January 17, 2008 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Nutter connects crime to school issues in Mt. Airy talk
by Jennifer Katz

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter

In his first Mt. Airy appearance as Mayor, Michael Nutter spoke at the Germantown Jewish Centre on Jan. 12, making a connection between educational problems and the city’s crime rate.

His remarks, though peppered with humor, focused on the city’s educational deficiencies, from school district funding to college graduation levels. The crowded temple audience was receptive yet critical.

“We [Philadelphia] have a 45 percent dropout rate,” Nutter said, referring to the school district’s high school dropout rate. “We are the fifth largest city, Phoenix notwithstanding,” Nutter said, jokingly. “I keep hearing that Phoenix claims to be the fifth largest city in the country and that they have dry heat. It’s 107 degrees — I don’t care if it’s dry or wet.”

With only 18 percent of those working in the city holding bachelor’s degrees coupled with the highest wage tax and poverty rate in the country, Nutter said a high crime rate was no surprise.

“It’s a recipe for disaster,” he said. “The crime rate is mass expression of hopelessness.”

Admittedly pleased that the current crime statistics are “going in the right direction,” Nutter said the city and its residents need to change to make the trend more permanent.

“Parents have to step up to the plate,” he said. “Many of them are ill-equipped. They didn’t have good experiences as children [with their parents] and replicate that bad experience everyday with their own kids.”

Nutter noted the rate of child abuse and domestic violence as two key components to changing the mindset of Philadelphia’s youth.

“To stop the violence in the streets, we have to stop it behind the walls,” Nutter said. “When you grow up learning that that is how to solve problems, that is what you are going to do in the world.”

The solution, Nutter said, is more investment in education and better parenting. The city estimates that 65,000 students are not enrolled in an after-school program. There are approximately 185,000 students in the city’s schools. More than that, Nutter added, is that their parents do not know where they are.

“I remember when I was growing up there was a PSA [public service announcement] that came on the TV every night,” he said. “It said ‘It’s 11 p.m. Do you know where your kids are?’”

Nutter said that today it’s the afternoon time slot, from 3 to 7 p.m., that is the most dangerous time for kids.

“I believe that education is the heart and soul of solving our problems,” the Mayor said.

Nutter gave the audience one simple task for being part of the solution.

“We need to lobby the Pennsylvania legislature to change the funding formula for education in this state,” he said noting that, according to a bi-partisan study, only 27 of 501 school districts are adequately funded. “If you want to do something, do that.”

As part of his “we are responsible for each other” agenda, Nutter said he is calling on the business community to help further educate the working population.

“There are 73,000 people working in the city who started college but didn’t finish,” he said. “I’ve called on the business community to look at tuition reimbursement.”

Nutter said the impact of such a movement could be far reaching with both direct and indirect benefits.

“For one, the workers would be more skilled, probably get promotions or better jobs — which helps the community — and young people would get to see their mothers, aunts, uncles, fathers, friends going back to school, emphasizing the importance of education.”

To that end, Nutter said he would like the city to properly fund the Community College of Philadelphia. When it was created, the funding was supposed to be split evenly among the city, state and students. Instead, however, students currently pay 45 percent of the cost, and the city contributes only 19 percent.

At times, Nutter still sounded like a disgruntled City Council member more than the chief executive of a city. Clearly vexed over the seeming discrepancies in small business taxing practices, Nutter had the audience laughing as he referred to the city’s tax policy implementation as “insane.”

“We need to be more creative to encourage entrepreneurship,” Nutter said. “Some of our policies amount to ‘we take ours before you get yours.’”

Nutter was questioned on his own ties to the business community and also on his choice for Democratic presidential nominee, which was met with a chorus of boos from the rest of the audience. He responded to both questions respectfully.

In terms of his perceived pro-business slant, supposedly a no-no among liberals, Nutter reiterated his background — a degree in economics, MBA from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania — adding that over the last 15 years in council he has had “the audacity to form some of my own ideas.”

“In the liberal community (the words used by the questioner) when I start talking about taxes people look at me like I’m the lost love child of Ronald Reagan,” he said to thunderous laughter. “We’ve lost more jobs in the last 50 years than any other city. What are we waiting for?”

As for his pick for the Democratic nod, he has already publicly endorsed Hillary Clinton.

Contact Jennifer Katz at 215-248-8804 or jenn@chestnuthilllocal.com.