Powell ES?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Shepherd has the track to Deal and Wilson. McFarland is untested and not well regarded. I’m trying to move out of Petworth and into SP or another Deal feeder for this reason. Powell is well liked

Sigh. I suppose it depends on who you ask. I work at MacFarland and highly regard it...the students, my colleagues, the leadership.

[Anonymous]

Macfarland teacher - is there anything families in feeders can be doing to support Macfarland's success? My child is in a Macfarland feeder, and though they are 5 years off, I'm planning to send her there unless there is a good reason not to.

[Anonymous]

I’ll like to know as well. There was a thread about avoiding MacFarland a few months ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Shepherd has the track to Deal and Wilson. McFarland is untested and not well regarded. I’m trying to move out of Petworth and into SP or another Deal feeder for this reason. Powell is well liked

Sigh. I suppose it depends on who you ask. I work at MacFarland and highly regard it...the students, my colleagues, the leadership.

Interesting cause Other employees there have clearly stated they would not send their kids there due to behavior problems.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Gentrifying white parents like Powell and the kids seem to have good experiences. Gentrifying black parents do not like Powell.

Gentrifying Black parent here who was at Powell and hated it and am thrilled to be gone. It is a very different school for Black kids vs White kids because of the social dynamics.

+1

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately the dual language schools are bleeding Black families and I hope that the schools begin to think of strategies for actively recruiting and retaining Black families and that Black families mirror the white families that bend schools to accommodate their kids and invite DCPS Instructional Superintendents, Chiefs, program directors, chancellor representatives, etc., into their homes for wine, fireside chats, etc., to support them with developing strategies and policies to welcome more Black families into the dual language schools and increase the percent of Black students able to take advantage of the benefits of dual language education and multi-literacy

[Anonymous]

PP - that is ridiculous. Black families will never have the pull that white families have. That is the true story of racism in America. White people are able to get whatever they want, wherever they go. They can live anywhere and get governments to respond to their desires. Not so for Black people -including “gentrifying” Black people. I say this as an upper SES black family with two kids in public School. I am astounded every single day by the catering that goes on with respect to white families while the needs and desires of my family are entirely ignored. And, we have far more money and education than many of those white families.

[Anonymous]

PP- really curious..what is it you think white parents are getting that black UMC families aren’t getting? It seems like most UMC white families want tracking but can’t get it because of racial discrimination against black kids so they def aren’t getting that.

[Anonymous]

I hate to drag this out especially as it's off-topic, but it sure does feel sometimes like DCPS caters to me and my white family, where possible.

That said, I really WOULD like to know what it is that black middle class families want that they aren't getting, and if it differs from what my family of two white federal employees want out of DCPS and can or can't get, depending.

[Anonymous]

Actually, I'm just gonna put this out there as a new topic to see if it generates some discussion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry about bumping this thread...

Met the Principal at the carnival this weekend and she seemed pretty inviting which is a bit different from a neighbors perspective.

I believe she indicated shes' been there for 3 years now. Does she have a long term contract? If so, how is she remaining in that position with those PARCC scores?

We met with the principal before we decided to send our kid to Powell. The reality was quite different than what she led us to believe. /don't believe the hype.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP - that is ridiculous. Black families will never have the pull that white families have. That is the true story of racism in America. White people are able to get whatever they want, wherever they go. They can live anywhere and get governments to respond to their desires. Not so for Black people -including “gentrifying” Black people. I say this as an upper SES black family with two kids in public School. I am astounded every single day by the catering that goes on with respect to white families while the needs and desires of my family are entirely ignored. And, we have far more money and education than many of those white families.

I do not disagree with you; however, I think that a lot of this is self-fulfilling. We have accepted it to be true for so long that we have accepted it for fact and fail to publicly call DCPS out about it and hold them accountable for making their constant stream of catch phrases and buzz words (trauma informed pedagogy, equity, diversity, etc., ) actually actionable. Then we leave and spend tens and in some cases hundreds of thousands of dollars on privates, or on extracurriculars to compensate. It's that entitlement that White families tend to have that is just not as prevalent for the Black families. In my observation, the White families go up to the Principal, call them by first name, and make their demands known with no expectation of push back-this is after they have already gathered a neighborhood petition, contacted their council member and had them write a letter of support for whatever flavor of the month thing they want that they believe will result in some type of advantage for their child. I am not assigning value to this method or even saying it is something to emulate; however, I am saying that there is no mistake that the limited number of White families that send their children to DCPS schools tend to be centered and prioritized and that's not a fact that has to be accepted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP - that is ridiculous. Black families will never have the pull that white families have. That is the true story of racism in America. White people are able to get whatever they want, wherever they go. They can live anywhere and get governments to respond to their desires. Not so for Black people -including “gentrifying” Black people. I say this as an upper SES black family with two kids in public School. I am astounded every single day by the catering that goes on with respect to white families while the needs and desires of my family are entirely ignored. And, we have far more money and education than many of those white families.

I do not disagree with you; however, I think that a lot of this is self-fulfilling. We have accepted it to be true for so long that we have accepted it for fact and fail to publicly call DCPS out about it and hold them accountable for making their constant stream of catch phrases and buzz words (trauma informed pedagogy, equity, diversity, etc., ) actually actionable. Then we leave and spend tens and in some cases hundreds of thousands of dollars on privates, or on extracurriculars to compensate. It's that entitlement that White families tend to have that is just not as prevalent for the Black families. In my observation, the White families go up to the Principal, call them by first name, and make their demands known with no expectation of push back-this is after they have already gathered a neighborhood petition, contacted their council member and had them write a letter of support for whatever flavor of the month thing they want that they believe will result in some type of advantage for their child. I am not assigning value to this method or even saying it is something to emulate; however, I am saying that there is no mistake that the limited number of White families that send their children to DCPS schools tend to be centered and prioritized and that's not a fact that has to be accepted.

Here’s the issue: while you are busy writing your council member and making noise, your kid is in school suffering or not excelling or dealing with an unsafe learning environment because the principal can’t control Pookie who is threatening to harm your kid or little Jose who is wreaking havoc in the classroom. As a Black parent I don’t have the luxury of having my child falter or be in a less ideal situation while things get worked out. Society is less forgiving for Black children and the barriers are higher. Little Larla can afford to wait while things maybe get worked out. Also many Black parents spent their lives struggling or fighting against a system in order to achieve, while their White counterparts have not. So who has time for that? My complaints and demands are falling on deaf ears no matter how much I volunteer or how many coffees with the principal I attend. Of course I’m going to jump ship for better, albeit more expensive, options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP - that is ridiculous. Black families will never have the pull that white families have. That is the true story of racism in America. White people are able to get whatever they want, wherever they go. They can live anywhere and get governments to respond to their desires. Not so for Black people -including “gentrifying” Black people. I say this as an upper SES black family with two kids in public School. I am astounded every single day by the catering that goes on with respect to white families while the needs and desires of my family are entirely ignored. And, we have far more money and education than many of those white families.

I do not disagree with you; however, I think that a lot of this is self-fulfilling. We have accepted it to be true for so long that we have accepted it for fact and fail to publicly call DCPS out about it and hold them accountable for making their constant stream of catch phrases and buzz words (trauma informed pedagogy, equity, diversity, etc., ) actually actionable. Then we leave and spend tens and in some cases hundreds of thousands of dollars on privates, or on extracurriculars to compensate. It's that entitlement that White families tend to have that is just not as prevalent for the Black families. In my observation, the White families go up to the Principal, call them by first name, and make their demands known with no expectation of push back-this is after they have already gathered a neighborhood petition, contacted their council member and had them write a letter of support for whatever flavor of the month thing they want that they believe will result in some type of advantage for their child. I am not assigning value to this method or even saying it is something to emulate; however, I am saying that there is no mistake that the limited number of White families that send their children to DCPS schools tend to be centered and prioritized and that's not a fact that has to be accepted.

Here’s the issue: while you are busy writing your council member and making noise, your kid is in school suffering or not excelling or dealing with an unsafe learning environment because the principal can’t control Pookie who is threatening to harm your kid or little Jose who is wreaking havoc in the classroom. As a Black parent I don’t have the luxury of having my child falter or be in a less ideal situation while things get worked out. Society is less forgiving for Black children and the barriers are higher. Little Larla can afford to wait while things maybe get worked out. Also many Black parents spent their lives struggling or fighting against a system in order to achieve, while their White counterparts have not. So who has time for that? My complaints and demands are falling on deaf ears no matter how much I volunteer or how many coffees with the principal I attend. Of course I’m going to jump ship for better, albeit more expensive, options.

PP here: As a Black parent I can't disagree...you are absolutely right. I of course wish things were different but you are right, we really can't afford the risk and we just do not have the time nor the energy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sorry about bumping this thread...

Met the Principal at the carnival this weekend and she seemed pretty inviting which is a bit different from a neighbors perspective.

I believe she indicated shes' been there for 3 years now. Does she have a long term contract? If so, how is she remaining in that position with those PARCC scores?

We met with the principal before we decided to send our kid to Powell. The reality was quite different than what she led us to believe. /don't believe the hype.

Powell is a great school in spite of the current Principal who, in my opinion, is inherently dishonest. I would not make a decision to attend based on a conversation with her. Talk to other parents, teachers, or the other AP's if you want a real sense of the school.