Progress at a profit? an analysis of Edison Schools, Inc. in Philadelphia

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2007-06-20T16:06:22Z
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Thesis (BA)
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en_US
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Philadelphia public schools have a long standing history of academic and fiscal crises. After many unsuccessful reform movements, state officials were forced to confront these issues once again with a highly experimental and controversial solution: hiring a for-profit educational management organization to run Philadelphia’s ‘worst’ schools. When Edison Schools, Inc. and ambitious entrepreneurs initially came to Philadelphia, they were convinced they could turn Philadelphia’s under-funded, under-achieving schools into successful, cost effective institutions while simultaneously turning a profit. They did not, however, anticipate a fierce resistance movement and protests and demonstrations riled the streets of the city in discontent. While teachers and staff members were worried about job security, control within their classrooms and salaries and wages, parents became frustrated with a seemingly lack of concern for their children’s safety and educational quality. Community members and certain city officials were offended by Edison’s ignorance for conditions in urban schools and students blocked off city streets chanting, “We are not for sale!” Three years later in 2004, the debate surrounding Edison Schools, Inc. has hushed. This thesis explains that the resistance movement has changed in the past three years and offer explanations for this shift in attitudes. By investigating the ways that four major parties, (staff members, parents, community members and students) have reacted to Edison during its tenure, I argue that the present controversy surrounding Edison Schools, Inc. in 2004 is a very different debate from 2001. Through this shift in attitudes, beliefs and response, it becomes evident that the debate is no longer about whether or not privatization is an effective means of school reform, but rather, if Edison was qualified enough to provide the urban schools with a education comparable to other successful schools. I conclude that the debate over privatization that began as a fear of an attack on traditional education slowly transformed into vocal struggle for educational equity. This paper also discusses what can be learned from this debate and what lies in the future for Philadelphia schools. As this reform movement demonstrates the complexities of urban school reform and the tendency to shift blame rather than address the fundamental issues at hand, the crisis of education in Philadelphia schools is revealed. The paper concludes that no reform movement will be successful without a thorough addressing the greater societal problems of racism, poverty, and inherent educational inequity.
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