2014 has been quite a year for public education in Philadelphia and the surrounding the counties. Massive budget cuts, undemocratic decisions, and more continue to plague public schools. Yet, in the midst of this ongoing struggle organizations and advocates continue to show up and fight the good fight. This house has been burning for a long while, and despite the worst that is still left to be done, much has been accomplished thus far.

January and February started with film screenings and panel discussions around standardized testing, the symptoms of over-testing and over-scheduling, and incarceration. A screening of the documentary, Race to Nowhere was hosted by Teachers Lead Philly. Broken on All Sides, a film about incarceration in Philadelphia was hosted by Mishkan Shalom. Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools (APPS) hosted a screening of Standardized: Lies, Money and Civil Rights. These local events continued to inform decisions and counter testimonials to the current Pennsylvania Governor’s anti-education platform. The Teacher Action Group (TAG) released a 2014 Candidate Report card for the gubernatorial race. Today TAG continues to share student perspectives in the midst of the budget fiasco on the web page.

During the first week of April, Philadelphia played host to the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Convention at the Convention Center on Arch. On April 3, 2014, The Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools hosted a Town Hall meeting at the Arch Street United Methodist Church. Educators from all over the United States and Canada spoke about current education reform, the corporate influences, and how it affects students, families, and higher education. Philadelphia is a major part of the national conversation when it comes to public education,
“All eyes on Philly.”

During the convention, Mark Gleason’s infamous, “Dump the Losers” speech occurred. Gleason is the Executive Director of the Philadelphia School Partnership (PSP), a company that provides funding to Philadelphia public, charter, and parochial school. “Schools shouldn’t have the right to exist.” He referred to low performing schools as “losers” and continued to stress that they should be replaced with high performing schools. The inherent problem with this broken philosophy is that a business model approach to education has never been proven effective and it does not fully consider all of the complexities involved in a truly effective holistic education for each individual child.

A new caucus affiliated with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers was introduced early this year. The Caucus of Working Educators (WE) hosted a launch party March 28 at St. Stephens Green. “Support and energize the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers for the work that needs to be done,” Larissa Pahamov. PFT members, advocates, and community members were in attendance and excited to learn more about the caucus.

May 17, 2014 marked 60 years after the historic 1954 Brown v. Board of Education case that ushered in new integration laws. “White students-the most segregated group in the nation’s public schools-attend schools on average where 80% of the student body is white.” Most of Philadelphia schools and the surrounding suburbs continue to be segregated and the percentage of teachers of color in the United States hovers under 17%.

The youth will lead us. Students protested the severe budget cuts on May 22 in front of City Hall. This demonstration was organized by Philadelphia Student Union (PSU) and PCAPS (Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public Schools). In the aftermath of 342 lay-offs from the School District of Philadelphia and the threat of 1,000 more if the cigarette tax did not pass left class size well over 40, and many schools without full time counselors, nurses and other necessary support staff. “Stop building prisons and fund schools,” was chanted throughout the crowd.

Over the 2014 summer, the Caucus of Working Educators hosted several book talks to educate and invigorate conversation and action with the following selections:

• Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America’s Public Schools, by Diane Ravitch
• The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education, by Diane Ravitch
• Up South: Civil Rights and Black Power in Philadelphia, by Matthew Countryman
• Raising Expectations (and Raising Hell): My Decade Fighting for the Labor Movement, by Jane Mcalevey and Bob Ostertag
• The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, by Naomi Klein
• Strike for America: Chicago Teachers Against Austerity, by Micah Uetricht
• How to Jump-Start Your Union: Lessons from the Chicago Teachers, by Labor Notes
• A Chronicle of Echoes: Who’s Who in the Implosion of American Public Education, by Mercedes K. Schneider
• Class Action: An Activist Teacher’s Handbook, by Bhaskar Sunkara

In August, Governor Corbett advanced 265 million dollars to the School District of Philadelphia, but that still left an approximately 81 million dollar budget gap, and that was simply enough to open the doors. Near the end of the same month, 41,000 signatures were delivered to City Council in the form of local control. A vote was expected by September 11, but was postponed due to the awaited not yet passed cigarette tax. Support Full Funding demonstrations were scheduled throughout the city at schools every Friday.

The magical dollars promised by the cigarette tax passed the Senate with the inclusion of HB 1177 that allows Philadelphia new charter school applications to make appeals to the Pennsylvania Board of Education if denied by the School Reform Commission (SRC). The needed funds came with a lynchpin that would eventually lead to more dollars being taken from public schools and less local control with the appeals option.

A student protest at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York was sparked by students of color at other universities standing up for better and more equitable treatment on predominately white campuses. The Association of Critical Colleagues (ACC) organized a 7-day peaceful demonstration from September 22 -26. “You can easily become numb to the micro-aggressions caused by blatant bigotry,” Natasha Torres (Student and member of ACC). The tensions at Colgate and other universities were exacerbated by small demonstrations surrounding the Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson, Missouri. “You are invisible if you are not a part of the majority.”

Race and poverty are the largest two elephants in the room when observing or studying public education and at times they can be brushed over for academic success when the truth is that they are all intrinsically connected. Ultimately, if left unchecked it contributes greatly to the ongoing pipeline to prison and the New Jim Crow so eloquently described by Michelle Alexander. 400,00 residents in Philadelphia County live in poverty and half live in deep poverty. The median income is $37,000 and the rate of homeless and food insecure youth is on the rise. “An increase in educational funding alone will not transform these numbers.”

After the cigarette tax passes and City Council expands the tax to increase educational spending in Philadelphia, the School Reform Commission held an emergency meeting on October 6 at 9:30 am to unilaterally vote to cancel the teacher contract. It included a contribution to the benefits with no increase in salary, and for the Health and Welfare Fund to be controlled by the SRC, which affects benefits for PFT members and retirees. An injunction was issued on October 28 to temporarily stop this move.

In response to the contract cancellation, students scheduled walk outs in support of their teachers and 3,000 shut down Broad Street on October 17 before a much anticipated SRC meeting. During the meeting, Senator Christine Tartaglione testified, “First piece of legislation is going to be to abolish the SRC.” Several speakers from the PFT, Caucus of Working Educators, parents, advocates, students, and community members gave testimonials regarding their disappointment with the decision. Right before the meeting, a member of the SRC, Sylvia Sims was videotaped and tweeted yelling at members of the Philadelphia Student Union during a peaceful protest of the screening of Won’t Back Down. No apology was ever offered for saying, “Ya’ll probably in failing schools!” She is still on the School Reform Commission and Chairperson Bill Green continues to support her despite the video going viral and clearly showing that she indeed did state those mean spirited words.

On November 3, TIME magazine released a controversial issue with the cover about rotten apples. It mentioned the controversial Vergara v California court case that struck down five statutes of the California Education Code. It set precedent for how individual states will or will not provide tenure or other union protections for teachers and public school employees. This was followed by an important governor election in Pennsylvania.

On November 4, 2014, Tom Wolf was elected as the new Democrat Governor of Pennsylvania making it the first time that a PA governor did not serve a second term. This action spoke volumes about the disappointment that the entire state felt about the Governor’s educational agenda that provided fewer and fewer dollars to Philadelphia and the other Pennsylvania school districts.

The Caucus of Working Educators hosted its first convening in Philadelphia at the Old First reformed United Church of Christ in Old City. The keynote speaker, Dr. Yohuro Williams spoke volumes about next steps and continuous actions against the unending corporate tendrils adversely affecting public education for all. “Create the schools our children deserve.” He pulled on the writing of Dr. King, “Even the press, the classroom, the platform, and the pulpit in many instances do not give us objective and unbiased truths.”

A hearing on Standardized Testing was held on November 19 at 3 pm in City Council chambers. It was in response to Resolution 140666 and organized by Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools Opt-Out Committee. Several speakers were in attendance to testify about the truth and realities of testing in Philadelphia. Even ESOL students were able to shine a very poignant light on the stress and abuse that testing causes. “Enough is enough. We are no longer going to label our kids,” Councilperson Quionones-Sanchez. A resolution was passed by City Council on December 11, 2014. It can be read here. It is a first step in hopefully fully changing how testing looks in Philadelphia Public Schools.

The Budget Commission Hearing was held on November 20, 2014. A press conference was scheduled by Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY) for testimonials from members of PCCY, Youth Commission, parents, community members, and advocates. The main meeting with the entire commission was immediately afterwards with Bill Green m Mayor Nutter, Superintendent Hite and Mark Gleason among the speakers. Gleason stated during his testimony, “Stop tolerating excuses for schools that continue to let students down.”

On the same day that the Ferguson verdict was expected, a commentary written by Marjorie Neff was published in The Notebook. “But there can be no argument that denying children basic conditions for learning is an injustice.” This was in response and in support of the cancellation of the teacher contract for needed funding. Despite the commentary, the School District of Philadelphia expects to still not have enough money for the next school term.

On November 24, a not guilty verdict was given by the grand jury in the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson. A few weeks later a second not guilty verdict was issued in response to the Eric Garner choking death in Staten Island. #BLACKLIVESMATTER and staged dies-ins have been conducted across the country and here in Philadelphia in response to police officers not being held responsible for their erroneous actions resulting in the deaths of two individuals. The public is simply exhausted of the countless deaths of black males and females at the hands of law enforcement. The battle cry will continue into 2015 and beyond until sustainable change occurs.

2014 has been a year filled with wins, frustrations, demonstrations, actions, and wake up calls. And things are just getting started. Now Pennsylvania has a new governor and expectations are high in regard to fair wages, businesses paying their fair share, localized school district control, eliminating unfair standardized testing, bringing the arts back to all Philly youth, eradicating poverty and hunger, and facing issues of race head on. But, in the end Philadelphia is responsible for their own future and we must take back control brick by brick, or else.

The Examiner – December 20, 2014 – Read article online