City suit response reiterates support

The city reiterated last week that it agrees with the University on the number of Mayor's Scholarships that must be distributed annually, but it refused to judge whether the University has fulfilled its financial obligation towards Philadelphia high school students. In its response to the complaints filed by the plaintiffs in the Mayor's Scholarship lawsuit, the city did not side with either the University or the plaintiffs, who claim the University has not provided enough scholarship money to Philadelphians. "[The answer filed by the city parties] has not answered those allegations that have been directed to the University," the city's counsel Michael Pratt said yesterday. "[The answer] has left those questions for the University to answer." The suit against the University, filed last October by labor unions, student groups and several individuals, claims that a 1977 city ordinance requires the University to award Philadelphia high school graduates 125 new scholarships each year for a total of 500 scholarships at a time. The University, however, maintains that it is required by the disputed ordinance to provide a total of 125 scholarships at any one time in return for rent-free city land. The city -- including several individual government officials and Mayor Ed Rendell -- is a co-defendant in the suit, which is what prompted last week's response. The University also answered the plaintiff's claims in a separate statement filed last week. Pratt said the city is in agreement with the University on the definition of the word "annually," a point of contention in the suit. In its answer, the city denies "that the Ordinances are unambiguous, specifically the word 'annually' as written into the Ordinances." "The city's position all along, has been, they believe the ordinance obligates the University to provide 125 scholarships or maintain that at all times, and we disagree with the plaintiff's position," Pratt said. However, Pratt also said that the dollar amount of the scholarships provided by the University is "another separate issue that the plaintiffs are trying to get heard before the court." The answer repeatedly asserts that the city parties do not have enough knowledge or information to determine whether or not the University has fulfilled its financial obligation. Thomas Gilhool, the plaintiff's attorney from the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia, was unavailable for comment yesterday. University General Counsel Shelley Green also was unavailable.