Overview
- City Council’s Education Committee, whose resolution was adopted Thursday, will hold hearings on whether to replace the mayor-appointed board with an elected or hybrid body.
- The Board of Education voted 6-3 on April 30 to approve a 10-year plan that would close 17 schools and renovate 169 buildings after a tense meeting marked by protests.
- Councilmembers led by Isaiah Thomas argue the board moved too fast and shared too little data, and a majority asked to spare Lankenau and Robeson high schools, which the board refused.
- Changing how members are seated would require voter approval through a city charter change, and Thomas said state action would also be needed because Council cannot do it alone.
- Philadelphia is the only district in Pennsylvania with a mayor-appointed school board, and a lawsuit over unconfirmed member Joyce Wilkerson highlights the governance strain.