C4DC: Strengthening by-right pathways at DCPS is the key to educational equity

By Commentary On Mar 15, 2022 Last updated Mar 15, 2022

A publicly governed, managed and funded system for public education is a critical part of our democratic system of government. Here in Washington, DC, this is the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS). This citywide system must guarantee education rights for every school-age child — in every corner of the city. The DCPS citywide system of neighborhood schools is a powerful tool for advancing access to high-quality educational opportunities without the bias and stress of a lottery.

With explicit policies and practices for equity in our DCPS neighborhood schools, DCPS is the system that can most effectively and efficiently deliver on shared priorities for families and communities. These include:

High-quality academic programs, after-school and co-curricular opportunities.
A safe and nurturing environment in modern, well-maintained school buildings and grounds.
Community and parent engagement that builds social capital, and political empowerment that strengthens our democratic institutions.
Public space and community use that you can count on, for all residents in a neighborhood.
Walkable schools, resulting in fewer cars on neighborhood streets — and more time for families to participate in school-related activities or supporting their families at home, at work or with other community organizations.
Economies of scale that provide better value to the District at lower cost to taxpayers.

The District of Columbia should prioritize its publicly governed and managed system of DCPS neighborhood, by-right public schools because of the benefits they provide families, communities and our democracy.

Policies and practices that encourage exit and choice instead of empowering engagement and investment disadvantage DCPS neighborhood schools and a democratic system for public education. When exit is a remedy for dissatisfaction with a school, the schools are off the hook for delivering high standards for all children. These policies encourage families to leave rather than to invest in their school. The reduced enrollments create reduced funding at every level for needed teachers, social workers and programming.

A number of policies and practices have disadvantaged DCPS neighborhood schools.

The city has closed DCPS neighborhood schools rather than investing in them to deliver the programs, modernizations and supports that the neighborhood schools required.
There are so many closed DCPS neighborhood schools in wards 5, 7 and 8 that DCPS has enrollment capacity for only about 50% of the students living in those wards. This loss of a by-right option disproportionately affects students of color who live in historically disinvested neighborhoods.
Neglecting the modernizations of DCPS middle schools in wards 1, 7 and 8 not only shortchanges those middle school students from having a full academic and after-school experience, but it also diminishes the flow of students into their neighborhood high schools and encourages earlier exit from DCPS neighborhood elementary schools.
The DC Public Charter School Board (PCSB) has the sole authority to open up to 10 new local education agencies (LEAs) a year, regardless of need for enrollment capacity in the city.
There is no city policy that regulates enrollment increases in existing charter LEAs.
The city has expanded selective application seats at DCPS high schools even when there is ample capacity in fully modernized DCPS comprehensive high schools.

The District of Columbia can plan now for a stronger DCPS system of neighborhood by-right schools centered around the nine comprehensive high schools, by exploring ways to accomplish the following:

Fully modernize middle school facilities and programs in the Ballou and Anacostia feeder patterns (Hart, Johnson and Kramer middle schools) to address the need for DCPS middle schools with strong academic, athletic and co-curricular programs, adequate student enrollment and student and family support.
Open a second DCPS by-right middle school in Ward 7 to feed into Woodson High School, as recommended by the DC Advisory Committee on Student Assignment and the Ward 7 Education Council. There are inadequate by-right options in this area of the city. The community is identifying possible locations.
Deliver on the promise to establish a modernized Shaw middle school, and locate it at the former Banneker High School site on Euclid Street NW. Feeding into Cardozo High School, this DCPS middle school would serve as the by-right feeder middle school for Seaton, Cleveland and Garrison elementary schools as well as all families living in that area. A stand-alone middle school can offer more programming to more students than can be offered in the current education campus at Cardozo. A Euclid Street middle school also has the potential to address crowding at middle schools in wards 3 and 4.
Locate swing space for the modernizations of Truesdell, Whittier and LaSalle-Backus in their communities in order to sustain the DCPS enrollment growth in the Coolidge and Roosevelt feeder patterns. These feeder elementary schools have strong early childhood programs, and a majority of families walk their children to their neighborhood schools.
Address the crowding and inadequacy of the shared spaces at Ida B. Wells Middle School and Coolidge High School — particularly the cafeteria.
Address the extreme crowding that has occurred with Roosevelt High School’s enrollment growth given that it is co-located with Roosevelt STAY, a successful and growing citywide opportunity academy that needs its own space to appropriately serve its students.
Move ahead with the recommendations of the Ward 3 Community Working Group on Overcrowding in the Wilson High School feeder pattern, with required associated public engagement on the details. Further address the overcrowding in the feeder pattern as part of the citywide educational facilities master plan. (Wilson High School will soon be known as Jackson Reed High School.)
Work with former, current and future Eastern High School families to support active efforts by the school and community to retain the students from its feeder elementary and middle schools.
Work with the former, current and future Dunbar families to support enrollment growth from both the DCPS feeder schools and the families residing in this area of the city.
Require that the process for updating student assignment policies, boundaries and feeder patterns be completed in 2023 and aligned with capital plans.
Retain DCPS school buildings, recreation and athletic sites for DCPS schools and communities.
Establish a moratorium on authorizing any new charter local education agencies and any enrollment expansions of existing charter LEAs — at a minimum until a detailed master facilities plan is developed that applies to both sectors and is enforceable by the city. The master facilities plan should include reasonable parameters for any future growth of school facilities.

The city has done important work to support its DCPS by-right school system. The full modernizations and replacements of many DCPS facilities shows a commitment to our DCPS by-right school system and the neighborhoods they are in. The recent initiatives to strengthen educational and student support programs at Anacostia and Ballou and comprehensive redesign efforts at additional schools also show a commitment to our DCPS by-right school system.

However, this work alone is not enough.

The city needs to proactively support and prioritize its DCPS system of schools and engage with community members to explore the policies and plans we are recommending. With this work DCPS will better realize its potential for equity and quality in all neighborhoods.

This statement by the Coalition for DC Public Schools & Communities (C4DC) was signed by coalition members: 21st Century School Fund; DC Fiscal Policy Institute; Decoding Dyslexia DC; Education Town Hall; EmpowerEd; Parents for Center City/Shaw; Senior High Alliance of Parents, Principals and Educators (S.H.A.P.P.E.); Teaching for Change; Ward 3 Wilson Feeder Education Network; Ward 4 Education Alliance; Ward 5 Education Equity Committee; Ward 6 Public Schools Parent Organization (W6PSPO); Ward 7 Education Council; Ward 8 Education Council; Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs; Washington Teachers’ Union; and We Act Radio.

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