Hip-Hop High School
Why Some Want to Close Media Arts Academy Charter School
In The Begining...It Was Rap...
In an effort to push students to be motivated about their education despite the (for lack of better wording) SUCKY circumstances, officials came together to create what has been dubbed Hip Hop High. But in the same vein as some have described the ground breaking genre of music, Hip Hop High may be dying.
It is a well-know fact that most urban school systems SUCK! From the poor dungeon like lighting to passing failing students to the next grade, the problems that plague these schools are no secret. Just like many other kids attending urban schools, the students at Hip Hop High are no strangers to adversity.
After being kicked out of schools or failing their way through school many had no where else to turn. That was before the days of Hip Hop High. Officially named Media Arts Academy Charter School, the school gave these children what no one else had … hope.
With a curriculum focused on recording arts, the school gave these children the chance to create and record their own music.
A Set up?
On July 1, however, things began to take a turn for the worse. According to various sources, the Centinela Valley Union School District notified the school that it’s charter had expired and that they would not be able to apply for a renewal.
Caprice Young, president and chief executive of the California Charter Schools Association, said that the lack of warning is unusual.
“They literally have been lying in wait to do this,” said principal Jennifer Murphy after students and parents descended upon the Centinela School Board to plead their case.
“You’re shutting our dreams down,” student Sergio Baccio told the board.
“People looked at me like a low-life gangster …” sobbed another while describing her experiences before coming to the recording arts focused school. “When I got to Media Arts Academy, they looked at me different, they looked at me like I was somebody.”
“This is the only place we can be ourselves and express ourselves.”
After their pleas, the outcome remained depressingly the same.
“Their application expired,” said Jose Fernandez, interim superintendent of the district. “They basically ran the clock out.”
The Aftermath: Picking Up The Pieces
The Hip Hop High staff is not taking their temporary defeat lying down. They are preparing to fight for their renewal. They have completed a renewal workshop and “were responsibly preparing for that process.” Principal Young has also said they are looking over documents to see if they have a legal case against the district.
The question now becomes: If they aren't doing this what will happen to these children?
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