Abstract
The hot-button issue of the gaps in achievement in education between white students on the one hand and black and Latino students on the other has multiple aspects: tracking; enrollment in accelerated classes; referral to special education, rates of disciplinary actions; participation in after-school activities. The authors, parents and community members in a school system - Arlington County, Virginia, that has made a commitment to minority achievement, sought a topic for a community forum that looked at the issue holistically and that united the community, as versus emphasizing one symptom or pointing a finger at some students and families. The choice was school climate, a topic that recognizes that students are more likely to succeed when schools encourage, enable, and support them. This phenomenon may have particular effects on minority students, but it is true for all. School climate is the common thread that connects student achievement and community-building.