Greg Windle wrote an exemplary report on the record of Philadelphia Superintendent William Hite, who took Office in 2012.
He makes clear that there are many metrics, not only test scores, and many actors, including the governor and the legislature.
Education writers, take note. This is a treasure trove of information that the people of the city need to know.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
After reading this account of Philadelphia’s “reforms,” I was left feeling that the city would have been so much better off if it had not jumped on the privatization bandwagon. The city and commonwealth are trying to cope with incredible amount of debt left over from the reckless mismanagement of the Corbett administration. Although it was not mentioned, there is continued pressure from the charter lobby in the legislature to keep the money train of privatization flowing. It is heartening to know that many good vocal people like Helen Gym and Wolf are working hard to address the many problems including aging, ignored physical plants and a demoralized workforce.
Philadelphia has not given up on its public schools, and there is a core group of people that are fighting to keep them despite the the SRC’s attempt to convert as many schools as possible into charters. Although the SRC is no longer in power, the same group continues to try to undermine the public schools. In addition to all the other problems the district faces, it must also push back against the demands of the charter lobby. The city has enough problems of its own without the distraction and costs of lawsuits from charter companies.
My big take away is that communities must retain local control over their local funds. Do not turn any big decisions over to the state where the needs of students will be lost in the quicksand of special interest groups. Keep fighting to invest in quality public schools, Philly.
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As far as the answer to the question did Hite meet his goals, in a strange way to some degree. Any school district that sends the bottom students off to a privatization option can improve scores if enough low performing students are siphoned off. It is also possible to reduce the budget, if the district furloughs enough professionals and outsources a significant portion of the budget to TFA and other non-professional groups.
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Hite came from PG County Public schools in MD. PG Co has the highest (or 2nd highest….after Balto City) concentration of Charter schools in the state. Hite was hired by Philly to privatize the public school system. Now if you want to see what Hite left behind, just google Prince George’s County Public Schools and you will be treated to some of the worst in humanity in relation to public education. Then you can take a look at Memphis to see what Dr. Joseph (also from PG Co…..Dr. Hite is Joseph’s role model) is doing in TN. Same crap…different places.
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Pennsylvania needs to stop yielding to the forces of privatization. They have done nothing for the people other than rack up tons of debt and hurt the credit rating of the commonwealth. Pennsylvania needs to focus on investing in strong public schools led by professionals, not profit seeking special interest groups. Privatization has repeatedly failed to deliver on its promises. Pennsylvania should stop bringing in biased outsiders that believe the “magic market” will solve problems. It has created far more problems than it has addressed.
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hired again and again: and so often their contracts bought out at taxpayer expense
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