From the Grand Canyon State to Charm City: The Problem of the Power Structure’s “Education” System

What the Arizona Public School System’s ban of ethnic studies does is expose crucial questions about authority and autonomy as it relates to the public education system.

The crucial question is: Who should control the educational direction, content, and implementation of education? Who should be trusted to mold the minds of today’s students?

That is an essential battlefield that will literally determine the path of the world’s communities.

It’s a question as well that I wrestled with during my latest episode with the Baltimore City Public School System.

A few months back the City Schools Superintendent and School Board (whom we in Baltimore colloquially refer to collectively as “North Avenue” because of the street that it’s on) proposed the closure of two middle schools in my neighborhood. This was highly unsettling to me because some of the members of my church attend these schools and the initial plan could have potentially sent these middle school students to schools across town in unfamiliar neighborhoods. It was also a concern because I am a parent now of a son that soon will be of school-age and the two schools that were proposed to be closed were potential destinations for him.

I got involved with a community coalition to attempt to address this situation and after much effort, debate, public outcry, and internal friction; the community coalition showed up at the decisive School Board meeting prepared to present an alternative plan – our idea of how we wished to move forward past the unacceptable status quo of what was. It was a plan embraced by community members and educators from both schools. However, when we got to the microphone we learned very quickly about the lengths to which the Power Structure will go to retain control of the Educational System.

Our impassioned sharing was summarily dismissed by the majority of the School Board and the CEO, Dr. Andres Alonso. Though the Administration had made some “concessions” based on our complaints right before the meeting, it was made very clear that the community’s voice would not be a swaying factor in altering the course of what the Educational Power Structure wanted to do in our neighborhood.

In my naivete’ I believed that my role not just as resident, but as Pastor in the same community would help marshall the strength necessary to have the community plan embraced or at least the system’s plan delayed. How wrong I was. I followed the guidelines of public comment that North Avenue put out. Only 10 people from the public are allowed to sign up to speak. I showed up 3 hours early to make sure my name was on that list. My name was number 4 and I watched each person sign after me until the list was complete.

But the school system had a ram in the bush.

After my neighbors and I testified on behalf of the community’s desire for the schools in question; the Board Chair, Neil Duke – a man who gave the appearance of commitment to protocol, arbitrarily broke protocol and said, “We have one more person slated to speak about this issue.”

Then in walks a local Bishop. The well-known Bishop who admittedly has done wonderful things over the years in the way of social justice and community activism, marched to the microphone and with great passion voiced his support for the Power Structure and discredited the community coalition. You can imagine my surprise and great disappointment. The Bishop came to help preserve the established arrangement of power and used his influence to help tip the scales for the status quo. I wondered within if I was watching the fulfillment of that old saying: “today’s radicals are tomorrow’s conservatives.”

The Bishop completed his testimony, walked out the side door and shortly after he left, the members of the School Board voted to continue with the school closures as planned. (Thank you Commissioner George VanHook for being the lone School Board Member to vote with the people!)

I left from that experience with the conviction that I would not allow my child to fall under the “educational” authority of the Baltimore City Public School System unless a new arrangement of power was established. If parents and communities everywhere embraced that same conviction, we could successfully re-mold the educational system into what we know it needs to be for our children…even if that means we must pull our children out of their educational system and create our own.

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Tags: Andres Alonso, Arizona, Arizona Ethnic Studies, Baltimore City Public School System, Bishop Douglas Miles, Ethnic Studies, Tom Horne