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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 20, 1985)
Leodis McDaniel Leodis M cD an ie l oversees an educational United Nations as principal o f M adison H igh School. " W e have a diverse stu dent populatitxi One o f the first things our students learn is how to live together. First, there are suspicions, falsehoods and mistrusts. By being in the building to gether and becoming a part o f the school, they soon learn to recognize, appre ciate and respect one ano ther." M cDaniels has 11 years at M adison and is entering his second year as princi pal. H e feels that education does not end at graduation. "E d u c a tio n is a life long process. Schools play a part in the individual's growth to learn and acquire new skills.” he added. M cDaniels has a broad educational experience which led him to believe that youth in the 80s want the same things as previous generations, "B u t some are impatient in achieving goals and enjoying (he benefits o f education. Some may tot w ant to put in as m uch g rind and sweat as other generations. H o w ev e r, there are things in our society now which do not encourage student involvement in schools in a consistent, serious m anner." A m ong the main elements M cD an iels wants to instill in his students is " r e sponsibility.” H is plan is to synchronize staff, students and parents. " A n y tim e all these things are working in concert, great things will happen." M ike Jordan F o r M ik e Jordan , p rincip al o f Sabin Ele- mentary School, success is spelled S .A .B .I.N ., as his school continues to score above the P txtland Public School District's norm " N o t only are we scoring above the local n o rm ," Jordan interjects, “ but last year m y fou rth and fifth graders took the C a lifo rn ia Achievem ent Test and 73 percent were at or above the national norm . W h a t does that say when you have a school 53 percent minority? W e are achieving!" In his second year as princi- f * l . Jordan is a native O regonian w ho comes fro m a fam ily o f teachers. In his 17 years in the district, Jordan lived through the "School o f the 70s” plan. "Blacks were paying the heaviest toll fo r desegregation. It was all one-sided. One o f the errors made was connecting the M iddle School concept with desegre gation M iddle Schools had nothing to do with desegregation," Jordan said. This confusion was the core o f the inequality in school desegregation a decade ago. "B la c k s were going out to m iddle schools and whites were com ing in to Early C h ild h o o d E d ucational C enter (E C E C s ).** O utcries fro m parents and a successful one-day school boycot reversed this process. Jordan said he believed Harriet Adair the outcries were justified and the change necessary. Jordan attribute the success at Sabin to his leadership style. It revolves around delegating responsibility and authority. “ Team w ork is very im portant. W e have a total feedback system that involves parents, students and staff. I share decision making with competent people w ho have the same goals." T o H arriet A d a ir, being principal o f King Elementary School is like coming home. " I live down the street from here and I leodis M c D aniel have alw ays loved K ing S c h o o l.” D e fin in g her responsibilities as " tre m e n dous” and calling her new career move as principal “ great," A d air resumes the throne at a school where the academic progress is below the district’s average She is tackling the problem head-on by utilizing an effective school tactic which calls for a concentrated focus on curriculum and student goals “ Individually, we track every student. O ur children have what it takes to make it and our teachers have what it takes to make them make it Somehow, we are not distributing our good efforts in the right places and in the right am ounts,” she said. A dair's prescription for achievement is, “ figuring out where our failures are and building upon our successes." She wants to incorporate a segment o f wis dom her mother ingrained in her into her students: "W hatever your goal, achieve it to the best o f your a b ility ." I I About Tom Feelings: Tom Feelings is well known as an artist and illustrator His books include two Caldecott Honor Books Mo/a Means One Swahili Counting Booh and jambo Means Hello S*ahih Alphabet Booh both written by Muriel Feelings and published by the Dial Press Mr Feelings was born in Brooklyn Mew York and attended the School ot CAROLYN LEONARD Carolyn Leonard arolyn Leonard is an evaluation specialist for the Portland Public Schools. Her job is to evaluate the District’s Dcsegrega tio n /ln te g ra tio n program s and student achievement at Early C h ild ho od E d u cational Centers. Interpreting statistics, looking at graphs and numbers would drive the average person into complacency Rut it drove Leonard into an educational activism as she spearheads, develops and directs Education for Summer Eun Education for Summer Eun is geared fix high schixil students who congregate every summer under the guidance o f Leonard to expand thetr form al and infor mal skills. “ It is the district and the com m unity joining hands to see if we can alleviate some o f the communication and achievement problems," she said. Visual Arts His subiects are children from the streets ol Brooklyn, the American South and from West Africa where he lived tor two years More recently, he has lived in Guyana. South America, where he worked with the government publishing program training young artists in textbook illustration He now lives m Mew York City where he is currently at work on a new book. The Middle Passage The Afro-American Family: Historical Strengths for the New Century HUD’s Observance of Black History Month February, 1985 Leonard added that the programs give students a strategy to achieve, teaches them personal goal setting and how to gain access to resources and people around them In evaluating the district, the evaluator said there has been some progress. "S chools are m ore open in terms o f co m m u n ity residents having input. The school system may not be as sensitive as people want it to be, but at least some one listens This was not the case ten years ago." I eonard gives high marks to the community fix a heightened awareness " W e know what the issues are, but that is not to say that we have arrived because I don't think the district has A t least now we have an idea o f what we want and what we are searching for. W ith this in mind, we, the crxnmumty and the district, will continue to conquer concerns," she said Paqo 6, Section II, Portland Olrserver, f elxuary 20, 1985 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
