Great post on Fall River's high school

Today in the Herald Times:

They're fighting a war up there on top of the hill. Fall River is one of the poorest cities in the state, with a low level of education. We are at the center of the heroin epidemic. Homeless kids go to that high school, kids who have watched a parent overdose, maybe even die. 

That's a lot of baggage to carry into algebra class. 

Dropout and graduation rate numbers fluctuate. Durfee's numbers aren't among the best in the state, and they're not what we want to see, but if the school can improve its numbers, it means the battle isn't lost, that improvement can be made and is being made.

Do go read the whole thing. It's a great piece, and it isn't only true of Fall River.

And speaking of which: congratulations to the Worcester Public Schools, which have the highest four year graduation rate--at 81.9%--of any of the large urban districts in the state. A year later, that jumps to 84.4%, with another 1.1% having received their GED. You can find Worcester's full graduation report here.