Philip Pannell

League of Women Voters^®
of the District of Columbia

Question 1:
Age: 60
Occupation: Director of Public Affairs, ADA Inc.; Executive Director, Anacostia Coordinating Council
Education: B.A., Political Science, Fordham University; Graduate Studies, Howard University; 4 certifications in HIV/AIDS Community and Peer Education

Qualifications for office sought: Served 5 years as Treasurer of Ballou Senior High School PTSA; Member of Local School Advisory Council for Ballou SHS; Treasurer, Friends of Washington Higlands Library; Served 10 years as Member of the Board of Trustees of DC Public Library; Have served in several leadership positions in Ward 8 organizations (v iew resume at http://www.pannellforward8.com. I was also the Executive Assistant to former President of the DC Board of Education, Peggy Cooper Cafritz.

Question 2 - What State Board of Education policies would you advocate? We live in a global economy and the foreign language requirement should be increased to 3 years. Students who are on high school sports teams should not be required to take Physical Education and should take additional reading and math classes. The 100 hours of community service that students are required to complete for high school graduation should be increased to 120 hours and there should be yearly requirements rather than a cumulative total. There should be required summer reading and essays. Students should be given vocabulary exercises to complete during the summer. The SBOE should meet periodically with the DC Public Library Board of Trustees to develop collaborative str ategies to make reading more of a community mission. Saturday academies should be established for remedial assistance. More co-curricular and extracurricular opportunities must be made available.

Question 3 - What are the major challengers to implementing the common core standards of learning? The major challenge is investing in more high quality teachers and giving them the resources to do excellent work. Also, those teachers who are evaluated as minimally effective must be given the professional development to improve. A curriculum must be developed that prepares the graduates for work. The problems of truancy and the dropout rate must be engaged by involving the entire community.

Questions 4 - Should high school students be required to have a semester of DC history and government? Students should be required have a semester of DC history and government. It is imperative that students have knowledge about the city where they live. Community groups and the DC government should afford more opportunities for student internships. Also, students who are intimately award of the history and workings of their own city may develop a probing curiosity about other areas of our nation.

Questions 5 - Is there a role for the State Board of Education in making charter schools accountable? By law there is no actual SBOE [State Board of Education] role in holding Public Charter Schools accountable. However, the Office of the State Superintendent for Education annually publishes with SBOE approval a report comparing schools based on common criteria, which helps parents make choices. Therefore, this is an indirect way of the SBOE playing a role in school accountability. Whether or not there should be a role is a citywide community conversation that the citizens should have with the introduction of appropriate legislation if there is a consensus for a role.

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