Sledding in Clark Park was fun while it lasted. Now it’s time to pay up. (Photo by Mike Lyons)
The sledding was awesome. The snowball fights were grand. But now it’s time to pay for those snow days. The School District of Philadelphia just announced that it will add two days to this year’s calendar to make up for classes missed during the winter.
The last day for students is now Tuesday, June 21 and the last day for teachers and staff is June 22.
Philadelphia schools were closed January 12th, 27th, 28th, and February 22nd because of snow.
The Coalition’s Amara Rockar provided the information below on participating schools. Parents interested in visiting a school should call and verify the times.
A. D. Harrington School
5300-34 Baltimore Ave
19143
(215) 471 – 2914 www.philasd.org/schools/harrington
Open House: CONFIRMED, 9:09-9:54
B. B. Comegys School
5100 Greenway Ave.
19143
(215) 727 – 2162
Open House: Not confirmed
Alain Locke School
4550 Haverford Ave.
19139
(215) 823 – 8202
Open House: CONFIRMED, 9-10:30
Martha Washington Academics
766 N. 44th St.
19104
(215) 823 – 8203 www.philasd.org/schools/marthawashington Open House: Occurring on 4/2 instead OF 3/1, Time TBA.
Samuel Powel School
301 N. 36th St.
19104
(215) 823 – 8201 www.philasd.org/schools/powel
Open House: No Open House events planned but prospective parents welcome to drop by in the morning.
School reform advocates from West Philly will no doubt be on hand for a rally today in front of the Philadelphia School District offices at 440 N. Broad St. to call on the district to open up the process of reform to students, parents, teachers and community members.
Teacher Action Group (TAG), an organization of reform-minded teachers, is organizing the rally, which is scheduled for 4 p.m.
Some of the nearly 100 students who walked out of West Philadelphia High School last week talk with reporters. (Photo courtesy of The Notebook.)
West Philly resident, professor and blogger Drick Boyd published an insightful post on Sunday about what is happening at West Philly High and the lengthy string of changes that have been made this year, including three different principals. About 100 students voiced their anger at the changes by walking out of the school on Feb. 11.
Today about 40 students walked out of Audenried High School on Tasker Street to protest their school’s conversion to a charter school. The “process” that Boyd writes about at West Philly High is the sweeping nature of the changes with seemingly little consultation with students or parents.
He writes:
The mild “uprisings” in West Philadelphia and South Philadelphia are a sign that people in those communities care about education and their kids and they want an authentic seat at the table. They don’t want to be pawns in quick fixes or faddish educational ideas. More than anyone, they know that the future of precious lives are at stake, because those lives are either theirs (students) or the lives of people about whom they deeply care (parents and community members).
Boyd’s post also appeared on The Notbook site today.
The Philadelphia Public School Notebook has a thorough piece about the walkout at West Philadelphia High School yesterday. They report that as many as 100 students walked out in protest of constant changes at the school, which was recently declared a “promise academy” by the school district. The designation carries a number of changes, including the dismissal of the entire faculty and the rehiring of a maximum of 50 percent of teachers.
The Philadelphia Inquirer also posted a story yesterday on the walkout.
“I’m appalled at what’s going on,” junior D’Atwan Nelson, a leader of the walkout, told the Inquirer.
Windermere cats video
Philly.com posted a video yesterday on the efforts of the West Philly based feline rescue group City Kitties to rescue cats still inside the Windermere Court Apartments at 48th and Walnut, which was devastated by fire on January 10. Demolition of the building is scheduled to begin Monday.
Parents, teachers and school administrators gathered at West Philadelphia High School (4700 Walnut St.) last night to discuss that school’s transition to a “promise academy,” a sometimes controversial school district label that includes several measures designed to improve struggling schools. For many parents it means just another change.
These changes include firing the teaching faculty and rehiring a maximum of 50 percent of those teachers back is part of the district’s Renaissance school program. That means that West, which has seen a lot of change in recent years, including three principals in less than year, will start the next academic year with its fourth principal and a largely new faculty. West will be “traditional”promise academy, meaning extra instruction time, including Saturdays, governance by a School Advisory Council and a host of other changes. The Philadelphia Public School Notebook has a nice breakdown of the different Renaissance school designations here.
Many parents and teachers, though, are growing tired with constant changes at their schools.
Here is a Fox29 story about the meeting:
And here is a fact sheet on the Renaissance schools program:
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