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COMMENTARY: Black Students in Youngstown City School District Targeted for Failure by State

NNPA NEWSWIRE — “We are trying to make the community aware of this disparity which is why we are presenting it, said George Freeman, NAACP President. “It took a while to ferret out the details.”

Published

8 years ago

January 4, 2019

Oakland Post

The State Department of Education published its goals for White students at 86.3 versus 63.4 for Black students, as reported by the Performance Index Subgroup Data. The NAACP Leadership made this presentation to the Roberts Deliberating Club (RDC), which is comprised of Black professionals and business leaders, last month, where data was rolled out that they found to be incredulous.

“If this is true, why is the community not more aware,” said Atty Charles Mickens, an RDC member.

“We are trying to make the community aware of this disparity which is why we are presenting it, said George Freeman, NAACP President. “It took a while to ferret out the details.”

“In March 2018, the State Superintendent didn’t even know that he could require teachers to teach the State standards,” said Freeman.

“When we pointed out to him that he had the power to order the teachers to comply and as of August 2018, there was an official order to do so.”

It took time to dig into the details, but the Ohio Department of Education Superintendent DeMaria has ordered the teachers to adhere to standards for the first-time in history, said Freeman.

That might sound unbelievable, but in retrospect, it is hard to fathom, but thanks to the leadership of the local and state NAACP, there has been intense and focused attention on providing remedies long overlooked.

DeMaria responded to a series of questions posed by the NAACP Education Task Force, one of them being, “Are all Ohio Licensed classroom teachers required to teach the State Criterion Reference Standards?”

His answer in a written response in August 2018 “There is no legal requirement specifically directed to teachers relative to teaching the State’s standards”.

DeMaria followed with the statement “standards are what is tested, one might suggest a strong motivation to teach the standards.”

The response came following months of digging into the data to prove that the fault of the failures falls squarely in the lap of the administration of both the State and the school District.

“If they don’t require it, strong motivation obviously has not had an impact” said Dr. McNair, president of the RDC. The 20 years of published report card failures prove a strong motivation does not make a requirement.”

“We often battle the misperception that poverty is the cause for low performance, but data has proven conclusively that race is a factor not understood or factored in the equation,” said Jimma McWilson, who chairs the State NAACP Task Force on ESSA and Preventing School Takeovers and serves as the Secretary of the local chapter.

indeed, Steubenville, which mirrors Youngstown with a 100% poverty student population, has targets much higher and performance much higher. The missing link is addressing the race factor specifically, said McWilson.

When the State audit of the District was released it validated this important flaw which is obviously a key to success for students.

“You’ve heard of students graduating with high GPA’s that struggle in college because of the lack of preparation. That preparation weakness is a signal that the grades were not standard, but subjective based on the classroom teacher,” said Freeman.

“We’ve been at this for several years and the consistent clear message is that many educators don’t know the legal ramifications of their positions,” said Freeman.

“The rhetoric around teaching to a test has been bandied about, but the standards are what is required on college entrance exams” said Jerry Sutton, CPA and RDC member.

“Things like this have been happening for years and more people need to be aware of them. We could have kept them (NAACP) here for hours,” said Sutton.

Dr. McNair commended the NAACP leadership for keeping a keen focus on these details.

“We find it unbelievable that the standards have not been required, but rather suggested. And the fact that the State targets are so low for Black students only reinforces the fact, as earlier reported, the failure is not on the parents or poverty or even the teachers. It’s the leadership. If teaching the standards is not required or inspected, it can’t realistically be expected,” said McNair.

“What makes it so unfortunate is the Black community and the children’s future is in peril as a result. It is unconscionable,” said McNair.

“The big challenge is the R word,” said Dr. McNair. “When race is discussed as a problem White people often have a difficult time wrapping their heads around the problem. The data clearly indicates addressing race, and not poverty only, is a leadership, and a strategic planning issue that must be addressed head on.”

The Roberts Deliberating Club meeting was held at Mill Creek Community Center on Glenwood Ave, Youngstown, in December 15, 2018. The following link is to the State report card with the targets for improvement.

(https://reportcard.education.ohio.gov/district/gap/045161)

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NFL: Week Two Recap | Jalen Hurts did not fold; Caleb Williams exits game with injury

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts found Darius Cooper with nine seconds left for the game winning touchdown as his team beat the Tennessee Titans 24-20 in Nashville. Hurts finished the day 26/37 for 264 yards. He threw for two touchdowns and two interceptions. Prior to the final drive, the Eagles ran 25 plays for 45 […]
The post NFL: Week Two Recap | Jalen Hurts did not fold; Caleb Williams exits game with injury appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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September 20, 2026

Oakland Post

Prior to the final drive, the Eagles ran 25 plays for 45 yards. During the final drive Hurts went 6-8 with 61 passing yards and the touchdown. Titans defensive tackle — and team captain — Jeffery Simmons said this week that the way to defend Jalen Hurts is to make him “play quarterback.”

Hurts said to Simmons after today’s game: “You started that sh**. I had to finish it.”

Running back Saquon Barkley suffered a stinger in the first half but he ultimately finished the game. He had four carries and nine yards and one catch for eleven yards. He will get an MRI for his injury, but admitted to Cameron Wolfe of the NFL Network he was fine.

Caleb Williams leaves game against Vikings with apparent lower-body injury

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams was helped off the field with a right leg injury with 7:42 remaining in the fourth quarter. Williams was down, writhing in pain after scrambling to his left. After departing the injury tent, Williams raised his right fist, acknowledging the crowd while expressing his frustration. Testing will commence on Monday to find out more details about his injury.

“We’ll know tomorrow,” Johnson admitted regarding Williams’ injury. “He’s in good spirits. He’s a team player.”

Williams finished the day with 138 passing yards and one interception.

“I’m actually happy it’s nothing with the knee — that was my first inclination,” Johnson said. “But, a hamstring could be pretty damaging as well. So, we’ll see. We’ll see how bad it is tomorrow and we’ll go from there.”

Bryce Young once again dominated the Falcons

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young is 5-1 against the Atlanta Falcons and is undefeated at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Today, Young threw for 287 yards and three touchdowns as he led the Panthers to a 34-3 dismembering of the Atlanta Falcons. Georgia Tech alumnus Darren Waller caught two touchdowns and linebacker Devin Lloyd returned one of his two interceptions for a touchdown.

Cooper Rush started his second straight game for the Falcons and it did not go well. The partisan crowd voiced their displeasure after Rush completed 10/17 passes for 86 yards and two interceptions. Jack Strand entered the game for Rush prompting cheers from the Falcons fans. The rookie threw a pick-six on his first career pass attempt. Strand was the first QB to accomplish that feat since Sam Darnold in 2018 and is the first Falcons player to do that since Brett Favre in 1991. Strand finished the day with 59 passing yards and 16 rushing yards.

According to reports, quarterback Michael Penix, Jr. is expected to make his season debut this Thursday at the Green Bay Packers. His return should help the Falcons. They are the first team since the 2008 Rams to not run any plays in the red zone after the first two games to open a season.

The bright spots for the Falcons today were the Spelman College Jaguarettes performing with the Falcons cheerleaders and Florida A&M’s marching band, The Marching 100, also performed during halftime!

Jayden Daniels gets carted off after apparent arm injury

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He was later ruled out.

Daniels suffered a dislocated elbow to the same arm during week nine of last season against the Washington Commanders, which led to him being shut down for the remainder of the season.

The post NFL: Week Two Recap | Jalen Hurts did not fold; Caleb Williams exits game with injury appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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The post The Complete Negotiation Framework — Every Stage, Every Tactic, Every Win appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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Negotiation framework stages, tactics, and winning strategies from AutoNetwork

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Why signing preliminary paperwork isn’t the same as signing the final contract
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The post The Complete Negotiation Framework — Every Stage, Every Tactic, Every Win appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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The post Mazda CX-90 Luxury: Heated Seats & Premium Comfort! #shorts appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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