I'd rather teach in Basra, Fallujah or Ramallah than a Philly public school.
Let's see if she says that after a year of teaching in that environment. My daughter graduated (summa cum laude)with a teaching degree and sought out the lowest performing school in the southern urban district she choose to teach in. After a year, she decided teaching is not for her and is now working in sales, expecting to make twice what she was making as a first year teacher. I can't tell you what an awful experience it was for her. The lack of support from her administration was appalling. They did not expect the kids to behave.
As an aside, I have tried to raise my kids not to be racist. The racism she saw those little first graders exhibit was appalling. The African-American kids were very outspoken about how much they disliked white kids. So much that they would argue about whether my very pale (Irish) daughter was "mixed" or white. They did not want her to be white, because they liked her. The few white kids in the class just lay low. My daughter got a whole new side of racism in our society. It's not just something white people do. Someone was teaching those kids to hate other races.
I agree, in general. However, my son was graduated from Masterman (school for gifted and talented) and most of the kids he knew went to Masterman or other magnet schools, either for the arts or science. None of them had the criminal element you speak of. This was in the early 90s. Even years later, I doubt Masterman has a criminal element.
Masterman was a safe, welcoming environment. When my husband died when my son was in 9th grade, I couldn't have hoped for a more warm and understanding school for him.