What’s happening on the District’s facilities management plan
Parents United for Public Education has won its state Right To Know request to gain public access to the list of 60 schools identified by the Boston Consulting Group for closure and to the firm’s criteria for school closings – a request for information the District has consistently denied to the public. Last spring, the Boston Consulting Group … Continue reading »
On December 13, 2012, the School District of Philadelphia recommended 37 schools for closure. There were impassioned pleas and hard-worked proposals. There were well-written reports of community input. There was anger. There were tears. There were rallies, chants and marches. There was organization, mobilization and solidarity. And then the School Reform Commission voted to close … Continue reading »
History is not made only by those with titles and power. It is defined and understood through the heroic actions of many. During the school closings process, PCAPS, the Notebook, and parents at schools like Taylor and McCloskey which successfully staved off their proposed closings, rallied to the cause with plenty of action. Here are a … Continue reading »
After last week’s vote in the School Reform Commission, which closed down 23 schools in Philadelphia creating education deserts in communities already suffering from public disinvestment, I went home, turned out the lights and buried my head under the covers. The past week has felt like a collective sense of mourning for our schools and … Continue reading »
Mayor Nutter didn’t come out the front door of his office in City Hall last night. I’m sure mayors have good reason to have alternate exit routes available, and it may be that he uses that other door regularly, rather than just yesterday. I’m not sure, since I’m not in the habit of sitting outside … Continue reading »
(This post is being updated regularly as new information unfolds) Read the complete list of school closings here. This afternoon the district will announce the closing and consolidation of dozens of schools listed above, setting in motion a year of turmoil and uncertainty for thousands of families across the District. We are deeply concerned about the … Continue reading »
In anticipation of tomorrow’s announcement of dozens of school closings, Parents United for Public Education posted this statement. We will be attending the PCAPS rally at the School District, 440 N. Broad Street, tomorrow at 4 p.m. The District will announce the school closings list at a 2 p.m. press conference. Parents United statement on … Continue reading »
Yesterday, Parents United for Public Education, the Philadelphia Home and School Council and the Philadelphia chapter of the NAACP filed a complaint with the City Ethics Board requesting an investigation into whether the Boston Consulting Group, private donors, and the William Penn Foundation acted as lobbyists and principals to influence policy in the School District … Continue reading »
Jeremy Nowak is out as president of the William Penn Foundation. In light of his abrupt departure, deeper questions emerge about the role the foundation played under his tenure. For months, Parents United for Public Education has raised questions about the Foundation’s role in funding and directing the work of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Two … Continue reading »
For months, public and district officials have claimed that school closings are necessary if we’re going to address our fiscal crisis. After all, the District has threatened to close anywhere between 29-57 schools this year alone to close the financial hole. But do school closings actually save the District money? Continue reading »
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