Wm. Penn Foundation gives $1.5m for Philly SD turnaround
The William Penn Foundation is donating $1.5 million to help restructure the Philadelphia School District, officials announced today.
The William Penn Foundation is donating $1.5 million to help restructure the Philadelphia School District, officials announced today.
Foundation president Jeremy Nowak said the money would go directly to pay for a contract with Boston Consulting Group.
Nowak also said that William Penn will help the School Reform Commission identify other private funders to help turn the district around.
“Frankly, [SRC Chairman Pedro Ramos] and I are going on a fundraising tour to see if we can be helpful,” Nowak said in an interview. “I think this is a defining moment for the city of Philadelphia.”
Beyond William Penn’s own contribution, the move is significant because Philadelphia’s philanthropic community has traditionally been loath to donate on a large scale to the district, which was viewed by many as a bad risk, with management and finance problems and a lack of transparency in operations.
Before extending its offer to the SRC, William Penn “waited to see whether they were going to make moves that we thought were smart,” Nowak said. “We see that they are making moves that are smart, and so we’re going to take that risk. This new SRC has showed us that they’re serious about the future.”
The district is in dire straits — officials admit it is teetering on the brink of financial insolvency, with a $38.8 million budget shortfall to bridge by June and a more than $269 million gap already for fiscal 2013. But they say they can right the system, and want to use this opportunity to restructure how schools are run, with more autonomy for principals and less bureaucracy.
William Penn liked the SRC’s hiring of Thomas Knudsen, the former PGW head, who was brought in as “chief recovery officer” on a short-term basis. They also liked the Boston move, Nowak said - the group is a national firm with extensive experience working with troubled school systems.
The SRC last week approved the one-month Boston contract, which will pay for “professional managerial and financial consulting services and expenses.” William Penn and the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania will work together with the SRC to “structure and manage” the Boston contract and work.
Nowak said that William Penn - and other potential funders - will have some say over the turnaround.
“I’d like to have input, but I’m not mandating they go in this direction or that direction,” he said. “I’ve got a loud voice; I’ll say things. But we’re not trying to dictate. We wouldn’t have come in if we didn’t think they were moving in a direction that we think makes sense.”
Even with what he believes is a strong SRC in place, William Penn is still taking a risk, Nowak acknowledged.
“The biggest risk is will they will be able to come out with a plan, and will they be able to implement the plan that gets us to where we want to get to? And will they be able to implement it, given the complexity of the politics of education?” Nowak said.
But it’s necessary work, he said.
“I know the word turnaround is a loaded thing, but I think we’re at a place where we can all agree we’ve hit rock bottom in terms of information, financial capacity, and to some extent, faith in the future,” Nowak said.