Rejecting transfers shortchanges students

Since the St. Louis Public Schools lost accreditation in 2007, the region's superintendents have been busy trying to figure out how to protect themselves from a state law that says failing school districts 'shall pay the tuition of and provide transportation ... for each pupil resident therein who attends an accredited school in another district of the same or an adjoining county." This 1993 law was meant to prevent families from being trapped in a failing school district.

Since 2007, hundreds of families have attempted to register in a neighboring district. They were rejected, a clear violation of the law. Two families filed suit and won, but districts still refuse to accept students from unaccredited districts.

The Clayton School District commissioned a poll that claims that more than 15,000 children from St. Louis city would seek to transfer. Some of the grown-ups — who should be protecting our kids, not working against them — have spent five years trying to keep St. Louis city children from exercising their rights under this law. Now they are using this poll to create fear and claim that the law should be abandoned because too many children want to transfer.

I suggest we turn the conversation away from what is good for adults and toward what is best for Missouri's students. If 15,000 students want to transfer, that means more than 25 percent of the children in St. Louis want a better education, are entitled to a better education and illegally are kept from a better education.

If those students are forced to enroll in or stay in the failing district, more than 50 percent won't be reading at grade level by third grade, and roughly 40 percent won't graduate. And most will fall farther and farther behind in math and science.

The 15,000 children who want to transfer can't wait for their failing district to figure out how to educate them. School district leaders should do everything in their power to provide these students a great education today.

This region's superintendents and school boards should be looking at the high number of students who want to transfer, and the consequences to the children if they don't, and take it upon themselves to figure out a way to enforce the law so that no one gets hurt. It can be done, but it will take the collective will of smart, compassionate people put in charge of educating the region's children.

Kate Casas • St. Louis

State Director, Children's Education Alliance of Missouri

Heightened risk

As the article "Jewish groups favored for aid" (Jan. 2), regarding the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, states, the Jewish Federation of St. Louis and the Jewish Federations of North America take seriously the security threats to our community and will continue to help nonprofits deemed to be at risk to take appropriate steps to protect citizens from harm.

Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, numerous terrorist plots and attacks perpetrated at home and abroad demonstrate that preparedness is needed to safeguard our institutions. The heightened risk is further illustrated in the FBI's annual hate crimes report, which shows that over the past decade, the vast majority of religious-based biased/hate crimes (approximately 70 percent) were perpetrated against the Jewish community.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security recognizes that to best protect our nation, it is essential to facilitate preparedness planning and cooperation between national, state and local law enforcement entities and the community institutions that are most at risk. As a result, in 2004 Congress and the DHS created the Nonprofit Security Grant Program. Grants are reviewed by state and federal counter-terrorism experts, and the secretary of Homeland Security determines the final allocations based on the risk assessments. The grants provide for enhanced surveillance, detection, physical hardening, preparedness training, and cooperation with law enforcement and first responders.

DHS, the FBI and the public record have made clear that nonprofits in general, and Jewish communal institutions in particular, remain high-value civilian targets of international and homegrown terrorists.

Barry Rosenberg • St. Louis

President and CEO, Jewish Federation of St. Louis

Jerry Silverman • New York City

President and CEO, The Jewish Federations of North America

Names of note

Who can decide and write a column on "Obituaries of note in the St. Louis area in 2011"? What is an "obituary of note"? And how can anyone determine who is and will be recognized as such?

Someone could have been a good father, but would the paper know that? Would the paper know about a loving husband or a wonderful humanitarian who let no one know his or her good deeds?

Every life lost this year was a precious life to someone. It seems cold and inhumane to pick and choose who was worthy to be included in this list and who was not.

I was offended when I noticed this long list with, I'm sure, a lot of names left out.

I would not want to be the one who had to pick and chose the names to appear.

Greta Corkhill • Chesterfield

Venue of the year

As a lifelong St. Louisan, I am irritated and offended by Sarah Bryan Miller's choice of "venue of the year" in "11 classical music stories to remember from '1" (Jan. 1). It happens to be in her hometown, Kansas City. It is the $430 million Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. Even with 100 percent private financing, the building is a risk and a gamble that patrons will pack the concert halls for a symphony orchestra and opera company that Ms. Miller admits are far inferior to the St. Louis Symphony and Opera Theater of St. Louis. The facility will have to book touring ensembles. The costs of maintenance could be expensive.

But that is not the issue. The year-end arts review is not about Kansas City or the state of Missouri. It is about metropolitan St. Louis. The rechristened Peabody Opera House deserves to be venue of the year for many reasons, not the least of which is that the $80 million makeover has preserved the art deco landmark as an outstanding place to see and enjoy the performing arts.

Now, St. Louis not only has an alternative to the Fox Theatre, but it also can book more touring shows, concerts, visiting orchestras and perhaps some productions by Opera Theater of St. Louis. Already we are seeing a renaissance of downtown spurred by the Peabody. It beautifully complements the neighboring modern Scottrade Center and its stately facade overlooks Market Street and the Gateway Mall.

Michael R. Fixman • Creve Coeur

Moving forward in the black church

The black church has been a focal point in the community for years. It is our rock, our home and our comfort zone in a world of greed, hatred and evil. The church served as an institution for social change during slavery and after, including in the Jim Crow era, when blacks were prohibited from gaining any form of equality. Some of the greatest contributors to humanity emerged from black church.

Some black churches are in economically depressed, hopeless and violent communities across the country. Despite that, the church prospers. It seems the church's attitude is that those problems occur outside the church and are of no concern to the church.

Young people have walked away from the church. These people feel that the church has turned its back on social issues such as economic exploitation, racism and homophobia. The church used to be an advocate for the oppressed.

Did the victories from the Civil Rights movement mean the church could draw a line between it and the black working class? Churches continue to build up communities that are well-off, while the economic woes in the black community rise to new heights.

Despite my criticism of the church, I have the utmost respect for it. I was raised in the black church, but I think it must move past its arrogance, tear down its walls and do the work of Christ in areas that may be uncomfortable. It should listen to the concerns of the people and build a new relationship with the community.

The church can serve as an advocate for the voiceless, instead of the clergy speaking about it at Sunday-morning worship but doing nothing.

Returning to the days of old, when the church opened its doors and was a tool for social justice, will help members of the black church feel as if they have a stake in the community.

Grady Brown • St. Louis

Pipeline isn't worth risk

The struggle between President Barack Obama and Congress over the proposed 1,700-mile Keystone XL pipeline continues unabated as demonstrated in "Oil industry chief warns Obama on Canada pipeline" (Jan. 4). Congress has given the president two months to decide whether to approve the pipeline.

Some unions argue for approval based on the assumption that the pipeline will create many "good union" jobs. Environmentalists remain united in their commitment to protect the land, water and human health, urging Mr. Obama to deny the permit for the pipeline.

TransCanada, the pipeline builder, says it will do whatever is necessary to obtain pipeline approval. The company claims that it will pursue an alternative line through Canada to the West Coast if necessary. The accompanying ploy is that it then would ship the oil directly to China, implying that sending the oil to Texas refineries would ensure the oil remains in the United States. But the oil is destined for the world market, and the only sure things we will get out of it are increased pollution, more toxic waste and environmental disasters along the pipeline. And, regarding this route west, Canada has announced a one-year delay on pipe construction to the Canadian West Coast. One obstacles to construction involves constitutionally protected land usage treaties for indigenous Canadian peoples.

A civil engineer and former inspector for TransCanada who worked on the first Keystone pipeline said he witnessed the use of cheap steel and sub-par foundations, fudged safety tests and the placement of facilities in inappropriate spots. TransCanada discounts these problems and considers the 14 documented spills in the first year of the Keystone I as "not so bad."

The pipeline won't create the 20,000 jobs claimed by TransCanada. The University of Cornell Labor Institute puts the number at 4,600 temporary jobs and no more than 20 permanent jobs. When spills occur, jobs will be lost because of contamination of agricultural lands and water.

America would be better served economically to create good permanent jobs in renewable energy development and protecting our country from further environmental degradation.

Toni Vafi • Webster Groves

End sex-trafficking

The Super Bowl not only is one of the biggest sporting events of the year, but it also is one of the biggest human trafficking events. Tens of thousands of sex-trafficking victims are brought to the Super Bowl to meet the expanded demand for commercial sex surrounding this event. People can unite to stop this $9.5 billion business.

To end this modern-day slavery, Sr. Rosie Coughlin, a sister of St. Joseph from Tipton, Ind., gathered with concerned sisters, citizens and law enforcement officials in Indianapolis. They are contacting managers from 250 hotels in the Indianapolis and Terre Haute area and asking that they train their employees to recognize trafficking and stop it in their hotels. This summer, the Millennium Hotel, with the encouragement of the Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, became the first Missouri hotel to sign the End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking Code and provide training to their staff.

On Jan. 11, Nix Conference and Meeting Management, a St. Louis firm, becomes the first meeting planning company in the nation to sign the ECPAT-USA Meeting Planner's Code of Conduct.

I urge others to follow in the courageous steps of these citizens and companies.

Sister Patty Johnson • St. Louis

Executive Director, US Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph