Two Phila. charters appeal closings

Representatives from two troubled charter schools in Northwest Philadelphia today are expected to urge state officials to allow the schools to remain open.

Germantown Settlement Charter School and Renaissance Charter School in Mount Airy are scheduled to make their cases to the state Charter Appeal Board in Harrisburg for overturning decisions of the Philadelphia School Reform Commission.

If the state upholds the closings, they would be the first forced closing of a Philadelphia charter school since they opened in the city in 1997.

Officials from the School District of Philadelphia are expected to detail the reasons the School Reform Commission voted in October against giving the schools new operating charters.

The Charter Appeal Board, which is headed by state Education Secretary Gerald L. Zahorchak, is not expected to decide either case today.

Charter officials could not be reached yesterday for comment.

Germantown Settlement has 440 fifth through eighth graders. Renaissance has 212 students in sixth through eighth grade.

Both schools opened in 1999 and had their charters renewed in 2003.

The School Reform Commission unanimously voted in October to turn down the two schools' requests to have their charters renewed for another five years.

The SRC said Germantown had failed to abide by the conditions of its charter; was plagued by fiscal mismanagement; had a history of poor academic performance; and failed to meet the state requirements that charters submit timely annual reports and have at least 75 percent of teachers certified.

In addition, the school district's inspector general's office and the U.S. Attorney's Office are investigating Germantown to determine whether charter school funds were diverted to prop up other entities related to its parent organization, Germantown Settlement, according to sources with knowledge of the investigation.

Since September, more than 17 teachers and administrators - including the principal - have quit Germantown. Last month, parents of some special education students told the state Department of Education that their children were not receiving the help they needed, due to the staff exodus and lack of services.

The School Reform Commission said that Renaissance's charter did not merit renewal because of the school's financial management problems; failure to submit required annual financial audits; a history of low student test scores; failure to have at least 75 percent certified teachers; and failure to focus on science, technology, and the arts as promised in its charter.

By law, both schools are allowed to remain open, pending the outcome of their appeals.

If the state board upholds the School Reform Commission's decisions, the charter schools could continue their appeals in court.