Hi everyone,
Today, at a time when immigration remains at the center of national politics, The Hechinger Report brings you a riveting piece about an Alabama superintendent who won national recognition for serving his city’s growing Hispanic student body. In a partnership with palabra, an initiative of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and AL.com, this piece explores what transpired during now-former Superintendent Heath Grimes’ tenure leading Russellville City Schools. By most accounts, he helped his area’s English learners thrive.
Grimes knew those students' success was, in turn, essential for all young people in the district to succeed. And that is true for the nation as a whole: Today in the U.S., more than 1 in 10 students are English learners and, at a time when overall public school enrollment is falling, they are among the country’s fastest-growing groups of students.
Reporter Kavitha Cardoza interviewed dozens of people in Russellville over months, concluding that Grimes was forced out, the result of a collision of small-town politics, deep-rooted antipathy toward immigrants and a yearning for the city Russellville used to be. The story emerges at the same time as a movement encouraging states to charge undocumented students tuition, and a countermovement to stop it, our friends at Chalkbeat report. Find our story in Spanish, too.
On another note: Our Christina A. Samuels brings you a look at how students' math performance, around the world, has sunk — and was heading south even before the pandemic. There is no one reason for the decline, she found. Don't miss the sample questions from an international test, the PISA, to see whether you can solve them.
And if you can't get enough of Hechinger math content, be sure to sign up for our forthcoming newsletter devoted to the subject: solving math education.
Nirvi Shah, Executive editor
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A self-described Southern conservative and man of faith from rural Alabama, Heath Grimes set about overhauling instruction for English learners when he took over Russellville, Alabama, schools, establishing culturally relevant extracurriculars and reaching out to the Hispanic community. Those efforts had an impact: The share of Hispanic students taking Advanced Placement classes and dual enrollment courses at a local community college went up. Parental involvement increased. But as Grimes’ star rose statewide, according to local educators and residents, his relationship with city leadership started to unravel.
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En Russellville, Alabama, el superintendente Heath Grimes recibió reconocimiento nacional por atender las necesidades del creciente cuerpo estudiantil hispano de la ciudad. Luego, el distrito le mostró la puerta de salida.
Teachers explain why they won’t just ’stick to the script’
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