In high-crime areas, education reform needs to expand outside the classroom
A science project can be the difference between life and death for kids in New Orleans
In the 21st century, our children have one of three options: take something, break something or make something,” says New Orleans native Calvin Mackie, engineer and founder of the nonprofit STEM NOLA, which conducts hands-on science projects, mainly in New Orleans. (STEM refers to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.)
“If we don’t give them the skills and education to make something,” he continued, “then we leave them with the two options we see on the news every night.”
As of May 31, there were 300 shooting victims in New Orleans. In 2015 and 2016, it took two months longer to hit that dubious target. New Orleans is on pace to be a record year. Thirteen people were shot on June 3 alone, which according to New Orleans crime analyst Jeff Asher, is the per-capita equivalent of 90 people in a day in Chicago.
When school is out, kids are vulnerable to violence, especially in neighborhoods where the shortsightedness of “an eye for an eye” justice must be unlearned. Students need safeguards, and a quality education is a proven buffer. School hours are the safest for children. From the time students get on the bus to go to school till the last bell rings, fewer crimes are committed against and by youth.
Join the conversation later on Andre Perry’s radio show, “Free College,” hosted Tuesdays on WBOK1230 in New Orleans at 3pm Central/4pm Eastern 504.260.9265.
While I’m a proponent of year-round school and look forward to a modernized school calendar, shielding students by locking them up in a school building all year isn’t the answer. (Though schools thatIn high-crime areas, education reform needs to expand outside the classroom - The Hechinger Report:
