OCR violating rights in Vicksburg

[peewee]

Now that I have your attention let me give you a heads up from what I have heard from pretty reliable sources.

Last week some students in the Vicksburg Warren School District had letters sent home asking for permission to interrogate (interview) their kids. I don't know of anyone whom gave consent. Yesterday the OCR (Office of Civil Rights) pulled students out of the class room in groups (so called peer groups). They were separated by race then interrogated. Many parents feel like this was a violation of their rights. The OCR can by law pull peer groups out for interrogation w/o consent due to it not being an individual interrogation.

The OCR held a meeting last night in Vicksburg about their concerns. The complaint is against the gifted programs such as Gates, Scholastic Academy and AP classes. Apparently there are more Caucasian students in these programs than blacks, even when the backs make up the majority of the schools population. They want that changed to as where if there is 80% black in the schools the gifted programs should have that same percentage.

I guess they don't believe that having parents and students who work hard to get in these programs should have any basis as to getting into the classes.

I say this as a concerned parent who has a daughter in Gates. My girl has ADD and it is hard work for her to keep A and B honor roll (usually A). She starts studying on Fridays for the next weeks tests. I can't tell you how many hours my wife has spent working with her after school and on weekends. We invested a small fortune in time and $ taking her to Sylvan in the past to help us get her where she needs to be. I hate that I couldn't attend the meeting b/c I'm dealing with my wife's illness again. I am wanting to give the other parents a heads up of what is fixing to come to your school district. I told my daughter last night before I left for the hospital if anyone pulls her out of class to be in a interview do not say anything besides I plead the Fith.

[gps4]

i was educated in this district, my ol' lady teaches in this district, and my kids go to school in this district, so here's my take on it.

advanced placement classes (such as GATES (elem.), Scholastic Academy (Jr. high), AP (high school)) should be offered for those kids who work their butts off in school and earn/qualify for their spot in the classes. academically gifted children can not excel in classes when their teachers have to spend a majority of their time dealing with the extremely slow and far-behind kids and the yahoos that don't know how to act.

i don't know what the statistical demographics were when i was coming through in elem, jr. high and high school. but, i do know that my mama made sure i made a's and b's so that i would be well equipped for the opportunities that came along in jr. high and high school. my grades were good enough in jr. and high school that i was able to get in the advanced classes. looking back, i do not recall having to slow down for the other kids in my classes to keep up. we didn't have a lot distractions because of knuckleheads grab-assin' around during class.

a friend of mine has been ranting lately about youth sports and how everyone gets a trophy just for participating. well, it is my opinion that school should prepare you for life, and life doesn't give trophy's just for participating. you drag your tail and can't keep up, you get fired. someone else is smarter than you or puts forth more effort than you, you have a lesser chance at getting or keeping your job.

every single kid starts out school with the same opportunities waiting for them down the road. i fully appreciate that some kids learn at different rates, need different learning/teaching methods, and some kids just cannot grasp the concepts they need to move forward in school. that being said, i'm convinced that on the whole, kids whose parents are involved and pushing them to succeed int he class room are those same kids who are filling out the advanced classes.

as parents, if my wife and i want our kids to be in the advanced placement classes, we need to make dang sure that the kids are on top of their school work, know how to behave in class, and know what is
expected of them performance wise. if they work hard in elem school and learn how to learn and act, then they will be in a position to take advantage of the advanced classes. if i let them goof off and fall behind and don't see that they are where they need to be school wise, they will have no chance at being prepared and ready for the good opportunities that are out there.

the kid with the weakest arm can't expect to be the starting quarterback. likewise, kids that don't work hard in school can't expect to reap the same rewards as those that do.

[GET-N-RITE]

I do not have anything good to say about this, so I will keep it to myself.

How old were the kids that were interrogated?

[msbigdawg1234]

I can tell ya this I was pissed when I heard one of the ?... They asked my daughter Why do u think there are not many blacks in ur classes in scholastics... These are not the type of ? You ask 11-13 yr olds..I will be getting to the bottom of it

[eSJay]

WOW
I’m guessing these folks will never grasp the importance & reality of "it all starts at home"!

[bustercat64]

Rick I would be pissed to what did your daughter tell them

[kb7722]

Here is my take on it. You can't count on the government to provide proper education for your child. The government is interested in numbers, and they will make the rules so that they get the numbers they like. You just gave a prime example. They want to see more "minorities" in the gifted programs; so they change the rules to achieve it. They want more kids to graduate; so they lower the standards... The government would rather give more kids a poor education than give those you care an excellent education.

I graduated from a private school because I lived in school district that was 80%..., but I always said I would send my kids to public school b/c I lived in a good district. That was until my nephews were pulled out of a high rated public school because they were not learning anything. The content and methods dictated by the government are a joke, and the teachers have no authority to discipline the children. As I prepare to start a family, I am prepared to pay the price for a good education. Its a shame that things have come to this, but look at government as a whole. Its really no big surprise that government run education is not a gleaming success. I know every time I mail a letter by USPS that there is a sizable chance that it won't arrive at the recipient. I won't run the same risk with my children's education.

I just remembered that I have to request a tracer for the state tax refund check I didn't receive... government

[msbigdawg1234]

Don't know just yet .. She been sick last couple days

[kevinw]

This is one of the many reasons why I wil never, ever, ever , ever, ever, ever send my kids to a goverment school. Mine go to private school so they don't have to put up with this crap. The more I hear about what goes on in public schools with common core, praying and such just ticks me off. I don't care how much it cost me and how many jobs me and my wife have to work but private school is worth every penny of it when it comes to my kids education.

[gps4]

[southdeltan]

I'd suggest counter lawsuits to assure that all athletic teams that are not at least 20% "white" are. I'd ask black players why they think there aren't as many white players on the team.

[dukhntn]

I wonder if the OCR is racially balanced by the same standard as they'd like the GATES program and AP classes to be? If this were true, then 70% of the employes of the OCR should be white, but I seriously doubt that is the case.

[Deltaquack]

[kb7722]

[lilwhitelie]

Can someone please tell me the race makeup of the nba?? The NFL? Maybe they are better at basketball, heck I know they are. At what point does it stop??? Just because you are a certain race doesn't entitle you to anything. You get what you put into it. Those kids are in advanced classes because they earned that right. To just pull a number up and say you have to put x number of a race in a class for advanced placement classes defeats the purpose. If that happens I can see somehow they attack the private school sector. As parents that care about education, there are many that move so their kids can attend a good public school with opportunities to excell. Do you really think kids that barely make it in regular classes wanna be thrust into advanced classes just to prove a point?? Then the whole grading curve will have to change so they can make it and not flunk out.

I can only imagine how pissed you are rick. It would be all over cnn if roles were reversed.

Since these kids are minors I would think there would have to be some legal issues involved. Parents have to consent for EVERYTHING