Schools require both funding and accountability

AS THE PARENT of a Philadelphia School District student, and a graduate of our school system, it grieves me to see the state of education in our city.

Classrooms that are perpetually in need of basic supplies, teachers who are demonized as they pay for their own materials, administrators who don't provide adequate support and too many politicians pointing fingers.

All this as the schools face an $85 million deficit, and students become unwitting pawns in a game that no one wins.

That is the backdrop for today's hearing in which School Superintendent Dr. William Hite will present the school district's budget to City Council. There will be tough questions and blunt answers. There will be sharp analysis and intricate explanations. Then Dr. Hite will do what Philadelphia's superintendents have always done. He will call on City Council to support our children, knowing that they can't refuse.

That has been our pattern for longer than anyone cares to remember. But this time, things must be different. Yes, we must hold the mayor and City Council accountable. Yes, we must continue to look to Harrisburg to fulfill the state's commitment. But the school district must also be held responsible for the millions we pour into its coffers.

And so, as the parent of a Philadelphia School District student, as a proud graduate of Philadelphia's public schools and as a resident struggling to pay his taxes, I am calling on City Council to fully fund the school district. But only if the district submits to an annual forensic audit.

I don't come to this conclusion lightly. Nor do I come to it with a sense of naiveté. Rather, I arrive at this point as someone who has worked in Council as a legislative aide, and with the district, both as a contracted instructor and as a volunteer.

I have seen how both places work, and while I know that there are people in both the district and in Council whose work ethic leaves us wanting, I also know that there are those whose dedication to this city and its children is exemplary.

If we are to escape the vicious cycle in which our children are currently caught, then those dedicated public servants must stand up. They must stand up, not for themselves or for their political futures. They must stand up, not for the headlines or for the accolades. They must stand up, quite simply, because it is the right thing to do.

When an audit by City Controller Alan Butkovitz turns up over $88,000 worth of missing printers, computers, televisions and medical equipment in just 10 schools, someone must be held accountable.

When a school district with a $2.8 billion budget for fiscal year 2014-2015 includes schools without librarians, someone must be held accountable.

When our children walk into classrooms that are bereft of paper and supplies, someone must be held accountable.

But beyond that accountability, there must also be recognition of those who serve our children well. Too often, their achievements are swallowed up in the poisonous rhetoric that swirls around the multibillion-dollar education industry.

So, today, when Dr. Hite sits before Council and requests more money, he should do so with the recognition that the school district must also do its part.

That means submitting to a thorough fiscal examination so taxpayers and those who represent us know where the money is going. That means standing ready to correct any problems that are uncovered. That means recognizing and replicating the exemplary work of those who have pushed our children forward against incredible odds.

We stand behind Dr. Hite in his request for adequate resources. But we can't continue to grant those resources without the highest level of accountability.

Submit to a forensic audit. Identify problems and solutions. And let's move forward in educating our children, because that's the right thing to do.