Keystone Progress files Right to Know Law request seeking correspondence between Governor’s Office and School Reform Commission to uncover the truth
(HARRISBURG, PA)— Keystone Progress (KP) has filed a Right to Know Law request with the Office of Open Records seeking:
1. All written communications between the Office of the Governor and any member of the Philadelphia School Reform Commission (i.e., Bill Greene, Sylvia Simms, Feather Houstoun, Farah Jimenez, and Marjorie Neff) from August 1, 2014 to the date this letter is received.
2. All communications between the Office of the Governor and any staff member of the School District of Philadelphia from August 1, 2014 to the date this letter is received.
“We are filing this request for information because the recent attacks on Philadelphia’s schools by Tom Corbett’s School Reform Commission reeks of political opportunism,” said Keystone Progress Executive Director Michael Morrill. “This is especially important in light of the secret poll that the Philadelphia City Paper uncovered last year that recommended Corbett’s campaign should take on the Philly teachers as part of his re-election strategy.”
Morrill is referring to a Philadelphia City Paper article by Daniel Denvir that exposed a secret poll that recommended Corbett should attack Philadelphia teachers as “enemies.” (“Secret poll: Corbett should exploit Philly school crisis, attack teachers union for political gain,” Philadelphia City Paper, 6/19/2013)
The poll summary said, "With Governor Corbett's weak job approval, re-elect and ballot support numbers, the current Philadelphia school crisis presents an opportunity for the Governor to wedge the electorate on an issue that is favorable to him… Staging this battle presents Corbett with an opportunity to coalesce his base, focus on a key emerging issue in the state, and campaign against an 'enemy' that's going to aggressively oppose him in '14 in any case."
The pollster, Public Opinion Strategies, went on to say, “Taking on this fight moves Corbett's approval scores on handling education" and "boosts his overall approval numbers."
“This poll’s recommendation that Corbett should attack Philadelphia teachers and the recent decision by Corbett’s SRC to act on that recommendation right before the election seems to be more than coincidental,” continued Morrill. “That’s why we have filed this Right to Know Law request.”
KP believes in public accountability and regularly files Right to Know Law requests seeking information that should be available to the public.
The Governor’s office has five business days to respond to the request.