A judge told the Philly school board it can't vote to close a charter school Thursday
Philadelphia Montessori, a K-4 in Southwest Philadelphia, sued the district in May, arguing that it should be barred from closing any charters.
A judge has blocked the Philadelphia school board from voting to close a charter school Thursday amid a legal fight over the school district’s treatment of charter schools.
Common Pleas Court Judge Damaris Garcia had previously barred the district from moving forward with nonrenewal proceedings against Philadelphia Montessori Charter School, which in a lawsuit last month claimed the school system violates state charter law. But on Tuesday, the board appealed that decision and added votes on Philadelphia Montessori and Global Leadership Academy Southwest Charter School to its Thursday meeting agenda.
Philadelphia Montessori filed an emergency motion Wednesday to stop the vote, and Garcia granted its request — ordering the board to delay its vote on the charter’s future.
“It is further ordered and decreed that all actions related to the subject matter of the motion, including but not limited to the vote currently scheduled before the Board of Education of the School District of Philadelphia on June 18, 2026, are temporarily stayed pending further order of this court,” Garcia said in the order.
It was not immediately clear what would happen Thursday. Wanda Odom, a spokesperson for the board, said it does not comment on litigation. Two charter votes, including on Philadelphia Montessori, remained on Thursday’s publicly posted agenda after the ruling was released.
Philadelphia Montessori, a K-4 school in Southwest Philadelphia, sued the district in May, arguing that it should be barred from closing any charters due to “shifting standards, inconsistent methodologies, and procedures that do not provide fair notice or a neutral adjudicative structure.”
The city’s charters, which are publicly funded but independently run and educate about one-third of Philadelphia public school students, have long argued they are subject to an unfair evaluation process.
Following those complaints, the district is revising its evaluation framework; charter advocates have called on the board to pause renewal decisions until new standards are complete.
District officials recommended nonrenewal for both Philadelphia Montessori and Global Leadership Southwest last month, citing significant academic concerns.
Philadelphia Montessori, which enrolls about 250 students, lags similar schools and the district as a whole in academics, according to district officials. The charter has called the district’s assessment methodologies “flawed” and “unreliable.”
In its emergency motion Wednesday, the charter accused district officials of a “transparent and deliberate tactic” in adding the nonrenewal vote 48 hours before Thursday’s meeting, despite Garcia’s earlier order on June 9.
The district “waited until the last possible moment” to file its notice of appeal while also scheduling a vote on Philadelphia Montessori “that directly violates the court’s order,” the charter said in the filing. Garcia had previously scheduled a court hearing for July 27.
If the board votes to start nonrenewal proceedings for Philadelphia Montessori on Thursday, it will cause “immediate and irreparable” harm, likely prompting families and teachers to leave the school even if a court later reverses the decision, the charter said in its filing.
