Real Hartford

Moving Toward Success in Sheldon-Charter Oak

Thanks to the Courant for running a positive story today that shows how one school has turned itself around.

Among the reasons for why students were doing poorly in the past: high teacher and faculty turnover, minimal parent involvement (no PTO), and children’s behavior. With dedicated teachers and intervention from a family resource aide, the environment has begun to change at Betances– and 80% decrease in discipline referrals.

What the article leaves out are some things that are alluded to on the Betances website: economic, ethnic, and racial isolation. The elementary school is located in Sheldon-Charter Oak, the neighborhood right next to mine. Sheldon-Charter Oak is about 28% Black and 53.2% Hispanic–only 17.4% White (non-Hispanic). This area has a poverty rate of 40.2%. That is above the 30.6% citywide poverty rate. The poverty rate for Connecticut is at 7.9%, and the racial and ethnic population is totally reversed from the trends in the city.