Walking the Walk is a six part series that will analyze the ways in which Mayor Nutter can implement his plan for public education. With the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers opening contract negotiations with the School District of Philadelphia, now is the time for the mayor to make good on his campaign promises and truly “put children first”. He can do so by working with Sandra Dungee-Glenn and the School Reform Commission to build a contract that will give teachers the resources needed to provide our city’s children with a first rate education.
“As Mayor, I will direct my appointees to the SRC to clarify budget priorities and eliminate administrative costs in order to put money back into the classroom. . . . Some of the ideas that I will explore include: Limiting the role of the School District’s Central Administration to functions that create economies of scale, and directing as many Central Administration personnel as possible back into the schools to serve as teachers or principals.”
--Michael Nutter, Putting Children First
Last month, Allyssa Schmitt, principal of Thomas Mifflin Elementary, resigned because of accusations that she said Muslim children looked like “flying nuns”. Whether or not Schmitt is guilty of discrimination remains the subject of an investigation. However, the interesting part of the story is that during the controversy, district officials said Schmitt was—and I quote the Inquirer—“weighing whether to take a job in the central office or move to another principal’s post.”
It’s curious how a job in the district’s central office happened to pop up just as Allyssa Schmitt planned to step down as principal. It’s also interesting that the school district would pay Schmitt to perform this office job when the budget is so tight to begin with. Couldn’t the district’s money be better spent? Couldn’t we use Schmitt’s proposed “central office” salary to open a new library in a North Philly elementary school, or pay an ESL teacher to help students in West Kensington neighborhoods speak English?
The district is overblown with positions that lure educators (and money) out of the classroom. Think of all the former principals and teachers who now serve as district officers; or regional superintendents; or administrative assistants to regional superintendents; or writers of district curriculum; or administrative assistants to writers of district curriculum; or school growth teachers; or academic coaches. The list goes on and on.
Cassandra W. Jones, Interim Chief Academic Officer of the Philadelphia School District (and former teacher), is a case in point. The Inquirer reported that Jones receives an annual pension of $36,900 in addition to her yearly salary of $231,394. Incredible. And how about Lori Shorr and Sharon Tucker, Mayor Nutter’s “dynamic duo” of education? Although the two women never worked in the classroom, their salaries are still exorbitant. Shorr, as Nutter’s new Chief Education Officer, will be making $115,000 a year, while Tucker, acting as Shorr’s deputy, will be pulling in $95,000; at 30 years old, Sharon Tucker will be making $15,000 more than the highest paid, most experienced teacher in the Philadelphia School District.
This is exactly where Mayor Nutter should start putting children first—by funneling money and resources back into the classroom where they belong. He must sit down with the SRC and tighten the screws. He must follow through with his promise to do an independent audit of the district’s finances, to determine, as he states in Putting Children First, “whether the School District’s funds are being well spent.” He must make the budget more transparent to the city’s tax payers, so we can see exactly how our dollars are being spent. Then, as citizens of Philadelphia, we can give the SRC and the district’s central office a “report card,” just as the press so callously gives our region’s teachers and principals.
If Mayor Nutter truly wants to achieve the goals set forth in Putting Children First, he must set the tone early. He must become an active part of the contract negotiations between the Philadelphia School District and the teacher’s union. He must remind Sandra Dungee-Glenn and the SRC that the district’s recent financial deficit has already resulted in the cutting of badly needed resources—such as libraries, sports programs and other after school activities—and that if money becomes an issue during contract negotiations (which it undoubtedly will), the cuts must be made primarily on the administrative side, away from the classrooms and the teachers who run them.
But I have faith in Mayor Nutter. Which is why—as a dues paying member of the PFT—I voted to endorse him during the 2007 general election. I also have faith in Jerry Jordan, our union president, and the entire Collective Bargaining Team. Our union will stand strong and convey the message to Nutter that he mustn’t become a liability like former Philadelphia mayor John Street and make us work with a sub-standard contract or no contract at all. I have full confidence that PFT President Jerry Jordan and the CB Team will start putting the wheels in motion NOW—in the month of February—to open the lines of communication with Mayor Nutter so he can fulfill the promises he made when we voted to endorse him last fall.
Public education can work in Philadelphia. By cutting the dead wood in the district’s central office, the SRC can free funds to build a new and improved teachers’ contract, and bring about the needed changes to truly put our children’s education first.
Post new comment