community
By Dr. John Telford
By the time you read this
column, I will have had a one- on-one breakfast chat with DPS emergency financial man- ager Robert Bobb. He will also have read my book, “A Life on the RUN – Seeking and Safeguarding Social Justice,” which a former press secretary to Mayor Dennis Archer called the best memoir on Detroit he ever read. Archer himself pro- nounced it “spellbinding!”
or bordering suburban dis- tricts. They simply aren’t in any school at all, and they’ve spun out of the control of their mothers or grandmothers.
There are also a few thou-
sand disrupters still attending school who need to be put in small education settings such as closed elementary buildings and surrounded with remedial support, social workers, secu- rity and battle-hardened princi- pals. When their behavior and grades have improved, they can be returned to the regu- lar setting. In the meantime,
THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
Thoughts for saving Detroit’s teens
the financial balloon must be squeezed to accommodate the expense. The class sizes among the better-behaved stu- dents left behind will need to expand accordingly.
Further, there is a crying
need to return to instruction in traditional grammar, K-12. Dialect can cause severe com- prehension problems for the African-American (and Latino and Arab) student.
The recently curtailed voca-
tional, art, music and athletic programs need to be restored and enhanced in every second-
ary school. In my experiences as a PSL coach five decades ago and again in 1999-2000, I found that the opportunities to compete on a team, play in a band or learn a trade are the only reasons many kids remain in school. Our large tracts of vacant land can pro- vide kids the chance to grow and prepare food that could become part of the curricu- lum.
Programs for restorative
justice, anger management and conflict resolution need to be established to induce
gangs to put aside their ri- valries during the school day and ultimately permanently. I tried to do this with admitted- ly less than glowing success in the mid-1990s when I was the executive director of the HUD-sponsored Detroit SNAP (Safe Neighborhoods Action Plan).
I was working then
with east side gangs out of a police mini-station on Chene.
Former state superinten-
dent Tom Watkins and former DPS superintendent Connie Calloway told me that some board members and top ad-
ministrators warned them that I was crazy when I of- fered to do certain jobs pro bono — including the never- filled ombudsman position. I was just trying to help kids and give back to those long- passed coaches who steered me away from trouble and to whom I owe my life. I plan to tell Mr. Bobb that my offer still stands.
Get Dr. Telford’s explosive
memoir on DPS at Barnes & Noble, or at www.alifeonthe- run.com, or Harmonie Park
Press (586) 979-2077.
April 7-13, 2010
Page C-3
Telford’s
Telescope
By John Telford
I’ve stated on television
that I think the leadership of DPS should be centralized in Mr. Bobb as a deputy to Mayor Bing. After my breakfast with him, I hope to retain that controversial opinion. That will depend upon responses I will be seeking from him re- garding questions involving contracts that some people I respect have voiced to me, and involving alumni who are deeply emotional about reten- tion of some school names, e.g., Northwestern High. I will also be sharing some of my own concerns, to wit:
There are perhaps as many
as 20,000 underage DPS teens playing permanent hooky, and truant officers need to be re- hired to round them up. These kids aren’t in charter schools
SDBA organizes
cleanup day
The Southwest Detroit
Business Association (SDBA) recently announced its its Spring 2010 Clean Up Day will be held on Saturday, April 10. On Volunteers from five local community groups will target pre-selected vacant and dilapidated properties in three Southwest Detroit neighbor- hoods and will begin boarding up, bolting shut and removing graffiti and trash. The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The SDBA set guidelines to
target more than 15 abandoned homes and lots because of their proximity to residential areas with families and chil- dren, and local schools. All of the properties selected are in high traffic areas, making them potentially dangerous to the community, including the children who reside in the area.
The Spring 2010 Clean Up
Day will affect thefollowing neighborhoods: Springdale- Woodmere, The “48210” Area, and Hubbard Farms/Mexican- town.
“The Spring 2010 Clean Up
Day is a wonderful collabora- tion between neighborhood groups and associations that are working together to make our community safer,” said Kathy Wendler, president of SDBA.
“We have a great group of
volunteers supporting this ini- tiative, but are definitely look- ing for more people to donate their time for the clean up.”
Sponsored by the Detroit
Vacant Properties Campaign, the Spring 2010 Clean Up day includes volunteers from SDBA, 48210 Neighborhood Association, Hubbard Farms Neighborhood Association, Springdale-Woodmere Block Club, and West Grand Boule- vard United for Progress.
Volunteers interested in
helping with the cleanup should contact Leeya at (313) 842-0986, ext. 41.
All tools, gloves and clean-
up supplies will be available on site.
Paul’s Pizza and Mexican-
town Bakery will provide pizza andpastries to volunteers.
The Southwest Detroit
Business Association is an organization dedicated to the growth and revitalization of Southwest Detroit.
For more information about
current projects, visit www. southwestdetroit.com.
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