PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The third time was not the charm. Despite the urging of public officials and pleas from students, the Philadelphia School Board Thursday night rejected an application for a new charter high school.
It was the third time in the last year that Global Leadership Network head Naomi Johnson-Booker applied to open a charter high school. And, it was the third time the school board said no, this time by a 6-3 vote.
Global Leadership runs two K-8 charters in Southwest Philadelphia. It applied to open another charter in North Philadelphia, at Broad Street and Duncannon Avenue. City Council education committee chair Isaiah Thomas endorsed the application before the school board Thursday night.
“We’re basically begging you to give these families, give these educators and give these children the opportunity to stay together,” he said.
City Councilmember Curtis Jones also supported Global’s application: “By providing a high school for Global, you will give those kids a continuum of education.”
However, the majority of board members had concerns about the independence of the school’s management and its academic performance, which was largely below the district average. Board member Joyce Wilkerson voted against the new charter high school.
“I think that setting the standard this low creates a dangerous precedent for public education in Philadelphia. It takes us in the wrong direction,” she said. “When I look at the academic performance of the existing schools, they fail to meet the standard that we want for our children.”
Board member Lisa Salley, who supported the new school, criticized how the district’s Charter Schools Office analyzes applications.
“I am greatly concerned that there is too much variation and too much bias in the current review process. And that as a result of this, this application has not been fairly or reasonably evaluated,” she said.
The school board has not approved a new charter school since the district’s return to local control in 2018.