Grading Our Schools, Rochester, NY 1995
Partners:
Rochester Democrat andChronicle
WXXI Public Television
WOKR-TV (ABC)
Eight years after a highly touted school reform effort began, Rochester area residents still had concerns about education. “Grading our Schools” got hundreds of them participating – through polls, televised town meetings, focus groups and chat rooms – in appraising and redirecting the effort. The project also laid the groundwork for several subsequent civic journalism projects on education, violence and youth issues.
The partners surveyed 768 city and suburban residents about local schools and held two focus groups with poll respondents to discuss the results in more depth. The findings – that school reform efforts got a low C; that teachers were doing a good job but parents needed to do more; that students seemed to be graduating without the skills they needed – were published May 13, 1995, kicking off a series that would include 70 newspaper stories, five TV shows and four radio broadcasts.
Broadcast town meetings were held May 14 and 16, at two locations, where the partners also held mini-information fairs and signed up volunteers. About 200 people attended the meetings, more than a thousand responded by telephone to flash poll questions during the broadcasts and some 60 people took part in AOL chat rooms set up for the event.
As discussions continued, the partners followed up with “Upgrading our Schools,” seeking more student input. Public officials praised the project for promoting metropolitan solutions to regional problems and helping resolve a longstanding debate over the distribution of tax revenues.
Contacts:
Blair Claflin (former public affairs editor, D&C)
Legislative Editor
The Des Moines Register
715 Locust St.
Des Moines, IA 50304
Phone: (515) 284-8052
Gary Walker
VP of Television
WXXI-TV
280 State St – PO Box 30021
Rochester, NY 14603-3021
TEL: (585) 258-0241
FAX: (585) 258-0384
EMAIL: gwalker@wxxi.org
Elissa Marra
Director of National Productions
WXXI-TV
280 State Street
Rochester, NY 14614
TEL: (716) 258-0349
FAX: (716) 258-0384
EMAIL: emarra@wxxi.org