PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Citing poor academic performance, the city Board of Education Thursday voted to begin the nonrenewal of the Philadelphia Montessori Charter School. The 7-2 vote came as the school challenges the district's charter evaluation process in court.
The school's executive director Amanda Wilson testified at the online board meeting that Montessori had filed suit objecting to the District's charter evaluation process.
"Those issues are now pending in both state and federal court and they deserve to be resolved before any action is taken," Wilson said. "There is no emergency. There is no deadline requiring a vote before the courts have had the opportunity to weigh in on the significant legal issues surrounding this charter renewal process."
Board counsel Lynn Rauch, though, said the state and federal courts had issued rulings permitting the board to vote. Board vice president Sarah-Ashley Andrews noted that students at the K-6 school in Southwest Philadelphia school weren't meeting the mark.
"In recent years, its students have shown consistently low academic performance in math and English Language Arts," Andrews said.
Board member ChauWing Lam pointed out the school had five leaders since 2020.
"There's little or no evidence to demonstrate that performance will materially improve anytime soon," Lam said.
The Montessori Charter in Southwest Philadelphia has been open since 2004. The vote doesn't mean the school has to immediately close. It does begin a series of hearings on the school's future.
The 7-2 vote doesn’t mean the school has to immediately close. Hearings will begin on the school’s future.
The 7-2 vote doesn’t mean the school has to immediately close. Hearings will begin on the school’s future.
