PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — While crime, gun violence and public safety have been front and center in the Philadelphia mayor’s race, many parents want to hear more from the candidates about how they would improve city schools.
Some parents want to commit to their neighborhood schools, if only the city could improve equity across the district. Others are even considering moving out of the city because of the state of the system.
Meghan Gaffney Wells of Roxborough says she would like the mayoral candidates to place more emphasis on supporting district schools. With three children under 5 years old, Gaffney Wells will soon be considering whether they’ll attend their neighborhood school or apply to a charter. She and her husband have even talked about moving out of the city for better schools.
“I think it’s sad to be where we are and be able to throw a stone in any direction and hit fantastic school districts, and this city isn’t including itself in that,” Gaffney Wells said.
‘We need somebody who’s not just … sending condolences’
Colleen Guerrero of Manayunk has a 2-year-old daughter. With so much gun violence, it’s difficult to say the candidates should make education their major focus, Guerrero said, but she believes the next mayor should direct resources to neighborhood schools, to strengthen communities.
“The big problem is, a lot of people like me — who are young parents, who only have one kid — we get nervous and we say, ‘I don’t want to have to deal with this. I’d rather move out of the city,’” Guerrero said.
Former City Councilmember Cherelle Parker has touted a plan to hire more police officers if she wins the election. However, Gaffney Wells said, an investment in schools would result in less crime.
“If we were putting more resources into the education system — if we were affording our children from working families rec centers and places to go, after-school for programs — we wouldn’t need to be putting 300 new cops on a beat to patrol XYZ neighborhood,” she said.
The district recently reported that, so far this school year, more than 100 public school students have been shot — more than 23 of them fatally.
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Shavon Almodovar of Spring Garden says the latest spike in shootings around schools terrifies her. She has two boys in a charter school, in fifth and third grades, and she is demanding that kids’ safety be made a top priority.
“Safety is a definite, huge issue,” Almodovar said. “I need a mayor that's not doing reactive things. I need them to be proactive. We need somebody who's not just standing there talking, sending their condolences to the family after they're gone.”
Almodovar said she has not yet decided on a candidate.
‘A lot of us aren't privileged enough to pay’
The topic of school choice dominated the last openly contested Philadelphia mayoral election in 2015. Some parents want to see it again take center stage because they believe charter schools level the playing field for people with relatively limited financial options.
Of the 200,000 public school kids in the city, 80,000 are in charters. School choice has been a lifeline for many parents, like Almodovar and Renee Porter-Sanders of East Germantown.
Porter-Sanders has three children, now in seventh, ninth and 11th grades. For a while, they were in traditional public schools.
“I was not pleased with what I’d seen. I was not pleased with the way things were ran,” Porter-Sanders said.
Now all three of her kids attend a Mastery Charter school, and Porter-Sanders has become a huge proponent of school choice.
“I would like the mayor's office to really focus on protecting school choice for families here in Philadelphia,” Porter-Sanders said. “A lot of us aren't privileged enough to pay for an education that is well-rounded. So a family that sees a school that is fitting the needs of their child, they should be able to have their child go to that school.”
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In the city, this view has been politically out of favor for the past several years, since the school district transitioned from state control back to local control.
In Philadelphia, the mayor appoints the nine-member school board, which hires a superintendent to run the school system. Jim Kenney, who as a candidate was backed by the teachers union, appointed a board that has put the brakes on charter school expansion.
So for parents interested in preserving school choice, the person who next occupies the mayor’s office makes a big difference. Porter-Sanders supported former City Councilmember Derek Green before he dropped out of the mayor’s race. She remains undecided on a candidate.
Of this year’s Democratic candidates, Parker, former Councilmember Allan Domb, businessman Jeff Brown, state Rep. Amen Brown and former City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart have been vocal in support of charters.
Former Councilmember Helen Gym founded a charter school more than a decade ago, but she has been very skeptical of the sector in recent years.
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‘The structure is there, but the resources aren’t’
Something parents on either side of the charter debate can agree on is that Philadelphia public schools need more resources.
In Roxborough, Gaffney Wells’ polling place is at Shawmont Elementary School. The school has an elevator, but when she goes there to vote, she said, there’s never anyone with the key to operate it.
“I just feel like it’s such an apt metaphor for the school system in Philadelphia,” she said. “The structure is here, but the resources aren’t.”
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Jessica Donnelly of East Parkside says, when her 1-year-old daughter reaches school age, she doesn’t want to send her to nearby Blankenburg Elementary — where only 4% of students scored proficient in math on the 2019 PSSA tests.
“I’m thinking about leaving the city, honestly,” Donnelly said. “Our local school is kind of a no-go for me. It’s a very poor elementary school.”
Donnelly said she’s leaning toward Gym and has considered Rhynhart, but she wants more specifics from all of the candidates.
“Could any one mayoral candidate turn around Philadelphia schools in a matter of three years? Probably not,” she said. “But it’s something I have looked very hard at. And even if there’s progress, I would change my mind.”
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‘Providing the least amount possible, hoping the parents don't know better’
According to the district, 18% of public school students in the city have needs that qualify them for special education, but it can be a struggle for parents to make sure those needs are met.
“Two of my kids are on the autism spectrum, and it was a fight to get all the services and the things that my kids needed,” said Shereda Cromwell from North Philly.
She has children who, over the years, have been in district schools and charter schools, and she says she sees a need for change in both.
“When it comes to special needs, they are providing the least amount possible and hoping that the parents don't know better. And then the parents that do know better, we have to advocate for our kids,” Cromwell said. “For the mayoral candidate that's coming in, I really want somebody that feels like all of the kids are important, no matter what school they go to.”
Right now, she says she’s leaning toward supporting Domb or Parker.
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Kelly Maguire of Manayunk says she is satisfied with the education her two daughters are getting at Dobson Elementary, and she gets frustrated by the negativity from some parents.
“They’re like: ‘These schools are so terrible.’ And I’m like: Well yeah, there’s issues — and we need to talk about those issues — but there’s also a lot of really good things happening in our schools and a lot of really interesting curriculum initiatives,” she said.
None of the candidates for mayor stand out, says Maguire.
“The field is a little bit overwhelming, and there are things that I like about some candidates more than others. It just is a lot to wade through.”
The primary election, to determine the Democratic candidate for mayor, is May 16. The general election is Nov. 7.
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