Your July 21 front-page headline ("A day of protests, arrests and a promise") indicated we had been given a promise, a vow by Wake County school board Chairman Ron Margiotta that the new assignment plan would not create schools full of poor or minority children.
I was at the July 20 board meeting and sadly no such promise or vow was made. The chairman simply stated, "This board does not intend to create high-poverty or low-performing schools in the new zone assignments."
Lest we need reminding, the banking system did not "intend" to collapse the global economy, but poor policies and planning had that effect
Months ago in a board meeting, board member John Tedesco acknowledged high-poverty schools would likely result from neighborhood zone assignments. Intent? Or just collateral damage?
It is important to remember that the board minority offered an amendment to the Directive for Community Based School Assignments to commit to an assignment policy that would avoid creation of high poverty schools. It was voted down 5-4.
After the July 20 meeting, I asked Margiotta about that amendment, and suggested bringing it back would be a positive step. His response? Oh no, he would never put that in writing.
Jim Martin,
Professor of Chemistry, N.C. State University,
Raleigh
