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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Ashland's ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum to double classroom space New Southern Oregon University board votes to bump tuition nearly 5 percent in the fall Police Reports Schneider Art Museum installation re-imagines Rivera UPDATED: Two lanes open after I-5 truck crash near Siskiyou Summit Education New Southern Oregon University board votes to bump tuition nearly 5 percent in the fall Why OLLI matters: A personal perspective Southern Oregon University names director of marketing Dianne Williamson: College admissions mania ill-advised Rotary Club of Ashland names Riley O'Sullivan as Student of the Month Environment Mt. Ashland Ski Area to host party March 28 Mt. Ashland hopes coming storm will reopen ski area Wild Side: Selfish and other reasons for saving endangered species Mt. Ashland Ski Area: Low snow closes 'bunny hill' chairlift for beginning skiers With pre-season conditions worst in 25 years, catastrophic wildfires expected in region this summer Business Ride & Drive: 2015 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Snow hopes dashed, Mt. Ashland Ski Area hosts season-ending party Saturday Iconic Ashland bookstore to celebrate 35th anniversary on April 19 Test Drive: 2015 Honda Accord Cars We Remember: The original Candymatic Ramchargers Politics and elections Jackson County Commissioners plan no tax on marijuana for first year Grassroots group campaigns for Plaza paver do-over Arthur I. Cyr: Iran – a crisis without end Short-term rental restrictions kept in some areas, loosened in others Arthur I. Cyr: South Korea represents long-term triumph – for them and for US State News Oregon's governor appoints new secretary of state Nation - World Obituaries Death Notices Alicia Applegate Hardy Death Notices Rosalind Dee Death Notices Shareable Sports Latest Stories Grizz baseball team caps Arizona trip with another win Ashland Rowing Club hires highly touted coach and national-award winning team director to lead expansion Antionette Kerr: Tourney fever gets superstitious Blazers fight back, edge Jazz Grizzlies rally past Colorado school for Greenway Festival victory High school Grizz baseball team caps Arizona trip with another win Grizzlies rally past Colorado school for Greenway Festival victory Ashland softball team splits pair in second day of Bend tournament Grizzlies rally past GP, to 2-0 start Ashland boys capture another Sato Cup snowboard title at Mt. Bachelor Southern Oregon University Grizz baseball team caps Arizona trip with another win Grizzlies rally past Colorado school for Greenway Festival victory Ashland softball team splits pair in second day of Bend tournament Ducks enjoy the challenge Oregon bows out Voices Latest Stories Guest Opinion: Ashland council vote on travelers accommodations was less than transparent Herb Rothschild Jr: Failing at charity Philip Maddocks: GOP plan offers hope for poor once they become rich Matthew T. Mangino: A clearer picture of police shootings begins to emerge Letters to the Editor, March 27 Editorial Our View: Build it; they will play Our View: How it should work Our View: Ashland High principal is the head of her class Our View: Tuition trauma Our View: SOU's economic clout Letters Letters to the Editor, March 27 Letters to the Editor, March 25 Letters to the Editor, March 23 Letters to the Editor, March 20 Letters to the Editor, March 19 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: Ashland council vote on travelers accommodations was less than transparent Guest Opinion: Hannah Thomas-Garner's father thanks the Ashland community Guest Opinion: Ashland is asking for trouble with new room rental rules Guest Opinion: More reasons to oppose Jordan Cove Guest Opinion: It's Groundwater Awareness Week; test your well Columns Guest Opinion: Ashland council vote on travelers accommodations was less than transparent Herb Rothschild Jr: Failing at charity Philip Maddocks: GOP plan offers hope for poor once they become rich Matthew T. Mangino: A clearer picture of police shootings begins to emerge Jeffrey Gillespie: Pax Americana? At what price? Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Top 5 things to do this week Laurie Lewis and Kathy Kallick pay tribute to Arkansas bluegrass duo Vern Williams and Ray Park The Oregon Shakespeare Festival presents Eugene O'Neill's autobiographical 'Long Day's Journey into Night' Community blog: Words, wine and Craig Wright 4 Things To Do This Week Theater Review: From past into present in OSF's 'Long Day's Journey' Ticket availability Ticket Availability Ashland Contemporary Theatre seeks new artistic director Ticket Availability Music Futureshock: Kendrick Lamar release points to road ahead Laurie Lewis and Kathy Kallick pay tribute to Arkansas bluegrass duo Vern Williams and Ray Park Album reviews: Recent and recommended for March The Farr Side: New format for ‘American Idol’ as show continues a strong run Improv rock and folk band hosts a dance party at the Ashland Community Center Visual Art Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Movies Movie review: In ‘Danny Collins,’ Pacino helps us imagine a Lennon story Noah Baumbach talks Ben Stiller, adult comedies and more In 'Timbuktu,' lust for power disturbs peace Movie review: ‘The Gunman’ misses the target Movie listings: March 20-26 Food and Drink Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Review: From past into present in OSF's 'Long Day's Journey' Community Blog: What is Peace? Ride & Drive: 2015 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque App Finder: Best barbecue apps Health Watch: It’s OK to have a cheat day Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Rogues: Tales from the Valley Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business Business Services NEWS NOW Ashland Calendar: Saturday, March 28 ... Guest Opinion: Ashland council vote on travelers accommodations was less than transparent ... Herb Rothschild Jr: Failing at charity ... Ashland Calendar: Saturday, March 28 ... Guest Opinion: Ashland council vote on travelers accommodations was less than transparent ... Herb Rothschild Jr: Failing at charity ... COMMENTARY Chris Honoré: Public schools: separate, still unequal Comment By Chris Honoré DailyTidings.com By Chris Honoré Posted Feb. 9, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Chris Honoré Posted Feb. 9, 2015 at 12:01 AM What do you think? --> Have an opinion on this topic? Send a letter to the editor at www.dailytidings.com/sendletter. » Read more X What do you think? Have an opinion on this topic? Send a letter to the editor at www.dailytidings.com/sendletter . » Social News   Part Two Our public schools are potentially the most potent and constructive platform available for impacting the lives of our children. Schools are where the vast majority of our children go each day and where they begin to learn a myriad of skills both academic and social. If we have the will, schools are where we can begin to salvage this and future generations, but not as currently organized and clearly not as financed (financing schools with local and state taxes is decidedly inequitable). Consider the following: According to a recent report by the Southern Education Foundation, for the first time in more than a half century, a majority of public school students (51 percent in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade in the 2012-2013 school year) come from low-income families and are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches, which is a good barometer for poverty in America. There is an explosion of need that has been trending upward since the onset of the Great Recession. In 40 of 50 states, low-income students amount to no less than 40 percent of public school children. In 21 states, according to the report, children eligible for free or reduced-price lunches were a majority. Mississippi leads the nation with 71 percent of its school children eligible. More specifically, many children come to school hungry, from homes that are struggling or in chaos, parents working at minimum wage jobs (often two or three) that cannot support a family. In a recent article in the Washington Post, a veteran teacher in New Mexico, Sonya Romero-Smith, states, “When (my young students) first come in my door in the morning, the first thing I do is an inventory of immediate needs: ‘Did you eat? Are you clean?’ A big part of my job is making them safe.” She stocks a drawer with wipes and toothbrushes, clean socks, underwear, pants and shoes. Imagine. Romero-Smith, a teacher for 19 years, became a foster parent to two young sisters who attended her school. “They had been homeless, their father living on the streets and their mother in jail,” explained Romero-Smith. “Getting rid of bedbugs, that took a while. Night terrors, that took a while. Hoarding food, flushing toilets and washing hands, it took us a little while. These kids aren’t thinking, ‘Am I going to take a test today?’ They’re thinking, ‘Am I going to be OK?’” How do we, in good conscience, answer that question? So the simple but eloquent question, asked by those two girls, “Am I going to be OK?” is answered by proffering the rubric of standardized testing, a chimera for “accountability” (the go-to word). What we have done is fall into a testing trap, believing that we must, above all, measure the achievement of those children who arrive from the direst of circumstances. We compound that illusion by insisting that we can use their test scores to evaluate their teachers. Believing in standardized tests is the equivalent of believing in unicorns. It’s insidious, reductionistic, and creates a learning environment wherein teachers must devote an inordinate amount of time in test preparation, even at the expense of recess. Compounding one-test-fits-all is the de facto segregation of our schools due to poverty and a concomitant thin property tax base, resulting in deferred repairs, leaky roofs, lack of heat, shortages of textbooks and staff and even classrooms. An argument could be made that this, in the aggregate, is unconstitutional and violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment (1868). School financing, as presently structured, has become a contemporary iteration of Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), the egregious Supreme Court ruling that established the legality of “separate but equal,” finally overturned by Brown v. Board of Education (1954). Southern Education Foundation Vice President, Steve Switts, wrote: “No longer can we consider the problems and needs of low income students simply as a matter of fairness… Their success or failure in the public schools will determine the entire body of human capital and educational potential that the nation will possess in the future. Without improving the educational support that the nation provides its low income students – students with the largest needs and usually with the least support – the trends of the last decade will be prologue for a nation not at risk but a nation in decline …” Chris Honoré lives in Ashland. By Chris Honoré DailyTidings.com By Chris Honoré Posted Feb. 9, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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