Edison to Now Operate 22 Philadelphia Schools
District Cites Accountability, 10-Point Test-Score Gains
PHILADELPHIA, April 25 /PRNewswire/ -- After a year of stunning academic
gains, the Philadelphia School Reform Commission has expanded its historic
partnership with Edison Schools. Edison has been asked to operate two
additional schools, Huey Elementary School, a K-6 school in the Southwest
region, and Hartranft Elementary School, a K-8 school in the Central region.
The company will now operate 22 schools in partnership with the District, with
responsibility for serving approximately 12,500 District students.
"We've had the great fortune of working with incredibly talented and
dedicated educators in our existing 20 partnership schools, and we're excited
to welcome the Huey and Hartranft school communities into what has become a
very close-knit team and high-functioning network of schools focused on
student achievement," said Richard Barth, president of Edison's District
Partnerships division.
Philadelphia's education reform is turning heads nationally. Its
multi-pronged approach with a focus on managed instruction includes adoption
of a "diverse provider model," partnering at unprecedented levels with private
companies, universities and strong community groups, in an effort to increase
student achievement in low-performing schools.
Philadelphia's implementation of the diverse provider model encouraged
positive, non-adversarial competition under strong management by District CEO,
Paul Vallas, and School Reform Commission Chair, James Nevels. And it has
generated a dramatic turnaround for partnership schools. When Philadelphia
launched the partnerships in 2002-2003, turning over 45 schools to outside
groups to operate in partnership with the District, its proposal was highly
controversial, and its decision to make Edison Schools the largest of its
partners was met with protests in the streets and widespread predictions that
the partnership would fail. The results, however, have been impressive. The
protests have stopped, replaced by goodwill and cooperation. And student
achievement is up dramatically across the board. Edison Schools contributed
substantially to those gains, producing average gains of 10 points last year
in both reading and math. On the whole, district-wide gains were among the
largest of the nation's 50 largest school systems, according to the Council of
Great City Schools.
Barth noted that, in the 20 schools Edison operates with the District,
student achievement was increasing less than 1 percentage point a year in the
three years preceding the partnership. Last year, achievement in those same
schools was up 10 percentage points -- nearly a 20-fold gain.
"Philadelphia's results show that smart city leadership and experienced
school providers can make a difference," said Paul T. Hill, director of the
Center on Reinventing Public Education.
Said Barth: "We are proud to be a District partner contributing so
positively to their historic progress. Philadelphia truly is leading the
nation in innovative public-education improvement. We thank Chairman Nevels,
the SRC and CEO Vallas for their confidence in our work, and Gov. Rendell,
Speaker Perzel, Majority Leader Brightbill and all of the General Assembly,
for their ongoing commitment and for providing funding for this historic
endeavor."
Barth said his team's top priority this spring and summer will be to begin
working with school administrators, teachers and staff, and parents and
community members to prepare both schools for a successful opening in
September. "We are committed to building an environment of trust and
collaboration with our two new partnership schools, and working together to
raise student achievement," Barth said.
Carol Martin, principal of Waring Elementary School, an Edison partnership
school since 2002, said the expansion is "well deserved."
"Edison is a great organization, and the two new schools will benefit from
their partnership just as we all have," said Martin, who was a longtime
Philadelphia principal before joining Edison.
"It's exciting to see the Edison family growing," added Dr. Don Anticoli,
principal of Penn Treaty Middle School, also one of the existing 20 Edison
partnership schools. "The guidance and assistance we receive from Edison is
tremendous, and is well coordinated with the support structure that's
effectively in place through our regional office."
About Edison Schools
Founded in 1992, Edison Schools partners with school districts, charter
boards, and states to raise student achievement and educational outcomes
through its research-based school design and curriculum, achievement
management solutions, professional development, and extended learning
programs. In 2004-2005, Edison Schools will serve more than 250,000 students
in 20 states, the District of Columbia, and the United Kingdom. For more
information, please visit http://www.edisonschools.com.
SOURCE Edison Schools
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Related links:
http://www.edisonschools.com
CONTACT:
Adam Tucker, VP, Communications of Edison
Schools, +1-212-419-1602
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