THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 22, 1995 TAG: 9509220486
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
Mayor Paul D. Fraim says he's not making a political statement when he talks about his ``personal stake'' in the quality of the city's schools: His four children attend them.
Fraim, an attorney who nearly embarked on a teaching and coaching career, worries that the urban school system gets an undeserved bad rap, and he'd like to turn that negative image around.
``We have problems like any inner-city system, but I think we're dealing with them far better than most,'' Fraim said this week. ``I think the education we provide is every bit as good as some of my friends' children receive in private school.''
On Saturday, the mayor is sponsoring a citizens' forum on education that he hopes will highlight the school district's strengths and dispel public misperceptions.
Called ``The Educating of Norfolk,'' the forum will provide a glimpse into the inner workings of the school system - how its $188 million 1995-96 budget was built, what capital improvements are planned, what children are learning and how parents can become more involved. It is scheduled 8:30 a.m. to noon at Ruffner Middle School.
Residents will have a chance to ask questions of School Board members and top administration officials, including Superintendent Roy D. Nichols.
``I welcome constructive criticism. I think it'll be healthy,'' Fraim said. ``We'll probably get some ideas worth implementing or considering further.''
To show his support, Fraim this year has pledged to tour each of the city's 50-plus schools.
``To the extent that I can encourage the educators or demonstrate a commitment to the importance of their role in our city I would do that,'' Fraim said. ``Also, at budget times we always hear concerns about the needs of schools - I thought this would be an opportunity for me to see firsthand.''
Fraim has two daughters who attend Blair Middle, and twin sons at Larchmont Elementary, two of the city's top-performing schools. The schools draw students from some of the city's most affluent neighborhoods, and some critics contend they produce better results because they receive more resources than schools in the city's poorer communities.
Not so, Fraim said. The school system's 1994 audit showed that average spending per pupil at Blair was $4,680, the lowest of the eight middle schools; the highest, at $5,286, was Rosemont.
Larchmont, at $3,973 per pupil, ranked 32nd of 35 elementary schools; St. Helena, one of Norfolk's 10 majority-black community schools, had the highest spending per elementary pupil, at $5,721.
``The truth is, there's a lot of parental involvement in those schools, and that's why they do so well,'' Fraim said of Blair and Larchmont.
Fraim graduated from Norfolk Catholic High, a private parochial school, and attended VMI on a football scholarship. He earned a master's degree in education from the University of Virginia, but said he decided to go into law after receiving an attractive financial incentive to attend the University of Richmond's law school.
Officials see room for improvement: Norfolk had the state's highest dropout rate in 1994, at 7.9 percent; fewer than half its sixth-graders this year passed the state Literacy Passport Test; and average high school SAT scores this year were below state and national levels.
Research by the Council of the Great City Schools in Washington, shows that Norfolk ranks favorably among the nation's 50 largest public school districts. Norfolk ranks 45th.
In 1992-93, Norfolk had more parent volunteer hours, a higher percentage of teachers certified in math, English and science, and a greater percentage of students going to four-year colleges than the overall average of the 50 top urban districts. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Norfolk Mayor Paul D. Fraim hosts a citizens' forum on the city's
public school system, called ``The Educating of Norfolk,'' 8:30a.m.
to noon Saturday at Ruffner Middle School, 489 Tidewater Drive.
KEYWORDS: PUBLIC FORUM NORFOLK SCHOOLS EDUCATION by CNB