In 2000-2001, only 13 of 43 students remained in their mandatorily assigned school; the year before that none of 41 did; and two years ago only one of 31 did.

The rest left the system or placed themselves on waiting lists.

But School Committee member Alfred B. Fantini challenged the 30 percent number, asserting that the number was more like 15 percent.

Cambridge City Councillor Kenneth E. Reeves ’72, who was in the audience, questioned whether it was important to focus on students and parents who would be upset by a mandatory assignment.

“Are we spending too much time thinking about kids who might be leaving and not enough time thinking about kids who graduate and don’t read?” he asked.

Reeves called for a reconsideration of neighborhood schools, a concept that School Committee member Joseph G. Grassi re-proposed later at the hearing.

Reeves, talking a good deal longer than the allotted three minutes, at one point compared the new controlled choice plan to “rearranging chairs on the Titanic.”

But most said they think the plan is well-intentioned.

“Cambridge tries so hard to achieve diversity,” Prueser said. “It’s not a catch word around here.”

—Staff writer Zachary R. Heineman can be reached at heineman@fas.harvard.edu.