The mayor�s agreement with the governor: who is claiming victory? By Paul Socolar Philadelphia Public School Notebook November 23, 2001
Governor Mark Schweiker and officials at Edison Schools, Inc., termed Tuesday�s agreement that opened negotiations on a school reform plan a �breakthrough.� Mayor Street called it �huge.� Local media said a deal had been made, laying the groundwork for a �friendly takeover.� Activists fighting privatization weren't celebrating. The governor and mayor announced Tuesday evening that they had overcome the impasse in their negotiations. The governor's proposal to have Edison Schools, Inc., manage the entire school district has been withdrawn after significant public outcry. But the mayor and governor both said Edison would play a significant part in the reform plan still to be agreed on by November 30. At a press conference Wednesday, representatives of local school reform coalitions and local unions expressed anger that the understanding reached by the mayor and governor was also an endorsement of the move toward privatization. These groups are calling for a series of mass actions, including a rally at the State Office Building Nov. 28 at 3:30 pm, to demand that the governor back away from all his privatization plans. Still on the table are components of the governor's plan including privatization of school management at 60 schools, budget-cutting measures such as the privatization of many non-professional School District jobs, and a proposal for Edison to take over some key District administrative functions. On Wall Street, Edison�s investors reacted positively to the promise of a deal in Philadelphia in which Edison would play a substantial role. Edison�s stock price was up 7.3% on Wednesday to $18.30. In their own words, here�s what some of the parties were saying this week about the agreement between the mayor and the governor: Press statement from governor's office: �Gov. Schweiker's proposal ensures that Edison Schools would have a significant and vital role in the operation of the district. It recasts the role of the manager of the district's central office -- but in a way that still ensures the academic and financial reforms that the Governor outlined in his original proposal to the Mayor. The remainder of Gov. Schweiker's proposal remains unchanged -- including private management of the district's 60 lowest-performing schools. �Under the new proposal agreed to tonight by Gov. Schweiker and Mayor Street, the management of the district's central office would be the responsibility of the School Reform Commission (SRC) and all employees of the district would be paid by the SRC. Working with the SRC and the district CEO, Edison Schools would play a major role as a "contracted change agent" and a "system provider." Edison would provide comprehensive strategic and operational support to the SRC and to the district's new leadership team, in their implementation of the Governor's proposal. Though not in a decision-making role, Edison would be significantly involved in the improvement of virtually every aspect of the district's operations.� Mayor Street: The mayor called this a "huge, huge, very important step�.Our hope is that very shortly the governor and the mayor can come out and say we have reached a plan." �Edison will be in the mix here. Edison will be more than just a consultant to the reform commission and to a strong CEO�.We will support buying some services from Edison and getting some counseling and advice from Edison.� Pedro Ramos, school board president: �The Governor has taken part of his plan -- private management of the entire district -- off the table. The Mayor had insisted that the city/school district team would not negotiate while this part of the plan was on the table. I believe that this element of the Governor's proposal completely removed the "public" from the public school system. The system will be managed by a CEO that reports to a governing board, whose composition will be one of the subjects of negotiation. �The city team and the governor's team will start negotiating on Monday. Negotiations will be difficult, but we're committed to trying to find a responsible solution. For example, the Edison report did not really address the huge financial problem caused by the flawed formula for funding charter schools. That, in itself, is a big issue with big dollar implications.� Chris Whittle, Edison Schools CEO: �We believe the accord struck by the Governor and the Mayor was critical and that it will pave the way for dramatic and positive change for the children of Philadelphia. The cornerstones are now in place for the most important turnaround of a major urban school system. Obviously, Edison will seek to play a key role, both as the lead provider in the management of 45 schools and as the system provider to the district. We look forward to being a partner in the district's improvement by providing our educational management and systems expertise.'' Helen Gym, Asian Americans United (on behalf of Philadelphians United to Support Public Schools, Coalition to Keep Public Schools Public, the National AFL-CIO, Coalition of African American Women's Organizations, and the NAACP): �We stand together to say that not one single public school, not one single child and not one single worker is for sale to Edison Schools. There is no place for Edison in Philadelphia. From the beginning, Philadelphians have been appalled at the sheer arrogance of this company. �We make the following demands: 1) There is no privatization of a single school in this city, and Edison Schools Inc. will be sent packing back to Wall Street. Their job here is done. 2) We demand the pursuit of legislative measures that address funding inequity across the state, such as the Micozzie bill. There are options to this mess that we are in. 3) We demand the Mayor and Gov. suspend the Nov. 30 deadline so that the public has an opportunity to fulfill its right as citizens to have a say in the future of their children. �To Mayor Street�we remind you that you were elected by the people of this city to serve the people of this city. You were elected to provide leadership, vision, and above all moral courage in times of crisis. We hope that you have not said a deal has been made; we hope the newspaper headlines have misrepresented you and that you have not misrepresented us.� Paul Socolar, Editor Philadelphia Public School Notebook 3721 Midvale Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19129 (215) 951-0330 x107 Fax: (215) 951-0342 [EMAIL PROTECTED] ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>. Archive is at <http://www.mail-archive.com/>.
