Education: The SEED School

September 5, 2010 5:00 PM

There's a school that's giving kids from an inner-city neighborhood that only graduates 33 percent of its high school students a shot at college they never had before. Byron Pitts reports on the SEED School.

Read Story: How the SEED School Is Changing Lives

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by jennirobbins November 20, 2010 11:17 PM EST: Coolkatz17 Go back and get an education. White kids were never "required" to integrate. It was the black kids who had to bus, walk, or be "escorted" by Federal Troops into white schools. I'm sure you were one of the rock throwing nasty spitting rednecks on the front lines during the forced busing days of the 50's and 60's in the south, so I'm sure thats where all of your ignorance and anger can be traced back to.

Verinica, you have a short memory, for YOU brought up the race card asking where were the white kids, and don't their parents work just as hard. Nobodys saying' Black kids are "owed" anything, but you ignorant rednecks keep harping on that. Yeah, every kid DESERVES a decent education, but don't kid yourself, it doesn't happen. As previous poster stated, why don't you vent at some of those wealthy white boarding schools, who more than likely wouldn't let the likes of your offspring in any quicker than they would black kids.; Reply to this comment


by Butter88 September 15, 2010 12:33 AM EDT: Someone please help me understand where all this anger is coming from?
You have kids who want a better life for themselves. And all some of you can talk about is what fair? I'm 60 years old and I can give you a long list of what and what isn't fair.
I don't recall hearing anything in this report that stated only black kids can attend.
I'm really not understanding where any of this is coming from other than the fact that your attitudes (some of you) shows that we're still in the 60's and as long as you are doing well, to hell with everyone else?
Lord forgive them for they are stupid.; Reply to this comment


by PRISSEME September 12, 2010 10:45 AM EDT: These students come from 67% non-parent households. Meaning, more than half of the students are being raised by a grandparent, an aunt, uncle, sister, brother or they are raising themselves. Statistically, their parent(s) are incarcerated, on drugs or deceased. Therefore, these children are at risk of not graduating high school, let alone attend college because of their "social" circumstances. If it weren't for the SEED lottery, they might become casualties of their environment like the one young man in the story who's been shot and won't stop hanging around his "hood".

To all those WHITE viewers that only saw ALL BLACK people, statistically, Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, MD are PREDOMINANTLY populated with AFRICAN AMERICAN PEOPLE. SEED enrolls student based on a LOTTERY. Therefore, lower income Whites, Indians, Muslims, Asians, Pakistanis, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Dominicans, Sudanese, Lebanese - whatever ethnicity a student is can apply to attend SEED and possibly enrolled through the lottery. If only African Americans apply, then that is who will consume the student body.

To the ignorant man that commented that Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and if whites create a school like this African Americans can't go APESHIT, your a *********. There is a LONG history of CAUCASION Boarding Schools available to CAUCASION. They way they keep "others" out is ECONOMICS. If you aren't from an affluent, upper-affluent economic family, you can't attend which makes the enrollment ALL WHITE. WHITE PEOPLE have had ALL WHITE opportunities since the beginning of time. These inner-city children deserve the same opportunities not to die before age 18, not to become addicted to drugs, not to become a drug dealer. These children need to know that they are competent and capable of being successful in life.; Reply to this comment


by niaclark September 10, 2010 4:22 PM EDT: Ugh....I don't know how I feel about the comments that some people have been posting about this SEED story. It might help everyone if they take a step back from what they have seen on tv and do some researchon their own; Reply to this comment


by Carlsdedts September 10, 2010 4:03 PM EDT: As for the comment "white kids are more intelligent that black kids"...I am not sure where u pulled that information from (probably directly from yourself)... I am a very successful black woman running 3 business', holding down a 8-5 as well, college educated, married with 2 children, have owned 5 homes - and i have not reached the age of 30 yet. I work in an office with 2 "white" women who i constantly out-perform (and they cant stand it). My parents taught us at home - did not wait for the school system to do it. What we eventually learned in school was secondary to what was taught at home. I come from a family where spelling tests begun at the age of two and book reports by kindergarten. Because of this early intervention - we were well prepared to face this world and people like you. I can proudly say, that i've NEVER met a white person growing up that i couldn't out-think or compete with. I am raising my children the same way. My two year old reads.. My 5 year old's vocabulary is larger than that of a 4th grader..she reads, adds, subtracts, multiplies, etc etc. I volunteer at her school weekly - and for your info - there is not ONE white child out of the 9 in her class that can hold a stick to her abilities. Most of those kids are still looking at a picture and writing how many cows they see... My child was doing that at two years old. And as a matter of fact, one of the two caucaisians in my office brought in her 4th graders' school project - needless to say, her handwriting looks like my daughter's handwriting when she was 3. Not to mention the sloppy way the project was put together...and she had the nerve to be mad because of the grade her daughter received... (Shaking my head). Don't flatter yourself honey, we ARE teaching our kids to be over-acheivers and to be prepared for the likes of you.; Reply to this comment


by September 9, 2010 12:16 PM EDT: the problem with white children is they are more intelligent than the average black kid and can get through school on his/her own merit. black kids need to have it all put there for them or they risk turning into eggplants. this is the dumbing down of America where the incompetent/stupid/moronic are shoved through.; Reply to this comment


by LJ_power September 8, 2010 5:08 PM EDT: This report made me so emotional. It's a wonderful idea! A huge thank you to those that do not abandon residents of metropolitan cities and invest their energy solely toward the education of our children. ...word from the wise...people stop being afraid of your neighbor because of differences in culture and physical appearances and take control of what's going on wrong and do something about it, rather than running. When you run, you abandon the people that need you most, especially the children, being black, white, olive, or tan- city kids. I would love to see this in Detroit! Contact me so we can get started.; Reply to this comment


by mdhealtheducator September 8, 2010 4:13 PM EDT: Understand that in the beginning of the video, he announce the school was in an URBAN area! There are Seed schools located in the DC and in Baltimore, MD area. Both locations are primarily urban and primarily Black. You don?t see any white children in this video because these areas are only about 5% white. But the message was talking about excellence not race. This school has extended hours during the school day and has extended days throughout the school year. Some may see it as a lot, but these students are really succeeding and they are getting into Ivy League schools.

Again, I repeat this video is about success, not race. And they say black people are always complaining about "The White Man". Hmmm? Do I sense jealousy? If you want your Caucasian child to go to a Seed school, then apply for them! I'm sure they will be given the same opportunities as any other child that attends. So stop complaining and join in with the rest of us who are dedicated to raising a child that is successful and not complacent.; Reply to this comment


by donjohn8 September 7, 2010 5:51 AM EDT: Corey, while I appreciate your sentiment, you're missing a key element to the success of the SEED school: it's exclusivity. If just anyone can get in--as is the case with most public schools--a key motivational element is lost: the pursuit of excellence. SEED provides a model of how it should be done; those who do not make it could do well to study their model and adapt it to their own children's educations. What is being done there is something that SHOULD be done at home. It's not up to the government to provide this--as a matter of fact, it may not be desirable for the government to have 24-hour control of our nation's young. This should be a well-monitored program which shows what can be done and challenges others to do the same.; Reply to this comment


by Brian1121 September 6, 2010 11:28 PM EDT: Those were incredible images of ecstatic families winning the lottery. I liked the fact that they were placing enormous premium on a quality education and its tremendous potential to open doors. Along with your health, having the academic skills to graduate college and go further is wonderful, and I was happy for the winners. Though there are many problems in American education it is nevertheless refreshing to know that The SEED School is carrying out its idealist mission to help young people aspire for great things given the forces that undermine their effort to get such an education in their own district. I teach in a fabulous private school near a large city in the Midwest and witness how an institution with high standards produces phenomenal students. We provide many scholarships and have a very significant community service with schools in the nearby large city school district. I just hope that the luxury of small class size, passionate teachers and administrators, and a safe learning environment that challenges young people to excel will become more accessible to every child.; Reply to this comment