An in-depth exploration of education in the 21st century South.
Jalen is a seventh-grader at The Good Shepherd School- a private, Catholic institution. She transferred from a failing public school three years ago and sees big differences between the two. Louisiana Public Broadcasting prepared this report for our “Matters of Choice” series.
Our reporter Dan Carsen recently appeared as a guest journalist on Alabama Public Television’s “Capitol Journal,” a highly regarded program analyzing the week’s significant stories. Dan, host Don Daily, and opinion writer John Archibald discuss HeadStart, troubling economic trends in American public education, the controversy at Alabama State University, and more.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Our Alabama reporter Dan Carsen recently appeared as a guest journalist on Alabama Public Television’s “Capitol Journal,” a highly regarded program analyzing the week’s significant stories. Among other things, Dan discusses the controversial Alabama Accountability Act, which will be a subject of debate in the final session of the state legislature today as lawmakers address Governor Robert Bentley’s call to delay establishing tax credits for families sending students to private schools.
While President Obama is pushing for universal pre-K, Southern states–who have been ahead of the curve in offering state-run pre-school programs–are now reconsidering their value.
When budgets are tight, states start to talk about cutting services. But what early education services does the South stand to lose when budgets get cut?
Without court-ordered desegregation, many school districts have struggled to find strategies to maintain racial balance and diversity. Many parents now choose the neighborhood school for their children rather than sending them long distances away, even for a program that might be considered high quality—like magnet schools. Districts are finding that many parents of all ethnic groups no longer view racial balance as a top priority in educating their children. In Nashville, public school officials are finding it a challenge to balance school improvement plans with a desire for racial diversity.
In August, 1956, twelve students in Clinton, Tennessee made history by becoming the first to African-Americans to attend a state-supported high school in the south. The students became known as the “Clinton 12.” As the Southern Education Desk is running a series this week on the re-segregation of southern schools (“Segregation Shift: The New Faces of an Old Problem”), we thought you might like to see this piece of unique history through the ‘eyes of the time’ in this 1956 documentary from the legendary team of Edward R. Murrow and Fred Friendly at CBS-TV
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