Above: from left to right, Amber Mitchell (Jennings School District), Anne Jump (HSCL), Bob Collins (HCSL), Valerie Bell (St. Louis Public Schools Foundation), Carolyn Lesorogol (HCSL),
Jane Donahue (St. Louis Public Schools Foundation), Mary Seager (HCSL)
Educational Disparities in St. Louis: Challenges and Opportunities, an initial event in a series organized by the Harvard Club of St. Louis, took place on April 12, 2018, at the Student Center Café on the Forest Park campus of St. Louis Community College. The program included Dr. Kelvin Adams, Superintendent of the St. Public Schools as the keynote speaker. Dr. Adams spelled out the challenges facing the St. Louis Public Schools, which are not unlike the challenges every large urban system must meet. He detailed the ways in which St. Louis is meticulously addressing each challenge encountered and provided data indicating levels of progress.
Dr. Adam’s address was followed by a panel of representatives from four broadly based community organizations which are providing solutions for the causes of the disparities: Beyond Housing/Normandy Schools Collaborative, Better Family Life, The Little Bit Foundation and the St. Louis Public Schools Foundation. Following the panel, participants broke up into small groups to learn more about each organization’s work and opportunities to become engaged.