Regent Square Elementary School

Regent Square is a lovely, tree lined residential neighborhood in the East End of Pittsburgh. It adjoins Frick Park, a magnificent city park with tennis courts, ball fields, playgrounds and hundreds of miles of trails. Regent Square has beautiful homes with a healthy mix of rentals and homeowners. It has a robust business district on South Braddock Avenue. Restaurants, art galleries, small shops and a Pittsburgh Filmmakers movie theater line the busy main street. There is a grocery store, organic food coop and shopping center within walking distance (or a very short drive.) It has easy access to public transportation and the parkway to downtown.

Regent Square's residents include young families, retirees, professionals and students. Residents often are employed in local hospitals, at the universities and in local businesses. House values have gone up significantly in the last decade. And many of the families moving in have school aged children. The Regent Square neighborhood is made up of parts of four different municipalities- Pittsburgh, Edgewood, Swissvale and Wilkinsburg. The population of Regent Square is only 877.

From an education perspective, Regent Square is a conundrum. It has no district public schools within its boundaries. There are three elementary school buildings on South Braddock Avenue, all of which were closed - Wilkins Elementary School (closed in 1978), Park Place Elementary School (closed in 1974) and Regent Square Elementary School (closed once in 1985 and than closed again in 2005). Just outside of Regent Square there is a Catholic school (St. James K-8) in central Wilkinsburg, a private middle school (Shadyside Academy) in Pittsburgh, a public school (Kelly Elementary School) in Wilkinsburg and a public school in Edgewood (Edgewood Elementary School.) The Wilkinsburg schools (both St. James and Kelly) are nearly all black, the Edgewood school is majority black and the private school is nearly all white.

There is a story here... one that includes race, white flight and school district policies that have consistently resulted in poor decisions. Both my daughters attended Regent Square Elementary School after it was reopened in 1988... thus it is near and dear to my heart.

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Prior to 1960, Pittsburgh's East End was a segregated white community. Squirrel Hill, East Liberty, Highland Park, Point Breeze, Park Place, Regent Square and Homewood (all neighborhoods in Pittsburgh) were white, ethnic and Catholic, Jewish or Protestant. First ring east suburbs including Wilkinsburg and Edgewood were white, exclusive and mainly Protestant. The black population in Pittsburgh lived in a few isolated areas of town, mainly in the Hill District or in lower working class areas.

Park Place Elementary School

In 1960, the Pittsburgh School district had 72,000 students, and its schools were filled to capacity. Park Place Elementary School, situated on the border between Wilkinsburg and Pittsburgh, was thriving. The school is at the far north end of Braddock Avenue in the Park Place neighborhood. It is within walking distance of Pittsburgh's Homewood neighborhood, Wilkinsburg and the center of Regent Square.

Two events in the 1950's had a profound effect on all of these neighborhoods from a demographic perspective. First, in 1954 the US Supreme Court in Brown vs. Board of Education ruled that public schools needed to be integrated because "seperate was not equal." The prospect of integration created fear in both the white and black communities. And second, in 1956 the City of Pittsburgh embarked on an urban renewal project to build the Civic Arena that forced a black migration out of the center city. Neighborhoods in the east went through a significant demographic change that began in the early 1960's. It is hard to believe that an urban renewal project 7 miles away would radically change these East End neighborhoods.

 ...wholesale relocation of residents began. Between April 1956 and the 1961 dedication of the plan's centerpiece, the $22-million Civic Arena, a total of 8,000 residents - one-fifth of the Hill's population at the time - were relocated. Included were 1,551 families, 458 individuals and 416 businesses, according to newspaper reports at the time. In essence, the heart had been torn out of the community. Longtime residents were ripped from the only neighborhood they had known, one they loved, and were relocated, primarily to East Liberty, the North Side and Homewood. (http://old.post-gazette.com/newslinks/19990411hilldistrict1.asp)

The migration east from the Hill District occurred at a rapid pace. To give you a sense of the speed of black migration and the subsequent white flight, let's use Wilkinsburg as a case study. Prior to 1960, Wilkinsburg, the self labeled "Town of Churches" was an all white, middle class, exclusive suburb. From 1960 to 1980 the number of black citizens in Wilkinsburg increased from 2% to 37% of the overall population.  At the current time, Wilkinsburg is 67% black and its population is 50% of what it was in 1960. The people who left were middle class whites who moved further east to Penn Hills, Edgewood, Forest Hills, Churchill, Monroeville and Murrysville.    

June 22, 1974

As black families moved East and many white families fled to the suburbs, the East End student population decreased. Park Place Elementary School lost a substantial number of students. This put Park Place in a precarious position in terms of staying open.

But not all white families left.  A significant number of white families stayed, loved their neighborhood and wanted to make integration work.  This 1974 letter to the editor in the Post Gazette describes the frustration of parents (white) who were fighting (to no avail) to save their school.

This is a key point. Not all white families leave when blacks enter their community and the local school. Many actually welcome diversity and want to see integration succeed. This creates an ideal place for integration to be nurtured. It gave the school district the opportunity to create a "proof of concept" that integration can be successful from both a sociological and academic perspective.    

Unfortunately, the letter fell on deaf ears and Park Place Elementary School was closed in 1974. In 1975 it was sold (for less than $40,000) to a real estate developer who converted the school into apartments. This was one of the first neighborhood schools sold by the district. This decision to close the school never took into account the issue of racial balance and trying to keep white families in the district. It was based strictly on buildings, short term budget concerns and placement of students. By selling the school the District made its intentions clear; not only did the Park Place feeder not have enough students to maintain the school, but they would never again have a district school in their neighborhood.  

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At the same time that Pittsburgh was closing schools in the 1970's, three families in General Braddock filed a federal lawsuit charging that the state intentionally segregated black students when creating the General Braddock school district.

Braddock, PA

The General Braddock School District was a merger of three municipalities near the Edgar Thompson Steel Mill: North Braddock, Braddock and Rankin. As the demise of the steel industry began, and the flight to the suburbs occurred, these three towns became segregated, poor and destitute. In 1973, a US District judge ruled the founding of the district to be unconstitutional. This was a civil rights issue. The children from these communities deserved a shot at a quality education.  But resolving the issue was not going to be easy.

After a decade of arguing how to provide a school district that was integrated and equitable, and getting no where, the judge ordered Churchill Area, Edgewood, Swissvale Area, Turtle Creek and General Braddock school districts to merge (1983). The judge created an integrated school district from five existing neighboring school districts. These five districts were quite different demographically. Churchill and Edgewood were exclusive white middle class communities, Swissvale and Turtle Creek were working class blue collar, integrated municipalities and General Braddock was a poor black community. Two of these municipalities, Edgewood and Swissvale, are part of the Regent Square area. As one can imagine, the merger of these districts was extremely controversial. This was a difficult mixing of populations that was forced by the courts, not voluntary or through migration of families as they moved east out of Pittsburgh.

Wilkins Elementary School

As one might guess, the first thing that happened was a large number of white (and some black) middle class families moved farther east to new, expanding suburbs. Second, the consolidation closed a number of neighborhood schools to save money and use buildings in a more efficient manner. Wilkins Elementary School was an example of that. In preparation for the merger, Wilkins Elementary School was closed in 1978 and was handed over to the municipality of Swissvale. They then gave it to a community group that converted it into  a community center. So by the late 1970's the Regent Square neighborhood lost an elementary school at both its north and south boundaries. And once again, a school district, this time Woodland Hills, signaled a neighborhood (the Swissvale part of Regent Square) that they would never again have a school in their neighborhood.

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Regent Square Elementary School

Regent Square Elementary School is located midway between Park Place and Wilkins Elementary Schools just off of Braddock Avenue. It is tucked away on a small community street adjacent to Frick Park. It really is the perfect location for an elementary school. Great building, located next to a park for science, recreation and exercise and within walking distance for most of its students.

As discussed above, white flight starting in 1960 affected the overall membership of Regent Square Elementary School. As the population went down, the Pittsburgh school district decided to close it in 1985. Upon closing, the Board of Education received numerous complaints from parents living in East End neighborhoods where schools were closed. Their children were being  bussed to schools out of their neighborhoods and they felt this was a bad idea for elementary school children. By applying a great deal of political pressure to the school board, Regent Square was reopened in 1988. The students attending the school were drawn from four neighborhoods: Park Place, Swisshelm Park, Regent Square and East Hills. The first three neighborhoods were all white communities that had their neighborhood schools closed and the fourth, was an all black community, living in a public housing project.

Thus the reopening of Regent Square Elementary School was an attempt to address the needs of these white communities while providing school integration with the East Hills students. In order to make the school a success, the district assigned a very well thought of veteran educator to be the principal. The fact that she was black and extremely competent helped the opening of the school immensely. She was able to hand pick her faculty from over 70 experienced applicants from within the school district. Regent Square Elementary School reopened with great excitement and high expectations. And fully integrated classes.

As it would happen, my eldest daughter began kindergarten at Regent Square Elementary School in 1989. And my youngest daughter attended the school from 1994 to 2000. Thus I was in touch with how the school was doing from its reopening until 2000.

The principal was highly attuned to the needs of both the black and white communities that attended the school. She welcomed the parents, reached out to the distant communities and ran parent meetings in the East Hills community for parents who couldn't get transportation to the school. She held the faculty to extremely high standards and the quality of work was evident. When my eldest daughter entered the school, the racial mix was 60/40 white/black. The faculty was outstanding. It was a dream come true.

Then for some reason, the principal was transferred in 1990 after only two years at the school. Rumors abounded. Was she forced out by disgruntled white parents? Was she needed elsewhere to manage a school needing improvement?  I don't know the answer to that question. I do know that Pittsburgh had a history of constantly moving principals around and keeping schools in a constant state of transition. This is bad practice since we know that consistent school leadership is a key to success. The first principal was replaced by a relatively young, white educator whose experience was as Vice-Principal at East Hills Elementary School and a brief stint as Principal at Greenfield Elementary School.  At no fault of her own, she was on the merry go round of principal transfers.

The second Principal did not have the experience of the opening Principal. She was less welcoming, seemingly concerned about parent backlash. She struggled at times with faculty. And unfortunately, she had a series of medical issues that led to her take a medical leave in 1997. Sadly, she passed away the following year. White parents struggled with this principal. And as you might guess, this led to white families leaving the school. By 1998, the racial mix was 93/7 black/white. The whites (other than my daughter and a few other students) left the school.

What was interesting to note was that the white families who left the school did not move to the suburbs. Because they loved their homes and their neighborhood, they chose to look for school alternatives. Catholic families attended Catholic schools. Jewish families attended the newly opened Jewish Community Day School in Squirrel Hill. Wealthy families attended private schools such as Ellis, Winchester, Falk or Shady Side Academy.  Many families found a way to get their children into public magnet schools (which had racial quotas). By 2005 there was no need to keep a school open in a neighborhood that didn't use it, so Regent Square was closed for good.

In 2006 the district put 27 schools up for sale. Regent Square Elementary School had an appraised value of $875,000.  It sold for $3 million to Imagine Schools, a national network of charter schools.  All three Regent Square Elementary Schools were closed and sold.

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This brings us to today.  Regent Square remains a thriving community. Businesses, housing, commerce, amenities are better than ever.  It remains a predominantly white, professional, educated and middle class community.

Unfortunately, the four municipalities that make up Regent Square have some of the worst public schools in the state.

• The closest Wilkinsburg elementary school (Kelly School ES) to Regent Square is among the lowest achieving in the state, has a 99% poverty index (free/reduced lunch) and is 98% black. 
• The closest Homewood elementary school (Pittsburgh Faison K-8) to Regent Square is among the lowest achieving in the state, has a 94% poverty index and is 100% black. 
• The closest Woodland Hills elementary school (Edgewood ES) to Regent Square is low achieving, has a 69% poverty index and is 69% black.  

Environmental Charter School

Families with children in Regent Square use school choice to find alternatives for their children. Parochial, Private, University, Magnet or Charter Schools, or Homeschooling are their choices.

So what became of the Regent Square Elementary School building. Imagine Schools opened a charter school there in 2008 for grades K-5. This morphed into the Environmental Charter School which is now independent of Imagine Schools. It's theme is a perfect match for both their location (Frick Park) and the population (young, progressive, educated families). It's current demographic is 67/33 white/black. The irony is the demographic is quite close to that of Park Place Elementary School when it closed and Regent Square Elementary School when it reopened.

The minute the Environmental Charter School opened it was overwhelmed with applicants. This year the Environmental Charter School had 500 applications for 28 kindergarten openings. The Environmental Charter School was so successful at attracting students that they leased Park Place Elementary School and have expanded their program to eighth grade. They are now pursuing plans to open a high school and another K-8. They are currently applying for charters for these schools with the Pittsburgh Public Schools. Their student achievement is quite good. However, their poverty index (free-reduced lunch) of 27% suggests that they are attracting mainly middle class students. They are really addressing the pent up demand for quality public schools in middle class East End neighborhoods.

Clearly, there is a need for more quality public schools in general in Pittsburgh and in this case, in the East End. And we know these schools can be integrated as long as there is a relative balance between the races.  

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Forbes and Braddock - The Entrance to Regent Square

So what's the takeaway of the Regent Square story?

Look at the picture on the right. This is the corner of Forbes and Braddock Ave. circa 1955.  It doesn't look much different today except there are no trolley lines or tracks, the Junction Pharmacy is now a restaurant and the Gulf Station is an auto mechanics shop.

In 1960 there were many, many children who walked daily through this intersection or waited for a trolley on the corner. They walked down the street to Park Place ES, or up the street to Regent Square ES, or took the trolley to Wilkinsburg to Kelly or St. James school. They attended segregated neighborhood schools. And they received a good education. And they didn't even know that poor black students were getting educated in segregated schools across town.

In 2015 there are many, many children who walk through this intersection or wait for a bus. They either walk up the street to the Environmental Charter Upper School or down the street to the Environmental Lower School. They get on a bus or are driven to Falk, Community Day, St. James or one of the many private schools or to a Propel Charter School. Most of the private schools are segregated. Many of the charter schools are substantially integrated, while some are lopsided in one direction or another. But the children who do not go through this corner attend segregated, poverty stricken, low achieving schools.

Here's what I think the takeaway is.

1. Pittsburgh is still one of the most segregated cities in America.
2. Pittsburgh leads the country in highest level of poverty among working age African-Americans.  
3. Anyone who says that race is no longer an issue in our society is either a liar or a fool. 
4. Since everyone gets really upset when we talk about race, at a minimum we should admit to the segregation by socio-economic class that exists in our city.  
5. Families (black or white) with financial means always use school choice whether by moving to a new neighborhood or enrolling their children into schools of choice (private, public magnet or charter.) 
6. Some white families are racist and will flee the city for no good reason other than ignorance.  
7. Some white families will attend integrated schools if the balance is near 50-50 and they believe the academic rigor of the program is high.  
8. Managing an integrated school takes finesse, consistent leadership and a lot of hand holding with parents.  
9. Urban public schools in America have not figured out the strategic nuances of how to educate all children in integrated settings. 
10. Nor have they figured out how to market their integrated schools to white, middle class parents.  
11. Thus they lose middle class families and work almost exclusively with poor, at risk students.  
12. And since they don't know how to achieve with such a disenfranchised and damaged group of students, they are destined to fail. 
13. Then they sell the building. 

I miss Regent Square Elementary School...