Notes from the Field
Submitted by Frank Murphy on August 23, 2011
The nearly constant controversy Arlene Ackerman generated during her tenure here has been an unwelcomed distraction to important issues facing the District. During Ackerman’s time in Philadelphia, the local media has published numerous stories regarding the missteps of this beleaguered school leader. Ackerman’s story, which started out with great expectations for meaningful and much needed reform in the Philadelphia School District, has since degenerated into a melodrama nearly impossible to ignore. And while the spotlight of public scrutiny had been intensely focused on her shortcomings, other matters of importance have slipped into shadowy obscurity.
As we approach the start of new school year, it is time to clear our heads of the media daze surrounding the final days of Arlene Ackerman in Philadelphia. There are important issues that require our attention. One in particular, how to deal with excess school facility space, will no doubt generate a great deal of controversy. The Notebook published the district’s confidential master facilities report, which suggested 84 possible action steps that could be taken in order to right size district facilities. Preliminary information suggests that up to 50 neighborhood schools will be closed in the near future. Should these closings become an eventuality, they will have a far greater impact on the future of the School District of Philadelphia than the departure of our current superintendent of schools.
It is time to get back on track with the management of our local school district. As the Ackerman era finally draws to an end, the responsibility for successfully opening our schools in September is now in the hands of Leroy Nunery, Ackerman’s second in command. The School Reform Commission has appointed him as the interim superintendent while a national search for Ackerman’s successor is conducted. His first order of business is to assure that every classroom in every school has an appointed teacher assigned to it. This will be a daunting challenge in face of the massive confusion initiated by recent budget reductions resulting in massive teacher lay offs and reassignments. The handling of this complex teacher assignment issue will serve as an immediate test of his leadership skills.
Nunnery also needs to identify and hire a Chief Academic Officer. The individual he chooses should be an educator who understands how to address in a variety of ways, the wide range of instructional needs of the Philadelphia School District’s student population. The new CAO should be someone who comes from the local Philadelphia area education community. This individual should be familiar with the history and strengths of the district organization and be willing to create a district-wide instructional plan that builds on inherent strengths, rather than attempting to dismantle and build anew. This will involve returning to those proven instructional programs and strategies that address the unique needs of individual schools. It will also necessitate restoring honor and respect to the teacher professionals who staff our school communities.
Closely following the opening of schools will be the anticipated October release of Mr. Nunnery’s five-year facility master plan. He has been the school district official who has been most closely associated with this facility planning process, which will undoubtedly serve as the basis for any recommendations regarding the shuttering of neighborhood schools.
As the district moves forward with its efforts to deal with excess building capacity, any decisions made related to this matter will squarely fall on Nunnery’s shoulders. The course of action he proposes to the School Reform Commission regarding how they should proceed on school closings will be the first sign as to whether the heavy-handed autocratic management era of the Ackerman regime has truly come to an end. It will also present an opportunity for the members of the SRC to demonstrate that they will no longer act merely as a rubber stamp for the district’s chief administrator.
When the recommendations outlined in the facilities master plan are put forward for public review and comment, hopefully it will be done in a democratic and inclusive manner. How this process is handled will offer a clear picture of how the eventual search for a new superintendent will take place.
Both of these activities should be conducted in a transparent manner. The process should be one that provides multiple opportunities for public input and ultimately heeds the voices of the people of our community in deciding the fate of our school system.
If this does come to pass, we can finally say that a new day has dawned in the School District of Philadelphia.