The Allentown School Board voted Wednesday to give two of the district’s schools new names, new curriculum and different grade levels to deal with a rising level of pre-K and kindergarten students.
In an unanimous vote, the board approved changing the Lincoln School on Walnut Street, which currently houses the Newcomer Program, to the Ruby Bridges Early Childhood Center. The board also voted to rename the Newcomer Academy on Pennsylvania Avenue to the Sonia Sotomayor Dual Language Immersion Academy. The name changes will become official upon state approval, district officials said.
The Newcomer Academy currently has students in grades 7-12. Starting in the next school year it will have pre-K to first-grade students and add a new grade each year until it is a pre-K to fifth-grade school. Ruby Bridges will change from a pre-kindergarten through fifth-grade school to pre-K and kindergarten.
District Communications Manager Melissa Reese said the restructuring is intended to help deal with a rising enrollment of younger students. The district has approximately 1,600 kindergarten students, 400 more than any other grade, she said.
The increase was spurred in part by a state policy change which now allows children to enroll for kindergarten if they turn 5 years old by February, said William Seng, the district executive director of human resources.
The new names were chosen from submissions that came through a districtwide survey of parents, families, residents and committees formed from personnel within district schools. Ruby Ridges was chosen for her struggles on Nov. 14, 1960, when at age 6, she entered the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans after a federal court ordered Louisiana to desegregate all schools.
Sotomayor was chosen for her being the first Hispanic and third woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. “Sotomayor’s personal story, tenacious spirit and unwavering determination and commitment to excellence in the face of adversity serve as an inspiration and powerful source of motivation to our entire community,’’ according to a district news release.
“Naming these new schools after Sonia Sotomayor and Ruby Bridges is not just a symbolic gesture it is a commitment to embodying their values of resilience, social justice, equity and access to an excellent high-quality schooling experience,’’ said district Superintendent Carol Birks.
In other business during the Wednesday night board meeting, board members Lisa Conover and LaTarsha Brown expressed opposition to some guidelines for the graduation ceremonies at the city’s three high schools — Building 21, Dieruff and Allen.
Brown and Conover were not specific in what concerned them, but briefly referenced sashes and sunglasses. “This is their proud moment. How dare you give these guidelines. It hurts,’’ said Brown. She said in some instances, the student would be the first in their family to graduate high school, which makes graduation more monumental and celebratory. “As a parent, you can’t strip students of their identity. You must be mindful of the language (used in the guidelines),’’ she said.
The general guideline for graduation is for students to wear the traditional cap, gown, hat, sash and awards or medals issued by the school. Birks said the district guidelines will be reviewed and if needed, altered before graduation day. She said the district has to provide some guidelines “to create a certain level of class … we have to set some standards.’’
The board was also addressed by several teachers about the possible loss of the position of interventionist specialists who help bring students having difficulties reaching the appropriate reading level for their grade. The positions are funded through a federal program called the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief which was developed during the COVID-19 pandemic, Seng said. He said the funds were aimed at students falling behind as a result of the educational disruptions caused by the pandemic.
All the teachers said the program helped students boost their reading skills and to eliminate interventionists would hurt the most vulnerable students. After the meeting, Seng said ESSER funds will permanently end in September but no interventionist specialists currently funded through ESSER would be eliminated. He said teachers in those positions would be moved to other positions based on their skills. Students needing additional help in reading or other subjects will continue to get that help as they did through the ESSER funds with methods in place within classrooms, he said.
Charles Malinchak is a freelance writer.
