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Johann Calhoun, Chalkbeat PhiladelphiaJuly 15, 2021
School District of Philadelphia Chief Operating Officer Reggie McNeil points to the district’s new air and surface purifiers. Thursday’s announcement was made at Juniata Park Academy in the lower Northeast. (Johann Calhoun / Chalkbeat)
This story originally appeared on Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
Following a contentious year where Philadelphia teachers threatened to strike over ventilation problems in school buildings, Superintendent William Hite announced Thursday that all classrooms will have air and surface purifiers when school starts in the fall.
The safety of the city’s aging buildings became a key issue earlier this year in the debate about students returning to school for the first time since March 2020. After the district bought 3,000 window fans to improve air circulation, parents and teachers widely criticized the move on social media. Some even suggested that the fans were dangerous.
School District of Philadelphia finalizes new bell schedule for 2021 academic year phillyvoice.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from phillyvoice.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The letter included a link to the district s website, where anyone could access a document called 2021 Bell Schedule. But that list was incomplete, and when the district posted a link to the information to Facebook on Friday, commenters noticed, pointing out that Parkway Center City Middle College and Rhawnhurst Elementary School were among the schools left off. Why aren t all schools listed here… one person wrote. I don t see schools that are at the very end of the alphabet on the list…. another added. By Monday, the link to the 2021 Bell Schedule on district s website was not longer available, and the button user clicked to access the document had been edited to read Bell Schedules by School (coming soon).
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Families stand in line at Philadelphia School District headquarters to pick up Chromebooks ahead of the start of the school year in September 2020. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
The School District of Philadelphia just announced a new bell schedule for schools across the city that’s leaving parents, teachers, and principals feeling blindsided and upset because it shifts many high schools to starting earlier and elementary schools to starting later running counter to advice from pediatricians.
The district is phasing in what it is calling a “standardized approach to school start and end times.” According to the district, beginning in September, bus schedules will align with one of three uniform bell times: 7:30 a.m., 8:15 a.m., or 9 a.m.
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School District of Philadelphia Superintendent William Hite speaks at a press conference. (City of Philadelphia)
School District of Philadelphia high school seniors are about to finish their final, fully virtual year of classes.
At his weekly press conference Thursday, Superintendent William Hite praised the class of 2021 for its resilience in the face of the coronavirus pandemic and its many, rippling disruptions.
“Our seniors have shown that even when faced with adversity they can exceed expectations,” said Hite.
Hite chose a handful of students to speak Thursday, choosing seniors from across the city who exhibit a range of accomplishments.