By Holly Otterbein
As the state legislature approaches a critical deadline with little progress toward a funding solution for Philadelphia schools, a local nonprofit is shopping legislation linking any extra state funding to work-rules changes for public school teachers.
The Philadelphia School Partnership has been urging lawmakers for weeks to impose three conditions on additional state funding for the school district, which faces a $304 million budget gap next year.
Under the proposal, the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers’ contract would have to provide that any vacant positions be filled through site selection, not seniority. Principals, either acting alone or with a special committee of designated teachers, would choose teachers.