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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: While there is not yet a formal proposal for the Pittsburgh Public Schools to take over the distressed August Wilson Center for African-American Culture, state auditor general Eugene DePasquale has a message for the district:
Don't even think about it.
I can't believe that PPS taking over the August Wilson Center is even a discussion. The district can't even fund it's own summer school programming, and it's graduation rate is below 70%. Having worked with an organization that provides auxiliary credit recovery services to failing PPS students last summer, I've witnessed the struggles the district faces, and while I think it's noble that they want to keep the Wilson Center going, they are already not providing enough services to the populations they're already responsible for.
I think it would be a great PR move for a larger company in Pittsburgh, like UPMC, Highmark, Heinz or even the Steelers or another sports team to invest in it, rebuild a fiscally responsible board, and then perhaps partner with PPS. It's a ton of money, but I think the ROI would come, particularly for UPMC/Highmark in positive PR for having saved an important piece of Pittsburgh culture.
While it would be great if the center could be saved I think that Mr.DePasquale is right about the school system. They have enough financial strife as it stands and it wouldn't makes sense for them to acquire any more debt. I wonder why some of other Pittsburgh arts organizations have not stepped in to deal with the center, it seems like everyone wants to save it but no one wants to take up responsibility.
I'm not from Pittsburgh, so I can't I'm the most knowledgeable on the topic, but based on what I have read in this article and the other comments, Pittsburgh Public Schools buying the August Wilson Center seems like a really dumb idea. Why would an organization already in debt add 9.5 to 10 million dollars more to their debt? I like Lindsay's idea of having someone else buy it and rebuild it.
Yeah, a proposal for the school district to acquire the Wilson Center seems extremely far fetched at best. I don't quite understand how PPS, already projected to run out of money in 2016, can argue it is a fiscally responsible decision to take over the Wilson center.
Furthermore, I think the school district's stance is just unrealistic. Quoting Mr. Brentley, "I think the district has always had debt. I think we will continue to work out some creative way we can present to the [bankruptcy] judge for consideration." Ugh, arguing to go further into debt should not require a creative solution. It just shouldn't happen (macro economics notwithstanding) at all!
4 comments:
I can't believe that PPS taking over the August Wilson Center is even a discussion. The district can't even fund it's own summer school programming, and it's graduation rate is below 70%. Having worked with an organization that provides auxiliary credit recovery services to failing PPS students last summer, I've witnessed the struggles the district faces, and while I think it's noble that they want to keep the Wilson Center going, they are already not providing enough services to the populations they're already responsible for.
I think it would be a great PR move for a larger company in Pittsburgh, like UPMC, Highmark, Heinz or even the Steelers or another sports team to invest in it, rebuild a fiscally responsible board, and then perhaps partner with PPS. It's a ton of money, but I think the ROI would come, particularly for UPMC/Highmark in positive PR for having saved an important piece of Pittsburgh culture.
While it would be great if the center could be saved I think that Mr.DePasquale is right about the school system. They have enough financial strife as it stands and it wouldn't makes sense for them to acquire any more debt. I wonder why some of other Pittsburgh arts organizations have not stepped in to deal with the center, it seems like everyone wants to save it but no one wants to take up responsibility.
I'm not from Pittsburgh, so I can't I'm the most knowledgeable on the topic, but based on what I have read in this article and the other comments, Pittsburgh Public Schools buying the August Wilson Center seems like a really dumb idea. Why would an organization already in debt add 9.5 to 10 million dollars more to their debt? I like Lindsay's idea of having someone else buy it and rebuild it.
Yeah, a proposal for the school district to acquire the Wilson Center seems extremely far fetched at best. I don't quite understand how PPS, already projected to run out of money in 2016, can argue it is a fiscally responsible decision to take over the Wilson center.
Furthermore, I think the school district's stance is just unrealistic. Quoting Mr. Brentley, "I think the district has always had debt. I think we will continue to work out some creative way we can present to the [bankruptcy] judge for consideration." Ugh, arguing to go further into debt should not require a creative solution. It just shouldn't happen (macro economics notwithstanding) at all!
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