Should KCMO start promoting alternative schooling option

I've heard the conversation many times -- from friends of ours that are looking at moving from Kansas City, MO to the Kansas Side of the state line.  "We're moving because 'jr' is going to school next year, and, well...", and everyone nods in understanding.

The reverse conversation is also true, when people say -- "gosh, that bar/restaurant etc sounds really fun, and we really like the local restaurants, but they're so far away, and we can't move to the Missouri side until 'Kimmie' heads off to college.

Maybe its time that Kansas City starts promoting its vast array of alternative schooling options.  KCMO has a variety of great schools for kids to attend. Oh, sure, Rockhurst and Pembroke Hill come to mind as great private schools for those who can afford it.  But there are also a lot of Charter Schools and Academies that cost far less money -- many are even free -- that offer great, and sometimes unique, educations.  Schools like Academie Lafayette and the Foreign Language Academy offer language emersion education that is unique in the area.  Not only does your kid get the opportunity to learn history, math and social studies, but he will also come out being bilingual.  Which in today's culture, is pretty cool.

Other charter schools are also great.  University Academy, Cristo Rey and the new KIPP school offer outstanding alternatives to the struggling Kansas City Missouri Public Schools.  What's more, most of these schools do an outstanding job of meeting the grades on standardized test scores and equal many of their suburban counterparts based on the Kansas City Star's report of test scores for 2007.

Many people seem unaware of the availability -- and overall quality -- of our Charter school system.  I think many people who move from Kansas City, Mo to the suburbs when they have children might consider staying if they only knew about these schools and programs.  I also think people on the Kansas side might consider moving over if they realized these alternatives.

Additionally, based on one recent study, more education of the value of these charter schools may help those who need it most.  Based on the abstract:

We find in both cases that providing parents with transparent information on the academic achievement at schools with their school choice forms results in significantly more parents choosing substantially higher-performing schools

Yeah, duh.  But there's more:

There is growing empirical evidence that low-income parents place lower weights on academics when choosing schools, implying that school choice plans may have the smallest impact on the choices of the families they are targeting.

And:

Suggest a small policy change that lowers information or decision making costs for these parents had a substantial monetary impact on their children's lifetime earnings, adding to growing evidence that small changes in information can greatly affect choices, program participation, and outcomes.

So not only would the middle class folks likely benefit from this increased promotion, but also many of the city's most underpriveledged would benefit from knowing, and understanding, the importance of this improved education.

I haven't completely given up on the KCMO school district, but it has a long way to go. A short term solution may be to help promote educational alternatives that would lead lead to short-term growth of young families in Kansas City and slow the demand for sprawl in our suburbs.  Meanwhile, giving neighborhoods control of their schools to allow to rebuild the city's schools at a grass-roots level would benefit us tremendously. 

Maybe it's time we start focusing on our good qualities in promoting the city while we fix the problems behind the scenes.

Comments

[Buddy]

Academie Lafayette outranks 90% of the schools in the state on the Missouri Aptitude test. Plus the kids learn to speak french at a native level. The teachers don't even speak english to the kids for the first 2 years. And the kids still can read/write english better than their suburban counter parts.

There are plenty of decent schools in KCMO. Even a handful of good district schools. You just have to really shop around.

The big problem is muffy and donny don't want their little girl to go to a "diverse" school.

And yes, I have actually had Brookside parents tell me that. A schools academic credentials be damned, "diversity" was the key issue to many folks.

[Brent]

Buddy, sadly I have heard the "diverse" thing some too. Unfortunately, I think that being around that type of diversity for kids is a really important part of the learning process. My nieces live out in rural KS - -not exactly the mecha of diversity, and I often wonder if that will hurt them socially when they move into more diverse environments (which would be pretty much anywhere).

[eric]

I've never understood why so many people equate moving out of the KCMSD with moving to Kansas, like it's just assumed.

There are over 10 school districts within the KCMO city limits, most of them equal to anything in Johnson County. Center is a good district just south of Waldo that is a natural choice for many. The NKC and Park Hill districts offer top notch suburban schools in areas that are actually closer to Downtown than much of South KC.

And those idealized Johnson County schools a having a tough time now as the state government screws them on funding. Plus Shawnee Mission is in a long decline as the affluent folks move further south and the population in NE Joco shrinks.

People moving to the Shawnee Mission district today might find that it looks more like Raytown in a few years.

[Chewy]

^^ Raytown is right. I live right of 77th & Troost and I like the area. Moved back from Lee's Summit and I don't regret it one bit. I don' really cre for the private school my daughter attends so I've been really looking at the Charter Schools. University Academy and Gordon Parks are 2 that I've heard alot of positive things about. My daughter attended Academie Lafayette the summer of 2006. She didn't like it- she was going to enter the 1st grade but by that time the children have already been immersed in French that she felt behind. However, I am not knocking the school, it is well put together. But children are only admitted in Kindergarten or 1st grade- after that the child has to wait until 6th grade. Who knows- maybe she'll go back in a few years.

[KC Sponge]

Diversity is what drove me to put my daughter in school at Academie Lafayette - diversity in race, culture, religion, political skew, and nationality - in everyone: the founders, the board, the administration, the faculty, staff, and students. There is not an option for an elementary school within the district that has a population that reflects the same diversity of my neighborhood - let alone the high academic achievement - or the chance to have my daughter be able to curse me out in a language I don't understand!
It's working . . . the most successful high school in the district, Lincoln Prep, has the same diversity - if just in the student population.
I would be fearful of creating too many 'specialty' schools - with waiting lists and admissions guidelines, however. I think the trick is making an attractive curriculum and opening it to everyone. There are many solutions - but not enough people willing to risk their children's education to try them out.
That's why we need a school board with people in place that have a plan for action to build confidence in our schools.