Daily
postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 1900
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.
The Keystone State Education Coalition is
pleased to be listed among the friends and allies of The Network for Public
Education. Are you a
member?
These daily
emails are archived at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg
Students
in Allentown
PA cybercharters avg cost of $10,145
was $3,500 more than national average of $6,500.
PA charters spent avg $13,411
per student, about $3K more than national average of $10K.
Fixing PA’s Charter School
More than 100 parents, students hold midday
rally protesting Allentown
District says parents should have kept their
students in school, not taken them out for rally.
By Daniel Patrick Sheehan,
Of The Morning Call 11:15 p.m. EDT, May 6, 2013
Long before they arrived at the
Allentown School District Hamilton Street
They hooted, hollered, whistled
and, above all, chanted, making themselves heard above the supportive blaring
of horns from passing cars: "Save our schools! Save our schools!"
And when they converged on the
administration building, they turned up the volume, making sure the officials
inside know how angry they are over proposed school district budget cuts that
threaten staff and programs, including the arts.
Hundreds of students to rally on North
Broad over school cuts
Brian
X. McCrone, PHILLY.COM POSTED: Monday,
May 6, 2013 ,
9:41 PM
A couple hundred students from
several Philadelphia North
Broad Street Masterman High School
"This week is Teacher
Appreciation Week and with the budget cuts next year, we’ll be cutting a lot of
teaching jobs and music, arts, and sports programs. So we decided that this
week would be the right time," Moore
Are charter schools actually better?
In theory, I like the idea of
charter schools.
I like that students who don't do well in a traditional classroom setting might have an alternative, like at-home learning on the computer. Likewise, I suspect charter schools have lots of opportunity to innovate. Already, they've pushed some school districts, including a few here inLancaster County
But I've also had plenty of reservations about charters, both cyber-charters and the brick-and-mortar kind. Given the relatively lax state oversight, the opportunity for graft would seem to abound. Earlier this year a report by Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. James Roebuck Jr. documented a good bit, including suspiciously high executive pay, huge fees paid to management companies — more on that in a moment — and "charters operating as if they were 'family businesses' with leadership positions being passed down," according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
I like that students who don't do well in a traditional classroom setting might have an alternative, like at-home learning on the computer. Likewise, I suspect charter schools have lots of opportunity to innovate. Already, they've pushed some school districts, including a few here in
But I've also had plenty of reservations about charters, both cyber-charters and the brick-and-mortar kind. Given the relatively lax state oversight, the opportunity for graft would seem to abound. Earlier this year a report by Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. James Roebuck Jr. documented a good bit, including suspiciously high executive pay, huge fees paid to management companies — more on that in a moment — and "charters operating as if they were 'family businesses' with leadership positions being passed down," according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Reforms for next Philly school contract
Cynthia
Figueroa and Darren Spielman Monday, May 6, 2013 , 8:02 AM
Cynthia Figueroa is president and CEO of Congreso de Latinos Unidos.
Darren Spielman is president and CEO of the Philadelphia
It's not every day that we can
point to a labor negotiation as a great opportunity for children.
We are members of the Coalition
for Effective Teaching, a coalition of the city's education, business, and
community leaders who want the public to know that, while the discussion about
the Philadelphia School District contract likely will focus on money and budget
issues, the negotiations also present a unique opportunity to boost the
effectiveness of teaching and learning in our schools.
By committing to new union and
management practices, including those that reward teachers and principals based
on the success of their students rather than only their time on the job -
especially for students in the city's most disadvantaged schools - we can make
real progress. We are calling on the parties to seize this opportunity to put
children, teaching, and learning first.
Auditor: Kensington charter school had
longtime money woes
Martha
Woodall, Inquirer Staff Writer POSTED: Tuesday,
May 7, 2013 ,
3:01 AM
A Philadelphia School District Erie Avenue
"When you talk about an
overall view . . . I'm really concerned. I'm concerned with the financial
management," Krain told hearing officer Rudolph Garcia. "This is a charter school that's been in
business since 1997, so we're talking about a school that's been in business
for 15 years. It's not a start-up."
Please consider sharing and
discussing the Executive Summary with your elected officials and other
education policymakers.
Community Schools: A Handbook for State
Policy Leaders
Improving Student
Learning/Strengthening Schools, Families and Communities
Coalition for Community Schools
This handbook is designed to
help state leaders—Governors and their policy advisers; State legislators and
their staffs; State Boards of Education; Chief State School Officers and staff
in State Education Agencies; and directors and staff in state agencies that
serve children, youth, and families—to form vital connections between schools
and communities to improve student learning. It also will be useful to the work
of policy leaders in cities, counties, local school districts, and philanthropy.
Executive Summary (5 pages):http://www.iel.org/pubs/handbookexecsummary.pdf
Full Handbook (36 pages):http://www.communityschools.org/assets/1/AssetManager/handbook_state_policyleaders1.pdf
“Across the country, teacher pay did not increase significantly over the
last decade. According to the National
Center for Education Statistics, average teacher salaries increased less
than 1 percent, in inflation-adjusted terms, from 2000-12. What’s more, average teacher pay — $56,643,
according to the Department of Education — is lower than the average pay in
many other professions that require college and graduate degrees.”
Teacher
Pay Hurt by Recession, Report Says
New York Times By MOTOKO RICH Published: May 6, 2013
During the recession and its
aftermath, public schools took a hit as both state coffers and local property
taxes shriveled. That showed up in shrinking employment, but also in teacher
salaries.
According to a report being released Tuesday, the vast majority
of teachers in the nation’s largest school districts took a pay cut or saw
their pay frozen at least one year between 2008 and 2012.
The report by the National Council on Teacher
Quality, a nonprofit group that advocates for tougher teacher standards,
looked at salary data across 41 of the country’s 50 largest school districts.
Average annual teacher pay increases, which included cost-of-living and
contractually negotiated raises as well as increases awarded for extra years of
experience, dropped from 3.6 percent in the 2008-09 school year to 1.3 percent
in the 2011-12 year. (The report did not include increases that teachers may
have received for extra degrees or certifications.)
The Neglected Purpose of Education
Huffington
Post by Jack Jennings Founder,
and former President, Center on Education Policy 05/05/2013 12:12 pm
"To prepare all citizens
to become responsible members of a democratic society"
"To develop socialization
and citizenship skills in children"
"Preparing students for
responsible, productive citizenship and imbuing them with values common to one
democratic society"
These similar phrases were
developed by diverse groups of citizens in three communities -- Berwyn , Illinois ; Chicago ; and Pittsburgh ,
Pennsylvania
Long-Lost
Memo Stirs Allegation Of Cheating In D.C. Schools
NPR by CLAUDIO SANCHEZ May 06, 2013 3:00
PM
Listen
to the Story All Things Considered 6 min 15 sec
MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:
For years now, Washington , D.C.
Knade, Crossley to discuss pensions on PCN
Call-In Program Wednesday, May 8 at 7 p.m. on PCN.
PSBA 5/3/2013
Stuart Knade, PSBA interim
executive director, will join Mike Crossey, president of PA State Education
Association, to discuss pension reform in the Commonwealth -- Wednesday, May 8
at 7 p.m. on PCN. Viewers may call (877)
PA6-5001 with questions during the program. Check your local listings for
station information.
How Public Education Is Funded - EPLC
"Focus on Education" TV Program
Wednesday, May 8 at 9 p.m. on PCN.
Education
Policy and Leadership
Center May 3, 2013
Next Wednesday, May 8, tune in
to the next episode of EPLC's "Focus on Education" series,which
will cover How Public Education Is Funded In Pennsylvania and
air at 9:00 p.m. on PCN television. The
panel will include:
- Ron Cowell, President of The Education Policy and
- Corinna Vecsey Wilson, PCN Host of the "Focus on Education"
programs;
- Joe Bard, Executive Director of the
- Dr. Paula Hess, Former Senior Education Advisor,
- Laura Cowburn, Past President of the
EPLC and PA Cable Network (PCN)
have partnered for a monthly program focusing on education issues in Pennsylvania
"Focus on
Education" will be broadcast on PCN at 9:00 p.m. on the 2nd Wednesday
of every month, now through June, and then again this fall in September through
December.
To learn more, visit PCN's "Focus on Education" web page.
Panel: Striking Back on High Stakes Testing
hosted by Rethinking Schools
Panel Discussion Hosted by
Rethinking Schools
Arch Street United Methodist Church 55 North Broad Street , Philadelphia
Wednesday, May
15, 2013 4:30pm until 6:00pm
Join CUNY Professor Michelle
Fine and Rethinking
Schools
Space limited! RSVP: parentsunitedphila@gmail.com
Info and directions: https://www.facebook.com/events/459048834184078/
Looking for PA Governor's School for the
Arts Alumni
For over 35 years, the
Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts was a robust summer program that
provided over 10,000 students state-wide with extraordinary opportunities to
develop their artistic talents, intellects, self-confidence, and leadership.
Unfortunately, for budget reasons, state officials ended the program a few
years ago. The Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC)'s 2012 Arts and
Education Policy Report recommended the school be reestablished and the
Pennsylvania Arts Education Network is now urging that the Governor's School
for the Arts be restored.
To support this effort, we
would like to create a comprehensive list of alumni who attended the School.
This list would be an important voice in supporting the reopening of the
Governor's School for the Arts, and arts education in Pennsylvania
If you, or someone you know attended the Pennsylvania
PSBA Bylaws amendment proposals due May 15
PSBA
website 2/15/2013
As stated in Article XII,
proposals for amending the PSBA Bylaws must be submitted "in writing,
mailed first class and postmarked or marked received at PSBA headquarters prior
to May 15 of each year." Proposals
should be addressed to the Bylaws Committee Chair or the Executive Director and
sent to PSBA headquarters by the May 15, 2013, deadline.
The procedures for submitting
proposed bylaws changes are outlined in Article XII and can be found online atwww.psba.org/about/psba/2013_psba_bylaws.pdf.
Search underway for PSBA Executive Director
The Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA)
is a nonprofit statewide association of public school boards, pledged to the
highest ideals of local lay leadership for the public schools of the
commonwealth. Founded in 1895, PSBA has a rich history as the first
school boards' association established in the United States Pennsylvania
Search
by Diversified Search, 1990 M St NW, Suite 570Washington , DC
Superintendents, Business Managers, School
Board Members, Union Leaders, Any Others interested in PSERS and wanting to
learn more about Pension Reform . . .
Tuesday, May 14, 2013 Registration:
6:30 p.m. Presentation: 7:00 p.m.
Allegheny Intermediate Unit 475 East Waterfront Drive Homestead , PA 15120
Jeffery B. Clay, Executive
Director for the Pennsylvania Schools Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS)
will present on the topic of pension reform. Mr. Clay’s presentation will
review the increases in retirement contributions and the Governor’s proposal on
pension reform. As one concerned about public education, we are sure that
you will find this meeting enlightening and a valuable investment of your time.
In order to accommodate those
attending and prepare the necessary materials for the meeting, please
register using the following link: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/6252177431 by May 7, 2013 .
If you have any questions
regarding the registration process, please contact Janet Galaski at 412.394.5753 or janet.galaski@aiu3.net.
NAACP 2013
Conference on the State of Education in Pennsylvania
A Call for Equitable and
Adequate Funding for Pennsylvania
Media Area Branch NAACP Saturday, May 11, 2013 9:00 am – 2:30
pm (8:30 am registration)
Marcus Foster Student Union 2nd
floor, Cheyney University of PA, Delaware County Campus
Information and registration
at: http://www.naacpmediabranch.org/2013_conference.html
Sign Up
Today for PILCOP Special Ed CLE Trainings
Spots are filling up for the
final two trainings in our 2012-2013 Know Your Child’s Rights series with
seminars on ADAAA, Pro Se Parents and Settlement Agreements.
For seminar details and
registration: http://pilcop.org/sign-up-today-for-special-ed-cle-trainings/
Turning the Page for Change
celebration, June
11, 2013
Please join us for the Notebook’s annual Turning the Page for
Change celebration on June 11, 2013 , from 4:30 - 7 p.m. at the University of The Arts 320 S. Broad Street
PA Charter Schools: $4 billion taxpayer dollars with no real
oversight Keystone State May 2,
2013 )
Charter schools - public funding without public scrutiny; Proposed
statewide authorization and direct payment would further diminish
accountability and oversight for public tax dollars
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