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St. Louis Public School Supporters Protest Charter School Expansion | St. Louis

Published

10 months ago

December 5, 2023

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click to enlarge PETER COHEN Gloria Nolan addresses the crowd of reporters on Monday, December 4.

“The expansion of this experiment needs to stop,” Gloria Nolan demanded at a press conference Monday morning in front of the Delmar Divine.

The press event protested the recent efforts by local nonprofit Opportunity Trust to establish 16 additional charter schools in St. Louis over the next five years, an effort recently awarded a $35.5 million federal grant. Teachers, activists and community members came together to criticize the ways in which they see the growth of charter schools in the city — and the Opportunity Trust overall — undermining the St. Louis Public School system.

The charter school movement, which has drawn immense attention and heated debate over the past decade, began in the early 1990s as an alternative to underperforming public schools. This schooling model uses a combination of public and private funding to create independently run schools that are exempt from certain public education restrictions and run by their own nonprofit boards instead of the elected board of education. Despite being subsidized by taxpayers, and free for students to attend, charter schools are required to use a randomized lottery system to select their student body.

“Don’t be fooled, this is simply propaganda. This is Waiting for Superman 2.0,” Nolan, a St. Louis parent and public education advocate, said, referencing the 2010 documentary that offered charter schools as a lifeline to those suffering from the results of ineffective public education.

Then Nolan turned her attention to Maxine Clark, the former CEO of Build-A-Bear Workshop, who founded and now serves as CEO of Delmar Divine, a collaborative space designed to empower local nonprofits, including Opportunity Trust, which has its headquarters on site.

“If [Clark] wanted to help our poor little children she would at least pay her taxes, or she would offer up some living spaces for our unhoused families,” Nolan said. “She has not done that.” click to enlarge PETER COHEN Delmar Divine houses Opportunity Trust, which has worked to expand charter schools in St. Louis.

In addition to Clark’s efforts at Delmar Divine, Nolan called out education reform efforts such as the desegregation program, Teach For America, state takeovers of failing public school districts, and of course, charter schools as ineffective strategies to address education inequality. “We are sick and tired of being sick and tired. Enough is enough,” she exclaimed.

Nolan was previously part of a parent cohort sponsored by Opportunity Trust, WEPOWER, but had a public breakwith the organization, saying founder Eric Scroggins told her he wanted to “burn down” St. Louis Public Schools, a goal that she did not share. She is now a parent liaison for St. Louis Public Schools and part of a group of parents and educators working with the local teachers’ union, the Organization for Black Struggle and other groups to advocate for St. Louis Public Schools.

“We already know what our students need inside the classroom,” Nolan promised at the conference, calling for highly paid and skilled educators, smaller class sizes, high parent engagement, wrap-around services and improved access to extracurricular activities.

Yet an all-encompassing effort to improve St. Louis public education requires more than just in-classroom improvements, she said: “Students need food, clothing, housing and strong communities. We know the struggles of our city and our populations.”

Also speaking at the press conference was a spokesperson for the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Local 420, Byron Clemens.

“This really is all about democracy,” Clemens said. “These folks weren’t elected to anything. Eric Scroggins makes more money than the superintendent for the St. Louis public schools. He’s not qualified to do anything. His teacher certificate has expired. He’s not an educational expert. He doesn’t care about kids.”

In his comments, Clemens highlights a common criticism of the charter school movement: The schools use public funding to privatize education, which was once seen as a public good. The privatization concentrates resources into schools that need not abide by the same restrictions as public schools. Among other things, they are exempted from collective bargaining contracts, a big reason why teacher unions are unequivocally anti-charter school.

Critics of charter schools find the lack of unionization to be unfair and undemocratic. “We are going to fight for the St. Louis public schools. We are going to fight to make sure charter schools are accountable,” Clemens stated.

And despite the popularity of charter schools with parents in the city, the advocates say they are fighting for no less than the future St. Louis.

“Our population is declining, and our enrollment is declining. We are trying to create stability in unstable, violent drug-plagued communities,” said Carron Johnson, another AFT member.

Added Nolan, “St. Louis public schools are worth fighting for and that is why we are here.”

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Fenton Man Charged in Sword Attack on Roommate

Published

5 months ago

May 22, 2024

Natural Bridge

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A warrant is out for a Fenton man’s arrest after he allegedly attacked his roommate with a sword.

Police say that on Sunday, Angelus Scott spoke openly about “slicing his roommate’s head” before he grabbed a sword, raised it up and then swung it down at the roommate.

The roommate grabbed Scott’s hand in time to prevent injury. When police arrived at the scene, they found the weapon used in the assault.

The sword in question was a katana, which is a Japanese sword recognizable for its curved blade.

This isn’t the first time a samurai-style sword has been used to violent effect in St. Louis. In 2018, a man hearing voices slaughtered his ex-boyfriend with a samurai sword. His mother said he suffered from schizoaffective disorder.

As for Scott, 35, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office was charged yesterday with two felonies, assault first degree and armed criminal action. The warrant for his arrest says he is to be held on $200,000 bond.

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Caught on Video, Sheriff Says He’s Ready to ‘Turn It All Over’ to Deputy

Published

5 months ago

May 22, 2024

Natural Bridge

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Video of St. Louis Sheriff Vernon Betts taken by a former deputy suggests that the sheriff has a successor in mind to hand the reins of the department over to, even as Betts is in an increasingly heated campaign for reelection.

“I ain’t here for all this rigmarole,” Betts says in the video while seated behind his desk at the Carnahan Courthouse. “The Lord sent me here to turn this department around and I’m doing the best I can and I think I’ve done a good job. I’ve got about eight months and I’m going to qualify for my fourth pension.”

He goes on, “Right now I can walk up out of here and live happily ever after and forget about all this…and live like a king.”

The sheriff then says his wife has been in Atlanta looking at houses and that the other deputy in the room, Donald Hawkins, is someone Betts has been training “to turn it all over to him.”

Asked about the video, Betts tells the RFT, “My future plans are to win reelection on August 6th by a wide margin and to continue my mission as the top elected law enforcement official to make St. Louis safer and stronger. Serving the people of St. Louis with integrity, honor and professional law enforcement qualifications is a sacred responsibility, and I intend to complete that mission.”

The video of Betts was taken by Barbara Chavers, who retired from the sheriff’s office in 2016 after 24 years of service. Chavers now works security at Schnucks at Grand and Gravois. Betts’ brother Howard works security there, too.

Chavers tells the RFT that she was summoned to Betts’ office last week after Betts’ brother made the sheriff aware that she was supporting Montgomery. It was no secret: Chavers had filmed a Facebook live video in which she said she was supporting Betts’ opponent Alfred Montgomery in the election this fall. “Make the judges safe,” she says in the video, standing in front of a large Montgomery sign on Gravois Avenue. “They need a sheriff who is going to make their courtrooms safe.”

In his office, even as Chavers made clear she was filming him, Betts told Chavers he was “flabbergasted” and “stunned” she was supporting Montgomery.

“I don’t know what I did that would make you go against the preacher man,” he says, referring to himself. He then refers to Montgomery as “ungodly.”

Betts goes on to say that not long ago, he was walking in his neighborhood on St. Louis Avenue near 20th Street when suddenly Montgomery pulled up in his car and, according to Betts, shouted, “You motherfucker, you this, you that. You’re taking my signs down.”

Montgomery tells the RFT that he’s never interacted with Betts outside of candidate forums and neighborhood meetings.

“I don’t think anyone with good sense would do something like that to a sitting sheriff,” Montgomery says.

Montgomery has had campaign signs missing and on at least two occasions has obtained video of people tearing them down. (Chavers notes that the sign that she filmed her original Facebook video in front of is itself now missing.)

One man who lives near Columbus Square says that he recently put out two Montgomery signs, which later went missing. “If they keep taking them, I’ll keep putting them up,” he said.

Betts says he has nothing to do with the missing signs. In the video Chavers filmed in Betts’ office, Betts says that his campaign isn’t in a spot where it needs to resort to tearing down opponents’ signs.

“If you sit here long enough, a man is getting ready to come across the street from City Hall bringing me $500, today,” Betts says. “I’m getting that kind of support. I don’t need to tear down signs.”

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St. Louis to Develop First Citywide Transportation Plan in Decades

Published

5 months ago

May 21, 2024

Natural Bridge

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The City of St. Louis is working to develop its first citywide mobility plan in decades, Mayor Tishaura Jones’ office announced Tuesday. This plan seeks to make it easier for everyone — drivers, pedestrians, bikers and public transit users — to safely commute within the city.

The plan will bring together other city projects like the Brickline Greenway, Future64, the MetroLink Green Line, and more, “while establishing new priorities for a safer, more efficient and better-maintained transportation network across the City,” according to the release.

The key elements in the plan will be public engagement, the development of a safety action plan, future infrastructure priorities and transportation network mapping, according to Jones’ office.

The overarching goals are to create a vision for citywide mobility, plan a mixture of short and long-term mobility projects and to develop improved communication tools with the public to receive transportation updates. In recent years, both people who use public transit and cyclists have been outspoken about the difficulties — and dangers — of navigating St. Louis streets, citing both cuts to public transit and traffic violence.

To garner public input and participation for the plan, Jones’ office said there will be community meetings, focus groups and a survey for residents to share their concerns. The city will also be establishing a Community Advisory Committee. Those interested in learning more should check out at tmp-stl.com/

“Everyone deserves to feel safe when getting around St. Louis, whether they’re driving, biking, walking or taking public transit,” Jones said in a news release. “Creating a comprehensive transportation and mobility plan allows us to make intentional and strategic investments so that moving around St. Louis for jobs, education, and entertainment becomes easier, safer and more enjoyable.”

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