Stories tagged: Arlene Ackerman
District promises to get tough with new Renaissance charter operators
Submitted by thenotebook on Tue, 04/02/2013 - 18:24 Posted in Latest news | Permalink
by Benjamin Herold for NewsWorks, a Notebook news partner
The Philadelphia School District is vowing to take a hard line on two issues that have caused confusion when charter operators take over traditional public schools: special education and facilities costs.
Even as the District tries to convert three more of its schools into charters, officials and parents alike are wading through confusion over “exceptions” that past administrations granted to outside managers in previous years of the District’s Renaissance school turnaround initiative.
Arlene Ackerman, 66, dies of cancer
Submitted by thenotebook on Sat, 02/02/2013 - 14:02 Posted in Latest news | Permalink
Former Philadelphia schools Superintendent Arlene Ackerman, who led the District from 2008 to 2011, died Saturday of pancreatic cancer. She was 66.
Ackerman had been living in Albuquerque, N.M., since she accepted a controversial buyout of her contract after leaving the District in August 2011. Before coming to Philadelphia, she had served as a superintendent in Washington, D.C., and San Francisco.
Renaissance charters meet neighborhood enrollment targets except for Universal
Submitted by thenotebook on Mon, 01/28/2013 - 19:19 Posted in Latest news | Permalink
by Benjamin Herold for NewsWorks, a Notebook news partner
Philadelphia's independent Renaissance school operators are bringing families back to struggling neighborhood public schools that they have "turned around" -- with one notable exception.
Cheating: Time for answers
Posted in December 2012 Edition | Permalink
For nine years in a row, up through 2011, every summer brought cheery news that test scores went up in Philadelphia schools. Sure, performance wasn’t where it should be, but things were on the right track. More and more students scored proficient and many schools met their adequate yearly progress targets.
District prepares to release new organizational chart
Submitted by thenotebook on Tue, 10/23/2012 - 14:04 Posted in Latest news | Permalink
By Bill Hangley, Jr.
[UPDATE: The final transitional chart has been released]
The Philadelphia School District says it is preparing to release an updated organizational chart for the first time since the departure of former Superintendent Arlene Ackerman.
Where charters run the neighborhood schools
by Benjamin Herold for NewsWorks, a Notebook news partner Posted in October 2012 Edition | Permalink
As part of its Renaissance Schools turnaround initiative, the School District of Philadelphia has outsourced management of 17 struggling public schools over the past three years.
The result is a transformed educational landscape in which a patchwork of seven independent charter school management organizations has replaced the traditional school system in large sections of the city, as shown in this graphic by NewsWorks, the Notebook, and geospace analysis firm Azavea.
Welcoming Dr. Hite
Posted in October 2012 Edition | Permalink
When the Notebook welcomed Arlene Ackerman in 2008, our editorial was called “The stars are aligned.” It seemed the District was poised to move forward.
In contrast, the circumstances Superintendent William Hite confronts as he takes his new post are exceedingly grim.
Choosing a high school keeps getting more complicated
By Dale Mezzacappa Posted in Fall Guide 2012 Edition | Permalink
The always daunting process of getting into high school has a new twist this year.
In a system where studies have found that parents are already befuddled by the process, students and their families have a dizzying array of high school choices – small schools, large schools, themed schools, charter schools, themed charter schools, neighborhood schools that have become charter schools – the list goes on.
Cómo seleccionar una escuela superior: Preguntas comunes
Por Dale Mezzacappa Posted in "Fall Guide" 2012 Edition | Permalink
¿Cómo comienzo?
Hite officially hired, will start Oct. 1
Submitted by Dale Mezzacappa on Wed, 07/25/2012 - 14:52 Posted in Latest news | Permalink
The School Reform Commission on Tuesday officially hired Dr. William Hite as superintendent, effective Oct. 1, at an annual salary of $300,000.
All five members voted in favor of the five-year contract, which will pay Hite $50,000 more than he receives as superintendent of the 125,000-student school district in Prince George's County, Md., but $48,000 less than former Superintendent Arlene Ackerman.
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