*Here’s some good news about black folks that the mainstream media will ignore, every one of the 190 seniors at Ballou High applied to college this year. It’s a first for the long-struggling public school in Southeast Washington.
Per Washington Post via msn.com:
Ballou ranks among the city’s lowest-performing high schools on core measures. Its graduation rate last school year, 57 percent, was second-lowest among regular schools in the D.C. Public Schools system, behind Anacostia High’s rate of 42 percent. (That comparison doesn’t include alternative schools.) Last school year, 3 percent of Ballou students tested met reading standards on citywide standardized exams. Almost none met math standards.
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Despite the challenges, administrators said it was the Class of 2017 that decided last spring all seniors would apply to college.
“There are some schools and communities where college is an automatic next step. There is no celebration,” said Yetunde Reeves, Ballou’s principal. “Our kids don’t get that same message. We are trying to create an environment where going to college is what Ballou does as well.”
Many of the students have applied to the city’s public University of the District of Columbia. Others are aiming for historically black schools such as Tennessee State University and North Carolina Agricultural.
Assistant Principal Shamele Straughter said applying sends a message to the students about their education options and goals.
“Now they have choice. That is the beauty of this entire thing — you get to pick,” Straughter said. “I am excited about seeing what the acceptance rate is going to be.”
Randy Sams, 18, applied to at least 14 colleges and has been accepted at 12, including Penn State and Virginia State. His top choice is Temple, a public university in Philadelphia.
While his mother is excited about all of his college offers, she also worries that he might end up not enrolling. Sams’ older brothers were also accepted into college but ended up not enrolling.
“She might think that’s what I am going to do,” Sams said. But he said he will definitely enroll.
“I always wanted to be a standout from the rest and not be a statistic,” Sams said. “I also wanted to prove to my family that this is what we could do
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