Ackerman, Nutter fault media reports on school progress
Superintendent Arlene Ackerman and Mayor Nutter told business and community leaders Thursday about "significant gains" the Philadelphia School District had made in the last year because the news, they said, was not being fully reported in the media.
In a program that drew more than 45 business, nonprofit, civic, and education leaders, Ackerman and Nutter cited eight years of rising test scores and an improved high school graduation rate, and said 12,000 parents had participated in classes at the district's Parent University.
"I think it's important to get our story out and not just depend on the media to do it," Ackerman told reporters in a briefing after the program at City Hall.
Too often, she said, news accounts focus on her personality and leadership style.
"It's not about me. It's not about my leadership," Ackerman said. "It's really about whether or not we get results."
Nutter said he and Ackerman had begun talking about going directly to the city's opinion-makers to describe the schools' progress after the district released test scores in June showing that for the first time, more than half the district's students had met or exceeded state standards in math and reading. The news, he said, was buried by
In a program that drew more than 45 business, nonprofit, civic, and education leaders, Ackerman and Nutter cited eight years of rising test scores and an improved high school graduation rate, and said 12,000 parents had participated in classes at the district's Parent University.
"I think it's important to get our story out and not just depend on the media to do it," Ackerman told reporters in a briefing after the program at City Hall.
Too often, she said, news accounts focus on her personality and leadership style.
"It's not about me. It's not about my leadership," Ackerman said. "It's really about whether or not we get results."
Nutter said he and Ackerman had begun talking about going directly to the city's opinion-makers to describe the schools' progress after the district released test scores in June showing that for the first time, more than half the district's students had met or exceeded state standards in math and reading. The news, he said, was buried by
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