http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130201/NEWS/302010338/-1/NEWS
By Charis Anderson, Staff Writer for The Standard Times
canderson@s-t.com
Relevant Quotes: (Please follow the link above to read the complete article.)
Almost 50 community leaders have banded together to send a letter to the School Committee asking it to vote in favor of the proposed "innovation schools."
"A 'yes' vote will be a clear sign that the School Committee is committed to transformation and progress," said Craig Dutra, president of the Community Foundation of Southeastern Massachusetts and one of the letter's signatories, during a press conference Thursday.
"All of us in this room really have a very specific reason for being here and one common goal and it's that we want the best for our kids," [Jen Clune, Renaissance Community School for the Arts] said.
Kerry DeJesus, who was representing the proposed Esperanza School of Language and Culture, said the school was designed to be a place where everyone — parents, teachers, staff and administrators — has a voice and which adapts to the needs of its students.
The proposed innovation schools will help give educational choices to more families in New Bedford, according to [Darlene Spencer, executive director of New Bedford Community Connections Coalition].
"Voting 'yes' for the innovation-schools proposals will be a win-win for the entire city of New Bedford," she said.
