Remarks to the School Reform Commission and Superintendent    Dr. William Hite   Monday, May 1, 3:00 pm

Wissahickon Charter School

Good afternoon. My apologies for being late to a meeting scheduled late!

I understand that Wissahickon Charter School is to be renewed with conditions.

As a virtual lifetime resident of Southwest Germantown (all but 13 years spent far away in West Central Germantown) and therefore lifelong devotee of our neighborhood park, Fernhill, I would like to offer an additional two conditions:

First, that the school investigate a means for putting their beautifully-installed traffic light on flashing mode for the times when the school is not in session. If truly devoted to study and care for the environment, I am sure the school administration, on reflection, would want to cease its contribution to increasing green=house gases for the many hours through every evening, night and weekends (24 hours a day) when automobiles stopped at the traffic light emit untold units of carbon to neighborhood air that adversely affects both residents and trees.

Second, that the school — so profoundly devoted to community in its founding and operation — take care to check on the date for the annual citywide Love Your Park Saturday, so that they might join with their neighbors for a day of caring and sharing.

And I hope, in addition, that the SRC would in future, provide its own traditional public schools the extensions and conditions for continued operation that charters seem so frequently to enjoy.

Barbara McDowell Dowdall