As I listen to one of my favorite songs by the prolific rap artist Jay-Z, I reminisce on how the words in the chorus will forever motivate me as a first-generation college student from New Orleans. “Some how, some way, we gotta make it up the hood, someday.” For nearly thirty years, Jay-Z has been one of my favorite rappers. Hailing from an extremely disenfranchised community, I could relate to his upbringing and the grit he possesses, which has empowered him to transform his humble beginnings into the tremendous success he has experienced.
I also know, firsthand, the empowerment I received from teachers in the public schools, I attended in New Orleans. If not for them, I would not have had the amazing professional opportunities to deliver a Ted Talk, become a Presidential Leadership Scholar or earn the distinguished title of State of Texas Master Teacher.
Learning that Jay-Z’s entertainment company Roc Nation is at the forefront of spearheading school choice vouchers for the State of Pennsylvania, has sparked national conversation. Most would assume that any organization attached to the beloved rapper, would be more in support of ensuring community public schools have the funding they need. Instead, his team is putting its influence behind a whopping $100 million dollar system that will offer school choice to inner-city students, throughout the state.
Jay-Z’s Experience in Public School
I always loved the story he would share about his sixth-grade English teacher who encouraged him, enhancing his academic confidence through reading. In a 2023 interview with journalist Gayle King, on CBS Morning News, Jay-Z raved about the love and connection he had with his favorite teacher. “Miss Lowden was my sixth-grade teacher. In the sixth grade, I was readin’ on a 12th-grade level,” recalled Hov. “That excited me. ‘Cause everyone was excited. And Miss Lowden, she was excited. It felt like me riding my bike at 4, the way people reacted to that”.
Miss Lowden, was a white teacher, teaching at a public school in Brooklyn, New York, in the 1980s. She singlehandedly gave arguably, one of the greatest rappers of all time, the belief that he could succeed and he already possessed everything he needed, to avoid the environmental traps of a Black man, growing up in one of New York City’s most notorious and nefarious housing projects. Based on the data around school vouchers and students of color, one could speculate that Jay-Z would not have gotten that same special attention if he was at a private school.
I understand that the public school system is not very attractive today. The quality of teachers has declined significantly. Retention of effective teachers is low, and attrition is high. But we cannot take away the glimmers of hope, like Miss Lowden, who work in schools in disinvested communities and continue to spark the unique ingenuity of the students they serve.
The Infringement on Culture, Civil Rights and College Access
Vouchers place impoverished students of color in a similar system as students who attended school in the era of desegregation. Most students of color who use vouchers attend schools not located in their communities. Further, they become the ‘minority students’ in the schools and are often overlooked culturally, learning in environments that are ‘discreetly conspicuous’ threats to their civil rights and humanity. In schools that accept vouchers, students of color have issues with being disproportionately disciplined, wearing their natural hair, and, most importantly, academic growth. Studies show most students of color using vouchers show a decline in academic progress, not improvement.
So, the locs that Jay-Z so proudly dons would have caused a major disruption at the private schools that would accept the vouchers he and his firm are emphatically promoting. It is also extremely important to note that students with disabilities do not have success with the voucher program and continue to lose access to the educational resources necessary to support their unique abilities, since private schools are not mandated to follow the federal regulations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
Vouchers take money away from disproportionately underfunded public schools
Texas representative, Democrat Donna Howard, compares the principles of school vouchers to the ideology of a reversal of the fundamental philosophy of the fictional character, Robin Hood. Texas pays each school district $3,800 a year for each enrolled student. The school choice plan would provide $8,000 a year tuition per accepted student. “Taking money from the poor to give to the rich,”.
This plan ensures that students of color from marginalized communities who don’t take advantage of vouchers will attend schools that are understaffed with antiquated resources because they are losing substantial funding. This means vouchers will perpetuate a cycle that is, in essence, eradicating funding from the school communities that need it most and supplying more affluent school systems, which already have access and superfluous funding sources.
Food for Thought
If we are being honest, we know that public schools, in impoverished communities have long been unsuccessful in providing the educational experiences we expect every American child to have. However, as educator preparation programs such as City Teaching Alliance and Dallas College continue to intentionally partner with large urban public and charter school systems like Dallas Independent School District and Uplift Education, there will be better-prepared teachers in urban schools who are dedicated to remaining in the teaching profession.
Placing highly qualified teachers in public schools will be a huge factor in changing the perception of the school systems and increasing student achievement in urban communities. If we want to retain effective teachers, we have to guarantee the funding is available for salaries and resources, which evaporates if traditional funding is to be divided between public and private schools through the voucher system.
Suggestions for Jay-Z and Roc Nation
Jay-Z, Roc Nation, and its subsidiaries have a cult following. People will consider the information they share about vouchers and their impact very seriously. Since Jay-Z is not from Philadelphia, I sincerely hope he and his team have engaged in extensive research to learn if vouchers are the answer to the plight of disadvantaged Philadelphians and their families.
If they have not reached out to Sharif El-Mekki, a native Philadelphian and the Founder of the revolutionizing educational organization the Center for Black Educator Development, I would encourage them to pivot and connect to the work currently being done, to revitalize the public school system in Philadelphia. It would crush to me learn that such an astutely intelligent man has become entrenched in the ideology of the rich, abandoning his own revolutionary experiences in public schools, that greatly contributed to his momentous success. I recently heard the quote, “billionaires will billionaire” and I hope that is not the case for one for one of the most revered rap artists and moguls of our time.