Chicago Tribune / September 15, 2012 Strike highlights split over poverty’s role in learning
The reform movement has enjoyed a powerful wave of bi-partisan political support in recent years, from President Barack Obama on down. Yet in a few corners of the nation, with much less fanfare, the unions’ preferred approach is being tested.
In Cincinnati, for instance, the public school district and an array of corporate and philanthropic donors have spent tens of millions over the past decade to wrap nearly every school in a cocoon of support services.
Most schools in poor neighborhoods have a full-time resource coordinator on staff to connect struggling families to the help they need. Often they don’t have far to go: Many schools have food banks, health clinics and counseling centers on site. The schools are open into the evening for clubs, sports, tutoring, parenting classes and support groups.
The result: Kids are staying — and succeeding — in school like never before. In 2000, just 51 percent of ninth-graders made it to graduation. A decade later, the graduation rate hit 82 percent, district figures show.