This article was originally published in The Notebook. In August 2020, The Notebook became Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
by Charlotte Pope
Parents looking for information to help them choose an elementary school for their children now have a new resource.
Center City Residents Association (CCRA), Logan Square Neighborhood Association (LSNA), and South of South Neighborhood Association (SOSNA) have collaborated to produce their first annual school fair.
At the event, parents and families can speak directly with representatives from public, charter, independent, and parochial elementary schools about the various options. Fifteen schools that offer a kindergarten program have registered for the event, which will be held today from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Ethical Society of Philadelphia, 1906 Rittenhouse Square.
“In the city, you see a lot of young parents who have children, but once they reach elementary school, they tend to leave the city and enter the suburbs to search for what they perceive to be a better education for their children,” said Drew Murray, co-chair of the Education Committee of LSNA.
“We are going to have the school fair to show parents that there are actually a lot of great schools in our community.”
The schools participating in the fair are:
- Albert M. Greenfield School
- Bache-Martin School
- Chester A. Arthur School
- Edwin M. Stanton School
- Laura Wheeler Waring School
- Independence Charter School
- Russell Byers Charter School
- Universal Institute Charter School
- St. Francis Xavier School
- St. Gabriel School
- St. Mary Interparochial School
- Friends Select
- Philadelphia Free School
- The Philadelphia School
- St. Peter’s School.
In addition, representatives will be on hand from LSNA, CCRA, SOSNA, the Center City District, and GreatPhillySchools, which launched a website this week to help parents search for school options.
Murray said the event’s focus in the future may be expanded to include elementary schools outside the purview of the associations, and possibly even high schools.
“It is something we are going to discuss,” he said. “Our goal is definitely for this to be an annual event.”