Unlike many schools in Georgia, Mary Lin Elementary doesn't struggle for parental involvement. The Atlanta elementary school has long been the centerpiece of the intown neighborhoods that surround it, neighborhoods that have grown in affluence and prestige in the last 20 years.
Credit: Maureen Downey
Credit: Maureen Downey
So, the resignation of the principal last week was bound to create a stir among parents. The resignation has exposed a gulf in parental perception of the school and its performance.
The gulf offers a glimpse into how different parents assess whether their schools are succeeding. On one hand, there are parents who feel Mary Lin is under performing academically relative to nearby Morningside and Springdale Park elementaries.
Mary Lin doesn't have a high number of kids in poverty; 12 percent of its students qualify for free and reduced lunches. As parents pointed out in my earlier blog, fewer Mary Lin students qualify for accelerated math at Inman Middle than their peers from these other schools.
It is clear APS administrators saw math performance as an issue, perhaps because vocal parents made them aware of it.
In her blog about a visit to Mary Lin , Atlanta Superintendent Meria Carstarphen concluded:
We all want Mary Lin to be the best school it can possibly be, so, like other schools across APS, Mary Lin will be improving performance compared to peer schools, supporting minority students with gaps in performance, beefing up math performance so that more students qualify for Accelerated Math as they enter middle and high school and targeting growth no matter where students are in ability.
You can read more in the minutes of the January meeting of the Mary Lin Local School Council where the performance disparities were discussed. The minutes state: When compared to similar schools (Morningside Elementary, Spark, Sarah Smith, Jackson, & Brandon), Mary Lin's results in all subjects on the CRCT were a little below the other schools, in terms of value added/progress, except for third grade science. Science was Mary Lin's strongest subject, while math was the weakest.
But other parents point to Mary Lin’s strong sense of community and the affection their children feel for their school and their teachers.
On that point, here is what one parent sent me in an email:
When my children attended Mary Lin, overall test scores were much lower than they are now, especially in the lower quartiles. For the most of us, as long as our children performed at a level that matched their intellectual curiosity and academic ability, we were content. If they seemed happy and excited to go off to school in the morning, we were content. Collectively, we valued an array of factors that provided a well-rounded education that consisted of a diverse student population; socio-economic, ethnic, varying levels of academic ability and the highly creative, entertaining right brainers.
In an attempt to ease the minds of those parents who seem to be caught up in a perilous quest for optimal parenting, I encourage you to pick and choose your school battles more wisely and consider the benefits of providing less than perfection for your child.
Rest assured, there are countless alums, products of our Grady Cluster, that are among some of the most well-rounded, high achievers. My hope is that you and your children can one day look back at their days at Mary Lin with a smile on your face and savor the many joyous memories, like mine can do!
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