About the author
Anne Ha is a senior at Temple University and an intern at the Notebook.
Email this article to:
Nutter’s education to-do list
The mayor-elect lays out his education prorities
by Anne Ha
In an Election Day interview, Mayor-elect Michael Nutter cited five priorities for improving the Philadelphia public education system – with school safety topping his list.
“You can’t learn and you can’t teach in an unsafe environment,” he said.
The other priorities Nutter pointed to were investments in early childhood education and the middle grades, dropout prevention, and increased school funding.
“If we do those five things well,” Nutter said, “our kids are going to take off, the city is going to grow and develop, and our employers will understand that Philadelphia is a city that values education.”
During his primary campaign, Nutter stressed his desire to see the city regain control over its schools. Now, the mayor-elect says it is a long-term commitment but not one of his immediate priorities.
On investing in early childhood education, Nutter said his goal was to ensure that students, particularly in the third and fourth grade, are reading at the appropriate level.
Calling for additional services for sixth, seventh, and eighth graders, he observed that the “critical middle school years are where a lot of young people make the decision to either go on the right path or the wrong path.”
As part of a strategy to reduce dropouts, Nutter said he wants to create more dual enrollment programs with surrounding colleges, allowing students to earn college course credits while they are still in high school. He said he would also work to have more internship and mentorship programs available.
“Kids need more exposure to the world and what it means to hold down a job.” Nutter said, adding that it will “show our high schoolers that there really is a path for them.”
Finally, Nutter observed that the schools are not adequately funded and he said that he would work to secure additional funding.
Nutter’s campaign platform offers additional insights into what education stance to expect from the new mayor. On safety, he proposed alternative programs for students with chronic behavior problems and students re-entering from incarceration or disciplinary schools; and improved staff training in classroom and safety management.
Nutter’s program for improving high schools included supporting efforts to create smaller schools, pushing for a more rigorous curriculum, supporting public school choice, and increasing the availability of technology in schools.
Other items on candidate Nutter’s to-do list included reducing the class size to an average of 20 students and increasing parent involvement in educational activities.