(PRESIDENT OBAMA) It is an undeniable fact that today our kids trail too many other countries in math, in science, in reading.
Our kids only get one shot at a decent education.
They cannot afford to wait any longer.
(MINOR) What happens to our students if nobody pays attention to them?
We were all horribly shocked when we saw that we had a 7% proficiency rate in math, it actually dropped by 50% from the year before.
And it was an issue.
(FEMALE REPORTER) Less than half of the students in DC public schools are reading and doing math at their grade level.
(MICHELLE RHEE) All of the eyes in the country are now on DC.
What we are embarking upon is a fight for the lives of children.
One of my friends, Desmond, that was like my brother, he took this guy's iPhone and they shot him and he died right there.
And that's when I changed my life around.
We have $1.1 billion budget in DC public schools.
The real question is how are we making it a priority to focus on the areas that need it the most.
(DELAUNTE) People will judge you all day when they don't really even know who you is.
It's like a whole, like an outside looking in but they looking in like the wrong way.
(MULTIPLE SPEAKERS) Education is the civil rights... this is the civil rights issue of our era... the civil rights issue of our day.
We keep getting bombarded with slogans and ways from outside people on how we should improve the inside.
Come live here for a while then tell us how to change it.
Come in here, check it out.
♫ "180 Days: A Year Inside ♫ (MINOR) When you work in a system that is in the middle of an education reform.
There is not one thing that you can ease up on.
There's no time to kick it and spend 15 minutes on a warm-up question: How was your Summer?
That ain't what it looks like in these parts because in these parts we know that the kids are walking in with these deficits and we know that every single second counts.
At the end of the day the work that we do is not just about one or two students, it's about their entire generation and helping that generation see the importance in their education.
Good Morning, good morning to the most awesomest most fantastic, most amazing staff of all of the staffs in of all the universe.
(T Good morning.
How y'all feel this morning?
You feel good?
Don't be nervous.
They're all going to come in.
They're going to look so cute.
They're going to hug each other.
They're going to look at you probably as intently as they're ever going to look at you for about five minutes, and if you don't do something you're going to lose them!
So get your jokes ready.
(MINOR) DC Met is an alternative school this means that our students already walked through the door with a myriad of challenges.
This may be the last chance that someone has to get it right.
(MINOR) Know that we wil have a moment of silence.
This is why we all have on ribbons today.
If you don't have a ribbon please pick up your ribbon.
When the students ask about Tiasiah, we'll just be honest.
Right?
We loved her to pieces and we're all very sad that she's not with us.
That's going to be in the middle of your second period.
I think that we have about 220 enrolled students right now, which is good but we need 100 more, right?
We're budgeted for 321, so we're 101 students short.
We're not going to send anybody away and that's about it.
Teaching and learning starts at 8:46 and we are excited.
I think we're going to have an awesome year.
I think you have the right people in your chairs.
And we're going to kick ass, so that's all I got.
(PETERSON) Alright, only 180 days left!
(MINOR) Have a good day!
(SMYTHE) This is my first year teaching.
When I first interviewed for the position, Principal Minor pulled me to her office and I think one of the snakes had gotten loose so people were running around trying to find the snake and so she looks, she looks at me and she says, well we really don't have a lot, how can you teach with not having a lot?
(SMYTHE) I thought to myself, physics is everywhere.
The students have to come from somewhere, to the school.
That motion that's physics.
(MINOR) Good morning there are some good looking students here in my DC Met.
(MINOR) Oh good morning.
The time now is 8: the bell will sound at 8:40.
It's a good day ...
I'm excited... first day of school.
Good morning!
You look good.
(MINOR) A year ago when I was appointed to this position.
I was told go!
And I went, but as the days passed by, we found that we needed a little more structure than just go.
So I am proud of the fact that we were able to analyze the data and where the school was, and what the school needed, and what the students needed, and what the teachers needed and put something together that would yield academic success.
Hey you know I'm going to ask you to take your hat off for me.
Please and thank you.
But your hair is awfully cute, here let me get rid of your hat hair for you, Good morning.
You know where you're going?
Hi!
We never met what's your name?
JaJuan.
JaJuan who?
JaJuan we talking come on.
Alright, so you guys are the class of 2015.
Ninth grade is the most tumultuous class because in ninth grade is when everybody drops out because the world says and the statistics say that all of y'all ain't gon make it.
Minor don't say that.
No teacher or staff member who works here says that, but I want you to know what the stats say.
Each year 1.2 million students fail to graduate from high school.
1.2 million students.
Raise your hand if you know someone who has not graduated or did not graduate from high school.
Don't trip like you don't, I got some cousins who ain't graduate.
1 out of every 3 ninth grade students fail to graduate in four years.
That means that if you look to your left and if you look to your right.
One of y'all ain't gon make it.
The make in ninth grade will either afford you a world of opportunity or they will box you into something that you may not necessarily want.
And all of us are here to help you.
♫ When we moved from New Orleans, I was eleven and by that time we was cramped in this small apartment in Louisiana when the hurricane was going on.
We moved to Charlotte.
We lived in an apartment.
It was nice, and then we lived in a much nicer house.
I pictured myself as a girl living in a house like this.
It was nice and then, we moved to DC, and started living in a basement.
♫ (MINOR) Faculty and Staff at the Washington Metropolitan High School, if I could ask you to please stop what you're doing.
Students I cannot stress to you the importance of being safe when you are not in our school building and I cannot articulate to you how precious each and every one of your lives are.
One of our students Tiasiah Branham, was killed on Friday, August 12th.
Tiasiah's memorial service were held today at 10'oclock and I know that some of you attended and again if you need to come down and speak to any members of the counseling and student development team they are available for you.
At this time students, staff, faculty and anyone who can hear my voice, lets please observe a moment of silence.
Thank you.
Again if there are any students who need to reach out to our counseling and student development department, please ask your teachers for passes so that you can come down and we'll make those services available for you.
(knocking on kitchen counter) (RAVEN) My boyfriend, he wanted me to have his child.
I was 15 and I was like no I wanna finish high school, like I'm not ready for a child but, being the stuff that I was going through in life, a year later when he got out of jail, I was just like maybe I should just start my own family because I don't feel no love from my family.
I really needed somebody like Serenity to be there in my life, to keep me going, to think positive.
I just like look at people on the streets and just think that I don't want to be like that.
I don't want to have no house to live.
I don't want to be looking for food and clothes.
I want to be somebody in life.
I want to people to know me.
I have to go to school so I can get an education, so I can go to college and be what I want to be.
♫ (DELAUNTE) I started out in Dunbar senior high school.
We got into a little altercation up there.
So my mother transferred me and my little brother off a safety tranfer.
Hey!
So went to Roosevelt and we winded up fighting.
So we all got suspended and went to Choice School.
We got suspended from Choice too from the same fighting situation.
I don't know if it's called revenge or nothing like that but I want to get out of school to show everybody who thought I couldn't do it, that I can do it.
(metal detectors chirping) (STUDENT) Ugh.
(metal detectors chirping) The enro really takes all year long.
We need to reach our projected enrollment by October 5th that's the district's cut-off date.
Sometime in October we will have an audit, which means that a third party firm will come into the school and actually count the number of students that are in the school.
(p Washington Metropolitan, Ms. Victum speaking, how may I help you?
I been told, that each student is the equivalent of $10,000.
We're supposed to have 321 students, we have 260.
So right now we're looking at maybe $500,000 being taken from our budget.
(KROHN) 2..3..4 ♫acoustic guitar♫ (VICTUM) And that's a lot of teachers and staff.
(KROHN) My turn.
♫acoustic guitar♫ 4...2... ready go.
(VICTUM) Our music teacher who has phenomenal ideas and I think music is very important, he might be let go.
(♫guitar♫) Not to mention what happens if they say okay we cut your money but then people still need to go to school.
We have less teachers, staff how do you make that work?
♫guitar♫ (KROHN) Very nice jobs for your first times doing this.
(BARNES) Come on man go on into the lunchroom.
I'm not a teacher as far as DC public school goes.
I'm a support person.
In school suspension and support program, but everyone is a teacher when you are around kids.
Come on in and have a seat.
(BARNES) Because they're learning from what you do.
Now as soon as the rest of the people get here, the meeting's going to start.
I'm not talking to you.
I'm talking to everybody-- wait until I finish.
And that's part of sports.
There's one coach and there's a whole lot of players.
It can't be a whole lot of coaches.
If I come in here and don't do nothin'.
They learn how not to do nothin'.
If I come in here and teach them how to respect people.
Then they learn how to respect people.
My name is Mr. Barnes, the reason we gonna have this meeting today, I've just been cleared to officially coach Men's basketball, so we can officially start sports at Washington Metropolitan High School.
Last year the school I was at, they went all the way to the championship but, nobody off them teams went to college because nobody had no grades.
In that case sports has used you.
The school got a trophy, the coach got recognition and now, you are not in college, you on the street, you trying to get a job.
I'm not going to let that happen to you.
(BARNES) I don't believe in giving kids the wrong messages.
If I teach them how an education is more important than a basketball game, I've taught them a good lesson.
I want them to win in life.
(basketball drib (NEWS REPORTER) A battle is underway that could have widespread impact on your child's education.
Ground zero is Washington, DC where just today 241 teachers whose students had poor test results got the axe.
(NEWS ANCHOR) It's called IMPACT.
Five times a year, DC educators are judged in multiple categories from test scores to time efficiency.
When teachers do well, they get a bonus.
When they do poorly, they're fired.
Though the practice is common in the district.
Experts say the practice it's uncommon nationwide.
(FEMALE SPEAKER) Believe it or not teachers were not being held accountable for whether the students were learning in their classrooms until these laws started changing.
(FEMALE SPEAKER 2) Should teachers be evaluated?
Yes.
Should they be evaluated by the test scores of their students?
Absolutely not.
(MALE SPEAKER) But how do you achieve some form of accountability if you can't look at a classroom of 30 kids and say these kids know how to read when they couldn't, know how to compute when they couldn't.
Is putting teachers at the center of reform at least a step in the right direction?
(PA) All staff to 307.
(MINOR) Sometimes we forget that we're in a system that's in the middle of an educational reform.
Right.
It's almost as if we are at war, right?
One of the first things that you have to do when you're in war is create a structure.
The new regime set forth a structure.
IMPACT is the structure.
It is the way that DCPS defines good teaching.
End of statement.
♫ So you may not agree with everything, you may say well I think that 50% of good teaching is building a rapport with students and I would never argue with you, right, because I think that a lot of good teaching comes with the conversations that you can have with the folks who are seated in your classroom.
However to work in DCPS you have to conform to the way that they say good teaching looks in DCPS.
♫ Ok so, I am Mr. Smythe.
Quick rule, I have stuff to write with, I do, okay, it's my stuff.
If you need paper I have paper, if you need graph paper I have graph paper, I have pencils I have erasers please don't abuse them please, I'm just out of college I am in debt, alright.
So I don't want to spend thousands of dollars on pencils, pens, erasers... (SMYTHE) I got a scholarship to go to Cornell University.
The scholarship required me to work in a high-need area for at least two years.
I'm from New York, I went to college in New York, and I knew I really wanted to experience a little bit more of the country so I applied to DCPS.
I had an interview with a few schools and Principal Minor offered me a job on the spot, which I thought was fantastic.
It's different for each first year teacher.
Smythe is what you would call a textbook first year teacher.
He meets all of the qualifications to meet the stereotype, right?
I'm nervous, I don't quite know what to do.
I want to do the best job, I feel like everything's an evaluation.
I have all of these things to do, how do I put them together?
I want the students to like me, but I still need to hold them accountable.
It's about trying to figure out where theory meets practice is going to be his issue.
You have somebody who is really in front of the class who is really, really trying to get them there but he just needs some guidance in the steps in which to include the students in the learning process, so that's what I'm here for.
(SMYTHE) You're the first person to ask me t My mom's a teacher.
Her sister is a teacher.
Education is a big part of my family and teachers have a bad reputation so I'm trying to really show people that teachers really aren't that bad, but I'm only 23 so I'm just like a student.
I'll go home and try to play video games and put off my homework and you know those kind of things.
Do you understands what it means to be in the individual learning cycle, first off?
Just tell me what you know, there's no right or wrong answer.
I don't know much.
That's fine, that's fine.
So an individual learning cycle is a 6-week cycle that all teachers will go through with me.
We sit down and we create a coaching plan that just designed to meet the needs for you.
(SMYTHE) Okay.
Not generic it's very specific.
Our meetings each week will either be a planning meeting / goal setting meeting, which is what this one would be or it'll be a debriefing meeting, which is after I do a classroom visit, we kind of sit down and talk about it.
(SMYTHE) Okay.
So here's what we're going to get into now, chemical reactions.
Chemical reactions occur in life all the time.
As a matter of fact right now while we are all just sitting here listening to me talk, you got chemical reactions going on in your body right now.
And those chemical reactions happen because of equations that I will show you at some point.
When the chemical reactions don't add up, then the reactions don't happen, ok?
You'll understand what I mean when we get into the equations.
Let me give you an example of what I'm talking about because I fear that some of you... are tired of me talking already.
What did I do with my marker?
It's one of those days.
(ASHFORD) I didn't expect the lesson to be fabulous, but I did expect to see some things that he had planned out.
(SMYTHE) Two of the most dangerous chemicals... And from what I saw today, I'm not sure how much time he's spending planning for a lesson.
I think he has a great idea in his head.
But he needs to take into account his students in order to bring it to fruition.
I saw someone who was all over the place talking about chemical reactions, but not creating a focused learning experience about chemical reactions.
For instance, I'm not even quite sure the students even know what a chemical reaction is.
The second thing I observed is that I have to get him to understand that just because it is his classroom doesn't mean it's his lesson.
(SMYTHE) Can you see that?
The lesson belongs to the students.
And it's up to them, they have to have an integral part, from the time the bell rings to the time the bell rings again when they are leaving out.
(SMYTHE) Give me another example of reaction.
What are you reacting to?
♫ (PRESIDENT OBAMA) Today, as many as a quarter of our students aren't finishing high school.
We've got too many schools that are under-resourced, too many teachers who want to be in the classroom who aren't because of budget constraints, not because they can't do the job.
Accountability is the right goal.
Closing the achievement gap is the right goal.
And we've got to stay focused on those goals.
We can't let another generation of young people fall behind because we didn't have the courage to recognize what doesn't work, admit it, and replace it with something that does.
We've got to act now.
(applause) (VICTUM) So you all don't need me do you?
(PETERSON - PA) If I could have all official audit folks come to the classrooms to do the actual count.
(AUDITOR) Yes it's 303?
Yes, come on in, I'm Mr. Harper.
(AUDITOR) Mr. Harper okay.
(HARPER) Ok so today, we're gonna do a count right now to see how many heads are in the classroom and then I'm going to call roll and I think you have to say here in order to be accounted for... (VICTUM) They go from classroom to classroom counting the students... Michelle Ball?
(MICHELLE) Here!
(VICTUM) to verify that those students are the students that we say we have.
Essence Davis is at a funeral today, Father is looking for her right now.
(MINOR) The total school budget is calculated based on the number of students that we have enrolled.
And the district has allocated a set amount of funds for us under the auspices that we will serve 321 students.
Kazima is not here.
Sue is not here.
Russell... (VICTUM) Since October 5th when they did the snapshot of the system, showing how many kids we have, Between 15 and 20 kids have come in and more will be coming.
(TEACHER) Delaunte Bennett.
(VICTUM) More will be coming.
Victum to Principal Minor.
All of the auditors are back upstairs.
They are going through the books right now.
And the file review which they're doing now.
They're looking at the enrollment forms and residency verification forms.
And so after the audit, we have to work on whatever discrepancies we have.
You count Marshall.
Jonetta you count!
(celebrating) (FEMALE) Get it!
Get it!
(MINOR PA) Job well done.
We'll call you down in a few minutes, so we can start this dance.
Practice your dance moves, because I think we're going to have a dance-off and Minor's going to win.
(STUDENT) You count?
What's up?!
♫dance music♫ Greg, could you go your advisory please?
Hi Greg.
(STUDENT) We went to class and you weren't in there.
Wait for me in the office please.
Alright.
(PARENT) I thank you so much because you always on him and ya'll guide him the right way.
And I appreciate that.
That's a level four.
(DIAMOND) What's that?
That's a medium-term suspension.
Sounds like it could have been inappropriate.
So you were talking about sex in science class.
(DEMETRI) Safe sex.
(MINOR) Safe sex?
(MINOR) I think you should be thankful that I'm not sending you to ISS to do your work.
(commotion) (MINOR) We have a lot of kids who are going through a lot of things.
Things that some adults wouldn't be able to take.
When you hear the cussing.
When you see the "man get the F out of my face".
Right?
Typically, always something else is going on.
(commotion) (PETERSON) Okay, I think the main thing is we want to do is let everybody talk before we talk over them.
But I think that we should start with Booker and Chanel.
Then Raven.
So, tell us what happened yesterday.
(ALEXIS) Alright, I didn't know what she was saying, but you gotta look at it through my eyes.
If somebody walking up towards you, what you going to think?
You going to just sit there and just wait for them?
No.
You're going to get up.
So you could see... You're not about to hit me while I'm sitting down.
The case is I don't throw first and that's my whole point.
It's no reason to be fighting over something that was a joke.
Avante, she came at me and Armani.
All of them were coming at me.
And Mr. Anderson and Diamond Digges, they were pulling me away.
(MINOR) So you have to decide if you're going to live a life where people can come and get you riled up or if you're going to listen to the world around you, figure out what's going on, and then act accordingly.
(arguing) (PETERSON) Thank you ladies.
♫ I'm going down this road, this road is not good for my soul.
But it holds onto my heart.
I make a right one day and the next a left.
I wanna go back to the little Raven who had no worries, no pain.
or stress I just feel like everything has happened so fast.
Now it's out of control.
But one day I know for a fact, I will get on the right path.
First I have to fix the mistakes that I made in order to move on.
We're debating the beliefs of the Puritans and how John Edwards uses the beliefs of the Puritans to set up his sermon because remember we said that values control what you do...
If you were in the congregation listening, were you frustrated?
Why?
(TYNIA) Because he's just talking at you.
He not talking to you.
Yeah he trying to make you believe something that you might not want to believe.
(RAVEN) I don't like when people ask me what's wrong sometimes because I don't feel like talking.
(MAYES) Now we're getting into a real discussion.
(RAVEN) After dealing with all this stuff, I just keep a smile on my face.
When something is like really, really bothering me, that's when you can tell okay I'm having a bad day.
I don't feel like, I'm not going to smile or anything.
One thing that keeps me positive is I know that through all this, it's going to be better.
So I don't worry about stuff that much.
(MAYES) But now we have to liste we can't talk at one time, because then the message gets lost, okay?
♫ (NEWS ANCHOR) A violent night in the district left 10 people either shot or stabbed.
Developing story from northeast DC this noon, where police are now investigating a homicide.
the incident happened overnight in the 1500 block of Oates Street in the heart of the Trinidad community.
Trinidad has been plagued with murders and drugs for too long.
And residents in this troubled community fear the return of a violent spike.
(RESIDENT) We want to live in a safe neighborhood.
(DELAUNTE) I'm from Trinidad and we was like born and raised all of our life, never once moved out of this neighborhood.
We used to live from the bottom of it to the top.
And everybody know that where we from is a rough tough neighborhood.
(NEWS ANCHOR) For Washington DC police, an aggressive new approach to a persistent problem, a military-style vehicle checkpoint in the city's crime-plagued Trinidad neighborhood, an effort police say to stop the killing.
A week ago, over a nine-hour period, seven people died and three others were wounded here.
(DELAUNTE) People think all the kids in DC is surrounded by opportunities.
Some of us not.
Some of us is in projects like all day everyday.
(Xbox game sounds) My mother always kept us updated with the newest game systems, the newest everything to keep us in the house.
Like we'll come outside, play for a little minute.
Then, we'd be right back in the house playing the newest system.
It would keep you from outside, especially at night time.
Like when the lights come on, we in the house.
But basketball was like something we loved to do.
I grew up around the court.
We played every day through hail, rain, every weather, we was outside playing basketball.
Basketball was my thing.
I just knew as soon as I started.
(BARNES) This is a practice for us.
All this weekend is an opportunity for us to play against somebody else, play on the big floor.
So you can practice.
Hopefully we win.
Once I give you this uniform, you are representing DC Met.
Okay?
All of y'all got talent.
But you got to find out how can I best help this team?
And all of y'all got good sense.
I know you got it.
I want you to act like you've come here to play basketball and to learn something.
That's it.
(BO KIMBLE) The purpose of this tournament, other than having a good experience, is I want you guys to... this is a part of how I grew up.
So I want to encourage you to let you know that dreams do come true.
I want to make sure that you guys know for a fact: do not sell yourself cheap.
But right now let's get ready to rock with some good basketball play.
And again, I'm proud to have you guys here.
(applause) (BARNES) I started working in the criminal justice system after I had my first child.
I didn't want the job.
If you look at most people that work in the penitentiary, if you asked them what did they say when they were in the 3rd grade when the teacher asked them, "What you wanna be when you grow up?"
I guarantee nobody in this country heard somebody in elementary school say, "I wanna be a corrections officer."
It was a job that I stumbled into, but by me working in the prison it made me first of all understand how important it was to get an education.
(BARNES) Set-up!
Set-up!
So I started volunteering because I realized that the kids need help.
(BARNES) Timeout.
(BARNES) When the ball goes h what do they do?
They get it, y'all got that?
Let's go.
Defense, defense.
Let's get the ball and let's run.
Most kids that we have in our building just need the truth.
They have been lied to a lot.
Say for instance a kid comes out of elementary school reading below the third grade.
How can he make it in middle school?
He's gonna be lied to.
He's gonna be put in a program.
He's gonna be passed on.
Stop the ball!
Stop the ball!
Ball, ball... (BARNES) And I personally get tired of sitting places and letting people tell me about what the problem is.
If you can't tell me a solution, I don't want to hear the problems.
I really don't.
(buzzer sounds) We're going to be alright, we're going to be alright.
We going to be alright.
Line up, line up, line up.
It was a good game.
(PLA Good game.
Good game.
Good game.
Come on y'all, let's go.
(MINOR) Tell me, what will happen if I drop this egg on the floor?
(SMYTHE) The egg will break.
(MINOR) It broke.
What happens to Kenny Phillips if nobody pays attention to him?
(MALE TEACHER) Shuts down.
What happens to Raven Coston if she doesn't get any support?
So now I need a team.
I need a team, come up.
What happens when you have a team of folks who work with the same kid?
No, that's exactly what was supposed to happen.
Did Raven Coston break?
(No.)
Did Kenny break?
(excitement and applause) What was different from the first time that I threw the egg and the second time?
(MALE TEACHER) The egg did not break.
(MINOR) The egg did not break, why?
Multiple people were there to support each other.
Thank you counselor!
Because there was a group of folks who worked together to make sure that the egg didn't break.
Thank you team non-egg breakers.
So what does that mean?
(TEACHER) We help each other to help our students, from failing, from breaking down, teamwork.
(MINOR) What else?
(ASHFORD) We have to remember our focus, which means we have to, as hard as it is, put ourselves aside and focus on why we're here.
(MINOR) That is exactly right.
(PROTESTERS) We are the 99%!
We are the 99%!
(LEON HARRIS) We're learning more about the growing numbers of protest happening now in our region.
The demonstration started of course on Wall Street.
and they have now grown across the nation especially here in DC.
(PROTESTERS) We are the 99%!
(REPORTER) It is a movement moving forward in the streets of DC today.
Clearly, there's enough money in the economy, but it seems to be going to only 1%.
America is fed up with just being forced into poverty.
(PROTESTERS) We teach the 99%!
We teach the 99%!
(PROTESTER) The whole slogan of the Occupy Movement of "we are the 99 percent."
raising issues of corporate greed, class inequality, debt.
I mean nowhere do these issues come together in the most soul-crushing way than in public schools today.
Our students, the people that we invest our heart and souls in face a very uncertain and challenging future.
(PROTESTERS) We teach the 99%!
We teach the 99%!
(MINOR) Here Chaz in here!
Thanks for getting one for Minor.
Alright, so we're going to do a few.
(MINOR) When I graduated from college I set out to do something that would allow me to be a voice for folks who didn't have a voice.
(MINOR) Be aggressive, be, be, be aggressive, B-E-A, I'm gonna kick you, R-E-S-S... (MINOR) And I didn't know at that time what that meant or what that would look like... (MINOR) Be aggressive.
Be, be aggressive.
But eventually and by happenstance I found myself as a paraprofessional at an alternative school so I actually stepped into education.
B-E- A-G-G-R-E-S-S-I-V-E B-E- A-G-G... And I felt like in that moment those were the folks who needed me to be their voice and help them realize their dreams and their passions.
(rehearsing cheers) Yeah.
(MINOR) B-E-A (laughing) When you go from having to have discipline conversations or having to talk to adults about their practice, sometimes it's fun to just walk away from all of that and dance.
(rehearsing cheers) (MINOR) Keep going!
(rehearsing cheers) ♫ I feel nervous about getting my first job because, I'm not a loud person and sometimes I be kind of nervous when I'm talking to people.
I feel excited on my first day of work knowing that I'm gonna be getting paid.
Hopefully, I make at least $100 in tips.
♫ My mother she barely have money and my father like he barely stays with a job.
I mean he sends money but it's not enough because of my little brother, like he's still got other kids and it's not just me.
Some days it's like Serenity, she'll be low on pampers, low on milk and wipes.
Sometimes I have to go ask other people for it and I don't like doing that.
When I get home I'll just be tired and I don't be feeling like doing no homework.
I just feel like going to sleep.
Sometimes I be like I got to do this homework in order to pass my class.
So and sometimes I don't.
♫ For Advisory today we are going through report cards.
What fun.
Everybody's going a one on one conference with me about their report card, what they need to fix, what they've done right, what they can improve on and then for the rest of the time, we're going to do the activity that we should've done yesterday, today.
(RAVEN) Aww man.
I got a D in Spanish, a D in English, AP English, a B in Algebra II, an A in Advisory, a B in Chemistry, an F in Senior Seminar, and a C in Photography.
Raven, really?
Really?
No, that is not acceptable.
She...I wasn't...
Cause last week... You weren't going to class.
(RAVEN) I had to leave.
Were they acceptable absences?
Excusable absences?
(RAVEN) Yeah they were supposed to be because Miss May... Then talk to the office about it, alright?
If you left and you weren't supposed to leave then that's on you.
If you left and you were supposed to leave and you were excused then you need to talk to office and get it straightened out.
What I want you to do is get you a C. Okay, that's it.
One step up.
I don't need you to ace everything, just one step up and then we'll work on it.
(RAVEN) Alright.
(Okay?)
Thank you Miss Raven.
♫ My mother she was sick from breast cancer.
They told her that she was already in her 4th stage she survived like a whole year then some months later.
But I never even like imagined her gone, like I would never even think about it that way to actually like live it, it been it been like real super hard, not as in like financial or nothing like that getting the bills paid, it's just hard not coming home to her saying my name or just like Delaunte go take out the trash.
It's strange because after my mother died people she used to let stay over the house like it was always a family member that stayed with us and now that she passed it's just her kids in the house.
This is the first tattoo I ever got.
It's my mother's name, of course.
So I got her name tatted.
Then I got the shoulder tattoos, which is my mother and father, "M"and "F".
I got them in stars.
And this one is the breast cancer symbol.
It represents my mother.
My favorite tattoo is the portrait of her.
It's actually the picture on the front of her obituary.
Then, after that, I got "FOE"on my neck, that's "Family Over Everything".
(TEACHER) Got to go to your advisory, get your report card.
I knew I wasn't going to pass English, I don't make it to her class.
And I don't know French.
Before she got sick, I was doing all my work in school and all that to make her proud because she always told me she wanted to see me with some good grades, she wanted to see me graduate.
She want to see me get married.
And my grandmother tells me the same thing to this day.
I'm going to have to make these up, especially if I'm going to play basketball.
I got to make these up.
(BARNES) Get the door please.
(door shuts) Alright, Jesse, come here Reggie get on this side.
Greg, get on this side.
Delaunte, get on this side.
Ms. Hart ran the grades last night.
Everyone that's ineligible is ineligible for one reason, attendance.
If you can't change your habits, as far as getting to school on time, then you going to waste your time because you're going to be ineligible again.
None of these teachers can pass an athlete who don't come to school.
In essence, your first period teacher can't pass you if you don't come to school.
These people that's ineligible will miss the first round of the league, seven games.
Then we got ten more to go.
If you don't come to school the after-school tutoring is not going to help.
All you gotta do is look at your report card.
It tells you right there: attendance, attendance, attendance.
♫ (MINOR) The findings of our audit concluded that we did not meet the 321 projected enrollment, we fell short, we were somewhere between 250 and 270 students, once everything was said and done.
We don't go on hearsay, or what that school said, we look at paper, if you don't have documentation then we don't give credit.
We've already started talking about our budget for next year and the projected budget from Central Office is 255 students.
(DECARBO) You'll be thankful when this is over.
It always seems like it doesn't end.
(MINOR) The expectation for next year has been lowered.
So the travesty in that is that we will face some budget cuts, which will look like staff cuts when it's all said and done.
When you have a school that deals with students who never come to school, you have to have certain resources or make provisions so that those kids will eventually come to school.
(MINOR) We're working for some of those kids who aren't here.
(DECARBO) The home visits, the reach outs from the counselors, the reach out from the schools.
Right.
(VICTUM) The work that the counselors are doing.
Because we have one student who we didn't get credit for who basically was a runaway.
(MINOR) So it's not about saying well, I should get credit for kids who don't come to school.
What it is saying is that I should have the resources to reach out to those kids who don't come to school so that I can get them into the school building.
Because I have to have a teacher in the classroom for the kids who do show up and I have to have a counselor and a social worker to deal with issues that are happening in the building.
But then I need somebody to interface with the kids who aren't here yet.
And one adult can't be in three places at one time (COUNSELOR) I'm from his school, he's missed a lot of days from school.
(MINOR) But at the end of the day, it's viewed as the leader's fault if you can't get the kids in the building.
This is the first basketball game officially for this school.
The first year is rough, you gotta believe in each other.
You got it in you man, all of you, but you gotta be hungry.
No standing still.
♫school band♫ Y'all about to see us shaking, not too much shaking but it's going to be a little something shaking.
♫high school band♫ (BARNES) All right, look here man, don't look past it.
We want y'all to go out here man and do something that everybody think you can't do.
(cheers) (referee whistle) (cheers) (BARNES) Hands up!
(BARNES) As we play, we'll get better.
♫ As we play, we'll understand how important practice is.
(COACH) Let's go!
♫ As we play, we'll want to play so we'll go to class, so we won't be ineligible when report cards come out.
♫ (buzzer) (BARNES) This is our first game.
This is they first game.
We gotta come in here together, and go out of here together.
That's teamwork.
Come on, we gotta get back in this game man.
One, two, three, DC Met!
(MINOR) My job as the leader in the building is to improve.
Improve school culture, improve attendance, improve test scores, improve everything.
And in some instances, we're told we're not doing enough.
Truancy needs to be lower.
Achievement needs to be higher.
You need to learn how to do more with less.
There's always a sense of urgency.
There's always a way that you can get better and improve the lives of students.
(ARNE DUNCAN) You might look at a college graduation rate where the United States is 14th in the world.
Used to be number one a generation ago.
When I look at the percentage of high school graduates that are having to take remedial classes in college.
And then when I ultimately look at a million children leaving our schools for our streets each year.
We have a lot of hard work ahead of us.
People with less education tend to have higher unemployment levels, regardless of race.
So people without high school, people with only high school have higher unemployment rates than people that have college degrees.
Lower educational attainment levels amongst African Americans contribute to this disparity.
(MINOR) The time is now 1:58 and we are going to have the senior class meeting.
(hallway chatter) Class of twenty-one two what ya going do?
Sooner or later you got to represent your whole crew.
I'm a rapper.
Alright so class of 2012, if you guys can you start to report to Ferguson Hall, thank you.
So I am really, really excited.
You guys are the first graduating class of the Washington Metropolitan High School and that is a big deal.
(applause) That's exactly right, that's exactly right.
You only have one high school graduation.
I don't have the statistics but there are thousands upon thousands of Americans who can't say that they did that.
And I want all of that for all of you.
I want you guys to walk across that stage just like I want you to go to class everyday.
I cannot express to you the feeling that you will have at the end of graduation.
You just have to experience it.
Right.
And I want to be there to see all of your faces once you experience it.
(STUDENT) Woo!
(MINOR) Look how handsome!
(PHOTOGRAPHER) And hold it.
(MINOR) I need the next girl.
(PHOTOGRAPHER) Look here.
♫ I just moved to this foster home like a year ago.
It takes me 40 minutes to get to school because I have to go all the way uptown.
♫ I could have went to Anacostia, but I ain't want to, I wanted to be apart of DC Met's first graduating class.
It just seemed like it was the best thing to me.
So I take all this time just to go all the way up there.
I use to be bad so... everybody knows me as Raven, the Raven that changed.
Yeah.
♫ I can't take nobody telling me what to do, when to do it.
And that's how I used to be.
I used to get into a whole rack of fights like group fights with gang fights.
I used to carry knives around.
I used to beat people up, just to do it.
I used to cuss the teachers out.
I used to be horrible.
Woo... ♫ My father, he was born on July 4th.
So we use to have a cookout, he'll make crabs, he'll do all this other stuff and everybody come over the house.
I lived in Marlborough Plaza with my father at the time and Marlborough Plaza is like real high, so you can see the monument and stuff and the fireworks.
I was scared of the sparkly things, the ones that you light and you hold around and spin them around and stuff.
I use to be terrified of them but my father use to always help me and help me do it and stuff.
And we'd have so much fun.
♫ (child's laughter) I had a rough lifestyle I can say.
I never wanted for nothing in life.
But it was a hard lifestyle as anybody adult looking to it.
My mother was on drugs.
I used to see the effects of the drugs on her.
I never knew what it exactly was until I grew up.
Because she would come out the bathroom nodding or she would stutter over words.
Or she couldn't take us to school.
My grandmother reported my mother because we were missing school and they put me with my father and they put my little brother with his father.
Going through all of that and me having to stay strong for my little brother it changed me to the fact that I never had the responsibility of holding my brother like making sure he don't cry.
Making sure he knows what's going on.
So I think that's when I began to have anger issues, I start acting different because I mean it's hard for a child to be tooken away from their mother at a young age.
This is my room.
Alright, on this side of the wall, this is my "Rest In Peace"wall.
That's what I call it.
I got my friend Desmond.
He died in 2010.
And I got my friend EJ, Eugene.
(RAVEN) Well I started acting out over time.
I'd be disrespectful to teachers.
They'd say sit down.
I'm like, "no I ain't sitting down."
I had a problem with authority.
And I really didn't like it.
This like a memory wall.
This like math stuff, that's my test from last year, I got a B- on it.
This a go-go picture.
I used to be on the street a long time man like selling drugs, getting what I gotta get, and robbing people.
That was like the most thing I did.
I used to do it like everyday after school.
It was like a relief.
It was a way I got my stress out.
Hitting somebody, I'm just giving them what I feel.
I want them to feel how I feel.
(honking) Okay.
So basically, you can swing this, man I hope this works, and you see the water's standing still.
And... (cup of water hits floor) Didn't work.
Oh the plate broke, that's why.
I'm glad no students were here to see that.
What I need is either a tougher plate or what might even work is multiple plates.
(books hitting desk) (SMYTHE) The shopping cart actually has more momentum... (SMYTHE) I can go on and on about things that I need to work on.
knocks into you if you were jumping in front of it.
(SMYTHE) I need to make sure I have a lesson everyday.
I need to make sure I have a worksheet everyday.
I need to make sure that I walk around the classroom.
There's a lot that I need to work on.
(ASHFORD) What standard is this coming from?
(SMYTHE) Uh, P2.
Damn, you know that off the top of your head and it's not on the board.
Alright so...
There's a lot of subparts but it's all P2.
That's okay.
So, what is P2?
Just motion.
Just the physics of motion basically.
Is that the strand or is that the standard?
♫ (SMYTHE) So, this is a cup of water, not glued down.
I'm going to show you centripetal force in real life.
So, this water is moving in a circle.
So what's going on in this situation?
(students react) (FEMALE STUDENT) That water is not moving!
Looks like it's fake.
(students react) Hold on, hold on.
I just heard a bet.
(FEMALE STUDENT) Can I try?
What was that?
(FEMALE STUDENT) It's going to fall...
If I put it upside down.
Is it going to fall?
(students react) (FEMALE STUDENT) I just want to see it.
♫ (students excited) ♫ (applause) And then I had to prove that it was water, so.
(honking) (HEALTH TECHNICIAN) All right now Ms. Serenity, 7 months, 20 days.
Okay, so we can do all of her immunizations today.
You came right on time.
Now you know which shots she needs?
No.
So she needs her third Hepatitis B.
This is her last Hepatitis, no more of this.
She needs to get Polio, D-Tep, then the Hib, That's all in one shot.
Do you have any questions about it?
Can I get a note for school?
Sure.
It's for me.
You're missing school?
Yeah, I'm missing... (RAVEN) I've always been daddy's girl.
When we moved from New Orleans, I was like 11.
(crying) And my father, he left my mother and that kind of hurt me because I was just like why would my father leave me without even saying anything?
And that's when I just felt like I still needed a man in my life.
I still needed somebody there, so I was chasing after boys and trying to get them to love me like my daddy did, but it wouldn't happen.
(FEMALE SPEAKER) I want us all to take a moment to realize that these young ladies, they are our future.
What they committed to over the last twelve months was re-dedicating themselves to their futures, to their hopes, and to their dreams.
You guys are our family, and we love you very, very much.
(applause) Ms. Raven Coston.
Raven!
Yay!
(applause) (FEMALE SPEAKER) Congratulations 2011 Graduates.
You've successfully completed the Teen Parent Program.
♫ (RAVEN) My boyfriend's name is Sherquan Davis and when we was looking for daycares he actually came with me.
Most fathers are like I don't wanna come.
I don't care, but he actually came with me and to me he's like a friend.
Even though he's my boyfriend, he's really a friend.
Me and Quan we did talk about living together.
I don't think I'm really ready for all that.
I don't want to move fast.
I know we have a child, but I just feel like I still got to grow.
(WITHERSPOON) Good morning Mr. Smythe.
(SMYTHE) Hey how are you doing?
Ms. Minor asked us to come out to talk to you all about an incident that happened over the weekend involving one of our students, and we're here to provide you all with support.
On Saturday, one of our students, Nicole Smith, who is a 16 year-old 9th grade student here, that she was involved in a verbal altercation.
She was with another gentleman.
The altercation escalated.
Both of them were shot.
The gentleman later died at the hospital.
Nicole was seriously injured.
She is currently in critical condition at the hospital.
That's all we really know right now.
Has anybody heard anything about this?
(STUDENTS: No.)
Has anybody heard anything on the news over the weekend?
(WITHERSPOON) If I walked down the hallway and grabbed five people, at least four of those kids would tell me that they've had at least 5 to 8 of their friends that have died.
Some of our kids don't even think about 18 because they can't imagine making it past 18.
Some of our kids can't be future-oriented because everyday they don't know if it's going to be their last day.
Just because the fact this incident happened as a result of having an argument with someone that she was shot.
That's something that could be a real situation for any of you at any given time.
Sometimes those types of things just knowing that can create a lot of anxiety or cause you to worry and so we just wanted to come out, talk to you all, let you know that we're here.
We are down in the counseling suite, if anyone wants to come down and talk.
♫ (hallway chatter) From about November to March, would you say?
there's always an influx of something.
So for those of you who are new, this is the hardest time of the year for us.
Around the same time last year, we had a suicide with one of our students.
Just Friday, we all went to a funeral for one of our students whose parents passed away right, so it's tough.
Just kind of try to look for signs with the kids.
Try to look for things that don't look normal.
And I beg of you to please try to be patient.
Be patient with the kids and be patient with us because when tragedies happen, it's not isolated right.
It affects everyone so it's a time when we do have to definitely pull together and make sure that we work together.
♫ (BARNES) I've dealt with kids that when they left school, didn't realize or didn't know whether or not they was going to have a place to stay.
They might not be living with their parents.
Because we have a lot of kids who leave here everyday that might be staying with a different person than what's on their paperwork.
We have a lot of kids that might be taking care of themselves.
(basketball fans cheering) (cheerleaders cheering) (BARNES) Because if all these things are negative, how do you think the kid feels?
You think he's going to respond positive when a teacher asks him where is your homework?
What do you think he's going to do?
(fans cheering) He's going to do something that's going to get him in trouble because nobody took the time to find out why all of the sudden one of the nicest kids in your class is coming to school mad at the world.
And you as an adult have to be smart enough to figure out he needs help because he's not going to tell you.
(cheerleaders cheering) It ain't everybody's business.
The only people I really want to tell this to or going to talk about this to is the people who convince me that they really want to help me and not use me as a statistic.
(cheering) ♫ If you were to first meet me, here are some of the responses you may have: very respectful, handsome, intelligent, charismatic and you know just very interesting person.
I got into the juvenil when I was about 13, 14.
I caught 9 cases, different amount of charges for each case.
Multiple suspensions from school, just not coming home, curfew.
Not on the right path at all.
Making bad decisions.
My first charge I caught was a robbery.
I had a weapon.
It was a knife, more than 3 inches.
Second case simple assault, assaulting a family member.
Mostly just thefts and destruction of property.
(PETERSON) Rufus was a student who had a lot of trouble in his past before he came to our building.
He came in as a very difficult young man to deal with, but we started breaking down some of those barriers that he had.
We got him involved in basketball.
He began to excel academically.
He started staying out of trouble.
(RUFUS) Before DC Met, I was at Cardozo Senior High School.
I'm very happy that I left because it was really no possible way I could stay there and keep my grades up.
I failed maybe four or five courses while I was there.
This was because lack of attendance, suspensions.
I really did not like class at all.
And during this time, I was on probation.
I had to go to court multiple times.
Drug testing, seeing a PO regularly.
I actually was put in a group home multiple times.
Being in a group home is no fun at all, trust me.
It's just not knowing what can occur during your time in this place.
You have to share an environment with other people that you know nothing about.
You have to deal with new attitudes and the way people act towards you.
You have to get up when they say get up.
You have to sleep when they say sleep.
You must shower when they shower.
You must eat when they feed you.
So it's kinda like being in prison.
(MCNAIR) Can everybody hear me?
(students respond) I actually asked the young man that's standing behind me to come talk to the group that's in this room right now because I felt that it was important for you to understand how your attendance can positively and negatively affect you.
♫ Can someone tell me how many days you can miss in DC in your particular school before a case can be started?
Okay.
The number of days is 15.
The number of days that we usually generate a case is 25.
Once I come out and I check with Ms. McNair, You see me in this building.
I'm checking to see your attendance.
I'm checking to see what type of student you are.
If I have a good student that just missed a couple of days or may have lost a family member or a close friend, then I will give them some slack because you are a good student.
However, if you have those students who are not doing anything who may be using illegal drugs, Then I'm asking that you get a probation officer.
That probation officer will come to the school and make sure every week that you're at school.
♫ (NEWS ANCHOR) It has been years in the making.
Finally, the dedication for the national Dr. Martin Luther King National Memorial will be here in DC on the National Mall.
The city is expecting a quarter of a million visitors to be in town for the big event.
(REPORTER) Finishing touches are still being applied to the walkways and to the lighting at this still shrouded memorial to Martin Luther King, Jr. who electrified the world nearly 48 years ago in Washington with his I have a dream speech.
(cheers and applause) Nearly 50 years after the march on Washington, our work, Dr. King's work is not yet complete.
We gather here in a moment of great challenge and great change.
Too many troubled neighborhoods across the country.
The conditions of our poorest citizens appear little changed from what existed 50 years ago.
Neighborhoods with underfunded schools and broken-down slums, inadequate healthcare, constant violence.
Neighborhoods in which too many young people grow up with little hope and few prospects for the future.
Our work is not done.
Just as we draw strength from Dr. King's struggles.
So must we draw inspiration from his constant insistence on the oneness of man.
The belief in his words that we are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.
(birds chirping) The thing like I said is going to sell it doing Poetry is like acting out your emotions.
So if you got to sell your poetry you got to put your body and your heart into it.
(RAVEN Q) Poetry is my outlet.
When I write poetry, I'm putting everything down on paper.
I'm letting everything out.
My stuff is more like real life situations, where some other people write about like flowers are red, roses are blue.
Stuff like that.
So poetry is just a way I can express myself.
My name is Raven Quattlebaum.
I wrote this poem to show everybody that I let my adversities push me instead of pulling me down.
"A Nightmare Looking For a Dream" I have a nightmare that's filled with hatred and insanity but when I wake up it turns to happy endings.
Why is this happening to a person that loves dreams?
My dreams are coming too slow but my nightmares are coming too fast.
Who am I?
The number one question in my book of unanswered prayers.
I'm not a stone.
I do break.
A fallen angel whose heart has been broken.
I'm just as loving as you.
Boys cry too.
Life with me ain't been a crystal stair.
It has tacks in it and splinters and boards torn up in places with no carpet on the floor bare.
But all the time I been climbing on and reaching lanterns and turning corners, going to places where there ain't been no light, dark... Langston Hughes.
In the city where children wallow in dreams deeply rooted in sorrow like willows, since ten years old they'll have thoughts of leaving their education widowed.
Killin' nothing but their chances and hopes to liberate whatever soul they got left.
I made a decision not to chance it and take my chances at college classes with this 1.6 average.
Had to grow up fast couldn't live my childhood like others.
The system molded me but I made myself be the person that I am now.
All above you could see, that life it hasn't been a crystal staircase for me.
(BIBLE STUDY TEACHER) Come and talk to me.
I don't care what you look like when you come in here.
He doesn't care what you look like when you come in the church.
I don't care if you got jeans on.
I don't care whatever it is.
Nothing should block you from getting to God's presence.
My ninth grade year, I remember I used to hang out with these girls, everybody used to call me because I'm a big girl.
So they came to my house and they said "Raven we're about to go fight this girl."
And back then I was a hot head, so I was like all right we got to go fight.
We went down there and then they was like all right we can't find her.
So we got to go to church.
So I'm like, "Hold up, church?
I don't do church.
I don't do church."
And they were like nah son for real, it's not like any other church they going to accept you for who you are and all that.
So I was like alright.
So I went to church, the same church I go to every Friday now.
It was like a different lifestyle and I sat in there and I just felt like God was talking to me.
I just felt like he was like Raven it's time for you to change.
But I still didn't change right then and there.
I still was doing what I was doing, but I still went to church.
So it's like over time church started influencing me to be a different person.
It changed me.
(BIBLE STUDY TEACHER) It's a crazy, messed up, terrible thing to think that you can do it all by yourself.
Some of you deserve to be in a mental institution right now.
All the hell you've been through, all the stuff your family has put you through.
You don't even deserve to be sane right now.
When you think about how you survived the divorce, you've seen your parents on drugs.
You survived, you survived the rape.
You survived the abortion.
You survived the overdose.
You survived the gang initiation.
You survived a whole lot.
That would have made anybody else crazy, but you still got it together.
Why?
His word.
He says I'll be with you in trouble and out of trouble.
♫ Good Morning.
People don't go to class no more?
All they do is this is?
Come on y'all.
NO hallway.
No hallway.
Go to class .
(MINOR) No, you late, so you going down to ISS, sorry he late.
(PETERSON) Let's go!
Don't get caught in the hall sweep.
Let's go!
Alright, I sent three kids down to ISS, India go inside, Raven.
Alright, come on don't be late.
Don't get caught in that hall sweep, let's go.
Let's go.
Victoria, don't get caught.
You got two already.
One more you're gonna get suspended.
Being an assistant principal, I have to deal with a lot of things as far as being the major disciplinarian in the building.
And sometimes it's a challenge.
As an African American male who went through public schools in the United States, I can relate to a lot of the things that the students are going through in their lives.
I'm also able to turn around and say hey.
I understand where you're coming from.
I understand why you did that.
I understand why you said that.
But you're wrong, and that's a teachable moment.
Love will get you.
Love will get you everytime.
And you smoking at the bottom of my stairwell.
(VICTORIA) Smoking?
You wanna smell my fingers?
(MINOR) Peterson?
Come on.
(VICTORIA) I don't even smoke.
Victoria and Samantha down here bottom fo the stairwell smoking like a chimney!
(student yelling) You ain't even supposed to be down there, so that's out of bounds.
That's disrespect, now you cussing come on let's go.
ain't even supposed to be down there.
(BARNES) Well ISS.
In School Suspension, was designed to separate a student from class, that's having disciplinary problems, but not send him home.
And continue his education.
But he will learn how to deal with the problem that got him put out of class.
These four questions are four questions that used to be asked (MALE STUDENT) You ain't a teacher though.
You ain't teaching nothing.
(FEMALE STUDENT) Shutup.
by college professors at most of your black schools.
They would sit you down and ask you, "Who are you?"
Which is a hard question if you don't know who you are.
I am Tiara M. Parker.
I am candid and comical.
I am an intelligent African American woman who has wonderful interpersonal skills.
I am a leader and a scholar.
A 17 year old girl living in a world of violence and fake friends.
A smart intelligent young lady, someone who is going to be somebody one day.
I'm a black, intelligent, out going, independent, outspoken young lady.
I might not be a straight A student, but I have a bright future.
I'm just me, a star.
I'm essential to the world, I am the hope of my family, I am the new generation, I am not the norm.
When I'm in a room I look the same, until I open my mouth and extraordinary flows out.
Why are you on this earth?
I am a special girl, my mom knew I was going to be something in life, she knew I was going to grow up being a bright seed.
I'm going far away from where I came from.
I'm going to college, then to Miami to see the beautiful palm trees and the wonderful people enjoying life.
(basketball dribbling) (BARNES) Come on, come on let's go!
Pick it up man, we got to get ready, man Monday is the game.
Hey Rufus, you got to get off the phone man.
Alright, you got to get off the phone man.
(MINOR) The kids came to us the first year in the building and they said, "I want a cheerleading squad.
I want a basketball and football team."
And we listened.
And once we got the team, I think the kids were faced with the reality of oh, I've got to keep my grades up.
And oh, you have to practice to win?
I got to stop smoking weed?
Everybody come her man.
Give me the basketballs.
You can learn good life skills on this basketball court and in these classrooms.
On this basketball court, you're going to learn how to work with others to complete a goal and win.
(whistle) Let's go.
Y'all gotta start getting mad when you're running because somebody else don't care.
It's different when you miss because you're trying your best.
All right line up... Come on Rufus.
Throw it up there.
Rebound.
Go Ahead.
Jump.
(whistle) Throw it up there and jump man.
(RUFUS) I did.
(BARNES) No, I need you to jump.
(RUFUS) I have actually had the mindset of a regular teenager just wanting to get into everything; learning new things, experiencing new things.
Um peer pressure, getting into trouble, being mischievous, all that.
Alright, line up Rufus.
Get ready.
(whistle) Eight seconds.
Eight seconds or you go again.
If you run fast, it ain't no problem.
(PLAYER) Run Rufus man.
Alright.
Line up.
Ready?
You ready?
Alright man, come on let's go.
I tried man, come on.
Y'all shoot around man.
(BARNES) You can go ahead home man.
(RUFUS) What you mean?
You can go ahead home man.
I don't need you here no more.
This is for basketball.
You can go ahead home.
Put your clothes on.
Go ahead home man.
Alright?
I can't play these games with you.
Come on.
(RUFUS) I had a wake-up call.
You know.
Kind of just a self check, you know, just sitting around, just wow, where will I be in about 20 years?
I just don't want to grow up and be that guy whose always saying, what if?
(BARNES) Now that basket, that first basket there... (BARNES) What y'all think I should do with Rufus man?
Because obviously he wants to be back on the team, (PLAYER) Keep him man.
But I think what y'all could do with Rufus, right?
Y'all got to help Rufus.
Alright?
When Rufus do something stupid, y'all can't laugh and support it.
Alright?
Y'all gotta keep Rufus on track.
You know Rufus had a tragedy in his life.
Rufus was getting prepared and unfortunately, his mother has passed.
So he needs all of y'all, okay to support him.
Right?
If you gonna be on this team or you on this team we gonna stick together, man.
Alright?
(TEAM) One, two, three.
Team!
(BARNES) Alright, thank you.
See you tomorrow Mr.Rufus.
We gonna try again.
(cartoons on TV) (MINOR) It's hard to see any student leave.
Right?
The absolutely sweet ones like Raven that we have worked with and seeing her grow academically and seeing her go through lots of different life changes to the ones that cuss us out on the way out the door.
It's always hard to see them go because we always feel like we can help.
(QUAN) Love you.
Have fun at school today.
(QUAN) I love you.
(RAVEN) Love you too.
(FAMILY HEALTH COUNSELOR) It's hard to say goodbye.
You okay?
Remember that you are strong and my favorite memory of you was when you were giving birth.
I couldn't believe how you just smiled through labor.
That was amazing.
Why didn't you tell us?
I dropped you off at home and you didn't tell me nothing or anything.
Take care of my baby, okay?
And take care of yourself .
(GIGGLES) The baby too big but she can still fit into a tutu.
Wait a minute that goes to the thing, remember?
(laughing) There's no place like home.
There's no place like home.
(baby crying) Can you hear us?
Great.
Hi Ms. Howard, it's Ms.Hart.
(MS. HOWARD How are you doing?)
I'm doing very well.
We just want to make sure we are helping in every way possible to make sure this is a smooth transition.
You said you guys are moving to, Longview?
(MS. HOWARD) Yes ma'm, we have two schools in mind.
One is Reed Academy, it's where, it's a school for mothers who have kids or for ones who are pregnant and about to have a baby .
(baby crying) Great.
Oh Serenity, hey, hey... (MS. HOWARD) Oh, I was wondering about her credit?
Oh yeah Raven is on track to so I think she should be fine .
(MS. HOWARD) Thank you so much.
(HART) Not a problem.
Thank you Ms. Howard.
So how are you feeling sweety?
(RAVEN) Okay.
It's a loaded question.
You okay?
(baby crying) Oh Serenity stop crying baby.
Do you have any more questions for us?
(RAVEN) No.
(baby cooing) (HART) Such a happy little baby.
We're ready to go.
(MALE COUNSELOR) Alright.
7.5 days in school out of 64.
19 days out of 99.
40 days out of 105 .
♫ (knocking) ♫ (WITHERSPOON) Kid lives with grandma.
Grandma acts like she don't know nothing but the kid lives there.
She's had truancy issues in the past with her own children.
okay, whatever, do what you do.
It was kind of disheartening.
♫ Hello I'm Laquisha Witherspoon.
I'm with Washington Metropolitan High School.
I wanted to talk you about Danielle.
She's missed a lot of days from school.
(MS. BAKER) I just don't know what to do with her.
Out of all my kids this is the only one, not trying to do anything.
(WITHERSPOON) Do you have any idea what's going on with her?
(MS. BAKER) I don't even know where she be going.
(WITHERSPOON) Right.
Because when she get here in the evening, I'm already gone to work.
You know teenagers now... (WITHERSPOON) It's difficult.
(MS. BAKER) Yea, and I'm a single parent.
I just don't know where to go because I never been through this.
She'll never get out the ninth grade, this year because she done missed so many days.
(WITHERSPOON) Right.
Now these students just coming to school?
(laughs) At eleven o' clock .
(ASHFORD - PA) All seniors.
No one is moving at this time but seniors.
(MINOR) So I need your attention.
You're late come on.
My attitude right now is not bubbly and happy and I don't have any jokes for you, right?
Partially because this is really, really serious.
On October 12th, we gave you guys a mock SAT, and I didn't want to give you the scores back.
So that's how much work we have to do, right?
If I thought that I could hand you your scores and you would say "Oh man I only need to take this once or twice more and I'll be in good shape", then I would have done that, but that's not where we are in regards to our scores.
I cannot stress to you how important this test is.
When it's time to apply for college, they look at this number.
They look at the score that you get on your SATs .
And it's not a game.
If I had to look at your college application, and I had to look at somebody else's who had a higher score, I wouldn't pick you.
Tanishia Williams Minor would pick you because I love you and I know how much potential you have and I know how smart you are.
But at the end of the day if it's not on the paper, then the world won't know it.
I want you to work harder to do better.
(MINOR) We're having real live conversations about the skills that the kids have in an attempt to set them up for success.
I think that if you asked my 42 seniors, are you going to go to college?
They'd all say yes.
If you ask them, what colleges they were going to go to?
You would hear stuff like: Dartmouth, Stanford, Princeton, Yale because they know those names, but when it comes down to the skills that they have, we have those conversations.
You just told me about you wanted to go to Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley.
But I want you to make the choice of the school, not on the name but on the requirements.
Okay look at the GPA.
That doesn't make you think well maybe this is a reach school for me, since I have a 3.0.
And look at the, the SAT scores, what do you have?
After my tenth-grade year, I started being back in church more and more and more.
I talk to my youth pastor plenty of times, and he got me to realize that God's going to accept you for who you are.
I mean.
I'm gonna be me .
♫gospel♫ (RAVEN Q) There's a picture in my room, I have a dress on.
You can tell in my face, that child hates that dress.
I never liked wearing dresses, so my mother had an idea but when I first told my mother I was about twelve.
That's when I was like I don't care what nobody said I'm going to come out.
Back then it was not cool.
Everybody was like you gay, what?
Ewwww you like girls .
♫gospel♫ (Pastor performing baptism) I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.
(applause) My mother she's still not comfortable with me being that way, but she has accepeted that this is how I am.
This is what I'm going to be.
She said that she's going to love me no matter what, ♫Choir Singing "Winter Wonderland"♫ (WITHERSPOON) The holidays are really difficult for our students.
♫Choir Singing "Winter Wonderland"♫ They're not joyous times for them.
Most of them are struggling just to get by.
(applause) (KROHN) Thank you, happy holidays.
♫"We Wish You a Merry Christmas"♫ For a lot of our students we are their family.
So for them to be out of school for a week and a half is a week and a half of them without their support.
♫"We Wish You a Merry Christmas"♫ They don't have their teachers.
They don't have their friends.
They don't have the staff here.
♫"We Wish You a Merry Christmas"♫ Y'all have a good holidays!
(STUDENT) Bye see y'all later.
♫"We Wish Y a Merry Christmas"♫ (NEWS ANCHOR) Today DC Council Chair Kwame Brown is holding a public hearing to discuss his "Highly Effective Teacher's Incentive"legislation.
It would encourage effective teachers to work in high need public schools.
You can't improve our educational system without focusing on the lowest performing schools.
And once we start to make sure that our lowest performing schools are performing that does not take away from making sure that other schools continue to excel.
That's the best way out of poverty; that's the best way to make sure that our young folks are going to be successful when they grow up.
We've got a 1.1 billion dollar budget in DC Public Schools.
The real question is how are we making it a priority to focus on the areas that need it the most?
(PETERSON) Alexis, come here.
I know you heard me call you three or four times.
I really didn't, I was in the zone.
(PETERSON) Go to your class.
(girls laughing) Who is that out there?
Yeah!
(FEMALE STUDENT) Yeah.
What purpose do you have in playing your music out loud like that other than disrupting somebody in class?
I'm only playing with Alexis' headphones, they all loud.
Well you need some better headphones.
(PETERSO I try not to take it personal.
But it's personal sometimes because after a while it beats you down.
You deal with the same thing over and over and over, the same behaviors over and over and over.
(students fighting) You need to get whatever you gotta get off your chest because when you come back here tomorrow.
We cannot have a repeat of what happened.
Everybody got suspended for at least ten days.
And that's too much.
You already missing too many days of school.
Just for those ten days, you have put yourself behind everybody else in your class.
You got 2 days ISS.
(STUDENT Oh!)
Thursday and Friday.
Friday I'm... Thursday and Friday let's go.
You cigarettes in the building, in the public school.
(STUDENT) Why can't I?
Because it's a public school.
(STUDENT) And I can't smoke'em?
Man from what I'm hearing from everybody is that you smart.
I don't see how they can't see it.
They walk past street corners and they live in neighborhoods with black men or men period who are not doing well because of the choices they made.
They got friends who are doing things that are criminal.
They got friends who are dropping out of school left and right.
And I don't know what it is to make them not see that the bad choices they made in school are directly contributing to the bad situation that they're in right now.
♫ (cheerleaders cheering) (applause) Yeah Rufus!
(RUFUS) I love the whole feeling of just being a part of something together with other teammates.
(applaus They show you a lot of love on a team.
At the same time, you see the other side.
You have ups and downs, but you know when you get on the court though we're one.
(BARNES) Way to hustle Rufus!
Way to hustle Rufus!
(RUFUS) And even though our season didn't end the way we wanted it to, it kind of still did (buzzer) because we stayed together throughout the whole season.
I guess that's the biggest part about having a team, staying together.
(cheerleaders) (MINOR) It was something to see the boys actually transform because they had this competitive spirit and they all wanted to do well and they all put that uniform on game after game after game when they lost, but I think they started to really understand that stuff doesn't just happen for you.
You have to work hard.
You have to practice.
You have to show a level of dedication.
So it was great to have a basketball team.
But more importantly, it was great to see these kids get focused and dedicate their efforts to doing well (TEAM) Can we get our hands in?
Hands in!
Team on three, one two three!
Team!
(RUFUS) When I get off probation, this year, I don't intend to get back on it at all.
I don't intend to see myself in handcuffs and stay on that right path to success.
Well, my mother, she wants to move to Texas but I don't.
But I gotta go because I'm underage.
I guess my mother, she wanted to move close to family because she missed, you know, my family, and I just hope that I don't have to go through so much move, you know, with Serenity as when I get older.
I just hope that I can be in a stable home.
♫ I'm really going to miss Quan a lot.
But I think me moving will, like, help us grow.
We're going through a lot of things right now, us being parents, us, like, keeping the relationship with each other and financially, it's too much and it's a struggle for both of us.
But I just feel as though I'm taking Serenity from Quan.
And like, I don't want her to put no blame on me from taking her away from her dad and the rest of her family.
And I just wanted to graduate from DC Met with all my friends.
♫ I'm really going to miss Quan and his family, all my friends, and DC Met.
Like, that's the most, most thing I'm going to miss.
♫ (RAVEN Q) One of my friends, his name was Desmond he took this guy's iPhone and somebody came around his neighborhood and he was outside, and they shot him.
And they like kept on shooting him.
That was like my brother.
That was like my homie, my road dog anywhere he was at sometimes I was right there.
So that's what made me stop actually doing everything I was doing that's when I changed my life around.
And I remember before he died we were talking about how we were going to change our lives, how we were going to start doing our work in school and all that.
But he never got the chance to do it.
Like when I graduate it's like Desmond's graduating right with me.
So graduation day is going to be a big day for me.
What we going to shoot for?
Four or five acceptance letters?
(STUDENT) Yup, all of them going to accept me.
Okay alright.
(KWAME BROWN) tour five or six years ago.
You like that?
Yes I like that.
Alright let's see if we can get you some money too.
How's that?
That sounds good.
That's even better, right?
(KWAME BROWN) I thought that every child should have the same quality access that I had and where I didn't graduate at the top or at the middle.
I graduated at the bottom.
And I was sitting around a friend's house.
The friend's mom asked me to go to this thing for a college.
So three, four of us, we actually went.
We sat down and we listened to this college and we left.
And that college was the only college that accepted me called Talladega College of Alabama.
I didn't know where Talladega was on the map, but that's where I ended up going to school.
And when I became a Council member, I decided that I'm going to give every child an opportunity to be exposed to a college and to be able to go to college.
Let me say this, this is the 5th group that we brought down here and they know when DC walks in that DC is going to come in right.
And they excited.
A lot of colleges are excited to see the students from the District of Columbia come down.
So we're going to go to the auditorium, all right, you ready?
You ready?
Alright lets go .
(KWAME BROWN) There's about 30 or 40 colleges they come and they interview our students on the spot.
Many students never filled out a college application in their life.
And it's the most rewarding experience 'cause these aren't the kids at the top.
These aren't the kids in the middle.
These are the kids at the bottom.
And many of them are the first time anyone in their family's ever gone to college.
Our sociology, social work program is an accredited degree.
Yes our student to teacher ratio is 11 to 1.
I wanted to get an application.
Okay, do you have your transcript?
Yes, and I have my SAT and ACT.
I can wait on the ACT &SAT if I can keep the transcript.
If I can keep the transcript, I'm going take this and you go ahead and start working on that.
(RAVEN Q) Okay.
Alright.
We start evaluating at an 850 or we start evaluating at a 17 for the ACT.
Right now, you're just slightly below where we need you to be on the ACT.
You got your information about Lincoln?
I had already applied here and they said that my scores were not good enough.
Oh really?
She said everything else was good, but I would have to take the SAT and ACT over.
(KWAME BROWN) It's just not about taking the SAT.
It's just not about what their GPA was.
Raven, she had to tell her story.
And colleges, they start to understand that this young lady could be successful if she had a chance.
If I have Ms. Quattlebaum?
That's me right here.
Ring that bell.
(bell rings) Yeah Raven!
Congratulations, you have been accepted to Bennett College in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Congratulations!
Thank you.
Ah!
It's that feeling.
I doubted myself, what?
You see how God working?
He's working in here.
It's hot in here.
♫ (KWAME BROWN) Hey guys.
Hey, hey.
(MAUREEN) Hello.
(KWAME BROWN) Hey Maureen how you doing?
(MAUREEN) Hey good to see you.
(KWAME BROWN) You doing all right?
(MAUREEN) Thanks for coming in.
(KWAME BROWN) Even with all the adversities that Raven has overcome, she was prepared when the opportunity knocked at the door.
That she was able to walk through it.
(NEWS ANCHOR) I'll tell you it was a life changing day for some high school students in DC, a big group rode down to North Carolina, how did you even prepare for it and how did that preparation help you?
First having my transcripts and also my SAT and ACT scores because without that we wouldn't even be able to get accepted to a college.
(MINOR) In life, there are all kinds of people who go through all kinds of stuff every day.
Our kids are just younger.
It's incumbent upon us to give them the skills to navigate successfully through that and to not lose focus on their own futures.
I believe that all of our kids have it in them to make these decisions, but it's hard work, and sometimes it just takes longer.
They're like flowers.
They blossom at different times.
(ANNOUNCER) Stayed tuned for scenes from the next episode of 180 Days.
Next time on 180 Days In Washington D.C. test scores account for 50% of a teacher's performance, more than in any other urban school district in the country.
(MINOR) There are a number of things that can happen if CASS scores don't show success.
The Chancellor could make a decision to make some staffing changes in the building.
The Chancellor can decide to step in and take more control.
(RUFUS) That's some bull (bleep) Anderson.
I got to go through all the bull (bleep) all over again, you already know.
I got to the point that I wanted to (bleep) some (bleep) up.
That's why I had to leave out.
(TEACHER) You can't tell me they're putting children first.
It's not about data, it's not about a test score, that's a bunch of crap.
So if you not doing what you need to do, you go.
I am not displeased with the way that I ran the ship.
I believe that I did it with integrity.
And I believe that at the end of the day it was always about the kids.
Can y'all believe it's here?
(RAVEN Q) And to my fe my question is to you, are you going to play this game called life or get played in it?
I present to you the inaugural class of the Washington Metropolitan High School.
(cheers and applause) ♫