PHILADELPHIA, PA -- Congressman Chaka Fattah (D-PA) wrote State Treasurer Barbara Hafer today as new evidence of problems with Edison Schools Inc. were reported this morning in The Wichita Eagle.  

At the Ingalls-Edison Academy in Wichita, top administrators have been removed after a month-long investigation because district officials found "irregularities" in standardized tests at the school.  The NBC affiliate KSN reports today that the Principal and Assistant Principal were dismissed after the investigation showed “documented irregularities in the administration of a nationally normed student assessment test.”

After four years of dismal academic performance and poor management, Edison has been notified that their contract will not be renewed at Granville Charter School in Trenton, NJ.
 
In Albany, NY, former Board of Regents Member Eleanor Bartlett resigned from an Edison-run school because of the company’s refusal to lower class size.  Barlett, the principal of the New Covenant Charter School, asked for smaller classes to improve student performance. 

The financial bottom line, an expert said, often drives decisions by firms such as Edison.  "They have economies of scale," noted Harvey Newman, of the Center for Education Innovation, a New York City-based educational think tank.

“Just today, my research has shown three new examples that highlight the need for caution rather than reckless commitment to Edison.  Before millions of taxpayer dollars and hundreds of thousands of student life-chances are wasted on a questionable for-profit company, we must thoroughly examine their record,” wrote Congressman Fattah to Treasurer Hafer.

Two months ago, Congressman Fattah wrote Pennsylvania Governor Mark Schweiker asking for real change in our public schools.  It included seven core indicators for quality public schools for Philadelphia’s children.  They are: access to instruction in core courses from a fully qualified teacher, access to rigorous academic curriculums, both basic and advanced, access to textbooks and instructional supplies as current as their suburban counterparts, classroom sizes substantially equal to their suburban counterparts, access to a school with an up-to-date library staffed by a certified librarian, a student-to-computer ratio similar to their suburban counterparts, access to guidance counselors in a ratio that is comparable with that of other students in  suburban districts