10.23.2014

TAKE BACK GERMANTOWN HIGH SCHOOL COMMUNITY MEETING SET FOR SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25; Petition to Transform GTOWN HS into Germantown Community Charter School

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Hello All:  

What you see before you is a flyer announcing a community meeting that takes place on SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25, AT 4:00 pm TO SUPPORT TRANSFORMING THE NOW CLOSED GERMANTOWN HIGH SCHOOL INTO GERMANTOWN COMMUNITY CHARTER SCHOOL


Photo: Stop by just look at the plans and to sign the Petition...











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In case you're wondering how this came to be, and what you can do to help - here's the story, in brief, that actually chronicles nearly a year of hard work and meetings:
Stalwart Germantown Residents Work to Transform Defunct Germantown High into Germantown Charter School
 By Gloria Dulan-Wilson 
 
Almost since it was announced the esteemed old school was being closed, a small group of community stalwarts have been actively working on how to prevent it from happening. If their enthusiasm and dedication could have been bottled, it would have been an energy pill for the entire city of Philadelphia. 

However, a melange of community apathy saw their efforts go down in defeat, and indeed the school was closed and put on the chopping block for sale in 2013. 

Most others would have been discouraged, and have thrown their hands up in despair by now, but not this steadfast and devoted little cadre of educators, community leaders, activists and artists. Their devotion to the community of Germantown has not been dampened. Even when the SRC turned down their initial proposal to transform the school into a Senior High School which offered Academic and Career educational opportunites in the original building, while transforming the annex building into a combination retail, restaurant, boutique hotel and residential complex, the revenues from which would have been recycled back into the school, to augment teacher salaries as well as provide for equipment, materials and supplies for the students.

Developer, Ken Weinstein, who had worked with them on the plans, had presented the offer to do the development for a minimal amount of funds, if there had been a way to obtain the building from the school board. It was a brilliant and creative concept, which would have reinstated the only high school in Germantown back to the community, and simultaneously provide a broader range of career and academic opportunites for the students. 

For some unknown reason, the SRC turned the proposal down.  The group, not to be thwarted by this setback, queried what alternatives there could be to transforming the site, and, in the midst of negotiations were summarily informed that the building had been sold to Concordia College. It was later learned that Concordia did not want the building, but the SRC insisted on their taking it as part of a package deal for obtaining the other buildings they did want. 

Even with this new twist of fate, the Germantown High School Coalition – as they have now become known – continued to work. This time, in negotiation with Concordia for a possible lease/purchase of the property, with a view towards possible refinance at the end of a three year period, giving them sufficient time to raise the revenue, while simultaneously providing much needed educational programs in the Germantown community.

Faced now with having to come up with a proposal for a Charter School, which is tentatively named the Germantown Community Charter School, this steadfast crew, headed by Julie S. Carroll, Lisa Hopkins, Sherrine Wilkins, Craig Fulmore, Joe Budd, Vera Primus, Michael Hickson,  Bob Seeley, Gloria Dulan-Wilson, among others,  has been meeting round the clock, all over Germantown, wherever space allowed – but most consistently at Rose Petals Restaurant on Chelten Ave., to hammer out a curriculum, proposal and a plan that will be both innovative, creative, comprehensive, and compliant with the rules set down by the board.

And while they are doing a yeoman's job, they need the help of the community to make it happen. This is no time for apathy, wait and see or negative predictions.  This no time for fence sitting or sidelining.  Our youth, our children need us to take a stand for them - through our signatures, our support, our voice our votes. Our children, our youth are the most precious thing we have - they are 100% of our present and our future.  What we do or don't do now will affect them (and us) for the rest of their lives. 

You can sign this petition whether or not you live in Germantown, or have attended Germantown High School.  This goes way beyond territory and strikes at the heart of so many issues assailing our communities as a whole - who does the community belong to? What do you want for your future and the future of your children?  A system that is responsive and respectful of you and your rights?  This is the time to stand up and be counted. 

Above and below are copies of  the petition which is being circulated at community and civic gatherings, as well as churches and other places of worship;  it is also on FaceBook Germantown High School Coalition, and can be signed online. 

Your support and signatures are urgently needed. We are also looking for letters of support from individuals and community groups that need to be addressed to the School Board. You can either originate your own,  or go on line and register your support for the transformation of Germantown High School into Germantown Community Charter School. 

For those who are interested, or who want to become involved in this endeavor, there will be a meeting on Saturday, October 25 at 4:00 PM at THE DANIEL E. RUMPH II RECREATION CENTER (formerly known as the Mallery Recreation Center), Philadelphia, PA (corner of Morton & Johnson St.  Please come out and show your support. Refreshments will be served.

We Support a Charter School in the Germantown High School Building

To be delivered to Charter Schools Office, School District of Philadelphia
Petition Background
In June 2013, the School District of Philadelphia closed Germantown High School and put the property up for sale. The closure hurt students, who were left with fewer school choices, the neighborhood, which lost a beloved institution, and a shopping district poised for revival. It left a spiritual, physical, and emotional gap in the Germantown community. 

The Germantown High School Coalition, a partnership of community groups and concerned residents, has been working to fill that gap. We propose a high school serving 1000 students from the neighborhood. Using a project-based approach, the school will provide a strong academic foundation, along with career and technical skills. 


We need your support as we apply for recognition as a charter school. Our school would be the major tenant in a restored historic Germantown High School building. With a new school and a transformed building and campus, Germantown High School, now empty and lifeless, can become a center of neighborhood revitalization. - We need 1000 signatures! 


MoveOn.org  for additional information call: 215.828.5176

Sign this petition  

I, the undersigned, support the Germantown High School Coalition's application for a charter school in the historic Germantown High School building, which was recently purchased by The Concordia Group. Germantown needs its own high school to serve students from the neighborhood.
 

 Click "ADD YOUR NAME" and sign the petition. It's about doing something GOOD for our future generation....


In this realm of the 21st Century, when so many are suffering loss after loss; it's heartening to know that there are still those who are willing to take a principled stand for the future of our community's children.  It's even more encouraging when whole communities band together to be the transformation they're always talking about.  This is the opportunity to be part of greatness.  Sign the petition and come to the meeting.  Your voices and your support are essential.
ADDITIONALLY FOR THOSE WHO ARE EITHER IN NEED, OR KNOW OF THOSE WHO ARE IN NEED OF A WARM COAT FOR THE UPCOMING WINTER MONTHS
MEN WHO CARE OF GERMANTOWN 
ARE HOSTING A WINTER COAT DISTRIBUTION AT DANIEL RUMPH II PARK JUST PRIOR TO THE MEETING - 
FROM 10:00AM TO 4:00PM.
THIS IS TO PROVIDE THE NEEDIEST WHO MAY NOT BE ABLE TO AFFORD 
A WARM WINTER COAT 
FOR THEMSELVES OR THEIR CHILDREN WITH FREE, NEW COATS.
THERE ARE SO MANY POSITIVE THINGS OCCURRING IN THIS COMMUNITY - COME BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION.
 
Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK

Gloria Dulan-Wilson
www.gloriadulanwilson.blogspot.com/ECLECTICALLY BLACK NEWS




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