



Editors Note:  Though slightly dated, to truly understand the plight of segregated, low income, poor performing K-12 students in America, one must read "Savage Inequalities", by Jonathan Kozol.  The book is a devestating portrayal of how neglected urban (and some rural) school children are in the 'Land of Milk and Honey'.  -CJW 



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