Corbett suggests possible takeover of Chester Upland School District

[ellisonz]

January 13, 2012
By Dan Hardy, Inquirer Staff Writer

Gov. Corbett blamed local officials Thursday for the Chester Upland School District's financial woes and suggested the state was considering a takeover of the district.

He made his remarks on a Philadelphia talk-radio show on the same day the Chester Upland school board and some parents in the 3,700-student Delaware County district filed a federal lawsuit, demanding that the state finance the district through the end of the school year, at a cost of about $20.7 million.

In an interview on The Dom Giordano Show, WPHT-AM (1210), Corbett said that the state had come to the aid of the beleaguered Chester Upland district for many years but that it could not "continue to bail out one school district just because they don't know how to control spending their money."

The district is bankrupt. Its schools remain open only because teachers have agreed to work without pay. The district has blamed its situation on state funding cuts and the fact that it has lost almost half its students to charter schools.

http://articles.philly.com/2012-01-13/news/30624201_1_charter-schools-corbett-state-funding

This story was covered on Ed Schultz tonight. Would anyone and especially Pennsylvanians like weigh in on the situation?

[FarCenter]

1. If they've lost half their students to charter schools, they have to close schools and cut staff

[ellisonz]

2. That's a fair point.

The impression I get from the article is that they've already made substantial cuts.

[KamaAina]

3. The privatization of American schools is beginning in poor areas

Chester, PA is predominantly low-income and African American.

But if something isn't done to derail the charter train, your community will be next.

[PRETZEL]

4. Not sure why the district is being solely blamed,

but the Chester area is one area where economics drive reality. Property values have been going down for a very long time, unemployment is pretty high, etc.

Chester Upland isn't the only district like this. They just may be the biggest.