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Dr. Hite’s announcement that he will not be returning comes along with a slew of questions and challenges. The School District of Philadelphia (SDP) is notoriously secretive when it comes to hiring and policy changes. As the search for the new superintendent persists, members of the district have been less than informed about the future. While Dr. Hite has been the district’s longest running superintendent, with almost a decade’s worth of experience, his leave allows for a fresh start. Dr. Hite’s time here has been controversial, coupled with a pandemic, a new admissions system, and demand for more student voices. Students, families and faculty hope to see change when the new superintendent is hired.
The conversation about the position exposes a primary concern: will the new superintendent’s first years be haunted by Dr. Hite’s legacy? As a Masterman student who has witnessed a lack of student voices in the past, I have some concerns. I am worried that student votes will be overridden by the district’s preference. In the SDP we have seen a lack of concern for student needs and wants in regards to the pandemic and school policy. As we transition leadership, one can only hope that the students’ opinions will be considered before making large decisions. I could see this shift happening by granting a vote to the students on the SDP board, which would allow them to effectively advocate for the ideas of their peers.
An added challenge for the superintendent is the upcoming school year with the new high school admission system. As the system leaves no precedent, it is impossible to predict how it will unfold. This timing is less-than-ideal for an administration change. With many schools turning upside down in an effort to adapt to the admissions process, the new superintendent will have to deal with the aftermath. This leaves a new person, in an already difficult district, to deal with a system that they did not create. This could lead to problems among parents, faculty and students. People have already expressed concerns about the change affecting their education, leaving the new superintendent to ensure that every student in the district is given a valuable education, despite the new system.
As we prepare for the transition in the administration of the district, we still lack solvency for the pandemic. As of now, the district’s decisions to keep students in-person and the constant changing of COVID policies has been controversial. As the SDP tries to keep us in schools, positive COVID percentages in schools have increased. We are seeing student safety gradually lose priority as the push to keep schools open increases. We do not know what the fall holds for us. We can hope that the new superintendent has a plan that both maximizes safety and education.
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