The School District of Philadelphia Board of Education Public Meeting Minutes April 21, 2022 A public meeting of the Board of Education was held in hybrid format on April 21, 2022. Some Board Members, select staff, and some registered speakers participated in-person, while others participated remotely. Members of the general public who did not attend in-person participated via Zoom meeting platform. The meeting was convened at 4:28 p.m., by Joyce Wilkerson, President. President Wilkerson reported/commented on the following: ● Announcement of Dr. Tony B. Watlington as the next Superintendent for The School District of Philadelphia. Dr. Watlington’s term will begin on June 16, 2022. ● Acknowledgement of the resignation of Board Member Maria McColgan, effective May 6, 2022. ● Applications for the 2022 - 2023 Non Voting Student Board Representative positions are available for eligible 10th and 11th grade students until May 20, 2022.
Vice President Egea-Hinton made announcements concerning recording, copyright, participation in, and viewing of the meeting. Board Member Fix Lopez provided a brief legislative update which included the following: ● Board Members will be meeting with state legislators as part of the Pennsylvania School Board Association’s Spring Advocacy Day. ● The Governor’s education budget proposal, which includes significant funding increases for Basic Education, Special Education, and the Level Up initiative, as well charter school funding reforms to align payments with costs, is built into the District’s Lump Sum Budget and Five Year Plan. ● The Philadelphia community is urged to advocate to their state representatives, state senators, and the Governor and demand that the legislator pass the Governor’s education budget proposal. ● House Bill 972 and Senate Bill 1191, which were titled the “Fairness in Women's Sports Act” and raised concerning implications. Roll Call, Minutes, Announcements
Lynn Rauch, General Counsel, announced that the Board of Education met in Executive Session on April 21, 2022, to discuss privileged, confidential, personnel, labor relations, investigation matters, and strategies in connection with the following litigations: N.N vs. School District of Philadelphia et a. Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas 21110155 (asserting negligence theory under the exception to the Tort Claims Act), L.S VS. School District of Philadelphia et al. United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania 21-CV-1174 (alleging civil rights violations), Stefy De Los Santos vs.
School District of Philadelphia, Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas 211100142 (asserting negligence theory under the exception to the Tort Claims Act), Olney Charter High School vs. School District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Charter Appeal Board Docket #2019-05 (appeal by the charter school of the Board decision to nonrenew the schools charter), John B. Stetson Charter School vs. School District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Charter Appeals Board Docket #2019-06 (appeal by the charter school of the Board decision to nonrenew the schools charter). Ms. Rauch conducted Roll Call. Members Present: Ms. Danzy (remotely), Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez , Dr. McColgan (remotely), Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson (remotely), President Wilkerson – 8 Attending: William R. Hite, Jr., Ed.D., Superintendent, and Student Board Representatives Rebecca Allen (remotely) and Armando Ortez
The minutes from the March 24, 2022 and April 7, 2022 special meeting of the Board of Education were presented for approval. Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0 Committee Reports Board Member Thompson provided a report from the Parent and Community Advisory Council, including: ● Advisory Council members provided support and activities in their communities for our children during report card conferences during the first week of April 2022, and provided support during the week of Spring Break. ● Congratulations to Christiana Uy for her participation on the Superintendent Search Advisory Committee. ● Advisory Council members provided valuable feedback during a meeting they had with Chief Financial Officer Uri Monson on the School Budget process. Student Board Representative Rebecca Allen provided a report on her and fellow Student Board
Representative Armando Ortez’s activities, which included participation in Dr. Hite’s Student Advisory meeting to discuss potential advantages and challenges of the proposed 9:00 a.m. start time for high schools across the District, participation in a panel discussion hosted by Chalkbeat on the topic of Philadelphia’s gun violence epidemic and mental health, and announcing that the 2022-2023 Student Board Representative application is available. Superintendent Remarks President Wilkerson invited Dr. Hite to provide remarks. Dr. Hite reported/commented on: ● The Facilities Planning Process ● An update on the work of the District’s Equity Coalition ● Acknowledgement of April as Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month, as well as May as Asian Pacific American History Month Dr. Hite invited the following staff to provide reports/remarks on the following topics: ● Uri Monson, Chief Financial Officer - Action Item 31 - Authorization of Increased Outside Counsel
Fees for FY22 ($1,400,000) - Added 4.14.2022 ● Larisa Shambaugh, Chief Talent Officer - Staffing Update
Public Testimony and Registered Student and General Speakers Board Member Salley acknowledged the receipt of, and summarized written testimony submitted to the Board, noting that the Board received five pieces of written testimony from: ● Barbara Dowdall ● Members of the Racial Justice Organizing Committee ● Stephanie King ● Lisa Haver ● Lynda Rubin Complete copies of the written testimony are included with the meeting materials. The meeting was opened to the public for presentation of statements by registered student speakers and general speakers. Ms. Rauch provided the applicable provisions of the speakers’ policy for the meeting. The following individuals spoke: The following individuals spoke in support of Action Item 27 - Contract with Various Vendors - Alternative Education Programs ($222,690,000), and urged the Board of Education to continue to invest in alternative education opportunities for student who may need an alternative path to completing their education:
● Jemma Salisbury, Student - Gateway to College ● Shyhief Jackson, Student - Excel Academy South ● Gabrielle McPherson, Student - YESPhilly ● Nathaniel Gordon, Student - Gateway to College ● Arkadiy Yelman, District Staff Member The following individuals spoke to express concerns regarding the school administration at Bodine High School for International Affairs and alleged mismanagement of reported school climate concerns including harmful student behaviors and inappropriate student-teacher interactions: ● Desmond Farlow, Student - Bodine High School ● Kianni Howell, Student - Bodine High School ● Migdalia Lopez, District Staff Member The following individuals spoke to express concerns regarding Action Item 31, Authorization of Increased Outside Counsel Fees for FY22 ($1,400,000) : ● Illene Poses, Community Member ● Lisa Haver, Community Member Lynda Rubin, community member, expressed concerns regarding the proposed budget for FY23 and
urged the Board of Education and the District to ensure that all schools have positions for lead teachers and support staff, noting that they are crucial positions. Lynn Schwartz, community member, expressed concern regarding drinking water in school district buildings and urged the District to remove all drinking fountains until the issue is resolved. Diane Payne, community member, expressed concern regarding Action Items 8, 9, and 12, noting that the dollar amount for each of the items was hard to find on the agenda. Sara Morningstar, community member, expressed concerns regarding the proposed change to high school start times and how the change in schedule may impact students’ ability to participate in after school programming, sports, and other out of school time activities.
Gerald Chessman, community member, expressed support for Action Item 26 - Authorization of School Bus Purchases from Various Vendors ($8,000,000). Constance Jones, parent/guardian, expressed dissatisfaction with the District’s ability to support students with special needs and suggested that the District consider opening a school for students with autism. Goals and Guardrails Board Member Fix Lopez introduced and facilitated the Board’s Goals and Guardrails monitoring session to review progress on Goal 3: Math: the percentage of students in grades 3-8 who are proficient on the state Math assessment will grow from 21.5% in August 2019 to 52.0% by August 2026. Board Member Fix Lopez noted that Goal 3 was last reviewed as part of the August 2021 Action Meeting and that there are two indicators that will be monitored in this report: 1). Leading Indicator 3.1: The percentage of students in grades 3-8 who score at or above grade-level on the District's within-year math assessment in
Fall, Winter, and Spring each year, and 2). Leading Indicator 3.2: Closing the Gap - The percentage of students, by subgroup, in grades 3-8 who score at or above grade-level on the District's within-year math assessment in Fall, Winter, and Spring each year. Dr. Hite provided a review of information that influenced the development of this Goal and these specific indicators to measure Goal 3: Math: the percentage of students in grades 3-8 who are proficient on the state Math assessment will grow from 21.5% in August 2019 to 52.0% by August 2026. Dr. Hite noted that the initial review of student math performance included limited historical student performance data, identified where the District was in regards to being on track or not on track, and unpacked why certain schools were performing differently than others. Additionally, the initial review included a description of the root causes impacting student reading achievement in District schools and a series of actions identified to
address the root causes, which teams at the District have made progress towards implementing. Dr. Hite provided a review of progress made on Goal 3: Math, including a review of Goal 3: Math leading indicators based on the Fall and Winter performance data for the 2021-22 school year and provided and update on implementation of the strategies identified by the Leadership Team to address the root causes related to Math performance. The following staff reports were provided: ● Dr. Tonya Wolford, Chief of Evaluation, Research, and Accountability ● Dr. Malika Savoy-Brooks, Chief of Academic Support ● Dr. Evelyn Nunez, Chief of Schools Following Dr. Hite and team’s presentation, the Board engaged in a discussion and question and answer period. Board Member Fix Lopez stated that the Board has accepted the Superintendent’s report on the progress toward Goal 3 Math. Board Member Fix Lopez noted that the District has demonstrated to the Board a
clear increase in Math from Fall to Winter in all but one subgroups. Board Member Fix Lopez stated that there was a correlation seen between teacher attendance and student performance, noting teacher attendance is a contributor to the data reflected in off-track schools. Subsequently, Board Member Fix Lopez stated that there are targeted recruitment and attendance strategies that the Board wishes to continue to track (and the correlation of that) as it relates to this particular trend. Board Member Fix Lopez noted several follow ups for the Superintendent and his team that should be brought forward at the next monitoring session as it relates to Goal 3 including a request for additional data to include a breakdown of special education data as well as high incidence versus low incidence data. Additionally, the Board would like to see a breakdown in data related to 8th grade students to understand what is occurring. Board Member Fix Lopez noted that while the focus on Math is grades 3-8
and not the earlier grades, the early grades are seeing the biggest gains. Board Member Fix Lopez noted that there are early indicators that as literacy improves so does Math as a secondary outcome, therefore the Board would like to continue monitoring this closely to see if the gains in early literacy are contributors to the improvement in math in the early grades. Following Board Member Fix Lopez’s summary of the Progress Monitoring session, Dr. Hite provided an overview of upcoming implementation presentations noting that in the next meeting the District will continue to use the implementation monitoring report to discuss the implementation of strategies in greater detail. Dr. Hite also noted that at the May Action Meeting, the District will talk about implementation of MTSS as a whole with a deeper focus on climate programming and Tier 1 meetings. Consideration of Action Items President Wilkerson described the process of how Action Items will be presented for consideration.
● The personnel Action Items, Nos. 3, 4, 5, and Action Item Nos. 1, 2, 8, 9, 12, 14, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28 would each be presented separately. ● Action Item Nos. 7, 10,11, 13, 15- 22, 25, 29-30 would be presented together. Board Member Salley expressed concerns regarding Action Items 1, 2, 8, 9 , 23, 24, and 27, noting that each of the items are multi-year contracts that would carry over to Dr. Watlington’s tenure as the Superintendent. Board Member Salley requested that the Board consider amending the action items to include language that would allow the School District of Philadelphia the opportunity to terminate a given contract without financial penalty. Board Member Streater moved “to amend Action Items 1, 2, 8, 9, 23, 24, 27 to add to each action item that the agreement must include a provision allowing the District to terminate for convenience without financial penalty to the School District of Philadelphia.” The motion to amend passed unanimously.**
Item No. 1. Contracts with Various Vendors - Design Services (FY23 $100,000) - AS AMENDED** Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 2. Amendment of Contract with Renaissance Learning, Inc. for K-12 Assessments ($0) - AS AMENDED** Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 3. A pproval of Personnel Hires - Updated 4.14.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 4. Approval of Retirements and Resignations - Updated 4.21.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8
Item No. 5. Approval of Personnel Terminations - Updated 4.21.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 6. Administration Recommendation for Termination of Professional Employees (WITHDRAWN - 4.14.2022)
Item No. 7. Amendment of Contract with Scenario Learning - SafeSchools Training System ($49,414) - Updated 4.8.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 8. Contract with Communities in Schools of Philadelphia, Inc. DBA Launch of Philadelphia for HR and Fiscal Management of IT Apprenticeship Program - AS AMENDED** Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 9. Amendment of Contract with Visual Sound for Classroom Interactive Technology and Services - AS AMENDED** Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, President Wilkerson – 7 No: 0 Abstention: Ms. Thompson - 1
Item No. 10. Amendment of Contracts with Apple, Inc. and Dell Marketing, LP for the Purchase of Computers ($117,070,800) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 11. Capital Awards at Various Locations - TE Construction Services, LLC, McGoldrick Electric, Inc., John J Bee, Inc., CAD Electric, Inc. (WBE), Palman Electric, Inc., Magnum, Inc., Hyde Electric Corporation, Smith Construction, Inc. (WBE), Paramount Electrical Service, LLC (DBE), Robert Michaels and Associates, Five Star, Inc. ($10,620,118) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8
Item No. 12. Capital Award for Schoolyard Improvements at Louis H. Farrell School ($972,000) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Mr. Streater, President Wilkerson – 6 No: Ms. Salley, Ms. Thompson – 2
Item No. 13. Change Orders With Various Vendors ($379,565) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Dr. McColgan,Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 14. No Cost Action Item and Right of Entry with Noresco-Comprehensive Energy Audit at Various Schools [FAILED] Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Dr. McColgan – 3 No: Ms. Fix Lopez, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson - 5
Item No. 15. Amendment of Contract with Genuine Parts Company - Yellow Bus and Non-Bus Fleet Parts (RFP-538)($1,650,000) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 16. Contract with Atriade, LLC for Comprehensive Assessment of School District of Philadelphia CCTV Systems Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 17. Contract with Municipal Emergency Services, Inc. for School Safety Uniforms Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 18. Contract with Hyde Electric Corporation for security camera system installation Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 19. Contract with Children’s Crisis Treatment Center
Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 20. Contracts with pre-approved law firms for Title IX, harassment and discrimination investigations Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 21. Ratification to Authorize Additional Funds for a LCA to Investigate Title IX Claims ($25,999) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 22. Acceptance of Services from and Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Albert Einstein Medical Center - Pre-K Nutrition Education Program Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 23. Memorandum of Understanding with National Math + Science Initiative - STEM Education ($250,000) - AS AMENDED** Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 24. Amendment of Contract with Cornerstone OnDemand, Inc. – Professional Development and Evaluation Tool - AS AMENDED** Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 25. Acceptance of Donations of School-Based Programs and Services - School Partner Agreement Process - Added 3.31.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, President Wilkerson – 7 No: 0
Item No. 26. Authorization of School Bus Purchases from Various Vendors ($8,000,000) - Added 3.31.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 27. Contract with Various Vendors - Alternative Education Programs ($222,690,000) - Added 4.4.2022 - AS AMENDED** Board Member Fix Lopez Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 28 Mastery Charter School - Shoemaker Campus – Application for Charter Renewal - Added 4.13.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 29 Settlement of Civil Action - J.O. o/b/o V.O. v. The School District of Philadelphia, et al. - Added 4.14.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 30 Settlement of Civil Action - L.S., et al. v. The School District of Philadelphia, et al. - Added 4.14.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 31 Authorization of Increased Outside Counsel Fees for FY22 ($1,400,000) - Added 4.14.2022 Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0 Adjournment
President Wilkerson announced that the Board will be holding its next regularly scheduled Action Meeting on May 26, 2022, at 4:00 p.m. On motion, the meeting was adjourned at 8:38 p.m. Joyce S. Wilkerson, President Board of Education William R. Hite, Jr., Ed.D. Superintendent
The School District of Philadelphia Board of Education Public Meeting Minutes March 24, 2022 A public meeting of the Board of Education sitting as the Board of Directors of the Intermediate Unit was held on March 24, 2022. The meeting was convened at 9:41p.m. by Joyce Wilkerson, President. Roll Call, Minutes Lynn Rauch, General Counsel, conducted Roll Call. Members Present: Ms. Danzy (remotely), Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez , Dr. McColgan (remotely), Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson (remotely), President Wilkerson – 8 Members Absent: 0 Attending: William R. Hite, Jr., Ed.D., Executive Director The minutes from the October 28, 2021 meeting of the Board of Education were presented for approval. Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0 Consideration of Action Items The following Action Items were presented for formal action by the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia
Intermediate Unit 26:
Item No. 1. Contracts with Various Vendors - Use of Act 89 Grant for Non-Public Schools ($19,000,000) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
Item No. 2. Contracts with Various Vendors - Use of the Emergency Assistance for Non-Public Schools (EANS II) Grant authorized by the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021 ($80,000,000) Yes: Ms. Danzy, Vice President Egea-Hinton, Ms. Fix Lopez, Dr. McColgan, Ms. Salley, Mr. Streater, Ms. Thompson, President Wilkerson – 8 No: 0
President Wilkerson announced that the Board will be holding its next Action Meeting on April 21, 2022. On motion, the meeting was adjourned at 9:12 p.m. Joyce S. Wilkerson, President President Board of Education William R. Hite, Jr., Ed.D. Executive Director