STATEMENT XXXIII

I'm so proud as a New Rochelle Alum of 2003, as a teacher in New Rochelle and as a Binghamton alum to see this conversation/action happening in our city.

I'm new to teaching in the district and still untenured, so would prefer my name to be kept anonymous, but would like to share some of my noticings to this conversation.

I'm SO proud to be from New Rochelle Class of 2003, even though I also always recognized there were issues of equity here. As a teacher in the district I have seen some of the issues from two lenses:

- It has come to my attention that there are issues of disparity with how much funding Columbus, Trinity and Jefferson are getting compared to the other schools.  As a teacher I'm not clear on the details of why or in what ways. This is something that needs to be looked at closely. 

- At the same time there is a LARGE need for many more social workers, esl, dual language classes and literacy support at schools like Columbus. This becomes a real issue of inequity that begins in kindergarten.  Same funding for all students may not even be the answer. Some schools/students may actually have a larger need for support services, and they may need MORE funding. To have an equitable city, we have to think of what are all our students' needs to build a better city.

- Access to Advanced Classes-  I'm not sure if this is still an issue, but if it is it would be a small fix that could create lots more equity of opportunity.  In 2003, there were many Biology classes for 8th graders at ALMS but only one at Isaac, many pre-calculus classes at ALMS and none/or not as many at Isaac. Without this consistent access, students were on different tracks to advanced courses beginning in 8th grade! I went to ALMS, and friends of mine from Isaac were shocked to discover this.  How can we create more equity of opportunity beginning in 8th grade? One way, just at least offer access to the same classes!

- I think community schools are a wonderful asset of living in New Rochelle.  Walk into just Webster or Columbus and you can feel how special it is having a school of students, PTA and staff that come from the neighboring streets. It is more than a place to learn. It is a community center, a family center, a sports league, a place for friendships with neighbors. I'm not sure changing this model would be a good thing for our students and families.

I have seen many statements about the highschool level but please also consider how this begins as early as Kindergarten.

Thank you again for having this conversation and hopefully we can take action together.