Miami-Dade County Public Schools
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Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) is a public school district serving Miami-Dade County, Florida. It is the largest school district in Florida and the fourth largest in the United States, with a student enrollment of 414,128 (as of February 15, 2007). The district is also the largest minority public school system in the country, with 60% of its students being of Hispanic origin, 28% African American, and less than 3% non-white of other minorities.[1] M-DCPS is also one of a few public school districts in the United States to offer optional International Studies Programs and bilingual education.
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[edit] History
[edit] Beginnings
The first meeting of school board, known then simply as the Dade County school board, took place in June of 1885, eleven years before the city of Miami was created. At the time of this first school board meeting, Dade County encompassed nearly the entire southern part of Florida, from Lake Okeechobee south towards the Florida Keys; its population was reported as being only 400, however, this number probably did not include its native populations.
The county's first school opened in the fall of 1885 in the town of Lake Worth, Florida, located in what is now Palm Beach County. A year or two later, the first public school within Dade County's current boundaries opened in a palmetto-thatched log house near Dinner Key in Coconut Grove. The school's student enrollment on the first day was only ten.
In 1893 the unincorporated hamlet of Miami was created, and with it came its second school, segregated as per Jim Crow Laws for its black population. The school was also located in present-day Coconut Grove. Between 1885 and the arrival of the railroad in 1896, the school board created and ran a total of fifteen different schools around Southern Florida.
[edit] 1900s - 1930s
The turn of the century launched Miami and its school system into decades of growth. By 1924, the county lines had shifted with the creation of Broward, Palm Beach, Lee, and Hendry counties. Despite losing jurisdiction over many of its schools in just twenty years, the school system still boasted thirty-three separate schools and a student population of nearly 5,000.
Following the 1926 Miami Hurricane, many schools were destroyed. The hurricane ended the 1920s land boom in Miami, and ushered in the great depression to the area long before the actual market crash occurred in 1929. The crash forced many more schools not destroyed by the hurricane to be closed. Beginning in 1930 the school board faced its first overcrowding and funding problems.
In 1939, the original Booker T. Washington Senior High School building opened in what is now the Overtown district. It was the only secondary black high school at the time in South Florida, having students from as far as Broward and Palm Beach counties attending the facilities.
[edit] 1940s-1970s
World War II brought another population boom for Miami. Between 1945 and 1975, sixteen high schools, thirty middle schools, and forty-five grade schools were opened. Miami Senior High, the school district's first secondary school, received a new, larger campus, and Miami Edison Senior High School, the district's second all black secondary school, was expanded.
On the morning of September 7, 1959, twenty-five African-American students stepped onto the grounds of Orchard Villa Elementary and Air Base Elementary schools officially ending segregation within the school system. By the end of the academic year, nearly half the schools in the county had been desegregated when parents were given the option of enrolling their children in any school in the district, providing the child would have the proper transportation. Despite this law, many schools in Dade County did not become fully integrated until the late 1960s.
In 1961 the school system started a "Spanish for Spanish" program. With help from the Ford Foundation, they modified the program into a full bilingual education curriculum, with a pilot program at Coral Way Elementary School. The program was successful and later paved the way for the Bilingual Education Act of 1968.
In 1975, school boundaries were created, forcing students to attend the schools located within their area. This law allowed for any student to attend the school located closest to them, regardless of race or ethnicity.
[edit] 1980s - 2000s
Beginning in 1962, Dade County schools began to receive its first influx of Hispanic students, mainly from Cuba. This event was very significant in shaping the school system to what it is today. Throughout the 1980s, the school district received merits for expertly assimilating wave after wave of new immigrants, particularly children from Nicaragua and Haiti, and from Cuba's Mariel Boatlift. It was also highly regarded for its handling in displacing students after the 1982 Miami riot, in which 14 schools were badly damaged due to fire and vandalism.
In 1986, the district started the first International Studies Magnet Program at Sunset Elementary School, one of the first International Studies Program in the U.S., focusing on implementing a challenging curriculum in Spanish, French, and German, in addition to English. The challenging world language curriculum is fully accredited by the Governments of Spain, France, and Germany, and is implemented through comprehensive agreements between the Ministries of Education of the partner countries and Miami-Dade County Public Schools. The district, through the International Studies Magnet Program at Sunset Elementary School, started to produce bicultural, bilingual and biliterate students in English and a choice of Spanish, French, or German.
Following Hurricane Andrew in 1992, Dade County was commended for its quick action at rebuilding and reopening schools. Most schools had reopened within two weeks of the storm, and students that attended schools that had been completely destroyed were quickly displaced with free and efficient bus transportation. The district also used funding from the disaster to redo its entire curriculum, adding music education to elementary schools, and foreign language programs to middle schools. It also opened fully funded magnet schools such as Coral Reef High School and Southwood Middle School which take in students from all over the county based on school performance (some schools are partial magnets, which also take in children from surrounding neighborhoods, while some are full magnets that only take in children based on merit). The district also re-opened Coral Way Elementary as its first bilingual school, which teaches its curriculum in both English and Spanish.
In 1996, the school board revamped itself under pressure to boost minority representation, expanding from seven to nine members, all elected for the first time from single member districts. Due to this, the number of black members doubled, and the number of Hispanic members quadrupled. The school board also began a new program to create K-8 Centers as a way of relieving overcrowding in middle schools.
In 1997 Dade County formally changed its name to Miami-Dade County, and the school board subsequently changed its name as well.
The early 2000's was characterized by the widespread adoption of information technology for everyday use by classroom teachers, students, and parents. One noteworthy process was the phased introduction of the Excelsior Software's Electronic Gradebook, Riverdeep software, BrainPOP, and FCAT Explorer.
[edit] Overcrowding and corruption
School populations had flourished throughout most of the 1960s and 70s, but in the late 70s, a teacher walk-out forced a sudden drop in school population; ending rampant overcrowding, and forcing the closing of 11 schools. The sudden drop didn't last very long, as students that had left the school system for private schools began to return by the mid 1980s.
Beginning in the late 1990s and early 2000s, school population became a problem yet again, with schools such as G. Holmes Braddock High School, Barbara Goleman High School, and Miami Springs High School reaching student populations of over 4,500. The sudden influx in student population has forced the school system to build and open nearly 40 new schools in newly incorporated areas - an ongoing project today. Controversy arose in 1998 when the school board voted to name one of the new high schools, Dr. Michael Krop High School, for sitting school board member Michael Krop.
In the early 2000s, much corruption amongst school board members, school principals, and teachers was discovered. In 2003, the head of the district's teacher's union was arrested for having embezzled union funds, and that same year many teachers were discovered to have been on the state's sexual predator list. Problems regarding school safety began to surface when a sudden spike in urban and gang-related shootings occurred. More problems continued in 2004 when 45 schools were found to contain mold and asbestos in the walls. The problem was so harsh at some schools, that it forced the closing of two elementary schools for an entire school year, and another six schools were partially closed while crews cleaned up and replaced insulation in walls and roofs.
In October 2001, Deputy Superintendent Henry Fraind retired under pressure after it was discovered that a clique of longtime administrators and powerful outsiders exploited the district's vast resources.[2] Fraind got his Ph.D. from Pacific Western University in 1982, a noted diploma mill.[2]
In 2005 it was discovered that hundreds of teachers working in Miami-Dade County had acquired false degrees from a Californian school that did not exist. The state education board was forced to step in, and new measures for hiring teachers were implemented statewide.
Beginning in the fall of 2004, the school year was started three weeks earlier in order to synchronize the school district with the rest of the state. Until this point, Miami-Dade County Schools was the only district whose students began school the last week of August rather than the first. This measure was also implemented to allow schools more time to ready themselves for the state's rigorous FCAT exam.
In accordance with measures set forth by the State, schools that were graded as a D or F on the FCAT the previous academic year were put on an academic probation by the school board, giving the administration three years to bring the school's grade up to a C or higher before taking drastic measures, such as firing all teachers and administrators or removing funding for extracurricular activities. As a result of the new grade requirements, one school was forced to shut down in the fall of 2005 due to its extremely low FCAT results[citation needed].
[edit] District enrollment breakdown
(as of December 19, 2006)
- Active Students: 345,947
- Pre-K Students: 6,243
- Part-Time Students: 669
- Current Adult/Vocational Students: 28,988
- Co-Enrolled High School: 7,126
[edit] School Board members
- Superintendent: Rudolph F. Crew, Ed. D
- Mr. Agustin J. Barrera(Chairman) - District 6
- Dr. Martin Karp (Vice Chairman) - District 3
- Ms. Perla Tabares Hantman - District 4
- Dr. Robert B. Ingram - District 1
- Dr. Solomon C. Stinson - District 2
- Mr. Renier Diaz de la Portilla - District 5
- Ms. Ana Rivas Logan - District 7
- Dr. Marta Pérez - District 8
- Ms. Evelyn Langlieb Greer - District 9
[edit] Schools
The district covers a total of 392 institutions, including:
- 195 elementary schools
- 54 middle schools
- 10 K-8 Centers
- 31 high school|High Schools
- 50 charter schools
- 23 vocational school|adult/vocational school
- 5 Magnet school|magnet high schools
- 18 Alternative schools
- 5 Special education|Specialized Centers
[edit] Elementary schools
There are 195 elementary schools at M-DCPS that normally run from Pre-K to 5th or 6th grade.
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[edit] Middle schools
There are 54 middle schools serving the M-DCPS that run from grades 6-8 with noted exceptions.
- Allapattah Middle School
- Arvida Middle School
- Brownsville Middle School
- Campbell Drive Middle School
- Carol City Middle School
- Centennial Middle School
- Charles R. Drew Middle School
- Citrus Grove Middle School
- Cutler Ridge Middle School
- Doral Middle School
- George Washington Carver Middle School
- Glades Middle School
- Hammocks Middle School
- Henry H. Filer
- Herbert A. Ammons Middle School
- Hialeah Middle School
- Highland Oaks Middle School
- Homestead Middle School
- Horace Mann Middle School - Grades 6-9
- Howard A. Doolin
- Howard D. McMillan
- John F. Kennedy Middle School
- Jose de Diego Middle School
- Jose Marti Middle School
- Kinloch Park Middle School
- Lake Stevens Middle School
- Lamar Louise Curry Middle School
- Lawton Chiles Middle School
- Madison Middle School
- Mays Middle School
- Miami Edison Middle School
- Miami Lakes Middle School
- Miami Springs Middle School
- Nautilus Middle School - Grades 7 and 8 only
- Norland Middle School
- North Dade Middle School
- North Miami Middle School
- Palm Springs Middle School
- Palmetto Middle School
- Parkway Middle School
- Paul W. Bell Middle School
- Ponce de Leon Middle School
- Redland Middle School
- Richmond Heights Middle School
- Riviera Middle School
- Rockway Middle School
- Ruben Dario Middle School
- Shenandoah Middle School
- South Miami Middle School
- Southwood Middle School
- Thomas Jefferson Middle School - Grades 7-9
- W.R. Thomas Middle School
- West Miami Middle School
- Westview Middle School
[edit] K-8 Centers
There are ten Kindergarten-to-8th grade (K-8) Centers that are generally setup to serve communities with limited building space for two separate campuses. They are run as both an elementary and middle school out of the same campus with joint administration, staff, and schedules. Middle school-aged students generally have separate buildings dedicated to them.
- Bob Graham Educational Center
- Coral Way K-8 Center - bilingual school
- David Lawrence Jr. K-8 Center
- Everglades K-8 Center - gifted school
- Jane Roberts K-8 Center
- Kenwood K-8 Center
- Key Biscayne K-8 Center
- Leisure City K-8 Center
- Linda Lentin K-8 Center
- M.A. Milam K-8 Center
- Ruth K. Broad/Bay Harbor K-8 Center (Opening in the 2008-2008 school year)
[edit] High schools
There are 31 high schools serving the M-DCPS that run from grades 9-12. Following each name is the school's mascot:
- American High School - Patriots
- Barbara Goleman High School - Gators
- Booker T. Washington High School - Tornados
- Coral Gables High School - Cavaliers
- Dr. Michael M. Krop High School - Lightning
- Felix Varela High School - Vipers
- G. Holmes Braddock High School - Bulldogs
- Hialeah High School - Thoroughbreds
- Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School - Trojans
- Homestead High School - Broncos
- John A. Ferguson High School - Falcons
- Miami Beach High School - Hi-Tides
- Miami Carol City High School - Chiefs
- Miami Central High School - Rockets
- Miami Coral Park High School - Rams
- Miami Edison High School - Raiders
- Miami Jackson High School - Generals
- Miami Killian High School - Cougars
- Miami Norland High School - Vikings
- Miami Northwestern High School - Bulls
- Miami Palmetto High School - Panthers
- Miami High School - Stingrays
- Miami Southridge High School - Spartans
- Miami Springs High School - Hawks
- Miami Sunset High School - Knights
- North Miami High School - Pioneers/Swamp Dogs
- North Miami Beach High School - Chargers
- Robert Morgan Educational Center - Pirates
- Ronald W. Reagan/Doral High School - Bison
- South Dade High School - Buccaneers
- South Miami High School - Cobras
- Southwest Miami Senior High School - Eagles
[edit] Magnet high schools
There are eight (8) Magnet High Schools at M-DCPS that run from grade 9-12 (excluding the School for Advanced Studies which only accepts students in their 11th and 12th grade years) but do not take in students from their area. Instead, students must apply and test into these schools which offer a specific course of study.
- Coral Reef High School - Barracudas
- Design and Architecture High School - Architecture, Design (Industrial, Fashion, Entertainment Technology, Graphic Design), Fine Arts - Phantoms
- MAST Academy (Maritime and Science Technology) High School - Marine/Science - Makos
- Miami Lakes Educational Center - Technical School - Jaguars
- New World School of the Arts - Music, Visual Arts, Dance, and Theater - Fightin' Pigeons
- Robert Morgan Educational Center - Pirates
- School for Advanced Studies - Advanced Education - Tigers
- William H Turner Technical High School - Technical School - Eagles
[edit] Adult/Vocational Centers
There are 23 Adult/Vocational Centers, more commonly referred to as night schools that are set up for adults to earn their G.E.D, or for students older than the age of 16 to make-up classes they have failed and have no slots for in their daytime schedules. Some night schools also offer vocational programs and free English classes for non-native speakers. They are generally housed at high school campuses with classes taking place in the evening hours.
- American High School Adult Center
- Coral Gables High School Adult Center
- D.A. Dorsey Educational Center
- English Center
- George T. Baker Aviation
- Hialeah High School Adult Center
- Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High School Adult Center
- Lindsey Hopkins Technology Center
- Miami Beach High School Adult Center
- Miami Coral Park High School Adult Center
- Miami Jackson High School Adult Center
- Miami Lakes Adult Education Center
- Miami Palmetto High School Adult Education Center
- Miami Senior High School Adult Education Center
- Miami Springs Senior High School Adult Education Center
- Miami Sunset High School Adult Center
- North Miami High School Adult Center
- Robert Morgan Vocational Technical Institute
- South Dade High School Adult Center
- South Dade High School Skills Center
- Southwest High School Adult Center
- Turner Technical High School Adult Center
- Virtual Adult Center - Online School
[edit] Charter schools
There are 50 charter schools that are set up as publicly funded, but are privately operated. Currently, there are 19,000 students enrolled in charter schools in the county. Students that attend charter schools do not need to pass an examination before being considered for a spot at the school. However, students must maintain specific grades and behavioral standards to maintain their spots at the school.
- Academy of Arts & Minds (Senior High School)
- Archimedean Academy (Elementary)
- Archimedean Middle Conservatory (Middle)
- ASPIRA Eugenio Maria de Hostos Youth Leadership (Middle)
- ASPIRA South Youth Leadership Charter School (Middle)
- ASPIRA Youth Leadership Charter School (Middle)
- Aventura City of Excellence Charter School (K-8 Center)
- Balere Language Academy (K-8 Center)
- Coral Reef Montessori Academy Charter School (K-8 Center)
- Doctors Charter School of Miami Shores (Middle/Senior)
- Doral Academy (Elementary)
- Doral Academy High School (Senior High School)
- Doral Academy Charter Middle School (Middle)
- Doral Performing Arts & Entertainment Academy (Senior High School)
- Downtown Miami Charter School (Elementary)
- Early Beginnings Academy – Civic Center (Elementary)
- Early Beginnings Academy – North Shore (Elementary)
- Florida International Academy (Middle)
- International Studies Charter High School (Senior High School)
- Keys Gate Charter School (K-8 Center)
- Lawrence Academy (Miami)|Lawrence Academy (Middle)
- Liberty City Charter School (K-8 Center)
- Life Skills Center Miami-Dade County (Senior High School)
- Mater Academy East Charter School (Elementary)
- Mater Academy (Elementary)
- Mater Academy Charter Middle School (Middle)
- Mater Academy Charter High School (Senior High School)
- Mater East Academy Middle School (Middle)
- Mater Performing Arts & Entertainment Academy (Senior High School)
- Miami Children’s Museum Charter School (Elementary)
- Miami Community Charter School (Elementary)
- Oxford Academy of Miami (Elementary)
- Pinecrest Academy Charter Middle School (Middle)
- Pinecrest Preparatory Academy (Elementary)
- Renaissance Elementary Charter School (Elementary)
- Renaissance Middle Charter School (Middle)
- Rosa Parks Charter School/Florida City (K-8 Center)
- Sandor Wiener School of Opportunity (Elementary)
- Sandor Wiener School of Opportunity, South (Elementary)
- School for Integrated Academics & Technologies (SIATech) (Senior High School)
- Somerset Academy (Elementary)
- Somerset Academy Charter High School (Senior High School)
- Somerset Academy Charter Middle School (Middle)
- Spiral Tech Elementary Charter School (Elementary)
- Spirit City Academy (Middle)
- Sunshine Academy (K-8 Center)
- The Charter School at Waterstone (K-8 Center)
- Theodore R. and Thelma A. Gibson Charter School (K-8 Center)
- Transitional Learning Academy (Middle/Senior)
- Youth Co-Op Charter School (K-8 Center)
[edit] Alternative schools
Alternative schools are set up for as a last resort for students that constantly have behavioral or extreme academic problems. Also, any child released from Youth detention center|juvenile hall must attend an alternative school until he or she is deemed ready to return to their area school. There are 16 schools which serves the district.
- Academy for Community Education
- Alternative Outreach Program
- C.O.P.E. North Alternative Education
- Corporate Academy North
- Corporate Academy South
- D.A. Dorsey Educational Center
- Dorothy Wallace Educational Center
- Headstart Transition Center
- Jann Mann Opportunity Education
- JRE Lee Educational Center
- Juvenile Justice Center - Juvenile Hall's Education System
- Miami Douglas MacArthur North
- Miami Douglas MacArthur South
- School for Applied Technology
- TAP Program
- The 500 Role Model Academy
[edit] Specialized Centers
Specialized Centers are set-up for students that have extreme mental or learning disabilities which would impair them from attending classes with students that do not have such disabilities. It is becoming more and more common for regular schools to set-up their own specialized education (Special Ed) programs. There are five centers serving the district.
- Instructional Systemwide Center - Administrative office that runs the individual school programs.
- Merrick Education Center
- Neva King Cooper Education Center
- Robert Rennick Education Center
- Ruth Owens Krusé Education Center
[edit] Broadcasting
M-DCPS also owns and operates WLRN-TV (Channel 17), a PBS member television station, and WLRN-FM (91.3 FM), an NPR member radio station.
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/fl/district_profile/13
- ^ a b Savage, Charles. (April 12, 2002) Miami Herald Board's "big happy family" is run on mutual favors. Front section, page 1A.
[edit] See also
- Broward School District
- Education
- Education in the United States
- Miami-Dade County
- school district
- Miami, Florida
[edit] External links
- Miami-Dade County Public Schools official website
- School zoning map (works only with Internet Explorer)
Categories: Articles lacking sources from March 2007 | All articles lacking sources | Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | Miami-Dade County Public Schools | WikiProject Miami articles | School districts in Florida | Miami-Dade County, Florida
