Despite moving up its Thursday meeting, the School District of Philadelphia Board of Education did not vote on the proposed agreement to resolve the asbestos issue. (Credit: Philly Schools Facebook)
The School District of Philadelphia’s Board of Education withdrew the vote on a proposed agreement with the Department of Justice to address “asbestos management practices” during its Thursday meeting.
At the beginning of the meeting, Board President Reginald Streater removed the topic from the agenda.
"We were informed just before this meeting that the Department of Justice is not ready to proceed today and additional review may be required,” Streater said.
Amid a federal investigation into asbestos-related evidence, the board was expected to open the meeting by discussing and voting on the resolution. According to the school board’s agenda, the action item was added on Wednesday evening.
The school board had previously moved the meeting up from 4 p.m. to noon on May 29, with this asbestos issue listed as the first priority. Action meetings normally occur at 4 p.m., however, the board planned to accommodate this “time-sensitive” topic.
Many attendees were audibly disappointed when the asbestos proposal was withdrawn from the docket. Streater addressed this in his opening comments.
“We recognize that the 12 p.m. time is inconvenient,” Streater said. “Thank you everyone, for understanding. We do not currently have more information to share and cannot comment further."
After acknowledging the difficult time change, Streater said the board remains committed to transparency and would provide more information as it becomes available.
The board is also expected to pass the 2025-26 budget at today's meeting, among other items.
