Philadelphia

Parents Speak Out Against Plan to Move Students from Overcrowded Elementary School to Middle School

Some parents created a petition to stop the move.

Parents are speaking out after officials announced that some students from an overcrowded Philadelphia elementary school will move to a middle school.

Parents of students at Mayfair Elementary School received a letter from the principal announcing Kindergarten and 1st Grade students will move to Austin Meehan Middle School on August 27, 2018.

Mayfair Elementary is located on 3001 Princeton Ave. Austin Meehan is located a little less than a mile away on 3001 Ryan Ave.

“This important change was necessary due to increasing enrollment within our school’s catchment area, and to ensure our primary years program is able to be offered without interruption,” Mayfair Elementary School principal Guy Lowery wrote to parents.

Mayfair Elementary School was built to accommodate 955 students but currently has 1,657, according to data from the Philadelphia School District. The school’s population has also increased over the past five years.

“We will relocate approximately 400 students to create safe conditions at the school, bringing the population at Mayfair to approximately 1,257,” a spokesperson for the District wrote.

The District will work over the summer to make sure the Meehan building is partially renovated and enhanced to “ensure our younger learners are able to attend class in a facility that is appropriate for primary grade instruction,” Lowery wrote.

Despite the relocation, the Kindergarten and 1st Grade students will still be classified as Mayfair Elementary students and there won’t be any change to their academic program, according to Lowery.

Mayfair Elementary teachers, administrators and support staff, including an Assistant Principal, school secretary, counselor and school police officer, will also move to the new location.

“The Mayfair program will operate completely independently and separate from the Austin Meehan program,” Lowery wrote.

The District spokesperson said a Kindergarten through 1st grade “pod” will be created in the Meehan building with its own entrance, establishing a “school-within-a-school atmosphere for the Mayfair students.”

The pod will have several renovations, including new bathrooms, updated furniture, fresh paint and upgraded lighting. There will also be an indoor and outdoor play space for the students.

The Mayfair students will also be provided daily transportation to and from Meehan.

Some parents created a petition to stop the move, arguing that Mayfair Elementary has classrooms specially equipped for the Kindergarten students and the move is unnecessary.

“This is outrageous,” one parent wrote. “My kids will be separated in two different schools and not to mention my son will be thrown into one of the worst schools around here with middle schoolers with bad behavioral problems!”

A meeting was held Thursday in which officials discussed the planned move with parents.

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