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Opinion
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — There's an old real estate rule of thumb that the first offer you receive is usually the best one. The Washoe County School District has committed to add the International Baccalaureate curriculum as part of its plan to make Incline Village Public Schools “one of the best K-12 campuses in the country.” It's a generous offer, so let's not mess this up.
Newsweek's national ranking of Incline High School declined from 717 to 871 to 1,041 from 2007 to 2009. Meanwhile, Wooster High in Reno, which has the IB program, improved its ranking from 615 to 378 to 243 from 2007 to 2009. And even though some think highly of IHS, it is only performing at about WCSD averages when looking at graduation and proficiency rates. Neither Incline Elementary School nor Incline Middle School made adequate yearly progress and are both listed as “In Need Of Improvement” by the Nevada Department of Education. IHS is at risk of losing many of the programs that made it nationally ranked because the student enrollment is poised to drop 30 percent to 40 percent from historic levels.
So if Incline schools are on the decline, why is the school district committed to IB and “making Incline Village schools one of the best K-12 campuses in the nation?” Because, as Deputy Superintendent Pedro Martinez says, we have “such great teachers at all three schools and a solid Advanced Placement program at IHS. All of this helps to lay the groundwork.”
IB could make Incline Village an education magnet for Washoe County. IB is proven, rigorous and highly respected by the best colleges, yet uniquely capable of meeting the educational needs of our diverse population. While all students benefit, the median student at each level perhaps receives the most significant benefits from the IB program. Also, courses including physical education, language, music, art, etc. that frequently become “optional” in public schools facing budgetary issues, are required with IB so our small town schools will maintain these programs in the future.
So what's the controversy about? Some are saying “IB is too hard, and it will hurt my kid's chances of getting into college.” Should we lobby for a school system where everyone gets A's without doing any work? Others say the opposite: “IB courses aren't as good as AP courses.” But then why do many colleges say “send us prepared students a la IB ... it is the best high school prep curriculum an American school can offer.”
Let's think about the right thing for all the kids and let them have a future they deserve by embracing the WCSD's plan to make Incline schools “one of the best K-12 campuses in the country.”
The IB program will allow our schools to be benchmarked to the best schools not only nationwide, but worldwide. This is a huge improvement over the current situation where we are benchmarked to Nevada, one of the worst education states in the country. If the community turns down the districts “generous offer,” I don't think we will see a better offer. Instead it may be budget cuts, teacher and staff reductions on par with our smaller student population and AP courses that are taught through WOLF (Washoe Online Learning for the Future).
Let's do the right thing and support IB for our kids.
— Peter Bessette is an Incline Village resident.
Newsweek's national ranking of Incline High School declined from 717 to 871 to 1,041 from 2007 to 2009. Meanwhile, Wooster High in Reno, which has the IB program, improved its ranking from 615 to 378 to 243 from 2007 to 2009. And even though some think highly of IHS, it is only performing at about WCSD averages when looking at graduation and proficiency rates. Neither Incline Elementary School nor Incline Middle School made adequate yearly progress and are both listed as “In Need Of Improvement” by the Nevada Department of Education. IHS is at risk of losing many of the programs that made it nationally ranked because the student enrollment is poised to drop 30 percent to 40 percent from historic levels.
So if Incline schools are on the decline, why is the school district committed to IB and “making Incline Village schools one of the best K-12 campuses in the nation?” Because, as Deputy Superintendent Pedro Martinez says, we have “such great teachers at all three schools and a solid Advanced Placement program at IHS. All of this helps to lay the groundwork.”
IB could make Incline Village an education magnet for Washoe County. IB is proven, rigorous and highly respected by the best colleges, yet uniquely capable of meeting the educational needs of our diverse population. While all students benefit, the median student at each level perhaps receives the most significant benefits from the IB program. Also, courses including physical education, language, music, art, etc. that frequently become “optional” in public schools facing budgetary issues, are required with IB so our small town schools will maintain these programs in the future.
So what's the controversy about? Some are saying “IB is too hard, and it will hurt my kid's chances of getting into college.” Should we lobby for a school system where everyone gets A's without doing any work? Others say the opposite: “IB courses aren't as good as AP courses.” But then why do many colleges say “send us prepared students a la IB ... it is the best high school prep curriculum an American school can offer.”
Let's think about the right thing for all the kids and let them have a future they deserve by embracing the WCSD's plan to make Incline schools “one of the best K-12 campuses in the country.”
The IB program will allow our schools to be benchmarked to the best schools not only nationwide, but worldwide. This is a huge improvement over the current situation where we are benchmarked to Nevada, one of the worst education states in the country. If the community turns down the districts “generous offer,” I don't think we will see a better offer. Instead it may be budget cuts, teacher and staff reductions on par with our smaller student population and AP courses that are taught through WOLF (Washoe Online Learning for the Future).
Let's do the right thing and support IB for our kids.
— Peter Bessette is an Incline Village resident.
