COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC HEARING BEFORE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE PUBLIC TESTIMONY - - - Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wednesday, 3/7/01 4:16 p.m. - - - BILL NO.'S 010011, 010012, 010013 - Re School District of Philadelphia FY '02 Budget PRESENT: COUNCIL President ANNA C. VERNA, Chair COUNCILWOMAN JANNIE BLACKWELL, Vice Chair COUNCILWOMAN BLONDELL REYNOLDS BROWN COUNCILMAN DARRELL L. CLARKE COUNCILWOMAN DAVID COHEN COUNCILMAN W. WILSON GOODE, JR. COUNCILWOMAN DONNA REED MILLER COUNCILMAN MICHAEL A. NUTTER COUNCILMAN ANGEL L. ORTIZ - - - VINCENT VARALLO ASSOCIATES, INC. Registered Professional Reporters Eleven Penn Center, Suite 600 Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215) 561-2220 2 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY I N D E X Parent Cooperative Nursery of Phila. (PCN) Norma DeRosa, Parent Representative . . . . . Danielle Miller, PCN Parent . . . . . . . . . Dawn White, PCN Parent. . . . . . . . . . . . 6 C.C. Brown, Child Therapist . . . . . . . . . 17 Karen Hudson, Fitzpatrick PCN . . . . . . . . 19 7 Andrea Nagle, Spruance PCN. . . . . . . . . . 25 Brian Everly, Concerned Citizen . . . . . . . 26 8 Dr. Robert Palmer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 9 School District of Philadelphia Deirdre Farmbry, Chief Financial Officer. . . 38 10 Cassandra Ruffin, Executive Director. . . . . 40 Early Childhood Programs 11 Pedro Ramos, School Board President . . . . . 52 Debra Kahn, Secretary of Education. . . . . . 125 12 Philadelphia Federation of Teachers Ted Kirsch, President . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Greater Philadelphia First Sam Katz, CEO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Healthy Family Healthy Life Vernard Johnson, Executive Director . . . . . 106 NATIONAL STUDENTS ASSOCIATION Eboney Jones. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 Sherelle Nelson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 Day Augustine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Jeremy Kaplan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 YOUTH IN CONTROL Dr. Mark Kirsner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 CITYWIDE YOUTH AGENCY Raymond Webb. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 Jennifer Robinson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 Sarah Murdoch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 Shira Kellum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 William Mackey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164 Charlita Hardy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169 3 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY (Index, con'td.) Philadelphia Citizens for Children and Youth Shelly Yanoff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 Comprehensive Day Care (Bach Teen Center) Angela Hawkins, Concerned Parent. . . . . . . 178 Lawrence Floyd, Concerned Parent. . . . . . . 180 Nicole Hall, Concerned Parent . . . . . . . . 182 Sonya Iro, Concerned Parent . . . . . . . . . 183 4 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY P R O C E E D I N G S
Good afternoon, everyone. Good afternoon. This is a continued public hearing of the Committee of the Whole regarding Bill No.'s 010011, 010012, and 010013. Our first witness is Norma DeRosa, Danielle Miller, Dawn White, and C.C. Brown. (Witnesses come forward.)
Good afternoon. Kindly identify yourself for the record and proceed with your testimony.
Good afternoon, Madam President and members of Council. My name is Norma DeRosa. I am the Parent Representative for the Parent Cooperative Nursery of Philadelphia. Since I first received a letter from the Director of the PCNs on July 14, 2000, I, along with other parents, have been fighting for the survival of this program. With the help of City Council and others, we were successful in having the fee and sliding scale proposed with unfair notification over the summer suspended for the year 2000-2001. On September 11th, the School 5 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Board passed a resolution stating that a sliding scale would be in effect for the year 2001-2002, that the School District, in conjunction with the Mayor's Office, City Council, and appropriate City and nongovernmental agencies, shall undertake a comprehensive review of the need, cost, and funding of pre-kindergarten, early childhood programs in the District. We the parents have asked to be included in this process. We feel that the School District has had six months to have had fair and open dialogue with us. On February 14th, the Board stated that a decision on the sliding scale and actual numbers would be revealed on Monday, March 12th. At no time did they attempt to contact the parents. I and other parents had testified in front of them just a week before. Instead, they call us on Friday February 23rd, an afternoon when schools closed due to snow, and asked us to contact other parent representatives and get them to a meeting Tuesday, February 27th. I did the best that I could with the short notice and called all of the parents and told them what was being requested. Many responded with anger at 6 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY the short notification process. The District sent out a parent information survey on Monday, February 26th. Many schools did not receive theirs until Tuesday and Wednesday, and then only because in an effort to be counted, they made copies obtained from other schools. These surveys were to be collected originally on Wednesday, March 1st. It was only after I objected to this that they gave us an extra day. My school has yet to have all surveys picked up like other schools have. We must send ours in. These surveys posed three questions and were to be used in the decision-making process. On February 27th, parents representing the leadership of the parent co-ops met in good faith in an effort to establish fair and open dialogue with the School District. We put forth our proposals; they put forth nothing. On Friday March 2nd, members of City Council met with Pedro Ramos and Debra Kahn, and the District stated that a fee of $56 a month, plus the that the parents already pay, for a 24 total of $81 a month, would be instituted. This 25 would be a death blow to this program. This fee 7 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY is still too high for parents to afford. After polling the current and prospective parents of the PCN, our initial proposal of $45 is what we are willing and able to pay. It is my understanding that thee surveys were not used in the decision-making. Yesterday, once again, I received a phone call informing me of a meeting to be held this Friday. They want to give us the results of the surveys and let us know where they stand. The nurseries were all asked to send a parent rep without telling them what the meeting was about. Parents have called me again, feeling that these last-minute meetings are a way for the School District is using to keep us off balance and uninformed. They have told us that any new ideas and questions we may have should be directed toward them and not discussed in an open forum specifically mentioned with City Council. Isn't it interesting that dialogue begins before they have to come to City Council. We are asking for your help. We were under the impression that the School Board and District represents the best interests of our 8 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY children.
By not making a fair and open attempt to communicate with us, the parents of these very children, they lead us to believe that they have hidden agendas. Is this about children or hidden attempts by some individuals to destroy a tried and proven program, one that Philadelphia should be proud to hold up as a national model. Thank you. )
Thank you, Miss DeRosa. Each person's going to speak?
Okay. And don't forget to state your name for the purpose of stenographer.
Okay, my name is Danielle Miller. Good afternoon, President Verna and Councilmembers. I am here today to state that the parents of the Parent Cooperative Nursery stand united in saying that we do not want a fee imposed on this program. However, in an effort to work with the School District and related parties to come to an equitable solution for the parents, 9 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY children, and the School District, I will give you a brief summary of our proposals from the current and prospective parents of the Parent Cooperative Nursery. At a meeting which took place on February 27th, we, as the leadership of the cooperatives, proposed a $45 flat fee per month. This fee is inclusive of the $25 that is already paid directly to the teacher for use in the classroom. After doing simple math, the overall total amount is $80,000 that goes to the School District. It is our impression that the School District does not want us to carry the full weight of the PCN's budget; only to contribute. We, the parents, feel that this is a fair contribution. The hours that parents are mandated to work in the program have to be taken into consideration, and the School Board has stated they would do so. If a monetary value -- for example, minimum wage -- is put to the mandated, not volunteer, hours, the parents will contribute an additional $247,200. The grand total is $327,200 contributed by the parents. Our second proposal was our sliding 10 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY scale. The scale is formulated from the Comprehensive Day Care scale the School Board proposed over the summer. We have taken that scale and based it on our mandated three hours weekly and two-hour monthly meetings. The scale is affordable and excludes no one. It was derived by calculating the per-hour cost of Comprehensive Day Care and multiplying it by hours weekly, 10 which is the amount of time the children are in 11 school, then subtract 3 hours for parents' 12 mandated hours per week. Take note, we have not 13 yet included our mandated monthly meetings because 14 we are making an attempt to be as fair and 15 negotiable as possible. We have not received the same from the School Board. 96 for those making $41,280 and above. This scale is in proportion to our program rather than Comprehensive Day Care. Our third and most viable proposal suggested during our February 27th meeting is a flat fee of $45 a month, but for those parents who may not be able to afford the additional $35 a week, they can voluntarily and privately submit a 11 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY form of proof of income so that they can pay what they can afford, or be excluded from paying. In turn, if they are excluded from paying, they could compensate the program by working an extra day or however the teachers feel they would most benefit the program and the children. The parents feel that the School District should have an open-book policy concerning where the extra fees will be applied. We also fee that it is mandatory that whenever a fair decision is made, it needs to be binding for at least five years. Also, the $25 paid directly to the teacher for the use in the classroom must stay in place. At no time has the School District appeared to have taken any of these proposals into consideration. Why is it that the citizens of this city have to be put through the emotional, physical, and mental distress over our children's education. Why is it, after fairly approaching the School District numerous times, it may take all of our letters, our phone calls, and appearance in front of this distinguished body of city government to hopefully have this matter 12 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY resolved.
This is my first experience with the School District of Philadelphia, and I resent the fact that instead of enjoying this wonderful program that I have already fought for with my only child, that I have spent this entire year to this date struggling to make someone hear me. I hope today my voice is heard along with our children's voices. Thank you. )
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, City Council members. My name is Dawn White, and I am an active parent of the Parent Cooperative Nursery. I felt very compelled to come here to speak to you today on behalf of the parents and children of Parent Cooperative Nursery, in hopes of gaining your support in our fight against a possible decision made by the Philadelphia Board of Education to operate the PCN by enforcing upon parents either a sliding-scale fee, which is based on income, or by charging to parents any enormous or unreasonably high set fees. If this should 13 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY happen, the School Board will successfully terminate this very valuable, worthwhile program, as these unreasonable fees enforced upon parents will be unaffordable to most of us blue-collar, working-class parents involved in the PCN. The reason I felt so strongly in fighting for the continued existence of PCN is because I believe in the great value that it brings, not only to the children who are enrolled in the program, but also to the parents of the program as well. PCN is an excellent program in which, unlike Comprehensive Day Care and Head Start, which are other early-childhood programs offered by the School District, it mandates and requires involvement of parents in their children's early education. I believe that parental involvement mandated by the PCN program during the child's early school years is what it takes to build a solid foundation for a child's long-term academic success. PCN embraces the concept that a parent is a child's first teacher. During its monthly meeting and workshops, PCN also educates parents on how to develop more effective parenting 14 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY skills. It helps to prepare children for an all-day classroom setting and makes a child's first experience of an outside educational setting a memorable time for them by allowing for their parents to partake actively in their first classroom. As a second-year parent involved in the PCN program, I have really become more aware of the importance of becoming actively involved in my own children's education. As a result, not only will I remain actively involved in my five-year-old son's educational school life, but I will also now be participating more in my ten-year-old daughter's classroom, assisting her teachers to help her learn and be more productive as well. By becoming more actively involved in my own children's education, I, along with many other patterns like with myself, have learned how to be a better parent to my own children, which was taught to me through the participation in the Parent Cooperative Nursery program. With this being said, ladies and gentlemen, I feel that the School Board's upcoming proposal to charge parents extra or higher fees is 15 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY very unfair to the hard-working parents of this program. Many of us parents have put in many hours of our own time over the amount of time required for participation in this program for no 6 other reason than that we strongly believe in the purpose of this program, which is to help our children receive a good start in early school years. I further feel that enforcing higher fees upon parents of this program should not be used as a means by the School Board to supplement the deficit, as the PCN operates as part of public education. Last year, I was able to enjoy the benefits and the time I spent actively volunteering in my son's classroom. This year, however, I regret to say that I find myself doing more to save the future of this program than actual volunteering, which is defeating the program's purpose. The School Board has managed to take the pure joy out of being involved in the program because of the amount of time I spend writing letters and making phone calls to gain support for the program instead of spending this precious time with my child in class.
I would 16 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY really hate to think that this is what prospective parents of parent co-op have to look forward to. Please note, ladies and gentlemen, this is my last and final year as a parent involved in the PCN program, as I have no other children younger than my son to enroll in the program. Therefore, it is my strong belief in this program, which has brought me here today, in hopes of gaining your support to help save it. Just as my only child has benefitted from this program, I would like to see to it that other children have the same opportunity of benefitting from this program in upcoming school years as well. PCN should be available to all children, and I want to see it continue to exist long after my time with PCN is done. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm appealing to you on behalf of the children and the parents of Parent Cooperative Nursery, please help us support our fight to keep this worthwhile program ongoing. We need for this program to continue existing under the same terms of $25 per month, as this fee is more affordable to most of us parents. I thank you and the for your future 17 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY support of PCN and for listening to our concerns regarding the future of this program. Thank you.
My name is C.C. Brown. I'm a family therapist, and I have been working with the School District for the last nine years in and around child-abuse prevention, staff development training, parenting workshops, and class management. I have had the privilege of working with parent co-op nurseries for the last 15 years. I have been extremely impressed with the diversity of the programs and the parents in the program and the involvement of the parents in the program, the children, and what they basically receive. I have been privileged to be invited back every year to run a parenting program for each and every PCN program in the City of Philadelphia. I've also run programs for Head Start, Comprehensive Day Care, and Get Set. It is 18 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY very important that our children are first and that this program continues as it is. One of the things that we state in our society is that we are parent- and child-oriented, but everything that we do is contradictory to that factor. Dealing with this program and starting a sliding-scale fee is the perfect example of what we do to families and children. We must understand that every parent cannot afford to put their children in an $80-a-month program. If you collect the $80,000, you will spend more money doing the bookkeeping, upkeep, and the monitoring of the program, and what will be left to go to the budget will be like a pea dropped in the Schuylkill, and we know we would not hear it. If it's not broken, why then do we try to continue to fix it. This program has been extremely successful. I have talked to the parents continually. They put in a great deal of time and effort. They do the snacks, they do the planning, they help the teacher with programs and putting together activities. We must continue to give our children a quality education, a diverse, quality 19 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY education. And this is what PCN has offered in the years that I have been involved. 4 I can guarantee to every parent meeting 5 that I go to, if there's a classroom of 20, there 6 are at least 18 parents at every single meeting, 7 and this is a across board, across the City, from 8 Southwest Philly to Germantown to Logan to the 9 Northeast. So we have parents who are extremely 10 involved, extremely care, our children who need to 11 learn and need this program. 12 I appeal to City Council to please 13 continue this program without any kind of fee to 14 the parents. Let's not dismantle a program that 15 has worked for the last 50 years. Thank you. (Applause.)
Thank you. I believe you have four more people. Karen Hudson, Frieda Grant, Andrea Nagle and Ryan Everly. (Witnesses come forward.)
This is the continuation of the Parent Cooperative Nursery program. Please pull the mic close to you, state your name for the record, and proceed with your 20 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY testimony.
My name is Karen Hudson. I'm from the Fitzpatrick Parent Cooperative Nursery. Dear Councilmembers-at-large, I am writing you this letter in regards to the Parent Cooperative Nursery. The parents who have their children in these programs are now paying what they can afford. This program is to get the children ready for school and the parents involved in the child's education in the schools that they attend. This is not a day care, where the children are here eight hours a day or more and being fed two meals a day. Parents being involved in the education is what is lacking in the School District today. Most of us are barely able to make ends meet as it is. This is a fantastic program, which is only a half a day. The money that we are charged now pays for trips --
Excuse me, could you excuse me for a second. Could we lower the noise in here, please. It's very difficult to hear our speaker. 21 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Thank you.
Okay, I'm going to start over. My name is Karen Hudson. I am from the Fitzpatrick Parent Cooperative Nursery. You'll have to bear with me because I am new at this. I am writing this letter in regards to the Parent Cooperative Nursery. The parents who have their children in this program are paying now what they can afford. This is not a day care, where the children are here for eight hours a day and being fed two meals a day. This is a program to get the children ready for school and to get the parents involved in their children's education and the schools that they attend. Parents being involved in the children's education is what is lacking in the public school district today. For the School Board's members to assume that we live in the Northeast, that we can afford to pay more is unfair. Most of us are barely making ends meet as it's. This is a fantastic program that is only a half a day. The money that we are charged now pays for trips, snacks, supplies, and anything that the kids need. 22 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY We also donate items such as toys and our time at the school. Not only the time at school, but when we are at home, we are still donating our time -- shopping, getting projects ready for the following day. We feel we pay higher taxes in the Northeast, and where not asking for a handout. This program is not free. We pay $25 a month, and sometimes that amount is hard to pay. By raising the amount higher, it will make it that these children will be losing out, for the parents will not be able to afford and put their children through a pre-K program at all and keep their children home, leading to not being prepared for kindergarten. Excuse me. I know myself that being a part of this program has made me a better parent and a better person. It is a great feeling to see these children learning new things, growing with these children as they learn to share, sing, make projects, learn their ABCs, kite, numbers, and how to follow directions, clean up, make snacks, and how to care for other people, and how to be kind to others. 23 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Unless you have been a part of this program, you have no idea how great this Parent Cooperative Nursery is for the parents and the kids. Please do not deprive our children and our parents of this experience, and keep it the way it is. I cannot stress enough how important this program is. For if the fee was higher than what it is now, most of us will be able to not afford it. That is why the enrollment is down this year. It was thought that the fee was going to be so high that the parents and the children went elsewhere. The parents and the children that are still in the program are there because we cannot afford another place and would have kept our children home, and we are willing to fight for our children to share this experience that every child and parent should experience together. I am both angry and upset that the administrative raises last year, yet we were told that there was no 22 money for this program. We will not go quietly. We are also angry and upset that the School Board meeting was scheduled at a time of day that most of us are 24 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY unable to attend. Surely, this was an oversight. We were sent a parent survey asking what documents we suggested families to require to provide to the School District for a weekly determination fee. A biweekly basis, weekly, W2, see other. " In order for a sliding scale, you must take into consideration how much is left after our expenses -- gas, electric, mortgage, food, clothes. Second, you must take into consideration that we are required to work one day a week for each child, attend meetings and trips. I work every day. As for the parents of Head Start and Comprehensive Day Care, are they required to work one day a week in their programs and meetings and school trips also? Please, this program is good for the children and the parents.
Please keep the Parent Cooperative Nursery the way it is. I'm sure you can find your cuts elsewhere. We truly cannot afford to lose this program and we cannot afford to pay any more. You just have no idea. Thank you.
Thank you. 25 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY (Applause.)
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen and City Council members. My name is Andrea Nagle, and I represent Spruance PCN. I am writing you this letter because I am one of the parents that will be directly affected by the School Board's decision to charge a sliding-scale fee per child for enrollment in the Parent Cooperative Nursery school program. I live in a working-class, racially diverse neighborhood. I will not be able to afford the proposed amount of money. I am asking you please to reconsider this decision. Unfortunately, there are not many Head Start programs in my area. Therefore, I am forced to look locally at our recreational tot programs. These programs are just as costly and couldn't possibly offer the learning experience my children would receive in the Parent Cooperative Program. The parent co-op is a wonderful program that not only enriches the educational life of our children, it also educates the parents. Those of us who have attended this program have become involved in our children's school life. Through 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY the co-op, my children and I are building a learning bond that will be a strong foundation for our future years in school. This program is giving us and has established a solid learning structure. I can't stress enough the importance of the co-op. If you impose this fee upon us, you may possibly shut down this program, thus killing one of the best programs the School District has had in years. The Parent Cooperative Nursery school program should serve as a role model for other programs, and maybe then there would be the necessary parent involvement in our children's education. Again, I ask that you reconsider the decision, thank you very much.
Yes, my name's Brian Everly, and I represent the taxpayers of the City of Philadelphia. I have no speech or nothing written down. I'm going to shoot from the hip. I want to thank first of all everyone who came out to support us today. I think you all 27 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY need a round of applause. (Applause.)
I'd like to start off by a little article I picked up in the Daily News yesterday, and I can understand the plight of the school system because after I read this article, I was totally amazed myself, especially if you don't know what's going on within your school system. It said in the paper here -- and I'm not sure if this is right, but it said the court mandated full-day kindergarten from 1995 to 2000, its cost increase from million to 46 million. 14 English as a Second Language class, it used to 15 cost 10 million, now it's up to $23 million. 16 Charter schools, which increased, from none in 17 1995 to 35 today, covers 14,000 students. That 18 increased at a cost to the School District of 19 $74.6 million to send our kids to, I say, voucher 20 schools, or you can call it "charter schools." 21 The safety and the security has also gone up in our schools, from 13 million to $25 million. Now, the School District is in the business of educating kids, all kids, supporting that we have these kids grow up to be human 28 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY beings, intelligent people. And this co-op program is a very good program for these little kids because the parents are there, they cooperate with the teachers. I have two daughters who are in this program, and I can thank Mrs. (indiscernible) and all of these other teachers that help these kids out that are honor students in the school today. My kids go to Catholic school, but if I had to use a school once in my lifetime for my child and I paid my taxes in this City of Philadelphia for years, then my 13 kids should be able to go to the public school one 14 time in his life without paying a dime. 15 Thank you. 16 (Applause.)
Okay, one of the Sergeant-at-Arms will get that and circulate it..
Councilman Nutter is next, but Councilman Rizzo and also Councilman Cohen wants to know if you would like to yield to them. I can't see you too well over there.
I understand, Madam Chair. If the Councilmembers have a particular point of information or some issue, which -- I mean, I don't know what it may be, but I do have a series of questions that I need to ask in this particular area, so I want to be as accommodating to my colleagues as possible, but I don't want to get lost.
Okay. I think probably everybody wants to talk about this particular issue. Do you want anybody in particular up here, Councilman Nutter --
Yes, Madam Chair, I appreciate that. I'd like to have Miss DeRosa and Miss Miller. Those are two individuals that I do 30 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY know. They may have others that they may want to bring. And then I have a series of questions for the School District. (Witnesses return to witness table.)
Could we have the microphones on at the witness table, please. Miss DeRosa or Miss Miller, can you -- I need you to clarify one thing for me very quickly. It's been reported to me that there was testimony yesterday with regard to Parent Cooperative Nursery program that there had been some level of either agreement or a settlement of this matter between the PCN parents and the School District, and I'd like to understand what the current status of the situation is.
I will take that answer, sir. As far as I am concerned, representing the leadership of this program, there has been no 21 negotiations between the School Board and us parents. Yes, we have met with them on one occasion, on February 27th, where representatives of the District basically listened to our proposals; they put forth nothing. I know that 31 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY some figures have been brought forth; they were not given to me because I was not a member of that meeting, I was not at that meeting. The School Board itself has not contacted me, and they know who I am, they know that I represent this group of parents. And no. To be very simple, no. We have made no arrangements and have reached no 10 agreement.
And your testimony earlier today was, in essence, proposals from PCN about the kinds of things that you might be willing either to look at or that you've had discussion with the parents about, the distinction between a sliding-scale fee versus a flat fee. There is already, to some extent, a flat fee or a flat amount that you currently pay. And I think to your credit, in terms of working with issue, at least for the time that I've been involved since last year, you've tried to responsibly respond to the issue as it relates to the District. We went through an entire process last year, a Board resolution resulted from that. Could you give me, I guess, a little 32 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY more information on what has happened since that time and any of the things that the District has done relative to the discussions from last year, information-gathering, meetings, and where things stand on any of those items.
If you're referring to the resolution that was passed on September 11th, where the School Board had decided to put together some kind of group, comprehensive group, that would be reflective of City Council, the Mayor, and the School Board -- and I think you remember 'cause I think you put forth, sir, the fact that we parents wanted to be involved as well. But I believe that in the resolution, the parents are not included. Have I heard anything? No. Have I addressed that issue? Yes. I brought it forth at a School Board meeting to Mr. Pedro Ramos. I have asked him and I have asked Miss Jennifer Plummer-Davis, who is the Director of this program, and I believe that she may have taken it back to Cassandra Ruffin, who's the Executive Director of the program, as to when this open discussion would take place, why hasn't it taken 33 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY place, and will we parents be included. The only thing that has been asked of myself and Danielle Miller is that we become a part of an early-childhood coalition in which -- I believe that it is Comprehensive Day Care. And Head Start has sat with us at the Stevens Administration Building in the hopes of coming to some kind of agreement that we are here together representing the children of this city. And in that aspect, I do agree with them. We are parents and we care for all of the children of this city. But have we conclusively made any strides forward toward deciding what is best for this program? No, nothing has happened. No, the School Board has not contacted me. This coalition -- the first meeting, basically we addressed who we were, what our programs were about. The second two meetings, basically I took over and let them know that I felt that my program was in danger and that I needed their help. They listened to me; nothing was done.
Okay. A couple of other questions. With regard to the various programs, 34 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY whether it's PCN, Comprehensive Day Care, or Head Start, could you maybe highlight for us two or three differences. There may be some similarities between and among these various programs. Kind of in a highlight fashion. But I get the impression that there are some differences between them, not of a negative sense, but they were created, I assume, for different purposes.
Could you tell us a little about PCN, CDC, and Head Start from your perspective.
I want go on the record as saying that I am not an authority in these areas, but my understanding of these are, these basically -- Head Start is federally subsidized, and it is a program that -- I'm not sure of the ages of the children, but I believe they start at a very early age, up to school age, and I believe their program ends at 3 o'clock. I do know that there is some parent participation at a voluntary basis; whether or not it's mandated, sir, I don't know. I do know also that Comprehensive Day Care is basically, I believe, a 12-hour program in 35 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY which children go from infancy to school-age. They receive two meals a day, they receive snacks. They are taught, with my understanding, by teachers that are not necessarily board certified. They may have -- and I'm not sure if I'm correct at this, so please forgive me. They may have associate's degrees, but they may not necessarily have master's degree or have continued their studies. I also understand that these teachers primarily do the administrative work in the CDC and that an aide, a teacher's aide or whatever, are the ones that are involved with the children.
They are not mandated to work for their children to be able to attend the program. I do believe the Comprehensive Day Care does go on a sliding scale because basically -- and it is my understanding this is child care. Now, when it comes to the Parent Cooperative Nursery, the main difference that I must emphasize is that we are not a day care. We are a program that is taught by board-certified teachers. These children have a curriculum, they 36 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY are being prepared for kindergarten. They have a -- they have a set program from the day they come into that classroom to the day they leave. Parents are mandated, and I emphasize mandated. You do not work; your child does not go to school, okay? Therefore, it makes it impossible because we work one day a week, one monthly meeting, which may take place either at night or during the day. And on top of that, there will be Fridays that we must also cover because, you know, the way we break it down, we cover the first four days of the week and then we need the parents to cover the fifth day. We alternate taking that. So we basically put in two extra days a month. Now, the main thing is that our time is valuable, okay, as parents. We are educated. This program educates us, the parents. You heard C.C. Brown's testimony. She is one of the people that has come forth in several workshops that educates the parents. I'm not aware if this is also what happens in Comprehensive Day Care; it may very well, you know be something that happens, I'm not aware of that, okay? 37 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY One last thing I do want to say about our program. This -- I must emphasize, sir, this is not day care. This is education run by the School Board and funded by the School Board. I ask you, sir, if you have a child in another grade, do you feel that you should have to pay for him to go to a program that the School Board is running? Because basically, we feel, we parents feel that this is public education. We voluntarily pay the $25 to the program because it enriches what we are giving our children. But when you ask us for more, then you are putting a price tag on public education.
Yes. Hold on a second Councilman Nutter. We have to lower the noise level. We understand the younger children, but the chambers 38 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY is too loud, and our stenographer is having a very difficult hearing the testimony. So please keep the noise down. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I'd ask if the Chair can make any determination as to whether or not the following individuals are present with us this afternoon. That would be Cassandra Ruffin, Jennifer Plummer-Davis, and Bunny Verbit (ph.).
School District? Would you like them to come up, just acknowledge their presence and come up to the front?
Good afternoon. My name 39 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY is Deirdre Farmbry. I am the Chief Financial Officer for the School District of Philadelphia. I am here just to reiterate the fact that my first introduction to the Parent Cooperative Nursery discussion occurred at a Board meeting earlier this year when there were several elected officials who came to the Board meeting at the urging of some parents to request that the School District rescind its decision to have a sliding scale this year and to revisit the whole area of Parent Cooperative Nursery. At that time, the Board of Education did do that, so this year, the program is running without a fee. Currently, the Board of Education is reviewing a fee for September 2001, which will be determined by March 12th, which is this Monday. In the interim, there have been discussions. There was a meeting, as some of the presenters said this afternoon, there was a meeting with parents. There were the surveys. There is another meeting scheduled for this Friday. And also in the interim, the District took the position that we are looking at the whole area of Parent Cooperative Nurseries in the 40 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY broader context of early childhood in general throughout the City. Some of you may be aware that the United Way is spearheading a campaign to look at early childhood education. And we, as a district, are cooperating with that, looking at PCNs, CDC, the Head Start programs, everything we have in the name of early childhood education. To my right is Cassandra Ruffin, the Executive Director for Early Childhood Programs, who could differentiate between the various programs, as one of the speakers just tried to do a few minutes ago, and maybe she can shed some light on the difference between PCN, CDC, and Head Start.
As Dr. Farmbry has said, my name is Cassandra Ruffin. I'm the Executive Director for Early Childhood Programs for the School District of Philadelphia. I'll start with PCN. Parents Cooperative Nursery is a half-day program that has a two-pronged educational approach. We have designed the program so that we have an educational component for children and one for 41 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY parents as well. There is a requirement that parents participate in the classroom three hours a week, which generally gets translated into one morning a week. This program has been free to parents. It services four-year-olds. It is a one-year program because the children come to us in the Parent Cooperative Nursery at 4, and then they are ready for kindergarten the following September. Registration for next year's program, the September 2001 class of Parent Cooperative Nursery, has not yet registered. I'll move on to Comprehensive Day Care. Comprehensive Day Care is a program that services children 8 weeks through 8 years of age. Some of the children are with us all day, some of them are with us only for part day. The requirement for parents in this program is that they are working or are in training hours a week or more. 20 Parents in this program all pay to be part of this program, and we have in this program a focus on nutrition education, parent involvement. Parents are encouraged to become involved in this program because parents are required to work. It is difficult for many of them to come into the 42 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY classrooms during the day to participate, but many of them do. We have parent volunteer hours, we add them up, and the hours number well into the thousands for a year. I'll move on to Head Start. The Head Start program is a federally-funded program, and the children in Head Start are primarily 3, 4, and 5 years of age. Parents in this program generally fall in a very low-income level, and for them, it is free. In order to be in the Head Start program, you must meet the income requirement. Some of these parents work, some of them do not, but they all meet the income requirement. I also would like to say that the teachers in the Head Start program and the PCN program are fully certified in early childhood education. In the Comprehensive Day Care program, most of our heads of class are not fully certified.
Thank you. With that backdrop, you see that we have three very different programs, with very different sets of requirements, and, therefore, we are analyzing all of the programs through a lens 43 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY of equity and finances, given the financial reality of the District at this time. We are taking very seriously the input of the parents. We know that there's a whole concern around income verification versus no 7 income verification, sliding scale versus no 8 sliding scale, fee versus no fee. And as we did state earlier, we will have a determination by Monday, March 12th.
Madam Chair, just two questions. I know my colleagues have questions as well. First, Dr. Farmbry, you and I have been friends for longer than either of us would like to acknowledge. I was a mere teenager at the time.
With every due respect to what you laid out, I guess knowing a little bit of what I know about the current situation, and you were kind enough to acknowledge that you haven't been that involved in this one 44 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY for an extreme length of time. The testimony today is that there has not been an agreement with regard to either sliding scale or a flat fee. Today is Wednesday.
And you expect that by Monday, this entire issue will be resolved. And I am left with the impression that there hasn't been a tremendous amount of contact, conversation, and involvement on this particular issue between the District and the PCN parents. Most of the activity, it's my understanding, has come over the past few weeks as opposed to going back to September. How can we legitimately say that we have followed the various items and the resolve of clause of the B1 resolution from September of 2000 and legitimately evaluated not only what is going on with these programs, but clearly understand the distinctions and differences between them that lead to an amicable resolution of this particular issue by Monday? How is that going to happen?
Well, I would have to submit that we do have the input from the meeting 45 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY that many of the parents referred to, that was held earlier.
Okay. The surveys, the meeting this coming Friday, and I will submit that between now and Friday, I mean, we would be open to any phone calls, any faxes, any emails, any meetings the people would want. We are concerned about going beyond Monday, March 12th because, as Mrs. Ruffin just said, we know that the people need to make whatever registration arrangements either through PCN or elsewhere in a very timely fashion. In the spring is when that happens.
Well, I understand 46 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY that, but the February 27th meeting, it's my recollection, was called about four days before that date; is that correct?
Okay. So tell me -- then tell me what happened between September 11th of 2000 and February 27th of 2001 that precipitated a four-day notice, which, I believe, was by phone and not by letter, limited advance notice, and everybody's hauled over to, I believe it was Girls High?
There's another meeting scheduled for Friday, you have no 21 resolution today, and you expect to make the announcement on Monday resolving this particular issue. How is that going to happen? And tell me what happened between September and February.
A couple of things have 47 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY gone on. As Dr. Farmbry said, the District is looking across the early childhood programs; not only looking at PCN, but looking at all of the early childhood programs, and looking across those programs. There have been periodic meetings with the Director of PCN and the parent body of PCN. They have taken place on a regular basis throughout the year. The parents have made it very clear to us that their interest is primarily that there be no fee for PCN. We did call the meeting. We have -- we have been working with Dr. Farmbry's office and others in the District, trying to figure out exactly when -- how we can get all of the players at the table. We have been included Debra Kahn in some of our conversations, also Harriet Dichter (ph.), who was the Director for Children's Policy. The meeting that you referred to that was held on the 27th, we called that meeting because we are approaching quickly the registration point; and recognizing that, knew that we needed to hold that meeting with the parents and explore some additional possibilities. 48 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY The parents have made it clear to us prior to the 27th that they did have some suggestions, and they vocalized those at a Board meeting that took place just prior to the 27th. So we did have that information also. We had presented proposals back in the summer of 2000 for possible fee schedules for the PCN. And, as you know, the Board approved a resolution that had the -- that had no fee for this current year. So here we are.
I just have a question. What did you do with the parents' suggestions?
Well, I'm -- I'm not sure that I'm the person that needs to answer that. I can tell you that we did have -- we did put survey forms in each of the centers so that we could collect information from parents. I think Miss DeRosa already spoke about those. We did, as of Tuesday of this week, have 204 responses, which we summarized, and we plan to 49 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY share those findings with the parents at the meeting on Friday of this week. We have been hampered a little bit because of the weather, but we do want to share that information with the parents. I don't think they'll be surprised at what they have said collectively.
Is the 240 number a fair representation of the number of surveys that were sent out?
There are currently 336 children enrolled in this program, and we have 204 responses. I know that Miss Plummer-Davis did speak with Miss DeRosa yesterday, and Miss DeRosa said that there were responses that hadn't been turned in yet. And the response from Miss Plummer-Davis was that if they got to us by Thursday afternoon, we would be able to include those survey responses in the results that we report on Friday. So we are still collecting. We only had four centers that did not report. We --
Okay. So basically, the survey is really trying to find out 50 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY how parents feel about the fee and the amount of the fee?
And also, we did ask parents if they would share with us the factors they thought we should take into consideration in developing the fee.
Okay, okay, but the feedback and the response from the surveys is going to be included in the decision-making?
And the meeting on Friday, parents will be included in that meeting also?
The meeting is with parents, and we called the meeting so that we could share the results of the survey and to update them on our whatever the latest proposal is by Friday.
Okay. Thank you. 51 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY I'm going to call on Councilman Rizzo. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Yesterday, we sat here, and this issue of the Parent Cooperative Nursery was discussed, and discussed at length. And since we have -- I believe I heard a little more detail in President Ramos's response to my question about this issue, and I'm not button-holing him, but I would ask him if he would come to the witness table tonight and discuss this issue, because it's hard for me to believe -- and I'm hoping that that February 27th meeting wasn't motivated by the fact that you folks had to be here to face City Council. I'm just hoping that that's not a coincidence. (Applause.) (Pedro Ramos comes forward.)
And I believe -- and I believe that I will not quote the President, since he's here. I believe I heard something a little more -- a little -- with a little more firmness in it than I heard today, and since you are the President of the Board of Education, and 52 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY I'm not asking you to discuss your decision that will be made on Monday, but I think that what I heard yesterday, I think this group would be a bit more reassured if they had an opportunity to hear what you said here in this Council yesterday. Mr. President?
Thank you, Councilman. And part of what I did yesterday was report to City Councilmembers what had been reported to me thus far and to the Board about this process. So today, you heard -- you heard some of the background. Just to take it a step further, perhaps beyond what members of the Administration are comfortable talking, and I am, perhaps to my detriment, less inhibited. The -- a -- the last feedback that the Board received was about the methodology, the approach that's being taken towards this fee. And what we were told, and you heard some today, was that as a result of the meeting with some parent representatives, that there was real apprehension about the sliding -- we had been talking about a sliding scale. That there was some apprehension about a sliding scale 53 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY because then you get into issues of income verification and all of that. I mean, the thought of the Board back then, when we said suspend the sliding scale, then look to what makes sense, was that you would have a range of incomes and then a different fee, depending on your income. The feedback that we got was that the parent leaders were against that because -- and were against it generally and had a concern about disclosure of income. So that the -- my understanding of where we are is that staff is meeting with parent leaders again this Friday. And by the end of Friday, have a recommendation to the Board for the Board's consideration on Monday. The -- so the Board doesn't have a formal proposal before it now, and I'm reporting to you and reported, you know, to my Board members yesterday here what I knew as of that time. And that approach is to do a flat fee that takes into account some of the feedback that we've heard. The flat fee would take into account that parents -- that parents -- that the PCN program is not the same length as the CDC program, it's shorter; that parents work in the program and should be 54 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY counted, because if they weren't there, we'd have to staff 'em, although, in other programs, like CDC, parents volunteer in this program. I think it's fair to say they're more heavily relied on. And that recognition of the $25 a month that parents are already paying, which is about 6.25 a week, and that the approach was that you would take -- you would take what -- you would look at the median family income, and somebody can jump in and correct me if I make a mistake here. They would look at the median family income and then set a PCN -- set a contribution rate as a family earned a median family income, and you would take this -- you would take what you would pay under the CDC scale and you would adjust it for those three things. So that parents would essentially pay what they would pay if they were in CDC, but with an adjustment for those three things, as parents pointed out to us last year. Then if parents were below a certain income -- and I can't tell you what that number is off the top of my head -- that the recommendation that I expect from staff would be that parents 55 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY below a certain income would continue to get the services under the terms that they currently get, and without extra pay. That's a very -- that's maybe more than you wanted to hear. It's what I know the parent leaders have been informed of by Councilmembers that have been briefed as this has gone -- as this has developed. But the basic idea being, you know, trying to be fair, and then the issue becomes whether -- you know, what we've said all along is that we were going to do some kind of fee, and we had set out to do a sliding scale. We understand that parents don't want to disclose income, so the approach, then, was to do some kind of reasonable flat fee, with some accommodation for folks below a certain income level.
So at this point -- and I'm not suggesting or asking you to make an announcement on what that fee will be or what this arrangement will be, but it's hard for me to believe that we aren't almost there, where we can't comfort this group of interested people --
Where we're going to have a meeting on Friday, we're going to have a Board meeting on Monday. If you can't get us in the ballpark of where we're going to be, that really -- that concerns me.
Yeah, I think the last thing I heard was probably along the lines of the last thing parents have heard from people that have been briefed, 'cause we were all kind of briefed in the process, and I believe that this figure was being quoted by parents took into account the $25 a week that they're currently paying -- the $25 a month, and took into account the in-kind contribution the parents were making. So the -- and I don't know whether this is the number, but the last number I saw for a weekly contribution, unless they were below a certain income, was around 14 or $15 a week, in addition to the time and the monthly contribution that parents already make.
So what I'm hearing is that on Monday, at the Board meeting, the -- we expect the fact that there's not going to be a sliding scale, that there will be a specific 57 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY amount associated with this program, and right now, we're in the ballpark of approximately $14 a week?
And I have to caveat that by, you know, saying that, you know, I'm putting this out of respect and deference to this body and understanding what you said and just to just be out front, I don't know -- you know, I don't know what staff will ultimately recommend. That's the last that I heard. I think that there's some merit to the sliding-fee schedule, where people who learn less pay less and people who earn more pay more, but my understanding is that that's something --
Well, it's something that, as of the last meeting, I understood had been put off the table by the leaders.
So we'll patiently wait, and then Monday, we'll hopefully get a phone call and hear the result of that decision.
And, again, I 58 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY appreciate you stepping forward to address this issue, but I had thought, since it was addressed at length yesterday, that hearing your remarks again today would be very helpful. Thank you.
And I would just keep in mind all of the limitations I put -- I'm just saying, you know, what's been reported to me and what I think I know.
Thank you. We want to bring -- we want to take a hold for a minute with the Parent Cooperative Nursery, 'cause we want to bring Mr. Ted Kirsch up now.
I know, we're going to bring 'em back, we want to bring 'em back, and Jerry Jordan. They have to leave. I couldn't hear you.
I think the -- the 59 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY impression I get is that a decision has been made, an announcement will be made on Monday, but that's the feeling I get from what is being said here. And in talking to the parents, I don't think any real negotiation has taken place and a discussion with them. (Applause.)
I don't think -- Madam Chair, I don't think bringing them back is going to change any of that reality unless some real discussions take place with the parents.
The noise level is so very high, it is very difficult to hear up here. And, again, we understand our younger members here in Council, but can everyone else kind of keep quiet. Or if you want to talk, can you just leave the chambers and go outside and talk and then come back in when it's your turn. Thank you. We really want to bring Mr. Ted Kirsch 60 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY and Jerry Jordan up. We're not --
(Not completely audible, off-mic.) Just one thing, Madam Chair. You know, this program, a dozen years ago, the School Board tried to kill it. And to propose that. . . And the Board was stopped from killing it, and I don't understand why, when a good program comes along, it seems that the Board spends all of the time trying to find ways to destroy it. (Applause.)
What the Board ought to be doing is looking for ways to expand this program all throughout the City, not to take it away. (Applause.)
There ought to be no 20 increase and no sliding scale. What are you going to do, have the kids compete with each other as to how much their parents are paying. I don't know what goes on in the minds of people when they get appointed to the Board. Why don't you understand you've got a wonderful 61 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY program here. Have it grow. (Applause.)
I say respectfully to the Chairman of the Board, call a special meeting of the Board to reach a decision today that this program continues on at the same rate of pay, under the same conditions as are present now. (Applause.)
Madam Chair, I think that the Board, when it went to full-day kindergarten without a funding stream, took a big step in providing for -- in making sure that children started school ready to learn. This -- this is -- this forum we have here is -- is a budget hearing, and it's one where we're talking about a cumulative deficit of $235 million, in which -- in a system where the School District is funded primarily for half-day kindergarten through 12th grade. You have -- this isn't an abstract thing. You have -- we're in the business generally of K-to-12 education. We've got some 62 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY federal money in a fragmented way for some programs, and we would love nothing more than for children -- 4-year-old children to have an education, but the reality is that there has not been a commitment in the Commonwealth, as there has been in other states, to provide for the education of 4-year-old children, and we're here in a budget hearing, where we're asking to collaborate on finding a solution to providing -- to providing the services that we obviously can't even afford to provide now. So I would love to have the luxury of saying, Let's do, you know, what we want to do. But if come September, we've said this is a great idea, a great policy, and we can't open schools, what was the point of it? We're interested in making sure that we have a solution for our core mission.
Your continuing this program isn't going to bankrupt the system. (Applause.)
This is one of the shining stars of the school system. Don't kill it off, because when you kill this off, you're 63 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY killing off support for the public school system.
Councilman, what we heard from Dr. Farmbry today was that the School District is trying to come up with a way, an equitable way, a way that treats this program fairly compared to other programs, while we deal with the broader issue of preschool education, which we have to deal with in some thoughtful and comprehensive way, and in a very short term. And this is not about killing the program; this is about providing -- of doing -- continuing the program in a responsible way and in a way that's fair across the Board. This is the only program that is completely unfunded, and apart from the $25 a month that the parent contribute, is completely free and unfunded from any other source. We're interested in continuing it. We've offered some alternatives, including taking income into account and making it just like CDC, and that's been rejected. I think there is nothing more that we would want than to make sure 64 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY that every 4-year-old in this city has access to a program like PCN or Head Start.
Well, do it instead of continuing to find excuses not to do it. You're taking a program that's really the bright light of the whole school system, that has tremendous support, and you're saying, Well, we missed years ago; now is a good time to kill 10 it. Why are you doing it when you ought to be 11 expanding this program? It's the same thing we 12 talked about. Why don't you have an educational perspective that looks to producing good things instead of killing off the good things that you have.
Well, I understand your point, Councilman. And we are here talking about the survival of the --
We're really getting double talk all afternoon coming from this panel. 65 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Because there's no 4 reason why you can't announce right now what you're going to tell the parents next Friday. (Applause.)
Are you going to just tell them that privately, away from the Council?
You're very disrespectful of the Council. We sent you a letter signed by 11 Councilmembers last September, thinking you could read that letter and understand how strongly Council supported the program. You got that letter, didn't you sir?
(Inaudible). . . the result of that letter that you continue the program this year.
We expected you to come forth with programs to expand that program, not to kill this program.
Councilman, if I recall, 66 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY the request of City Council -- the request of City Council was to suspend the implementation of a sliding scale, which is what the Board did. And what you're saying is that what you really meant was to eliminate the sliding scale altogether, which is not what the request was.
Excuse me, Councilman Cohen. You want a point of order, Councilman Nutter?
I was going to ask for a point of order, but I know you want to try to get Mr. Kirsch on.
Absolutely. This is an issue -- certainly the educating of preschoolers is a issue that we're all very concerned about. And, you know, our 67 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY concern and the written testimony of a couple of the testifiers here says that they've just asked for a fair and open dialogue, they want their feedback to a part of the decision-making. I, as Education Chair, want that too, and I know you want the same thing.
Right. And, Councilwoman, the other thing that we hear is that we should -- I mean, and this is a broader context, and I know this body could appreciate it if it put itself in the position of the School Board, where you have one program, such as CDC, where we don't negotiate fees with parents and where there is some kind of scale, and where the request is made that with -- that we treat some folks differently or that we engage in negotiations over how much you should pay. We've been trying to take information, trying to be fair, and I think that that's as much as we can offer as we look at the whole preschool education program. We -- I mean, there should be -- there should be at the State level some dedicated funding, or at the national level, for all 68 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY 4-year-olds. We believe that too, and we advocate. When we're not at budget hearings, we do spend time talking about education policy and advocating, and we intend to continue to do that, but we do -- you know, we are also here in the reality -- in the context that we've been talking about for the last two days, financial.
Well, we want to put this discussion on hold for a few minutes. I know you have to leave, okay. Mr. Ramos, I am aware that you do have to leave, but we would ask other members of the School District staff and Board and to stay, but we want to bring up the PFT reps, Ted Kirsch and Jerry Jordan, and then we're going to bring up Dr. Robert Palmer, who hasn't had a chance to do testimony either as it relates to the cooperative nursery issue. Thank you. (Witnesses come forward.)
Good evening. For the record, I am Ted Kirsch, President of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, and with me is Jerry T. Jordan, who is 69 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY or General Vice President. I'm not sure whether it's "good afternoon" or "good evening" at this point, but Council President Verna, Education Chairman Miller and members of the City Council, thank you for giving me the opportunity to testify on behalf of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers' 19,000 members and retirees who live in the City of Philadelphia. We are fortunate to be involved in public education today. We have more information today than ever before about the cognitive development of children. We have been an abundance of solid research on which education programs, methods, and strategies are most likely to help the greatest number of children succeed. We have more learning materials and more technology to expand the boundaries of our knowledge of how children learn. We have pushed the issue of education to the top of the national agenda, recognized the need to close the achievement gap between minority and non-minority students, and begun demanding that all children achieve high standards. We've 70 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY devised a myriad of tests to measure student progress, and we've demanded accountability from the people responsible for educating children. Yet, in spite of our newly devised knowledge, today in Philadelphia, fewer than half of our children in our schools read at basic levels. Two-thirds of Philadelphia schools perform in the bottom quartile of the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment. And little more than half of our students who enter the 9th grade complete high school four years later. We have a constant shortage of trained and qualified teachers. The School District is so strapped for cash that many students and schools are deprived of basic services such as librarians, full-time nurses, and reading teachers, among other missing services. For all of the talk about leaving no 20 child behind, for all of our setting of standards and the outcry for accountability, the achievement gap between our children and those attending schools in neighboring suburban districts remain large. Last spring, Philadelphia was placed on the State's education empowerment list, and unless 71 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY we raise achievement significantly within the next three years, the State officials can take over or dismantle or privatize Philadelphia's public schools. The State-approved school improvement plan contains many of the programs and improvements we desperately need to raise reading and math test scores. For example, reducing class size in every kindergarten through 3rd grade to 11 students. 12 (Applause.) 13
Maximizing instructional 14 time devoted to course subjects, developing a 15 uniform curriculum based on State standards, and 16 redesigning a District safety plan. 17 Yet, the State's $16 million Empowerment Grant is a fraction much what the District estimates it will cost to implement the plan. Clearly, we need more resources to do the job we know we can do. In Pennsylvania and Philadelphia, the State and local boards of education have set high standards and instituted testing to measure progress, but neither has provided the funds or 72 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY the resources necessary to make sure that all students have an opportunity to reach these standards. As a result, what exists in Philadelphia is not so much an achievement gap but, rather, an opportunity gap. It's not about what our students can do; it's about opportunities and services that we never afford them. And that must change. We must make sure that money is used directly in our schools and in our classrooms, where it will have the greatest impact on student achievement. Our students deserve activities such as band, choir, dance, smaller class sizes, advanced placement classes in every high school. (Applause.)
It is clear that Philadelphia's public school children need more services to compete with surrounding districts. We spend nearly $2,000 less per pupil in Philadelphia than in neighboring districts. We have 11 extra children in every classroom compared to the State average. We shortchange our students daily by not providing sufficient textbooks, 73 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY educational materials, technology, and enrichment activities that other children take for granted. The District's initial projections of a $235 million cumulative budget deficit is discouraging because it means that we're even further from our goals of improving the finances of the District and providing all of our students the kind of high-quality education that will make them competitive in a high-tech global economy. This year, both the City and State are considering much needed increases in funding for the School District. This is a step in the right direction. Now we must set priorities to ensure that additional money is channelled directly into classrooms, where it will benefit children the most. We need your help and your commitment to reduce class size. Smaller classes, particularly in the early grades, are the single most successful educational reform available today. Students who are in small classes in grades K to 3 are one year ahead of students in regular classes in reading, math, and science by the 8th grade. They are more likely to take 74 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY advanced placement courses, college entrance exams, and graduate on time. We have known about the lifelong education gains from reducing class size for more than ten years; and yet, we have made no major commitment to reducing class size in Philadelphia. We have also known for nearly a quarter of a century the benefits of high-quality early-childhood education, particularly for disadvantaged children. And to the parents who are here today, research shows that children enrolled in high-quality early-education programs are less likely to be placed in special education or to be retained in grade. Yet, in Philadelphia, too few preschool children participate in early learning programs. Quality preschool programs must be universally available so that every child enters the school ready to learn, and we support additional funding for the PCN program. (Applause.)
As a high school history teacher, I can tell you, it is difficult to teach students who cannot read. Philadelphia must focus 75 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY relentlessly on literacy. Every elementary school by now should have a balanced program literacy program, with every teacher trained to teach every child to read by the 3rd grade. Impossible? No. With tested and proven reading programs and intensive professional development, our schools can teach almost all of our students to read well. We also need reading teachers and intervention programs in our middle and high schools to address the needs of students who have not benefitted from the current wave of reforms. Many, if not most, of the disciplinary problems we encounter in the higher grades are linked directly to students who cannot read at grade level and who have not mastered other basic skills. They act out because they are frustrated, anxious, and cannot do the work. High school is the toughest place to make school reform work, but if we can reverse the years of failure for these students and help them master reading and math through intensive programs, we have a chance to make significant improvements in two areas: reducing the high 76 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY retention and dropout rates, and eliminating many of the disciplinary problems our schools face. For those students who are severely disruptive or violent, we must insist that they meet the same standards of behavior as others. We must develop clear standards for conduct and enforce consequences for violations fairly and uniformly. We cannot let classrooms be disrupted continually by a few students. We have an obligation to educate students who come to school ready to learn. Students who want to learn resent having their teacher's time wasted disciplining disruptive students. Those students who disrupt regular classrooms should be given a chance to succeed as well, but in alternative schools, where special programs and services are available to address their special needs. Until this past September, Philadelphia had six ABLE Academies, which were alternative schools for disruptive students who were unsuccessful in traditional classrooms. When the District was challenged by Harrisburg to cut 30 million in services, ABLE Academies fell under the 77 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY budget ax. For the sake of students in regular classrooms and those who need a second chance in special settings, these schools must be restored. Order and discipline in every school is not only essential for students, it is a key to attracting and retaining qualified teachers. A recent survey of student teachers showed that student behavior and school climate were the chief reasons new teachers do not seek employment in Philadelphia. For the past three years, we have begun the school year with between 200 and 300 teacher vacancies. Although the District has been able to fill two-thirds of those vacancies, 40 percent of new teachers in the City quit before the end of the first year because of the discouraging school climate, the lack of professional support and educational resources. We cannot raise test scores without qualified teachers; we cannot attract qualified teachers without improving the learning environment in our schools. And even if we could hire enough teachers, they cannot do their jobs amid chaos. 78 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Along with class size, the level of teacher training, knowledge and skill is one of the most significant factors in raising student achievement. We must focus not only on attracting trained and qualified teachers but retaining them by providing mentoring, classroom support, and high-level professional development. Without adequate support, meaningful professional development, and coherent disciplinary policies, neither teachers nor students can be successful.
We must work together as a community to create a positive learning environment in every school. We urge the City Council this year to dig deep to fund classroom programs that help students succeed. We know which programs work. The question is whether we have the commitment and the political will to put programs that work into our classrooms. Thank you very much. )
Thank you. Thank you very much. Certainly, we want to thank you and 79 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Jerry Jordan for your commitment to our schools. And let me say that we just learned even today from one end of the City to another, from Frankford to Elmwood, we had students arrested today. So we're really, really having a crisis. I remember some years ago, we held 8 school violence hearings, and I still have all of 9 the material from those days, but now we see 10 people like Tigerman, people like Tigerman, who 11 help youth deal with crime. And we have serious, 12 serious problems now with youth with guns and with 13 violence, and it's really, really an epidemic. 14 And finally, I'd like to say that just 15 last week for Black History Month, we went to Miller School, E.S. Miller School, and they're not filled to capacity, they're looking for students. So that's one alternative that I hope the Board will consider for placement of students who are not making out in their traditional school setting, with people who care about students. And the new principal has been there three weeks, great teachers -- I went to school with half of them -- but it's a good crew, and I'm sure that they would do a good job if given the opportunity. 80 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY I thank you very, very much. And if there are no questions for Mr. Kirsch and Jerry Jordan, we thank you. I know that you have another meeting. And thanks for staying. And, Dr. Palmer, would you come up, and we will finish up the Parent Cooperative Nursery. I know that all of you have to leave in a few minutes, so we will have Dr. Palmer back and certainly ask my colleagues to get ready ask any questions. And then, Mr. Katz, you will be next. So I'll ask my colleagues, since the bus leaves at 6 and the young people have to leave, if you will be kind enough to keep your comments short, ask your questions, and we will try to keep this moving quickly. Dr. Palmer, please identify yourself for the record and present your testimony.
Thank you. Again, could we please have it quiet. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Madam President and members of City Council. 81 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY My name is Robert Palmer. Today I come before you to talk about the Parent Cooperative Program. This very successful program, with almost a half century record for quality early education, is again in danger. As you have heard, the PCN is not day care, but an educational program. How the School District officials cannot recognize the PCN for the last 46 years, which has surpassed every criteria for true educational programs, is unfathomable. It has become suddenly self-serving to make this erroneous comparison between PCN or day care or CDC. The PCN does meet all acceptable educational standards for social readiness, intellectual readiness, and whoever heard of a day care center that runs from 9 a.m. to 12 noon and you must volunteer in class. A very recent School Board poll revealed one important point: over 90 percent of parents are opposed to any fee for public education. We have heard about the loss of tens of thousands of our citizens in the last census. 82 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY This PCN feel will only help drive people from the City and to the suburbs for free education. As you realize, public education is not really free, but it's paid for out of wage taxes, sales taxes and, of course, property taxes. The School Board wishes to add one additional non-legislative tax; I like to call it "the innovative education tax." That is, if you want your 4-year-old child to enroll into the PCN program, you must pay this tax. This will only help to drive people from the City. This will also eliminate from this program many people who make too much for Head Start but not enough to pay this tax. Public education should be provided to all regardless of how much you make or don't make. Innovative education, like the type that the PCN program provides, is a window to the soul of the City and one of the important benchmarks as to whether young families stay in the City or even move to the City. I realize that there is a $196 million deficit in the school budget and the school budget is $1.7 billion, but this is not the solution. 83 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY The total PCN budget is only 1/1700th of the total school budget. The proposed fee would provide only 1/17,000th of the total budget. Why do some of the School District's top officials devote so much time and money to save only 1/17,000th of the total budget. This gives a new meaning to the old saying "a drop in the bucket." Why endanger a program that early education research has proven has long-lasting benefits to students, the School District, and the community. This unauthorized fee or tax is an ominous precedence by the School Board where public programs in the future can have any arbitrary fee attached to it. Finally, after 46 years, this highly effective and efficient educational program should finally be grandfathered into the mainstream of Philadelphia public education. (Applause.)
And should receive the full protection of this body. It is time for someone to be fair to the parents and the children of the PCN, and not unfair. Thank you for your time. 84 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY (Applause.)
Any questions from members of the Council for Dr. Palmer or about Parent Cooperative Nursery? (No questions.)
Thank you, Madam Chair. I know you have another witness coming up. I was going to at least add -- I know you asked whether --
Mr. Katz, excuse me one moment. Sam Katz, while Councilman Nutter is speaking, would you please come forward. Thank you.
I know you asked if we had any questions with regard to Parent Cooperative Nursery. I did not indicate at that time that I did because I knew that we had another speaking coming on. I would like to reserve the opportunity, when appropriate, to raise other questions with regard to Parent Cooperative 85 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Nursery.
Thank you. And we will certainly ask all of those who speak therein, Dr. Farmbry and Pedro Ramos, et cetera, to be available for Councilman Nutter's questions. Thank you very much. (Sam Katz comes forward.)
Welcome. Good evening. Please identify yourself for the record. Please, could we have -- thank you. We really, really need you to keep the noise level down, otherwise we just can't hear. This room 14 does not lend itself well to noise. Thank you.
Thank you, Councilwoman. I'm Sam Katz, with Greater Philadelphia First, a civic organization comprised of 38 of the region's major employers, and I appreciate this opportunity to address the members of Council regarding the School District's 2001-2002 fiscal budget. I would add parenthetically that in listening to this debate, I am reminded about a debate that I heard 20 years ago when I was a member of the School Board of the School District 86 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY of Philadelphia on exactly the same program, facing exactly the same problems during a period when I chaired the Board's Budget and Finance Committee. Greater Philadelphia First --
Excuse me, Mr. Katz. Again, please, we ask you, those -- I know that you have a bus to catch, but would you please be as quiet as you can because we just cannot hear the testimony. Sorry, Mr. Katz.
That's okay, Madam Chairwoman. As you know, the Greater Philadelphia First has been actively involved over the past half-decade or so in support of the former superintendent's program, Children Achieving, and more recently in efforts to try to unite Governor Ridge and Mayor Street in the negotiations of a new teachers contract. We feel very positive about the results of that contract and the image that its results project to Harrisburg and the improved relationships, not only between the City 87 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY and the State, but also between the School District and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. We continue to believe, as you know, Madam Chair, that greater Philadelphia and the City of Philadelphia are locked in a very heated battle with other regions throughout the country in order to establish a preeminent position as the center of knowledge, and that a key component of that effort will be whether we are successful in converting the more than 215,000 students in our Philadelphia public school classrooms into tomorrow's knowledged workers. Their economic future, and indeed the City and the region's economic future, depends on the quality of education they receive today. We think important strides have been made over the past several years, particularly with this new contract. While everything sought by each side was not gained, we did see a new pay-for-performance system, a dilution of seniority, a control being returned to management in the transference of teachers, greater flexibility to principals in buildings, and a 88 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY longer school day, as well as improvements to the pay offered to Philadelphia School District teachers. When these improvement are added to the reforms outlined in the School District's improvement plan that was submitted recently -- among them, reducing class size to through 3rd 9 grade, phasing out of middle schools in favor of a 10 K-through-8 program, providing extra reading and 11 math instruction for lower grades, and offering 12 programs, including summer sessions for at-risk 13 students -- Greater Philadelphia First believes 14 that a foundation has been laid that can be built 15 on in the future for a better product for 16 Philadelphia school children. 17 The District has been rewarded to some extent for its efforts in the Governor's 2000-2001 budget and 2001-2002 budget, but it is no secret that increased State aid is not nearly enough to eliminate, or even substantially reduce, the District's projected deficit, the reasons for which this Council will hear a great deal about over the course of these hearings. We are here to ask the City and the 89 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Council to consider an increased contribution to the District this coming fiscal year. We are not prepared to suggest what the size of this contribution should be, but we believe it is sufficient -- that it be sufficient to send a clear message that the City is not looking to Harrisburg alone for deliverance. No one should be able to point the finger at Philadelphia and say that the City is not is not doing, or has not done, its part. Let me be clear that GPF is not here to implore Council to close the funding gap. We are acutely aware of the City's constraints and the fact that taxpayers are already shouldering an enormous tax burden compared to other districts and cities across the state. Bemoaning this reality, however attempting, is ultimately unproductive. The focus must instead be on what the City does have to spend on its schools and how that money can be most effectively spent. Yesterday, we received a draft financial plan from the School District that has been circulated to members of this Council.
That plan is thorough and impressive, and the District 90 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY is to be commended for its Herculean effort to clarify the perilous situation in which it now finds itself, but we have not had the time to carefully review the plan's contents. Even a cursory reading leads to the inescapable conclusion that the solution to the current and future definite crisis cannot and will not be found in any combination of new local and State revenues or cuts in programs or services. Instead, radical change is needed in the way in which public education in Philadelphia is funded and managed. To be sure, such change cannot happen overnight, for it requires reforms of a nature and scope not previously considered by the District's leadership. GPF believes that the School District of Philadelphia's new management structure is a step in the right direction. We look forward to the appointment of a permanent CEO who will continue Interim CEO Phil Goldsmith's commitment to reducing operating costs, streamlining functions, and introducing other revenue and expense improvement. GPF has already begun discussions with the District concerning how the 91 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY business community can assist in helping the District to become leaner, better managed, and more entrepreneurial. But, Madam Chair, must face the reality that more may be needed to reverse what may well be a desperate situation. In addition to internal management reforms, it may also take deficit financing and State oversight. There are numerous models that can be considered for the type of financial control and oversight that may prove to be necessary, and we are not here to suggest which is the most appropriate model. What we are suggesting, however, is that it may well be time for both the Commonwealth, the City and the District to consider the swiftest possible rescue. The District will inevitably have to give up some of the freedom and flexibility with which it currently operates in exchange for a fiscal recovery mechanism. Yet, this short-term pay in compromise may be a worthy price for long-term stability. Years of large deficits and one-time fixes will soon give way to a gargantuan gap on 92 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY which incremental action will make little dent. GPF would, therefore, urge this Council to convey the clearest possible signal to Harrisburg that it is willing to consider and, if necessary, take any step to assure the District's future fiscal and operating health. One could not be more impressed or overwhelmed by the materials presented on of the draft plan, which show by Fiscal Year 10 2004 a cumulative deficit of such a magnitude that 11 it's incomprehensible. 12 I would now, like to say just a few 13 words about Greater Philadelphia First's education 14 policy in initiatives that we hope will be able to provide a framework for a broader statewide educational agenda, which we believe will greatly benefit the School District of Philadelphia. One such issue that we believe deserves considerable attention is whether it's prudent to continue to rely on the property tax as a primary source of public school financing. As this Council knows all too well, Philadelphia's real estate taxes have not kept pace with the growing needs of the School District. The problem is exacerbated by the number of county functions for 93 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY which the City is responsible and the large proportion of tax-exempt property. Moreover, the City's extensive use of Tax Increment Financing and the establishment the Keystone Opportunity Zones means that a portion of the new development will not generate increased real estate taxes for the District. We believe that the time is ripe to move ahead on a statewide solution to the growing number of counties, including Philadelphia, and some of the region's suburban counties unable to adequately support their schools.
GPF looks forward to leadership on this question and welcomes the Council's input and support. Another area where GPF is equally interested is in charter schools. We fully support charter schools as one of several viable educational choices for parents and as incubators for innovation and creativity. Furthermore, we believe that the competition afforded by charter schools will step up pressure on public school leadership, pressure that will lead to greater improvements. The charter school movement is still in 94 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY its infancy, yet serious concerns are being raised about curriculum, performance standards, accountability, compliance with State regulations, and funding, among others. GPF will work with the City and the School District and other interested stakeholders to ensure that charter schools can flourish and produce a high-quality education for students and their families opting to enroll. Indeed, GPF strongly favors providing parents with the widest possible range of choices in pursuit of a quality education for their children, particularly children who attend consistently failing schools. Finally, we look forward to addressing a regrettable trend over recent years: the diminished appeal of teaching as a professional career. Many factors account for this, including compensation, poor or insufficient teaching materials, and unsafe working conditions. In the view of all too many teachers, increased emphasis on standards, assessment, and accountability has led to a public perception that teachers are not doing their jobs, and consequently, fewer and fewer are entering the profession. Both the 95 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Commonwealth and the City must undertake aggressive efforts to attract more teachers. The best practices of other states including housing assistance programs, low-cost mortgages, and bonuses for teachers who remain in the City must be considered for adoption here. The comprehensive legislative proposal recently unveiled by Representative Dwight Evans, which contains six different initiatives aimed at teacher recruitment and attention, should receive swift legislative scrutiny and action. And while GPF's board has not yet taken a position on relaxing the residency requirement for new teachers, we would urge that this issue be revisited as part of an exhaustive search to ensure that there is a teacher in every classroom. In short, there are fewer issues of greater or more lasting significance than the education of our youngest citizens. Business leadership views its role as advocate for public education reform to be vital to the transformation of the region and the City and to one of the nation's leading centers of knowledge. GPF will, therefore, be following the progress of the 96 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Council's hearings on the District with deep interest and concern. Thank you very much.
Councilman Cohen, did you have a question for Mr. Katz?
Yes. You know, I -- it's only fair for me to express my deep disappointment that you had your statement. When the business community felt we needed stadiums for the City to be a first-class city, it said a billion.3, sure, we'll support that campaign: we'll have bonds issues, we'll do everything we can, we'll get State appropriations especially for it. Your statement says education's the most important thing; what do you offer? State control, no money, nothing. (Applause.)
It seems to me if the business community is serious about how important it is for public education, Greater 97 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY Philadelphia First and the Chamber of Commerce ought to be out front, on the Governor's doorstep and on the President's doorstep, saying, We need immediately maybe a half a billion to clear up the operating deficit and another half a billion in order to deal with the decrepid capital structure of our schools. Why don't you lead that kind of campaign? (Applause.)
Or else your words are meaningless. You parrot the words, just like the School Board did as they tried to kill off one of its most successful programs. They say they're for education but they don't do anything; in fact, they move in the wrong direction. Why don't you and the business community show real leadership. Go to the Governor, go to the President. You know the City can't raise taxes, 'cause if we raise taxes, more people will leave, more businesses will leave. Where are we going to do everything? What do you offer us? You say somehow or other, we're going to change things, the City's going to have to give up its freedom, the School Board's going to have 98 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY to give up all of the options it has. State control is going to do nothing for us unless the State is willing to put in scads of money, and the State, working together with the federal government, both have the same kind of political leadership. There ought to be no problem. If the business community takes the bull by the horn, organizes itself, and goes on the doorstep of the capitol in Harrisburg and the capitol in Washington and says, We as the business communities are saying to you, if you want cities to survive, particularly Philadelphia, you've got to give us the support we need now. That's the program I think the Greater Philadelphia First ought to be coming forth. (Applause.)
And I'd like a reply from Mr. Katz. I don't mean that as merely a statement.
Why doesn't the business community back up its words with some real support?
Mr. Cohen, I think that you 99 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY know that the business community provided over $100 million over the last five years in support of Superintendent Hornbeck's Children Achieving program to match a $50 million Annenberg Foundation Grant. I think there is clear evidence that the business community of this city, and of this region, has done a tremendous amount, both with wallets and with their political support to support Superintendent and to support the School District. I have personally gone to Harrisburg and talked to the many legislators. I recently met with members of the House Education Committee here in Philadelphia. And I don't think that you know any less than I know about the political support that exists for significantly new appropriations in Harrisburg for education in this commonwealth. We are supporting together with other business organizations throughout the State, and I would say at this point, not yet successfully, increases in aid for early-childhood education. The proposal that I outline today calls for significant financing to wipe out, as you 100 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY know, as is shown on of that presentation the District handed out, what will accumulate if left untended a $700 million-plus cumulative deficit. That's a lot of money and to divert appropriations from the School District of Philadelphia into a financing mechanism that would give the District the means to put behind it thirty years of accumulated financial neglect strikes me as a pretty strong statement in support of public education by the business community. Now, if it's not strong enough for everyone, that's not something I can satisfy you on. But I can assure you that Greater Philadelphia First will continue to lend its support to efforts not only to increase appropriations to the School District of Philadelphia, but also to find a solution to a problem without which there will be no future for the School District of Philadelphia. We've been watching one-time gaps being used to close deficits for years, and I think 23 that Rhonda Chatzkel, Deirdre Farmbry, Pedro 24 Ramos, Phil Goldsmith will tell you that we are 25 out of those. We are looking at a $185 million 101 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY deficit after a $62 million increase in State appropriations this fiscal year, an increase that the Governor will have to put every single ounce of political capital behind in order to get this legislature to approve. You know that and I know that. And it seems to me that if you look back at the history over the City over the last ten years, the exact same kind of mechanism that we're talking about trying to put the School District on a sound footing today that ten years ago was put in place in order to put the City on a sound footing is precisely the right kind of strategy for the business community to support, and that's precisely why we are supporting it. And I think it brings a tremendous amount of leverage and flexibility. And if the price for doing that is to give up to an agency of government that now argues that they put up 60 percent of the dollars but get little say in the spending and that's the price for doing it, I think it's a price that most educators would argue that we should consider making. 102 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Thank you. The Chair recognizes Councilman Rizzo.
Mr. Katz, before your leadership of Greater Philadelphia First, I believe a lot of time and effort was expended in doing a study of the non-educational areas of the Board of Education, and I asked the Administration and the Board members about the way they implemented those recommendations. Have you had an opportunity to look back at that report and to analyze and to see how seriously they accepted that report? Because you, here in your testimony today, indicate that we're going to have to make some radical changes in the School District to protect its future. So I'd just like you to comment on how that report was implemented.
Councilman, as you know, that report was authored probably in 1997 and '98, 103 3/7/01 - SCHOOL BUDGET - PUBLIC TESTIMONY and I did ask for, and I have a copy of, the summary of some of the recommendations that were made that was done under the recommendations of Richard Smoot and Emma Chappelle. Approximately 117 recommendations were made to the School District about modifying management and reforming operations, facilities, transportation, food services, and so on. And I would be happy to provide that information to you. I can't sit here today and tell you that I have audited it, that I know it to be a fact, but we had asked the School District to advise us, and they have advised us, on the reforms that they have made as a result of that report. And I'd be happy to pass that onto you.