Politics & Government

School District Sign Accountability Agreement With City, State

Mayor Nutter made the announcement at a news conference Thursday afternoon.

City and state governments have joined forces with the School District of Philadelphia and its School Reform Commission (SRC) to sign on to an education accountability agreement that will ostensibly allow the city to have a better sense of how the district spends its money.

Nutter announced at a news conference at City Hall today that all the parties had arrived at a mutual agreement.

He  in a letter sent to the body earlier this week.

Find out what's happening in Chestnut Hill-Mt. Airywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In a news release, the school district said the agreement will require the city to report its fiscal information to the city in a clearer fashion in the future.

"The district will provide the city with a litany of facts, documents, and financial reports requested in order to provide complete transparency," it said in a news release.

Find out what's happening in Chestnut Hill-Mt. Airywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

According to the school district's Twitter account, Nutter spoke to state Secretary of Education Ron Tomalis about being included in the agreement, and Tomalis expressed interest in being a part of it.

There had been some tension between Nutter's office and the school district this week after Superintendent Arlene Ackerman informed the the mayor the district  only a very short time before she announced it publicly.

Ackerman attempted to dispel any rumors that the relationship between the two sides was irreparably damaged.

"I want people to be clear that while there may have been a misstep last Friday, it has not damaged our relationship," she said, according to the school district.

Nutter stopped short of guaranteeing the city would release more money to schools .

"There is still a lot of work to be done," he said, according to the school district. "The agreement doesn't guarantee additional funding."


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Chestnut Hill-Mt. Airy