PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The University of Pennsylvania would provide a hefty infusion of money and resources to the Henry C. Lea Elementary School, under a proposal up for consideration by the school board this month.
Lea would become the second West Philadelphia school supported by Penn. The university, the district, and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers founded the successful Penn Alexander elementary school at 42nd and Locust Streets in 2001.
Penn would provide the Lea school with grants and services worth $816,500 over five years, under the resolution on the school board’s January 27 agenda.
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Under the proposal, the district, Penn, and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers would improve staffing and teacher training at Lea with the goal of maximizing student achievement while maintaining an appreciation for diversity.
Lea is a K-8 neighborhood school at 47th and Locust streets serving 500 students. In the district’s most recent School Progress Report, Lea scored a 53 out of a possible 100.
The university already provides services worth an extra $1,300 per student each year at the Penn Alexander school.
Formally known as the Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander University of Pennsylvania Partnership School, Penn Alexander has been one of the district’s most decorated schools, winning national Blue Ribbon honors from the U. S. Education Department in 2016 and again last fall.
