SRC approves charter expansion, talks superintendent search
by thenotebook on Jun 08 2012 Posted in Latest news
by Katie McCabe
After a closed-door discussion of the superintendent search, the School Reform Commission met in public Friday morning and approved a request from Franklin Towne Charter High School to expand its enrollment by 250 seats next fall.
But there’s a catch – up to 65 percent of the students in each incoming freshman class will be expected to come from the catchment areas of targeted, overcrowded District-run schools in nearby communities in Northeast Philadelphia.
“A high-performing school prepared to accommodate students from our overcrowded schools is compelling, given our budget situation,” said Thomas Darden, who oversees the District’s charter office.
Franklin Towne Charter High was previously authorized to enroll 925 students.
The additional seats will cost the District about $1.8 million in per-pupil payments to the school.
Darden described the payment as a “net zero” for the District’s budget, however. Without the charter expansion, he said, the District would have to spend a similar amount of money to expand overcrowded schools.
Commissioner Joseph Dworetzky agreed with that logic.
“While there is significant expense here, it is well spent,” he said.
Dworetzky, however, suggested that a formal financial analysis on the impact of charter renewals and modifications be included for SRC consideration on future such votes.
“In the future, we’ve got to be more focused on what the costs are, and how they compare to the benefits of proposed modifications,” said Dworetzky.
After the meeting, Darden said such information will be provided in the future.
SRC Chairman Pedro Ramos also questioned Franklin Towne’s chief operating officer, Joseph Venditti, about the school’s controversial practice of charging every student a $45 admissions fee at the start of each school year.
Venditti called it “poor wording” and emphasized that it was not an admissions fee, but a lump-sum payment that is partially used to pay for student ID cards. He also added that no student would be precluded from enrollment based on an inability to pay the fee.
The meeting was pushed back by an hour and a half to make time for a morning SRC executive session focused on the search for a new District superintendent.
Commissioner Wendell Pritchett said the search committee expects to have a list of two to four finalists for the position within the next 10 days.
“We’re getting close,” Pritchett said.
He also explained that the SRC is working to develop a process that will enable the public to interact with the finalists before a hire is made.
“These candidates need to meet with students and parents,” Pritchett said.
To date, he said, the search for a new superintendent has been limited to the District’s search committee.
Comments (40)
Submitted by Jack (not verified) on Fri, 06/08/2012 - 17:28.
"The superintendent candidates need to meet with students and parents..."
I'm guessing teachers and principals will be left out?
Submitted by Teach (not verified) on Sun, 06/10/2012 - 11:22.
Of course they will. What do they know?
Ah, if only the SRC could find a way to run the school district without teachers or principals. What a great cost savings that would be!
Perhaps they can concoct a scenario similar to the Matrix....
Submitted by K.R. Luebbert (not verified) on Fri, 06/08/2012 - 17:30.
Real public schools cannot charge for IDs or testing or anything like that. And, who will make sure the 65% of students from overcrowded northeast schools is honored? I do not think Darden can be trusted to do that? What will be the oversight procedure?
Submitted by Joan Taylor on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 09:36.
The $45 is a poll tax. If you're willing to confess abject poverty to a total stranger, you may be granted a free public education. And the people who impose the fee get to feel all high and mighty. Disgusting.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 18:42.
And yet, it will happen because the fix will be in just like with Gamble.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 06/08/2012 - 18:21.
250 more seats to a charter school at a cost of 1.8 million. However, no significant cost to the school district for a net zero cost. But, really, they don't know what the costs are. Just so long as we remove kids from the public rolls and get them into charters. So, why do we need a superintendent? Why the big search for a superintendent to run the district? By the time the new superintendent gets here, Knudson will have done Corbett's bidding and turned them all over to charters anyway.
Submitted by A Touch of Sense (not verified) on Fri, 06/08/2012 - 18:39.
The guy from Franklin Towne Charter School is one of the best "operators" in the charter school game. A lawyer finagled control of the board of trustees of Franklin Towne. Then he set himself up in a $200,000.00 a year job as CEO.
Now he's manipulating behind the scenes through Darden. Let's see a full public disclosure of how much each of the FranklinTowne officers get paid. Let's see an accounting to the students and parents of the the school and a public accounting of where the money is going.
Check out the lease arrangements. Follow the money trail. See what you find....
Submitted by Ron Whitehorne on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 10:18.
charterschoolscandals.blogspot.com/2010/07/franklin-towne-charter-high-school.html Here's a link that documents the shady stuff. It's old however.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 06/08/2012 - 18:43.
This comment is off the track, but I'm curious about a few things regarding the new paradigm for the SDP beginning September 2012. For one thing, principals have been clustered into twelve learning teams. One principal who is called team leader will facilitate each team, with about 25 schools. This idea has been pushed as a "great opportunity for autonomy."
If regions are closing where are current regional superintendents going? What will their job titles be next year? Who will be the rating officer for principals in learning teams? Will team leaders be more than paper chasers gathering documents to be forward to central office? How is this role different from regional superintendent except that team leaders are full time principals of schools? Is there additional support and compensation for team leaders?
Within the twelve learning teams, there will be smaller teams called affinity? The question here is if high performing schools choose to team up, what happens to school with poor performance? Do they form into smaller teams?
Why are principals buying into this " great opportunity for autonomy" without more specific details? Does anyone have any answers?
Submitted by Education Grad Student (not verified) on Tue, 06/12/2012 - 20:10.
The thing about the push for autonomy is it puts more burden on principals who are already burdened with staff cuts and budget cuts. At the SRC meeting on 5/31, the union president of CASA said that the BCG plan puts too much responsibility on principals. Also, can the District provide the necessary resources and training to support principal autonomy?
Submitted by Timothy Boyle on Fri, 06/08/2012 - 20:26.
I haven't been able to keep with all of the seat expansion permission. Exactly how many charter "seats" have been added thus far?
Submitted by Disgusted Dissident (not verified) on Fri, 06/08/2012 - 23:29.
Maybe the district can get Franklin Towne, and all of the charters, to keep all of the kids they take. If one has to be expelled, let the charter school folllow due process and pay for it, instead of dumping the kid into a neighborhood school with little or no support. Too many "problem" students are pushed out to true public schools that don't have the money to pay for supports (since the deficit pretty much equals what the district pays out to charters).
Submitted by Philly Parent and Teacher (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 07:57.
Comparing charters with neighborhood high schools is an apples/oranges comparison. Franklin Towne, like other high school charters, have an application process which is the first barrier. Franklin Towne is also infamous for "counseling out" difficult students. How many students from Franklin Towne left this year? How many from Mastery? Prep Charter? Philadelphia Electrical? Boys Latin? Neighborhood schools continue to get the "counseled out" students who have behavioral and academic issues that are reflected in PSSA scores. Franklin Towne there is "high performing" because, by junior year, it has "counseled out" the "problem" students. They end up at Frankford High School and guess which school is labeled "low performing."
The SRC also needs to ask why Franklin Towne charter lacks the diversity of neighboring schools. Compared to SDP schools in the community, which are ethnically diverse, Franklin Towne is 78% white. It only has ONE subgroup for AYP - white. http://paayp.emetric.net/School/DataTable/c51/4/8123 With about 250 students per grade, there isn't even a special education subgroup which means they have far less special education students than northeast high schools. There are no ELLs - compare that to Northeast, Lincoln and Frankford! http://thenotebook.org/content/franklin-towne-charter-high-school
The SRC and 440 "higher ups" like Darden will still need schools for the students with greater needs. Will neighborhood high schools become "discipline" schools since, the few neighborhood schools left, will be full of those "counseled out" of charters? The site select schools certainly won't accept them. Charters won't keep them. Is the SRC willing to further segregate and stratify/track this school district?
Submitted by Ron Whitehorne on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 09:19.
Thanks, Philly Parent and Teacher, for this information and insightful analysis. Opens a window on what the District is doing in its quest for "high perfoming seats." We need to demand an accounting of how many students are counseled out. Without any accoutablility in this area the committment to take students from neighborhood schools is only window dressing.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 14:53.
The whole thing is a farce, not just the counseling out piece. Testing in the traditional sense, is intramurally based which means nothing. In short, I'm livid that they are doing this and worse, doing it right in our face without even a morsel of hidden agenda. They just don't seem to care about the residents nor the kids. Their entire focus in rivited on money for the already rich and taking it from the poor,means nothing at all. How do we combat this, should be the question now. The Churches are leading the way but WE need to more more engaged.
Submitted by Ron Whitehorne on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 15:22.
Not sure who you mean by "we" and, while some churches have been mobilizing, so have unions, parents, and students. The demonstration on May 31st organized by PCAPS (Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public Schools) was an in your face challenge to the SRC that involved hundreds of PFT members, large student contingents from PSU and YUC, Parents United and many Home and School Associations, Occupy Philly, NAACP, Rev. Waters from Enon Baptist church, etc The coalition is organizing a trip to Harrisburg on Wednesday and will be continuing to build a fight against this budget and the privatization plans of the SRC.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 16:25.
Post 5-31, the SRC continued to sneak around Harrisburg trying to get support for demolishing contracts plus the joke of just giving Gamble Creighton to rob from. I hear you but I don't see the effects that you do. It would help if Obama took an interest in our plight but he knows he has the urban areas everywhere in his pocket.
Submitted by Ron Whitehorne on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 16:55.
The fact they had to "sneak around" Harrisburg is a reflection of the impact of the protest activity. I'm not suggesting we have won antything. But I do think we have changed the conversation and put the SRC on the defensive. They had to cancel the vote on the achievements, defer the discussion about school closings, and spend most of their time playing defense. They are counting on major concessions from unions but PFT has rejected any further concessions and Council has been supportive of 1201. The press converage of the 5-31 demo was overwhelmingly positive.
Just sayiin...don't give up the fight.
As for Obama he is squarely behind the kind of reforms the SRC is pursuing so don't expect any help from that quarter.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 18:20.
Yes, Obama's silence on Wisconsin spoke volumes. He's been a huge disappointment and Arne Duncan is even worse. I haven't given up the fight but I'm patience challenged and see these scoundrels in dire need of lots more. Maybe I'm wrong !!
Submitted by Philly Parent and Teacher (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 18:35.
Obama has been as bad for education as George Bush. His selection of his basketball partner, Duncan, a protegee of Paul Vallas, is furthering the privatization / testing "model" of so-called reform. Obama has never subjected his daughters to the Bush/Obama testing agenda (private schools in Chicago and DC). Obama appears to take progressive voters for granted. Once again, 2012 will be a vote for the lesser of two evils...
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 18:51.
I agree--I just thought Obama would be much, much, much more sensitive to the people's needs. I still can't believe his doing nothing to help.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 10:36.
No offense but Hilary Clinton would have taken a different approach on education. She would support the unions no doubt in my mind. How can Obama forget about the unions when they helped elect him? Just don't get it.
Submitted by Mark (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 11:32.
Obama KNOWS that he's the only sane choice, as disappointing as he has been. Romney is only semi human and the rest of those folks are card carrying nuts. Obama knows we are in his pocket regardless of how awful he has been to us. Can you imagine Palin or Backmann as President?????!!!!!
Submitted by anon (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 12:03.
that's why obama paying the price for neglecting his base will be an effective lesson to other dems who will follow him. as a disarming "friend", he has done far more damage to labor than bush, an obvious enemy, ever could have dreamed of. obama's support is thin and getting thinner and he has no one to blame but himself.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 13:06.
I agree but he'll win in November and probably by a lot. The Green Vote isn't smart right now.
Submitted by K.R. Luebbert (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 10:52.
Absolutely right! Great points and cogent analysis. The higher-ups at the SDP and the SRC have turned a willfully blind eye to these facts. They need to do a complete analysis of who attends charters and for how long, the reasons they actually leave, and how pressured they were to leave without officially getting kicked out. We once had a parent who was leaving a charter and coming to our regular public school say "I am tired of getting called up to school every day." So, though the charter did not officially kick the student out, they wore down the mother (without putting interventions in place for her child) to the point that she "voluntarily" left! These are the games charters play all the time. Of course, they can afford to pay the staff to make all the phone calls, while regular public school counselors and teachers barely have time to keep up with the true emergencies. We really need TRUE transparency with these "high performing" seats!
Submitted by Philly Parent and Teacher (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 11:35.
Many charters also have clauses regarding attendance. 10 "tardies" / unexcused absences can lead to dismissal. This is often in the "contract" a parent signs when admitting their child. (Remember Mastery's contract?) So, if a student is "low performing," a "behavior problem," etc., the charter can quickly use attendance as an excuse.
This is from Mastery Hardy Williams school: (google the enrollment packet) The "Whatever it Takes" contract is for ALL Mastery schools - including Renaissance Charters!
"ESSAY
(Applicable for Grades 7-12)
A. Please describe what you want to get out of middle and/or high school? What are your hopes? What are you concerns? Be as specific as you can.
B. Why is Mastery Charter School the right school for you?"
"Contract
I agree not to use violence for any reason what-so-ever at Mastery Charter Schools, while representing Mastery Charter Schools, or with any members of the Mastery Charter Schools community. I understand this non-violence pledge applies to all parties involved in any fight, no matter whether I am “right” or “wrong” or whether I am acting in “self defense.”
If I do engage in violence or participate in a fight, I understand I will be expelled from Mastery Charter Schools unless after a Board review hearing, an alternative course is recommended."
Franklin Towne's Web site under "Admission:"
"Registration for accepted Freshmen is Tuesday, February 28th and Wednesday, February 29th from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. The test is Saturday, March 10th from 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Your must attend both registration and testing in order to continue with the enrollment process. " (They claim to not discriminate but...)
Franklin Towne also requires submission of any suspensions or expulsions. NO Philadelphia neighborhood public school may deny a student for suspensions or expulsions!
How can the SRC, Shorr, Darden, Knudson, Nixon, ETC. target neighborhood schools while they are obviously allowing charters to operate under very different criteria for enrollment and retention?
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 19:28.
Quid Pro Quo----1% verses the 99%. They're doing what they're told to do. Nutter's a disgrace, only outdisgraced by Pedro who knows better.
Submitted by K.R. Luebbert (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 19:56.
True. Interesting article by a rich guy debunking the myth that the rich creates jobs!
http://www.businessinsider.com/rich-people-do-not-create-jobs-2011-12#ix...
Submitted by A Touch of Sense (not verified) on Sun, 06/10/2012 - 09:16.
They are the games that Charter Schools play. So much for the legality that charter schools must have a lottery for admission.
Who is enforcing the rights of students in charter schools? The SRC?
Why is Mastery aloud to have preferential treatment by the SRC?
Why is Scott Gordon and his corporate takeover artists aloud to be on decsion-making bodies of the School District?
Why is the lawyer CEO of Franklintown aloud to make at least $200,000.00 a year while he is making students pay for their ID cards (an illegal act)?
Why? Why? Why?
Why Lori?
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 20:15.
Because they think they have the hook up and they do.........................so far.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 10:38.
I guarantee come new teachers contract the there will be no raises. Bet on it. They will say no money or some excuse. teachers don't even get a raise every year. if your are not on the salary step anymore then you depend on whatever is negotiated. look at the contract--a raise every 18 months.
Submitted by Ken Derstine on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 11:31.
I suggest you read this Inquirer article, they want to do a lot worse.
SRC push for more power over unions riles legislators
http://articles.philly.com/2012-06-09/news/32125157_1_delegation-meeting...
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 14:49.
First of all, both Payton and Williams have their fat hands in Charter and Voucher money so they need to just shut up. Pedro is a smart lawyer yet he went to Harrisburg skulking around like a snake. He should have known better than to try that. Yes, the SRC has been here for years and during that time, THEY have bankrupted the system not the workers.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 06/12/2012 - 17:08.
And your point is ??????? Nutter et al get all this and likely much more than we. They JUST don't care as long as the free and easy money keeps rolling in unabated.
Submitted by Phantom Poster (not verified) on Sat, 06/09/2012 - 23:02.
I wonder if the S.R.C. members understand that they are, in effect, closing the doors opened by Brown vs Board of Ed.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Sun, 06/10/2012 - 08:27.
They don't care !! They're smart people.They can google. They can read---except for Nixon. They get Cable.
Submitted by Ken Derstine on Sun, 06/10/2012 - 15:23.
"Pedro Ramos is not Scott Walker, and Pennsylvania is not Wisconsin"
from Chalk and Talk
http://chalkandtalk.wordpress.com/
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 14:37.
As bad as Pedro has become, I still hold him higher than Scott Walker whom I consider to be a scum bag of the first degree. Yes, PA is more like Ohio than Wisconsin thank God. If, by chance, Corbett even sniffs towards Walker's crap, the unions here will finally snap to attention in a very malicious way. I think he knows better.
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 06/12/2012 - 15:03.
Let Kenny the con artist Gamble be Superintendent. He'll learn em good.
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