Five of the Distinguished Leaders Are Alumni of Leader Development Programs Supported by PSP
The 21 Philadelphia school leaders selected as the next cohort of the Neubauer Fellowship in Educational Leadership come from different parts of the city and from a variety of schools--two faith-based, six public charter, and 13 district public schools--but they all have this foundational characteristic in common: They hold themselves and others accountable for improving student outcomes based on a belief that all children can achieve.
It comes as no surprise that one of the new Fellows, Katharine Davis (photo on right), principal of Charles W. Henry School, is being recognized for her leadership. Davis, a Philadelphia native, had been working in New York but came back to her home city several years ago specifically to be in PhillyPLUS (Pathways to Leadership in Urban Schools), a two-year principal fellowship program created and supported by PSP.
Katharine completed PhillyPLUS in 2018, and then fulfilled the dream of becoming principal of the school she grew up attending. In her first year at the helm, Henry School experienced noteworthy improvements in student achievement with the percent of students performing at the proficient or advanced levels in reading increasing four percentage points from the previous year, and increasing nine percentage points in math.
This summer, Davis will join her colleagues in commencing the two-year, immersive Neubauer Fellowship program that will deepen critical skills and peer relationships. Fellows work together to identify practical solutions to multifaceted challenges and build relationships with a cohort of exceptional educators.
Three other school leaders in the Neubauer cohort are PhillyPLUS alumni--David Brown, principal at Ad Prima Charter School; William Lawrence, principal of John Marshall School; and Tom Szczesny, principal at Dobson Elementary School. In addition, Principal Crystle Roye-Gill of Thomas Holme School and Principal Andrew Lukov of Southwark School are alumni of the PSP-supported National Principals Academy Fellowship (NPAF) program, a one-year program that prepares current or aspiring principals to become instructional and cultural leaders—not merely building managers.
Since the inception of the Neubauer Fellowship in 2015, 14 alumni of PhillyPLUS and 11 NPAF have been named as Fellows.
Some Brotherly Love for the Jump-Start Fund
Katherine Haley, the senior director of K-12 education programs for The Philanthropy Roundtable--a nonprofit network of 620 philanthropic organizations and individuals from across the country--did an interview with Education Week this month on how funders are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. When asked, "What's the most heartening thing that you've seen some of your funders do?", Katherine gave some love to the actions of the Jump-Start Philly Schools Fund to support Philadelphia students and families.
"I love how the Philadelphia School Partnership and area donors invested over $4.2 million to launch the Jump-Start Philly Schools Fund to support district, public charter, and private schools. The fund aims to raise more than $6 million to meet the immediate needs of low-income students and families across Philadelphia as schools are closed because of COVID-19." - Katherine Haley, Senior director of K-12 education programs for The Philanthropy Roundtable