Report on Community Forums
to Inform the Search for the
Next Leader of the
School District of Philadelphia
Project for Civic Engagement
SpecialthankstotheUnitedWayofSoutheasternPennsylvania––
JillM.Michal,PresidentandCEO,andAnnSchmieg,SeniorVice
PresidentofCommunityImpact––fortheirsupportforthisproject.
ProjectTeam
HarrisSokoloff,Ph.D.
Director
PennProjectforCivicEngagement
DianeCastelbuono
AssociateVicePresidentofEducation
UnitedWayofSoutheasternPennsylvania
LindaBreitstein
ProjectManager
PennProjectforCivicEngagement
Formoreinformation:
Email: Harriss@gse.upenn.edu
dcastelbuono@uwsepa.org
Moderators
PennProjectforCivicEngagement:
ShakiraAbulAli
EdMarshBattle
JeffBranch
JeandiSabatino
TedEnoch
LouiseGiuliano
EllenGreenberg
GermaineIngram
GuillermoLopez,Jr.
CarolLyden
BryanMcHale
FranneMcNeal
EllenPetersen
LoraineRaider
KarenScott
GwynneSmithScheffer
TerrillThompson
JoshWarner
UnitedWayofSoutheasternPennsylvania:
AshleyBrindisi
MeaghanBrown
IanCharlton
AbbyEllis
HarmonyElsley
MaggieFlanagan
NicoleFuller
MaureenHiller
SaxonNelson
SuzanneO’’Connor
MartyMolloy
AbbyMoskowitz
MatthewMumber
VonettaRobinson
SteveRobishaw
JennieSparandara
SteveVassor
HeatherWertz
Mayor’’sOfficeofEducation:
TerryPittman
I. Introduction:
OnJanuary10,2012,theSuperintendentSearchCommitteeoftheSchoolReformCommission
(SRC)proposedinitialcriteriaforthenextleaderoftheSchoolDistrictofPhiladelphia.TheSRC
askedtheUnitedWayofSoutheasternPennsylvaniaandthePennProjectforCivicEngagement
tosolicitpubliccommentanddiscussionofthesecriteriatoinformthedeliberationsofthe
SearchCommittee.
Inresponse,theUnitedWayofSoutheasternPennsylvaniaandtheProjectforCivic
Engagementconductedaseriesofcommunityengagementforumstogatherdeliberativepublic
inputfortheSearchCommittee.Tenoftheseeventswereopentothepublicandwereheldin
neighborhoodhighschools––oneineachcitycouncildistrict.Sixeventswereinvitationonly,
sponsoredbysixdifferentleadershipgroupsinthecity:theGreaterPhiladelphiaChamberof
Commerce,EducationFirstCompact,YoungInvolvedPhiladelphia/PhillyCORELeaders,Charter
SchoolsCEOs,faithͲbasedleadersandstudentleaders.
Eachofthefifteenforumswasstructuredthesameway:
x Openingpresentationofthesearchcontextandtheinitialcriteriabyamemberofthe
SuperintendentSearchCommittee.(AcopyofthePowerPointpresentationthatwasused
ineachoftheforumsisavailableathttp://www.gse.upenn.edu/pcel/programs/ppce.)
x Smallgroupdiscussion,ledbytrainedfacilitatorsfromthePennProjectforCivic
EngagementandtheUnitedWayofSoutheasternPennsylvania,focusingonthree
questions:
o Whatabouttheseninecriteriamakessensetoyou?Why?
o Whatabouttheseninecriteriaconcernsyou?Why?
o Whatdifferencewoulditmakeifthesuccessfulcandidatewereorwerenot
fromPhiladelphia?Why?
x Inthoseforumswherethereweremultiplesmallgroups,weheldaclosingplenarysession
whereparticipantsdiscussedpossiblecommonalitiesanddifferencestheynoticedacross
smallgroupdiscussions.
Morethan557peopleparticipatedintheseforums,thedate,locationofeachandthenumber
ofparticipantsforeachforumislistedbelow:
Wednesday,February1,2012:MasteryGratzHighSchool,60participants
Thursday,February2,2012: EducationFirstCompactMeeting,45participants
Saturday,February4,2012: RoxboroughHighSchool,26participants
Saturday,February5,2012: LincolnHighSchool,19participants
Monday,February6,2012: GreaterPhiladelphiaChamberofCommerce,30participants
Monday,February6,2012: WestPhiladelphiaHighSchool,58participants
Wednesday,February8,2012:StrawberryMansionHighSchool,22participants
Thursday,February9,2012: EdisonHighSchool,17participants
Monday,February13,2012: NortheastHighSchool,42participants
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FaithBasedLeadersForum1,40participants
BartramHighSchool,29participants
SouthPhiladelphiaHighSchool,33participants
LeedsMiddleSchool,41participants
YoungInvolvedPhiladelphians/PhillyCORELeadersForum,
39participants
Wednesday,February22,2012: CharterSchoolCEOforum,24participants
Thursday,February23,2012: PhiladelphiaYouthNetworkConvenedForum,32
participants
Wednesday,February15,2012:
Thursday,February16,2012: Saturday,February18,2012: Tuesday,February21,2012: Wednesday,February22,2012:
Fromtheoutset,theSRCandSearchCommitteeagreedthatthecommunityengagement
processwouldbetransparentinthefollowingways:
x Notesfromeachsmallgroupdiscussionwouldbepostedontheweb,andbecomepartof
thefinalcommunityengagementreportdeliveredtotheSRCandSearchCommittee.
x Theconsolidatedreportcombiningtheworkfromeachforumwouldbepostedontheweb
andbecomepartofthefinalcommunityengagementreportdeliveredtotheSRCand
SearchCommittee.
x TheSRCandSearchCommitteewouldrespondtothefinalreport,indicatingwhatthey
heardfromthecommunityengagementprocess,whattheydidwithwhattheyheard,and
why.
Thisreportcompletesthefirstandsecondpartsofthatagreement.Thisfinalreportandreports
fromeachoftheforumshavebeenpostedonthewebsiteofthePennProjectforCivic
Engagementathttp://www.gse.upenn.edu/pcel/programs/ppce,withlinksfromthehome
pageoftheUnitedWayofSoutheasternPennsylvaniaathttp://www.uwsepa.org/,WHYY’’s
NewsWorksathttp://www.newsworks.org/andThePhiladelphiaSchoolNotebookat
http://www.thenotebook.org/
Thereportthatfollowsisdividedintothreesections:
x Thesummaryofthefindingsconcerningeachcriterionandwhetheritmattersifthe
nextleaderisfromPhiladelphia.
x Adiscussionofthemes––valuesͲbasedprinciplesthatemergedfromacrosstheforums.
x Aconclusion.
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TheforumwiththefaithͲbasedleaderswaspostponedattherequestoftheparticipants.
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2. SummaryOfTheFindingsConcerningEachCriterionandWhetheritMattersiftheNext
LeaderisfromPhiladelphia:
Inthediscussionbelow,wesummarizethecommongroundsenseofeachcriterionthat
emergedfromacrossallofthesmallgroupsfromthefifteenforumsthatwereheld.This
““commonground””doesnotrepresentaconsensus.Rather,itrepresentstheideasand
directionsthatemergedaspeopleacknowledgedtheiragreementsandworkedthroughtheir
differencesastheycametounderstandeachotherandeachother’’svaluesbetter.Differences
ofopinionremain,butthecommongroundrepresentsagreementsonunderlyingvaluesand
overlappinginterests,evenwhenparticipantsmaydisagreeonwhichactionswillgetusthere.
Inthefirstsectionofthereport,wesummarizethosecommongroundareasforeachofthe
nine(9)criteriaandthequestionofwhetheritmattersifthenextleaderisfromPhiladelphia,
acknowledgingthatthereweredifferencesofopinion.Inthesecondsection,wereportonthe
themesthatemergedacrossdifferences,includingtensionsandtradeͲoffsthatpeoplewere
andwerenotwillingtomake.
The““commonground””foreachofthenine(9)criteria:
1––Acommitmenttoeducationandanoverallpassiontoensurelearningforallchildren.
Therewasclearagreementherethat““all””mustmean““allchildren””regardlessofrace,
ethnicity,socioͲeconomicstatus,community,schooltypeorspecificlearningneed(e.g.,
specialeducation,Englishlanguagelearners,etc.).
Withinthis,therewasbroadagreementthat““education””and““learning””mustrefertomore
thantestscores.Therewasagreementthateducatingthewholechildispartofthekey
here.Thiswouldincluderespondingtodiverselearningstylesandincludeattentiontothe
““extras””suchasart,musicandsports.
Importantly,therewasmorethanalittleconcernabouthowthesearchcommittee,SRC
andcommunitymightknowthatacandidatehasthiscommitmentandthispassion;howto
knowthiswasmorethanasloganorlipservicefromthecandidate.Theanswerwasclear:
theywantsomeonewhohasatrackrecordthatdemonstratesthiscommitmentand
passion.
2––KnowledgeandCapacitytorunalargeenterpriseororganization
TherewasclearrecognitionthattheSchoolDistrictofPhiladelphiais,indeed,alargeand
complexorganizationorenterprise.Assuchtherewassupportforthiscriteriaandthe
needfortheleaderoftheDistricttohaveatrackrecordofeffectivenessinrunningalarge
system/organization.
Atthesametime,therewassignificantconcernthatthiscriterion(likesomeoftheothers)
suggestsabusinessmodel.Insomegroups,participantsobjectedtotheword““enterprise,””
arguingthattheschoolsystemisnotjust““anenterprise,””butan““educationalenterprise.””
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Afrequentrefrainwasthat““theDistrictisnotabusiness;it’’saboutlearningandyoucan’’t
runitlikeabusinessbecauseit’’saneducationalorganization.””
Implicit,andattimesexplicit,wasaconcernthatthenextleadermustmakebusiness
decisionswhilekeepingeducationalprioritiesatthecenterofthosedecisions.This,people
seemedtorecognizeandagree,isadifficultbutnecessarybalancingact.
3––Aclearunderstandingofthewaymanagementdecisionsaffectteaching,trainingand
leadershipdevelopmentamongprincipals
Therewasgeneralagreementthatthiscriterionshouldbeaboutunderstandingtheways
thatmanagementdecisionsaffectteachers,classroomsandschoolclimate(andtherefore
students),aswellasprincipals.Participantsagreedthattheprincipaliskey,butthatthe
nextleaderoftheSDPmustalsoattendtoprofessionaldevelopmentthroughoutthe
system.
Therewasalsoagreementthatprincipalsandschoolsneedautonomy,coupledwith
discussionabouttheneedforthenextleadertosupportstrongprofessionaldevelopment
forteachersandunderstandthewaysthatcentralofficedecisionsimpact/improve
classrooms.
Further,““understanding””isseenasgoingbeyondsomeacademicorevenpractical
knowledge.Participantsarguedthateffectiverelationshipsandemotionalintelligencewill
beasignificantfactorinalloftheabove.
4––AteamͲbuilderabletocoordinateandmotivateadiversegroupofmanagersandeducators
ofdifferenttypesofschoolsindifferenttypesofsettings
Whiletherewasstrongoverallsupportforthiscriterion,participantsalsohadsome
significantconcerns.Thechiefconcernwasthatthe““team””thenextleaderwouldneedto
buildmustincludethecommunitieswithinwhichschoolsoperate,fromwhichtheydraw
theirstudents,andwithoutwhosesupportschoolscannotsucceed.Andthisincludesthe
professionalandnonͲprofessionalstaffinschools.
Theybelievethis““teamͲbuilder””mustdevelopstrongrelationshipsbylisteningto,reaching
outtoandrespectingthediversecommunities,neighborhoodsandbusinessesacrossthe
city.ItwillnotbeenoughforthenextleaderoftheSDPtoreachouttothosewholead
differentkindsofschools––bothdistrictandnonͲdistrictschools.Rather,thenextleader
willneedtobeinvolvedwithallconstituentstoengagethemandbuildabroadbaseof
supportforthoseschools.
5––EmbracestheideaofaportfolioofschoolsandadvocatesforhighͲqualityschoolsregardless
oftheprovider(districtorcharter)
Participantshadmixedreactionstothiscriterion.Ontheonehand,someparticipantsliked
theideathataportfolioapproachmightenabletheDistricttobuildonstrengthsandthat
thismightimproveschools.Ontheotherhand,thiscriterion,alongwithcriterion#7below,
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raisedthemostconcernamongthebroadrangeofparticipantsinthefifteenforums––from
thoseintheneighborhoodstothosewholeadcharterschools.
Inthecommunitiesweheardmorethanalittleconcernaboutthe““business””modelthatis
impliedintheterm““portfolio.””Theconcernseemedtobethat““portfolio””connotesmore
thanhavingdifferentkindsofschoolstomanage.Rather,itseemedtoconnotethatsome
partsoftheportfoliowouldgetmoreinvestmentthanothers.
Indeed,theideathatthiscriterionmightimplyaninequitabledistributionofresources
cameupfrequently;forexample,that““chartersaresqueezingresourcesfromschool
funding.””
Anotherfrequentconcernwastheneedtoholdallschoolstothesamestandards.Charters
must,someargued,beheldtothesamestandardsoftransparencyandstudent
performanceasotherschools.OthersarguedthatnonͲcharterpublicschoolsshouldbe
heldtothesamestandardscharterschoolsareheld,forexample,byclosingthosepublic
schoolsthatdonotperformaswellascharterschools.
Atthesametime,therewasagreementthatthenextleader,aswellasthepublicin
general,understandthat““onesizedoesnotfitall””andthataninternal““portfolio””of
schoolsisonewaytheSDPaddressesthatreality.
6––Arelationshipbuilderwhoisabletobuildcreativepartnershipwithnumerousexternal
stakeholderstobringresourcestoindividualschoolsandgroupsofschools
Participantswereclearthatpartnerships––bothinternalwithintheDistrictandexternal
withabroadrangeofstakeholders––wouldbecrucialtoanysuccessthedistrictachieves
particularlyinthesetighteconomictimes.InternalpartnershipsareessentialforbuyͲinand
strengtheningpractice.Communitypartnershipsarekeytobuildingstrongercommunity
supportforyouth.Corporateandbusinesspartnershipsarekeyforadditionalresources:
human,physicalandfiscalresources.
Atthesametime,therewasbroadrecognitionthattheDistricthasahistoryofbeing
terribleatcultivatingsuchpartnerships.Districtpoliciesandpracticescreatebarrierstoall
kindsofpartnerships.Equally,theDistrictandsomeprincipalsseemnottorecognizethe
crucialrolethatschoolsplayindevelopingandbuildingcommunities,andtotheimportant
rolethatparentsandotheradultsplayinthelivesofstudents.Participantsnotedthatthe
nextleaderwillhavealotofworktodotofix/repairsome““burntbridges.””
7––Abilitytorethinkthedistrict'sservicemodel,movingclosertoautonomyforindividual
schoolsanddecreasedcentralization
Overalltherewascommongroundthatthiscriterionrecognizestheimportanceof
addressingthespecificneedsofindividualschoolsandcommunities,thateachschooland
principalmustaddresstheneedsofthestudentsinthatschool.Philadelphiais,people
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argued,acityofneighborhoods,andneighborhoodschoolsneedtoaddresstheneedsof
thatcommunityandofthestudentsfromthatcommunity.
Andtherewasbroadagreementthatschoolsarestrongestwhenthereisacapable
principal,whenfundingresourcesareequitableacrossschools,andwhenthereis
accountabilityattheschoollevel.
Atthesametime,therewasbroadconcernthatdecentralizationandincreasedautonomy
acrossschoolsmightincreaseinequitiesofresourcesandofresults.Autonomymight
increasecompetitionforlimitedresources,increasinginequitiesacrossschoolsandperhaps
evenwithinschoolsasdifferentprogramsinaschool(e.g.,specialeducation)vieforthose
limitedresources.
Thiswasparticularlyworrisomebecause,intheeyesofthoseparticipatingintheforums,
notallprincipalshavetheknowledgeorexpertisetosucceedwithmoreautonomy.And
participantswerenotsurehow,orwho,wouldmonitoraccountabilityinthoseandother
areas.
Participantswerealsoconcernedbecause““decentralization””hasbeentriedandabandoned
beforeinPhiladelphia.Moreover,othersasked,whereistheresearchtosupport
decentralization?Aretheresuccessfulurbanmodelsofdecentralization?
8––Abilitytoinfluencethepublic,businesscommunity,highereducationcommunity,and
legislativeleadersonthevalueofpubliceducationandthecommitmentsnecessaryto
achievenotableprogress
Therewasbroadagreementwith,andsupportfor,thiscriterion.Acrossthespectrum,
participantsthinkthenextleadermustbeanadvocateforpubliceducationwhileworking
tobuildthecredibilityoftheSDP.Andparticipantsthoughtthatcredibilitywasnotjust
abouttestscoresandmakingannualyearlyprogress(AYP).Credibilityisaboutbeinga
cheerleaderforsuccessfulprogramswithineachschool,wheresuccessreferstoboth
educationalprocessesandtheproductthatemergesfromthoseprocesses.
Participantsalsoacknowledgedthatbeinga““systemchampion””withallofthestakeholders
noted,aswellaswithinternalstakeholders,isimportanttobeingabletoincreasefiscaland
otherresourcesforthedistrict.
9––Iscommittedtoactivelyengagingwithstudents,parentsandcommunitystakeholders
Thiscriteriongeneratedsignificantdiscussion,andagreement.Therewasbroadcommon
groundthatthiscommitmentisimportant,andevenbroadercommongroundthattheonly
waytomeasurethiscommitmentisinatrackrecordofeffectivenessinengagingthefull
rangeofstakeholdersproductively.
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Participantsintheforumsalsonotedthatthestakeholderslistedinthiscriterionshouldbe
broader,includingthefamily,neighborhoodandsocialsystemthatstudentsrelyon.The
nextleadermustdemonstratesensitivityto,andrespectfor,thediversityofstudentbody
andparentsandothercareͲgivers/careͲtakers.
DoesitmatterwhetherthenextleaderisfromPhiladelphia?
Groupsweresplit,butnotdivisivelyso,onthisquestion,withaslightadvantageontheside
ofthosearguingthatthenextleadershouldbefromPhiladelphia.
Allagreedthattheskillset––expertise,experience,understandingofeducationandof
runningacomplexorganization,particularlyinanurbansetting––wasthemostimportant.
Peopleacknowledgedthat““talentistalent””andthatthey““wantthebestperson.””
Beyondthat,peoplereasonedthatthenextleaderunderstandandvaluePhiladelphia,its
cultureandthevaluesofresidents.Thenextleadermustvaluethecity’’sneighborhoods
anddiversityaswellaswhatsomereferredtoasthe““territorialismandinsularity””of
neighborhoods,andthatPhiladelphiaͲspecificstrategiesmightbenecessarytobuildon
localstrengthsandaddresslocalchallenges.
Itwasalsoconsideredimportantthatthenextleaderunderstandwhatcurrentlyworkshere
andwhathasbeensuccessful,andbuildonthat.
Thereiscommongroundontheconcernthatthenextleaderwillhaveasteeplearning
curvere:socialcapital,history,cultureofneighborhoods,resourcesandthepositivehistory
ofeducationinnovation.Thisservedasacommonreasonforthosewhoarguedthatthe
nextleadershouldhaverootsinPhiladelphia.
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3. Themes/valuesͲbasedprinciplesthatemergedfromacrosstheforums.
Severalthemesemergedasparticipantsworkedtheirwaythrough,aroundandintothe
ninecriteria.Thosethemesaredescribedbrieflybelow.
x Evenbusinessdecisionsmustbemadeforeducationreasons
Mostoftheparticipantsseemedtounderstandtheeconomicrealitiesfacingthedistrict.
Andtheyunderstandtheneedforresponsiblefiscalstewardshipandaccountability.At
thesametime,theydon’’twantthedistrict““runlikeabusiness.””Businessdecisions
have,theyseemedtoreason,tobemadewithclearunderstandingoftheimpactof
thosedecisionsonlearnersandthelearningenvironment.Andtheywantthe
educationalrationaleforthosedecisionstobeexplicit.Don’’t,inotherwords,justmake
cuts,butbeclearhowthosecutswillimpactstudentsand,incaseswheretradeͲoffs
weremade,explainhowandwhythosetradeͲoffsweremade.
x Decentralizeforautonomyandcreativity,butretaincentralizationforequity
Whiletherewassignificantsupportforgivingmoreautonomyandresponsibilityto
schoolprincipals,therewaswidespreadconcernthatdecentralizationwouldleadto
exacerbatingcurrentinequitiesacrossschools,wouldincreasecompetitionforlimited
resourcesacrossschools,andwouldfailunlesstherewasawaytoensureschool
principalsgotthetrainingandothersupportstheyneedtosucceed.Thissametraining
wouldhelpthoseprincipalsaddorstrengthentheprogramsmostneededintheir
particularsettings.
x Transparency,honestyandopennesswillbuildsupportamongallstakeholders
There’’sapalpablesensethatpeoplebelievethedistrictislikeablackholeintowhich
peoplesenergiesandideasgoandoutofwhichcomesverylittle,ifanything,inreturn.
Thiswasclearwhenpeoplewouldsay““Idon’’twanttocometoanothermeetingwhere
wegiveourideas,someonewritesthemonflipchartpaper,andnothinghappens.””It
wasalsoclearwhenpeoplesaid,““Idon’’tthinkthisprocessisreal.TheSRCalready
knowswhoitwants.””Suchpeoplearewaryofgivinginputandofsupportingan
organizationthatisopaque,closedandseemsdrivenbyhiddenagendas.They’’drather
besupporters,butneedevidencethattheirengagementmakesadifference.
Transparency,honestyandopennesswouldprovidethatevidence.
x Engageus,allofus,forcollaborativeactionwithallstakeholders.
Therewasaclearsensethatparticipants––fromstudentsandstafftocommunity
membersto““YoungInvolvedPhiladelphians””tothebusinesscommunity––wanttobe
seenaspotentialpartnersinmakingschoolsworkforallinthecity.Theysee
themselvesaspartners;notsilentpartners,butpartnerswithphysicalandsocialcapital
toofferinsupportofschoolimprovementandstudentachievement.Theywanttobe
engagedinthatworkandwantthedistricttoreachouttothemandtomakeiteasyfor
themtoreachouttoandworkwithschoolsandstudents.
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Asonepartofthis,therewasnoappetiteforsomeonewhowouldcomeherewitha
clearplanforhowtochangethedistrict.Buttherewasstrongsupportforsomeonewho
wouldcomeinwithabackgroundandstructureforhowtocollaboratewithall
stakeholderstolearnaboutcurrentstrengthsandtodevelopcollaborativeplansfor
districtimprovement.
Ateam,notasingleleader
Overandovertherewasacommonrefrain:thisjobistoobigforoneperson.Wedon’’t
wantasuperstarwhowilltryanddoitalone.Weneedsomeonewhocanbuildateam;
ateamwhosemembersbringexpertisetheleaderdoesnothave;whosemembersare
alsocommittedtoPhiladelphiaandwhocanworktogethersothattheteamisgreater
thatanyofitsmembers.Asonecharterschoolleadersaid:thenextleadershouldcome
herewithastrongsense––perhapsevenaplaybook––ofhowthatteamwillbe
constructedandsomeideasofwhowillfilleachrole.
It’’saboutthisjob.
Whenpeoplespokeaboutwhetherornotitmatteredifthenextleaderwerefrom
Philadelphia,manyoftheirresponsesincludedthenotionthattheywantthenext
leadertobe““vestedinthesuccess””ofthedistrict.Theywantsomeoneforwhomthis
jobismorethanoneofastringofsuperintendenciesorCEOpositions.Rather,they
wantsomeonewhowantstobehere,notjustinalargeurbanschooldistrict;someone
forwhomPhiladelphiameanssomethingpersonal,andwhohasapersonalstakeinthe
successofthestudents.
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4. Conclusion:
WewouldliketothanktheSRCandSearchCommitteefortheopportunitytosupportthem
andtheschooldistrictintheireffortstolearnfromthebroadrangeofstakeholdersthat
makeupthecommunityfortheSchoolDistrictofPhiladelphia.TheUnitedWayof
SoutheasternPennsylvaniaandtheUniversityofPennsylvaniagreatlyappreciatethe
opportunitytocreateacommunityengagementprocessthatincludedabroadrangeof
stakeholdersfromacrossthecityinmeaningfuldeliberations.Togetherwewereableto
createanopenandtransparentprocess;aprocessthatenabledustotapintothepassion
andcreativeenergyofthosestakeholders.Throughouttheprocess,wehavebeen
impressedbythequalityofstakeholderinterestandseeitasaclearindicationthatpeople
caredeeplyabouttheirpublicschools.Webelievethatpassion,concernandcreativityare
deepresourcesuponwhichtheSRC,SearchCommitteeandtheSchoolDistrictcandrawin
theireffortstobestserveallofthechildrenintheCity.
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