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DC Public and Public Charter Schools
Reply to "Why don't white students go to Banneker?"
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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I think it is perfectly understandable why many black families think Banneker is a great opportunity for their kids, and choose it. I think it is perfectly understandable why most white families do not. I do not think either should be shamed for their perfectly reasonable, non-racist, choices. What am I missing here? [/quote] Why is it perfectly understandable that NO white families consider Banneker even a possibility? I don't find it understandable myself, nor to I find it "non-racist." I find it, frankly, racist. [/quote] And to expand on this: It's very different from an HBCU, which have an actual historical mission to educate black students only. There, I can understand why white families would consider HBCUs automatic no-gos. Banneker is a selective high school with a good college prep record with almost 100% proficiency rates (which many white families claim to want more of in DC public schools) yet ... no white families. [/quote] I am the PP who first made the analogy to Howard and HBCU above. I see your point of view, but I think maybe you are not seeing it from the other point of view. Have you read the threads on DC Prep, KIPP? They get good results, their student body is almost all black, they have a reputation for a certain style of education, long hours, strict boot camp atmosphere. This appeals to some black and maybe latino parents. But so far in DC it does not appeal to white parents who tend to rave about Reggio, Waldorf, "green" focus, "play-based", basically the exact opposite of boot camp atmospheres. Banneker, at least to outsiders, and all white people are outsiders to Banneker, has a similar reputation. A very heavy homework load, few extra curricular options or athletic programs. It seems designed to serve black parents who want to cut out the distractions for black youth and focus on academics. It also seems to have very few boys. Whereas white parents, and perhaps the private school black PP above and others, might prefer a somewhat more relaxed and varied school experience. So I realize that Banneker is not explicitly designed to serve black people like Howard is, but I think people can be forgiven for thinking that in practice Banneker is set up to appeal to certain preferences and not others. By the way, I don't have first hand experience but I don't think that HBCUs refuse admission to white students (in your post: "educate black students [i]only[/i]," my italics). Wouldn't that be illegal? So you might be over-stating that part of your argument. It's more that white people know that HBCUs are not for them, so they don't apply, and a similar thing seems to be happening with Banneker. [/quote]
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