NAACP angered by Paige visit

By Emily Richmond (contact)

Friday, May 3, 2002 | 11:09 a.m.

The Las Vegas reorganization committee of the NAACP claims a visit by Education Secretary Ron Paige unfairly excluded black students and was orchestrated solely for the benefit of Clark County's Hispanic community.

Kevin Tate, interim chairman of the local committee of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said he learned of Paige's town hall meeting in North Las Vegas April 17 only after the event occurred.

Clark County schools Superintendent Carlos Garcia should have done more to ensure the entire community -- not just one segment of the population -- was given the opportunity to hear Paige talk about education reform, Tate said.

While members of the School Board and Garcia did attend the event, it was organized by Paige's office, a School District spokeswoman said this morning. In fact, school officials say they were notified of Paige's impending visit just a few days before the event.

Kathleen Mynster, spokeswoman for the Education Department, said Rancho High School was selected as the site of the event because of its high population of disadvantaged students. Notices of the event were sent home with Rancho students as well as with students at surrounding elementary schools, Mynster said.

President Bush's No Child Left Behind Act includes all children regardless of ethnicity, and there have been special outreach efforts to the black community at both the national and local level, Mynster said.

The Las Vegas Valley was the fourth stop on Paige's 25-city nationwide tour promoting the No Child Left Behind Act. The legislation, signed into law in January, seeks tougher standards for public schools, national proficiency exams and more money for teacher training.

Paige, in his speech at Rancho, noted that more Hispanics drop out of high school than any other minority group in the United States, and fewer Hispanics graduate from college. Paige also said that while that evening's town hall was geared toward the Hispanic community, the new legislation would help all students, including blacks.

Paige was accompanied by members of the White House Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans, U.S. Treasurer Rosario Marin and educator Jaime Escalante.

Frank Humphrey, the NAACP national board member who serves as administrator for the local branch, said he plans to investigate whether Paige's visits to other cities also excluded black students.