If you are of certain age, say 40+, you remember a time when Eddie Murphy was “Eddie Murphy.”  At the height of his stardom, Eddie delivered comedic tour de forces in rapid succession. You know you remember staying in the house just to see which characters he would bring to life on Saturday Night Live.  Buckwheat and Gumby were my personal favorites.  His ascent was phenomenal.  Eddie’s stand-up comedy films were blockbusters of the highest magnitude. Like me, you remember and prefer Eddie before he started talking to animals and wearing fat suits in PG rated films. You remember the profane rated R Eddie.  Perhaps, Eddie’s most lasting contribution to popular culture came in one of the most memorable scenes of the original “Beverly Hills Cop.”  Thanks to Eddie, everyone knows that some bull shit is about to go down when you are told “don’t fall for the banana in the tailpipe.”

Well Black Philadelphians, I am emphatically warning you that Governor Corbett and the Department of Education are dangling bananas in close proximity to your tailpipe.  Here, I will do my very best to keep you from being caught off-guard like Sergeant Taggart and Lieutenant Bogomil in Beverly Hills Cop. Those guys didn’t see Eddie (Detective Axel Foley) sneak behind their car and placed bananas in their tailpipe to choke the engine and prevent them from following him.  I, however, see Governor Corbett and his band of DOE bureaucrats kneeling, bananas in hand, behind tens of thousands of cars in Philadelphia, Chester, Reading, Pittsburg, Lancaster and other urban areas across the state.

Don’t fall for the banana in the tailpipe!!

All you have to do is take your eyes off Jay Z and Beyonce for a moment and pay attention. For just a few moments let’s ignore the trails and tribulations of Benzino, Stevie J and Joseline.  Put down the remote, you can see Olivia Pope on DVR some other time.  I wanna show you something.

Here it is… Here comes the Bull Shit… this is the banana they are placing in your tailpipe… It can be seen on the PA DOE website:

“The Commonwealth’s graduation requirements will help guarantee that a Pennsylvania diploma reflects the skills and knowledge graduating students need to be successful in college and the workplace. These requirements will allow districts to ensure students are meeting state standards.”

At first glance, this appears to be well intentioned statement.  One might even think they want to help Pennsylvania’s public school students. After all, the requirements “help guarantee” that PA diplomas mean something. Moreover, the implementation of these requirements seems to be a benevolent act. It “allows” districts to meet state standards. What can be wrong with that? It sounds good… really good.

Ok… Let’s go… However, when you try to start your car, it putters, backfires violently and stalls leaving you stranded because you fell for the banana in the tailpipe.

Let’s look closely at the “new” PA High School Graduation Requirements for a Student Graduating in (or after) 2017…

Of particular importance is the following requirement:

“Students WILL be required to demonstrate proficiency in each of the content areas listed below by passing Keystone Exam, an Advanced Placement (AP) Exam, an International Baccalaureate (IB) Exam, or a local exam in the related content area. If necessary, your LEA must provide supplemental instruction until proficiency is demonstrated or criteria are met for project-based assessment participation.”

The chart below spells out the required exams over the years spanning 2017-2020. For present purposes, I will limit the discussion to the Algebra 1 and the literature requirement. Beginning in 2017, PA HS students will have to demonstrate “proficiency” in those two subjects as well as biology. In 2019 English Composition exams become mandatory. The following year Civic & Government will be added. In order to graduate, students will have to demonstrate proficiency in these areas. According to Webster, proficiency is defined as a high degree of competence or skill: expertise. Of course, we all WANT Philadelphia’s high school graduate to exhibit a high degree of competence in these academic subjects.

The problem is the long-standing and persistent fact that the overwhelming majority of Blacks in Philadelphia’s dysfunctional public schools have absolutely no shot at meeting these requirements.  Historically, one of the most effective ways of discriminating against Black Americans has been mandating tests that white Americans knew they could not pass.

Some Jim Crow laws, like Pennsylvania’s onerous graduation requirements, did not specify race.  Nonetheless, they were written and applied in ways that very effectively discriminated against Blacks.  For example, many racist states, counties and cities used so-called “literacy tests” administered with informal loopholes and trick questions to bar nearly all blacks from exercising their right to vote.  The appeal of this tactic is easy to understand from a white supremacist perspective.  Consider for a moment that more than 130,000 Blacks were register to vote in Louisiana in 1896. Eight years later in 1904, after the implementation of  literacy tests only 1,342 Blacks remained on the voter rolls.  Nearly 99% of Blacks were ineligible to vote because they “failed” the so-called literacy tests.

Jim Crow is reemerging.  Black public school students will have an extremely difficult time graduating under these requirements.  Most won’t make it.  More importantly, Governor Corbett, the Secretary of Education and everyone in the Department of Education know this is the case.  For Black students, graduating from Philadelphia public high schools, beginning in 2017 will be damn near as hard as it was for Blacks to vote in the deep South in 1904.  Truth be told, only a small percentage of Philadelphia’s Black students can meet the”new” graduation requirements.

Manufacturing a generation of “non-graduates” is the true goal of the PA DOE’s policy shift.

Every year, the DOE administers standardized tests. According to the DOE these tests “measure how well students have achieved in reading, mathematics, science and writing according to Pennsylvania’s world-class academic standards. By using these standards, educators, parents and administrators can evaluate their students’ strengths and weaknesses to increase students’ achievement scores.”

While we have considered the dictionary definition of “proficiency,” we need a clear understanding of what the the PA DOE means by “proficient.” Remember, in order to graduate from PA high schools, students MUST demonstrate proficiency on the state tests.

Pennsylvania’s Department of Education has identified four levels of performance:

The Advanced Level reflects superior academic performance. Advanced work indicates an in-depth understanding and exemplary display of the skills included in the Assessment Anchors.

The Proficient Level reflects satisfactory academic performance. Proficient work indicates a solid understanding and adequate display of the skills included in the Assessment Anchors.

The Basic Level reflects marginal academic performance. Basic work indicates a partial understanding and limited display of the skills included in the Assessment Anchors. This work is approaching but not reaching satisfactory performance. There is a need for additional instructional opportunities and/or increased student academic commitment to achieve the Proficient Level.

The Below Basic Level reflects inadequate academic performance. Below Basic work indicates little understanding and minimal display of the skills included in the Assessment Anchors. There is a major need for additional instructional opportunities and/or increased student academic commitment to achieve the Proficient Level.

By combining the percentages of Black students scoring Advanced and Proficient, we can get a clear picture of how many students would have graduated in recent years if the 2017 standards were already in place. Put another way, the most recent test results serve as a very good indicator of what is likely to happen in 2017 and beyond. Let’s be clear… Governor Corbett and the supporters of the new graduation requirements already know what percentage of Black students are “proficient” in academic subject areas.

Let’s take a look at the Math scores. At the top, Philadelphia’s public schools are very impressive. At Masterman HS, 97.9% of the Black students are proficient in math. Black Central HS students also performed very well with 93.8% of the students demonstrating proficiency. However, is must be noted that these schools have always been the highest performing and toughest to gain admission to in the School District of Philadelphia.

In reading, Black Central students were the top performers with 97.2% of the students demonstrating proficiency. Masterman was next, coming in at 96.7%. They were followed by Black Girard Academic Music Program and Carver Engineering & Science students at 95.3% and 90.2% respectively.  Clearly, Black students at these exclusive “magnet” schools are doing well.

Student performance levels are very important to PA superintendents and principals in the district. That is how the “effectiveness” of administrators is measured. There are consequences when students don’t perform well.

So, exactly what happens, under the “new” graduation requirements, when students cannot pass or demonstrate proficiency? According to the DOE, “Waivers to Commonwealth graduation requirements will be granted by the Secretary of Education on a case-by-case basis with determinations communicated to the LEA no later than 10 days prior to graduation.” This means that some bureaucrat in Harrisburg will determine if non-proficient students can graduate 2 weeks before the graduation date.

People…. The car is sputtering badly at this point… you are barely able to get the engine to turn over much less accelerate into traffic…. The banana is in the tailpipe….

Let’s consider a few real world cases. At Sayre HS in West Philadelphia, only 4.8% of the Black students demonstrated proficiency in Math. That means 95.2% “failed” or were non-proficient. Over 100 Black students took the exam, so that means the DOE would have to consider 97 or 98 waivers on a “case-by-case basis” from Sayre alone. That’s assuming the highly competent and thorough SDP administrators submit these waiver requests to the DOE in a timely manner.

At John Bartram HS, only 8% of the 187 Blacks tested at proficient levels. That means the DOE would have to consider another 172 waivers on a “case-by-case basis.” Only 9.2% of Strawberry Mansion’s students were proficient, this school would generate over 60 waiver requests. Universal Audenreid students came in at 9.7%, out of 124 Black students, 112 would need waivers from the DOE to graduate. Over 190 Overbrook HS students would need waivers to graduate. Is the picture becoming clearer?

You’re beginning to realize your car simply won’t run… The banana is in the tailpipe. You ain’t goin nowhere… Axle Foley is laughing at you as he drives away.

Now, here’s where they say fuck you Black Philadelphia.

According to the PA DOE, “Chief School Administrators requesting waivers for more than 10% of a graduating class must also submit for the Secretary’s approval a written improvement plan enhancing instruction, curriculum, and supplemental services in alignment to the Keystone Exams.” In Math, only Masterman and Central would NOT have to submit “improvement plans.” The vertical vertical black line represents the 90% proficient threshold.

Virtually every principal might as well start writing the improvement plan right now. The data for reading is not much better. Only four schools would NOT have to write plans for “enhancing instruction, curriculum, and supplemental services.”

Here’s the question: Who is going to pay for enhancing instruction, curriculum, and supplemental services? Look at the charts. According to DOE criteria, all but 2 to maybe 4 Philadelphia public high schools require these interventions. Where will the funding come from?  This is yet another UNFUNDED mandate thrust upon districts already being choked financially.

Let’s keep it 100, as the kids say. Philadelphia is the midst of an unprecedented series of budget cuts. In 2013, the Philadelphia school system laid off 3,783 employees, including 676 teachers and 283 counselors. Along with teachers and counselors, those losing their jobs included 127 assistant principals and 1,202 aides who monitor the cafeteria and playgrounds. Most recently, The SDP raided the The existing Philadelphia Federation of Teachers Health and Welfare Fund, which has about $40 million built up in it. There ain’t enough cigarette smokers in Philadelphia to finance the massive levels of intervention that will be required under the graduation requirements pushed through by Governor Corbett’s DOE.

Fuck you Black Philadelphia…

We must stop pretending. Only about 28% of Philadelphia’s Black males were graduating in four years anyway. These new graduation requirements will make it much, much tougher to maintain that abysmal graduation rate. It will surely drop significantly.  Governor Corbett knows this. Remember, he’s the one that put the banana is your tailpipe.

The forecast is crystal clear. Uneducated and undereducated young Black men and women will inevitably dibble and dabble in black market economic pursuits. Even those that remain committed and engaged in the educational process for 13 years (K-12) will emerge with Certificates of Attendance, not diplomas. How will employers, college admissions offices, trade schools and trade unions value those Certificates? They will certainly be worth significantly less than traditional diplomas.

Corbett and his cronies are literally betting that young Black males will resort to criminal activity to survive.

He foresees a need for additional prison beds in and around Philadelphia. Pennsylvania is spending $400 million to construct two new prisons at the SCI-Graterford site in Montgomery County after slashing nearly $1 billion in public education funding. The funds are in addition to the $1.8 billion corrections budget signed by Republican Governor Tom Corbett, an increase of $208,000 from last year (capital projects are counted separately).

Corbett is making room for 1,000 new prisoners at Graterford. This $400 million is an investment in “public housing” for the undereducated Black males currently muddling through Philadelphia’s woefully inadequate public schools. The two newly constructed prisons will replace the current Graterford, which now houses just more than 3,000 inmates. The new Phoenix prisons will be 2,000 inmates each.  Corbett’s Department of Corrections will transition the current inmate population to the new prison, which will leave us with an additional approximately 1,000 inmate beds.

Those beds will inevitably be filled by those who fell for the old banana in the tailpipe trick.

The high school dropout problem is a national crisis. Approximately one-third of all high school students leave the public school system before graduating. The problem is especially pronounced among students of color in America’s major cities. For example, in Philadelphia, twenty-two (22) District high schools lost 50 or more of their students from the Class of 2012 cohort, 2,200 dropouts in all. This represents a significant shrinkage of one graduating class. Unfortunately, it’s even worse across the Delaware River. According to the recent data only 42% of Camden High students and and 46% of Woodrow Wilson students graduate from high school. Low-income, urban, predominantly Black and Latino public and charter school students are struggling mightily in the classroom. Black males, in particular are drowning in Philadelphia’s public schools.

In 2010, a major study found that Philadelphia, along with New York was the worst performing district in the nation with regard to Black male graduation rates. The five worst performing districts with large Black male student enrollment (exceeding 40,000) were New York City, N.Y. (28%); Philadelphia, Pa. (28%); Detroit, Mich. (27%); Broward County, Fla. (39%); Dade County, Fla. (27%).

Educators, researchers, and policymakers continue to work to identify effective dropout prevention approaches. One important element of such prevention efforts is the identification of students at highest risk for dropping out and then the targeting of resources to keep them in school. Locally, we seem determined to do the exact opposite of what works.  In Philadelphia, there is massive contraction of resources. The city is the midst of an unprecedented series of budget cuts. In 2013, the Philadelphia school system laid off 3,783 employees, including 676 teachers and 283 counselors. Along with teachers and counselors, those losing their jobs included 127 assistant principals and 1,202 aides who monitor the cafeteria and playgrounds.

In 2014, it was announced that high school students who live within two miles of school will not receive transportation support (an increase from 1.5 miles), impacting approximately 7,500 students at district, charter, and non-public schools. There will also be reduced services in alternative education programs, which will result in fewer higher-quality options for approximately 300 students. There will be less frequent cleaning of schools, fewer cleaning supplies, and delayed repairs at schools. The district will not fill 34 school police officer vacancies, reducing the number of officers available to support school climate and safety.

There is very little, if any, good news coming from the state, the city or the district regarding public education. Clearly, innovative interventions will have to emerge from Philadelphia’s civil society.  Government, at all levels appears to be fresh out of new ideas.  Civil society is the sum total of non-governmental organizations and institutions that manifest interests and will of citizens.  Civil society includes the family and the private sphere, often referred to as the “third sector” of society, it is distinct from government and business.

With an abundance of major college basketball programs, the Greater Philadelphia region is unique.  College coaches are potentially a very important part of Philadelphia’s civil society.  The ASSIST Project is partnering with college coaches and athletic departments to provide middle school administrators with tools and incentives they can use to help manage student behaviors within their respective schools.  Public and charter 8th grade students with excellent academic records or significantly improved behaviors will receive tickets collegiate sporting events for them and their parents.

St. Joseph’s Head Coach Phil Martelli (below, far right) notes, “One of the most gratifying aspect of my job is watching my players graduate after four years.  It never gets old. I am eager to help in any way I can.”  Martelli has a player from Philadelphia’s public league on his current roster and two commitments from Catholic League players.  “Philadelphia is my primary area of focus, I played HS ball in Philly, I coached HS ball in Philly.  I’ll help Philly kids in any way I can.”

We know which kids need reinforcement.  Research has shown that an early warning system using indicators based on readily accessible data (grades, attendance, standardized test scores, suspensions, etc) can predict whether the students are on the right path toward eventual graduation. The ASSIST Project will provide school administrators with incentives they can offer to those on the right path. We will also reward students that show marked improvement in behavior and attendance.

Research is also clear that ninth grade is a “make or break” year. More students fail ninth grade than any other grade in high school, and a disproportionate number of students who are held back in ninth grade subsequently drop out. Recent research in large urban school districts, including Chicago and Philadelphia, provides information about powerful indicators that can predict, by the end of the first year of high school, or even during the first semester, whether students will complete high school. For this reason, we are focusing on getting eighth graders ready for high school.

Delaware Head Coach Monté Ross (below) notes, “My wife is an educator. I am a product of Philadelphia’s public school system. We will do anything we can to help kids understand the importance of education.  I look forward to hosting middle school kids that are working hard and doing the right things in school.”

The ASSIST Project is partnering with basketball coaches at Temple, Drexel, Villanova, St. Joseph’s, Pennsylvania, LaSalle, Penn State, Rutgers, Delaware and Lincoln Universities. We want middle school Principals, Assistant Principals and Guidance Counselors to know that they are not alone. Top academic performers and students exhibiting most improved behaviors, as identified by the school leadership teams will be eligible for tickets to college athletic events. The kids will be allowed to bring their parents and they will meet the players and coaches.  At a time when the resources available to educators dealing with the most needy students are dwindling, the ASSIST Project and area coaches are trying to step up and be a positive influence on school performance and behavior.

We know which kids need reinforcement.  The ASSIST Project is placing emphasis on the creation of early warning systems. We are partnering with college athletic programs to follow through with strategic allocation of rewards and positive reinforcement based on empirical data to help school leadership teams meet their academic and behavioral goals.  By helping school leadership teams develop a school-level early warning and reward system, we hope to contribute to a consistency in vision, goals, and resources that are targeted toward monitoring students through to high school graduation.

Fran Dunphy (below) says, “I’ve spent most my professional life in Philadelphia.  As a coach, I’ve been to most of the local high schools.  Every day I drive through North Philadelphia to get to Temple.  I want to expose positive young people to our campus.  Temple is a special place and we look forward to hosting young students and their families.”

LaSalle Head Coach John Giannini (below) says he will treat the middle school kids no differently than he treats top recruits.  “We will give the kids and their parents seats right behind our bench.  They will have an opportunity to interact with our coaches and players.  This is an important initiative.  I have tremendous respect for public educators and I look forward to giving positive kids, the LaSalle experience.  We are an urban university and I want to have my program engaged in our community as much as possible.”  Giannini’s program has graduated students from Strawberry Mansion and John Bartram high schools.

James “Bruiser” Flint (below) grew up in Southwest Philadelphia.  He spent his formative basketball years immersed in the culture of the Sonny Hill Community Involvement League where his father coached for years.  According to Flint, “Sometimes I worry about the educational situation faced by many of the young people in Philadelphia.  I was fortunate enough to go to Episcopal Academy and St. Joe’s.  One thing I know for sure is that my education prepared me for life as a professional.  If there’s anything I can do to help school teachers and administrators in any small way I can, I’m going to do it.  My office is a few blocks away from the Mantua section of the city and about a mile from my childhood home.  I want good kids to come and see how we do things at Drexel.”

“I recruit Philly kids.  I love Philly kids,” says Kevin Baggett (below).  Over the past few years, Baggett has graduated public league players from Bartram and Paul Robeson.  He has also coached Catholic League players from Bonner, Roman Catholic, Neumann and LaSalle College high schools.  His roster has featured players from Abington and Cheltenham in the Philly suburbs.  According to Baggett, “Philly kids have a level of toughness that helps a program reach its’ goals.  In college basketball, things don’t always go as planned.  It has been my experience that Philly kids fight rather than give up.  I really respect the job that teachers and principals are doing with limited resources.  We look forward to exposing more Philly kids to the Rider way of doing things.”

The first institution of higher learning for African-Americans, Lincoln University has been educating Philadelphians since 1854.  At any given time in its history about half of Lincoln’s student body hailed from Philadelphia and its’ surrounding suburbs.  Lincoln’s Basketball coach John Hill says, “We would be honored to have the top middle school kids come see us play.  Lincoln is unique in a lot of ways.  The players, the fans, the people working will all look like the public school kids.  Lincoln is the oldest historically Black college in America.  We play a very high level of basketball in the CIAA Conference.  I welcome an opportunity to share the Lincoln story with any kid from Philadelphia.”

Philadelphia public and charter school administrators can nominate 8th grade students via an email to delgrecowilson@outlook.com.  Representatives of the ASSIST Project will visit guidance counselors and principals at every public and charter middle school in September.  The goal is to “catch” our kids doing the right thing and reinforce positive behaviors.  We want public school employees to know that they are not in this thing alone.  For additional information about the ASSIST Project, visit ASSIST Project website.

Rysheed Jordan, VAUX HS/St. John University, PG

The situation for young Black males in Philadelphia is bleak. The data is beyond alarming. There are, literally, thousands of “lost” Black Philly boys and young men in Pennsylvania’s prisons. Every day local print and television media outlets provide us with “boxscores” and highlights of the carnage that young Black men inflict upon one another in the City of Brotherly Love. For many, it must seem like there’s no way out.

Philadelphia’s homicide rate is consistently among the worst in the nation. Unfortunately, “lost” young Black males between the ages of 17 to 25 are the overwhelming majority of the victims and perpetrators. A few years ago, Mayor Michael Nutter noted, “Of the 2010 homicides, 86.9 percent were African-American males. African-American males were 65.5 percent of the admissions into the Philadelphia Prison System in 2010. These statistics demonstrate there is a real crisis among Black males. If you don’t have an education, if you drop out, you’re already a step behind everyone else. If you drop out from high school your options are already limited and if you’re a Black male and turn to a life of crime, life is already against you.”

One particular Black male homicide occurred on May 31, 2012. On this day, Michael Jay was shot in the back and head. He was immediately rushed to Albert Einstein Medical Center in North Philadelphia, where he was pronounced dead at 2:47 p.m. the next day. For most Philadelphians, this represented just another senseless killing in a city that has become all too familiar with the lives of Black males ending in a hail of bullets. But for one young man, this killing inspired him to find a way to make a difference.

Tony Chennault, a tough hard-nosed Philly guard, was in the midst of transitioning back to Philadelphia to help care for his ailing mother when his brother Michael was gunned down. After two successful seasons in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) at Wake Forest University, Chennault had decided to transfer home and play his final two years of college hoops for Jay Wright at Villanova. Basketball-wise, this was not an easy decision.  As a sophomore at Wake Forest, Chennault started in all 31 games at point guard and played 30.2 minutes a game, averaging 9 points with 3.0 assists. Despite his early success in what many consider the finest conference in college basketball, Chennault felt a profound need to be close to his mother.  Somethings are more important than sports.

A little more than year after his brother’s murder, Chennault’s mother passed away.  Through all of this adversity, with the support of his Villanova coaches and teammates, Chennault managed to maintain focus on his obligations on and off the court. Despite transferring from Wake Forest to Villanova, despite the loss of a sibling and his mother, Chennault played an important role on a Big East regular season Championship team and, more importantly, graduated in May with a Bachelor’s degree in Communications.

Chennault credits his ability to persevere to lessons he learned at Neumann-Goretti High School under the tutelage of Coach Carl Arrigale. He says, “At Neumann, I learned the importance of faith and loyalty… People just don’t understand the relationship I have with Coach Carl. He calls and texts me every day. He really has an open door policy with current and former Neumann players. Our relationship helped me be strong when times were tough.”

While many of his peers are traveling the globe in pursuit of elusive hoop dreams, Chennault is putting his communications degree to good use. He co-founded 267 Productions with friends, and fellow Villanova alums, Alex Ruane, Rob Jennings and Tom Smith. On Friday, August 22, Chennault will debut the latest release from 267 Productions, OLDHEAD, at his alma mater Nenmann-Goretti High School at 7:00 pm.

The term “Oldhead” refers to older male members of urban Black communities who provide guidance to younger generations, especially Black males. The film is set in Philadelphia, the protagonist Sean must decide between staying loyal to his friend Kareem, or following the insightful words of oldhead Bumpy.

Chennault draws upon his life experiences to tell stories that center on the struggle to succeed against seemingly overwhelming odds. A wise and mature young man, he emphasizes the fact that “people from all backgrounds and races struggle, not just Black people.” While Chennault and his partners aim to make films that are financially successful, that is not the sole means by which they measure their impact.

Chennault says he wants young people to understand that “they have to make the best of the hand you were dealt in life.” He understands that there are barriers and obstacles that young people, especially poor urban kids, have to overcome. However, his message is very simple. Keep pushing, keep studying and make the most out of your situation.

As for the future, Chennault says eventually he would like to venture to New York and Los Angeles. But for now, he is focused on establishing and solidifying Philadelphia as a place where high quality films are made.  It is vitally important that we “catch” young Black males doing the right thing!  As a society, we are bombarded with images of young Black males engaging in destructive and criminal behaviors.  The proliferation of negative imagery is so pervasive that many have developed a numbness to the plight of young Black males.

Here we have a graduate of a Philadelphia Catholic High School.  He is a celebrated athlete, a Catholic League, PIAA State and Big East Champion.  He is an outstanding scholar and a recent Villanova graduate.  He is the co-founder of film company. He is storyteller and a filmmaker.  He is a role model.  He is young, gifted and Black. He is Tony Chennault.