Penn and Drexel University will be waiting when University City High School closes its doors in 2010 for two years of renovations.
The universities want to divide the school - one of the 70 lowest-performing schools in the city- and replace it with two co-existing themed high schools.
Penn hopes to create an internationally themed high school that would partner with other schools around the United States and the world.
The international high school was discussed at last week's meeting of Penn's Board of Trustees.
An exact location has not been officially decided, said William Lynch, director of Drexel's School of Education, but both universities hope the University City High School plans come through.
It would be an unprecedented move into high-school education for Penn. The University works with many high schools around the city, but its most active role is with Penn Alexander Elementary School.
The University subsidizes Penn Alexander students, giving $1,000 per student, and participates in principal and teacher selection. Penn envisions a similar role with the new high school.
"Right from the get go, the University was making an assumption the high school would be a counterpart of Penn Alexander," said James Lytle, a former Philadelphia School District administrator and Penn Graduate School of Education professor.
University City High School, located at 3601 Filbert St., has suffered from poor school rankings and low test scores in recent years.
Penn and Drexel hope to take over the school's current building - which needs extensive overhaul of its asbestos-covered ventilation system - but needs permission from the school district.
The school district is deciding how to use the space, Lytle said. Philadelphia School District officials could not be reached for comment.
The idea for an international high school was first put forward by the Asia Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on Asian development, Lytle said.
Penn's international school would co-exist with a Drexel-run school based on math, science and technology.
"I believe we will get increasingly involved as resources allow and as requests appear," Lynch said, adding that such a school would help Drexel become more involved in the community.
One potential reason for not taking over the whole school, Lytle said, is that school reform has favored creating smaller high schools out of large ones.
"If it's small, it's manageable," he said.
Each school would hold about 500 students, with 70 percent of the enrollment coming from West Philadelphia. University City High School holds around 1,200 students.
While students around the city are guaranteed entrance to their neighborhood schools, Penn's high school would have an application process to familiarize parents and students with the theme and mission of the school.
