Peter Brown showed that he’s not just an expert in the architectural arena. No, he’s also quite the expert when it comes to local school issues, as the Chron’s Bradley Olson recently posted on the Houston Politics blog:
Noting that he [Peter Brown] would soon present details of a plan to “restructure” Houston-area schools, he talked about HISD’s closure of Clinton Park Elementary School in 2005, calling the surrounding neighborhood “distressed.”
The closure “pulled the rug out from under” city efforts to revitalize the neighborhood, Brown said.
And then he added this:
“Now, by the way, that the neighborhood is turning more Hispanic, HISD has decided, well, maybe we better reopen Clinton Park Elementary School.”
Actually, HISD is not even considering reopening Clinton Park, nor has there been any discussion or board agenda items dealing with the matter, according to Norman Uhl, a department spokesman.
And the reason it was closed, he said, was because enrollment had dropped precipitously, down to less than 150 students in its last year of existence.
So there you go. With an absolutely firm grasp of the issues, Peter Brown demonstrates why he should run Houston AND all its schools.
It’s worth noting that none of the other candidates for mayor is interested in a mayoral takeover of local schools. Nor is Mayor White in favor of it.
