Banking on the Future
By Kendra Hamilton

NEW YORK

On a snowy day back in February, during its annual African American History Month assembly, the very best of the "Bank Street way" was on display.There's no "star system" at the Bank Street School for Children — every class has its moment, every child his or her say — so that meant the stage was as crowded with children as the hall was with parents, watching their sons and daughters singing songs about human rights, talking about the "Letter from the Birmingham Jail" and reading letters of their own — to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

In fluting, childish voices, they spoke of their compassion for the poor and homeless, for gay families, for Muslims facing the post-9/11 backlash. And they spoke about their dreams:

"Dear Dr. King," said Jeremy, age 8, "I see wars all over the world. Now they have much more dangerous weapons. People are still bombing. People are still murdering. I hope none of these things happen in the future. I hope there will be no more killing … no more enemies, no more separation."

The assembly was a classic Bank Street moment, a showcase for the magic that can be made when children and teachers become partners in education. But the burning question being asked by observers across the nation is this: Can Bank Street put its magic in a bottle?

That is to say, can the Bank Street formula — perfected at a progressive, private, independent school located in one of the most exciting cities in the world and affiliated with its very own graduate school of education — be used to "save" failing schools plagued by crumbling infrastructure, tumbling test scores and persistent achievement gaps?

Dr. Augusta "Gussie" Kappner, president of the Bank Street College of Education, is sure that it can. Dr. Reuel "Rudy" Jordan, principal of the Bank Street School for Children, emphatically agrees. And Carnegie Corporation of New York is putting up $5 million to find out, according to Dr. Daniel Fallon, chairman of Carnegie's education division.