Study: Phila. parents want more school-choice options

Forty-two percent of parents say it's "somewhat hard" or "very hard" to find enough information about the educational options; 72 percent say city parents need more good choices.

Sixty-two percent of parents said the expansion of charter schools has been a good thing.

"In Philadelphia, charter schools have been embraced by parents in a way that resembles a slow-motion stampede," the report says. "This trend has developed in the face of evidence that many charters perform no better than district schools, and a constant drumbeat of news reports and investigations regarding alleged and proven improprieties in the way charters operate."

Researchers found that the growth of charters - there were 67 in the year just ended - not only left the district with 45,000 empty seats, but also weakened a system of Catholic schools already grappling with fewer Catholics living in the city.

Most pastors, Catholic administrators, and officials in the archdiocese said they expected the decline to continue. One Catholic educator in the report said that charters had in effect "stolen the Catholic brand" by emphasizing safety, discipline, and the teaching of values, but not charging tuition. "It is competition we can't meet," the educator said.

The Catholic schools already receive support from organizations such as Business Leadership Organized for Catholic Schools (BLOCS). A new group called the Philadelphia School Project aims to raise private money to support good schools, no matter who operates them.

Contact staff writer Martha Woodall at 215-854-2789 or martha.woodall@phillynews.com.

Read the study at www.pewtrusts.org/philaresearch