The reputation of the city in which a university is located can be as important as the reputation of the university itself. A Georgetown University located in a dilapidated capital known worldwide for its crime and bureaucratic nepotism is a far cry from a Georgetown University located in a safe, stable city.
There is some good news. Washington, D.C. is developing economically. Earlier this week, independent auditors gave the District a clean bill of financial health for fiscal year 2001. The District has run a budget surplus for the past four years, but this is the first surplus since the control board, a committee appointed by the president to manage the city, relinquished its budgetary control last September, and the Mayor reassumed day-to-day control over the city.
Still, the District has a lot to do, especially with education. Standardized test scores are dismally low. In 2000, students at D.C. public schools averaged a combined SAT score of 822, almost 200 points below the national average. Furthermore, only 28 percent of 11th grade students demonstrated a knowledge of basic math skills contained in Stanford Achievement Tests. These tests determine whether students are satisfying basic curriculum requirements. Public schools District-wide are are badly in need of assistance, and investing in public education is essential to building a strong economic base and a safe, vibrant city.
To their credit, Mayor Anthony Williams, the D.C. City Council and the D.C. Board of Education have worked hard to keep the public schools and the rest of the city operating efficiently. Schools have had few major budget mishaps, and when funding problems threatened to shorten the school year by seven days, city government pulled money from the District’s cash reserves to make up the difference. But simply keeping schools running isn’t enough. The real goal should be effective education, not efficient operation.
A better educated city means that District citizens are better equipped to deal with its problems. Students at Georgetown might feel immune from District education problems, but the District problems are still our problems. Georgetown students and the University should support expanded funding for the D.C. schools.
