He found little purpose in school but decided to finish
He walked into the room, took off his hat, and introduced himself with a firm handshake – not exactly the behavior one would expect of an “out-of-school youth.”Actually, Mykel (his full name is being...
View ArticleTaking action in sixth grade to prevent future dropouts
A recent study looking for predictors of students likely to drop out has found that as early as sixth grade there are powerful warning signs pointing to children at extreme risk.Following up on the...
View ArticleEscuelas abren . . . pero algunos no regresan
En septiembre las escuelas superiores de Filadelfia abren sus puertas, dándole la bienvenida a miles de estudiantes nuevos que sienten la mezcla de entusiasmo y ansiedad que desde tiempos de antaño se...
View ArticleSound bites don't capture test score results
“Strong progress, but a long way to go,” is how the summer's news about test scores in the School District has often been reported.But this neat sound bite does not adequately describe the current...
View ArticleYouth pushed aside
The word “dropout” often conjures up a negative image – someone who does not care about school or about getting ahead in life.But dismissing dropouts as young people who don't care sweeps under the...
View ArticleParent questions hostile treatment
To the editors:I am the parent of a fifth-grader who has attended schools in West Philadelphia since kindergarten. Whenever I have needed to contact the school regarding my child, I have been greeted...
View ArticleNew efforts to stem flow of dropouts from Philadelphia schools
Young people in Philadelphia who have left school have most likely experienced one of the defining features of the city's massive dropout problem – the invisibility of out-of-school youth.Dozens of...
View ArticleDetermined teen mom: why didn't her credits add up?
Born in Jersey City and raised in North Philadelphia, 18-year-old Stephanie Jackson never intended to drop out of high school.A mother at 17, and the youngest of three sisters, she describes having...
View ArticleStudent activists attend youth research camp
When Jerry Zuviri observed his “teacher” raising her voice at his friend Malcolm Seawright, he knew just what to do. He quickly rose from his seat, loudly called out “Pause!” and stopped the entire...
View ArticleTwo communities develop new high school designs
After months of meetings to help determine the design of new buildings for Kensington and West Philadelphia High Schools, community participants in both neighborhoods expect to finalize their design...
View ArticleAt the SRC . . .
In September, the School Reform Commission approved the following:-A new and stiffer promotion policy for 2005-06 The District promises to review and get public input before implementing a long-term...
View ArticleComings and Goings
At District HQ: Gregory Shannon has been named Assistant Superintendent in the office of Transition and Alternative Education. . . . Deputy Chief Safety Officer James B. Golden Jr., takes over acting...
View ArticleOfficials: new measures needed on out-of-school youth
Pennsylvania Gov. Edward Rendell supports an initiative that would assign individual identifying codes to students in the ninth grade, as a way to eliminate the “invisibility” of school dropouts and...
View ArticleWill new high schools combat old problems?
When eighth-grade students this month select which high school they’d like to attend next year, they’ll have five more schools to choose from than the class before them, with new choices built around...
View ArticleAt the SRC . . .
In October, the School Reform Commission considered but did not yet approve the following resolutions (an October action meeting for voting on resolutions was postponed to November 9):-Authorization...
View ArticleSteps taken to change ‘total curriculum’ in all grades
At the same time that the School Reform Commission voted in February 2005 to mandate an African American history course in all high schools, the commissioners approved a provision calling for “the...
View ArticleReview: new history modules provide package of lessons
The most powerful segment of the new “African and African American History” modules developed by the School District for elementary grades is the introduction included in each grade level teacher...
View ArticleArt Sanctuary offers ‘Hip Hop 101 Guide’
It’s been over 25 years since the Sugarhill Gang first encouraged the American public to hip hop and don’t stop. From its roots in the creative expression of Black and Latino youth in the Bronx, New...
View ArticleAsante on required course: ‘It’s about time’
Since the Philadelphia School Reform Commission passed a resolution mandating that all students take an African American history course, Molefi Kete Asante says his phone has been ringing off the...
View ArticleHot debate about revoking K12’s science contract
Back in 2002, throngs of protestors regularly descended on School Reform Commission meetings for raucous debates about contracts for private companies to provide educational services to the...
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Equity, community input needed in District’s new school choice plan
To the editors:According to the Notebook’s September 2005 Newsflash, the District is considering a “preferred choice” plan that will give Center City students preferential access to certain schools....
View ArticleState Board of Ed backs off proposal for ‘dual certification’
Differences in the skills and knowledge of teachers are crucial factors in determining where students with disabilities can receive the best education. Regular classroom teachers are expected to know...
View ArticleNuevo curso es resultado de años de lucha
Más de 65 por ciento de los estudiantes del Distrito escolar son afroamericanos. Pero a pesar de la predominancia de estudiantes afroamericanos en el salón de clases, nunca se ha tenido un currículo...
View ArticleCharter school strives to make African culture part of every day
Reflections of African culture are prominent at Imani Circle Charter School, located at Greene Street and Chelten Avenue in Germantown. Imani is one of several Philadelphia charter schools with an...
View ArticleOpinion: Black history - correcting the record
In February 2005, the Philadelphia School Reform Commission voted unanimously to mandate African and African American history for high school students. Finally, the District stopped telling the...
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New course grew out of years of struggle
More than 65 percent of the School District's students are African American. Yet despite the predominance of African American students in the classroom, a comprehensive curriculum reflective of their...
View ArticleSRC resolution for African American studies
Passed unanimously by the School Reform CommissionWHEREAS, on December 23, 1968, the School District of Philadelphia in an effort to address the academic and cultural needs of its African American...
View ArticleContinuing the pressure for state funding equity
As state legislators carry on a special session in Harrisburg aimed at adopting property tax reform, public education advocates continue to pressure the legislature to fix the state's regressive...
View ArticleMandated course draws strong, varied reactions
Academic, political and civic leaders both locally and nationally have weighed in on the Philadelphia School District's mandated high school course in African American history. Here are some of the...
View ArticleFinding economies in small school size
Conventional wisdom is that small schools serving just a few hundred students, while they may be supportive and effective learning environments, are more expensive than larger schools to build and...
View ArticleELECT program for teen parents provides academic, social supports
To the editors:Your Fall 2005 edition on out-of-school youth mentioned the ELECT (Education Leading to Employment and Career Training) program, a partnership between the state Departments of Education...
View ArticleReport notes obstacles to public involvement
A nonprofit research group's report has urged the School District to “refocus” its attention on building community engagement in Philadelphia's public school reform efforts.The September 2005 report,...
View ArticleClass notes: 10th graders on the new course
The Notebook collected written comments from five 10th graders of racially diverse backgrounds who are taking African American history at W. B. Saul High School of Agricultural Sciences in the city's...
View ArticleState grant supports stipends for parents
A $1.7 million state “Parent Scholars Grant” will allow the School District to expand its program of Parent Assistance Desks (PADs) at schools as well as involve more parents in monitoring safety in...
View ArticleCurso obligatorio de historia afroamericana incita reacciones fuertes y variadas
Los líderes académicos, políticos y cívicos tanto a nivel local como nacional han opinado sobre el curso obligatorio de historia afroamericana del Distrito Escolar de Filadelfia. Estas son algunas de...
View ArticleOut-of-school youth: much work lies ahead
To the editors:I want to thank everyone at the Notebook for the broad and incisive coverage of Philadelphia's school dropout situation (Fall 2005 edition). You did an excellent job of introducing the...
View ArticleClassroom resources for infusing African American studies
The Notebook asked several respected educators and education advocates locally and nationally to suggest a resource that could be tapped to infuse African American studies into the K-12 classroom....
View ArticlePreparing teachers in African American history: a major focus
Good professional development for teachers is vital to the success of the School District's new mandated high school course in African American history.“We have numerous teachers whose educational...
View ArticleMandate for change
In 1967, thousands of Philadelphia high school students boldly walked out of school, taking their demand for African American curricular inclusion to the School Board. In 2005, almost four decades...
View ArticleOpinion: Course provides a lens on U.S. history
The adoption last spring of a mandatory African American history course for Philadelphia high school students, while widely hailed as a groundbreaking and long overdue reform, also sparked some...
View ArticleReview: stories of great escapes offer different view of slavery
Free!: Great Escapes from Slavery on the Underground Railroad, by Lorene Cary. Third World Press/New City Community Press, 2005. Slavery is without a doubt one of the most difficult elements of U.S....
View ArticleNew text presents varied experiences of African Americans
“Under what circumstances is it permissible to violate the law or threaten to kill another human being?”“What do you think is the meaning of the line (of the poem) 'Many thousand gone?'“Does this...
View ArticleTeachers passionate about African American history course
For veteran teacher Robert Gainey, teaching the new African American history course to 10th graders at Benjamin Franklin is very exciting. “I see the light bulb going on all the time,” he...
View ArticleStudent Union celebrates 10 years of organizing
The Philadelphia Student Union isn't a kid in the organizing world any more.The youth-run group that organizes young people to transform their schools into safer, better-equipped and more academically...
View ArticleAfrican American history mandate: a timeline
Please click on this Adobe Acrobat PDF to view the timeline.
View ArticleWin for student group in small-schools effort
After four years of student organizing and pressuring the School District of Philadelphia to transform the large and aging Kensington High School into four small schools, members of Youth United for...
View ArticleComings and Goings
At District HQ: Joseph Meade left the District, where he was most recently Assistant Director of Parent & Community Relations . . . John Suggs, special projects assistant in office of Faith-based...
View ArticleProposed change in admission policy reaches SRC
While the “Center City Schools” website no longer touts “priority status” for students from Center City seeking to attend any elementary school in their region, members of the School Reform Commission...
View ArticleAt the SRC . . .
In November, the School Reform Commission voted down a proposal to terminate a contract with K12 Inc.By a 3-2 vote, K12 Inc. maintains its $3 million contract to provide science materials to grades...
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