Despite layoffs, ready to open
Teachers and administrators said Delaware Valley owed them thousands of dollars.
ALSO ON PHILLY.COM
A for-profit company that runs alternative-education schools in the region said it was prepared for students to arrive next month - despite laying off its staff in July.
"They are open and ready to go," said Alan E. Casnoff, an attorney who represents Delaware Valley High School.
He said the school had agreements in place with suburban districts for its campuses in Reading and Warminster but does not have a signed contract with Philadelphia for the two sites it has operated in the city.
Delaware Valley - whose records have been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury - in July abruptly laid off 50 members of its teaching and administrative staff at the four alternative schools it operates in the region.
Teachers and administrators said lawyer David T. Shulick, whose company operates Delaware Valley, owes them each thousands of dollars for work during the 2011-12 academic year. They said they had been expecting to get back pay in July but got furlough notices instead.
The layoff letters they received said the action was necessary because Delaware Valley did not yet have a signed, one-year contract extension with the Philadelphia district to run a disciplinary school and a program for at-risk students for 2012-13.
"The school district has its own issues at the moment," Casnoff said. "We're still waiting for it to be signed."
The Philadelphia School Reform Commission in April approved one-year extensions for Delaware Valley and other alternative-education firms. None of the agreements has been signed. District spokesman Fernando Gallard said the district hoped to have the issue resolved soon.
The extension the SRC approved calls for Delaware Valley to be paid $3.6 million to operate its disciplinary school on Kelly Drive for 300 students and an accelerated program in Southwest Philadelphia for 200 teenagers and young adults who have dropped out of school or are at risk of doing so.
While some Delaware Valley teachers have been instructed to report for work this week, Casnoff said he was not sure how many had been contacted. "I think most everybody is going to be called back," he said.
Casnoff said the program that provides alternative education services for students from Reading has moved from a site in Pottstown to a building owned by the Reading school district at that district's request.
Delaware Valley sources said the staff in Reading had been asked to return Monday while those at the two Philadelphia sites and Warminster are scheduled to report to work Thursday.
It is unclear, though, how many of the furloughed employees who said they are owed thousands of dollars will return.
Under the terms of their one-year contracts, Delaware Valley staffers are paid over 12 months for their work during the 10-month academic year. Teachers and most of the administrators who were laid off have not been paid since June.
Meanwhile, the school has been advertising for new teachers and other staff.
While Shulick's company has furloughed a small number of employees in past years, longtime staffers said he had never before imposed massive layoffs.
Three former teachers who were laid off last summer after working at the Kelly Drive site in 2010-11 have a suit pending against Shulick's firm that alleges they are owed a total of nearly $20,000 in back pay.
And in late July, a former teacher who was laid off from the Southwest Philadelphia site Jan. 25, filed a suit alleging Delaware Valley breached her contract and owes her $5,100 in back pay.
Delaware Valley's contract with the school district shows teachers receive salaries of $45,000 plus benefits. Copies of teachers' contracts indicate the school pays $36,000 if they waive their benefits, $31,000 if they want them.
In late February, the FBI raided Shulick's Logan Square law office, searching for documents related to Delaware Valley's relationship with Chaka "Chip" Fattah Jr., 29, whose father is U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah, a Philadelphia Democrat. They also interviewed Shulick.
Delaware Valley had paid 10 percent of its $4.5 million contract with the Philadelphia School District for the 2010-2011 school year to 259 Strategies L.L.C., a minority firm owned by Fattah Jr., who had an office in Shulick's law firm. After firing Fattah Jr. last summer, Shulick rehired him in December but did not renew his subcontract.
Federal authorities are investigating whether political influence helped Delaware Valley obtain contracts, according to sources, and whether Fattah Jr.'s involvement shielded the school from deeper cuts amid the Philadelphia district's widening financial problems.
According to district sources, the district has received a sweeping subpoena for five years' accumulation of documents, contracts, and all communications - including e-mails - related to Shulick and Delaware Valley High School.
Sources said the federal investigating is continuing.
He said the school had agreements in place with suburban districts for its campuses in Reading and Warminster but does not have a signed contract with Philadelphia for the two sites it has operated in the city.
Delaware Valley - whose records have been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury - in July abruptly laid off 50 members of its teaching and administrative staff at the four alternative schools it operates in the region.
Teachers and administrators said lawyer David T. Shulick, whose company operates Delaware Valley, owes them each thousands of dollars for work during the 2011-12 academic year. They said they had been expecting to get back pay in July but got furlough notices instead.
The layoff letters they received said the action was necessary because Delaware Valley did not yet have a signed, one-year contract extension with the Philadelphia district to run a disciplinary school and a program for at-risk students for 2012-13.
"The school district has its own issues at the moment," Casnoff said. "We're still waiting for it to be signed."
The Philadelphia School Reform Commission in April approved one-year extensions for Delaware Valley and other alternative-education firms. None of the agreements has been signed. District spokesman Fernando Gallard said the district hoped to have the issue resolved soon.
The extension the SRC approved calls for Delaware Valley to be paid $3.6 million to operate its disciplinary school on Kelly Drive for 300 students and an accelerated program in Southwest Philadelphia for 200 teenagers and young adults who have dropped out of school or are at risk of doing so.
While some Delaware Valley teachers have been instructed to report for work this week, Casnoff said he was not sure how many had been contacted. "I think most everybody is going to be called back," he said.
Casnoff said the program that provides alternative education services for students from Reading has moved from a site in Pottstown to a building owned by the Reading school district at that district's request.
Delaware Valley sources said the staff in Reading had been asked to return Monday while those at the two Philadelphia sites and Warminster are scheduled to report to work Thursday.
It is unclear, though, how many of the furloughed employees who said they are owed thousands of dollars will return.
Under the terms of their one-year contracts, Delaware Valley staffers are paid over 12 months for their work during the 10-month academic year. Teachers and most of the administrators who were laid off have not been paid since June.
Meanwhile, the school has been advertising for new teachers and other staff.
While Shulick's company has furloughed a small number of employees in past years, longtime staffers said he had never before imposed massive layoffs.
Three former teachers who were laid off last summer after working at the Kelly Drive site in 2010-11 have a suit pending against Shulick's firm that alleges they are owed a total of nearly $20,000 in back pay.
And in late July, a former teacher who was laid off from the Southwest Philadelphia site Jan. 25, filed a suit alleging Delaware Valley breached her contract and owes her $5,100 in back pay.
Delaware Valley's contract with the school district shows teachers receive salaries of $45,000 plus benefits. Copies of teachers' contracts indicate the school pays $36,000 if they waive their benefits, $31,000 if they want them.
In late February, the FBI raided Shulick's Logan Square law office, searching for documents related to Delaware Valley's relationship with Chaka "Chip" Fattah Jr., 29, whose father is U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah, a Philadelphia Democrat. They also interviewed Shulick.
Delaware Valley had paid 10 percent of its $4.5 million contract with the Philadelphia School District for the 2010-2011 school year to 259 Strategies L.L.C., a minority firm owned by Fattah Jr., who had an office in Shulick's law firm. After firing Fattah Jr. last summer, Shulick rehired him in December but did not renew his subcontract.
Federal authorities are investigating whether political influence helped Delaware Valley obtain contracts, according to sources, and whether Fattah Jr.'s involvement shielded the school from deeper cuts amid the Philadelphia district's widening financial problems.
According to district sources, the district has received a sweeping subpoena for five years' accumulation of documents, contracts, and all communications - including e-mails - related to Shulick and Delaware Valley High School.
Sources said the federal investigating is continuing.
20 comments:
The incredible off again on again alternative school. Allegedly on again despite furloughing its staff last month. Is this a tenable situation that we want to be involved in? How many Morrisville students are affected?
Ah the wonders of privatization.
More like the very real perils of privatization. Think where we'd be if Hellmaniacs completed the Farm Out with DelVal.
Imagine if Hellmann, Mihok, Radosti, DeWilde, Stout, and Worob had had their way and farmed out the high school to the highest bidder. We'd be in a second lawsuit.
It would be at least the 3rd lawsuit. Head Start and Tech School lawsuits are already in progress.
Others?
Imagine if Hellman, Mihok, Radosti, DeWilde, Stout, and Worob were all voted by an entire community to make decisions for the education and well being of our youth? Imagine how well that would work out? Imagine how uneducated you would have to be to put those people in charge of anything, anywhere, by themselves let alone together...making decisions about books and curriculum, and funding and special education and athletics and background checks of administrators and qualifications of coaches etc... Imagine the horror. Thank God that would never happen. Ever.
I can't put Dewilde in the same league as those others. Rude lump Stout needs to go in '13.
Has anywone noticed the garbage dump in front of Hellman CPA office? Looks like the place was cleaned out and all the trash dumped on the curb withoug a thought.
Has Bill Hellman paid his trash bill yet or is he still refusing to pay?
I shouldn't expect anything more from the man who advises his clients not to invest in Morrisville.
Is the IRS coming?
Some folks are born silver spoon in hand,
Lord, don't they help themselves, oh.
But when the taxman comes to the door,
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yes,
those were the docs he and son took from boro hall??? really improves the bridge st corridor to see his junk curbside
One man's trash is another man's treasure, but since he's not paying, the bill is ours.
I was sooooo hoping he would be our district's candidate for state rep so the entire district could experience his charm and humility.
Hellman continues to NOT pay his trash bills as far as I know. (this includes his rental properties) The kicker is that the borough still picks up his trash, just at our expense instead of his.
I am thankful that the trash gets taken off the streets even though so many in the borough do not pay for its removal. It seems like there are soooo many owing, I can only imagine what it would look like if it was all left on the curb until the bills were all paid. I am not thankful that there are so many people owning property in the borough who have no problem letting everyone else suffer because they are too lazy to pay their share like the rest of us.
Wow.
Many of the dead-beats are the same people who with great conviction blast 'those people' who always get a free ride.
Seems to me that common sense would suggest a background check before being allowed to run for public office? Maybe the school district and the borough could find the time to communicate regarding this minute detail of being an out and out loser? Setting a good example for our students is the responsibility of all, not just a select few.
Checking people out might sound like a good idea to some, but it's totally illegal. There are federal and state election laws that must be followed. Morrisville Borough has no authority to decide any election law.
All I can say on this subject is do your own homework, don't listen to second-hand whispering, know that you will be lied to at some point by someone, talk to candidates, (not everyone else in town) and vote responsibly.
Good truthful advice.
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