I was honored to participate in the Cambridge Community Foundation forum on the Thrive Equity Report as moderated and led by Tony Clark of My Brother’s Keeper. The achievement and proficiency crisis among low-income, mostly kids of color is not new but is growing and becoming starker as the gap between very poor and very rich grows in Cambridge. Past talk of “equity” was translated as lower expectations. It did not lead to more support for children who are below grade level or part of the 34 percent chronic absentee rate.  For years, we have created attendance policies that mask these problems and advanced students to higher grades despite a lack of proficiency.

The report should present a “hard stop” moment. This is not the first time Cambridge has spotlighted the achievement gap and it’s time we acknowledge both the impediments to change and focus on the next steps and political strategy to address our responsibility to all children.

I want to be clear that all new learning strategies — including the report’s recommendation of additional learning time, new blocks for mentorship and additional support — will require teacher contract modification. While some teachers and staff work outside the contract, this is not common and is something the union currently has complete control over. The other challenge will be parents who are now generally satisfied with CPS. To their credit, those parents have found programs and tracks that meet the needs of their children. In many cases those children are often also supported externally with tutors, music, travel sports, college coaches and other supplemental opportunities for enrichment growth and opportunities for community service.

Obviously, both the union and parents of students on a success track want all students to succeed. But taking aggressive measures such as tier 2 and tier 3 supports (tier 2 means targeted small group instruction, tier 3 intensive individual support), mentoring, Saturday door knocks (will require compromise and shared resources. As Mayor and school committee Chair, I have settled teacher’s contracts, had to negotiate the Harvard Summer Academy with the union and have fought for scheduling and resources for technical education. During my mayoral term, Principal Paula Evans (who later started the Community Charter School of Cambridge) worked with us to address attendance issues, eliminate student selection of houses and implement required assigned advisors for each student. All these initiatives represented a body of work to get buy-in from staff and families.  We also addressed socioeconomic imbalances and rebuilt our technical education programs. The balancing formula to prevent wide variations in incomes by school was later loosened and regression occurred. Technical education was not significantly updated since that 2001 rebuild, and space was later taken away from Rindge School of Technical Arts. The lesson is clear: Equity reforms require watchdogs and accountability measures to protect them from historic race and class political pressures.

Data alone will not move the system, which is very entrenched in protecting status quo. As I stated at the forum, this will require ground-up leadership and galvanizing voices of staff and parents who support change. It will also require that data be reinforced with the voices of children, to really make this personal. Parents and academics will debate strategies, but what motivates me is when children directly tell me why they don’t go to school, why they choose charter school or why they come to me one to five years after they graduate from CRLS and have no career path or foundation in place. We can and do turn outside the school for support for children, but at the cost of $500,000 (13 years x $40,000 per), why should we have to?

My time in the Cambridge Public Schools is singularly the greatest thing that I experienced in my life, and I want that opportunity for every child. Let’s replace excuses and systemic failures with honesty, courage and accountability to the kids who need us most.

Anthony Gallucio, former Massachusetts State Senator, Cambridge City Councilor, and Mayor of Cambridge. 

A stronger

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