Reply to Banneker v. Wilson

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[quote=Anonymous][quote]
That's a tautological argument in this particular context. Bias for you own race is based on a belief that your race is material in terms of learning environment. I get that it can be inextricable from SES and low-performance, but that isn't necessarily the case with Banneker, which doesn't have a performance concern and serves a breadth of SES levels. "Learning environment" or "culture" is often short-hand for not white-dominant approach. I rarely see this when expecting minority families to adapt to a white-dominant environment.[/quote]

But would you say the same thing about the HBCUs? Do you ask why whites do not regularly apply to them? [/quote]

[b]Here's the difference - the HBCUs were established and continue to support primarily black students who have been excluded from higher education opportunities and which to this day are still providing black families that lack the higher education generational history with a supportive, welcoming environment -was noted on pages one and two below.[/b] [b]Secondly, the reason whites don't regularly apply to HBCUs is probably much the same as what's been professed here as well - that white kids don't need those supports/handholding/don't want to be extreme minority, etc.[/b]

There's been a lot of discussion about this over the years on DCUM, and I think that the lack of white kids at Banneker is due to a couple of factors.  This includes racism, in the form of whites being intimidated to be an extreme minority.  But a little more complexly, I think it also involves a degree of white privilege, with white parents actually not thinking their kids "need" to do the really hard work at Banneker, because they'll be "just fine" at Wilson.  Seen from a different angle, white parents in DC have different paths to push their kids forward, without having to do the awkward work of integration and a punishing amount of homework.  Basically very similar to the reasons they turn their noses up at KIPP.  Lastly, I do think Banneker is basically and HBCU high school, and my guess is the school culture there just doesn't go out of its way to try to accommodate the worries of white families.  I don't get the sense it's an open door there laying down the red carpet for the exaggerated amount of hand-holding white families might demand.  (Which, I don't really have an issue with myself.)  [/quote]

[quote]^^ apologies for the word salad. the internet has destroyed my prose.

DP, and I think you were perfectly understandable. I do think that there is a hesitation from families who are not black about Banneker for the reasons you describe well. There is certainly a perception among non-black families that Banneker is a pipeline to HBCU entry, and I think that is part of it. [/quote]

[quote]This may be the case for some, but I also think that if de facto it is an "HBHS" then that will affect white enrollment, just as it might at Howard. Maybe having more white kids attend isn't even desirable, if it serves its niche well? If it is desirable it should be part of the administration's goals and discussed in the community. [/quote]

[/quote]What do you mean part of the administration’s goals? [/quote]

[quote]DP. I think it means that Banneker has historically been geared toward kids who are first-generation college applicants, the majority of whom are AA, and would want the support that an HBCU provides. They are also probably wired toward schools that offer a substantial amount of aid for URM. That has become a strength but probably at the cost of trying to aim for a broader target of students. Mind you, people don't seem to care that SWW aims for Ivies, SLACs, and competitive public universities primarily.[/quote][/quote]

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