DC Council Oversight Hearing on DCPS and the Public Charter School Board

I appreciate the opportunity to testify.  I am Cathy Reilly of the Senior High Alliance of Parents, Principals and Educators for the last 28 years.  I facilitate C4DC and the Ward 4 Education Alliance. 

I have been impressed and inspired by the work in these schools despite a year of considerable challenges.  The Ward 4 schools continue to grow and thrive, families came together this fall to support the immigrant new comer population treasured here.  Ward 4 had to fight to get the two middle schools that are now thriving and collaborating.  With some additional housing going up, some of the schools have been able to gain enrollment lost as families were deported or chose to leave. However across the city and especially in wards 1 and 4 this has been a loss.

As you work to amend Schools First and respond to a changing landscape, I appreciate having ways to take into account things that are outside the control of schools and keep in mind the importance of maintaining and growing the DCPS public system of right and of choices. Among these is the need for a DCPS central office to have the capacity to address the HB1 Visa and green cards the international teachers require.  Everything cannot be passed to schools and the advantage of a system is that cost can be distributed and equity attended to.  This also applies to the Connected Schools program and community schools. 

SHAPPE has been meeting for 28 years this month.  There have been many changes but all of the DCPS high school communities have continued to work to keep students engaged and safe. 

Enrollment continues to fluctuate with expanding inventory beyond capacity.  We no longer have the financial cushion we once had, the financial plan is not fully funded. There have been substantial cuts to healthcare already which will have a wide ranging effect. 

As a city we have tolerated and funded inefficiency in the way we plan, and fund public education. I hope we can proceed with a larger and longer view.  The decision to move 32m in fixed costs out of DCPS and into DGS as the city agency responsible for paying those bills follows decisions over years to fund facilities outside of the UPSFF including with the Charter School Facilities Allowance and the Capital plan.  Recommendations are in the 2023 Boundary Plan as well as here.  I would like to be part of wrestling with this inefficiency and needed policy. 

Some additional needs that can be addressed in this budget process include:

·       the needs of the New Heights Program.  Not funding the needs of students expecting children does not mean those needs go away.  How can these needs continue to be met.

·       the need for flexibility from the executive in the ability to access funds for school specific needs and this could be true for central staff as well–

·       Funding accessibility includes the issues with buses for field trips and international school to school exchange trips.  Risk management in the executive makes the final decisions.  There should be an appeal process and a more competitive contracting for buses.

Thank you