More changes are in store for several Philadelphia public schools, including the conversion of the Samuel B. Huey School (5200 Pine St.) to a charter and the opening of a middle school in cooperation with Drexel University aimed in part at Samuel Powel Elementary (301 N. 36th St.) and students from the nearby Mantua neighborhood.

Superintendent William Hite announced the plan yesterday. It will impact about 5,000 students and cost the district $15 million to $20 million, he said.

Huey, a K-8 school which has struggled academically, would be converted to a charter school as part of the district’s Renaissance Schools Initiative in the 2016-2017 school year. Jay Cooke in Logan in North Philadelphia and John Wister in East Mount Airy would also be converted to charter schools. The plan includes a charter operator selection process that includes school parent representatives on search committees. The School Reform Commission will vote on the charters on Jan. 21, according to reports.  Continue Reading

Here’s some good news out of the Community College of Philadelphia (CCP). The college recently received a $3 million grant to help African American males succeed in college.

The college, which has a student population of more than 34,000, will use the grant to help fund its Center for Male Engagement, which provides access to academic coaches, computers and other education resources. The grant was provided by the Department of Education’s Predominately Black Institutions Program.

“This is a place where men gain the confidence to be successful in life and in their studies,” CCP President Donald Guy Generals said in a statement.

Minority students make up about 76 percent of CCP’s student body.

CCP’s West Regional Center, where the college’s Automotive Technology programs are based, is located at 4725 Chestnut Street.

A Penn Alexander eighth grader was robbed at gunpoint on Thursday evening near 42nd and Locust by two boys, police said.

The eighth grader and a witness told police that at about 7 p.m. he got into an argument with two other boys, ages 11 and 12, when one produced a handgun and asked the victim to hand over his iPhone 6. The two boys fled and were later apprehended near 46th and Spruce. No gun was found, but police retrieved the phone.

We are not releasing the names of the any of the boys involved because of their ages.

Demolition crews were finishing off the University City High School building last week as plans for “uCity Square” were announced.

As demolition crews finish off University City High School along 36th Street between Filbert and Warren, officials from the University City Science Center and developers Wexford Science and Technology unveiled the planned office and lab complex “uCity Square” that will take its place.

The 4-million-square-foot project will include a cluster of glassy lab and office buildings with commercial and retail space that will border 37th Street to the west and Lancaster Avenue and Market Street to the north and south. The site will also house an “urban grocery store,” fitness center and parking, according to the announcement made earlier this week.  Continue Reading

Twins at 4300-4306 Osage Avenue.

The city Historical Commission’s Committee on Historic Designation recommended on Wednesday adding the Second Empire style twins at the 43rd and Osage and the south side of the 3600 block of Lancaster Avenue, both eyed by developers, to the Register of Historic Places.

Proposals for both properties now move to the Historical Commission for final approval scheduled for Oct. 9. Placement on the Historic Register stipulates that the commission “must review all proposals that require a building permit and/or that would alter the appearance of the historic resource prior to the commencement of work,” according to the commission website.  Continue Reading

Even if Beyoncé or Death Cab for Cutie aren’t your jam, the enhanced SEPTA train schedule this weekend might get you where you want to go quicker. SEPTA is beefing up some of its schedules this weekend – Sept. 5 and 6 – to accommodate traffic to and from the annual Made in America show on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

SEPTA announced that local train service will be available on the El (Market-Frankford Line) and the Broad Street Line every five minutes on Saturday and Sunday beginning at noon and lasting “throughout the day.” Additional trains will also be deployed when the concert ends.

Additional evening trips will be added on Trolley Routes 10, 11, 13, 15, 34, and 36.

There will also be additional late-night regional rail trains leaving from Center City and 30th Street Station. The special schedules are available here.