Case Against Glen Mills Schools Moves Forward |
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Calls and emails have been coming in to the Education Law Center from former students at Glen Mills Schools, the shuttered juvenile justice facility outside Philadelphia, now notorious for its horrific history of abuse. This is in response to our announcement last month that a settlement has been reached with one of the multiple parties in our federal class action lawsuit, the Chester County Intermediate Unit, to benefit former Glen Mills students.
Under the agreement, former Glen Mills students are now eligible to apply to receive cash payments, compensatory education services, or a combination of these remedies. More information is available at a newly created website, GlenMillsSettlement.org. Please help us to spread the word. Former Glen Mills students, advocates, attorneys, and families may also email Help@GlenMillsSettlement.org.
Meanwhile, we continue to pursue our lawsuit against Glen Mills Schools, some of its former officials and employees, and the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) and Department of Education. The settlement fund is one important step toward providing relief for students who were deprived of an education and experienced significant civil rights violations there, including abuse that undermined learning. The toll was harshest for Black students, who were sent in large numbers to Glen Mills from Philadelphia and other counties, and for students with disabilities and special education needs, whose educational rights were ignored.
We are alarmed by the news on Jan. 27 that DHS reached an agreement with a nonprofit called Clock Tower Schools, led by some individuals who worked at Glen Mills, to reopen a facility at the same site. In a joint statement with Juvenile Law Center, we called on Gov. Josh Shapiro to reconsider the state’s approval to let former staff operate the facility under a new name.
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Pittsburgh Public Schools Launches CCS 2.0 |
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We know that as a result of the pandemic, many children with disabilities have not received services, evaluations, and supports these students are entitled to, and as a result, these students have continued to be left behind. ELC and the parent-led Pittsburgh Local Task Force on the Right to Education (LTF) are engaged in ongoing advocacy with Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) to ensure that all children with disabilities are promptly and properly assessed to determine their eligibility for COVID compensatory services, or CCS: “make-up” services for the education children failed to receive as a result of COVID.
ELC and the LTF have been providing comments on the district’s recently launched CCS plan to ensure that the process for determining compensatory education is equitable, legally compliant, and values the voices of families of children with disabilities. More information on the CCS 2.0 process can be found on the PPS website and this PPS video. ELC is providing parent trainings to community groups and collaborating with the LTF to help parents and guardians prepare for the upcoming individualized education plan (IEP) meetings that will determine eligibility under this new plan.
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Celebrating Black History Month! |
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During this Black History Month, ELC celebrates the achievements and resistance of Black educators, advocates, schoolchildren, and parents who consistently and bravely challenge systemic racism in our schools. We stand with those seeking to create affirming, antiracist schools — schools that honor Black and Brown students and families and center their perspectives, embrace accurate history, and dismantle systems of racial oppression. These are year-round commitments.
One set of annual activities that we want to highlight is Black Lives Matter at School Week, which this year is Feb. 6-10, with a variety of events and projects for both students and educators. Please check ELC’s social media accounts for additional forthcoming activities and materials all month — to learn and to get involved.
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Great Expectations for
Pennsylvania’s New Elected Officials
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Education advocates have high hopes for support from Harrisburg for public education funding. Building on Gov. Tom Wolf’s fair funding formula and 2022’s historic education funding increase of more than $1 billion, newly inaugurated Gov. Josh Shapiro has promised to fully fund public schools and focus on long-neglected school facilities.
Shapiro’s inaugural address described public education as core to the idea of freedom, promising to fight for the “the kind of real freedom that comes when we devote resource to that young child’s public school to make sure she has a shot.” As attorney general, Shapiro filed an amicus brief supporting our school funding lawsuit, underscoring that the General Assembly had failed to meet its constitutional obligation to fund public schools. In the first year of his term, the governor releases his budget proposal on the first Tuesday in March. ELC and our allies will be working to translate the governor’s commitment into a strong education budget.
The new General Assembly has gotten off to a slow and rocky start — awaiting the outcome of three special elections that will determine control of the House. The impasse has held back efforts by the Senate to ram through constitutional amendments that would imperil voting rights and concentrate unprecedented power in the hands of the legislature. Once the smoke clears after the Feb. 7 special elections, a Democratic majority of 102-100 in the House is expected, both parties should be able to agree to rules, and business should begin.
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We still await Commonwealth Court’s ruling in our lawsuit challenging Pennsylvania’s school funding system. A ruling could come at any time. The media continue to keep the public informed, with stories like these from WHYY and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. We will share the news as soon as we have a decision.
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Defending Due Process Rights
at a Philadelphia Charter School
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Source: Google Maps
ELC has filed an appeal on behalf of a high school senior, A.T., who was improperly expelled from Mathematics, Civics and Sciences Charter School (MCSCS). A.T. had been involved in a verbal altercation in December. She was suspended for two days and received notice of a “re-instatement/pre-hearing” that turned out to be a full-blown expulsion hearing. A.T. was never properly advised of the charges against her, of her right to counsel, or her right to present witnesses, and was not given adequate notice of the hearing, along with other due process violations. She received a letter shortly thereafter permanently expelling her from school and is now at risk of not being able to graduate this spring. We submitted a motion last week for an emergency stay to have A.T. returned to school.
MCSCS will now only allow A.T. to participate in their virtual program and is prohibiting her from being on campus or participating in any senior activities or graduation. ELC has increasingly seen schools like MCSCS using virtual instruction to create a second-class educational option. In addition to these violations of due process, the school has a history of similar violations and of pushing out students (and yet alarmingly the school reports that no students were expelled in 2020-21). A court hearing on our emergency motion in A.T.’s case is scheduled for Feb. 9.
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Book Bans — and More — in Central Bucks
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Over the past year, Central Bucks School District (CBSD) has implemented a series of policies and directives that target and harm LGBTQ+ students and students of color across the district. Last month, CBSD passed the “Partisan, Political, or Social Policy Advocacy” policy, also known as Policy 321. While claiming to be a measure to maintain “neutrality and balance in classroom instruction,” the directive barring advocacy prevents teachers from hanging Pride flags or Black Lives Matter signs and censors classroom discussion.
Most recently, the district has also decided to review several titles in their school library, including “Beyond Magenta” by Susan Kuklin and “Gender Queer” by Maia Kobabe — both of which address teens who are exploring their gender identity. The book ban policy as originally implemented in July 2022 allows parents and school district residents to request books to be removed from library shelves until they are reviewed for “inappropriate material.” The most recent iteration of this policy was reviewed by the Independence Law Center, a legal organization with ties to a national anti-LGBTQ hate group, the Family Research Council.
Between Policy 321 and book challenges in the district, CBSD is on the path to erase LGBTQ+ and Black and Brown people from the curriculum and deny these students equal access to quality educational opportunities. With similarly harmful policy proposals cropping up in a dozen other Pennsylvania school districts, this is a fast-growing area of concern. We will continue to challenge such policies as a part of our Inclusive Schools and Honest Education initiative.
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Critical Conversations
in Urban Education at Drexel
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Join us this Friday, Feb. 3, for the Social Justice Leadership Summit at Drexel University’s School of Education. This year’s theme is “Good Trouble: Illuminating Anti-Racist Approaches to Educational Pathways.” We are excited to be presenting on two important areas of our work, including Black girls’ education justice and fines and fees.
At 11:10 a.m. (EST), ELC attorneys Paige Joki and Joan Owhe, with our program associate, Kayla Edwards-Scott, will cover selected topics from our forthcoming report: “We Need Supportive Spaces that Celebrate Us: Black Girls Speak Out About Public Schools.” Join Paige and UC Law SF professor Thalia González at 3:20 p.m. to discuss school-based fines, fees, and costs in Pennsylvania. Register for the event here.
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Join Our Team: We're Hiring! |
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ELC is seeking a director of our Western Pennsylvania office in Pittsburgh, who will report to the executive director in Philadelphia. The candidate should have a demonstrated commitment to public interest law, civil rights, racial justice, and advancing the rights of underserved populations. The Pittsburgh director provides leadership and direction to the Pittsburgh office, including overseeing direct service to underserved students, participating in local and statewide policy advocacy and litigation, building and strengthening community partnerships, and engaging with funders and board members.
See our website for a description of internship opportunities at ELC.
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Education Law Center | 215-238-6970 (Philadelphia)| 412-258-2120 (Pittsburgh)| |
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A copy of the official registration and financial information of the Education Law Center may be obtained from the Department of State by calling toll-free, within Pennsylvania, 1-880-732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement. |
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