The country鈥檚 largest-scale experiment with school privatization may be about to shrink.
Educators have been watching Philadelphia closely since last fall, when outside organizations began operating 45 of the city school system鈥檚 lowest- performing schools. But even before a full school year of that novel arrangement has elapsed, the district鈥檚 leader is proposing to cut funding for their fees in half.
Paul G. Vallas, who joined the 200,000-student district as its chief executive officer last July, after the decision to contract with private managers had been made, wants to shift $10 million of the $20 million paid to the groups this academic year to a high school reform program he unveiled in late February. The private groups receive the fees over and above basic student funding.
Mr. Vallas included the $10 million shift in presenting his $1.8 billion fiscal 2004 budget to the Philadelphia City Council last week. But he offered no details about how it would affect the two universities, two nonprofit groups, and three for-profit companies that serve as educational management organizations, or EMOs, in the city.
鈥淲e have no sense of how it will impact us directly,鈥� said Adam Tucker, a spokesman for New York City-based Edison Schools Inc., a for-profit manager that runs 20 Philadelphia schools. 鈥淥ur hope is that it won鈥檛.鈥�
The proposal is subject to approval by the School Reform Commission, the five-member panel named by Philadelphia鈥檚 mayor and Pennsylvania鈥檚 governor to run the district after the state assumed control in December 2001.
鈥楾he Right Reasons鈥�
Sheila Royal-Moses, a vice president of Victory Schools, a New York City company that operates five Philadelphia schools, said she found it hard to criticize Mr. Vallas鈥� proposal, since it would direct the money to one of the many areas that need improvement in the struggling, 264-school system.
鈥淓ven though it could compromise us in the work we鈥檝e been doing鈥� we鈥檙e not sure yet鈥攈e鈥檇 be taking the $10 million for all the right reasons, so you can鈥檛 help but support him,鈥� Ms. Royal-Moses said.
Mr. Vallas, for his part, kept discussion of his reasons to a minimum. In documents presented to the City Council, he said that the impact of the EMOs鈥� fees on the district鈥檚 budget was 鈥渟ignificant,鈥� and that the organizations have faced challenges of school climate and culture as well as 鈥渋nstructional difficulties鈥� in their start-up year. But he did not directly address their performance.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not that [Mr. Vallas] doesn鈥檛 think they鈥檙e not doing well. It鈥檚 that we can鈥檛 afford them at the level we鈥檙e paying them,鈥� said Ellen K. Savitz, who as deputy chief academic officer oversees the EMO-run schools. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like driving a Mercedes when you can only afford to be driving a Chevy.鈥�
Mr. Vallas鈥� documents said that the district must decide this month whether contracts with any of the EMOs should be terminated at the end of the school year 鈥渇or cause or convenience.鈥�
The privatization effort, fueled by strong support from then-Gov. Mark S. Schweiker, a Republican, has drawn praise for its willingness to try a new model in a district in which all observers agree too many children lag behind. But it has been criticized by skeptics who question the companies鈥� financial motivations.
While there is no consensus on the effectiveness of the city鈥檚 fledgling experiment with privatization, a significant cutback in the fees that support it would send a clear signal, some observers believe.
鈥淭he message is that it鈥檚 not a priority item anymore,鈥� said William Lowe Boyd, a professor of educational administration at Pennsylvania State University in University Park. He added that he would anticipate little pressure from the state capital to reverse that message, since Gov. Edward G. Rendell, a Democrat, is a vocal proponent of publicly run schools.
