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“WE NEED TO KNOW”

RALLY WALK FOR EDUCATION

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The **Men Who Care of Germantown, Inc. Annual Community Outreach Festival and Rally Walk** takes on special significance this year as Philadelphia residents come together to peacefully protest the continued closing and consolidation of neighborhood schools under the **School District of Philadelphia’s Facility Project**.

 

The Rally Walk begins at 11:00 a.m. in front of the former Germantown High School. Our starting point is intentional. The former **Germantown High School** is itself a reminder of Philadelphia’s history of school closures. In 2013, Germantown High School was among 37 Philadelphia schools closed under a similar District initiative. More than a decade later, the community finds itself confronting many of the same fundamental questions about the future of neighborhood schools, educational opportunity, and the voices of the communities most directly affected.

This year, community concern centers on the closure of Wagner Elementary School and the proposed **consolidation of Building 21 High School and Parkway Northwest Charter School into Martin Luther King High School**.

The community understands that school buildings age, enrollment patterns change, and the School District must address its facilities. However, closing or consolidating schools should not be the first answer to declining enrollment or challenges within the educational system.

Instead of eliminating neighborhood schools, the community is calling for meaningful investment in the schools that remain—investment in stronger academic programs, expanded career and technical education, arts and cultural programming, athletics, technology, mentoring, workforce preparation, and diverse curriculum choices that speak directly to students’ interests and aspirations.

 

Give Students a Reason to Stay. Give Families a Reason to Choose Their Neighborhood Schools.

The question is not simply how many school buildings Philadelphia can eliminate.

The question is:

What can we do to make Philadelphia’s schools places where students want to learn, families want to enroll their children, and communities can take pride in their educational institutions?

These concerns are particularly urgent in light of recent **city audit findings and state investigative activity concerning financial mismanagement, cyber fraud, and theft involving public resources. For many residents, these revelations raise serious questions about priorities, accountability, oversight, and the responsible use of resources intended to serve Philadelphia’s children.

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The community is asking for accountability—not austerity at the expense of our children.

The Rally Walk is therefore not simply a protest against school closures. It is a peaceful call for transparency, responsible stewardship, meaningful community participation, and a renewed commitment to educational investment.

Men Who Care of Germantown, Inc. invites parents, students, educators, alumni, school staff, clergy, community organizations, elected officials, neighborhood residents, and concerned citizens, to join us as we stand together for the future of Philadelphia’s schools.

We walk in remembrance of the schools and educational opportunities that have already been lost.

We walk in support of the schools and students facing uncertainty today.

We walk to demand that communities have a meaningful voice before decisions are made about the schools that serve them.

We walk to insist that investment in children must come before the abandonment of neighborhoods.**

And we walk with a vision for schools that are **innovative, well-resourced, engaging, safe, inclusive, and filled with opportunities that inspire students to attend, achieve, and succeed.

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**THIS YEAR, WE WALK FOR MORE THAN OUR SCHOOLS.**

 **WE WALK FOR OUR CHILDREN.**

**WE WALK FOR OUR COMMUNITIES.**

**WE WALK FOR ACCOUNTABILITY.**

**WE WALK FOR THE FUTURE OF PHILADELPHIA.**

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**11:00 A.M. — RALLY WALK BEGINS**
**Former Germantown High School**

**STAND. WALK. SPEAK. ADVOCATE.**

**WE NEED TO KNOW**

**Our Schools. Our Children. Our Community. Our Voice.**