Just Remember

Once again, the Memphis City Schools are out asking for more money. I give a lot of credit to Dr. Carol Johnson for finally turning around some ugly grade trends. It's still early days, but I think she's effecting real change. If you read the back pages of the Commercial Appeal, there have been stories of re-assignments and job changes in the MCS offices, too. But just remember:

* When the news is filled with stories about "slashing" the schools budget $30 million dollars (Last week, it was $27 million. What happened?), you think that's an awful lot of money. But going to the MCS website, you learn that $30 million is 3.8% of the total budget. Now, does 3.8% sound like doom and gloom?

* The Commercial Appeal's education reporter says that MCS faces "shrinking public funding." But again, the MCS website says budgets have remained static for three years. Read the paper's education reporter regularly, and you'll see she strongly sides with the school system and administrators/teachers.

* Last, again from the MCS website, we learn the following:

In 2003-04, the system-wide graduation rate was 61 percent, with 5,532 Memphis City Schools students earning a terminal document (regular or honors diploma, GED, high school certificate or special education diploma). Of those students, 81 percent earned a regular or honors diploma on time (four years plus one summer).

Read it again. That includes GEDs and certificates.

Just some things to remember.

UPDATE Bruce over at Return of the Mountain Tortoise has a poignant observation.

RoMT is one of the new (to me) blogs I've recently turned up. You should be reading him regularly. More on new blogs later today. (I hope.)