The University of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia city and School District officials announced today that Penn will make a $100 million contribution to the School District of Philadelphia. The contribution – $10 million annually for 10 years – will be used to eliminate environmental hazards, including asbestos and lead, in the School District’s facilities.
“We are proud to be able to partner with our City and School District to significantly improve the learning environment for Philadelphia’s schoolchildren in a way that will have a long-lasting impact on the health, safety, and wellbeing of our entire City,” said University of Pennsylvania President Amy Gutmann.
The donation follows mounting criticism of the university’s lack of monetary contribution to the city. Penn has been under pressure foe years to pay “payment in lieu of taxes” (PILOTs). As a non-profit entity, the university is exempt from taxes despite being one of the city’s largest landowners and its largest private employer. Other wealthy urban universities, including Harvard and Yale, have long paid PILOTs.
The funding will help the School District’s ongoing efforts of remediating environmental concerns in aging school buildings. Since 2018, the School District has removed lead paint in 54 elementary schools, worked on certifying an additional 25 schools as Lead Safe, and invested more than $23 million to complete asbestos-related projects. The District approved $41 million in January 2020 for asbestos testing, abatement, and other remediation resources. Penn’s generous contribution will help these efforts.
“We are thrilled to have this very generous contribution from the University of Pennsylvania,” said School District Superintendent Dr. William R. Hite. “It will be a great support as we move forward to address the immediate environmental conditions in all of our schools. This will allow us to shift our focus to creating 21st century learning environments for all students.”
November 17th, 2020 at 6:18 pm
A great first step:
We demand that the University of Pennsylvania invest in the Education Equity Fund through payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs). Penn should provide 40% of their forgone property taxes into the Education Fund, which will be used to meet the essential needs of Philadelphia schools, such as removing environmental hazards from school buildings. The premature death-related consequences of such toxic conditions on educators, school staff, and the SDP majority of Black and Brown children has been established in Penn-affiliated research, and it’s beyond time our institution dedicate resources to paying our fair share and eradicating it.
https://medium.com/@policefreepenn/abolition-now-we-demand-a-policefreepenn-8f6ca2d30f1a
November 18th, 2020 at 1:42 pm
censorship test. editor claims unpublished comments are picked up by spam filter.
why are they not later published? this is a test
November 18th, 2020 at 2:26 pm
The chronic underfunding of the Philadelphia Public Schools cannot be resolved with a limited commitment of ten annual payments; it requires a system of public finance that ensures that the city’s wealthiest institutions pay their fair share every year in perpetuity. The University of Pennsylvania is Philadelphia’s largest private property owner, and in the city of Philadelphia, property taxes are the principal source of local revenue for public education. Year in and year out, Penn’s property tax exemption deprives the public school system of funds that students, teachers, and staff need and deserve. Year in and year out, the poorest big city in the United States subsidizes one of the richest universities in the country by forfeiting a portion of its property tax revenues. A time-limited gift will not make up for Penn’s accumulated debt to the public schools, nor will it ensure that Penn contributes what it owes in the future.
Read more: https://www.pennforpilots.org/press/4tpiskgnxw1umf65jo1j55x4hhr1wr
November 18th, 2020 at 4:13 pm
Penn uses these PR stunts routinely. The courageous students need to learn about the history of Penn’s charity.
Penn is a world leader at promoting the neoliberal agenda. Gentrification, regressive taxes, austerity for public schools and libraries, corporate and developer welfare, as well as anti-democracy and censorship have all been piloted here in this neighborhood and city. Penn is at the center of all these policies!
Over 20 years ago UCD/CCD were designed by Penn to replace government services for gentrifying neighborhoods, while raiding the public treasury. Note UCD keeps 60% OF taxpayer monies which are rebranded as “grants.” Thanks to the students. With the death of journalism, we need to work together to expose the history.
November 18th, 2020 at 4:32 pm
These organizing efforts involve more than just students, of course. Penn is also not so unique in the role it plays: the neoliberal university is a many-splendored thing. City Government is a willing partner in all of this, too.
November 18th, 2020 at 4:34 pm
It could be rewarding to take a deeper dive into the organizing currently going on, including:
https://www.pennforpilots.org/
https://twitter.com/policefreepenn?lang=en
November 18th, 2020 at 4:44 pm
Why did the police adopt the broken windows strategy and stop and frisk? Why have property taxes, fees, and all regressive taxes skyrocketed in Philadelphia? Why have all public spaces, like the Dilworth shopping plaza, and Clark Park been un-democratized and commercialized? Why has developer welfare and power skyrocketed in Philadelphia? Why have all essential services that common citizens need been defunded? Why did the Annenberg school of Communications host censored listservs the year Penn won an award for “best schools for free speech” from a right-wing think tank? Why does UCD keep 60% of taxpayer grants, the same ratio as research universities, like Penn, keep from government research grants?
Let’s ask Amy Gutmann about this and also about deliberative democracy.