DCentric

Good morning, DCentric readers! It feels like a whole year has passed since we last saw you– oh, wait…

Stressing unity in tough times, Gray takes command “On Sunday night, Gray gathered city residents together for an inauguration party at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. More than 11,000 tickets were given out, and thousands attended the black-tie gala in the convention center’s massive basement ballroom. They dined on pasta, cheese and pastries, and purchased drinks at cash bars. But most who arrived couldn’t get to the tables nearest the stage where bands entertained the crowd. That area was marked by red velvet rope, and made available only to attendees with VIP tickets. As one reveler put it, “Our new mayor talks of ‘One City,’ but there’s two parties here tonight.” (Washington Examiner )

School reform math in Baltimore: Fewer suspensions equals better results “Consider: In the 2003-04 school year, fewer than one out of two black male students graduated. Baltimore schools handed out nearly 26,000 suspensions to a student body of just over 88,000 kids. Two-thirds were to boys and, reflecting the city’s population, nearly all were to black students. Fast forward to the 2009-10 school year: Two out of three black male students graduated, while the District handed out fewer than 10,000 suspensions. Importantly, far fewer were longer than five days. You would be hard pressed to find other urban districts with that kind of progress.” (voices.washingtonpost.com)

Salvation Army sees 60 percent drop in Red Kettle giving “Did a decision to try to help many charities end up hurting one? The Salvation Army of the National Capital Area was given less time to station bell ringers in front of Giant Food stores this year, and Salvation Army National Capital Area Command spokesman Ken Forsythe says bell ringers collecting donations for the Red Kettle Campaign raised $270,000 this year compared to $667,000 last year. The dramatic decrease represents a 59.5 percent drop.” (wtop.com)

Atheists, Humanists Protest Inaugural Prayer Service “Already several hours into Vincent Gray’s first day as mayor, the Secular Coaltion for America is crying ‘prayer without representation’ over Gray’s first inaugural event of today. The group is publicly protesting this morning’s ecumenical prayer service for excluding atheists, humanists, agnostics and other non-theists in the event’s program. The service, which included Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Hindu leaders, was entitled “One City Praying Together” and touched upon many of the same “one city” themes brought up in Gray’s successful campaign.” (DCist)

My Journey Through Time: A Brief History of Shaw “By the end of the 60′s, it was obvious that what had once exemplified the dignity and pride of the African American community was in heavy decline…Given the encroachment of development (including the planned razing of the Kelsey Gardens apartments across the street from my office to make way for a condo complex), one wonders what changes lie in store for Shaw in the coming years. Likewise, one wonders if it will succeed in retaining its cultural ties as one of the nation’s most vibrant African American communities in the post-Civil War era. Only time will tell.” (breadforthecity.blogspot.com)

School choice, but few real options “It’s true that, in theory, the District offers parents who cannot afford private tuition or housing in neighborhoods with better public schools the opportunity to send a child to a higher-performing school, but in practice most transfer students will not get into one. Because parents whose children are already enrolled in high-performing schools overwhelmingly — and understandably — re-enroll their children each year, few places become available for transferring students…” (voices.washingtonpost.com)