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Friday, November 9, 2012

EITC: “Public Money, Private Schools” a KYW Regional Affairs Council Special Report


Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 1700 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, PTO/PTA officers, parent advocates, teacher leaders, members of the press and a broad array of P-16 education advocacy organizations via emails, website, Facebook and Twitter.

These daily emails are archived at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg

In PA HD 163 Bonner Concedes to Micozzie; 3 races have yet to be called

Politico Written by Keegan Gibson, Managing Editor November 8, 2012
And then there were 3. Democrat Seamus Bonner conceded his challenge to Rep. Nick Micozzie, the Delaware County Republican said Thursday.
Just 3 races have yet to be called. Rep. Rick Saccone (R-Allegheny) narrowly leads David Levdansky the 39th district (by 30-50 votes or so), with provisional ballots still outstanding. Rep. Justin Simmons (R-Lehigh) is ahead in his re-election battle with Dem Kevin Deely. And Rep. Tom Quigley (R-Montgomery) is awaiting final confirmation of the numbers but is apparently headed for a loss to Dem challenger Mark Painter.

EITC: “Public Money, Private Schools” a KYW Regional Affairs Council Special Report
CBS Philly by Pat Loeb, November 8, 2012
A Pennsylvania law that allows businesses to get tax deductions for donations to private “scholastic organizations” has fervent backers, and equally fervent critics.
What’s the truth behind Pennsylvania’s “Educational Improvement Tax Credit”?
KYW’s Pat Loeb presents this four-part KYW Regional Affairs Council special report…

Part 1: The EITC — What Is It?

The Educational Improvement Tax Credit is promoted as a way to provide a better education for poor children, but public education advocates say it actually takes away tax money that could be used to improve schools.

Part 2: Who’s Hurt by the EITC?

Expanding the program at a time when the state has slashed public school funding is infuriating public education advocates.

Part 3: Who Benefits From It?

“BLOCS provides scholarships from your business taxes to students who not only want to attend a Catholic school but are most in need,” says one advertisement.

Part 4: Ongoing Controversies

State senator Tony Williams defends the program as similar to the GI Bill, but some of his Harrisburg colleagues see it as improperly favoring closed groups.

Here’s prior Keystone State Education Coalition coverage of the EITC from Monday, July 2, 2012…..

PA budget locks in $1 billion cut to public education; gives $75 million bailout to struggling parochial schools



Mars Area teacher contract approved

Post-Gazette By Sandy Trozzo November 8, 2012 5:17 am
The two-year contract approved Monday night between the Mars Area school board and its teachers reflects the fiscal reality facing Pennsylvania schools.
"This contract is based on mutual compromise, is fiscally sustainable and provides much-needed budget stability in an uncertain funding environment," said board President J. Dayle Ferguson.

Obama has a cliff to avoid, Cabinet to pick

Pocono Record By DAVID ESPO AP Special Correspondent November 08, 2012
WASHINGTON — One day after a bruising, mixed-verdict election, President Barack Obama and Republican House Speaker John Boehner both pledged Wednesday to seek a compromise to avert looming spending cuts and tax increases that threaten to plunge the economy back into recession.

Sequestration: School boards can help NSBA lobby to avoid fiscal cliff

NSBA’s Board Buzz by Joetta Sack-Min|November 7th, 2012
Political pundits are already warning President Barack Obama and members of Congress not to spend too much time basking in their Nov. 6 victories. Beginning next week, Congress and the White House will start the tough negotiations to deal with the process of sequestration, which is the cancellation of budgetary resources.

Election Shows Voters Divided Over Education
Wall Street Journal By STEPHANIE BANCHERO November 7, 2012, 5:22 p.m. ET
Voters delivered mixed verdicts on a raft of education-related ballot questions, highlighting the deep divide across the country over how to run public schools.

“According to the Tyler Morning Telegraph, 71 percent of Texas’ more than 1,200 school districts missed AYP for 2011-12 — up from 49 percent the year before.  ….Why did Texas school districts wait until now to do this? Because, McCraw said, what had been objectionable before became “intolerable” when so many districts were rated as failing.”

Texas school districts seek to overturn annual NCLB ratings

Posted by Valerie Strauss on November 8, 2012 at 4:00 am
Texas school districts is asking state education officials to set aside all of the Adequate Yearly Progress ratings that they have been given under the No Child Left Behind law since the program started a decade ago.
According to the Star Telegram, the Austin-based Texas Association of Community Schools organized the case that was just filed against the Texas Education Agency with the State Office of Administrative Hearings. It argues that the federal government doesn’t have the authority to mandate an accountability system for public schools and the education agency shouldn’t have implemented the federally mandated Adequate Yearly Progress school rating system.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2012/11/08/texas-school-districts-seek-to-overturn-annual-nclb-ratings/

In Obama's Second Term It's Time to Think Big on Education

The Century Foundation by Richard Kahlenberg Nov 7, 2012
Barack Obama’s re-election—made possible by a strong African American, Latino, and female vote—liberates the president to return to the central questions of equal opportunity that first motivated him to seek public office.  According to David Maraniss’s biography of Obama, the future president was inspired to apply to Harvard Law School and enter public life after he heard a presentation by William Julius Wilson on the effects of de-industrialization and isolation on low-income urban blacks. As Wilson (a longtime Century Foundation trustee) observed in The Truly Disadvantaged a quarter-century ago, the Civil Rights Act freed middle-class black Americans to move out of racially segregated ghettos, an enormous advance in human dignity, but this development also left poor blacks in concentrated poverty that was worse than ever before.
Obama’s election to a second term allows him to think big about the providing better opportunities to  truly disadvantaged children. If the economy continues to grow in the second term, as many are predicting, the president can move beyond rear-guard efforts to avoid an economic depression. Under these circumstances, Americans will be in a more generous and large-spirited frame of mind to tackle difficult issues. 

My View: An open letter to George Lucas - We need your independent vision

CNN Schools of Thought Blog by Anthony Cody, Special to CNN November 8th, 2012
Editor’s note:Anthony Cody worked in schools in Oakland, California, for 24 years. He taught middle school science 18 of those years. He lives in Mendocino County, California, and leads workshops for teachers. He writes the Living in Dialogue blog, and you can follow him on Twitter,@AnthonyCody.
Dear Mr. Lucas,
I have recently read of the $4 billion that you will receive for selling your movie empire to Disney, and your plans to give most of this money to support education. This is wonderful news. I deeply appreciate this generosity. I am writing a letter to encourage you to think outside the box as you decide how to spend these funds. It is critical to consider where educators find ourselves in 2012.

Sandy destroyed Bellevue Hospital Reach Out & Read books

Via tweet from Susan Ohanian @susanoha

Help them buy more (They get them @ $2.75 per book)

STEM Educators: Apply Now for the 2013-14 Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship

Deadline December 5, 2012
The Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program is now accepting applications for the 2013-2014 Fellowship Year. The Einstein Fellowship Program is available to current K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) educators with a demonstrated excellence in teaching and leadership.
Selected teachers spend 11 months in Washington, D.C., sharing their expertise with STEM program directors or policy makers. Einstein Fellows may serve in a Congressional office or in one of several government agencies such as the Department of Energy (DOE), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), or the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).  Fellows receive a monthly stipend and an allowance for professional travel and relocation. The fellowship year begins in late August 2013.
For more information about the program and to learn how to apply, visit www.einsteinfellows.org. Applications for the 2013-14 Fellowship program are due by 11:00 pm (EST) December 5, 2012.

There's still time to register for the Pittsburgh school library briefing on November 15th!
Join the Education Law Center, the Health Sciences Library Consortium, and the PA School Librarians Association for the release of findings of the Pennsylvania school library impact study on student achievement, and learn about the investments in school library programs needed to prepare 21st-century learners:

Education Policy and Leadership Center

Register Now! 2012 Pennsylvania Education Finance Symposium November 16th

The registration fee is $25 if paid by November 12, and $30 if paid after November 12 or on-site. Click here to register for the symposium.
Wildwood Conference Center Harrisburg Area Community College
Friday, November 16, 2012

PENNSYLVANIA EDUCATION POLICY FORUM
Why Investing in Early Education Matters, Even in These Difficult Economic Times - "Erie Region Breakfast Series" Monday, November 19, 2012
Continental Breakfast - 8:00 a.m. Program - 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.  
 Ambassador Center (I-90 & Peach Streets in Erie, next to the Courtyard by Marriott)
Sponsored by the Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children and The Education Policy and Leadership Center
SPEAKERS:
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Diane Robbins, Principal, Early Childhood Learning Center, Titusville Area School District
Jill Simmons, Vice President, Early Care and School-Age Enrichment, Greater Erie YMCA
Dr. James Tracy, Superintendent, Girard School District
Darlene Kovacs, VP Administrative Services, Early Connections - Success by 6 Kindergarten Readiness Program
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
Share school district successes and challenges in supporting quality learning experiences. Hear from local school districts and early learning providers about how they have worked together to maintain early learning as an integral part of the school districts' overall goals. Learn how quality early learning can contribute positively to a community's economic success.
 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
While there is no registration fee, seating is limited and an RSVP is required.
Building One Pennsylvania – Fundraiser November 29th
Join us at our first fundraiser and awards ceremony to celebrate our progress in promoting inclusive, sustainable and economically prosperous communities.
Austin Room at IBEW Electrical Union 654
3729 Chichester Avenue, Boothwyn PA 19061
Thursday, November 29th from 6:00 – 8:00 PM
$100 per person • $75 for Building One Pennsylvania Member
HONOREES:
U.S. Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr.
U.S. Congressman Patrick Meehan
Estelle Richman, Senior Advisor to the Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Isaac Dotson, Yeadon Economic Development Corporation
Tom Gemmill, St. James Episcopal Church, Lancaster
Rev. Marlon Millner, Norristown Municipal Council and McKinley Memorial Baptist Church

PLEASE RSVP TO ATTEND


Education Law Center invites you to a special evening December 5th
Honoring Len Rieser
Welcoming Rhonda Brownstein
And celebrating public education champions
Mary Gay Scanlon, Harold Jordan, Arc of PA, The Bridges Collaborative and School Discipline Advocacy Services
Food, Drink and Silent Auction
December 5, 2012 , 5:30 PM
Crystal Tea Room The Wanamaker Building
100 Penn Square East, Philadelphia
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1 comment:

  1. UnknownNovember 20, 2012 at 10:37 AM

    I really like that my children have the opportunity to go to a private school. I went to a private school fo most of my education, and I would have it no other way. Thanks for sharing all of these things with us.

    ReplyDelete

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