Philadelphia schools open with small staffs
PHILADELPHIA – The city’s struggling public schools opened a new term Monday with larger classes and smaller staffs, leaving many to wonder how the nearly broke district will fare over the coming year.
Superintendent William Hite made the rounds at several buildings to greet students and employees. While contending that schools were prepared to open, he acknowledged the lack of resources in many.
“We still want guidance services in every school,” Hite said. “We need a lot more assistant principals. We need a lot more teachers. … We need music the full year. We need sports the full year.”
The morning bell capped off weeks of turmoil in one of the nation’s largest districts, as school supporters spent the summer staging rallies and pleading with city and state officials for more money. At one point, Hite threatened to delay opening day if he didn’t get $50 million to rehire sufficient staff.
The cash-strapped system had laid off nearly 3,800 workers – from assistant principals to secretaries – as rising labor costs, cuts in state aid and charter school growth helped create a $304 million spending gap.
Last month, the mayor promised the needed $50 million and, with $33 million in other recouped funds, the district restored some programs and rehired about 1,650 employees.
But parents and staff say that’s still not enough. As it stands now, students will only get music and sports for the fall semester.
And the reduction in counselors is a major concern in a district filled with immigrants, low-income students and children from unstable homes.
At Feltonville Intermediate School, staff posted a list of what was missing, including an assistant principal, a counselor, several teachers and 45 minutes of math instruction per day.
At South Philadelphia High School, where the superintendent ate lunch with a group of students on Monday, hallways were twice as crowded as last year.
The building has absorbed hundreds of students from Bok High School, one of 24 schools closed in June as the district sought to economize.
Classrooms were a tight squeeze as well. On paper, about a dozen classes had more than 33 students, and some had more than 40, South Philadelphia High Principal Otis Hackney said. However, he noted actual attendance is hard to judge until at least a week into school.
Education advocates are urging parents to document any problems in official complaints. They want to show the state, which supplies the bulk of the district’s funding, that the lack of resources violates Pennsylvania’s mandate to provide a “thorough and efficient” education.
The district, which serves about 190,000 traditional and charter school students, hopes to recover additional money through ongoing negotiations with city, state and union leaders.