Ears on the December 17th SRC

SRC 12-17-15 #2

by Diane Payne

December 23, 2015

Search and Seize

December 17th brought another jam packed SRC meeting. It is not unusual for the SRC to change the rules to suit its current agenda, and that is exactly what happened even as people entered the building. Bags of all attendees were searched, but apparently not to prevent dangerous items from being brought in. All food items were confiscated and thrown away. No explanation and no remorse—just into the trash can. No one was warned or advised ahead of time. It didn’t matter that those food items were to sustain members of the public coming right from work, coming with children, or coming with medical issues. Of course, the SRC had no notice posted on its website that food is not permitted. How would anyone know when the SRC members themselves eat and drink in full view?

Charter School Lobby

Present was a large showing of charter school proponents, most there to demand that the SRC hand Wister over to Mastery, who provided dinner and tee shirts.   In fact, the district gave them access to the café inside the building. This sent a clear message to public school parents that the churn and disruption which can rip neighborhoods apart would not only continue but be enabled by the district itself.

Technology Fix

Dr. Hite’s opening remarks praised his administration’s continued influx of technology, which he claims will help our children prepare for college and career. It is hard to understand, though, why the district is using its very limited dollars on more technology rather than make sure all schools have enough teachers, librarians, nurses, and counselors. Could that be because ultimately the plan is to move to a blended learning/computer based model of education? The SRC has already set aside $10 million for these types of unproven programs—ones where our students are stuck in front of computers for hours each day. The district calls substituting a computer screen for a teacher “personalized learning”, but it is really more jargon for “let’s try to educate our children on the cheap.”

Click here to read the rest of the article.

SRC strategy a setup for failure

Lisa Haver with the Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools, reacts after the School Reform Commission voted to cancel the contract with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. October 6, 2014. ( MICHAEL S. WIRTZ / Staff Photographer )
Lisa Haver with the Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools, reacts after the School Reform Commission voted to cancel the contract with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. October 6, 2014. ( MICHAEL S. WIRTZ / Staff Photographer )
Lisa Haver is a co-founder of the Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools
This Op Ed was published by the Philadelphia Daily News on December 21, 2015

Hite’s Action Plan 3.0 has established “specialized networks, each requiring distinct expertise, management, oversight, and resourcing.”
At George Washington High School, an already volatile situation escalated when a teacher was viciously attacked by students earlier this month. In schools across the district, many students have yet to be assigned a full-time teacher. The School Reform Commission approved a $34 million contract to outsource substitutes, and although the year began with an 11 percent fill rate and has yet to exceed 30 percent, the SRC has refused to cancel that contract. A recent Philadelphia Public School Notebook article told the story of one Northeast High student who carries a seven-subject roster but, as of last month, has only three full-time teachers. Students have been assigned report card grades for classes in which they have learned very little, if anything. Not surprisingly, disciplinary problems have increased significantly.

Teachers covering classes lose their daily preparation period and must use their own personal time to prepare lessons, mark papers, call parents and consult with staff. The bare-bones budget — once a crisis, now the new normal — has forced them to take on many roles including nurse, counselor and custodian. Yet the SRC continues to threaten them with the loss of their contract and with it all workplace protections.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

APPS testimony to the Philadelphia School Reform Commission – December 17, 2015

In the order of appearance.

Click here to see all of the videos.

Click the picture to view each video individually.

Karel Kilimnik

Video of APPS member Karel Kilimnik testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – December 17, 2015.

The last part of Karel’s testimony was cut off due to the three minute time limit.

The full transcript of Karel’s testimony.

 

Robin Lowry

Video of APPS supporter Robin Lowry testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – December 17, 2015.

The full transcript of Robin’s testimony.

 

Diane Payne

Video of APPS member Diane Payne testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – December 17, 2015.

The full transcript of Diane’s testimony.

 

Barbara Dowdall

Video of APPS member Barbara Dowdall testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – December 17, 2015.

Coleman Poses

Video of APPS member Coleman Poses testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – December 17, 2015.

The full transcript of Coleman’s testimony.
The transcript includes the slides Coleman is speaking about in his SRC testimony.

 

Lisa Haver 2

Video of APPS member Lisa Haver testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – December 17, 2015.

The full transcript of Lisa’s testimony.

An Open Letter to SRC Chairwoman Neff about the extension of the contract of Superintendent Hite

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Dear Chairwoman Neff:

The members of the Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools call on you and the members of the SRC to table your plans to renew the contract of Superintendent William Hite. There is no need to take this action at this time. Superintendents’ terms last five years; the time to assess the performance of the superintendent is at the end of those five years. The SRC should not be locking the district and its stakeholders into a seven-year contract.

The timing and speed of the proposed contract extension appears to be another attempt by the SRC to prevent the people of the city an opportunity to be heard on the policies and the direction of its public schools.

The people of Philadelphia have clearly expressed their views on education at the ballot box in the recent mayoral and gubernatorial elections.  The voters rejected the mayoral candidate whose platform called for more privatization, more charters and more school closures.  They voted out a governor whose education policies inflicted harm on our public schools.  It is wrong, therefore, to have the SRC members appointed by the former governor and the outgoing mayor act in opposition to those wishes.

In addition, because the SRC is an appointed body and not an elected one, you and the other commissioners should make every effort to make sure the public has ample opportunity to be heard on such an important decision.  The SRC’s announcement, which comes just six days before it intends to vote on the resolution to extend, does not give the public ample opportunity to consider the merits or to be involved in this vital public policy.  And unlike all other Pennsylvanians, Philadelphians do not have the ability to vote out of office the SRC members who appear to be attempting to undermine the democratic process.

Before Dr. Hite’s contract was approved three years ago, the SRC held public hearings.  While we believe it is inappropriate, at this time, to consider a contract extension for Dr. Hite, the very least the SRC should do is to hold public hearings to allow Philadelphians to participate in this critical decision.

Sincerely,

Lisa Haver, Co-founder

Karel Kilimnik, Co-founder

Update

Hite deserves extension
Philadelphia Inquirer – December 14, 2015
SRC Chairwoman Neff doubles-down on her support of Hite. (Scroll down to  the last letter. Read the comments.)