DETROIT — Dozens of Detroit area residents attended a “school shopping fair” hosted by Excellent Schools Detroit and other organizations in January, where parents had a chance to comparison shop among 46 public, private and charter schools gathered together for the event, according to the Detroit Free Press.
“You don’t have to be trapped in your neighborhood school,” Greg Harris, Excellent Schools executive director, told the Free Press. The education advocacy group recently published the “2011 School Report Card, The Best and Worst Results for Detroit Students.” It cosponsored the shopping fair with the Detroit Parents Network and other groups, according to the Free Press.
One of the attendees was Cynthia Baker, who told the Free Press that she sends her two daughters to a good school, but that she attended the fair because, “I just want to make sure we’re doing all we can.”
Baker told the Free Press that she bypassed the neighborhood elementary school and chose to enroll her children in a different Detroit Public Schools elementary building after reviewing state test scores. She also has looked at other DPS elementary buildings as well as charter schools, she told the Free Press.
A second fair took place Feb. 5 and a third is planned Feb. 12, according to the Free Press.
SOURCE:
Detroit Free Press, “Detroit
schools gear up for school shopping event,” Jan. 29, 2011
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Capitol Confidential, “Can School Choice Work
in Detroit?” Feb. 4, 2011
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