[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Hsz-pOm9kM]
While the Supreme Court was in session Wednesday hearing oral arguments in the case of Fisher v. The University of Texas at Austin, a group of students from Washington, D.C.’s Dunbar High School were out of session to attend the pro-affirmative action rally taking place outside the high court.
Dunbar, a 95 percent black school in northwest D.C., allowed students out of class for a field trip to attend the event. The unusually politically active high school previously made headlines in March for organizing a rally for in support of Trayvon Martin. At Wednesday’s protest, speakers including the Rev. Al Sharpton and the Rev. Jesse Jackson thanked the students for coming out to support affirmative action and stand with the University of Texas at Austin.
Whereas the reverends seemed to know why the students were there, some of the students themselves did not.
When interviewed by Red Alert Politics several students struggled to explain why they were at the event or what the Supreme Court case meant for affirmative action. One young man, who did not want to go on camera, admitted he had no idea why he was there, explaining the high school had brought them all.
In a phone interview with Red Alert Politics Dunbar High School Principal Stephen Jackson explained that about 160 students — mostly seniors and juniors, and a few freshmen — attended the Supreme Court rally. Attendance was not mandatory and parental permission was required for those students who were present, he said. Students were taught about both sides of affirmative action in social studies, history, English and French classes, according to the principal.
The students interviewed supported Jackson’s claim and said they were allowed to make their own decisions on the court case after the pros and cons of affirmative action had been presented during class. However, a comment from the school’s principal reveals that the school may have been biased in how it represented the case and what is at stake for minority students.
“This is basically an historic Supreme Court case, and it could affect the future of our children, especially our children who are going to colleges and universities all over the country,” Jackson said when asked why Dunbar had taken students to the protest. “More importantly, for our students, if in fact this particular case is reversed, and that means then that many of our colleges and universities would not benefit from having a diverse student body. And because they would not have a diverse student body, then that means it is not a reflection of the American population and society.”
Jackson basically said that if the court case at the heart of Fisher v. The University of Texas at Austin — Grutter v. Bollinger, which allows for affirmative action in college admissions — is overturned by the Supreme Court, Dunbar’s students would be unable to get into many colleges and universities.
Students interviewed by Red Alert expressed similar views on the necessity of affirmative action in getting into colleges and universities.
The students and the principal’s statements may be correct. If race were not taken into account many of the school’s students likely wouldn’t get into college — because of the school’s poor test scores in basic subjects like reading and math.
In 2011, only 18 percent of Dunbar students met or exceeded math standards and 27 percent met or exceeded reading standards, which was substantially below the District of Columbia average, according to the District of Columbia Public Schools website. The District average for reading was 44 percent, while the District average for math was 46 percent.
Scores for other subjects such as history and government were not readily available.
In 2011 Dunbar’s graduation rate was 68 percent despite the poor test scores, compared with a District average of 73 percent. College enrollment in 2011, however was on par with the District average with a 42 percent college enrollment rate compared with a District average of 44 percent.
Dunbar’s falling test scores have been the subject of criticism in recent years. Jackson himself has been wrapped up in the struggles of the school, getting fired by Dunbar’s then-operator, Friends of Bedford, at the end of the 2009-10 school year, according to the The Washington Post. The newspaper reported that Friends of Bedford Chief Executive George Leonard had removed Jackson for “‘undermining’ efforts to improve the school.” In a later article, The Post reported the principal was “fired for not pushing improvements in teaching,” according to Leonard.
The New York-based private operator also oversaw D.C.’s Coolidge High School during the 2009-2010 school year. The Post reports in 2010 that both schools posted significant increases in reading proficiency, increasing Dunbar’s reading proficiency from 18.2 percent to 31.9 percent and Coolidge’s from 38 precent to 53.6 percent. The two schools had the greatest gains of any D.C. high schools. However, then-Interim D.C. Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson hired Jackson back and fired Friends of Bedford after the previous mayor of D.C. lost his reelection bid and Henderson was brought in by the new administration, The Post reported.
After finding out about Dunbar’s tumultuous history and and low test scores under Jackson’s leadership, Red Alert Politics attempted to contact Jackson a second time in hopes of asking him if the school’s low test scores, and not the racial make-up of its student body, would be to blame if fewer of its students were accepted into college in a post -affirmative action world. However, the principal said he was unavailable to comment on the story further at that time and would not be available until after business hours.
Videography by Sarah Muro
