Editorials

A Harlem Renaissance

Apr 23, 2009 2:53 PM

Something is happening in Harlem and it’s cause for celebration. Of course we’ve all heard of the rebirth of Harlem, but what we are witnessing today is a Renaissance like the one that swept Europe and England in the 16th century, marked by a renewed zest for learning, an appetite for exploring new frontiers of science, literature and the arts, and a hunger for higher levels of understanding and achievement. That is what is happening in Harlem today.

And the public schools — both district and charter — are part of the excitement. That reality was on display on April 25 for the hundreds of adults and children who came to see what the schools in the areas of Districts 3, 4 and 5 have to offer at the Harlem Pride Parade and Fair sponsored by the United Federation of Teachers and Scott Stringer, Manhattan’s borough president.

For some parents the richness of the offerings was a surprise. Seeing the charter school promotional materials liberally distributed in their neighborhood and hearing their marketing slogans, some had thought of charter schools as the “premium brand.” The fact that the two New York City tabloids play that up daily only reinforces the message.

Harlem has come a long way. Some of its schools have long been crown jewels, some have been hidden gems, and some were sadly in need of restoration and repair. But what parents saw and what they want to continue is a panoply of options, charter and district schools side by side, each complementing and enriching the other.

And, without much fanfare — at least on the school district side — that is the work going on in Harlem today. Rather than giving up, administrators, educators, parents and community leaders, including our elected representatives, are injecting new support and resources into the Harlem district schools.

Credit the charter schools for stoking the demand for better schools in every community for every child. That is what charter schools are supposed to do: be the laboratories and catalysts for change so that all children can benefit.

They are not supposed to be vehicles for ideological agendas, as some have attempted to use them. When the late AFT and UFT President Al Shanker introduced the concept of charter schools in this country some 20 years ago, he envisioned them as public schools freed from bureaucratic micro-management and empowered to permit educators to use their professional knowledge and skills in the best interest of their students. They would test new pedagogical approaches and experiment with different school designs which could then be shared with other public schools.

The UFT remains dedicated to this concept of charter schools. It’s why the union started two charters of its own and partners in the operation of a third. It inspires the union’s work with charter school teachers across the city who have decided that they need a collective voice.

The UFT’s support of charters is based on six pillars:

Quality: Charter schools must meet the same educational standards and benchmarks as other public, district schools. Their performance must be scrupulously monitored and those that fail should be closed, just as failed district schools are closed.

Innovation: With their freedom from regulation, charter schools should be incubators of educational innovation and be connected to the larger school system so that successful new models of teaching and learning can be shared and the entire system can benefit.

Choice: Charter schools should augment, not replace, district schools. Families must have genuine and expanding options among public schools and these choices must be equally available to students, regardless of prior school performance or special needs.

Equity: Charter schools and district schools must be provided equivalent resources and supports, appropriate to the needs of their students. They are responsible for providing adequate facilities for their students and cannot take precedence for access to buildings or classroom space.

Voice: Charter school educators and parents must have a real voice, one that is not merely sounded but is also heard, in educational decisions at their school. Parents must have the right to organize a PTA, and staffers must have the right to organize and bargain collectively.

Accountability: Charter schools must operate openly and be answerable for their student admissions and expulsion policies, legal compliance, working and learning conditions, labor relations, safety, academic results and financial management.

Public schools are public not just because the public pays for them or because they are ultimately accountable to the public. Public schools are public because they knit together the fabric of our common purposes as a democratic people. That was the kind of public schools — both district and charter — being celebrated in Harlem last weekend. And that is the kind of public school and public school community the UFT is committed to creating in every neighborhood of New York City.