School officials plan cuts in face of less aid
Philadelphia School District officials are bracing for up to $150 million less in state aid than they originally planned for, and have already begun making cuts.
Philadelphia School District officials are bracing for up to $150 million less in state aid than they originally planned for, and have already begun making cuts.
Several accelerated schools that serve dropouts returning to school or students at risk of dropping out said last night that their programs were either completely cut or had funding slashed.
Earlier this year, the School Reform Commission authorized the district to spend up to $45.8 million on contracts for alternative education.
Taylor Frome, executive director of the nonprofit Youth Empowerment Services, said that last week district officials told her that city schools would be taking a $150 million hit on state aid and as a result, her $1 million program, set to open in November and grant diplomas to 100 students, was being axed.
"It wasn't given as a possibility," Frome said. "It was given as a 'That's the decision.' "
A district spokesman last night declined to comment on the $150 million figure.
"There's no final budget, so we can't say what the final number is going to be," said Fernando Gallard, a spokesman.
State officials say a deal on the Pennsylvania budget is close, but no details have been released publicly.
Nevertheless, district officials said that even if the cuts come to pass, the district is still expanding the number of slots for dropouts and at-risk students. Last year, there were 1,275 accelerated slots, and there were to be 3,340 this year. Even if cuts are made, 2,725 slots would remain.
Michael Masch, the district's chief business officer, said last night that he would not characterize the moves as cuts. He said the district was merely waiting to see what it would receive in state aid.
"We have been holding back on expanding the programs," Masch said. "If we get our budget fully funded, we are going to execute the contracts at the levels that the School Reform Commission authorized."
Last week, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Jake Corman (R., Centre) said that lawmakers had agreed to reduce the $418 million that Gov. Rendell sought in school aid throughout the state to $300 million. They also decided that the $314 million planned for stimulus funding would not go directly to the districts. By those calculations, Philadelphia stands to lose at least $144 million it had counted on from the state.
Joseph Proietta, chief executive of One Bright Ray, a nonprofit that runs two schools that serve students who have dropped out of traditional high schools, said his funding was cut by $400,000, or about 35 student slots.
At first, district officials claimed "technical difficulties" had delayed signing their contract with Fairhill Community High School and North Philadelphia Community High School, Proietta said. Then about a week ago - after Fairhill had opened, and employees for both schools had been hired - "they called to tell us that they're cutting" the program.
"Before that, there was never any indication that we should slow down," he said. Proietta said he will have to lay off staff.
Frome, of Youth Empowerment Services, who had picked out floor tile and paint colors for a new building the day before she got a call from district officials, said she had 37 students ready to enroll.
"This is a really big step back," Frome said. "There really isn't any diploma-granting program in the North Philadelphia area, so students who would have come to our school are not going to have a school that's really accessible to them."
Gallard said if the cuts are final, they would be made across the city. Most vendors would see a loss in planned seats, he said.
The cuts to accelerated schools could be the tip of the iceberg, but where further district cuts might be made is still unclear. The district's $3.2 billion budget also included hiring hundreds of new teachers and counselors.
