Now It’s Beatin’, Riotin’ & ‘Rithmetic
Susan Edelman, New York Post, September 11, 2011
The lunchroom at Aspire Preparatory Middle School in The Bronx can erupt in a split second over issues like girlfriends, boyfriends or any little thing.
“A group of people will just be looking at another group, and out of nowhere there’s a huge fight,” said eighth-grader Chitra Jaipersud, 12. “I’ve seen girls pull each other’s hair out.”
The Williamsbridge junior high is one of seven city schools newly added to this year’s list of “persistently dangerous” schools, which was quietly posted on the state Education Department’s Web site last week.
Of 19 schools statewide on the 2011-12 list, nine are in New York City. It’s a big improvement from last year, when 12 of 16 schools named were in the city.
{snip}
For a spot on the list, schools rack up six or more “serious incidents” for each 100 pupils two years in a row.
Under the No Child Left Behind Act, parents can seek to transfer their kids.
Aspire Prep, which has 554 students, tallied 88 “violent and disruptive” incidents in 2009-10, including 10 sex crimes, a robbery, 21 assaults and 38 “minor altercations.” {snip}
{snip}
City schools considered “persistently dangerous”
* Aspire, Bronx
* Soundview Academy for Culture and Scholarship, Bronx
* PS 11 Highbridge, Bronx
* IS 190, Bronx
* Middle School for Academic and Social Excellence, Brooklyn
* PS 12, Brooklyn
* PS 194 Countee Cullen, Manhattan
* JHS 13 Jackie Robinson, Manhattan
* MS 332 University Neighborhood, Manhattan.
[Editor’s Note: The following are the racial breakdowns of the first five schools on the list:
Aspire:
7% white, 31% black, 55% Hispanic, 6% Asian
Soundview Academy for Culture and Scholarship:
0% white, 43% black, 54% Hispanic, 2% Asian
PS 11 Highbridge:
1% white, 38% black, 61% Hispanic, 0% Asian
IS 190:
0% white, 34% black, 66% Hispanic, 0% Asian
Middle School for Academic and Social Excellence:
0% white, 89% black, 11% Hispanic, 0% Asian]
