The Zip Code Effect by Kamal Elliott

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT ON PHIALDELPHIA NEIGHBORHOOD PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS 2016 | TEMPLE PHOTO SEMINAR

All rights are reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by an means, electronic, mechianical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior permission o the Photo Seminar class of 2016

CONTENTS 3 - FOREWORD 7 - NORTHEAST 21 - OVERBROOK 35 - THOMAS EDISON 49 - SOUTH

FOREWORD Brianna Spause PHOTO BY ERIC WHITE

very day, over 67,000 students rise with the sun, and make the trek to their public high schools in Philadelphia. Their educational journeys however, are not the same. A divide exists in this city’s public school’s system. It’s the ZIP Code Effect, and it’s the City of Philadelphia’s means for marginalizing the students who frequent the halls of Neighborhood Public Schools.

Neighborhood Public Schools

Neighborhood Public High Schools serve students in their communities, and open admission is based on location within the catchment area. The schools are often within walking distance of the student’s homes. 28 percent of students in Philadelphia attend their neighborhood schools. Neighborhood schools face a unique challenge in the 21st Century urban education system,whereMagnetandCharterschoolsattractbrightandmotivatedstudentselsewhere - systematically drawing talent out of communities.

Magnet Schools

Special Admission and Citywide schools are considered “Magnet” schools, which attractstudentsbasedonspecificprogramming.SpecialAdmissionschoolsofferenriched programs on particular areas of study, including math, science, engineering and the arts. Theircompetitiveadmissionprocessfocusesonattendance,behaviorandgrades.Citywide schoolsofferprogramsfocusedonacademicsorcareerandtechnicaleducation.Students must show passing grades and adequate attendance records, and are chosen based on a

curriculum their teaching strategies to compete with Charter Schools that were drawing these students.” The very different school systems that exist within the Philadelphia education system drastically segregate the type of students in the school populations. A common criticism finds that Charter and Magnet schools draw the talent out of neighborhoods. Culver says parentsoftenpushtheirchildrentowardsthesespecialadmissionschoolswhenseekinga, “better alternative to education.” Research supports the idea that special admission schools provide an elevated level of education for their students. Stanford’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes found that poor students in charters learned more than their peers at traditional public schools. According to test scores in Philadelphia, the study indicated that, on average, charter school students received the equivalent of 40 more days of math learning and

lottery system. 26 percent of students in the district attend these magnet schools. “Magnet schools started as a way to desegregate schools.” “Cities that were forced to desegregate wanted to have a draw to get white students and their families to come to schools that may have been predominantly black, or, to just integrate schools across a district,” Dr. Katie Culver, Urban Education professor at Temple University said.

Charter Schools

Charter Schools are nonprofit, independently operated public schools that gained popularity in Philadelphia in the 1980s. In 1977, the Pennsylvania Charter School Law allowed the schools to operate separate from the state mandates for traditional public schools, which gives Charters the opportunity to offer alternative education to their students. Admission is similar to Citywide schools, which choose students based on a lottery system. 47 percent of students in the Philadelphia School District attend Charter schools. “The Charter School movement started as a way to sort of inspire and promote innovation in schools.” “Schools for so long were doing the same thing over and over again without any different results,” Culver said. “The other idea was to promote competition so that regularpublicschoolswouldwanttoinnovateandwanttomakechangestoimprovetheir

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 4

28 more days of reading. The clear difference in educational attainment is also illustrated

by the class of 2014 graduation and college-going rates. “You have to think about when you have a school that requires an application process or information that requires you to get in a lottery, there is something different about that student population. It’s different than a regular public school, you have someone

advocating for you.” “Overall these Charter schools do have different student populations, there is that significant characteristic that’s going to be different than a regular public school,”Culver said.“They’re serving kids with great needs, and there’s no question about that, but I feel for the teachers, the principals, and the students who are maybe left in a neighborhood school and wishing that the competition and innovation transfer over.” The outcome of student success that lags behind in Neighborhood schools can be attributed to a variety of factors. First is the disproportional amount of at-risk students left in neighborhood schools after their peers have migrated and applied elsewhere. As shown above, Neighborhood high schools house the highest population of at-risk

that community and connection have a direct effect on achievement. Hence, the ZIP Code effect. Below, the amount of individuals with a high school diploma in these Neighborhood high schools’ Zip Code provide a base for the youth, and have an effect on the graduation rate therein. “Why would you stay in a high school when you don’t see the potential of how that would improve your life?” “Whenyouliveinanaffluentarea,youseeallaroundyoupeoplegoingtoworkeveryday and they probably have a lot of different types of jobs,” Culver said. “You are connected to these people.Whereas you get kids in a school where they don’t know anyone that has graduated high school, they don’t know anyone who it has benefited. Even a high school diploma, even though it will help you get a job, it’s not going to help you with social mobility and hopefully getting out of poverty.” Dr. Culver detects a two way relationships, where schools mirror their neighborhoods, but neighborhoods also contribute to improving schools. When students rely on their communitiestoprovidethesupporttheylackinschool,theirneighborsbecometheirrole models. Below is an illustration of how Average Income per ZIP Code has an effect on graduation rate.

students in each category. And that’s not all, according to the Education Law Center, 1 in 5highschoolstudents inPhiladelphiahavebeeninvolvedwith theDepartmentofHealth Services’ child welfare or juvenile justice systems. The large majority of these students attend their neighborhood schools. “The Public schools are left with the students with the greatest need and they have the least amount of resources.” When students leave their communities, they are starved of resources and budgets have been cut for after stimulating after-school programs, their communities, students become a victim of circumstance. Social capital is an observation made by sociologists

NORTHEAST HIGH SCHOOL DAN SILVJAK | MICHELLE SEVERINO | MATT McGRAW NortheastPhiladelphiaHighSchoolislocatedattheintersectionof Cottman and Algon streets. Originally founded in 1890, the school has since moved from its original location at 8th and Lehigh Avenue, the current site of Thomas Edison High School. The school has matriculated many a superstar including professional athletes, an Academy Award winner, and the first female graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. The school has even played host to a 2010 A&E reality show called Teach: Tony Danza, where Danza taught sophomore English for a full academic year. DuetobudgetcutsinrecentyearsthathaveplaguedthePhiladelphia SchoolDistrictasawhole,classsizeshaveincreasedbeyondteacher’s contractualstandards(33)andtextbooksandteachingmaterialshave been left to age like a fine wine. “It’s a very full school,” says Nora Lopez, mother of Ivette Lopez a current Junior at Northeast.“They

need peace and quiet in order to be able to concentrate, [the over crowdedness] affects their ability to learn a lot.” According to the United Federation ofTeachers, the contractual standards for a high school classroom are: “JHS/MS (all grades 4 – 8 or 5 – 9, if are located in a middle school, then middle school class size applies): 33 students in nonTitle I schools; 30 in Title I schools.” ThelastPhiladelphiaFederationofTeacher’scontractspannedthe years 2009-2013. There has not been a new contract in 3 years. Amitthai [last name withheld] comments about overcrowding at Northeast, “I had one class where we literally had sixty kids and we had to sit on the window sill, and there wasn’t enough books and it was pretty trashy.” Overcrowding in schools is a large issue plaguing Philadelphia Schools. The student to teacher ratio commonly correlates to quality of education. The US National Assessment of Educational Progress published data from a 2005 study showing a link between class size and reading performance. The study displays the negative correlationbetweenhigh-classsizeandreadingperformanceinthe classroom. “I’mnotsurethatmydaughterisreceivingthenecessaryeducation that she needs to be getting [,]”says Nora. The bottom line is “they need more economic help.”

“Northeast is pretty good academically and socially” - Amitthai Pierre THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 8 - NORTHEAST

MICHELLE SEVERINO

“We do a lot with not as much” - Shelby Kaminsky

“I’m just trying to get to college.” - Shakir Mukhtar

MICHELLE SEVERINO

“The school itself isn’t bad. The bad is brought into the school. The teachers are there to teach, and the school runs into problems with violence with the students. The students are out of control. If they can’t respect their parents at home they won’t respect their teachers in school. It’s a shame.” - Nora Lopez, 16, Sophmore

MICHELLE SEVERINO

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 10 - NORTHEAST

“I use to feel safe, but know Its not as safe as it use to be, it’s like… I know the police are always at the school, like, during the school day, and that makes you feel unsafe [because], I don’t know if they are going to hurt me but, so… I guess just people, just communicating with each other [because] like we don’t have that here.” - Moriah Clifton, 16, a North East Resident

MICHELLE SEVERINO

MATT McGRAW

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 12- NORTHEAST

The last Philadelphia Federation of Teacherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contract spanned the years 2009-2013. There has not been a new contract in 3 years.

MATT McGRAW

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 14 - NORTHEAST

MATT McGRAW

Overcrowding in schools is a large issue plaguing Philadelphia Schools. The student to teacher ratio commonly correlates to quality of education.

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 16 - NORTHEAST

MATT McGRAW

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 18 - NORTHEAST

MATT McGRAW

OVERBROOK HIGH SCHOOL HOLLI STEPHENS | TATYANA TURNER Overbrook High School’s castle like exterior towers over the mote of busy roads, coming from every direction. It is nestled on 59 and Lancaster in theWest Philadelphia section on the city. Architect Irwin Thornton Catharine built the school between in 1924 and his style was described as a “gothic revival”. It is now part of the National Register of Historic Places. Thesecondaryneighborhoodschoolhasclassesforstudentsgrade 9-12 and has a population of roughly 646 students. The school has seen drastic student enrollment from having 973 students in 2013. Theschoolrequiresuniformsforallages.Freshmanandsophomores arerequiredtoweargrayshirtorbluevestswithwhitecollaredshirts. Juniors and Seniors must wear black or white logoed shirts. 96/7% of the student population is made up of African American

students with .2% being Asian, 1.5% being Latino and 1.5% as other. Attendance at the school has risen from 76.7% in 2013 to 81.6% in 2015. The 2014-2015 School Report of Overbrook judges the school based on performance tiers, which range from intervene being the lowest to model being the highest. In these specific categories Overbrook was credit with the intervene tier: Overall, Achievement, Progress, Climate, and College and Career. Keystone testing in Literature, Biology and Algebra was based in the same tier system for first-time pass rate, re-test pass rate and advanced rate. Intervene was the tier for every section. The School District of Philadelphia also reports on the amount of serious injuries at a specific school. FromSeptemberof2015throughJanuary2016therehavebeen38 incidentswhichincludeprocessionofdrugsandweapons,disorderly conduct, assault on students and police, and child abuse. Overbrook is sometimes referred to as the specific neighborhood but also includes these Philadelphia City Planning Commission neighborhoods: Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Morris Park and Overbrook Park. Besides Overbrook High School there is also Overbrook School for the Blind, which was established in 1832. Notable alumnus include actor Will Smith and NBA star Wilt Chamberlin.

“Its okay[ school], nothing special. They’re really nice. I could say there’s a lot of shooting going on around the school but I don’t think it has an affect on the school.” -Alisha Devine, Sophomore

TATYANA TURNER

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 22 - OVERBROOK

“It’s been cool here. I have average classes. Some of them [teachers] are half and half, some of them aren’t. I’m from West Philly. It takes me like 20 minutes for me to get here. The surrounding area doesn’t really affect me at all, I just stay out the way.” - Clifford Brinkley, Junior TATYANA TURNER

“They good [classes] just teachers just don’t push you as you want to sometimes. Other students help you because if you’re like on the football team or something, they will try to help you out because it’s a team thing. I’m from this neighborhood, I don’t really see nothing going on just see things happening in average places.” - Tevin Taylor, Junior THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 24 - OVERBROOK

TATYANA TURNER

“It [ School] is fun, but school’s not supposed to be fun. Teachers are fine but the disciplinary guy said that he’s going to get some better teachers next year because there’s certain teachers are in there where you could tell they want to help the kids, but then there’s certain ones that they don’t really want to help. I’m from West Philly. It’s been a cool experience here.” - Nasir Muhammed, Senior

TATYANA TURNER

HOLLI STEPHENS

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 26 - OVERBROOK

TATYANA TURNER

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 28 - OVERBROOK

96/7% of the student population is made up of African American students with .2% being Asian, 1.5% being Latino and 1.5% as other. Notable alumnus include actor Will Smith and NBA star Wilt Chamberlin.

HOLLI STEPHENS

TATYANA TURNER

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 30 - OVERBROOK

TATYANA TURNER

HOLLI STEPHENS

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 32 - OVERBROOK

HOLLI STEPHENS

EDISON/FAREIRA SKILLS CENTER BRIANNA SPAUSE | JILLIAN TAM Thomas Alva Edison/John C. Fareira High School is a neighborhood public school located in the Hunting Park neighborhood of North Philadelphia. Edison High opened in 1903, and has undergone some major transfers in terms of student body and curriculum. Originally an All Male Training High School at 8th and Lehigh, the school was named Northeast High School.When the Northeast High School that we all know now opened on Cottman Avenue in 1988, Thomas Alva Edison came into view. In 1988, Thomas Alva Edison was replaced with a co-educational Edison/Fareira High School. Currently, Edison High School houses 1,300 students and 150 teachers, and employs the newly formed model of aVocationalTraining School as well as an educational center. In their Freshman year, students explore all of the technical training options available to them in the FreshmanAcademy.Uponenteringsophomoreyear,thestudentscanchooseaconcentration ineitherCommunicationsTechnology,Healthcare&HospitalityorConstructionEngineering & Auto Tech. These vocational schools transcend traditional learning practices and prepare students for the workforce and the world of college and beyond. Besides a strikingly high dropout rate, and the amount of students qualifying for financial aid in order to receive free or reduced priced lunch coming in at 100%, Edison boasts some positive attitudes from its students.

“I would just say that since next year is going to be my last year here Edison is kind of like, it’s not a great school it’s ehhh, but if you can survive here than you can survive at any other school” - Iyana Griffin Junior THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 36 - EDISON

JILLIAN TAM

“I’m going to school for welding, so I’m actually gonna try to go to college for that, try to learn more about it.” - Elizabeth Lopez, Sophmore BRIANNA SPAUSE

“We have lockdowns every other day. We never know why. They always finding some bullets or somebody is shooting some guns, like come on. We missed our last two classes yesterday.” - Leana Grey, Sophmore

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 38 - EDISON

“The reason I want to go to a Charter School is because they break it down to you more than a Public school would. Their attention is more on you and not anywhere else.” - Bryhannah Vega, Sophomore

BRIANNA SPAUSE

JILLIAN TAM

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 40 - EDISON

Upon entering sophomore year, the students can choose a concentration in either Communications Technology, Healthcare & Hospitality or Construction Engineering & Auto Tech. Besides a strikingly high dropout rate, and the amount of students qualifying for financial aid in order to receive free or reduced priced lunch coming in at 100%, Edison boasts some positive attitudes from its students.

JILLIAN TAM

BRIANNA SPAUSE

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 42 - EDISON

BRIANNA SPAUSE

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 44 - EDISON

JILLIAN TAM

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 46 - EDISON

JILLIAN TAM

SOUTH PHILADELPHIA HIGH SCHOOL ERIC WHITE | MIHN MAI | KAMAL ELLIOTT As the sun rises in South Philadelphia, so do the students of South Philadelphia High School, both from the East Passyunk neighborhood, and from the Snyder Street subway station. Since 1907, the school has served the South Philadelphia community. However, due to school closings in recent years, South Philadelphia High School was forced to merge with rival high school Bok Technical in 2013. Over the past several years, however, The school has had trouble with drugs, gang violence, and race violence. This has caused a decrease in enrollment in the school, and has brought about new changes in the staff, including a new principal. With a population of only 710 students, South Philadelphia High School has seen its population decrease by 30% over the past two years. The student population is majority black at 58%, with Asian at 17%, Latino at 13%, and White at 9%. Along with the decrease in population,theschoolhasseenadrasticdecreaseintestscores,with

math PSSA scores decreasing by nearly 40% since 2014, and reading scores decreasing by 10%. However, the school has seen a steady increase in the Keystone test since the 2013 Bok merger. Despitethenumbersnotshowingit,neighborhood-crossingguard Sheryl Meccariello has seen the culture of the school drastically change in her nine years at 13th and Jackson Streets.“There’s not a lot of trouble now,” said Meccariello, “I remember kids trying to throw books at old ladies on the street a few years ago. But now with the new principal, the kids go to school, and they stay all day.” Senior Dante Watkins was one of the students that transferred from Bok to South Philadelphia in 2013, and he also says that the school has gotten better. “It was horrible,” the aspiring environmental science major said,“There was tension between the teachers, because there were too many teachers.There was tension betweenthestudentsbecause…well,peoplelovetobecompetitive andcool.So,therewouldbefightssometimesbetweenpeoplefrom the different schools, and then from the same school because it was confusing. It was really bad.” Luckily, the school has seen these things decrease statistically as well, with a suspension being down nearly a third from 2014 to 2015. Thus, it seems that South Philadelphia High School is on an upswing. “It’s definitely on the brighter side of the district, in my opinion,” saidWatkins,asheeagerlylefttogettoclassonWednesdaymorning.

“Compared to like suburbs for example, were not getting enough. I think they send more books, experienced teachers, to the suburbs.” - Casey Williams THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 50 - SOUTH

ERIC WHITE

“Teachers aren’t that great, like, none of them teach. Most of ‘em that I have, don’t teach. It’s very difficult. And the bathrooms are disgusting.” - Dominic Deverio

ERIC WHITE

“For me, it’s been good experience, because I came from Bok. When I was at Bok, I felt comfortable because I had a lot of family history there.” - James Quinn THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 52 - SOUTH

ERIC WHITE

“When we transferred from Bok, the next year I thought we’d come into school and there would be a lot of fights. But it wasn’t really like that.” - Anwar Harris

ERIC WHITE

South Philadelphia High School was forced to merge with rival high school Bok Technical in 2013.

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 54 - SOUTH

MIHN MAI

Over the past several years South Philadelphia High Schoolhas had trouble with drugs, gang violence, and race violence. This has caused a decrease in enrollment in the school, and has brought about new changes in the staff, including a new principal.

KAMAL ELLIOTT

ERIC WHITE

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 56 - SOUTH

KAMAL ELLIOTT

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 58 - SOUTH

KAMAL ELLIOTT

ERIC WHITE

THE ZIP CODE EFFECT - 60 - SOUTH

ERIC WHITE

ABOUT US The future is in the hands of todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s young scholars. Five digits can control how well these students succeed. Produced by Temple Photojournalism, this project details the impact of the ZIP Code Effect as it relates to four Neighborhood Public High Schools in Philadelphia. We spoke to students, teachers and professionals in four major areas of the city to realize their stories. Leadership

Brianna Spause, Holli Stephens, Kamal Elliot, Matt McGraw

Thomas Alva Edison/Fareira Skills Center Brianna Spause, Jillian Tam

Overbrook High School

Holli Stephens, Tatyana Turner

Northeast High School

Dan Slivjak, Matt McGraw, Michelle Severino

South Philadelphia High School Kamal Elliot, Minh Mai, Eric White