Category: APPS Reports on the Board of Ed

Ears on the Board of Education: May 28, 2020

By Diane Payne

The Board held its sixth remote Action meeting on May 28 as the Covid-19 crisis continues to necessitate quarantine. The Board has taken a Shock Doctrine approach to leadership by arbitrarily, without explanation, changing the procedures for public speaking. These changes, obviously,  have no bearing on public safety.  In violation of its own policy, one approved by unanimous vote only 6 months ago, the Board has whittled down the public’s three minutes of speaking time to two. In another violation, the Board allowed only three speakers on a topic. The policy allows for four.  At the November 2019 Policy Committee meeting,  APPS co-founder Lisa Haver objected to the Board’s proposal to eliminate the public speakers’ provision of the meeting policy.  Her concern was that it would leave this important public process subject to capricious changes at the whim of the Board. Unfortunately,  Haver’s fears were prescient.  Again, there is no health and safety reason for reducing the number of public speakers.  APPS calls on the Board to cease violating its own policy and reinstate the public’s full three minutes to speak and the number of speakers on topics back to four.  

Board Officers Elected

The Board is operating with only eight members as Mayor Kenney has not replaced Chris McGinley.  For some reason, Mayor Kenney has said that his Nominating Panel must reconvene even though this panel submitted names of 27 candidates just months ago.  It is unclear why the panel must start all over.  The Board elected officers at this first meeting of the new term. Joyce Wilkerson was re-elected President, Leticia Egea-Hinton elected Vice-President.  The Mayor’s replacement for Wayne Walker, Akeem Akbar, participated in his first full Action Meeting.  The remaining Board members: Julia Danzy, Mallory Fix Lopez, Lee Huang, Maria McColgan, and Angela McIver were also all present for this remote platform meeting. Student representatives Imere Williamson and Doha Abrahim also attended. 

Minutes of the April meeting were approved.  

Seven APPS members spoke in defense of public education at this meeting; one member submitted written testimony.  This testimony can be viewed on the APPS website  

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Defenders of Public Eduation speak before the BOE, May 28, 2020

Click on an individual’s name to read a transcript of their testimony.

Deborah Grill

Lisa Haver

Karel Kilimnik

Barbara McDowell Dowdall

Diane Payne

Ilene Poses

Zoe Rooney

Linda Rubin

Joint Board Committee Meeting: May 14, 2020

By Diane Payne and Lisa Haver

Student Achievement Committee

Present via video:  All members of the Student Achievement Committee were present for this remote meeting: Co-Chair Angela McIver;  members Julia Danzy, Mallory Fix Lopez, and Maria McColgan. District Chief of Staff Naomi Wyatt gave a presentation. District Counsel Lynn Rauch attended via phone. McIver read an objection to the proceeding under the PA Sunshine Act raised by community member Michael Burke. McIver did not specify which part of the Act Burke was citing, but she stated that the written objection would be part of the official record and further noted that the Board’s position is that following the State health guidelines does not constitute a violation.  The Committee approved the Minutes from the April 23 joint Student Achievement and Finance and Facilities April committee meeting.  Four Members of APPS testified in defense of public education.  All Board Committee Meetings can be viewed on the Board website and meeting materials and agendas can be viewed on the Board Meeting Material page.

Staff Reports on Online Learning, Enforcement of Policy 252

Wyatt narrated a presentation on the Continuity of Education plan.  This Power-Point included information on distributed chromebooks, internet access, student participation in online learning, and efforts to locate and engage students not yet participating.  Wyatt stated that the District is working with City officials, including the Department of Human Services, to locate students who have had no school contact throughout the school closure in order to assure their well-being and attempt to re-engage them.

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Ears on the Board of Education: April 30, 2020

by Diane Payne

April brought the Board’s second remote Action Meeting.  There were moments of technical difficulty which took several tries to fix–a reminder of how difficult online learning is for everyone involved.  Online learning is the mask we need during this crisis. It is not the cure.

Tributes to Resigning Board Members

All nine Board members attended, as did the two student representatives and Superintendent Hite.  Minutes of the March Action Meeting were approved. President Joyce Wilkerson opened her remarks with a notice that Action Item 62 had been added to the agenda the day before. This Item calls on the state and federal governments to maintain school funding and not to use the Covid-19 crisis as justification for slashing funding to schools that have suffered for years from inadequate funding.  Per the 2016 legal settlement between APPS and the District regarding walk-on Items, anyone who wished to speak was invited to sign up before the voting began via email or phone. Wilkerson thanked the District’s principals in recognition of the May 1 Principal Appreciation Day, and she thanked teachers in anticipation of Teacher Appreciation Day the following week.  She noted the Board would appear at City Council hearings as Board of Education candidates on Friday, May 1. Wilkerson bid farewell to Wayne Walker and Chris McGinley, both attending their last meeting as Board members. Maria McColgan read a tribute to Walker, and Angela McIver read one to McGinley.  Both Walker and McGinley thanked the Board members and the public they served.   Wilkerson concluded her remarks by urging members of  the public to join the Board in advocating for all levels of government to maintain school funding.

[Video of this meeting can be viewed on the District website.  Agendas and PowerPoints can also be viewed by going to the Board’s meeting materials page.]

Seven members of APPS spoke in defense of public education.  Remarks can be viewed on the APPS website.   Several members of the East Falls community returned to testify against a proposal to allow Laboratory Charter School to move into that neighborhood.

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