Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 1500 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators, legislators, members of the press and a broad array of education advocacy organizations via emails, website, Facebook and Twitter.

These daily emails are archived at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org

Visit us on Facebook at KeystoneStateEducationCoalition

Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg

Reminder: Statewide “Call” to Action for Public Education – Wednesday, May 23rd!

Please take 5 minutes to join parents and community members across the Commonwealth in calling their legislators and Governor Corbett on Wednesday and urge them to change the direction we are heading and INVEST IN PUBLIC EDUCATION!  Use our Call to Action Guide for all the information you'll need to participate.  It's that easy!

Spread the word.  Forward this email to your friends, post on Facebook and Twitter or do what others are doing, encourage parents and neighbors by passing out flyers.

"We are two years away from Chester Upland and Reading," he said.

Allentown School Board: 'The sky is falling'

District figures rainy day fund will evaporate by 2015-16, leaving a $6.5 million deficit.

By Steve Esack, Of The Morning Call 9:44 p.m. EDT, May 18, 2012

Allentown school taxes could rise 4.8 percent, full-day kindergarten could be rolled back and about 38 jobs could be lost in 2012-13.

But that's nothing compared to what could be facing taxpayers, staff and students by 2015-16.

That's when the district's rainy day account is projected to run dry, leaving a $6.5 million deficit that is estimated to grow 515 percent to $40 million by 2017-18, according to the latest budget estimates released Thursday.

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-allentown-school-budget-0517-20120518,0,5287662.story

York City schools budget: Sports, art, gym, kindergarten up for cuts

ANDREW SHAW The York Dispatch Updated:   05/08/2012 07:07:10 AM EDT

The York City School District's worst case budget scenario, the nightmare that the last school board president warned of during the last budget crisis, was laid out in blunt terms Monday night.  And it's not just a scenario.  At this point, it's just about the only option.

City school officials plan on eliminating next year's $19 million deficit by slashing administrators, teachers, sports, art, gym and more, according to the most updated budget details.

While some details were previously revealed, business consultant James Duff said the teacher union's decision not to accept wage concessions and the state indicating more funding isn't coming has the district more seriously considering these options:

·                     Eliminating half-day kindergarten. The district already had proposed cutting full-day kindergarten to half-day kindergarten. This would cut it entirely, as the state does not require districts to offer that grade.

·                     Eliminating all sports. That includes eliminating the athletic director position held by Chaz Green and the athletic staff.

·                     Eliminating guidance counselors and the bilingual counselor positions

·                     Eliminating K-12 art and K-8 gym; those subjects would have to be taught by classroom teachers.

·                     Eliminating the gifted seminar teacher position

·                     Eliminating K-12 choir and band

·                     Requiring staff to work four-day, eight-hour weeks in the summer, which would save the district $278,500 in salary

·                     Eliminating all stipend positions, which includes anything teachers get paid for beyond the classroom York City Superintendent Deborah Wortham repeatedly emphasized the latest proposed budget is not finalized.

http://www.yorkdispatch.com/news/ci_20568144/york-city-schools-budget-sports-art-gym-kindergarten

1,000 gather to protest proposed school cuts in Upper Darby

Published: Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Delco Times By LINDA REILLY Times Correspondent, llreilly1@gmail.com

UPPER DARBY — A crowd of almost 1,000 people filled the courtyard outside the Upper Darby Performing Arts Center as a show of solidarity in their quest to restore special courses in elementary schools and foreign language and technology in middle schools.

http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2012/05/02/news/doc4fa0a6e8088e2943290514.txt?viewmode=fullstory

Archbishop calls for Catholics to lobby for taxpayer funded voucher bailout that could take another billion dollars out of our public schools.

I guess he hasn’t read the articles listed above, or about cuts proposed for Philadelphia and Pittsburgh schools, or these 700 articles about proposed budget cuts, program cuts, staffing cuts and tax increases being considered by Pennsylvania’s “government schools”, you know, the schools that by law must accept everybody…….

Sunday, Voucher Sunday….

This Sunday, May 20, is “Voucher Sunday.” You won’t find it on the Catholic liturgical calendar, but this year in Pennsylvania, it’s a vital day nonetheless…..

http://catholicphilly.com/2012/05/archbishop-chaput/why-catholic-schools-are-worth-saving/

..and perhaps he hasn’t read this either…..

Pennsylvania Constitution and Vouchers

http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2011/10/pennsylvania-constitution-and-vouchers.html