Henry C. Lea Elementary School (47th and Locust)

Dock Street Brewery is joining efforts to support public education in Philadelphia, with a focus on West Philly schools.

Every month, they will be tapping a special beer (aged, soured, oaked, irresponsibly hopped, blended…) and giving it away. In return, they ask that you bring in and exchange school supplies that will be donated to West Philadelphia public schools. This month, Dock Street will be working with Lea Elementary at 47th and Locust.

Photo from Dock Street Brewery’s Facebook page.

If you like beer and want to help Lea Elementary, come to Dock Street at 50th and Baltimore this Wednesday (Dec. 16) and bring one ream of 8 x 11 copy paper (paper is an essential tool in most classrooms and is often in short supply). In return, you’ll get a 6 oz pour of Mah Nà Mah Nà, a Belgian Golden Ale, aged for eight months in a freshly drained tequila barrel. If you want you can bring more school supplies; they will be gladly accepted and delivered to the school. The event starts at 3 p.m. and goes on all night.

If you can’t make it to Dock Street this Wednesday, you can follow them on Facebook for information on future school supply drives. You can also donate to Lea Elementary and other schools on the Donors Choose website. Check out this list of school projects that need funding, compiled by the West Philly Coalition for Neighborhood Schools:

Lea Elementary School

1. Reaching Higher Resources
This project is about halfway to its goal but only has 15 days left for funding. Ms. Harris is hoping to buy sets of reading and math games to offer her students hands-on practice.
http://www.donorschoose.org/…/reaching-higher-reso…/1660214/  Continue Reading

Here’s a short update on Independence Charter School West (ICS-West), a new elementary school opening in September 2016. The school’s location will be at 56th and Chester, according to a recent announcement. The school also has a new website: www.icswest.org.

The school will initially be a K-3, mainly serving families from Southwest, West, and Overbrook areas. Applications will be accepted until February 1. More information sessions have been added this week for those families who are interested in applying:

Wednesday, Dec. 9, 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Lucien E. Blackwell/West Philadelphia Regional Library
125 S. 52nd Street

Thursday, Dec. 10, 3:30-5:30 p.m.
Woodland Academy Child Development Center
5401 Grays Avenue

Friday, Dec. 11, 10-11 a.m.
Blanche A. Nixon/Cobbs Creek library branch
5800 Cobbs Creek Parkway (59th/Baltimore Ave.)  Continue Reading

Two charter operators are interested in taking over the Samuel B. Huey School at 5200 Pine St., and a committee that includes parents of current students will spend the next month or so figuring out which one they think will work best.

Image source: Google Street View.

The School District of Philadelphia announced yesterday that the Global Leadership Academy Charter School and SABIS Educational Systems are interested in Huey, one of three public schools that will be converted into charters next year as part of the District’s “Renaissance Charter School Initiative.” The others are Jay Cooke Elementary and John Wister Elementary, both in North Philly. All three were designated as “low-performing” schools.

Global Leadership Academy currently operates a K-8 school at 4600 West Girard Ave. that includes about 700 students. SABIS is a Minnesota-based, for-profit company that operates 12 charter schools across the country.

An advisory committee for each school includes District employees, two external stakeholders and, for the first time, five parents or guardians of current students, which a District spokesman said will be “the foundation” of each committee. Their job is to “solicit feedback from other families about the strengths and weaknesses of current school programming as well as wants and needs from turnaround partners,” according to a District statement.  Continue Reading

Click on the images below to view breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus served in Philadelphia public schools in November 2015. Click here if your school uses the Satellite menu.

December 2015 K-8 breakfast, lunch and dinner menu

Continue Reading

As was reported earlier this year, one of Philadelphia’s more successful charter schools, Independence Charter School, will be opening a new elementary school (ICS West) in Southwest Philadelphia in September 2016. The school will be primarily serving families in Southwest and West Philadelphia, as well as Overbrook.

To learn more about the school and its enrollment process, families are invited to one of the open information sessions held at area libraries. Two next information sessions are scheduled at the Cobbs Creek library. Updated information on community meetings can be found on the school website.

Currently, the following meetings are scheduled for prospective families:

Monday, Dec. 7, 10-11 a.m.
Friday, Dec. 11, 10-11 a.m.
Blanche A. Nixon/Cobbs Creek library branch
5800 Cobbs Creek Parkway (59th/Baltimore Ave.)

The school will initially be a K-3 for September 2016. A grade will be added each year, ultimately becoming a K-8 school, according to ICS West board member Dyana Reid.

The school is focused on global citizenship and language acquisition, and instruction will be about half Spanish/half English. “Students and families are not expected to already speak Spanish, though it’s fine if they do,” says ICS West board member Dyana Reid.  Continue Reading

Click on the images below to view breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus served in Philadelphia public schools in November 2015. Click here if your school uses the Satellite menu.

November 2015 K-8 breakfast, lunch and dinner menu

November 2015 9-12 breakfast, lunch and dinner menu