Court may hear scholarship case

The Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia has filed a petition seeking permission to appeal the Mayor's Scholarship case to the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court, according to PILCOP attorney Michael Churchill. PILCOP first sued the University in 1991, claiming that the University was not fulfilling a 1977 agreement with the city to provide 125 scholarships annually. But in December 1994, the University's policy of providing a total of 125 scholarships at a given time, as opposed to 125 for each entering class, was upheld by a 4-3 vote in Commonwealth Court. A previous appeal filed by PILCOP was rejected in 1993 when a judge ruled that the group did not have proper legal standing in the case. According to Churchill, the recent petition was filed to challenge both the decision of the Commonwealth Court and the 1993 ruling regarding PILCOP's lack of legal standing. "We believe that the dissent in the previous case is right," Churchill said. "This is the last avenue of appeal." University General Counsel Shelley Green disagreed. "Their position is that the Commonwealth is incorrect," she said. "We think that the Supreme Court should not permit the appeal." Both attorneys refused to speculate about whether the Court will allow an appeal. Throughout the case's history, several city politicians stressed the importance of the scholarships to many local students. Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus Chairman Harold James of Philadelphia said he supports the appeal. "I am encouraging the plaintiffs and their attorneys to continue this fight for our young people," he said in a statement. "It is a shame that we must struggle so hard to provide an opportunity for city students to attend a world class institution that is in their own backyard." The Mayor's Scholarship controversy stems from a 110-year old agreement between the city of Philadelphia and the University in which the city provides rent-free land to the University in exchange for a set number of scholarships to be awarded to Philadelphia high school students. An amended agreement signed in 1977 called for the University to provide 125 "annual" scholarships. scholarships to area students. Although the Common Pleas Court of Philadelphia ruled in favor of the University in 1993, it admonished the administration for failing to provide full support to scholarship recipients. Under a separate 1992 agreement between the University and the city, the University "substantially enhanced" its commitment to the Mayor's Scholarship program. The average Mayor Scholarship package includes $18,806 in grants from the University.