Pipeline is a Devastating Indictment of Our Educational System

Is it the "kids these days" ... or is it the grownups? 

Photo courtesy of Penumbra. 

What would you do to give your child the best chance in life?

Would you move to a new city? Pay for a private school education? Work extra shifts so you can afford to enroll them in extracurriculars? Leave an abusive or destructive relationship to model a safer, happier life?  Engage them in social activism?

There are a lot of things parents try to give their kids a leg up, but the truth is that a lot of a child's success has to do with kids themselves and variables outside of a parents' control. Some children thrive in a traditional academic environment and others need a more abstract, hands-on approach (helloooo Montessori). Some are self starters and others need firmer guidance. Some are social butterflies and some thrive when they're on their own.

So what do you do if your kid is "othered"? What do you do if your kid is underfunded? What do you do if your kid is unseen, or even worse, is seen as the "only" of their kind?

Those are some of the questions asked in the recently closed play Pipeline at Penumbra Theatre Company. I am not sure how I missed the opening in early October, but I sorely regret seeing it so late in the run (and therefore being unable to spread the word to others). A new script penned by up and coming theatrical darling Dominique Morisseau, Pipeline examines what happens to kids presented with a fraught educational dichotomy: attend an underfunded, underperforming, sometimes dangerous school where the student body looks like you; or move away from your community to attend a more elite institution where you will never quite be like the other students.

It's a much harder dilemma to solve than one might think, and it was powerfully and emotionally portrayed here by Kory Pullam as the title character Omari, a teen student at an elite school who runs away after a confrontation with a teacher. His mother Nya, a teacher herself (played movingly by Erika LaVonn), has been raising Omari on her own for several years and has no idea how to find or help him. It's not the first disciplinary action he's incurred at the school. Nya would like to have him attend the school she teaches at despite its flaws, but Omari's father Xavier (I saw understudy AJ Friday at my performance, and he played it quite cerebral), who is in a much better economic situation, patently disagrees. Orbiting this molten core are Omari's girlfriend Jasmine (a spot on Kiara Jackson); the security guard Dun who has a secret connection to Nya (a magnetic Darius Dotch); and a very complex white teacher Laurie (strongly portrayed by Melanie Wehrmacher).

Although technically an accessory to the story, Laurie was a very interesting character for me as something of a foil to Omari, despite the fact that they never had scenes together. I come from a long line of public school teachers who have taught in majority-white school populations, and although they love their jobs they universally agree that between shrinking budgets, ignorant administrations and the rapidly changing behavior of students, the profession just ain't what it used to be. I recognized a lot of conversations I've overheard those family members say come through Laurie's mouth (although their observations were much less crude). That said, it's impossible to view Laurie without the lens of her racial power, and you're left consistently uneasy with her actions despite understanding them. On paper is she right? Maybe. But does she really understand what her kids are going through day to day? Is she the best person to be guiding them through some very difficult problems? Does she really know what's best for them? Doubtful.

So what does a mother like Nya tell a son like Omari when he hits a teacher like Laurie? Teens can't be right all the time, after all, and violence isn't a solution to your problems. But was Omari wrong in feeling targeted by his teacher? How does an isolated student adequately protect themselves from a teacher who has the upper hand on race, class, and professional authority? The fact that we can ask such complicated questions is a testament to this dynamic cast, who hit a wide range of tough emotions across the spectrum of the show. This is clearly a story they wanted to tell, deeply and richly, and it showed throughout the performance.

School integration has become an exceedingly hot topic of late, but no one seems to have the answers. Are students of color safe in environments when the vast majority of their teachers and fellow students are mostly white? Do we return to an updated version of "separate but equal"? What if we start integrating white students into schools where they'd be the minority, other than placing the burden on students of color? Perhaps most importantly: what if we stopped tying the quality of a child's education to property values in the neighborhood they happen to live in, and instead paid the same amount to educate all kids regardless of where they live?

These are really hard questions, and their answers matter. The achievement gap between students of color and white students is yawning wider every year, especially in places like Minnesota. I'm not sure that Pipeline provided any answers to the problem, but it did provide a vital context (especially for audience members new to this subject) that moved the problem from the ivory tower directly into our laps. This isn't just a question of improving test scores; it's a failure that can have dire consequences on a child's chance at attending a good college, getting an economically supportive job, buying a home, or even going to jail. I'm grateful for playwrights like Morisseau who insist on focusing our gaze on the plight of students desperately trying to navigate impossible circumstances and the parents and teachers who don't have answers either. I hope we find a more equitable way to educate our children. The world will need all of them if we're going to make it through the next few decades.

Pipeline is sadly closed, but please head to the Penumbra's website anyway (click here) to learn more about their upcoming plays. Penumbra is a consistent local favorite of mine, and their work is vital for telling stories that might otherwise go unheard. And if the subject of school integration, the achievement gap, the school to prison pipeline, and educational justice interests you, please read this excellent Washington Post article about a school system in Ohio currently grappling with this very issue. It's beautifully written and provides further detail about how these problems have been approached and what might work in the future.