Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker delivered remarks on the state of the city's school system before City Council and the Board of Education on Tuesday.
The mayor's office said that the remarks were part of a bi-annual meeting with the School District of Philadelphia, City Council and Parker's administration to discuss the state of education.
And, in opening her testimony before City Council, Parker said the district is improving.
"Philadelphia's story is actually a good one," she said. "More students are coming to school regularly. Fewer students are dropping out and student academic performance, it's rising."
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In her remarks, Parker noted that she is calling on City Council to support her move to invest $129 million in city funding into the school district over the next five years.
She said the funding is needed as the district is underfunded by $1.4 billion.
“No one had to mount a campaign to tell me that this is what we should be proposing," she said.
This funding increase, she said, would come with a continued commitment to Pre-K in the city.
Also, before the end of her comments on Monday, Parker said that she hopes to have a good working relationship with City Council as she continues her career as the city's 100th, and first Black and woman mayor.
“I can’t do it without you and you can’t do it without me. We are interdependent on each other in order to move Philadelphia forward," said Parker.
Parker's comments were delivered before City Council holds a budget hearing on Tuesday. That meeting was ongoing as of about 11 a.m.
This is a breaking news story. It will be updated as new information becomes available.
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