The process of transformation began almost one year ago for Blaine Academics Plus School, when Principal Gianeen Powell applied for and secured a $1.5 million turnaround grant. Blaine, a District neighborhood school located in North Philadelphia, is a traditionally under-performing school with about 40% of students scoring proficient on the PSSAs. Principal Powell, with the …
district schools
Hill-Freedman named a National Blue Ribbon School for second time
The Hill-Freedman World Academy in Northwest Philadelphia was honored Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Education as a National Blue Ribbon School. This is the second time the selective-admission school has been awarded a Blue Ribbon, with the first being in 2006. It is the only District school to receive the award this year. “The …
Daily News: Philly magnet school gets grant to expand
By Solomon Leach, Daily News Staff Writer ONE OF THE city’s top magnet high schools has been awarded a grant to expand next September. George Washington Carver High School of Engineering and Science, which serves 750 students, will receive $147,000 from the Philadelphia School Partnership to add seventh and eighth grades, officials said. The new …
At Carver High School, Philly district growth continues despite funding crisis
by Kevin McCorry, WHYY/Newsworks In the face of its continuing budget crisis, the Philadelphia school district continues to show a willingness to invest in new options for its students. Carver High School of Engineering and Science, a STEM-minded magnet school in North Philadelphia, plans to add seventh and eighth grades at the beginning of next …
Philadelphia District High School gets Grant to Plan for Expansion
Grant from PSP’s Great Schools Fund will support planning for expansion of magnet school in North Philadelphia; the Fund has invested over $35 million in Philadelphia schools, including $11.5 million in District schools The Philadelphia School Partnership (PSP) today announced it has awarded a grant from its Great Schools Fund to support the development of …
Today’s front page news: New plans for 2 troubled schools
Last year, we invested $3 million in two North Philadelphia district schools to dramatically improve student achievement. After months of intensive planning, the talented school leaders at Blaine and Kelley will be granted new autonomy to build their teams. Read today’s WHYY piece about how the leaders will work with great new and returning teachers to …
Philadelphia Inquirer: New money, new plans for 2 troubled Phila. schools
Khyrie Brown stood outside his school and enumerated the things he was going to tell School Reform Commission Chairman Bill Green on a tour of Blaine Elementary on Monday.
The school lacks adequate supplies, said Khyrie, an eighth grader. Its equipment is old, its classes are too big, and it doesn't have enough staff.
WHYY: Two North Philly grade schools to undergo massive staffing changes in hopes of ‘turnaround’
Two elementary schools in North Philadelphia will undergo massive staffing changes before the 2014-15 school year in an attempt to transform school culture and student performance.
Blaine Elementary in Strawberry Mansion and W.D. Kelley Elementary in Brewerytown have been selected for what the Philadelphia School District is calling a "district-led renaissance turnaround."
Education Week: Philadelphia Seeks Salvation in Lessons From Model School
In little more than two years, the Philadelphia school district has stripped $400 million out of its annual budget, closed 30 schools, eliminated nearly 7,000 jobs, and lost more than 20,000 students.
The teetering city system, said Superintendent William R. Hite Jr., desperately needs "to show a win."
Philadelphia Inquirer: 2 Philly public schools to split $3 million in grants
Two Philadelphia School District elementary schools will receive grants totaling $3 million to upgrade their academics as they absorb students from nearby schools that have closed.
The Philadelphia School Partnership announced Wednesday that William D. Kelley in Brewerytown and James G. Blaine in Strawberry Mansion would each receive a $1.5 million grant over several years to develop academic turnaround plans.