Long Beach Polytechnic High

Those of us in the Long Beach community have long been aware of the excellent reputation and record Long Beach Polytechnic High School has in graduating academically and athletically gifted students (March 26). When you funnel the best (and fastest) students from a city of 400,000 into one program, you are bound to get great results.

But a chain should be judged by its weakest link, not its strongest. And in Poly’s case, the weakest link represents 60%-70% of the student body. How about a Part II on how well the school does with the average student.

Those of us in the community know many stories of gifted students who did well in the Poly environment. I suspect those students would do well anywhere. Of greater concern to parents of average children is how these kids do at Poly, or any other school for that matter?

Rather than telling me that 66 students at Poly were accepted into UCLA, tell me how many of their classmates didn’t graduate. Or did graduate but can’t read or write at high school level. It is a much greater testament to the school if, in fact, they take average children and turn them into “scholars and champions.”

I believe the entire magnet and “gifted” program in Long Beach and throughout the state should be examined. How much of our precious resources are spent educating the top achievers?

TIM LINDEN, Long Beach