Yes. My name is William Basemore. Good afternoon, everyone. Yes.
I think you have us on the streaming and on Teams. If you can turn down your streaming device.
All right. My name is William Basemore. Good afternoon everyone. I currently work at People for People Charter School as the Director of Academic Engagement and Improvement. I have always been passionate about working with children and making a difference in my community. I have a Master's degree in clinical psychology and have over 15 years of experience working in two charter schools in different capacities. In addition, my children attend charter schools as well. Within my allotted time, I will discuss why my choice is charter schools, some changes and why having Black-led schools are important, impactful and helpful. My why I chose charter schools. Charter schools provide a safe, secure, nurturing environment where students can grow. Also, teachers take an active individual role in teaching the whole student. Essentially, charter schools become a part of the child's family and a part of the community. Staff are very accessible to parents and guardians. Charter schools show the importance of community and it takes a village. My why for Black-led schools: It's important for our innercity youth to be educated by Black-run schools. Students see Black leaders and become leaders and set goals and visualize themselves as leaders. In addition, students are given the high expectations and held accountable for academics, behaviors, social and emotional learning, community service and learning how to handle conflict in a positive manner. The changes I suggest, our charter school should be equally funded as public schools. Minority students have deficits that we try to overcome. Therefore, unequal distribution of local, state and federal funds for education should be distributed equally. We are all trying to educate our youth. Another change to suggest is more creative arts programs for students in charter schools. Due to the fact economics plays a huge role in the charter schools, many of our creative arts programs have been cut. So many of our children have raw talent but do not have a way to foster their talent. In closing, Black-run charter schools are a positive influence. The skills acquired in charter schools help close the achievement gap. They allow the community to have an active role. They allow students to see what the future can hold. But most importantly, it holds each and every student to the highest esteem, knowing that they will be able to achieve as we prepare them for our future leaders. Thank you for your time.
Thank you. Can I call the next witness, Darryl Seaford. (No response.)
Hi, Darryl. Could you please state your first and last name and begin your testimony. And if you can, please keep it to about three minutes.
Give me a minute. I am actually on the expressway. I just need to pull over. Is that okay?
Yes, I'm still available. No, I'm saying you want to call me back because I'm on the expressway so I need to get off and pull over.
Excellent. Thank you for joining. If you can please just state your first and last name and keep your testimony to about two minutes, you can begin.
Okay. Great. Good afternoon. My name is Ashley Redford. I'm the CEO of American Paradigm Schools. Thank you for your time today. We appreciate the work of the African American Charter Coalition to make sure these concerns are addressed, and we thank City Council for taking interest to review this. Systemic biases have been impacting Philadelphia's student's education in one of the most serious ways by causing disruption to schools and school communities. Surrender clauses disproportionately target minority- led charters requiring to relinquish their charter without the possibility of appeal if the School Board deems conditions to be unmet. Furthermore, this report shows that (inaudible) with the District employees and School Board consider the use of surrender clauses as a way to avoid the cost of potential litigation and costly appeal processes. We want to call attention to the parallel stories that echoed the concerns about bias and conflict of interest and anecdotally support this report. In particular, as we support the African American Charter Coalition, we also want to highlight ways that the process and the surrender clause have impacted schools that serve a primarily Latinx community. Memphis Street Academy is a charter school with a surrender clause that was recently invoked. Our school community has a higher percentage of students in poverty, minority students and English language learners than the District. During the pandemic, we heeded the call from the City to provide as much community support as possible. Our school has a school-based health center for students. We provide mental health support. We provide community food distributions. We had vaccine clinics, testing sites and English language classes for adults. None of these metrics appear in the ACE framework for renewal. Through the renewal process, Memphis Street met standards in compliance, fiance and governance. Memphis Street was recently acknowledged as a beating- the-odds school for exceeding the national average in academic growth for reading and math. There are heavier burdens in the ACE framework against schools that are addressing different levels of student learning, English language learning services, high poverty and high special needs populations. We are counting on the leadership of City Council to help correct the concerns that have previously been unaddressed at the School District level. Further disruption of schools in the most vulnerable communities will only cause more burdens in other sectors of the City as stability and wellness is threatened. We should pause current closure of charter schools, especially through the use of surrender clauses until we can have a remedy to the biases and the renewal framework. We appreciate your time today. Thanks.
Thank you, Ms. Redford. I'd like to call again Darryl Seaford.
Okay. Please state your first and last name and begin your comment to under three minutes.
Okay. Thank you. Hi. My name is Darryl Seaford and I am a father with one child presently enrolled at People for People Charter School and two who have already transitioned to (inaudible) High School. I wish to highlight the significance of Black charter schools in Philadelphia. My older children, now private in high school, and balancing work and responsibilities are a testament to the strong foundation they received at People for People. The lasting impact for People for People Charter School has had on both my children and me is remarkable. The school has taught my children a sense of confidence and strong work ethic, qualities that are serving them well in their high school and their working lives. For me, witnessing their growth and the school's role has been deeply gratifying and reinforced by the belief of importance of tailored education. One of the greatest advantages of charter schools is finding a school that fit our children's unique needs. In my experience, People for People offer a learning environment that was perfectly suited to each of my children. They received education tailored to their individual styles, which not only enhanced their academic performance but also ignited their passion for learning. The community aspect of charter schools cannot be overstated. My children were a part of a nurturing community, which played a crucial role in their development. They were more than just students. They were valued members of a close-knit educational family. And lastly for me, charter schools empower us all as parents. We have a voice in our children's education, making us partners in their learning journey. This involvement is empowering and has been a significant factor in the success of my children. Actually to sum it all up, Black charter schools like People for People are invaluable by providing personalized education, foster a strong community bond and lead in innovation. My experience as a parent has been overwhelmingly positive and I advocate for the support and recognition of the schools in our educational system. Thank you for your time and for hearing my voice about the Black charter schools of Philadelphia.
Hi, Lisa. Please state your first and last name and you can begin your testimony. And if you could keep it to about three minutes.
Okay. Good afternoon. My name is Lisa Haver. I am Cofounder and Coordinator of the Alliance of Philadelphia Public Schools. I've attended meetings of the School Reform Commission and the Board of Education for over 12 years. 13 At this time I would like 14 to ask which Councilmembers are 15 currently present at this hearing? 16
I'm 17 sorry. This is Councilmember 18 Thomas. This is a Committee -- 19 this is the Education Committee, so 20 the members of the Education Committee as well as the staff are the people who've been invited and are present at the hearing right now. So --
Okay. So all the current members of the Education Committee are hearing us. Okay. Thank you. From October 2016 to March 2017, the District then under the governance of the School Reform Commission invited charter operators to a series of secret meetings. There was no 9 public notice and no opportunity for public testimony. Charter administrators were there mostly to say what they wanted in their charter performance framework. That resulted in a deregulation and lowering of standards for charter schools. That could now score only 45 percent of academic and other categories and still technically meet the standard. The public only knows about these secret meetings because of it was reported after the fact by WHYY Radio. It's puzzling that one of the panels referred to the difficulties the Charter operators have in understanding the evaluations when they, themselves, helped to form them. (Technical difficulties.)
The legacy of secrecy remains. Charter operators have access to District and Board staff to conduct private negotiations for charter renewals. Like other districts in the state, Philadelphia's Board of Education holds no public renewal hearings. If they did, we might be able to avoid the pain and disruption that students of the Walter D. Palmer Charter School suffered years ago. And what students at Mathematics, Sciences and Civics are experiencing now, schools closed by their own CEOs, not by the District. In past years, APPS published two informational articles -- excuse me, in the past year APPS published two information articles on the City's charters. What it shows is most of the City's charter schools are underenrolled, some significantly. The length of the Charter waiting list is just that. The other report compiled some federal tax information, reports on the salary compensation of Charter CEOs and administrators. Our article questioned why schools need CEOs and why so many are so highly paid. At least three paid more to oversee one or two schools than the District's Superintendent. Many facts are omitted from articles and discussions about charter schools. It's important to understand the original history and stated mission of charter schools so we can see whether the privatization experiment of public schools has worked. Charter investors promised to make education better for the City's children. They said that charter schools would always perform better than public schools. Even beyond that, they promised to privatizing the City's public schools would create a ripple effect that would lift families out of poverty and lower the crime rate. Obviously, none of that happened. Charter expansion actually was promoted and funded by the Bill 13 & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Walter Foundation and other corporate interests. Their money resulted in years of hostile takeovers of neighborhood schools known as the Renaissance Program. Despite the pleading of students, parents and community members, not one of the schools put on that list was fair. The one time that the SRC allowed parents to vote from Ed Steel and Munoz-Marin Elementary School, parents overwhelmingly rejected privatization of these schools. APPS issued an analysis two years ago that showed that not one Renaissance Charter had fulfilled its mission to "effect dramatic change." One former Board member referred to the program as the most expensive failure in the District's history. Billionaire Jeffrey Yass is currently among the wealthy donors funding the pro-privatization PAC and the campaign of pro-school privatization candidates still pushing for the privatization of public schools, and now for vouchers both of which divert money from neighborhood public schools. The call for accountability for privately-managed charter schools is often misconstrued as being anti-charter. The original idea of charters wasn't to create a web of privately-run schools but to bring more innovation of flexibility to the public schools. With the increasing privatization of public schools came more standardized testing and (inaudible) prep. The promises of innovation and accountability no 8 longer referred to. PA charter law, the state's charter law in particular, made it too easy for real estate investors and contractors to profit. Many charter schools have been cited for barriers to enrollment and for expelling their students without legally requiring due process. It has been reported that a number of charter operators and organizations actually just walk away from schools, most recently Universal Daroff and Universal Bluford, with no consideration for the community and no consequence. We are asking the City Council --
Go ahead. I'm sorry. You can finish. No, please finish.
Thank you. I just have two more sentences. City Council should advocate for public hearings for charter renewals. Councilmembers should be calling on the Board of Education to end their speaker depression policy. Then we can consider all of the facts and have a more substantive discussion. Thank you, Chair Thomas.
Thank you. I just want to offer some context based on that testimony. I think sometimes what happens is when Black-led institutions begin to communicate, this isn't just an education thing. This is an issue that Black spaces have in general. I respect everything that that witness just communicated and I understand that there are issues with the dynamics of charter schools. But when we create platforms to have conversations around issues that Black-led institutions specifically are facing, it's disingenuous to then change that topic to talk about issues that all charters are facing. As the Chair of the Education Committee, I'm very well aware that we need regulations and guidelines as it relates to charter oversight. We're very well aware of other issues that charter spaces have had. We understand that there's been individual institutions who have done things that are unethical and in some cases, even illegal. But at the end of the day, today's conversation is not about charters. Today's conversation is specifically about Black-led institutions and how Black-led institutions are disproportionately treated, how we have a system that is in place that negatively hurts those institutions. Now, the recommendations made by that witness, I don't think anybody will disagree with those recommendations. But I think it's important when we ask for a platform for Black people to be able to communicate some of the issues and things that they have and want to talk about their lived experience, that those conversations don't get hijacked and the topic changes to a whole other issue. We have issues with charters. Today's hearing is not about charters. Today's hearing is specifically about Black-led institutions and the impact that the system that we currently have has had on those Black-led institutions based on the report that was commissioned by the School Board as well as the lived experiences from the panelists here today. So anyone in the listening audience, I just want to be clear for those that are still paying attention, for my Council colleagues that are still here, I just want the focus to remain hyperly on Black-led institutions and Black-led institutions' experiences working with the School Board, the Charter Office and other governmental authorities. Madam Clerk, will you please call the next witness to testify here today.
Hi, Tyheem. Can you please state your first and last name and begin your testimony to be kept to about three minutes.
Good afternoon. My name's Tyheem Bailey Taylor and I'm a current high school senior as well as the cadet for the Commander at the Philadelphia Military Academy. I have recently received the U.S. Army's Medal of Heroism, the (inaudible) Foundation Award and also received a Proclamation for the Pennsylvania Senate. I began my educational journey at the People for People Charter School back in kindergarten, marking the start of an incredible educational journey that has profoundly shaped who I am today. Throughout my years at the school, I've experienced extremely high levels of support and guidance. These opportunities have been instrumental in my personal and in my academic growth. The dedicated educators at the People for People Charter School not only provided me with the knowledge but also instilled in me invaluable values of resilience, determination and engagement. This school has been the cornerstone of my success, providing me with the skills and confidence necessary to navigate challenges and pursue my goals. The school's commitment to innovative teaching methods and tailored educational programs fostered in an environment where everybody ends up celebrating and diverse perspectives are embraced, this inclusive approach not only enriched my learning experience but also encouraged me to embrace my unique strengths and my interests. Beyond academics, the People for People Charter School served as a hub for fostering meaningful connectors within the community. The relationship (inaudible) has been headquartered in the shape of my identity and purpose. As a testament to transformative power of Black-led charter schools like People for People, I stand before the Philadelphia City Council to advocate for continued support and recognition of charter schools. They're not just schools. They are beacons of opportunity, empowerment and hope for countless students' pathway to success. My journey from kindergarten to where I am today wouldn't have been possible without the unwavering dedication of the educators, the innovative educational approach and the supportive community at the People for People Charter School. I urge the Council to continue keeping the existence and growth of these charter schools, enabling more students to access lifechanging opportunities I was fortunate to expand. Thank you for considering the profound impacts of the People for People Charter School on my life and the lives of many others within my community. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Clerk. I know I did this before. But, Madam Clerk, I just want to say congratulations to you. For those of the listening audience, our Clerk here today has just clerked her last meeting for Councilmember Isaiah Thomas. So I just want to let you know that your service and your work is very much appreciated. I know you're not going far. You're going to get accustomed to our office, so I know this is a very special day to you, a special moment. I just want to thank you for your service to the City of Philadelphia even though it will continue. But more importantly, thank you for your service to my office and working with my team, and I think more importantly for being my friend as it relates to our relationship and this journey together. So thank you, Madam Clerk. Before we conclude the hearing for today, I just want to make sure I echo the sentiments of my colleague earlier, Councilmember Quetcy Lozada. Councilmember Lozada first talked about the fact that not only is this an issue that Black institutions are facing, but Latino-led institutions are facing similar issues. And I think as we move forward into 2024 and we frame this conversation, we have to begin to include those institutions in this conversation because they're experiencing some of the same things that was discussed today. So I just want to thank Councilmember Lozada for her leadership and for her words today. And her words also resonated with me because she gave us a charge. She said, what do we do from here, where do we go from here, and let's be able to point to tangible things. We know that we've seen changes as it relates to the Black Charter Coalition. But what do we do from here, where do we go from here and how do we assure we move in a way that's productive, efficient and in the best interest of children and families across the City of Philadelphia. So with that being said, there being no further questions from members of the Committee and no other witnesses to testify, I would like to ask if there's anyone else present in this hearing whose name we have failed to call that wishes to offer any testimony or any remarks? (No response.)
Hearing none, I want to say thank you to all the panels, all the witnesses, all of the members of Council as well as the staff who's involved in our hearing today. I want to give a huge shout-out to our Tech team here on City Council. This hearing was well over two hours, actually well over three hours. And, Tech team, we appreciate you sticking with us. Council staff members, we appreciate you sticking with us throughout the course of this hearing. I know you guys have one more hearing coming up after this so I do apologize for the delayed start. But again, I just want to say thank you to all of my colleagues for all your passion, all the great work that's done in the best interest of the citizens of Philadelphia. And again, Councilmember Lozada, I'm inspired. You inspire me. We have work to do and the work will continue. So this concludes the business before the Committee of Education here today. And again, I just want to say thank you everybody. And for who I don't talk to and don't see, please have a happy holiday. Have a safe and a blessed new year. Thank you, everybody. (Committee on Educatin concluded at 4:30 p.m.) C E R T I F I C A T I O N I, hereby certify that the proceedings and evidence noted are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me in the foregoing matter, and that this is a correct transcript of the same. __________________________________ TANEHA CARROLL