A monopoly meets market demand

Monopoly meets the real world.
(Photo by Mike Fleming)

Public-school systems are notoriously insensitive to parental demands. When they do offer popular programs that parents want, they are often oversubscribed—and yet officials almost never take the obvious next step and expand or replicate the offering. Not so in St. Louis. In response to swollen market demand for its standout magnet school, Kennard Classical Junior High, the district has created a second magnet school—by transforming an undersubscribed school slated for closure. Mallinckrot Academy—and its gifted-education program—are meant “to capitalize on the demand for accelerated learning that Kennard alone cannot satisfy.” These programs, which are largely geared toward middle-class families, are designed to keep these folks (and their tax-base dollars) within city limits. Which, in Gadfly’s view, is a worthy goal. Other struggling urban districts would be wise to follow suit.