Funding schools with donations pits need against fairness
by Paul Jablow Sometime in the next couple of weeks, the Bornstein family, of Mill Valley, Calif. will receive a letter asking them to pay almost $2,500 to their public school district through a local foundation. The notice will come from Kiddo!, whose well-crafted website describes it as “made up of people like you who give generously to provide arts, technology, classroom and library aides, P.E.
Anger and frustration aimed at Hite and SRC at meeting
by thenotebook on Aug 23 2013 Posted in Latest news
by Paul Jablow
Robin Dominick, her 2nd-grade daughter, Leah, at her side, told the School Reform Commission on Thursday night that she was worried about putting her child in a split-grade classroom.
“Can you tell her what to do when a 3rd grader bullies her, with no counselor and no aide?” asked Dominick, president of the Home and School Association at Powel School in Powelton Village.
Maureen Fratantoni, president of the Home and School Association at Nebinger Elementary School in South Philadelphia, pleaded for the rehiring of the school’s music teacher, Aaron Hoke, who was transferred.
North Philadelphia community activist Danita Bates, staring at Superintendent William Hite, asked, “When are you going to ask for the next 33 [school] closings?”
Doubt, anger, and frustration filled the packed room as speakers went beyond questioning how schools would open in the face of drastic budget cuts and repeatedly questioned how hard Hite and the SRC are really fighting for the system. An even bigger crowd had protested outside.
“Are you working for Philadelphia’s children?” asked Joan Taylor, a teacher at Middle Years Alternative School, “or are you working for a governor whose
Countdown, Day 17: NCLB waiver frees up federal money, but it's no help in Philly
When Pennsylvania received its waiver from No Child Left Behind, school districts around the state gained flexibility in using once-restricted federal dollars. But Philadelphia was not so lucky. By law, districts were required to use 20 percent of their Title I money for Supplemental Education Services (SES) – generally, afterschool tutoring from private providers – and to transport students to be
Philly teachers: We won't stop until we get fair schools funding
by Holly Otterbein for NewsWorks More than 1,000 Philadelphia teachers, parents, students and supporters marched through a rainstorm in Center City on Thursday to protest school budget cuts and thousands of layoffs. The peaceful crowd walked from the Comcast Center to City Hall, and eventually to the School District's headquarters, waving signs and chanting, "Hey, hey, ho, ho, Corbett has got to
