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Toomey, under pressure from DeVos opponents, says he will vote for her
UPDATED 5:40 p.m. with report of Toomey statement on Capitol Hill With Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska declaring that they will oppose Betsy DeVos as the U.S....
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Female teachers at SLA plan absence for 'A Day Without a Woman'
UPDATED 6:15 p.m with statement from Taylor Elementary teachers Female educators at Science Leadership Academy plan to take a personal day Wednesday as part of the national "A Day Without a Woman"...
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Advocates seek ban on suspensions of young students
Child advocates are asking the Philadelphia School District to immediately ban suspensions of first through fifth graders and provide more support to schools as they work to shift disciplinary...
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May Day will be busy: Teachers organize day of advocacy, SRC to vote on...
Monday, May 1, is proving to be a major day of activity in the world of Philadelphia education. In the morning, educators from several schools, most with contingents from the activist Caucus of...
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Advocates discuss education issues at 2nd annual parent summit
Over 50 parents, teachers, education advocates, and community members converged on the campus of St. Joseph’s University Saturday for the 2nd annual parent summit. The summit - organized by Parents...
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Activist group asks: Why did Bill Green leave SRC meetings?
The Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools is asking why Bill Green left for large portions of the last two School Reform Commission meetings, suggesting that the behavior "calls into question" his...
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Hite decides not to punish teachers who protested on May 1
Superintendent Hite has decided not to dock the pay of some teachers for taking off on May 1 to protest the continued lack of a contract. The decision was highlighted in an email newsletter sent out...
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Advocacy groups protest suspensions in grades 1-5
Youth United for Change, Education Law Center, Caucus of Working Educators, and ACLU of Pennsylvania were among a coalition of advocacy groups that rallied outside District headquarters in April...
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SRC’s origins and history explain why many want it gone
Fifteen speakers at Thursday's School Reform Commission meeting called for that body to dissolve itself by December, and dozens more in the audience roared their approval. The passionate opposition to...
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Former Commissioner Sylvia Simms and friends thank members of Parent Power
Today the advocacy group Parent Power honored its parent members and kicked off the Fourth of July weekend with a barbecue. At the Panati Recreational Center in North Philadelphia, parents and...
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SRC to vote Thursday on downsized proposal for new special education program
The School District of Philadelphia has significantly downsized its plans for a new special education program after advocates and lawmakers raised objections. But those advocates aren’t ready to...
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Local advocates brace for changes in federal education civil rights policy
Local advocates and civil rights leaders are preparing to be more watchful in response to the decision under the Trump administration to scale back the U.S. Department of Education's investigations of...
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Activists press for SRC to disband itself, push mayor to start the process
Update: A spokesperson for the Mayor contacted the Notebook after the publication of the article to point out the Mayor never technically promised to abolish the SRC and return the District to local...
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Senate education chair meets with Parent Power at Peirce Elementary
This story has been updated After a June meeting with the parent advocacy group Parent Power in Harrisburg, State Sen. John Eichelberger returned the visit today at T.M. Peirce Elementary School in...
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Sylvia Simms named to head lobbying group Educational Opportunities for Families
Sylvia Simms, a former school bus aide turned community activist from North Philadelphia who served four years on the School Reform Commission, has been named the new director of Educational...
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Was Thursday the beginning of the end for the SRC?
Philadelphia’s School Reform Commission has heard hundreds of presentations over its 16 years, but none as existentially important as the one delivered Thursday by District lawyer Miles Shore. The...
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Rally outside District headquarters declares victory with end of SRC
The crowd spilled over the steps of District headquarters and out into the parking lots as Randi Weingarten, President of American Federation of Teachers, joined Jerry Jordan on stage at a rally...
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‘We knew in our hearts we had to do it:’ Behind the scenes of one Philly...
Dymonique Hammond had something to say, but she wasn’t quite sure how to say it. On Wednesday morning, as thousands of high school students across the country walked out of school to protest gun...
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Young Philly activists endure the ups and downs of their first march on...
As their chartered coach bus rolled toward Washington, D.C., on Saturday morning, about 30 students from Science Leadership Academy at Beeber in West Philadelphia got a pep talk from a veteran...
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Gun violence summit grapples with where to go from here
Sixth-grader Samantha Sandhaus' question was so innocent – simple and logical – that, for one brief moment, it silenced two seasoned, and loquacious, politicians. Why, the 12-year-old wondered, if the...
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