By Ben Velderman
EAGnews.org

PHILADELPHIA – Leaders of the Philadelphia School District say they need an extra $120 million from the state just to provide a basic education for students next fall.

That’s $30 million more than “the entire proposed increase in the basic education budget for every school district in the (entire) commonwealth,” reports Philly.com.

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Philly Superintendent William Hite Jr. knows lawmakers aren’t likely to pour more money into a school system they view “as a cesspool.”

So Hite is hoping to make a deal with lawmakers: In exchange for the huge infusion of cash, the district will (attempt to) end teacher seniority – the practice of retaining teachers based on their length of service instead of their effectiveness.

“If we stand any chance to get money from Harrisburg, it’s going to have to support something that is different from what we have now,” Hite explained to the Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial Board on Thursday.

Hite added that lawmakers perceive the district as inefficient, wasteful and protective of “individuals that are not serving children.”

Hite’s candor caught the attention of Republicans, who control the General Assembly.

“It’s stunning and refreshing to hear from a Philadelphia superintendent,” Republican spokesman Steve Miskin told the news site. “I think we would definitely be willing to sit down and talk to him, and hear his ideas.”

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That’s more than the teacher union leaders appear willing to do.

“It’s the wrong conversation to have,” said Philadelphia Federation of Teachers President Jerry Jordan. “I can’t imagine anyone in the state legislature thinking that seniority is the magic bullet. The conversation should not be about something that’s not going to make a difference.”

Who said anything about a “magic bullet”?

The problems plaguing Philadelphia schools are so numerous that it’s going to take a series of radically different policies before things start to improve. And many of those problems can be traced directly to the greed and power of the local teachers union.

But removing incompetent teachers from classrooms, regardless of their seniority, certainly needs to be part of that process.

Hite’s proposal doesn’t appear to be going anywhere. Union members would have to sign off on it, and that seems highly improbable, given that the district is already asking them to make roughly $124 million in contract concessions to help keep the schools up and running.

Asking for both concessions and an end to seniority seems like a bridge too far, even if it would be a very good bridge to build.

Still, Hite is wise to broach the subject. It’s a policy that Philadelphia schools will have to implement eventually, so they might as well address it now and get the conversation going.

What we take away from all this is that Hite – who has been on the job for less than a year – is already proving himself to be one of the boldest and most honest superintendents in America.

That means the unions will soon be calling for his ouster.

We wish Hite much success. The future of the Philadelphia school district may very well depend on it.