The Tribune (Editorial, Oct. 19) wisely asks of the Chicago school board “Why the rush on revising magnets?”
Shouldn’t any major revision to the one successful element of an otherwise dismal school system offer many clear-cut and easily explainable educational benefits? Actually, the set-aside that has been proposed to assure places in magnet schools for neighborhood children cannot be defended as serving any educational benefit whatsoever.
A magnet school is not a neighborhood school. The program has been successful, in part, because magnet schools are not neighborhood schools. Seen from that perspective, the proposed set-aside is an attempt against all reason to force magnet schools to become neighborhood schools.
The proposal is completely wrong-headed and must be voted down. Existing magnet schools should be expanded. More magnet schools should be created. The magnet schools aren’t broken; don’t “fix” them.
