'We're here for the kids'

PROVIDENCE — Providence teachers describe a climate of negativity, an air of uncertainty and a culture of blame hovering over their district since the release of a report by the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy this summer on the state of the schools.

But for them, the anxiety caused by the scathing report, the impending state takeover and what they see as a barrage of criticism aimed at them in the media, fades away when they greet their students.

“The moment we step on the front step of that school, that’s it, you leave it there,” said Cynthia Robles, a special education collaborative teacher at Roger Williams Middle School. “You have to leave that negativity at the door, because the kids are depending on you.”

Six educators from around the district shared this week what it’s like to be a teacher in the thick of a national controversy over their schools.

“It doesn’t affect me one bit, one bit,” said Allison Campbell, a kindergarten dual-language English teacher at Carl G. Lauro Elementary School, who said she always gets swept up in her students and the pace of the school day.

But about 100 teachers have resigned this year, some because they were recruited by other districts and others because of the mounting pressure on Providence teachers in the wake of the report, said Ed German, dean of students at Hope High School.

“People don’t want to be associated with education in Providence,” he said. “We’ve lost good administrators. We’ve lost good teachers.”

Part of the problem, teachers said, is that an undue share of the blame has been placed on them for the abysmal state of Providence schools and poor outcomes for its students. While they acknowledge they share the responsibility, the teachers agreed that a very small number in their ranks are bad actors, while the vast majority are dedicated to their jobs but dealing with challenges beyond their control.

“It’s disheartening to hear the public accuse us of not teaching when we know that we work so hard,” said Will Graves, a math teacher at Dr. Jorge Alvarez High School.

Robles said that she and many of her colleagues spent the last few weeks of August going into hot, dirty schools to get them ready for students.

“We’re spending all of these hours, and to be honest with you, all of our own money to make it a safe learning environment for kids, and those are the things that are not reported,” she said. “... I know at least in my building, everyone was like, ‘Okay, we’ve heard the reports, we’ve been bashed in the news, but we’re here. We’re here for the kids.’”

The report highlighted issues such as deplorable building conditions, overcrowded classrooms and lack of social and emotional supports in schools, none of which surprised teachers.

But they said the report and the discourse following its release failed to acknowledge the positive strides already underway, such as a five-year strategic plan unveiled just last year.

The teachers said they didn’t know what to expect from the state takeover, but they expressed fatigue over what they see as an incessant cycle of new leadership, new strategies, new tests and new curricula.

“I’ve worked with eight superintendents in my 20-year career,” said Jeremy Sencer, an elementary math specialist. “Once you’ve experienced so many changes in leadership, you become a little numb to it. … When you hear about a takeover ... it’s been a constant state of takeover.”

They said they believe the plan could work if Education Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green listens to teachers, involves parents and appoints administrators who have experience educating urban students.

“Teachers, students, parents need a steady course of action that involves parental and teacher involvement and voice, because we are the only constant factor in our schools and in our district,” Graves said.

And in order to attract and retain good teachers and administrators, he said, the successes going on within the schools need to be heralded.

“I would say one of the common misconceptions is that all of our students are low-performing,” he said.

Providence had the second-lowest test scores in the state, after Central Falls, last year. But test scores don’t tell the full story, said Jennifer Walker, a dual-language literacy coach at Leviton Dual Language School. 

“The standardized tests that they are taking were not written for students of color, were not written for urban students,” she said. “And what we see them do every day is not reflected in what people are reading as their performance based on that metric.”

The public needs to hear the stories about students who’ve overcome seemingly insurmountable odds to earn their diplomas, teachers said.

There’s the young girl who hated math in fifth grade, but is now a woman of color studying oceanography in college, Sencer said.

Or the Dr. Jorge Alvarez High School student and a known gang member who was assigned his own teacher to work with only him during summer school to ensure he would graduate.

“He walked the stage,” German said. “He was very proud of it.”

Robles said she once had a seventh grader, the oldest of five boys, who had a difficult home life and always said he wasn’t going to make it. Every day, Robles said, she would tell him that she knew he could graduate from high school and that she expected an invitation to his graduation party.

Years later, she said, she was called down to the main office, where a grown man was standing.

“I immediately start crying, and he says, ‘Remember all those years ago when you said you were going to get an invitation to my graduation party?’” she said. “‘Well, I’m going to do you one better. Here’s a ticket to my graduation. It’s tonight.’”

Some of the teachers around the table wiped tears from their eyes.

“That’s more than a number or a test score,” Graves said.

“That’s why we do this,” said Robles. “We have to be there for them. That’s our responsibility.”

— mlist@providencejournal.com

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On Twitter: @madeleine_list