Daily
postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 1875
Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators,
legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, PTO/PTA officers, parent
advocates, teacher leaders, education professors, members of the press and a
broad array of P-16 regulatory agencies, professional associations and education
advocacy organizations via emails, website, Facebook and Twitter.
These daily
emails are archived at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg
Letter to Gov. Corbett: Pennsylvania
The first edition of the Network for
Public Education Newsletter is Here!
“The letter recommends the Governor and General Assembly adopt "a
system of public education that secures the adequate and equitable funding of Pennsylvania
Fails to Meet the Needs of Its Children
Education Justice March 15, 2013
Writing on behalf of the state's schoolchildren in a letter to Gov. Corbett dated March 14, 2013 , the
Education Law Center of Pennsylvania and the Public Interest Law Center of
Philadelphia were joined by Education Voters PA, Public Citizens for Children
and Youth (PCCY), the
Pennsylvania League of Urban Schools (PLUS), and the Pennsylvania Association
of Rural and Small Schools (PARSS)
in pointing out that "the basic educational needs of Pennsylvania's
children are not being met." They
urge the Governor and the General Assembly to address the fact that the state's
"underfunding is now so significant that the Commonwealth is failing to
fulfill its constitutional obligation to maintain a 'thorough and efficient
system of public education.'" They also explain that "the large
funding gaps between public schools in wealthy communities and those in
high-poverty rural and urban communities are additional evidence of the failure
to meet the 'thorough and efficient' mandate." They declare that "Pennsylvania
Charter school reform legislation,
audits grab state’s attention
Later in the day, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said the Corbett
administration should take action to fix “systemic problems” that could be
costing districts millions of dollars.
State wants to revoke charter of
Philadelphia-based cyber school
by thenotebook on Mar 15 2013 Posted in Latest news
by Benjamin Herold for NewsWorks,
a Notebook news
partner
Pennsylvania Secretary of Education Ronald Tomalis wants to close down
the Solomon Charter School in Philadelphia, which opened just months ago. Solomon was authorized by the state
Department of Education to open as a cyber charter, providing online
instruction to students in their homes. But
in a release, Tomalis said that on three separate visits last fall, state
officials found that Solomon was functioning as a traditional school, with
students meeting in classrooms and receiving face-to-face instruction from
their teachers.
Martha Woodall, INQUIRER
STAFF WRITER POSTED: Friday, March 15, 2013 , 10:49 PM
The Solomon Charter School
only opened in September, but Pennsylvania 1209 Vine St.
Tomalis said. “Cyber charter school operators cannot circumvent a
local school district by receiving a cyber charter from the department and then
operate as a brick-and-mortar school.”
PDE PRESS RELEASE: March 15, 2013
Secretary of Education Seeks Revocation of Philadelphia-Based Solomon Charter School’s Charter
Harrisburg – Citing significant and severe violations of the Pennsylvania Public School Code, Secretary of Education Ron Tomalis today filed charges to revoke the cyber charter of Solomon Charter School in Philadelphia. “Solomon officials have consistently demonstrated their inability to adhere to the school’s governing charter and operate within the confines of the Charter School Law,” Tomalis said. “The Public School Code is explicit – cyber charter schools are to offer a significant portion of their curriculum through the Internet or other electronic means.’’
Secretary of Education Seeks Revocation of Philadelphia-Based Solomon Charter School’s Charter
Harrisburg – Citing significant and severe violations of the Pennsylvania Public School Code, Secretary of Education Ron Tomalis today filed charges to revoke the cyber charter of Solomon Charter School in Philadelphia. “Solomon officials have consistently demonstrated their inability to adhere to the school’s governing charter and operate within the confines of the Charter School Law,” Tomalis said. “The Public School Code is explicit – cyber charter schools are to offer a significant portion of their curriculum through the Internet or other electronic means.’’
“Since opening its doors in September 2012, Solomon has primarily
operated as a brick-and-mortar charter school, circumventing the
brick-and-mortar charter school authorization process, and negating the
essential basis on which the charter was granted – that the school would
provide a ‘cyber’ education to its students.’’
VICKI SMITH: Cyber school reform
could save millions
Indiana (PA) Gazette Opinion Posted: Friday, March 15, 2013 11:00 am
Vicki Smith is president, Homer-Center school
board and chairman, ICTC board of directors
As school districts prepare their budgets for 2013-2014, tuition payments
to cyber charter schools continue to divert public funds from our schools. The tuition rate for cyber charter schools is
based only on school district costs. Cyber schools are paid far in excess of
their actual costs.
As the Legislature considers changes to the funding formula, the cyber
schools are mounting a campaign to keep the current formula.
Wall St. likes Philly public-school
closings
Philly.com PhillyDeals Blog March 15, 2013 , 2:12 PM Joseph N. DiStefano
The Philadelphia School District's plan to
shut almost 1/10 of the district's 250 schools, as competing, taxpayer-funded
charter schools draw off one-third of the district's student body and Gov.
Corbett cuts state aid, is "positive from a credit perspective"
because it shows school officials "are intent on reducing
expenditures" even if it makes them "unpopular," writes Moody's
analyst Michael D'Arcy in a report to bond investors.
Aliquippa, Wilkinsburg, Reading
By Alex Zimmerman / Pittsburgh March
15, 2013 4:51 pm
The State Department of Education put Wilkinsburg and Aliquippa
school districts on a financial watch list today, which is meant to identify
and offer assistance to school districts in financial distress. The financial watch list was created by Act
141--a state law passed last year--as part of an "Early Warning
System" for designating school districts struggling to make ends meet. The state also added Reading
School District in Berks County
and Sheelton-Highspire School District in Dauphin County
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/education/aliquippa-and-wilkinsburg-districts-put-on-financial-watch-list-679478/#ixzz2NgwpIg50
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/education/aliquippa-and-wilkinsburg-districts-put-on-financial-watch-list-679478/#ixzz2NgwpIg50
It's official: Students will have to
pass Keystone Exams to graduate
It's official: Students in Pennsylvania
Charters' business manager admits
role in fraud scheme
Martha Woodall, Inquirer
Staff Writer March
16, 2013 , 3:01 AM
The former business manager of the Philadelphia-area charter-school
network founded by Dorothy June Brown pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to
his role in an alleged scheme to defraud the schools of $6.7 million. ……Smoot admitted fabricating, altering, and
backdating charter board minutes, invoices, contracts, and financial records to
mask the fact that Brown - and not the charters' boards - was running the
schools, and that she and her two management companies were receiving millions
in taxpayer funds from the schools.
PA State Rep. Dwight Evans, PA State
Senator Anthony Williams and PA State Rep. Vanessa Lowery Brown recipients of
Inaugural BAEO Elected Official Awards
Black Alliance
Forum draws concerns, questions
about York City
Community members sought more information about an all-charter idea for
York
By ANGIE MASON Daily Record/Sunday News Updated: 03/14/2013
11:41:15 PM EDT
At a public forum held as part of York City School District
The advisory committee helping David Meckley, chief recovery officer,
come up with a plan for turning the district around has been considering
proposals including converting the district into all charters or transforming
it internally through ideas such as magnet schools and local management. Many in the audience at Martin Library on
Thursday raised concerns about the all-charter idea and asked for more
information, particularly about Philadelphia
"People go to charter schools because they think miracles are going
to happen at that school. The bottom line is, it's not necessarily
happening," said city resident John Moroney.
“First, I believe that KIPP was denied
expansion by School Reform Commission last June. Now Philadelphia School
Nonprofit grants Philly charters
$3.4M
PhillyTrib Written by Damon
C. Williams Thursday, 14 March 2013 18:18
The Philadelphia School Partnership – a pro-education nonprofit which has
a stated mission to accelerate the pace of education reform in Philadelphia by
increasing the number of great school options available to children – will
invest $3.4 million in two of the area’s largest charter school operators –
KIPP Philadelphia Schools and Scholar Academies.
Updated: ACLU gives Chambersburg
until Wednesday to permit Gay-Straight Alliance
UPDATED: CHAMBERSBURG -- The American Civil Liberties Union of
Pennsylvania has agreed to give Chambersburg
Area School
District an extension amounting to three more business days to
reverse a decision that blocked a Gay-Straight Alliance from forming at Chambersburg Area Senior High School
Guest Voice: Sequester cuts hurt Pa.
GoErie.com BY JOAN BENSO PUBLISHED: MARCH 15, 2013 12:01 AM EST
JOAN BENSO is president ofPennsylvania Partnerships for Children, an independent,
nonpartisan, statewide children's advocacy organization based in Harrisburg
JOAN BENSO is president of
One of the wonders of early learning is a young child's ability to soak
up hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of new words in the span of a few months.
Who could have predicted one of those new words might be "sequester"? Yes, those deep, across-the-board federal
spending cuts finally have hit, and their impact could be devastating to our
kids if Congress and President Barack Obama cannot reach a compromise this
month to undo the sequester and adopt a continuing resolution (there's another
term for your vocabulary, kids) to keep the federal government from shutting
down. If the gridlock continues, it's going to take a harmful -- and
potentially irreversible -- toll on our youngest Pennsylvanians.
About 2,300 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania
Education Week Charters and Choice Blog By Katie Ash on March
14, 2013 4:10 PM
An audit of charter schools in Pennsylvania
'Congressional App Challenge' Aims
to Cultivate Students' Computer Science Innovation
Education Week Digital Education Blog By Victoria
O'Dea on March 15, 2013 3:30
PM
By guest blogger Victoria O'Dea
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have created a new
competition to discover the best young app designers and programmers in their
congressional districts.
The House passed the Academic
Competition Resolution of 2013 late last month. The resolution
establishes an annual competition intended to promote and recognize student
achievement in science, technology, engineering and math—or the STEM fields.
The competition is expected to evolve over time, based on need, but
backers of the effort say the initial focus of the competition will be on
computer science—a field where qualified workers are in high demand. High school and college students will have a
chance to show off their coding skills in the competition, called the "Congressional App
Challenge," where they will compete to develop the best apps for
mobile, tablet and computer platforms.
Voices: Inside for-profit education
Written by Patricia Lang on Mar 14th, 2013. |
Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org
Former online teacher Patricia
Lang doesn’t believe taxpayer dollars should be used for online
schools after her experiences in the trenches.
In 2005 I began working for COVA, the Colorado Virtual
Academy
Ala. Governor Signs Private School
Tax Credit Bill
Education Week By The
Associated Press March
14, 2013
Testing Resistance & Reform
News: March 6 - 13, 2013
At the risk of information overkill, here's a fat package of just one
week's clips reporting the rising tide of resistance to high-stakes testing.
For more details on the scope and impact of the growing national movement,
check out the March issue of FairTest's Examiner newsletter at http://fairtest.org/newsletter/current
Cultivating ideas for John
Coltrane's old Strawberry
Mansion
VALERIE RUSS, Daily News
Staff Writer russv@phillynews.com,
215-854-5987
POSTED: Friday, March 15, 2013 , 6:29
AM
NORMAN GADSON bought John Coltrane's old house in Strawberry Mansion
Lenora Early, Gadson's widow, said her husband, a fervent jazz fan,
intended to fix up the house and open it as a jazz venue. "He just loved jazz," Early said of
Gadson. But he died in 2007, before he could restore the house, on 33rd Street Oxford New York
Among the considerations: Should there be live jazz performances there?
What about musical instruction for young people in the adjacent house?
How to Join the Network for Public
Education
Diane Ravitch’s Blog By dianerav March 13,
2013
Several readers have contacted me asking how they can join the Network
for Public Education.
Some read about it but don’t know how to find the website.
Here it is: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org
Become a member: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/network-membership/
Subscribe to our
newsletter: http://www.networkforpubliceducation.org/subscribe/
Teachers Lead Philly Spring
Dinner/Workshop
Thu,Mar 21, 2013 ~ 5pm -7pm Franklin
Register HERE!
Thu,
Register HERE!
Children with Specific Learning
Disabilities, Dyslexia and Calls for Reforming Special Education
Session will take place from 12:00-4:00pm on the
listed day at the United
Way Building 1709 Benjamin Franklin
Parkway , Philadelphia , PA 19103
Sessions also available via webinar.
Cost: Pay What You Can! (Minimum
payment of $5 Requested)
This session is designed
to address the legal aspects surrounding the needs of children with dyslexia,
and other learning disabilities (ADHD, non-verbal learning disabilities). An
expert in dyslexia will join Sonja Kerr to explain dyslexia/learning
disabilities, the research and what we can do about it.
PSBA opens nominations for the
Timothy M. Allwein Advocacy Award
PSBA website 3/15/2013
The nomination process is now open and applications will be accepted
until June 21,
2013 .
In 2011, PSBA created a new award to honor the memory of its long-term
chief lobbyist, who died unexpectedly. The Timothy M. Allwein Advocacy Award
may be presented annually to the individual school director or entire school
board to recognize outstanding leadership in legislative advocacy efforts on
behalf of public education and students that are consistent with the positions
in PSBA�s Legislative Platform. The nomination process is
now open and applications will be accepted until June 21, 2013 . The award will be
presented during the PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference in October.
Honoring Valor: National History Day
Student Competition
Letters of intent due by April 1, 2013
The Pennsylvania Department of Education, the Army Heritage Center
Foundation, and the Pennsylvania
State Museum
High School to demonstrate how and why societies honor valor. Inspired by
the valor exemplified by Soldiers at Gettysburg September
11, 2001 , and the responses of individuals battling disease or
injustice, the competition will recognize students who demonstrate
excellence in identifying and describing how and why societies honor
their valiant men and women.
PSBA officer applications due April
30
PSBA’s website 2/15/2013
Candidates seeking election to PSBA officer posts in 2014 must file an
expression of interest for the office desired to be interviewed by the PSBA
Leadership Development Committee.
This new committee replaces the former Nominations Committee. Deadline
for filing is April 30. The application shall be marked received at
PSBA headquarters or mailed first class and postmarked by the deadline to be
considered timely filed. Expression of interest forms can be found online
at www.psba.org/about/psba/board-of-directors/officers/electing-officers.asp.
Edcamp Philly 2013 at UPENN
May 18th, 2013
For those of you who have never gone to an
Edcamp before, please make a note of the unusual part of the morning where we
will build the schedule. Edcamp doesn’t believe in paying fancy people to come
and talk at you about teaching! At an Edcamp, the people attending – the participants
- facilitate sessions on teaching and learning! So Edcamp won’t
succeed without a whole bunch of you wanting to run a session of some kind!
What kinds of sessions might you run?
What: Edcamp Philly is an"unconference" devoted
to K-12 Education issues and ideas.
Where:University
of Pennsylvania
Where:
2013 PSBA Leadership Symposium on
Advocacy and Issues
April 6, 2013 The Penn Stater Convention Center Hotel; State College, PA
Strategic leadership, school budgeting and advocacy are key issues facing today's school district leaders. For your school district to truly thrive, leaders must maintain a solid understanding of these three functions. Attend the 2013 PSBA Leadership Symposium on Advocacy and Issues to ensure you have the skills you need to take your district to the next level.
April 6, 2013 The Penn Stater Convention Center Hotel; State College, PA
Strategic leadership, school budgeting and advocacy are key issues facing today's school district leaders. For your school district to truly thrive, leaders must maintain a solid understanding of these three functions. Attend the 2013 PSBA Leadership Symposium on Advocacy and Issues to ensure you have the skills you need to take your district to the next level.
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