State Supreme Court hears charter-school arguments

An attorney for a Philadelphia charter school urged the state Supreme Court on Tuesday to rule that the School Reform Commission overstepped its authority when it suspended parts of the state school code to cap charter-school enrollment.

Robert W. O'Donnell, the lawyer, also argued that the 1998 law that led to the takeover of city schools violates the state constitution because it allows the SRC to suspend parts of the code "at will" without providing any standards to guide the suspensions.

But Carl A. Solano, the School District's attorney, countered that the takeover law was constitutional and contained many standards for the code suspensions to help the SRC manage the fiscally distressed district.

He urged the state's top court to dismiss West Philadelphia Achievement Elementary Charter School's challenge to the SRC's efforts to control mounting charter costs.

The SRC said the school should have no more than 400 students; it has 690.

"This case is obviously important to the School District," Solano said during the 40-minute session at the high court's quarters in City Hall.

Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille said the court would take the matter under advisement. He did not indicate when it might rule.

The dispute centers on the powers the SRC has to manage charter enrollment, especially at a time when the district is facing an $81 million deficit this fiscal year.

The district expects to spend $767 million this academic year on charters, which accounts for about 31 percent of the district's operating budget.

O'Donnell has said West Philadelphia Achievement's case has implications for all 86 charters in the city, which enroll more than 67,000 students.

Watching the proceedings were other charter officials and attorneys, lawyers from the district and public-interest firms, as well as a fifth-grade social-studies class from the West Philadelphia charter.

Also Tuesday morning, students and staff from the Walter D. Palmer Leadership Learning Partners Charter School protested an enrollment funding dispute the school says threatens its future.

The rally outside the school's campus at Sixth Street briefly shut down a block of Girard Avenue.

The school has 1,350 students, but the district maintains it illegally enrolled more than the 675 maximum authorized in its 2005 charter.

The state Department of Education this summer denied the charter's request for $300,000 in monthly payments for the additional students.

The SRC alleges the Palmer charter has been beset by academic and financial problems and has set a charter-revocation hearing for Oct. 15.