Schooled

Latest Episodes:

S. 03 Ep. 01: Last Chance High Aug 07, 2019

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Joshua Martinez grew up in poverty in a neighborhood where selling drugs is a way of life. At 16, he quit school, but soon feared he had put himself on a dead-end path. Seeking a better life, he enrolled in an alternative school specifically for high school dropouts. There, a debate arises among faculty at the school: For students who are far behind grade level, how much should we really expect? What’s more important, building confidence and relationships, or academic mastery? Where’s the line for who deserves a diploma? We explore these questions through intimate portraits of students, like Joshua, as they fight to graduate.

Schooled: Season Three Trailer Jul 31, 2019

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What does it really mean to get a good education? What is educational success? The third season of WHYY’s Schooled podcast explores these questions and more.

Special update: The story Jovan Weaver didn’t tell Jul 17, 2019

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More than a year after releasing the second season of Schooled, we learn that Jovan Weaver has been carrying a dark secret. In late 2017, Jovan killed a man in a hit-and-run and then allegedly attempted to burn his car to destroy the evidence. Charges were filed against him in April 2019. They became public in June and Jovan resigned as principal of Wister Elementary. In this special episode we unpack the details of the case and its larger implications. We hear from members of the victim’s family and dig through our interviews with Jovan before and after the incident.

S. 02 Ep. 01: You Shouldn’t Be Here Apr 25, 2018

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As principal of Wister Elementary, Jovan Weaver knows well the trauma that many of his students experience. He grew up fatherless during Philadelphia’s crack epidemic in the 1980s and 90s, and was abandoned when he was 10 by his mother, a drug dealer. Ultimately, public school was Jovan’s salvation, and — as he still grapples with the scars of his past — he sets out to make Wister a refuge of “love and positivity” for the students of today.

S. 02 Ep. 02: Battle lines Apr 25, 2018

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Becoming principal of Wister meant Jovan Weaver would be working under a microscope. The bitter debate that led to Wister’s conversion to a charter school raised questions of politics, access and influence. And it pitted Philadelphia neighbors against one another in an emotional battle that dominated local headlines. Parents were promised transformative change, and Jovan takes on that responsibility as things in his personal life become more difficult.

S. 02 Ep. 03: No excuses Apr 25, 2018

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Jovan tries to find a balance between the high expectations, “no excuses” culture for which Mastery Charter is known and the “love and positivity” mission he envisions based on his own traumatic childhood. Along the way he faces tough decisions, such as in the fifth grade — where the largely black student population has teachers who are worlds apart when it comes to life experience, race and, ultimately, effectiveness.

S. 02 Ep. 04: What we went through Apr 25, 2018

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Wister’s 5th grade students see themselves reflected in a faculty that has adopted a civil rights mission. Bahir Hayes and other teachers grapple with what it means and what it takes to make a successful school. And as the school enters the second year of its conversion, Jovan makes a major life decision.

Schooled: Season Two Trailer Apr 20, 2018

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You Shouldn't Be Here: The story of Jovan Weaver and Wister Elementary

S. 01 Ep. 01: A Fighter Since Birth Jul 19, 2017

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By seventh grade, Savannah was already in danger of becoming a casualty of the North Philly streets; she’s endured horrific childhood abuse, eventually becoming pregnant by age 14. But Savannah — motivated by her newborn daughter — sets out to escape the cycle of poverty. Listen above or read the story here.

S. 01 Ep. 03: Don’t Call it the Badlands Jul 19, 2017

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Savannah’s attendance record holds her back at school, threatening her chances of graduating. A dedicated group of teachers, mentors, and peers help her see the good in her community, while tensions with her mother reach an apex. Listen above or read the story here.

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