Our Children’s Landscape
Before you consider the unfortunate academic statistics below, here are other quality of life statistics that further illustrate the thorny issues and social quicksand our kids must navigate every day.
High Crime Rates
The following website shows both Violent and Non-violent crimes for the Los Angeles area. Once at the site, zoom to Zip Code 90003 by typing in ‘90003’ in the Search box.
http://www.crimemapping.com/map.aspx?aid=3db8cf99-a73b-46d2-b218-bd24cf491577
High Volume of Registered Sex Offenders
Taken from http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/, this shocking map shows the 90003 neighborhood where most of our students reside.
To view the photo & offense of these individuals on the Megan’s Law website, zoom in on an area of the map, then click the blue square.
Teen Homicides Near Strive
Academic Realities in Our Community
May I ask you to consider the unhealthy link connecting the following two stats, before absorbing the remaining statistics?
(1) Students behind in reading in 3rd grade have only a 12 – 20% chance of ever catching up.
(2) 60% of students at the high school nearest Strive (Locke High School) scored Below Basic or Far Below Basic in English-Language Arts on the 2012 California Standards Test1.
High Dropout Rates
The graph below shows the LAUSD dropout rate for 2007. Our students are incredibly at risk for dropping out. Dropouts have been recorded to begin in middle school, but the most dropouts usually happen in high school. The following table shows the number of dropouts recorded in LAUSD in 2007. Most at-risk are the African-American population and the Hispanic/Latino population, which shows that 1 out of 3 African-Americans will drop out and 1 out of 4 Hispanic/Latinos will drop out.
Dropout Rates Based on Race/Ethnicity
There are 431 elementary schools in the L.A. Unified School District.
Twelve of the fifteen lowest scoring schools are in the Watts community, including these three nearest Strive:2
93rd Street School
Poverty rate: 97-99% 3
60% Hispanic, 40% Black
Barrett Street
Poverty rate: 95%
51% Black, 49% Hispanic
96th Street School
Poverty rate: 90-95%
70% Hispanic, 30% Black
Relevant Vital Statistics by Zip Code
“The problem has been the inability of California’s public schools to bring
disadvantaged and minority students up to speed academically so that they
can secure spots at the increasingly competitive University of California
and other prestigious institutions.” 6
1. California Department of Education, Assessment and Accountability Division
2. The 10 Schools Program, LA Unified School District
3. Based on individual school lunch program, LAUSD
4. The United Way, LA
5. LA Times Education Writer, Martha Grove
6. Los Angeles Times, Constance L. Rice.
