Youngstown students, parents blast school board about East High

YOUNGSTOWN

People packed into the Youngstown School Board meeting, many to air their concerns about East High School.

But they had to wait more than two hours to be heard. The board heard presentations about the district’s textbook shortage, special education, suspensions and progress at Discovery at Kirkmere and Martin Luther King Elementary School before the portion of the meeting agenda reserved for citizen participation.

Then the board went into executive session for collective bargaining.

When the board emerged a short time later, East High student Taia Wright, backed by two of her classmates, was the first to speak.

“The main point of us coming here is that we don’t feel we have voices to speak for ourselves,” Taia told board members.

Rather than teachers and administrators telling the board about what’s happening at the school, the students should be able to speak themselves about what they think is right for them.

After the students finished, Keland Logan spoke, noting that only one school board member took notes while the young people were talking.

It’s part of having an actively engaged community, he said.

Donald Wright, Taia’s father, said that while the district has since hired two new math teachers, East went its first quarter without having enough math teachers for the classes.

Students are getting ready to take state tests, Wright said.

“How are you getting them prepared?” he asked.

Wright said his daughter knows that it’s unacceptable for her to bring home any grade lower than a “B.” He holds her accountable and she earns “A’s” and “B’s,” he said.

“How do we keep a school board accountable for a job that they’re not doing?” Wright asked.

Read more complaints and the situation in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.