Complimentary to churches >GGG&& A and community groups pinortttt ©Mortuuitu |leuie 0ON 2730 STEMMONS FRWY STE. 1202 TOWER WEST, DALLAS, TEXAS 75207 VOLUME 4, NO. 12 December 1995 TPA / / on to the ~<a advancement mate—entrepreneurshlp I Pen Notes' 1995 Year-End-Review Keepin Ethnic Notes: Investing celebratioi The life of in South of Kwanzaa Marcus Garvey, part 3 Africa /^^ From The A^- Publisher fx^'iy Thurman Jones L2» jTL-illj P'">'<' fry Derrick Walters Abotat tlaat WhsLt Does TAAS Really Mean? Perhaps the most frequently dis­ success of the students in mastering the which is up from 38.3% in 1994. The N-word cussed aspect of the educational reforms core competency areas as well as their range of passing rales was from a low of of the last few years has been Ihe TAAS 16.9% at the Metro Center to 94.9% at Between the local radio stations, TV potential for receiving a high school test - the Texas Assessment of Academic diploma. the TAG Magnet. DISD purports that coverage and the press, no one could Skills. The generally perceived signifi­ Mark Twain was quoted as saying, progress is being made in improving the escape the recent discussions in Dallas cance of the examination lies in the criti­ There are three types of lies—white passing rate, i.e., the 2.1 percent regarding the use of the "N-word." The cal role it plays in determining whether lies, damn lies and statistics." One need increase. However, at the same time, stimulus for these debates began with or not a student will graduate. only review a number of the articles and this same data also says that, for 1995, the public disclosure of taped conversa­ Essentially, no pass, . there was a failure rate of 59.87o! 10(»- Reading tions of DISD trustee Dan Peavy using no graduate. In fact, 90X- . Our concern is actually threefold. the "N-word," as well as a number of the graduation rates o Afrlcaft-Am^lcan 80V First, in a era where the general soci­ other expletives, to describe his African are very important g Hispanic 70%- n ety is becoming more technology- 60*- American colleagues. In addition to his and help us under- g While p oriented, having nearly two-lhirds of stand the caliber of 50V JK ^" n the students in our high schools fail­ resignation from the board, an endless 40%- J\ the academic pro­ t J ing lo pass the math portion of this stream of reviews and dialogues on the 30V gram and instruc­ 20%- test is a major problem. Not only proper (or improper) use of the N-word tion. (McClennan 10%- '< i - does this suggest a low graduation -f- *^ resulted. County Commissioner Lester Gibson Grade Grad« Grade Grad* Grade Grade Grade rate but, it brings into serious ques­ Now on the heels of the Peavy flap was so appalled by Waco 5 6 7 8 10 tion the kind of job we are doing to comes the exposure of tapes of a private Independent School District students' lOOV Mathematics really prepare our children for suc­ »ov conversation by City Coundlwoman failure rale in TAAS testing thai he sov cess in the future world. Secondly, Charlotte Mayes, where she suggested organized "Project Exodus" for the 70%- there is justified concern for the that she would never support a Black expressed purpose of minority 60V heavily minority populated high candidate to replace her for the predom­ detachment from WISD, exercising 50V rH schools. Carter (32.9%), Kimball provisions under Senate Bill 1.) 40V n1 (23.3%), Uncoln (42.7%), Madison inately Black district that she represents. 30%- Unfortunately, this is where much of (35.1%), North Dallas (35.9%), 5he uses the N-word to describe some of 20%- the current discussion ends. 10%- • I _ Roosevelt (32.3%), Smith (23.9%), her political foes. Mayor Ron Kirk and I iiiii JL £ Many students, parents and Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade and South Oak Cliff (51.3%) each Commissioner John Wiley Price have 6 8 10 have passing rales that are dismal. suggested, in defense of Ms. Mayes, that educators have, to some degree, questioned the relevancy of the test- lOOV Wfltlng Lastly, given the approximately two there may be-circumstances and situa­ Ideally, Ihe test should indicate the »o%- percent annual increase in Ihe pass tions where the use of the N-word is competency level of the student in BOV rale, one can easily see that, unless 70%- some dramatic changes occur soon, okay. The impression is given that it three areas that were deemed to be 60V r^i) may be appropriate for African core skills thai any citizen should SOV r it will lake nearly fifteen years for the Americans, but never whites, to use the master in order to fully participate 40%- District to get to a 70% passing rate, 3QV n the percentage that the District epithet. and contribute to society: writing, 20%- _ expects for students to achieve in reading and math. While these are 10%- I find this whole debate fascinating vital competencies, the community T 1 1 1- order to pass their classes. Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade The implications of iMs information for various reasons. First, the infringe­ should be concerned that there may . 3 4 S 6 7 8 10 ment of an individual's right to privacy be too much focus on the passing of not only speaks volumes to the seri­ 100 %-| All Tests Taken ous problems our children face but should never be violated (as evidenced the test and too little attention on the 90%- in both the Peavy and Mayes incidents). need to ensure that our students are 80V also suggests a need for a serious 70%- if learning to truly master these sub­ 111 <-. reuew of the plans and programs of Secondly, I find it somewhat puzzling 60V jects. the District lo significantly improve that there would be any attempts to jus­ SOV the level of passing in the mathemat­ tify the use of the N-word, whether used The Minority Opportunity Nezos 40%- 30V ics area. Last month MON reviewed by an African American or an Anglo. If recently requested the data from DISD that provides the percentage of 20%- the events occurring in Waco involv­ it's wrong, ifs always wrong; we (espe­ 10%- students passing the TAAS for the [1: Br ing similar circumstances for their cially Black folks) should not entertain Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade students with respect to the TAAS Spring of 1994 and 1995 by grade and 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 otherwise. Arguments to the contrary school. We were interested in deter­ pass-fail rate. There, the minority community is looking into establishing are spurious at best, leading only to con­ mining if the tests were really indicating press releases from DISD that discusses fusion. the "success" of students and, converse­ a separate school district , one that the passing rales for students (by would hopefully attend lo the needs of There are far more important issues ly what the failure rates are for the vari­ school), on the TAAS exam. Generally, ous schools, with a particular interest in minority students in the competency for public debate than the N-word. these releases acknowledge the progress areas supposedly measured by the Perhaps our political leadership should those schools with high minority enroU- Ihe District is making in improving the menls. We have elected to examine the TAAS. While the potential results of lliis lake classes in diversity training to passing rale, consequently improving action have yet lo be fully reviewed, it data for the high schools for two reasons. the rate of graduation. While not sug­ inaease their sensitivity to the improper First, there are fewer, and typically more does reflect a significant effort towards gesting thai DISD is being deceitful in addressing a very serious problem. use of words to describe their fellow cit­ recognized, high schools than there are the discussion of test results. MON izens. Apparently it wouldn't hurt. either elementary or middle schools. Perhaps Ihe citizens of Dallas would do would suggest that there are more well to put forth an equal effort to move It is my hope that this commentary Also, the time frame of the high school aspects of the data lo be explored than years is very important in that the pass forward in this area. We believe thai all will be the last word (although I doubt just the pass rates. options deserve debate and active con­ it) on this topic. We all would be better or failure rale has a direct rclation^p to Perhaps the most alarming of the the ability of the student lo graduate. A sideration. MON fully intends to do so off to gel a life and move on. data on the passing rates is in the area of in fuhare issues. comparison of high schools allows for an mathematics. Summarily, the passing What are your thoughts? assessment of the potential impact of the MOM rale for all high schools in 1,995 is 40.2 % MON i^iiifTc^npe^iCimTKm'mmii^t^mt. c r^m^cr, 7T :feanfeF?gm' lK©y=®?®o)M=K I DearMON, Cover Story RE: November Editorial on the Dallas Black Criminal Law^ Chamber of Commerce r^fmtW' 1&-20 Black Women in Pink The publisher's editorial in your /^.^ Editorials November 1995 edition of the Minority Personal Injury 02 What Docs TAAS Really Opportunity News (Black Chamber: If s Mean? time to piDduce") was both shocking Features and disturbing, especially since the Black Press and Black Chambers, (214) 6887571 10,11 Keeping KWANZAA Pure 24-25 Investing in South Africa nationwide, are in the "same boat" and 32-33..».Gang Buster Youth it simply makes sense for both instihi- Prevention tions to be rowing in the same direction.