Event Highlights Successes, Challenges of Changing Population
Superintendent Tom Ahart listens as Roosevelt student Brenda Vasquez describes challenges at her school.
In the year 2043, the country is on track to shift to minorities making up the majority of the population. DMPS is already there, with 53% of our students being children of color. The National Journal noted DMPS’ successes and challenges in a series of recent articles – including one that looked at “Why Des Moines Can Be a Model for Urban Education” – and this week the magazine and school district jointly hosted a town hall at Drake University to discuss it.
The town hall was standing room only, and they weren’t there for the muffins and coffee.
“We’re foolish if we don’t embrace immigration and everyone who wants to be here with us living the dream,” said DMPS Superintendent Tom Ahart.
Embracing everyone, means providing an education for everyone, even those who struggle to read and write in their own language, let alone English. Roosevelt High School student Nosa Ali came to Iowa from the Sudan in that position. Today, she takes classes at Central Academy, participates in the Talented and Gifted program and plays the violin. Sitting on the education panel at the town hall, she spoke highly of her teachers and education.
“Although I couldn’t relate to the bad experiences, I want to acknowledge the people who made a positive impact on my life,” she Tweeted after the forum.
Roosevelt student Brenda Vasquez said she felt some of her teachers and fellow students didn’t expect her to succeed because she was from El Salvador.
“Teachers ought to have high expectations of all students, regardless of their ethnic background,” she said.
North High School principal Mike Vukovich, who is married to a Latina, Allyson Vukovich, a community outreach coordinator with DMPS, said one of the challenges teachers face is a cultural barrier. He said teachers sometimes don’t realize their body language, even the way they stand can be interpreted as offensive.
“We still have a long way to go,” said Vukovich, whose school has seen a dramatic increase in student achievement over the past 5 years. North High School’s Advanced Placement program grew from 11 students to 600.
Many of the recent successes at North High School are evident districtwide, and a contributing factor to everything from a rising graduation rate to increased test scores.
While many cultural dustups can be benign at their core, there’s no question feelings about race and poverty are lenses through which many people view Des Moines and Des Moines Public Schools. For example, many people before and after Wednesday’s event – as well as throughout the community – felt the recent event involving the East High School football team’s forced forfeiture of a game was not because unfounded internet rumors about security at school but due to the bias present in our current culture.
“Here again we’re getting painted with broad brush that here’s Des Moines, we’ve got a bunch of thugs and gun slingers walking around,” DMPS board member Bill Howard told the Des Moines Register this week. “I want the people of Des Moines to understand that this is the perception that is out there.”
The reality is over the past four years at DMPS, student enrollment in Advanced Placement courses increased 339% and participation in the AP exam increased 149%. DMPS is building on its successes by becoming the first school district in Iowa to offer ACT college entrance exam for free to all high school juniors, opening the door for many students to think about post-secondary education for the first time ever. Enrollment is increasing, dropouts are decreasing and students are focused on learning.
U.S. Department of Education Assistant Secretary Catherine Lhamon, the town hall keynote speaker, said we begin sending the messages, good and bad, in preschool, and the message needs to be inclusive, valuing each life and letting students know we expect them to succeed.
Ahart took it a step further, saying the education can go both ways.
“Our students have a tremendous amount to teach us — we need to listen,” Ahart said.
