Birmingham Promise Program (Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, Hoover: schools, live in, moving)

[GotLuv4Bham]

This will be huge for both the school system, and the city of Birmingham! It will definitely draw families from other metro cities.

[jero23]

Originally Posted by mcalumni01

Ain't no election. He was just elected in october 2017. No politicial stunt or whatever you people think this might be. Why is it that the mayor of birmingham can't do things to help the kids for the city. It's just freaking amazing how this is getting people feelings all in a twine. We ask for solutions to problems and he is trying to do something about it and people think he is doing it for some personal reason.

Cherokee48, some people, huh

This type of thinking is what irks the hell out of me about some of the whiners in Birmingham. This is why Birmingham leadership should be doing everything in its power to bring in more outsiders (i.e. non-natives Alabamians) to the City to dilute and significantly diminish this nihilist mantra that has stagnated the City when it should be prospering to point of low-grade explosive growth (economic and population). Woodfin has done what Kincaid, Langford, and Bell have failed to do in the past 18 years that is make major strides to push Birmingham forward to the next level. Birmingham can do this initiative, assist in the expansion of the BJCC, improve and repair infrastructure, and retain, expand, and attract even more sustainable economic development all at the same time. I have chosen to shut down with facts and dismiss that moronic way of thinking the same way they attempt to dismiss progress and good things. Those that don't want Birmingham to change and improve can move to anywhere in rural South Alabama where continuous population loss of those educated and lower quality of life are the main trends.

[jero23]

Originally Posted by GotLuv4Bham

This will be huge for both the school system, and the city of Birmingham! It will definitely draw families from other metro cities.

More so to outsiders from who don't even live in the region or state at all.

[MinivanDriver]

Originally Posted by mcalumni01

Any questions....here is your answer..

https://www.al.com/news/2019/08/what...e-promise.html

Thanks for that. Now that I understand it better, there are some important built-in benchmarks to hit.



The proof will be in the doing. If the program succeeds as design it does confer a couple of benefits: 1) It keeps kids in the Birmingham city school system and 2) It provides valuable education and skills training. To me, it will more likely be the skills training that will have real value, given the absolute need for skills training to continue economic development.



The risks are pretty obvious. First, that of mission creep. It really needs to remain adhered to its original charter to succeed. Second, the school system has to step up in terms of helping kids succeed.


That being said, it's a gutsy, creative attempt to resolve a long-festering sore in the area, one that has been an obstacle for so many people in our area.

[Mississippi Alabama Line]

I don't see the issue with this as long as the funds are there. Perhaps some of the schools will improve as well, and some people will move back inside the city limits from the suburbs. This will certainly help create a workforce in Birmingham.

Whether public school is failing is a different matter from this altogether. For many kids in Birmingham, public schools are the only way out.

[Mississippi Alabama Line]

Originally Posted by MinivanDriver

That being said, it's a gutsy, creative attempt to resolve a long-festering sore in the area, one that has been an obstacle for so many people in our area.

Exactly. He's doing SOMETHING. May not work, and it may be corrupted, but it's something.

[GotLuv4Bham]

The other great thing about this is that it will attract the type of families that value a college education. Mayor Woodfin is definitely a breath of fresh air for the city of Birmingham! He actually goes out of his way to be transparent about everything. People in this city need to stop being so pessimistic about everything.

[mcalumni01]

The majority of people who has so many questions and thinking why he doing this is those outside the city limits. People have become use to birmingham being what they think it was a long time ago. People HATE a change. When someone does something out the ordinary, especially in this state, it's wrong. A young black mayor of the most populated black city in alabama trying to do right not only for kids, but for everyone residing there, get blacklash after backlash on everything he tries to do. Have this been any other city in this state, there would have been nothing but praise.

It really is a sad time we live in where this man is trying to improve the situation of education pretaining to students from BCS and people got the nerves to think it's not quite the right way...? By the way, there are also other races of children that attend BCS and this will also help them too...

[steveklein]

Originally Posted by mcalumni01

The majority of people who has so many questions and thinking why he doing this is those outside the city limits. People have become use to birmingham being what they think it was a long time ago. People HATE a change. When someone does something out the ordinary, especially in this state, it's wrong. A young black mayor of the most populated black city in alabama trying to do right not only for kids, but for everyone residing there, get blacklash after backlash on everything he tries to do. Have this been any other city in this state, there would have been nothing but praise.

It really is a sad time we live in where this man is trying to improve the situation of education pretaining to students from BCS and people got the nerves to think it's not quite the right way...? By the way, there are also other races of children that attend BCS and this will also help them too...

I'm not seeing all this backlash... except maybe from the way the initial message was delivered. Once we realized it wasn't really "free college for all" and that it was just primarily the hopes that the private sector will fund this, then it did two things:

1) made sense
2) tempered the idea that this was revolutionary; it's more of a step in the right direction than some magic elixir that the clickbait headlines may have implied.

A lot of people are going on the defensive for the mayor for all the wrong reasons. I suspect the majority of people like the overall message but may feel a bit bait and switched after reading the mayor's tweet. I know those are my feelings, and I suspect I'm not alone.

[RocketDawg]

Originally Posted by mcalumni01

Ain't no election. He was just elected in october 2017. No politicial stunt or whatever you people think this might be. Why is it that the mayor of birmingham can't do things to help the kids for the city. It's just freaking amazing how this is getting people feelings all in a twine. We ask for solutions to problems and he is trying to do something about it and people think he is doing it for some personal reason.

Cherokee48, some people, huh

You people?? What does that mean? Asking if something is a political move is certainly legitimate in any situation when it involves politicians.

B'ham can do what they want as long as they pay for it. I couldn't care less. Just saying free tuition isn't the last expense of a college education ... it's a good start for sure, but not the total package.

I would not even know who Woodfin is if I'd not seen his name here on the forum. Wouldn't know him if he walked in the door right now.