School Tours | A Simplified Guide to Investing in Our Schools

Choosing which school to send your child to can be a complicated process. Depending on where you live, your options may include private, charter or public schools, but many parents in Kansas City aren’t aware of the options available to them or how to find helpful information to make the best decision for their child.

With that in mind, Show Me KC Schools, a nonprofit that gives families to tools to find the best school fit for them and Kansas City Great Schools, a grassroots organization to help the community invest in its schools, joined forces to create School Tours KC last summer. This effort is inspired by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s Great Schools Visits, where participants travel to high-performing schools across the country in an effort to better improve schools here at home.

On April 19, a group of 25 community stakeholders participated in the School Tours KC April tour. They learned about Kansas City’s educational history and got a peek at some of the educational options available and opportunities for future investment. Before being shuttled off to tour each school, participants were encouraged by Show Me leaders to follow a simple guide: be open-minded, ask questions, engage in conversation and focus on the positives of each school.

“We hear a lot about what’s going on in our schools, and I’m sure a fraction of it is true,” said Rachel Siegel, a participant who recently moved to Kansas City from the San Francisco Bay area. “I think [the tour] will be a great opportunity for me to learn about the educational landscape for myself.”

Participants toured two charter schools and two public schools in the Kansas City Public School District: Crossroads Academy, The Ewing Marion Kauffman School, Lincoln College Preparatory Academy and Troost Elementary, respectively.

Lincoln College Preparatory Academy

• Grades Served: 6 -12

• Type of School: Kansas City Public School – Signature School

• Enrollment & Demographics: 960 Students: 49.5 percent black; 12.3 percent white; 30.5 percent Hispanic/Latino; 6 percent Asian; 1.4 percent two or more races

Crossroads Academy

• Grades Served: K-8

• Type of School: Charter

• Enrollment & Demographics: 570 students: 40.7 percent black; 37.3 percent white; 19 percent Hispanic/Latino; 2 percent Asian

The Ewing Marion Kauffman School

• Grades Served: 5-10

• Type of School: Charter

• Enrollment & Demographics:730 students: 78 percent black; 4 percent white; 12 percent Hispanic/Latino; 4 percent Asian; 2% 2 or more races

Troost Elementary

• Grades Served: Pre-K-6

• Type of School: KCPS-Neighborhood School

• Enrollment & Demographics: 233 Students: 92.3 percent black; 2.1 percent white; 1.3 percent Latino; 3.4 percent 2 or more races; .04 percent Indian

  — Follow “Take Note: Our City. Our Schools. Our Future” as together, we tell the stories that matter, the stories that make an impact. We want to know — what stories do you have for us, and what can we find out for you? Email us at contact@takenotekc.org and follow the entire project at takenotekc.org.