Mount Pleasant School on AC 360

CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 to Film at Mt. Pleasant School


First graders will be interviewed Jan. 11 and Jan. 25 in special segment on race in America

By Karen Yi


Mount Pleasant Elementary School in West Orange is about to be put on the map. The school is one of six throughout the country that was selected to be featured in a special series on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360.

The series will focus on race through the eyes of children. Fifteen African-American first graders will be interviewed Jan. 11 and 15 Caucasian first graders will be interviewed on Jan. 25. The children were randomly chosen.

"I'm thrilled," said Mt. Pleasant Principal Michael Schiavo. "They did their research, they went to the department of education and picked our school."

Schiavo said the school boasts similar achievement levels for both Caucasian and African-American students — one of the reasons the school was among the lucky participants.

"There is not much disparity here," he said.

Roughly 41 percent of Mt. Pleasant students are African-American and 31 percent are Caucasian.

Soledad O'Brien or Anderson Cooper himself may be visiting the school tomorrow along with Dr. Melanie Killen, the segment's child development expert and a professor at the University of Maryland.

CNN Producer Chuck Hadad will also be present and crews will arrive at 7 a.m. to set up.

Parents were given release forms for their children and the option of not participating, Schiavo said. Packets of information and a letter by the principal was also sent out to the parents.

Each child will be interviewed individually for 15 minutes.

Though the students will not be prepped specifically for their interviews, Schiavo said teachers have explained the show and handed out full biographies of Cooper and Killen. "The kids are so excited," he said.