This article was originally published in The Notebook. In August 2020, The Notebook became Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
On May 19, Philadelphians will hit the polls to winnow the field of City Council at-large candidates. Out of 28 declared candidates, only seven will be elected in November (including at least two from a minority party). Each party can run five candidates in the general election. The Notebook reached out to the candidates, asking their opinions on the election’s most gripping issue: education.
Where do candidates stand on the School Reform Commission’s decision to approve five new charter school applications? Whose job is it to find more money for public schools, the city’s or the District’s? Absent an agreement with the teachers’ union, do they think the SRC is right to pursue concessions through the courts? And finally, what ideas do they have for how the District can fix its financial problems?
Here are statements from 16 candidates who sent in responses.
View Blondell R. Brown View Sherrie Cohen View Kristin Combs View Allan Domb View Wilson Goode Jr. View Derek Green View Bill Greenlee View Helen Gym View Ed Neilson View Dennis O’Brien View David Oh View Paul Steinke View Isaiah Thomas View James Williams View Matthew Wolfe View Tom Wyatt