Please forgive my age and my ignorance where this subject is concerned.
As most of you guys know, I am itching to relocate my family. My interests lie in Charlotte, NC (primarily) although I have considered places out west like New Mexico also.
I was born and raised in Northern New Jersey, only a few miles outside of NYC. Most of my young life was spent in an urban community. However, while on active duty military, I lived in Biloxi (MS) for a few years, and M was born there. I absolutely loved it and only left the area because honestly, at the time, if you weren't in the military, the only other industry was the casinos and I was not interested!
Last week I read an AP article about bussing in Charlotte. I was shocked, as I had NO idea that bussing still occurred anywhere. I just didn't know.
In New Jersey, home sales are driven by the quality of schools. I came from Newark, which overall has a failing school system. When I decided that we were moving, even though I was still renting, I concentrated on communities that had schools with good reputations, smaller classrooms, high test scores, no history of gang violence, etc.
My home and my children's education are investments in our future. I would be livid if I purchased a home in a pretty upscale neighborhood, only to find out that the city was mandating that my child be bussed across town.
I found it quite intriguing that the arguements against bussing in Charlotte were being driven mostly by transplanted families -- a good portion from NY and NJ. Charlotte families seemed to be more supportive of what bussing accomplished. The article left me with an uneasy feeling.
Naturally, it's assumed that arguements against bussing are racially motivated. Where does that leave me, a Black mother with two Black sons? I love being Black, but I cannot accept a subpar education for the sake of racial integration. Does bussing really force the other schools to improve the quality of education?
Looking for the better schools around here, meant moving to a not-so-racially diverse community (Blacks number about 3% here), but I truly felt like I was doing the right thing for my family.
This issue leaves me very confused. Are there other southern communities that still bus? Do parents really have no say in what schools their children attend?
For the record, having lived other places besides NJ/NYC, I will say that this area of the country seems more racially segregated than most but, I believe we also have a higher concentration of racial minorities here than most areas of the country.
Hope I have not rambled too much.
Sincerely,
MM
As most of you guys know, I am itching to relocate my family. My interests lie in Charlotte, NC (primarily) although I have considered places out west like New Mexico also.
I was born and raised in Northern New Jersey, only a few miles outside of NYC. Most of my young life was spent in an urban community. However, while on active duty military, I lived in Biloxi (MS) for a few years, and M was born there. I absolutely loved it and only left the area because honestly, at the time, if you weren't in the military, the only other industry was the casinos and I was not interested!
Last week I read an AP article about bussing in Charlotte. I was shocked, as I had NO idea that bussing still occurred anywhere. I just didn't know.
In New Jersey, home sales are driven by the quality of schools. I came from Newark, which overall has a failing school system. When I decided that we were moving, even though I was still renting, I concentrated on communities that had schools with good reputations, smaller classrooms, high test scores, no history of gang violence, etc.
My home and my children's education are investments in our future. I would be livid if I purchased a home in a pretty upscale neighborhood, only to find out that the city was mandating that my child be bussed across town.
I found it quite intriguing that the arguements against bussing in Charlotte were being driven mostly by transplanted families -- a good portion from NY and NJ. Charlotte families seemed to be more supportive of what bussing accomplished. The article left me with an uneasy feeling.
Naturally, it's assumed that arguements against bussing are racially motivated. Where does that leave me, a Black mother with two Black sons? I love being Black, but I cannot accept a subpar education for the sake of racial integration. Does bussing really force the other schools to improve the quality of education?
Looking for the better schools around here, meant moving to a not-so-racially diverse community (Blacks number about 3% here), but I truly felt like I was doing the right thing for my family.
This issue leaves me very confused. Are there other southern communities that still bus? Do parents really have no say in what schools their children attend?
For the record, having lived other places besides NJ/NYC, I will say that this area of the country seems more racially segregated than most but, I believe we also have a higher concentration of racial minorities here than most areas of the country.
Hope I have not rambled too much.
Sincerely,
MM
