Laos Books

Celebrating our accomplishments

On June 7, the Notebook family will come together again at our annual “Turning the Page for Change” celebration. It’s always a great party and I hope you’ll be able to make it. I’ve been thinking some about the Notebook’s accomplishments since we partied last June, and I decided to start a list. It’s not complete but it’s what’s on my mind — and I hope you’ll add to it.

• Last fall Philadelphia students and parents snatched up thousands of copies of the Notebook’s fall guide to choosing a high school, demonstrating that they need credible, independent information to help them navigate the District’s labyrinthine school selection process.
• Activists have drawn on the Notebook’s October in-depth coverage of school funding to wage their battle for equitable funding. Check out how Helen Gym of Parents United is coaching City Council members on what they need to ask District officials about how they manage taxpayer money. Parent leaders like Helen depend on the Notebook.
• School Advisory Council (SAC) members read and circulated the Notebook’s coverage of Renaissance Schools as they deliberated over high-stakes decisions for their children. From a SAC chair: “The School Advisory Council parents really used the Notebook. In my position I have to keep parents informed. It was important that we had the Notebook. The Renaissance Schools initiative was highly political and parents were interested in knowing more about it.”
• Mayor Nutter asked his Chief Integrity Officer to conduct an inquiry into the conduct of SRC Chair Robert Archie and other officials after the Notebook (and NewsWorks) broke the story of a private meeting that appeared to result in effectively overturning an SRC decision about who would manage Martin Luther King High School.
• Philadelphia’s dailies improved their coverage of education in response to the Notebook‘s high bar. Breaking stories on the Notebook’s website challenged the mainstream media to delve deeper in their own reporting and even to collaborate with the Notebook for joint ventures — including the Notebook–NewsWorks partnership, which has supported coverage of hot issues like the turnaround efforts at King, West, and Audenried and the Hope Moffett controversy.
• The Education Writers Association took notice of the growth of the Notebook’s blog, giving it second prize for community blogging in its national education journalism awards.
• Over the last year the Notebook staff and leadership board have taken new steps to expand readership in and improve coverage of our city’s quickly growing immigrant communities. A key part of this has been increasing the online Spanish-language content, and partnering with local Spanish-language weekly Al Día to distribute Notebook content more widely. Our stalwart Spanish translator, Milly Martinez, provides the foundation for this expansion. On June 7 we will honor Milly’s irreplaceable contributions over the past decade, increasing the reach of the Notebook.

What Notebook achievement do you want to celebrate on June 7? Please use the comments below to give a shout out.

Times are tough in public education right now, and pressure is high. We need a good celebration of the Notebook’s accomplishments, of our student journalists, and of our activist community. Come on out!