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Webster School Board Votes Yes On Urban-Suburban

Leaders hope new guidelines will help give opportunities to more students.
Leaders hope new guidelines will help give opportunities to more students.

The Webster School District will implement the Urban-Suburban program next school year.

The program allows poor city students to attend schools in the suburbs for free. It has traditionally been available only to minority students but is being amended to include white students who meet certain income guidelines.

The school board voted unanimously in favor of the program.

Superintendent Carmen Gumina says it was a 14 month process that started with engaging other school leaders who have been involved in the program for a while.

"We gathered their feedback, and talked to our parents through PTSA, and it just makes so much sense on so many levels."

Gumina says he's excited about how this will affect his students, and what opportunities it will afford them.

"That increased diversity, the ability to share experiences and compare experiences... We're really excited to start next September."

Urban-Suburban is over fifty years old. Webster is the 13th district to adopt the program.

Veronica Volk is a senior editor and producer for WXXI News.