Following the murder of George Floyd, William Jewell College’s chapter, Zeta Phi, of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity (FIJI) organized a fundraiser for the Southern Poverty Law Center and We Love Lake Street and is also creating a new inclusion committee within the fraternity to start in fall 2020. In the letter to The Hilltop Monitor, written on behalf of the Zeta Phi chapter of FIJI, Jamie Briscoe, senior chemistry major, and Jack Still, senior economics and political science major, describe the decisions and the conversations that ultimately led the fraternity to act.

In the weeks that followed George Floyd’s tragic death, the members of our House looked on with both consternation and pride as protesters flooded the streets in support of racial justice. The distress, pain and grief seen on the face of each protester served as a reminder of America’s long history of transgressions against people of color. But, at the same time, the unity and desire for progress displayed through these peaceful demonstrations deeply inspired us just as they have moved leaders elsewhere across the country to initiate change. 

Like many others in the Jewell community, we began seeking out both individual and collective opportunities to lend our efforts to the cause. Some of us attended peaceful protests right here in Kansas City, while others donated to anti-racist organizations leading efforts to combat hatred and discrimination. 

One thing, however, was clear: our brotherhood – along with the rest of Greek Life and the Jewell student body – demonstrated a willingness to take a stand against racism that has not been seen at such a scale before. It has become evident that our generation will bear the responsibility of finally delivering true equality to all people without regard for their race. And, if the actions taken by Jewell students and young people across the country are any indication of our ability to successfully do so, we have tremendous faith. 

It will take sustained and committed action from those who benefit most from the status quo. We must all be willing to exchange our current comfort and privilege for a type of progress that, in the end, frees us all from the unforgiving burden of systemic racism. Here at the Zeta Phi chapter, we believe that Greek Life everywhere has a substantial and unique role to play in fighting for racial equality in communities across the United States. 

That is why we followed the lead of many sororities and fraternities nationwide, releasing an official statement attesting to the ways in which our values commit each member of our brotherhood to anti-racism. After a few days, though, we began to realize that it would not be sufficient for us to only vocalize our collective stance outwardly into the community. 

Our chapter understands that if we truly hope to make an impact at such a pivotal moment in history, and to achieve a greater level of understanding and acceptance within our own brotherhood, it is necessary that we also look to do our part in serving worthy causes and striving to make the required changes internally. 

As a start, we have created a fundraiser to support both the Southern Poverty Law Center – a nonprofit legal advocacy organization that aims to expose hate groups and provide education on tolerance – and We Love Lake Street – a charity seeking to rebuild and reopen small businesses affected by the death of George Floyd. Our chapter plans to match every donation made to this Go Fund Me fundraiser up to $1000. The total amount raised will then be split between these two causes. It is our hope that members of the community at Jewell will chip in what they have and share our efforts to reach as many people as possible. 

At the beginning of the fall semester, we also plan to introduce a brand new inclusion committee dedicated to maintaining a healthy and welcoming atmosphere in our House. The history of racial discrimination, homophobia and other forms of exclusion is a story that is all too familiar for Greek Life. Zeta Phi hopes to work with our fellow members of Greek Life and the entire community at Jewell to permanently end this trend and place fraternities and sororities at the forefront of the fight for equality. 

Donate to the fundraiser using this link.

Enrollment is not the only thing to have increased in recent years. Support for the charter school system seems to also be growing at an extremely high rate among some Americans. Not to mention the fact that this is an issue of contemporary American politics that both sides of the aisle can actually agree on. Charter schools have even been endorsed by the last four U.S. Presidents.

Courtesy of Royal Palm Charter Schools.

Independent teaching, the potential for innovation and freedom from government regulation are just a few of the things heralded as benefits of this movement toward charter schools. Advocates widely regard these new and improved public schools as the education for the next generation.

With this vast optimism and support for charter schools, it seems as though the American education system is finally being led down the right path. Parents have the ability to remove their child from failing public schools and place them into the charter school of their choice, while maintaining the favorable benefits of public schooling. Charter school advocates are ready to move on from the traditional public school and never look back.

I believe this trend has the potential to be a costly error for the future of American education.    

Charter schools have an extremely promising premise. Fundamentally, charter schools seem to be a flawless alternative to what many consider a defunct public education system. Children are left behind, academics are less than rigorous enough to prepare students for college and funding is becoming insufficient for public schools all across the country. Therefore, there seems to be undeniable benefits of the movement towards charter schools. However, it is important that we remain wary of the very real negative externalities of charter schools.

There are many ways that charter schools negatively impact modern-day education in the U.S., but there are two key factors that justify my position against charter schools.

Charter Schools Defund Traditional Public Schools  

In theory, charter schools are funded in accordance with enrollment levels. The more students a certain charter school has, the more government funding it receives. Anyone who knows the slightest about government spending could probably gather that there is a limit to the amount of money that can be spent on education. This means that money to fund charter schools is usually drawn from the funding of public schools. Unsurprisingly, this creates quite a significant problem.

In Pittsburgh, for example, charter school tuition payments cost the city 53 million dollars in 2014. Due to this massive cost, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett cut reimbursement payments to public schools. As a result, every student that left the Pittsburgh public education system for a charter school led to a decrease in funding for public schools. Without reimbursement costs, traditional public schools are forced to maintain the quality of the education and facilities they provide with considerably less funding.

This defunding hits already struggling school districts even harder. If a failing public school loses the little funding that it needs, it cannot be expected to continue to effectively educate students. These effects are real and prevalent in today’s education system. We cannot let charter schools further contribute to a problem that is already out of hand.  

In practice, the funding of charter schools does much more harm than it does good. If we truly want to improve the education system in the U.S., I would strongly recommend that we do not start with carelessly taking money away from our traditional public schools.

Re-Segregation of American Schools

It is not the intention of charter schools to move American education back to segregation, but that is precisely what seems to be happening. Segregation in the traditional public education system has long been a topic of discussion. Segregation in charter schools, however, has not been looked at closely enough.

As part of the University of California at Los Angeles’s Civil Rights Project charter schools were examined as a driver of re-segregation in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina. In this particular case study, there were two key conclusions regarding segregation and charter schools.  

“First, the departure of some middle-class, white, Asian, or academically proficient students from traditional public schools for charters makes it more difficult to create integrated schools. Second, charters indirectly undermine desegregation when district policy makers implement a politically palatable plan that does little to address segregation because they are fearful that a more vigorous pursuit of diversity in pupil assignment plans will trigger flight to charters.”

This is not to say that all or even the majority of charter schools are segregated, but charter schools do leave open the possibility of re-segregation to a certain extent. This should be a cause of concern for all Americans. Charter schools may have the capability to successfully develop the best and brightest young minds of America’s youth, but it all means nothing if it cannot be done together.  

At a time when diversity is more important than ever in the U.S., we need to ensure that we eliminate any obstructions to the integration of all students. It is possible that an improved charter school system could disallow the possibility for this movement. Until that happens, I believe that improving upon the current public school system is the best way to maintain diversity with American schools.

Courtesy of Getty Images.

Creating an American education system based on individual choices may seem like the best option remaining for American students, but this is not the case. In fact, I think it is an extremely dangerous thing to do. If we do completely switch to a system such as this, it will allow for even further exclusion of certain students in the U.S..

Therefore, we need to look for ways to improve the current public education system. Attempting to defund traditional public schools in order to grow the charter school system will only set American education back further.  

Photo courtesy of WBUR.

Keelon has recently performed at venues in downtown Kansas City and even appeared at an audition for “American Idol”. He identifies as an R&B, Alternative Acoustic, Blues and Jazz artist.

The Hilltop Monitor: How did you get into music?

Vann: I can’t remember a day in my life without music. It has always been something important in my family and I guess I am sort of carrying on the tradition. My Granddad was a part of a music group so he used to sing around me all the time. I really think that helped me grow the love I have for music that I have today.

Even though I have always been exposed to music, I didn’t actually pick up the guitar or lay my fingers on the keys of a piano until my junior year of high school. In that respect I guess I started a little late, but I have been obsessed ever since.

The Hilltop Monitor: What does music mean to you?

Vann: It is such a big part of my life that I often find myself doing things like obnoxiously singing at football practices and just singing at random times during the day. It is hard for me to not be thinking about music.

To me, music is something that soothes the soul. It is less of a hobby for me and more of a way of life.

The Hilltop Monitor: What are some things you have been working on lately?

Vann: Recently, I made huge strides in my pursuit of music. This past summer, I was able to tour both England and Scotland with the William Jewell Concert choir. This trip was a tremendous experience for me because it allowed me to perform with the choir and be exposed to an entirely new culture. It really gave me a new sense of perspective and allowed me to reshape my own music by admiring the styles of others.

At the moment, my new project is releasing my EP, consisting of a set few original songs that I’ve written recently.

I am also still working to teach myself how to play the guitar and the piano. I am very happy with where I am now, but I want to keep on working hard to be as good as I can be.

The Hilltop Monitor: What are some of your recent accomplishments?

Vann: Not too long ago, I performed live at a venue in downtown Kansas City and also auditioned for “American Idol” early this fall. Although I wasn’t given a ticket to advance to the preliminary audition trials, KMBC 9 News interviewed me while I was in line for the auditions and filmed a little bit of the piece I was going to perform for the judges.

According to my mom, Juanita Moten, the station contacted her the day after my audition and asked her for all sorts of videos of me performing throughout my life. Apparently they are interested in doing some sort of story on me soon.

The Hilltop Monitor: How do you feel about your recent success?

Vann: It is just nice to know that all of the hard work and passion I have put into music is starting to pay off. It really is something special to be able to pursue something I am so passionate about. I have a great opportunity ahead of me and I can’t wait to see what is in store.

Photos courtesy of: Keelon Vann