PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Several City Council members, state lawmakers and other school advocates are calling on the Philadelphia Board of Education to delay its vote on the district’s plan to close 17 schools, saying the matter is being rushed.
Ludlow Elementary was removed from the Philadelphia School District’s sweeping facilities closure list on Monday, but 17 schools are still on the chopping block. The school board is set to vote on the plan at Thursday’s meeting.
Councilmembers Isaiah Thomas, Curtis Jones and Nina Ahmad gathered outside Lankenau Environmental Science Magnet High School in Roxborough on Tuesday morning — one of the schools slated for closure, despite the community’s efforts.
Lawmakers and students joined them in their rallying cry, “Keep Lank open!”
Jones questioned the proposal to turn Lankenau, a successful school with a 100% graduation rate, into an environmental center for all district students.
“Why do we find something that’s working and say, ‘let’s rearrange it to suit our immediate needs,’ and to break it in order to fix it. Make it make sense to me,” he argued.
Lankenau utilizes the acres of land and proximity to the Schuylkill Center to give students hands-on experience they couldn’t get elsewhere.
“We are all fighting because this is not fair to our children,” said Ahmad. “Not to have this opportunity to do agroecology, to have careers that can transform their lives.”
Lankenau junior Wyntir Alford said she tried to get her message across to district officials about the importance of her school.
“I spoke at I think three meetings and each and every time they just sit there looking like they don’t care,” she said. “It breaks my heart.”
District officials said they have been listening to those affected by the proposal. Three schools have been taken off the list since January.
Superintendent Tony Watlington said this “final, final” 10-year proposal has a $3 billion price tag — up from $2.8 billion. The district said tough decisions are needed to maximize available resources and fix aging buildings.
“We’re really concerned with closing schools like Wagner and Harding,” Thomas added. “When you close Wagner Middle School and say the neighboring schools are gonna be K-8 now. Well, I’m a graduate of Elmwood Elementary, and I could tell you I’m certain that Elmwood doesn’t have the actual space to go to K-8.”
Philadelphia Federation of Teachers President Art Steinberg said there shouldn’t be a closure list at all right now.
“The timing is awful,” he said. “We’re in the process of trying to get a rideshare tax approved to provide funding for the schools so that positions can be saved and not be cut.”
The mayor’s proposed $1-per-trip tax on Uber and Lyft would reportedly save 340 jobs in the school district.
Officials say the vote, which is set for Thursday, is being rushed
Officials say the vote, which is set for Thursday, is being rushed
