We read about the insulting contract offer to Philadelphia teachers: cut their pay and benefits, lengthen their work day, eliminate seniority, water fountains, supplies, teachers’ lounges, parking areas. No more bonuses for advanced degrees or national board certification. Did they leave anything out? The school leaders must have laughed their heads off dreaming up whatever they could think of to punish and humiliate and demean their teachers.
An educator in Philadelphia writes about the School Reform Commission’s determination to expand charter schools while starving public schools of resources:
“We keep reading stories of malfeasance by Charter CEO’s, yet the SRC and powers that be, claim that parents choose Charter Schools. Many students have addresses without a neighborhood school. If these families want to send their children to public school, they have to make an application at the School District Headquarters, which may be miles from home. The former neighborhood schools have been converted to Charters and if the Charter is at full enrollment the students are denied admission.
“The blatant disregard for the students in Philadelphia Public Schools is evidenced daily with the lay off of 100+ Certified School Nurses, School Police Officers and Librarians. The bare bones budgetary restrictions that principals must manipulate to run their buildings would be laughable if it was not so tragic. They are proposing “Community Partnerships” as one solution- so far this looks like student nurses coming to schools for their public health rotation. When student teachers are placed in schools to learn how to become effective teachers are they going to claim that this support is for the benefit of the classroom teachers? It is really heartbreaking to see the demise of public schools. There is no REAL choice for the students of Philadelphia.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Just like the foreclosure crisis led to homeless people, this sounds similar. Has Philadelphia abondoned the responsibility to make sure every child is enrolled in a school? Have they abondoned the responsibility to either provide them a spot in a walkable school or transportation to their assigned school?
Has Philadelphia abondoned its children and left them schoolless? That is a crisis in education.
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One of the SRC’s main arguments for closing 23 public schools in Philadelphia is that the classrooms are half full. Since when are smaller class sizes a problem? I guess only if you’re poor. One suggestion I heard was for families to file lawsuits against the SRC–if communities are left with huge, abandoned buildings, their property values will go down.
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The same thing is happening in Chicago, but we’re a little behind. I guess we can watch and see how it goes in Philadelphia.
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It should be noted that these are both cities run by Democrats. When are people going to wake up and realize that the assault on public education and teacher unions is coming from both sides?
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Time for some civil disobedience!
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I pictured SD leaders sitting around a table, playing a drinking game, trying to outdo each other for the most ridiculous proposal.
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They are FAPE-ists.
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Pitiful indeed. Why is there so much less money available for funding schools?
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Reblogged this on Dhasty01's Blog and commented:
There is no answer the public school children. Furthermore, there is not answer the educators except to go and work for a Charter school. ‘You cut your nose off to spite your face.’ What an appropriate quote to analogize what’s going on with the School District and the SRC. In short, public schools eventually fail (indirectly because of the School Districts lack of governance). The SRC grants chaters for Charter Schools to open up. Chart schools are a reincarnation of public schools with a different mask on. Eventually the Charter school fails and the another charter is granted to a school to see if they can get it right.
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