“Why should I care if I have to cut my hair. I’ve got to move with the fashions, or be outcast.” (“Cut My Hair”, Pete Townshend, The Who)
Pete Townshend’s lyrics from The Who classic “Quadrophenia” represent as well as any the plight of J.T. Gaskins, the 17 year-old student at a Flint, Michigan charter school. J.T. admirably chose to grow his hair out in support of Locks of Love, a public non-profit whose mission is to provide economically disadvantaged children needing hair prosthetics as a result of cancer treatment.
This didn’t work for Madison Academy’s non-publicly elected school board, who enforced the ridiculous suspension while offering creative solutions such as “braiding, trimming, or getting a perm.” There’s no confirmation whether the late-era Mike Brady is their Board president.
If it weren’t so sad, it would be funny as the Michigan legislature raced forward with marginally regulated uncapping of charter schools. They waved the banner that “choice” to attend a school like Madison Academy, who now capriciously suspends a student who was acting in a way that should make society proud. Here’s J.T.’s choice now: Conform or be denied a free and public education. How is Michigan not outraged at this?
J.T. saw the greater purpose and acted on it. He applied what he’s been learning to do good things for the society of which he’s a part. Memo to selective charter schools – this is what it’s ALL about! J.T. is a success, not a failure.
J.T’s mother has had enough, telling the Detroit News, “We have decided to move J.T. to the public school, where they will focus on providing him with the best education possible no matter what his hair looks like.”
Good for Mom and J.T., and the choice advocates will say, “Hey, this is how choice works.” But it’s not so simple.
This wanton dismissal of students, or selective admission (as I laid out in this blog entry about Benton Harbor Schools’ disproportionately higher enrollment of special needs students relative to areas charter schools) is just plain wrong.
These charter schools gladly take public tax dollars when it works out for them, and then discard those that don’t – “the outcasts” as Pete Townshend said.
Don’t cut your hair until your damn good and ready, J.T., and welcome back to true public education in Michigan.
5 responses to “Charter schools and the outcasts”
BRAVO!
“selective admission…is just plain wrong.”
Does this mean GPPS is no longer going to only selectively admit students whose parents can afford home loans in Grosse Pointe?
Hi Michael,
I appreciate the logic and the point. The difference is that there’s no inconsistency in our practice and message. As a community of citizens we agree that to be a part of our school community, we ask that you be a part of our community. Once a part of our community, we don’t make exceptions based on academic ability or how you wear your hair. For this charter school to do that is not consistent. This student chose to wear his hair long. His parents chose to let him.
Let me ask you, do you think what this charter did was acceptable?
Brendan
Mr. Van Beek,
One of the key points my coalition (MCLC) made in our many meetings with various members of the Senate Ed Committee, including Senator Pavlov is that you don’t have to be able to ” afford a home loan” in Grosse Pointe to participate in our school district. Our community has a wide array of affordable homes and rental properties..
Effort to to sell Grosse Pointe as a bastion of WASP elitists is not well founded in reality. We educate ALL of our kids, we place a value on education here in GP that is evidenced in too many ways to count.
Sincerely,
Lynn M. Jacobs
Co-Founder MCLC
Brendan, Great blog. This is a topic that needs some attention. I hope you don’t mind if I forward along to some others who may be interested in reading it.
Mr. Van Beek, a a Grosse Pointe parent and advocate for quality neighborhood schools for all children and all tyes of children, I think you should examine the facts before making statements like the above. Grosse Pointe participates in choice for special needs chioldren, meaning we are accepting them, while charters are turning them away.
Kate