EDITORIAL: Providence Schools Are a Bastion of Self-Inflicted Chaos

EDITORIAL: Providence Schools Are a Bastion of Self-Inflicted Chaos

Now, more than two years into the state's takeover of the feeble Providence School Department, there is little clear strategy or transparency.

This administration appears to go into convulsions as the result of any question or the slightest criticism.

There are a lot of questions. And, there needs to be. The Providence schools were dubbed among the worst in America by Johns Hopkins University. The test results have been anemic and hundreds of teachers have voted with their feet and left the district. 

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

This latest chaos has drawn near universal condemnation, and it is completely self-inflicted.

The Providence school administration wants to close two schools. That may or may not be a good idea. (On Monday, the School Department emailed teachers at Carl G. Lauro Elementary School and Alan Shawn Feinstein at Broad Street Elementary to attend a meeting on Tuesday afternoon.)

The school department has not included the school board, the parents, the public, or the teachers union in this decision-making. 

As a result, the Providence Teachers Union criticized the process and the poor communication over the weekend. 

In response, the leadership of the school department issued a blistering statement with personal attacks. 

The administration overreached. They were heavy-handed, and the behavior raises questions about competency and maturity.

 

Crumbling -- Or Not Maintained

The administrators claim that the schools are “crumbling.” Did the schools just begin to crumble? Are they safe for faculty and students? The school department refuses to answer these most basic questions.

The school department then seemed to mock the community by claiming that the undisclosed schools are so old, that they were built more than 100 years ago. “It is disgraceful that it has taken this long to get our students out of buildings that were constructed over 100 years ago when Grover Cleveland was in office,” wrote the School Department in a statement issued on Sunday.”

One would assume the school department is aware that here in the city, a significant portion of Brown University operates out of buildings that are 100 years old or older. The difference is that Providence Schools are notorious for the lack of basic maintenance. The schools and facilities are too often in deplorable condition.

The administration would be well served to “suck it up, buttercup.” The overreaction to the slightest criticism is counterproductive. This is not a group with a lot of credibility.

We all want to see a reversal and improvement in the quality of education in Providence.

It is time for the Providence School Department to develop partnerships with parents, students, teachers, and the community.