iPhone “Summit” During testimony on the third floor of the Rhode Island State Capitol, a ringtone began to ring.
Angelica Infante-Green laughed silently down the phone. “Sorry. That's my mom,” she said.
That night was March 13th, probably an inappropriate time to check in with the mother. Infante Green, Secretary of the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE), was appearing before the Senate Education Committee for the first time. even before the pandemic. (The Secretary has visited the state Legislature approximately a dozen times since 2020, specifically the Senate Oversight Committee and the House Education Committee. He also visits annually to discuss the budget.)
The purpose of Infante-Green's visit was to testify about the state's curriculum. basic education program, which sets regulations and standards for public school education. The Commissioner's appearance may have been highly praised or at least noted at some point. simultaneous conference Lawmakers listened to testimony downstairs in the House Education Committee. Bill H7726 by U.S. Rep. David Morales, a Providence Democrat.
Elementary and Secondary Education Council, tense meeting without break
Morales' bill aims to clarify procedures for closing public schools, the issue most relevant to his district. Public schools in the capital have been under state control since 2019, and several schools were closed while under state guidance.Most recently, in early February, his 360 High School students letter received The school plans to cease operating as an individual institution at the end of this year and merge with the Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex.
Morales said both he and RIDE have expressed interest in working to improve the bill's chances of passage. But was Mr. Morales surprised that Mr. Infante Green and other state education officials did not appear at the bill hearing?
When asked that question in a phone interview, Morales paused and laughed.
“They don’t attend public hearings related to school closures that are actually happening,” he responded. “I wasn’t surprised they didn’t show up at the bill hearing.”
However, some of the students who came here testify in support of the Morales bill He appeared before the Senate Education Committee on March 13 and sat silently in the back row.
The public was invited to discuss the 360-degree closure at an originally scheduled Providence City Council meeting. March 20th.However, one day when a meeting was scheduled to be held, it was Postponed to Thursday, March 28th. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at Providence City Hall.
City Council spokesperson Parker Gavigan said of the schedule change, “There was a conflict between the City Council and school officials regarding scheduling.''
Meanwhile, the Providence Public School Board passed the following resolution on March 20: Reverse Thurber's Avenue school closure, cited a “lack of transparency and the need for community inclusion” when making such decisions. That is also the spirit of Morales' bill, which addresses not only 360 High School but also the lack of transparency across RIDE regarding school closures.
Same building, different school
However, Providence Public School District (PPSD) spokesperson Jay Wegimont said 360 High School will not be closing at all.
“It is important to note that currently the Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex (JSEC) and 360 are in one building and neither building will be closed,” Widgemont wrote in an email. “The District is working with JSEC to advance the decision to realign 360 High School and create the Juanita Sanchez Life Sciences Institute (JSLSI), an innovative program that meets the evolving needs of students and prepares them for success in higher education. We offer programs that are in demand.”
Mr Widgemont also said 360 schools were “chronically underperforming schools” and would need to be redesigned next year. This is the process laid out in Rhode Island's Every Student Succeeds Act state plan, which calls for fundamental restructuring of underperforming schools. Juanita Sanchez's redesign plans have already been approved.
“Commissioner Infante Green wants to ensure that all students have access to high-quality educational programs that prepare them for success in college, careers, and beyond,” said Victor Morente, RIDE spokesperson. he said. “She believes that more students should have access to great school opportunities that allow them to reach their full potential. After careful consideration of new opportunities, we support the PPSD Superintendent's recommendation to rebuild 360 High School and combine it with the Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex to create the new Juanita Sanchez Life Sciences Institute.”
“Positive things that happened in the past”
Morente said in an email that “30 years of chronic underperformance and dysfunction” led to the 2019 takeover of Providence schools. State law known as the Crowley Act. Infante-Green has commented on her recent takeover of the state capitol, and she has also visited 360 high schools. However, she hasn't provided much public comment specifically about her 360 closure.
“She has expressed positivity in the past,” said Ryan Barker, a social studies teacher at 360 High School. “In this [closure] In the process, she and her office largely dismissed this as a PPSD decision. They don't want to take that responsibility. Apparently they don't want to be held responsible for the decision to close the school. ”
“We're hopeful that she might consider it a win for herself as well. It's a chance for her to show that she really supports MLL.” [multiple language learners] And she really wants to listen to the community. ”
360 Who made the decision to close the high school: RIDE or PPSD?
“We don't know because they refuse to tell us,” Barker said.
What Barker knows: As of March 25, he had no direct job offers at the end of 360. According to 360, there are 36 teachers and 335 students. ride data. PPSD spokesperson Wesimont said 360 teachers were notified of the evacuation earlier this month. So far, the district has held two relocation consortiums for departed teachers with the goal of helping them find jobs at other Providence schools. An additional 15 teachers from 360 will continue to teach at the combined Life Sciences Academy. According to Widgemont, 14 of the 360 students hope to attend another school after the merger.
RIDE's two datasets employ different styles of 360 high school portraits.school accountability report card Proficiency rates are low in math (1.5%), science (4.7%), and English (8.2%), and the four-year graduation rate is 78%, which is about average for high schools in the city.but data Last year, SurveyWorks showed that students scored higher than the average for all schools in Providence. The 360 high schools with 49% positive responses regarding school climate were 9 points above the state average in that category.
“360 was designed by the community to provide a smaller, safer, more collaborative environment,” Barker said. “We feel like it's a good place to work, and that's in the context of serving a fairly challenging student population. We have a very high percentage of people learning multiple languages. Our poverty rate is high.”
Barker humorously talks about the possibility of “a deus ex machina situation where the Director swoops in and saves everyone.'' But for now, he is not optimistic about his prospects for finishing his first full-time teaching job, which he started in 2015.
“This is depressing,” he said. “It's really sad. We've spent almost 10 years building what we believe in, and to be told one day that's being taken away from our community is really hard to take.” was.”
What we're looking for: Transparency
Thursday's City Council meeting is expected to be well attended. Meeting on February 27th Please let us know if you have any opinions about the Elementary and Secondary Education Council. An outpouring of public comment that night was hampered by RIDE officials enforcing a 24-hour advance registration rule, which ultimately led to the involvement of the ACLU of Rhode Island. There were no shortage of harsh words regarding the Ministry of Education's handling of public comments. . According to RIDE, Infante-Green did not attend the council meeting as he was away on official business.
Jeremy Aaron Senser, an organizer with the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals, expressed a desire for more transparency in a recent interview and criticized RIDE's approach to public input.
“When we involve the community, we don't just say, 'This was a difficult decision and some people will be upset.' If that's the case, I think there needs to be a transparent process on the board that involves the community.” ,” Senser said. “If you're a bureaucrat, a politician, a decision-maker, that's to be expected. You listen to people's opinions, but if the process is transparent and they feel like their voices are being heard, people will listen. You will accept unpleasant consequences.”
About halfway through the March 13 Senate Education Committee meeting, Mr. Censer sat quietly in the back row with the students who had entered the room. Unlike the commissioner's ringtone, the hearing was not interrupted. They did not speak because there was no opportunity for public comment at the meeting.
They already said what they wanted to say downstairs.
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