Sunday, April 29, 2007

Massachusetts Acts to Save the Country’s First Public High School

The New York Times reports:

English High was founded in 1821 as the United States’ first public high school, and its graduates include J. P. Morgan and Maj. Gen. Matthew Ridgway from the Korean War. Today, its student body, dressed mostly in baggy jeans and do-rags, is one of the most diverse in the city, and one of its lowest-performing, too.

Most schools that scored as poorly on standardized tests as English High School would have been shut by now, Superintendent Michael Contompasis of Boston said.

“I would have closed English, if it wasn’t English,” Mr. Contompasis said.

Instead, the state has moved to salvage English. The school will be placed under state supervision next year, enrollment will be reduced to 800 students from about 1,200, and many union-negotiated work rules will be suspended to give more power to the headmaster and allow longer school days.

By contrast, Boston Latin, the oldest private high school in America, was founded in 1635, built its first schoolhouse around 1645, and thrives today.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Boston Latin School is actually considered the oldest public school in the U.S.