Initiative aims to better address the needs of students and families
PHILADELPHIA – At a press conference today, officials from the Mayor’s Office of Education (MOE) and School District of Philadelphia announced the first cohort of schools selected for Philadelphia’s community schools initiative.
After an application process and months of public engagement, Otis Hackney, the City’s Chief Education Officer, revealed that the following schools will be a part of the new program:
- William Cramp Elementary School
- Murrell Dobbins CTE High School
- F.S. Edmonds Elementary School
- Edward Gideon Elementary School
- Kensington Health Sciences Academy
- Logan Elementary School
- Southwark Elementary School
- South Philadelphia High School
- Tilden Middle School
The City has made a commitment to transform at least 25 public schools into community schools over the next four years. Each community school will receive a full-time coordinator who engages with the entire school community – students, parents, teachers, administrators, service providers and neighbors – to identify its most pressing needs, and works with service providers and City agencies to bring targeted resources directly into the school. The goal of this program is to address non-academic barriers to learning and increase community engagement in the success of the school.
“We cannot expect our children to succeed academically if they come to school hungry, sick or too traumatized to learn,” said Mayor Kenney. “Expanding the community schools approach is one way that we will strategically align City services and other resources to better address the needs of students and families. I’m excited to expand this proven strategy in Philadelphia and look forward to working with these school communities.”
“The Mayor’s community schools initiative helps the School District of Philadelphia place more resources into schools and will further many of our Action Plan 3.0 goals,” said Dr. William R. Hite, Superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia. “This initiative will address social, emotional and behavioral health needs of our students, and provide principals and teachers with additional services to support quality learning environments.”
School Reform Commission Chair Marjorie Neff echoed Dr. Hite’s enthusiasm on behalf of the governing body of the School District.
“We are excited by this partnership which will leverage community assets to address the diverse needs of our students, therefore, allowing us to focus more closely on our core work of improving student learning outcomes,” said Chair Neff. “I appreciate the work of the Mayor and City Council in developing and better aligning existing resources in support of our schools.”
City Council members Blackwell, Henon, Jones, Parker, Squilla, and Taubenberger also attended the highly anticipated announcement. Council President Darrell Clarke, a longtime proponent of the community schools model, called on the public-at-large to join the City and other stakeholders in bringing this initiative to life.
“The simple reality is that this will work if everyone gets engaged. There may not be a library or a health center in every neighborhood, but there is a school in every community and that’s why we think this is important,” said Council President Clarke.
School principals including Dr. Toni Damon of Murrell Dobbins CTE High School are thrilled to be among the City’s first official community schools.
“This initiative will put us on the trajectory to build stronger children, stronger families, and stronger communities. I’m standing here composed, but on behalf of my colleagues, we are super excited,” cheered Dr. Damon.
Susan Gobreski, MOE’s Director for Community Schools, delivered closing remarks that resonated with the packed room of attendees.
“Resources matter. Equity and opportunity don’t just happen; they happen when we make them happen,” Gobreski said. “The community schools strategy represents a great leap forward in Philadelphia’s education system to improve how we bring resources to students, their families, and local community members.”
A total of 31 schools applied to become a community school. Among the criteria for school selection was principal and staff willingness; childhood poverty and neighborhood crime rates; health risk factors; support for English language learners; and geographic distribution across the city.
To learn more about the school selection process, download a public engagement report released last week by MOE.
The second cohort of community schools will be announced this spring after an application process. As the program advances, MOE is currently hiring school coordinators and various other roles. View or apply for open positions.