Equality in magnet schools

Being as both of my children attend Metaire Academy, I was excited to hear at the co-op meeting that Julie Quinn has managed to get the Legislature to approve a $40,000 grant for the playground. My kids play on this playground every weekday, so this benefits my family directly.

I did stop to think about Gretna Academy and Ruppel, which were in Superintendent Diane Rousell's plan to function as the two elementary magnet schools on the westbank, and presumably still will be when she submits her new revised plan for a board vote at the October school board meeting. My thoughts revolved around whether either of these schools received such funding for their own playgrounds.

It is possible they have, and the news just hasn't hit the information pipeline yet. Or they might have received such funding for other programs MAAS already has, or for necessities they may lack. I just wonder if these westbank schools have a friend in Baton Rouge as Metairie Academy does, and if not, how do they get one? A Julie Quinn doesn't come along every day, particularly for the westbank parents who are stuck with ever half-baked idea the board comes up with.

The school board will ultimately get to pass every motion they wish regardless of whether parents agree or not, because we have no voice and we have no vote when it comes to the board's tiresome motions. The magnet school parents are pretty insignificant in numbers; the district parents, however, are plentiful. While magnet school parents may not be able to change the world, or even the vote, perhaps those district parents who are dissatisfied with the schools their children have been moved to, will remember the school board's attitude when it is time to vote on something that parents can control- the school board members.