Spent time in Georgia this past week. The changing demographics are definitely impacting outcomes. They're registering, for example, a phenomenal 300% increase in the Latino population—virtually all immigrant and poor. They are concentrated in the poultry, carpet, and farming industries. They are mostly all Mexican and first generation with virutally no Mexican/Mexican American middle class. It breaks up the black-white dynamic and introduces a new mix, as well as new challenges. The upside is that Georgia has no history with Mexicans/Mexican Americans and despite fears of this new diaspora, hope also seems to exist coupled with a will on the part of many in power to do something positiive about this. Have had Georgia on my mind....
-Angela
Some minorities have less than half a chance to earn a diploma on time.
Paul Donsky - Staff
Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Less than half of Georgia's black and Hispanic students graduate from high school within four years, according to a study by the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University.
The report, to be released Thursday during a conference at Atlanta's Spelman College, found that 47 percent of the state's black students and 43 percent of Hispanic students graduate on time, compared with 64 percent of non-Hispanic white students.
The study, which looked at graduation rates across the South, is based on 2002 data, the latest available.
"A 50-50 chance for minority students . . . is just totally unacceptable," said Dan Losen, a co-author of the report.
Georgia's overall graduation rate of 58 percent ranked below the average of 65 percent for the Southern region, which includes 16 states and the District of Columbia.
The study also found that DeKalb County had the lowest overall graduation rate, regardless of race and ethnicity, among the five largest Georgia school systems, with 51 percent of students finishing high school in four years. Cobb County had the highest graduation rate, 73 percent, followed by Gwinnett County at 71 percent, Fulton County at 68 percent and the city of Atlanta at 52 percent.
In each of the five school districts, black and Hispanic students graduated on time at a much lower rate than non-Hispanic white students.
"Schools are doing very poorly in terms of providing adequate teaching, curriculum and the kind of resources that poor, minority kids need to achieve," said Losen, a senior associate at Harvard's Civil Rights Project.
Educators on the front lines say students who drop out are often ill prepared when they enter high school.
"They come in behind, and it's just difficult to catch up," said James Jackson, principal at Crim High School in East Atlanta.
Losen said schools looking to increase test scores are increasingly forcing low-achieving students out of school.
The Harvard report said students who fail to finish high school will face much lower earning potential and are at greater risk of landing in jail than their peers who graduate.
Losen said he hoped the study serves as a wake-up call.
"Eventually, people are going to see that we need to be graduating far more students than we are," he said.
The study calculated graduation rates by taking the number of students entering high school and dividing by the number of graduates four years later.
McNair High in DeKalb County, for instance, had 505 students in its freshman class the fall of 2001. Only 200 students are expected to graduate Saturday with a diploma --- a rate of 40 percent, said principal Albert Sye.
"That's a disturbing trend," said Sye, who is finishing his first year on the job.
Atlanta-area school officials are trying to address the problem. McNair, for instance, is one of many high schools now offering more nurturing environments for ninth-grade students. McNair also has so-called career academies with themes like communications and the arts, which aim to spark student interest and make learning more relevant.
Atlanta Public Schools will open two new high schools next year. Crim High in east Atlanta will turn into a "non-traditional" school for students who have dropped out or need a flexible schedule to accommodate work or child care schedules.
The new Carver High will feature four small, largely independent mini-schools with different themes, such as performing arts and science and technology. The goal is to create more intimate, and interesting, learning environments that will make students excited to learn.
"Those kinds of ideas show a lot of promise," said Harvard's Losen.
But he said Georgia must do much more, such as offer incentives to recruit and retain quality teachers to work with minority students.
He urged the state to set higher graduation rate targets. Georgia requires high schools to have a graduation rate of at least 60 percent or face sanctions under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
"That's an outrageously low goal," Losen said.
A study last year by the Harvard group and other organizations found that Georgia's graduation rate was the fourth worst in the nation.
Dana Tofig, spokesman for the state Department of Education, said state School Superintendent Kathy Cox is determined to improve Georgia's graduation rates. Georgia reported a 65 percent graduation rate in 2004, up from 63 percent in 2003 and 61 percent in 2002.
Tofig noted out that students in grades 3 and 5 now must pass parts of the state curriculum test to be promoted. Eighth-grade requirements are coming next year.
"We want to make sure that kids are ready to move on to high school when it's time to get there," he said.
"We're not happy with the graduation rates, and we want it to get better."
2002 GRADUATION RATE
..............Did not graduate on time..Graduated
SOUTH REGION...... 64.5%..................35.5%
FLORIDA............57.4%..................42.6%
GEORGIA............57.6%..................42.4%
LOUISIANA..........66.4%..................33.6%
MISSISSIPPI........60.7%..................39.3%
NORTH CAROLINA.... 64.6%..................35.4%
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GEORGIA BY RACE
..............Did not graduate on time..Graduated
Native American....67.3%..................32.7%
Asian..............23.4%..................76.6%
Hispanic.......... 57.6%..................42.4%
Black..............52.6%..................47.4%
White..............36.3%..................63.7%
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Source: Harvard University
/ ELIZABETH LANDT / Staff
http://www.ajc.com/wednesday/content/epaper/editions/wednesday/news_24a8fde117c2e14300fb.html
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