This dog was found near 43rd and Spruce early this morning. He had no collar or tags on him, and no microchip was found when he was scanned. Please email us at editor@westphillylocal.com if you have any information about the dog’s owner, and we’ll connect you with the person who found the dog.

More changes are in store for several Philadelphia public schools, including the conversion of the Samuel B. Huey School (5200 Pine St.) to a charter and the opening of a middle school in cooperation with Drexel University aimed in part at Samuel Powel Elementary (301 N. 36th St.) and students from the nearby Mantua neighborhood.

Superintendent William Hite announced the plan yesterday. It will impact about 5,000 students and cost the district $15 million to $20 million, he said.

Huey, a K-8 school which has struggled academically, would be converted to a charter school as part of the district’s Renaissance Schools Initiative in the 2016-2017 school year. Jay Cooke in Logan in North Philadelphia and John Wister in East Mount Airy would also be converted to charter schools. The plan includes a charter operator selection process that includes school parent representatives on search committees. The School Reform Commission will vote on the charters on Jan. 21, according to reports.  Continue Reading

Grandparents and other relatives who are raising children are invited to the 3rd biennial Helping Hands Kinship Care Conference this Saturday (Oct. 3). The conference, which will take place at the West Philadelphia High School, is organized by Sen. Anthony H. Williams in partnership with the Philadelphia Kinship Care Committee.

The conference will feature a presentation on the new Community Umbrella Agency system (CUA) and workshops on issues that may be relevant to your family, such as Custody and the Law, Family Dynamics of Kinship Care, and Behavioral Health Resources.

This is a free event, but registration is required for lunch: Please call and leave a message for Adele Struble at Turning Points for Children at 215-528-3499 or Grand Central at 215-557-1554. Please provide the following for registration: Name, Address, Phone, Email, Kinship Caregiver relationship to child.

Date: October 3, 2015
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Location: West Philadelphia High School, 4901 Chestnut St.

More information is available on the recent shootings near 52nd and Spruce where two young men were shot and hospitalized.

On Thursday, Sept. 24, a 24-year-old man was shot in the upper left thigh in a shootout on the 5200 block of Irving Street, according to police. The shooting was reported shortly after 9 p.m. Multiple shots were fired in what police believe was an exchange of gunfire between two suspects, black males in early 20’s, who opened fire on the block and another unidentified person, who was shooting back at them. Twenty-two various caliber shell casings were found on the block, and two vehicles parked on the block were struck by stray bullets, according to a police report. The victim was taken to Presbyterian Hospital where he was listed in critical but stable condition.  Continue Reading

Jessica at ease at The Woodlands. She doesn’t like your dog as much as you do. Photo by Lori Waselchuk.

The tension between those who walk their dogs off-leash at The Woodlands and those who wish they wouldn’t is kind of the west-of-the-Schuylkill version of the Hatfields and the McCoys, Liam and Noel Gallagher, Biggie and Tupac. That may be overstating it slightly, but it’s kind of a big deal to many who frequent the cemetery/park.

Jessica, a West Philly yoga instructor and blogger, has had it. In “An Open Letter to People Who Let Their Dogs Off-Leash at Woodlands Cemetery,” she draws a line in the dirt. “I was once a vicious 13-year old girl,” she writes. “And given the right situation, she can return.”

Jessica originally posted this on her site, but has graciously allowed us to repost it here:  Continue Reading

Here’s some good news out of the Community College of Philadelphia (CCP). The college recently received a $3 million grant to help African American males succeed in college.

The college, which has a student population of more than 34,000, will use the grant to help fund its Center for Male Engagement, which provides access to academic coaches, computers and other education resources. The grant was provided by the Department of Education’s Predominately Black Institutions Program.

“This is a place where men gain the confidence to be successful in life and in their studies,” CCP President Donald Guy Generals said in a statement.

Minority students make up about 76 percent of CCP’s student body.

CCP’s West Regional Center, where the college’s Automotive Technology programs are based, is located at 4725 Chestnut Street.