HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Askia Muhammad Examines Israeli Conflict See Page 23 •
C e l e b r a t i n g 4 8 Ye a r s o f S e r v i c e
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Serving More Than 50,000 African American Readers Throughout The Metropolitan Area / Vol. 48, No. 6 Nov. 22 - Nov. 28, 2012
Chef Michael Robb, the evening shift supervisor for D.C. Central Kitchen in Northwest, opens cans of tomato paste while volunteers who attend area schools cut stalks of celery in preparation for the annual Thanksgiving Day dinner for the homeless and others, on Saturday, Nov. 17. /Photo by Roy Lewis
Henderson’s Plan to Shutter Schools Ignites Fury By Dorothy Rowley WI Staff Writer An irate D.C. School Board member echoed the sentiments of many parents, educational and community leaders when she implored District officials to halt D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson’s con-
troversial proposal to shutter 20 schools across the city by the end of 2013. During the sometimes testy, standing-room only hearing on Thursday, Nov. 15, that attracted more than 300 people to the John A. Wilson Building in Northwest, Dorothy Douglas made it clear to Henderson and
the 13-member D.C. Council that enough is enough. “Our kids are not cattle, so stop moving them from school to school,” said the visibly upset Douglas, who referred to the two dozen closings that took place in 2008 under the strong-arm regime of former chancellor, Michelle. Rhee. “There’s no need
to move our kids from one established community to another. DCPS has enough seats for [its] students,” said Douglas, 73, of the plan to merge under-enrolled buildings with charter schools. “It’s not fair to blame these 20 schools for all the troubles in the system. . . I don’t believe this is the legacy of Mayor Gray and
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the [D.C.] Council,” the Ward 7 School Board member said. Most of the schools slated for closure and consolidation have been designated as lowperforming – and are located in wards 5, 7 and 8 where many students are already enrolled
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