Photo from Drexel.edu.

Two West Philly schools received a hefty financial boost this week.

The Exelon Foundation and PECO are donating $500,000 to Drexel University, which will use the funds to develop new STEAM (science, technology, art, engineering, and math) courses at two neighborhood schools – Samuel Powel and Morton McMichael.

The PECO and Drexel partnership to create new educational opportunities for local students began in 2011 with a $1 million grant for the University Assisted Schools (UAS) Initiative, which focuses on the unique needs of Powel and McMichael schools. Since its inception “the program to improve educational options and learning opportunities for students in the Mantua and Powelton communities ha[s] been incredibly successful,” Drexel President John A. Fry said in a statement.

The program provides universal screening of all students’ literacy and math skills, development of a unique schedule for academic enrichment and intervention, development of a customized education plan for every student, and more. Also, K-8 students at McMichael and K-4 students at Powel have been visiting or received instruction from representatives of the University City Science Center, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Franklin Institute, the Philadelphia Zoo, and the Mural Arts Program.

More information about the grant and the program is available here.

The Henry Lea School playground at 47th and Spruce a few of years ago (left) and an artist’s rendering of the Greening Lea plan (right).

It’s not too late to support a neighborhood public school and at the same time beautify the neighborhood. The Greening Lea Naming Campaign, the grassroots effort to turn the vast tarmac playground at The Henry Lea School (47th and Spruce) into an inviting space, has been extended to June 15.

You can buy a brick (also, here is an order form), paver or a cluster of bricks with your name, your business’s name or a name in memory of a loved one online that will be used for the project. The brick and paver campaign is part of a multi-year effort to transform the physical surrounding of the Lea School led by the West Philly Coalition of Neighborhood Schools, a grassroots organization started in 2010. Details on the Greening Lea project are here.

Click on the images below to view breakfast and lunch menus served in Philadelphia public schools in June 2015. Click here if your school uses the Satellite menu.

June 2015 K-8 breakfast, lunch menu

June 2015 9-12 breakfast, lunch menu

The School Reform Commission last night approved the revised proposal for a K-4 KIPP charter school in West Philadelphia.

KIPP’s original application, which called for a K-12 school serving more than 1,300 students was rejected in February along with more than 30 other applications for new charters. Only five were approved. KIPP revised the application to change school governance structure, teacher qualifications, opening date and its location. Originally proposed for the Kingsessing neighborhood, the new school will be located in Parkside.

The SRC approved the revised application 3-1. Chairwoman Marjorie Neff voted against the proposal and Commissioner Farrah Jimenez recused herself from the vote because of a possible conflict of interest.  Continue Reading

Neighborhood Bike Works is moving! (Photo from NBW Facebook page).

Neighborhood Bike Works (NBW), a great neighborhood institution that has been providing bike education programs for youth and bike repair classes for adults for nearly two decades, has just announced its plans to open a new, larger hub and community shop in West Philly this Fall. The new site is located at two side-by-side storefront properties – at 3939 and 3943 Lancaster Avenue. It is one mile from NBW’s current headquarters in the basement of St. Mary’s Church on Locust Walk.

“By moving out of a basement space to a highly visible, street-level site, we hope more families will find us and get involved in our programs,” NBW Executive Director Erin DeCou said in a statement.

A larger space on Lancaster Ave will offer more flexibility and an opportunity for NBW to operate more than one class or event at a time. Located at the intersection of the Mantua, Belmont, and Powelton neighborhoods, the new headquarters will also allow NBW to be closer to more of the communities they serve.  Continue Reading

Here is the monthly breakfast and lunch menu served in Philadelphia public schools. Click on the images below to view the menus for grades K-8 and 9-12 for May 2015. If your school uses a Satellite menu, click here.

K-8 Breakfast and Lunch Menu, May 2015

9-12 Breakfast and Lunch Menu, May 2015