Activism around the city
Students continue push for smaller schools
A local campaign for small schools continues,
with student organizing groups Youth United for Change (YUC) and
Philadelphia Student Union (PSU) pushing to convert their large
high schools into small, autonomous schools as part of the District's
school
construction plan.
At Kensington High School, a design team for the new high school has met, with representation from YUC and several Latino community groups in the surrounding neighborhood.
Kenneth Ramos, a YUC member and sophomore at Kensington, said that the process has been one of "compromise and negotiation" but said he is encouraged that the concept of small schools is on the negotiating table.
At West Philadelphia High School, PSU members are still unsure about what their role will be in the design process for the new high school. Although PSU members have received the backing for their small schools plan from all of the neighborhood associations in the area and a unanimous vote of support from the local school council, Executive Director Eric Braxton voiced concern that the student group was "being left out of the process" and that "inside players" were making decisions about the school's future.
In May, District CEO Paul Vallas invited small schools supporters to submit a proposal to establish a "small schools office" within the central administration. Some advocates say such an office would help to institutionalize the administration's commitment to small schools. Several other large urban districts have offices dedicated to small schools, including Chicago, where Vallas was formerly District CEO.
Kensington sophomore Ramos was tentatively supportive of the concept. "I think it's a good idea as long as there's community involvement," he said.
Contact YUC at 215-423-9588. Contact PSU at 215-215-546-3290.
Title I funds returned to neediest schools
After more than a year of organizing, members of the Eastern Pennsylvania Organizing Project (EPOP) have negotiated a change in the District's Title I funding formula that will restore some Title I funds to schools with high poverty levels.
A federal program, Title I targets funds to schools with high-poverty levels. The School District receives an allotment of Title I funding each year and decides how to distribute it to schools. For several years, all District schools have received a minimum base amount of Title I funds, and schools that have higher numbers of children in poverty have received funding above the base.
In 2003, CEO Paul Vallas drew fire from parents at high-poverty schools when he increased the base amount of Title I funds that all schools receive from $75,000 to $250,000. Because Title I funds come from a fixed pot of money, the increased base meant that many higher-poverty schools saw drastic cuts to their budgets as funding for schools with lower poverty rates increased.
Under the agreement negotiated with EPOP, the District returned to a base amount of $75,000, but for the 2004-2005 school year has a "hold harmless" provision guaranteeing schools a minimum of 75 percent of their Title I funds from last school year. Schools that received last year's base of $250,000 will receive at least $187,500 for 2004-2005. High-poverty schools will see a restoration of some of the Title I funds that were cut in their budgets last year.
"This is not denying dollars to any school; this is about putting money in the pot where the schools need it the most," said EPOP leader Dolores Shaw. "It's a victory for parents, organizers, and everyone who fought hard for this reduction."
Contact EPOP at 215-634-8922.
Summer conference for education activists
Public school parents, educators, students, and community activists from around the country will gather in Philadelphia this summer for four days of networking, skills-sharing, and strategy development at the national conference of the National Coalition of Education Activists (NCEA), titled "'With All Deliberate Speed?' Social Justice and the Future of Public Education."
NCEA, a multiracial membership organization of parents, teachers, child advocates, and union and community activists working to improve public education, has its national headquarters in Philadelphia.
Conference workshops will focus on the past 50 years of public education activism on issues of equity and social justice, considering the legacy of Brown v. Board of Education and developing strategies for achieving excellence and equity for all of today's students.
The conference runs from July 29 to August 1 at the University of PA. Local attendees can register for the entire conference or a single day.
For conference registration information, visit www.edactivists.org, call NCEA at 215-735-2418, or email conference@edactivists.org.