More woes for Jefferson County busing plan

The Jefferson County plan for busing students hither and yon has now collected a new set of complaints; this time it’s a 34 page report from the NAACP.

Some highlights:

• The NAACP is upset that some parents who objected to long bus rides for their children apparently were successful in getting their children reassigned.

• The organization alleges “…certain board members appear to be trying to dismantle the New Plan (sic).”

• In a comment that seems aimed at Jefferson County’s magnet schools, there are also charges that, “…decisions about which students can and cannot attend certain schools in the district are made within the walls of those select schools. The decision is not based on grades or other academic factors, but a unilateral decision made by a principal or assistant principal.”



Aside from complaints about busing, the NAACP report says, “Jefferson County is delivering weaker performance than most other districts in the state at the elementary and middle school levels.” The report then enumerates many comparisons of 2009 Kentucky Core Content Test proficiency rates in Jefferson County compared to the other school districts in the state.

For example:

• 87% of the districts delivered better third grade reading performance
• 85% of the districts delivered better third grade math performance
• 94% of the districts did better on fourth grade science
• 81% did better in fifth grade social studies
• 62% did better in fifth grade writing


The report has a long section of recommendations. A very few highlights:

• Jefferson County School Board members should “Put students first”
• Jefferson County’s teachers’ union should “Accept that the most important group in the system is the students.”
• The greater Louisville community should “Demand more of School Board Members (sic) and hold them accountable.”

Find a link to the report in this article from the Louisville Courier-Journal.