Notes from the Field
Submitted by Ray Murphy on May 21, 2012
Dear friend,
All of us want Philadelphia to be vibrant. Which is why the current debate over Philadelphia’s schools is so important to Bread & Roses Community Fund stakeholders. But it’s not easy keeping up with all of the details.
Here is a quick summary of what’s going on:
Next week, the School Reform Commission (SRC) will vote on a budget for the School District of Philadelphia which will include a $218 million deficit.1
The School District has made some questionable spending choices in the past. But this year’s multimillion dollar budget gap is largely due to cuts at the state level. And Governor Corbett has proposed even more cuts in education spending, while increasing funds for prisons.
In the midst of this budget crisis, a few weeks ago, the SRC announced a plan to:2
- increase enrollment at charter schools to 40%
- close 64 schools in the next five years
- divide the remaining schools into independent networks to be run by private operators
This plan will not necessarily save the school district money. Nor does it address the lack of equity in public school funding. And it may cost teachers and other school staff their jobs.3
However, the SRC has presented the details of its plan to City Council in the hopes that they will chip in almost $100 million to help close the budget hole. This would require City Council to raise property taxes by changing the way they are calculated.
Whew. There are a lot of details to sort through. But the bottom line is that Philadelphia is about to make a huge decision about how our children are educated and what our future looks like.
Educators, parents, students and community members–like you and I–all agree that something has to give. But is the SRC’s plan the right way to improve the quality of public education in Philadelphia?
A community meeting has been organized by education reform advocates. And there’s a chance that at least one SRC commissioner will be there. The meeting is your chance to learn more about the budget deficit and the SRC’s plan for city schools. Can you make it?
http://www.eventbrite.com/event/3526599153
Education Emergency Community Meeting
Tuesday May 22, 6:30 PM
Bright Hope Baptist Church
12th and Cecil B. Moore
It’s obvious change is needed, but the parents, teachers, support staff and community members represented by the groups Bread & Roses funds have a lot of questions about the plan that the School Reform Commission (SRC) has proposed.
For one thing, it is not clear what their plan to transform the school district has to do with a budget crisis that is largely due to cuts at the state level.
Another question that has been raised is how basic and proven education reform techniques–like reducing class size, providing more classroom assistants, improving principal and teacher trainings–fit into the SRC’s plan.
And there is the reality of poverty. The low literacy rate among Philadelphia adults, a lack of family-sustaining jobs, rising housing costs, a lack of access to healthy food and much more create a lot of pressure for low-income parents.4 And this pressure can make it tough for parents to get as involved in their child’s school as they might like.
The current SRC includes many friendly faces to people who support social justice. And SRC members are dealing with difficult budget decisions. However, now is the time to ask questions about a very big plan to transform education in our city.
We can all work together to create an education system that offers all Philadelphians a chance to succeed. But it can only happen if we all weigh in. Please consider coming out to the town hall meeting tomorrow night .
Yours truly,
Ray Murphy
director of communications & online strategy
P.S. Please forward this email to get your friends and family up-to-speed on the education issue.