Keep up with today's Booker T.


[This message was edited by Hornet on Mon September 15 2003 at 03:29 AM.]

School's in, old Booker T's out - September 3, 2003
by Andrea Eger, World Staff Writer

[The following article is reprinted in its entirety without permission for the purpose of discussion, as permitted under the Fair Use clause of the U.S. Copyright Act]

Tulsa - Hello, Room 224.

Carpeted floors can really cut down on the cacophony of shuffling feet and papers and student voices in a classroom.

Barbara Coleman doesn't have nearly as much storage space as she did for the previous 24 years in Room 130 of the old Booker T. Washington High School, but she wouldn't trade her new social studies classroom for anything.

She stood at the helm of a homeroom class of fresh-faced students seated in shiny new chairs at tables too new to tempt markings from a teenager's pen or pencil.

"It's just wonderful," Coleman said.

Tuesday was the first day of school for all of Tulsa Public Schools and a particularly special milestone in the history of its top-performing high school.

Washington held its first classes in the $25 million replacement of its original, 1950 facility and 1960s additions.

Not everything was finished, or painted, or tiled, and most classrooms were sparsely decorated because teachers themselves have been in the buildings for only a few days.

Coleman said she can't wait to liven up her room's long windowsill with plants and flowers, but she doesn't miss much of the clutter she weeded out of her copious storage space in the old building.

One of her homeroom students was counting the small blessings of the place. The tall boy said he would be saved regular pain and embarrassment because the new classroom doors had only side hinges, instead of the elbow-like overhead ones that presented him a hazard.

"You know those big metal hinges that were on the old doors? I used to hit my head on those. The new ones don't have them," said Andrew McConnell, a senior.

The first day wasn't without new headaches in other ways, however.

Morning traffic was snarled in every direction as parents tried to deliver their high schoolers curbside to spare them from a misting rainfall.

Inside, students of every grade needed directions because none of them had attended classes there before.

"It's tough on seniors who want to know their way around. They're in the same boat as freshmen," said psychology teacher Ron Foore, who was directing students in the hallways after homeroom.

But he said Washington students will have an easier time getting from class to class than they ever have had before.

In the new design, all of the classrooms are confined to one single building, as opposed to multiple wings and even some classes that had to be held at a closed elementary school adjacent to the Washington site.

"They now have five-minute passing periods compared to 10 minutes last year because of the consolidated classroom space," Foore said.

And while freshmen in James Kirk's homeroom class were impressed by the new school they called "big," the teacher himself said he was not so pleased with his consolidated orchestra classroom space.

"It's a travesty. This room is a size 2 and I'm a size 6," said Kirk, who described his old room as too cramped but at least "a size 3."

He said he would have to hold orchestra class down the hall in the larger marching band room.


"They built a patchwork school," Kirk said, sighing. "But, oh well. What do you expect?"

(Copyright 2001-2003 Tulsa World. )

For you non-Tulsa based alumni who wanna know how BTW is doing on the gridiron:

http://www.tulsaworld.com/SportsStory.asp?ID=030919_Sp_b1_btwwins
(You need a subscription to view this)

Marshall runs top-ranked Hornets by No. 3 Cardinals
Booker T. Washington's Keith Marshall didn't come out of the game often, but head coach Antwain Jimmerson opted to rest his senior tailback on one offensive series late in the game.

That strategy paid off as the 5-foot-7, 160-pounder burst through the middle of the East Central defense and raced 78 yards to ignite the top-ranked Hornets to a 33-19 victory over the No. 3 Cardinals in a Class 5A showdown Thursday night at East Tulsa Sports Complex.

Marshall finished with 26 carries for 195 yards -- 126 in the second half -- and two touchdowns.

"Keith said it all last week when he said it was his turn to step up following the injury to Felix Jones," Jimmerson said.

Jimmerson said the decision to rest Marshall was prompted by the senior tailback telling his coach he was tired after playing both ways.

"He came to me and said he was tired, so we rested him," said the Washington coach. "I guess it was good strategy."

The game was actually closer than the final score indicated. Adrian Bradley added a late Washington score on a 39-yard run.

East Central also scored late, on a 71-yard shovel pass from quarterback Drew Jamison to junior tailback Ricky Palmer. The 5-6, 170-pounder cut to the outside and raced down the sideline for the score.

The teams combined for 23 points in the first quarter, most of it coming on turnovers, before the defenses took over.

In addition, the Cardinals were plagued by special teams problems in their punting game. It was such a problem that East Central coach Travis Hill put in his starting QB, Jamison, to handle deep snaps.

The Hornets committed four turnovers in all, two fumbles, an interception and a muffed punt, but took advantage of the leg of Kirk Jones, who averaged 35.5 yards on eight punts. He also added two field goals.

East Central committed only one turnover.

Washington finished with 272 yards of offense, 210 of it on the ground.

The Cardinals scored less than a minute into the game following a Hornet fumble that Chris Todd recovered at the Washington 19. Jamison hit Barnett in the flat and the East Central senior scooted in for the score.

Washington answered on its next possession on a 55-yard touchdown pass from Kenny McClellan to Quentin Chaney, who later left the game with a stinger in his left shoulder.

The Hornets added a 26-yard field goal from Kirk Jones.

Marshall scored on the Hornets' fourth offensive series of the quarter, rumbling 24 yards for the touchdown.

B.T. WASHINGTON 33, EAST CENTRAL 19
B.T. Washington 17 0 3 13--33
East Central 6 6 0 7--19
EC: Barnett 19 pass from Jamison (run failed).
BTW: Chaney 55 pass from McClellan (Jones kick).
BTW: Jones FG, 26.
BTW: Marshall 24 run (Jones kick).
EC: Palmer 17 run (pass failed).
BTW: Jones FG, 37.
BTW: Marshall 78 run (Jones kick).
BTW: Bradley 39 run (kick failed).
EC: Palmer 71 pass from Jamison (Bruce kick).

BTW EC
First Downs 10 10
Rushes-Yards 41-210 23-22
Passing Yards 62 220
Comp-Att-Int 4-13-1 12-37-1
Return Yards 144 43
Punts-Avg. 8-35.5 13-25.9
Fumbles-Lost 2-2 1-0
Penalties-Yards 12-85 6-55

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No wonder you`re all mixed up. You got a white man`s 1st name, a Spanish man`s 2nd name and a black man`s 3rd name.


-- Mickey Rivers to Reginald (Reggie) Martinez Jackson

How sad to see they have a new school. DId the new school replace the old or was it an addition. My Grandfather built the original BTW. My family always thought how ironic it was his grandaughters ended up attending BTW.

Kate,

They built a new one, my understanding is it's more toward Apache where the back parking lot was located, but don't quote me on that. I don't live in Tulsa so maybe someone who is still there can verify this...

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No wonder you`re all mixed up. You got a white man`s 1st name, a Spanish man`s 2nd name and a black man`s 3rd name.


-- Mickey Rivers to Reginald (Reggie) Martinez Jackson

The way I understand this from a parent that has a 10th grader there, is that the face of the old building, deco art, was saved and I think still stands. The new building does sit way back. Where we used to park in back is no longer, it is part of new. And, the new is now a four story job. I didn't make it there Tuesday, but, there is an open house there on Sunday Oct 5 don't know the time.

Oh, Cat, I didn't really understand that the new BTW is on the same site as the old BTW. Aha...

Does anyone have pics of the new BTW?

The retarded Tulsa World newspaper has to be the only one in the world that allows subscribers ONLY to access its website.

Actually no, most newspapers anymore make you pay if you want to access the archives. TW doesn't offer much for free but their website as a whole is one sick puppy, terrible design and the content is very limited but as you know "free" is not a good business model so I wouldn't offer much in the way of articles either, unless they can get some college or high students to intern for free and improve it that way.

Oh, I get on there using the subscriber details from my mom. If you know anyone still living in Tulsa and they subscribe to the TW just get them to provide you w/ the subscriber number and then you can log in.

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No wonder you`re all mixed up. You got a white man`s 1st name, a Spanish man`s 2nd name and a black man`s 3rd name.


-- Mickey Rivers to Reginald (Reggie) Martinez Jackson

Education Week
American Education's Newspaper of Record

November 26, 2003
Tulsa to Change Admissions
To Magnet Schools
By Catherine Gewertz
Education Week
The elimination of racial quotas from magnet school admissions in Tulsa, Okla., has kicked off a debate about how best to preserve racial integration in those schools.
Some residents are demanding a fuller exploration of how to assure good, racially diverse schools systemwide. Responding to their anger, two state lawmakers sent letters last week to Tulsa school board members requesting an investigation into whether Superintendent David E. Sawyer was improperly limiting public input on how admissions at Booker T. Washington High School and Carver Middle School should be redesigned.

In the wake of the letters, sent by Rep. Judy Eason McIntyre and Sen. Maxine Horner, Mr. Sawyer's public-information staff issued a statement clarifying that he was inviting "ideas, opinions, statements of support or disagreement, recommendations for revisions, and/or suggestions" on magnet school admissions.
But some citizens, including large segments of the black community, would like district leaders to consider restructuring the magnet schools as neighborhood schools. They are concerned that focusing only on magnet-school admissions will shortchange examination of the larger picture.
"We need further time to study how best to achieve diversity within the entire system, not just at magnet schools," said James O. Goodwin, a lawyer who worked on Tulsa's desegregation efforts more than 30 years ago. "Six hours of public debate isn't enough."
Three two-hour meetings to hear public comment on how to restructure magnet school admissions were scheduled for last week, and the school board was expected to consider the matter on Dec. 15. District officials contend the timeline is necessary to ensure a plan is in place for the next cycle of student applications.
'Pressing Issue'
Mr. Sawyer said he believes that the focus on magnet school admissions is proper because it is "the pressing issue."
"I don't think this is the time or place" for a broader debate about equity and diversity systemwide, he said in an interview last week. "What we want to focus on right now is how to retain the level and kind of diversity we currently have at the magnet schools."
Tulsa's debate about magnet school admissions began last month, when Mr. Sawyer announced that he would drop the requirement that each magnet school's enrollment be 45 percent black, 45 percent white, and 10 percent "other." Those quotas date back to the district's 1973 desegregation plan, which attempted to use magnet schools to attract white students to predominantly black neighborhoods.
But in the wake of a pair of U.S. Supreme Court decisions in June that held that a race- conscious postsecondary admissions policy must employ an individualized analysis of each applicant, district lawyers advised Mr. Sawyer that the "45- 45-10 system" would not withstand a legal challenge.
On Nov. 10, Mr. Sawyer released four alternatives.
Three of the choices would divide the 43,000- student district into sections, and weight enrollment from the various sections to achieve racial balance. One of the proposals, for instance, would enroll 60 percent of high school magnet students from the parts of town that have the greatest concentration of black families, and 40 percent from the portions with more white families.
The fourth proposal would give preferential admission to the top 20 percent of each 8th grade class, based on students' cumulative grade point averages. That option, Mr. Sawyer said, would likely result in less diversity than would the geography-based proposals.
Applicants to the magnet high school still would have to meet the existing criteria of having a 2.5 GPA and being in the top 35th percentile on a reading and math test.
Other districts are re-examining their use of racial quotas in magnet school admissions as well.
Dallas, which was released from court-ordered desegregation in June, is considering a plan that would fill 10 percent of magnet school seats with students whose academic records make them most "distinguished."
From a remaining pool of academically qualified students, the other 90 percent of seats would be filled by lottery.
On the Web


Tulsa Public Schools has posted the 2003-2004 admission rules and regulations, including race and gender standards, for the Booker T. Washington High School and Carver Middle School Magnet Programs.
"Reaffirming Diversity: A Legal Analysis of the University of Michigan Affirmative Action Cases," July 2003, from Harvard University's Civil Rights Project, examines the implications of the U.S. Supreme Court decisions regarding race-conscious admissions policies. (Requires Adobe's Acrobat Reader.)
From the ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education, the July 2002 digest "Constitutional Law and Race-Conscious Policies in K-12 Education" reviews the legal framework surrounding "desegregation remedies" and voluntary diversity-promoting policies in education.
The November 1998 article "Diversity and Admissions," from the American School Board Journal, examines the use of racial quotas to promote diversity in schools.

© 2003 Editorial Projects in Education Vol. 23, number 13, page 5

[The following article is reprinted in its entirety without permission for the purpose of discussion, as permitted under the Fair Use clause of the U.S. Copyright Act]

quote:

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Originally posted by Joe Shaw:
The retarded Tulsa World newspaper has to be the only one in the world that allows subscribers ONLY to access its website.

---

Fear not. Log in with the following:
user: dontmesswithmynet@yahoo.com
pass: freak

Don't abuse it!

Hey, I graduated in 2000 and have a brother who is a sophomore at BTW. The old main hall still exists they are using it as a museum of sorts. The new building is directly behind the old building and is four stories (Even though it is actually shorter than the other building..weird huh?) They no longer have to use the Woods Annex. Though they still do. The new building is cold and formal. We miss the old building but not the shifting second floors, boiling water in the toliets and falling ceiling tiles.

Bring back the boiling toilets!

Do you know my brother Oliver White?

Thank you for your description of the building. I am glad you mentioned the state of the old building. I have been sad about the change, but it is good to think that it will be a safer environment. Hopefully the administration will allow the faculty and students to make it homey like the original building was. Like student paintings and etc.

Take care. Much love to all. ~Sam

P.S. I don't remember who posted the article about the admissions, but thank you.

Could anyone please post a pic of the new building. I was in Tulsa for the holidays and didn't get a chance to see it. I can't believe there isn't a pic on the TPS website or elsewhere (that I could find). One would think with the history of the old building and all of the funding for the new building there would be some pictures somewhere on the web . If anyone knows where to see it (besides the pay Tulsa World site), please post.
Sincerely,
Zach '93

I took the new school tour. It is BEAUTIFUL!! Of course nothing can replace the old memories, etc. but the new pool it great, the new theater awesome. They have room to build sets in the back, etc. The lunch area seemed pretty small to me. Maybe most students leave. Language and photography/tv areas are wonderful. Like any new building it will take time to develop it's own character, etc. But take heart, on my tour one of the teachers on the 3rd floor was saying there was a leak outside her door. (and there is a floor above her). So some things never change.
Susan

The new school is compact. It will never compare to 1631 East Woodrow Place.

The future of Washington High School
By H.J. GREEN
2/1/2004

TULSA WORLD Sunday 2/1/04



Thirty years ago at this time of year there was a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the future of Booker T. Washington High School. The first group of students who volunteeered to integrate the school was only required to spend one semester before they could return to their home school and the unanswered question was if enough of them would remain to satisfy the federal court order.

What followed was a 30-year success story of both compliance and academic excellence.

Ironically, BTW is again faced with uncertainty. Today the uncertainty is not based on the court's required racial quotas, but rather the court's ruling that racial quotas cannot be used in school admission policies.

I have observed with interest the past few weeks as the school board and administration have dealt with this new dilemma. The tenor of a recent public meeting was not unlike those that took place in the winter of 1973. Then, as now, the key issue pertaining to both Carver Middle School and Washington was the perception of fairness.

The fairness issue 30 years ago centered on the question of how the two schools could be desegregated and still maintain a sizable enrollment of students who had traditionally attended them. The decision to maintain the schools with a 50/50 racial balance created a sense of fairness even though it meant some of the students who lived in the schools' attendance areas would not be able to attend their home schools.

Today the fairness question is centered on the following three issues:

1. Maintaining the student diversity of the past 30 years;

2. Maintaining the academic standards that have been established at the two schools, and

3. Revisiting the fact that many student who live in the old Carver-Washington attendance areas cannot attend their home schools. It appears there is general agreement among students, faculty, administration, school board and community on the first two issues. The third issue speaks to the issue of perceived fairness.

The board of education took actions Dec. 15, 2003, that are intended to address the first two issues. The third issue deserves the school district's further attention.

When the community began to talk about allowing Carver and Washington to be both neighborhood and magnet schools, a great deal of misinformation began to surface. Most notable was that allowing neighborhood students to attend would automatically reduce the number of magnet type courses the schools could offer. This could be the case, but it does not have to be. There are many examples of successful magnet programs operating within a neighborhood school. The creation of such a school at Edison Preparatory School is a case in point and it also raises the legitimate question of fairness with the north side community. If it can be done at Edison, why can't it be done at Carver and Washington?

I have served as principal at both Washington High School in Tulsa and Polytechnic High School in Long Beach, Calif. Both schools have successful academic mangnet and extra-curricular programs and both are in minority neighborhoods.

Sixty percent of the Poly High School students come from the immediate intercity neighborhood and the school is still able to maintain a program that administers more than 1,100 AP exams each year with a pass rate of 84 percent, and has more students admitted to UCLA than any other California high school.

I realize that Tulsa is not Long Beach and that there are always differences between schools. My reason for using the Long Beach school as an example is to illustrate my belief that a neighborhood school with a magnet program could be successful at Carver and Washington if time were given to develop the needed strategies from the faculty and a commitment was forthcoming from the board of education to strengthen the existing magnet features.

For the past 30 years, students who lived in a small area that used to be the Carver and Washington attendence zone have remained the only students who have not had the option of attending their neighborhood school. The current unrest that has developed with the changes in federal court rulings gives the Tulsa Public Schools the opportunity to revisit the fairness of the 30-year-old non-contiguous attendence zones and to develop a strategy that can be a win-win situation for the entire community.



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H.J. Green is a retired educator.