Journal of a Black Teacher

I asked the question : Why are we sending almost 100 8th graders to a secondary school where only 15 of the 750+ students showed up on the MCAs?  (Data from Minnesota School Report Card) By Don Allen (Journal of A Black Teacher) 2025 Twin Cities, MN...One of my original dissertation titles was blunt, maybe even provocative: Do School Children in Minnesota Need to Be at the Bottom of Every List? I kept it just beneath my official title, like a private protest, a reminder of the question I was asking behind the academic language. Because the data doesn’t lie: Black Minnesotans are often last, last in educational outcomes, last in wealth-building opportunities, last in housing equity, and last in entrepreneurial advancement. We are, in many ways, systematically positioned at the margins. Yet, we still hear lofty promises about equity, as if it were a product ready for delivery instead of a long, brutal journey that most of us are still undertaking. The gap between equity and reality i...

A vote of No Confidence with resignations is the next step.  By Don Allen, Ed.S., M.A.Ed., MAT Maybe it’s not politically correct to say this, but when is change actually change, and not just a cosmetic illusion designed to pacify people living in struggle? For the past two weeks, I’ve been driving 30 minutes south of the Twin Cities, past Hastings, Red Wing, and into the fringes of rural-urban comfort. The deeper I drive into the suburbs, the clearer things become—literally and metaphorically. McDonald’s restaurants are immaculate. Gas stations are well-lit and clean. Digital marquees actually spell words correctly. The young people working in these places reflect the communities in which they live. And yes, there are big houses, massive yards, dogs running free, and even cornfields stretching toward the sky like everything around them has room to grow. But when I turn back toward Minneapolis or St. Paul, the mood shifts. It’s not just aesthetics, it’s infrastructure, spirit, and ...

“A simple question deserves a simple answer.” By Don Allen, Journal of a Black Teacher (2024) ( Photo :  Dr. Boyce Watkins X feed; Fair Use) The erosion of our social structures concerning Black children is a topic that consistently sparks my curiosity. I often find myself contemplating the reasons behind this decline and the impact it has on our communities. About four years ago, I began to delve deeper into my readings. I realized that the issues affecting the Twin Cities could potentially arise in other cities, and local communities had to find ways to restore collaboration and human capital to enhance the city for the betterment of local businesses, neighborhoods, and, most importantly, the people. However, I couldn't comprehend the exposure of our 12-16-year-old children to adult situations while exploring downtown with the same level of enthusiasm as adults. Though it may not be a popular question, the most crucial one that demands an immediate answer is: where are the parent...

It's time for parents in the Twin Cities to reevaluate their list of local black charter schools that were initially created to offer quality education and uplift communities. However, they are now facing scrutiny over claims that these schools have shifted their interest from student well-being to financial gain. The concerns have been raised because it is reported that some of these schools may be exploiting the charter system and treating students as revenue generators rather than nurturing learners. This very nature of the commodification of education undercuts charter schools' goals: to be innovative and deliver high-quality education. Parents must demand openness, refocus on student-centered learning, and find ways to break down the walls that isolate charter schools. The real question must be: Are these schools meeting black children's educational needs, or are they capitalizing on them?. By reconsidering these factors, parents can create pressure to institute a ...

By Don Allen - Journal of A Black Teacher (Editorial Opinion) Charter schools have been a beacon of hope for education reform for over a decade, particularly in urban areas like the Twin Cities. They promised innovation, higher achievement, and an alternative to the failing traditional public school system. However, a hard look at the data, especially for those schools underperforming for over three years, reveals a starkly different reality. These institutions, particularly those serving predominantly students of color who are at risk, have not only failed to deliver on their promises but have also exacerbated educational inequities. It is time to acknowledge these failures and take decisive action: close the chronically underperforming charter schools. The Alarming Statistics In the Twin Cities, many charter schools have students who consistently perform in the bottom deciles of academic achievement. Particularly troubling is the performance of third and fourth graders, who primarily...

By Don Allen, M.A. Ed./MAT Response to professor for 2022 Summer - GED 8101-1 - Human Relations in Organizations (Hamline University School of Education - Superintendent Licensure) Now that we know, now that our data is hanging out there for everyone to see and talk about (during and post-pandemic), what will propel our educational systems in the Twin Cities into systemic change? Malcolm X, MLK, Jr., John F. and Robert Kennedy, Gandhi, Desmond Tutu, and the late Ronald A. Edwards (a local civil rights activist that wrote the book, “The Minneapolis Story” parts 1 & 2, and died broke) were all individuals that pushed systems into change for the benefit of the whole. The unfortunate thing is each one of these men (and many women) lost their lives horribly by zealots that didn’t want change. I mean look at Buffalo, NY and Uvalde, TX; it’s not gun control we need, it’s people and society control which has been ineffective for generations. I’m not talking about the big brother piece, it...