Public and private schools don’t need to be at odds. They can work together to help children.
That’s the message Latrina Peters-Gipson, the principal of St. Andrew Catholic School, is sending ahead of today’s presidential visit.
From her column in this morning’s Orlando Sentinel:
Education politics are sometimes divisive these days, but the reason I’m excited to welcome President Trump to our Orlando school on Friday is that what we do ought to bring us all together.
At St. Andrew Catholic School, a fixture in the Pine Hills neighborhood for more than a half-century, we believe that every child has the God-given ability to succeed in life. We also participate in a state scholarship program that opens our doors to students whose families couldn’t otherwise afford it. To that end, we see ourselves as partners with public schools in a shared commitment to lift every child to a life that offers better opportunities.
Gipson herself has a compelling story. She’s a product of Catholic Schools herself, raised in New Orleans. She fell in love with early childhood education while volunteering in classrooms as a student at Southern University at New Orleans.
She lost everything when Hurricane Katrina struck the city, weeks into her first full-fledged teaching job. She and her family came to Orlando, where she volunteered, taught and eventually rose to administrative positions at Orlando-area Catholic schools, and has been principal St. Andrew since February 2015.
If only more partisans in the school choice debate shared her ecumenical outlook.
