Anytime you focus on the importance of "human will" in schools, it is good for my soul. Those of us who still believe that attitude is an essential piece of any school improvement plan appreciated last week's column.
Further, attitude can be created, improved, or squashed by conditions both inside and outside the four walls of the school building. Take the case of the Lindsay Heights neighborhood for instance. As the site of my doctoral field work, I saw first hand how the values and beliefs of the Walnut Way Conservation Corp and its one-of-a-kind leaders Sharon and Larry Adams could re-energize a neighborhood through sheer effort, determination, and belief in the value of people. As the neighborhood continues to undergo a renaissance, so too does the attitude and spirit of the residents and stakeholders. As neighborhood conditions continue to improve, I cannot help but believe so too does school performance.
While two Milwaukee College Prep campuses are located right in Lindsay Heights, I'm not sure Robb Ruah would give much credence to my belief in neighborhood effects theory. It's no fun being a realist! However, as you well know, anyone who attends one of his early morning assemblies knows how much he and his team value human will and effort as part of the process.
Certainly there are a myriad of challenges MCP students and families, as well as all the students and families at the other schools in that neighborhood, face on daily basis. Anyone looking for the one big solution will be badly disappointed. There are a lot of structuralist at the school reform table. All I ask is leave a few chairs for the idealists who still believe people make a difference.
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