Segregated Atlanta?

[plessthanpointohfive]

Did you read Suburban Nation???

BTW, totally agree.

A teacher friend of mine said there had been an epidemiological study done to examine the effect of school ranking on a child's education. In a nutshell they found that if you put children from relatively affluent homes in poor schools they do fine and still succeed. If you put children from poor homes in rich schools they thrive and succeed. But if you put poor children in poor schools they do not thrive.

While we can't force parents to be more involved (the implication of those results) we can more easily encourage socioeconomic diversity in the public school system and in our neighborhoods.

That whole setting an example thing postprime is talking about.

[mxd.Brit]

To the OP you can try and look into Henry county - Mcdonough (where I live) has a good mix. A good way of judging is by going to the local supermarkets. We have Hispanics, whites, blacks and Asians in our neighborhood.

Good luck!!

[postprime]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

Did you read Suburban Nation???

BTW, totally agree.

A teacher friend of mine said there had been an epidemiological study done to examine the effect of school ranking on a child's education. In a nutshell they found that if you put children from relatively affluent homes in poor schools they do fine and still succeed. If you put children from poor homes in rich schools they thrive and succeed. But if you put poor children in poor schools they do not thrive.

While we can't force parents to be more involved (the implication of those results) we can more easily encourage socioeconomic diversity in the public school system and in our neighborhoods.

That whole setting an example thing postprime is talking about.

Haven't read it, but I remember reading a book called "Edge City" that addressed the issue.
In the "debate" about private vs. public schools from another thread I ignored the issue of economic segregation, but personally I would consider only private schools that handed out a significant number of need-based scholarships. The problem with public schools in the real world--at least in Metro Atl--is they tend to eventually go one way or the other. That is a housing issue. If truly affordable housing isn't mandated you cannot expect the real-estate market to encourage economic diversity. In fact, the opposite is what tends to occur.

[plessthanpointohfive]

Part of the problem is that newer housing developments have laws that prohibit mixed use or mixed socioeconomic status. Meaning, there are heavy restrictions on rentals or other low-income housing or commercial real estate. You don't see that in older neighborhoods like mine. My house is a duplex where I live in one apartment and rent out the other. There are many multifamily homes mixed in with the single family homes and there are condos and even apartment complexes all mixed in. So, in reality, in Candler Park you DO have a very wide variety of socioeconomic class.

And so does Mary Lin...which is one of the reasons my husband and I chose it over Paideia.

Didn't you say the condo you were looking to buy or had bought was along Dekalb Ave? If so, where along it, ie, near what MARTA station? I might be thinking of someone else., though.

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by south-to-west

I'm black and I live with my white girlfriend in an apartment in Inman Park. All of our friends are from various backgrounds--including another interracial couple. My apartment complex is VERY integrated with not only whites and blacks, but Asians and Hispanics as well. What makes us all get along isn't some flaky idea of "peace and harmony", but rather the desire to live in an urban area where you can walk everywhere and be around different people in your age group. Also, the desire to go out, drink, and have a good time is pretty universal and shared by all.

This would be a curious question to ask many people in your situation if you wanted to do the psych101 thing....

Ok, so think before you answer - did you move to Inman Park primarily because of the CONVENIENCE factor, or, to live in a "diverse" neighborhood?

I think those who do happen to wind up in a very mixed/diverse area find out the area is such as an afterthought, after having moved there for another reason such as location to work, conveniences to city attractions, avoiding commutes, etc. They then "discover" the diversity in their area AFTER the move, which for many winds up being a good thing that they like. Just curious.

[plessthanpointohfive]

Greg, for me I would say it's a bit of both. I always desired diversity but when I moved to my neighborhood it was for lifestyle reasons - to lessen the commute and time spent in our cars. But we had several intown neighborhoods to choose from. I'd say the neighborhoods north of Emory/CDC are less diverse then south because I think the most diversity is found closest to the middle of the city and thins out in a radial fashion...for the most part, though I know pockets of diversity exist all over.

In the end we chose Candler Park because of it's funky blend of international and American cultures. And we chose Candler over Inman and Lake Claire because that's where we found a house we could afford!

But we did discover, as you said, how much more our neighborhood had to offer after we got here.

[lastminutemom]

Originally Posted by plessthanpointohfive

Did you read Suburban Nation???

BTW, totally agree.

A teacher friend of mine said there had been an epidemiological study done to examine the effect of school ranking on a child's education. In a nutshell they found that if you put children from relatively affluent homes in poor schools they do fine and still succeed. If you put children from poor homes in rich schools they thrive and succeed. But if you put poor children in poor schools they do not thrive.

While we can't force parents to be more involved (the implication of those results) we can more easily encourage socioeconomic diversity in the public school system and in our neighborhoods.

That whole setting an example thing postprime is talking about.

Pless,

I am all about numbers (like you I suspect) and I want to show you something. If you look at last year's 5th grade test scores from Lin (and I am not picking on Lin at all) and you check out the disaggregated numbers, you discover that the non-economically disadvantaged students really outscore the system and the state while the economically disadvantaged students did about as well as the same sub group in the system and the state. (except science-- where Lin must do a great job)

After more than a dozen years with children in diverse public schools, I realize that the diversity doesn't negatively impact my child, but I am not sure that it totally helps disadvantaged children.

2006-2007 State of Georgia K-12 Report Card

[south-to-west]

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

This would be a curious question to ask many people in your situation if you wanted to do the psych101 thing....

Ok, so think before you answer - did you move to Inman Park primarily because of the CONVENIENCE factor, or, to live in a "diverse" neighborhood?

I think those who do happen to wind up in a very mixed/diverse area find out the area is such as an afterthought, after having moved there for another reason such as location to work, conveniences to city attractions, avoiding commutes, etc. They then "discover" the diversity in their area AFTER the move, which for many winds up being a good thing that they like. Just curious.

My criteria was living in a walkable neighborhood that is urban and diverse. Diverse not only in race or ethnicity, but also in culture, lifestyle, and personality. Usually when you live in an urban neighborhood, the diversity automatically comes with it.

I agree with you to a certain point that diversity becomes an afterthought. Sometimes a lot of the suburban areas OTP have are erroneously thought as being homogeneous when the exact opposite is true. For example, Gwinnett, Marietta, and Kennesaw are very diverse in regards to race and ethnicity. In these communities, diversity is an afterthought as those living there were seeking a more suburban lifestyle with more house, good schools, and lower crime.

[plessthanpointohfive]

Those are interesting numbers but, because I am a statistician, I am NOT all about the numbers...just because they don't tell the whole story, only point you in general directions.

I know peer pressure is a strong thing. I know that there is a large socioeconomically advantaged group at Mary Lin. And from my eyes I see that there's none or little of that self-segregation going on among the students. So, logic dictates that socioeconomically disadvantaged children will benefit from this experience. Positive experiences are always a benefit.

I should say that Mary Lin is just in the middle of transitioning between teaching philosophies. I can't tell you the details because when they were talking about it I was still kind of shell-shocked from sending my kid to real school and having to conform to stricter hours, dealing with homework, etc. I was a terrible PTA member that first year.

But, from what I understand the teaching philosophy (or whatever they call it) previously wasn't as test friendly. Not that I agree with a more test friendly teaching philosophy....

[h2oboogie]

Originally Posted by angelique

Can someone please tell me what ITP means??

ITP means Inside the Perimeter, which means within the boundaries of Interstate 285. I-285 is the interstate that loops around the city of Atlanta.