Dr. Tim Lake called a recent Fort Wayne forum on education issues for African-American men a success.
Lake helped organize an education forum Sept. 8 sponsored by the Fort Wayne Urban Coalition. Lake is Wabash’s Director of the Malcolm X Institute of Black Studies and an assistant English professor.
Approximately 50 community members and school officials from East Allen Community and Fort Wayne Community schools attended. Lake said the Urban Coalition’s goal is to create a space where challenges facing student success can be discussed.
"A member of the FWCS school board talked about the value of co-curricular and extra-curricular activities to student engagement and academic success," Lake said. "However, some students are not able to participate in such activities because of transportation issues.
"One concrete idea that came out of the forum was a tacit commitment to addressing the lack of transportation for student attending schools off the public transportation line."
Lake said the problem effects students from the city’s urban core who often find it difficult to find a ride home after the school bus has left. "There was general agreement that this was an issue that school officials and community members can mobilize around."
Other issues discussed and expected to be covered in future forums include dropout rates, gaps in testing, graduation rates, disciplinary rates and placement in remedial courses.
"The state of Indiana is just terrible in terms of its ranking," Lake said. "Forty-five percent of African-American students don’t graduate high school with their peer group."