As another alumnus who has spent his career engaged in bringing underserved children a high-quality education, I was heartened to see the PAW give voice to Princeton’s role in education reform. Or was I?
While I appreciate the hard work being done at the student, school, and district level, I can’t help but wonder what Princeton alumni could accomplish if more than a smattering of our ranks decided to take up the proper treatment of our children as a cause worthy of their attention.
Education has always had pockets of excellence. While these examples are inspiring, they represent no significant movement toward truly providing children — especially those whose families have always been underserved — with a more effective, more humane, more empowering system. I go back to your earlier report (Campus Notebook, Nov. 17) that of the members of the Class of 2010 who had jobs by graduation, 60 percent took positions in financial services or consulting. If that many Princetonians decided to do something truly valuable with their lives and throw their energy and talent toward education, then not only would you have something noteworthy to report, but we actually might start treating our youngest, most vulnerable citizens with the dignity they deserve.