Lisa Haver – Page 6 – Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools

APPS testimony to the Philadelphia School Reform Commission – January 21, 2016

In the order of appearance at the SRC meeting.

Click here to see all of the videos.

Click the picture to view each video individually.

Video of APPS member Lisa Haver testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Lisa’s testimony (including the part cut off by the three minute time limit).

Video of APPS member Karel Kilimnik testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Karel’s testimony (including the part cut off by the three minute time limit).

Video of APPS member Eileen Duffey testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Eileen’s testimony.

Video of APPS member Diane Payne testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Diane’s testimony.

Video of APPS member Carol Heinsdorff testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Carol’s testimony.

Video of APPS member Deborah Grill testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Deborah’s testimony (including the part cut off by the three minute time limit).

Video of APPS member Alison McDowell testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Alison’s testimony (including the part cut off by the three minute time limit).

Video of APPS member Robin Lowry testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

Video of APPS member Richard Migliore testifying at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission meeting – January 21, 2016.

The full transcript of Richard’s testimony (including the part cut off by the three minute time limit).

The Unelected, Unaccountable SRC Tells the People of Philadelphia: “Just Trust Us”

The hallmark of the School Reform Commission , since its inception, has been its contempt for the stakeholders of the district. For years, the SRC held public meetings on weekday afternoons, a time when most of the public was unable to attend. They abolished their Planning Meetings, when actual deliberation took place, and went to one meeting a month. At the same time, much of the real decision-making shifted to private venues including the boards of the Philadelphia School Partnership, the William Penn Foundation, and the Great Schools Compact Committee. That Committee was formed for the purpose of enacting the mandates of the Gates Compact, enacted by the SRC without any public vote or discussion.

This year, with no announcement or explanation, the SRC stopped holding its monthly Strategic Policy and Planning Meetings.

The rules, such as they are, for listing speakers for each meeting, have always been nebulous and secretive. No matter when you called, or what your topic was, there was no way to know where you would appear on the list until you arrived. Many times our members, who called well in advance, would end up at the bottom of the list. Questions to SRC were routinely ignored; the only answer being: we do it how we do it and you have nothing to say about it. The most egregious example of this abuse of power was APPS member Lisa Haver placed at the bottom of the list–# 65—at last month’s meeting, even though she had called weeks before to register.

At the December 2015 meeting, Chairwoman Marjorie Neff announced that rules for speakers would be changed. The SRC wanted to give priority to those who had not spoken before. The new rules, posted on the district website, stated that speakers would be grouped by topic and that topics would be listed “in the order in which they were registered.” Those who had not spoken at the previous meeting would be given priority “within each topic area.” But when our members asked where there topic was on the list when they registered to speak, the SRC staff refused to divulge that information. In other words, you’ll just have to trust us. Even worse, some members found that their names were not on the list at all.

After a series of fruitless emails, phone calls, and in-person visits with SRC staff, APPS co-founder Lisa Haver sent the following letter to Chairwoman Neff on Wednesday, January 13, 2016:

Click here to read the the letter to SRC Chairwoman Neff.

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 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.

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.

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

The full transcript of Robin’s testimony.

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

The full transcript of Diane’s testimony.

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

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.

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

The full transcript of Lisa’s testimony.

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