As some Philly students walk out over possible budget cuts, the district offers some remedies

Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. announced Thursday that he is reopening enrollment at 12 underenrolled criteria-based Philadelphia schools — and limiting staff losses at those schools.

The news came as more than 100 city students walked out of school Thursday, converging on Philadelphia School District headquarters to protest changes that left some magnet schools with as many as 100 open seats for this fall’s ninth-grade class. They held signs, chanted “Save our teachers,” clapped, and waved at passing cars.

Watlington said the school system will offer places at 12 schools to 316 students who had met academic and attendance requirements but had not enrolled. That means a student who applied only to Masterman, for instance, but did not qualify or get in, might make the cut and opt for a seat at Franklin Learning Center, and elect to enroll there.

But there’s no guarantee that all or even most of the 316 will accept places at different schools; some likely already accepted spots at private or charter schools, or made plans to relocate. And even if all of the 316 took open slots, that still leaves hundreds of vacant seats — there are about 800 open ninth-grade seats at those schools, Watlington said.

» READ MORE: Ahead of potential staff and programming cuts, Philly teachers and parents plan to protest

The district changed its admissions process in 2021 for equity reasons, moving to a computer-based lottery, but those shifts have had unintended consequences. Some of the city’s 39 criteria-based schools were facing dozens of empty seats, with principals losing the power they once had to enroll worthy students who did not quite meet admissions metrics.

Because of the projected enrollment losses, a number of district schools were initially notified they would lose multiple teaching and other staff positions — as many as six or more, some teachers said. District officials on Thursday said they would limit the number of positions cut at any of 12 selected criteria-based schools to two, unless principals at those schools opt to use resources in different ways.

Giving a boost to those schools will cost the district $3 million, Watlington said.

The 12 schools are: Philadelphia High School for Girls, Franklin Learning Center, Saul, Lankenau, Motivation, Hill-Freedman World Academy, Parkway Northwest, Parkway Center City Middle College, Parkway West, Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts, Science Leadership Academy at Beeber, and Arts Academy at Benjamin Rush.

Outside district headquarters, students, parents, and teachers from underenrolled schools protested.

“Our school is being punished, and it’s not fair,” said Jenivette Febles, 16, a junior at Saul High School so angry with the district’s admissions changes that she walked out of school early on Thursday.

“They’re taking away teachers; we could lose part of animal science program,” said Vanessa Lucas, 17, a Saul junior.

Donovan Hayes, a math teacher at the U School, a citywide admissions school that is projecting 200 empty seats across all grades, said in the past the school’s administration enrolled many students in the late spring and summer, by making visits at elementary schools and in the neighborhood. That was wiped away by the admissions shifts.

“The changes in this process have left us with nothing but more questions,” Hayes said at the pre-meeting protest. “When there are students saying, ‘I want to go to that school, and there are empty seats at that school,’ why not let them in?”

The U School does not have admissions criteria; under the plan Watlington announced Thursday, it and schools like it would not be held harmless the way the dozen criteria-based schools would.

Kristin Luebbert, another U School teacher, said Watlington’s plan was a start, but she urged the district to do better.

“Reopen enrollment for schools with available spaces, all schools with available spaces, not just 12,” Luebbert said, calling the admissions changes “a slow-rolling disaster that will cause harm to many Black and brown students.”

Later, the school board and public heard early details of the 2023-24 budget. Chief financial officer Michael Herbstman introduced a $4.5 billion spending plan that would include new investments in safety, additional staff for high-needs schools, resources to boost attendance and reduce dropouts, money for new core curricula, and more dual-enrollment and career and technical education opportunities for students.

Though the district is in relatively good financial shape this year, in part because of continued stimulus funding, its longer-term picture is grimmer. Philadelphia is alone among Pennsylvania districts — it does not control its own revenue but relies largely on state and city funding to operate.

The district moves to deficit spending in the 2024-25 fiscal year, and can plug gaps with fund balances, but by the 2026-27 school year it projects a $312 million deficit.

Philadelphia and other low-wealth districts are historically underfunded, a Commonwealth Court judge ruled in February, ordering the state legislature to come up with a remedy. But extra money is likely years away.

If Philadelphia had the nearly $5,000 per student it would take to achieve what district officials say would be full funding, according to an analysis , the district could afford to update aging buildings and fix environmental issues; up teacher salaries; provide more supports for high-needs students; and deliver “premium services” for diverse learners, Watlington said.

The board approved the lump-sum budget late Thursday night. It’s expected to adopt the final version of its spending plan on May 25.