Philly school board denies charter application for fourth time, approves $20 million to support year-round pilot program

The Philadelphia school board for the fourth time denied an application from Global Leadership Academy International Charter High School, rejecting efforts by charter founder and former district administrator Naomi Johnson-Booker and supporters to open a high school.

The proposed charter, which would provide a pathway for students at two existing K-8 Global Leadership charter schools, aimed to open in the former Cristo Rey High School building on North Broad Street in Logan, ultimately enrolling 600 students in grades 9 through 12.

The vote to reject the application was 7-0; one board member, Whitney Jones, abstained due to business conflicts.

While the charter’s applicants — who were rejected by the board both earlier this year and last year — had said that they weren’t an existing charter operator, district officials disagreed: Besides sharing the Global Leadership name, the school’s founding coalition includes staff from Global Leadership Academy Charter School and Global Leadership Academy Southwest at Huey.

And the high school was billed as an “extension” of the vision of Johnson-Booker, whom the application said had “successfully restructured and transformed both district and charter schools into thriving, well-functioning learning communities.”

But board members questioned the track record of the existing Global Leadership schools. In 2022-23, 19% of Global Leadership Charter students were proficient or higher in English language arts, compared to 34% for the district as a whole, and 35% for students in similar schools, said Mariel Ziegler, the district’s interim chief of charter schools. In math, 4% of GLA students were proficient, compared to 21% for the district and 15% for similar schools.

GLA Southwest’s scores last year — with 15% of students proficient in English, and 2% in math — also lagged the district and similar schools, Ziegler said. She noted that over a several-year period, both schools had “generally met” growth standards set by the state.

In addition to academic concerns, board member Joyce Wilkerson also cited financial issues at Global Leadership Academy, where a notice of default was recently issued to the school’s bondholders due to insufficient cash flow.

With schools still receiving added COVID-19 relief money, “it’s hard to believe we could have schools defaulting,” Wilkerson said.

In an interview Friday, Johnson-Booker said a flood in one of the GLA schools during state testing in 2019 had contributed to a drop in test scores, and said the high school had a plan to start instruction in the summer for children entering below grade level.

She also said the charter wasn’t in default on its bond, but said a former financial services provider had failed to pay invoices.

“It’s obvious they don’t want me to have a high school in this city,” said Johnson-Booker, a member of the African American Charter Schools Coalition who has accused the district of bias, and who was among the charter supporters who opposed Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s renomination of Wilkerson to the school board. “I thought we would have a decent chance with new board members, without Wilkerson on there.”

Numerous students, parents and officials pressed the board to accept the application, saying that children need more quality high school options. They also said Global Leadership schools — which emphasize international travel — were more than their test scores, and said more than 140 people had submitted enrollment forms for the fall.

“When I go into Global, I feel something, I think, special,” Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr. told the school board. He described getting calls from parents trying to get their kids into different schools, including Global Leadership; he doesn’t hear from parents who want to leave it, Jones said.

“These may not be the ways you judge things, but I trust my judgment,” said Jones, who had backed Parker’s renomination of Wilkerson.

Jones also questioned the district’s comparison between the charters and other schools: “You couldn’t be comparing them apples to apples, in all honesty,” he said.

In other charter-related actions, the board approved five-year charter renewals with conditions for four schools: Ad Prima Charter School, Laboratory Charter School, Mariana Bracetti Academy Charter School, and Maritime Academy Charter School.

In an 8-0 vote, the board approved $20 million in contracts with outside providers — key to Parker’s initiative, announced this week, to offer before- and aftercare and summer programs starting this year in 25 city schools.

Schools participating in what the mayor termed the “extended-day, extended-year” pilot program will also offer programming to students on half days and over winter and spring breaks.

Addressing board members Thursday, Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. reiterated that the out-of-school-time providers would be handling the programming next year, and that teachers’ schedules will not be impacted.

The district schools participating in the program will be able to choose “whether they want to participate in year two,” Watlington said, adding that “we’ll be doing some planning with our unions ... to figure out what makes sense in year two.” Watlington said he would be meeting next week with incoming Philadelphia Federation of Teachers president Arthur Steinberg.

Board members questioned plans to communicate the new programs and draw families in. “What are we specifically going to do to engage the students?” asked Sarah-Ashley Andrews.

Watlington said the district would “do its level best ... to have fun, engaging programming,” with options like chess and learning about opportunities in the life sciences, as well as “hands-on” programs in sports.

Success will be measured by participation in the voluntary programs: a “high attendance rate, or an appropriate attendance rate,” Watlington said. He didn’t specify a number, but said he expected it would take time for school communities to embrace the changes.

Parents, teachers and community members again spoke out against what they said was district censorship of pro-Palestinian views, and voiced support for the Philly Educators for Palestine group.

Jordan Kardasz, a teacher who said she faced discipline from the district for supporting Palestine, accused the district of backtracking on a promise to hold a listening session for Sudanese, Palestinian, Congolese and Haitian students — pushing a planned June 18 event to an “unspecified date in August,” when current seniors may have left for college.

Reading a letter from students, Kardasz said, “We had young people who were prepared and galvanized to speak to you about recent incidents of Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism at their schools.”

Watlington, speaking later in the meeting, said that rescheduled sessions would be posted on the district’s website. “I apologize for the district not delivering on that commitment,” he said.