Daily postings from the Keystone State Education
Coalition now reach more than 2650 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school
directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers,
Governor's staff, 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
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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?
Citing $33 million in
available funds, Hite partially restores Philly secretaries, music, sports
Hearing points to challenges in special ed funding
NBC News By Gary Weckselblatt Staff Writer PhillyBurbs.com July 26, 2013
President
John F. Kennedy gave himself nearly a decade to send an astronaut to the moon.
A state commission has until Nov. 30 to put together a new funding formula for
special education — and its task might be more challenging.
That
15-member panel held a hearing in Doylestown on Thursday, looking for a way to
“drive money to districts based on need, not on disability,” said state Rep.
Bernie O’Neill.
O’Neill, a
Warminster Republican, and Sen. Pat Browne, a Lehigh County Republican, are
co-chairs of the commission seeking input on how to fairly distribute tax
dollars for an expensive problem that continues to grow.
Citing $33 million in
available funds, Hite partially restores Philly secretaries, music, sports
by thenotebook on
Jul 26 2013
Posted in Latest news
by Dale Mezzacappa for the Notebook and Holly Otterbein
for NewsWorks
With new
money for Philadelphia schools coming in at a trickle, even though schools are
just six weeks from opening under a doomsday scenario, Superintendent William
Hite said Friday that he believes the District has enough funds on hand to
restore the positions of 220 secretaries for the upcoming school year -- one
for each school -- as well as fall sports and 66 itinerant music teachers
through January.
At a
contentious four-hour School Reform Commission meeting that started at 8 a.m.,
Hite and his Chief Financial Officer Matthew Stanski said they were confident
that they could increase by $33 million their bare-bones budget. The
budget resulted in 3,800
layoffs and stripped
schools of nearly everything but a principal and a core of teachers.
But the District leaders said that, as of now, they can
only count on just $17 million in additional funds from the city and
state.
SRC restores sports, rehires
music teachers, secretaries
Martha
Woodall, Inquirer Staff Writer POSTED: Friday, July 26, 2013 , 6:34 PM
The Philadelphia School District will use $33 million in
savings and new funding to recall laid-off music teachers and school
secretaries and restore fall sports programs that were axed. "Now we plan
to use the revenue that we believe is available to get schools ready" for
opening Sept. 9, Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. said during a special
School Reform Commission meeting Friday.
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20130726_SRC_rehires_music_teachers__secretaries__restores_sports.html#YZ8omOXC1y8TM25m.99
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20130726_SRC_rehires_music_teachers__secretaries__restores_sports.html#YZ8omOXC1y8TM25m.99
Legislators give $30.3M
to 21 school districts behind closed doors
Twenty-one
of Pennsylvania 's
500 school districts got a nice surprise in the state's new budget: extra cash
for these tough times.
Districts large, small and in-between benefited, including theAllentown
schools, with nearly 19,000 students, the School
District of Lancaster ,
with 11,200, and a rural Potter
County district, with
only 184 pupils.
Districts large, small and in-between benefited, including the
Inquirer Editorial: Leave this bill behind
POSTED:
Friday, July 26,
2013 , 1:08 AM
The House last week passed a bill that would gut the landmark No Child Left
Behind law, returning most school oversight to states and districts. While
there is plenty in the law that requires fixing, the House legislation would be
a major setback for public education.
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/inquirer/20130726_Inquirer_Editorial__Leave_this_bill_behind.html#LYOGBejkF380fKGh.99
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/inquirer/20130726_Inquirer_Editorial__Leave_this_bill_behind.html#LYOGBejkF380fKGh.99
Teachers Lead Philly Summer Newsletter July 2013
Summer is a
great time to reflect, recharge, and set goals for the new year. This year,
Teachers Lead Philly will be offering a variety of opportunities for teachers
to connect, develop, and lead. Are you interested in exploring web design,
videography, book groups, grant writing, blogging, professional development, or
advocacy? Do you have some ideas about how to impact education in Philly?
Teachers Lead Philly wants you!
The Real Bloodbath
It’s been a
rough couple of weeks for our public schools, and they’re not even in session.
In the heat of the summer Pittsburgh
schools – and our teachers – have come under attack.
First public school
seized by parents set to open
Politico By STEPHANIE SIMON |
7/26/13 2:20 PM EDT
A grand
experiment in letting parents seize control of their neighborhood schools is
unfolding in an impoverished Mojave Desert town — and lawmakers as far away as Pennsylvania , Florida
and Michigan
are watching, and pondering the implications for troubled schools in their own
states. Desert Trails Preparatory Academy in
Adelanto , Calif. ,
will open for the academic year on Monday as the first school in the nation to
have been remade under a law that gives parents the power to take over a
low-performing public school and fire the principal, dismiss teachers or bring
in private management.
"Parents Can Only Listen"
My
Education Next Posted by Rita
M. Solnet on July 26, 2013 at 4:18pm
I
attended a conference call today initiated and led by Ben Austin, Executive
Director of Parent Revolution, to honor "National Parents Day."
The call from start to finish focused on the complexity of the parent
trigger law, the controversy, the process, and the status of California schools. Although the call's
password was "Parents," parents couldn't ask questions - only
reporters could. Perhaps Parent Revolution should consider a name change or a
re-branding.
I'm
confused.
When Bad Things Happen to
Good NAEP Data
Education Week By Stephen
Sawchuk Published
Online: July 24,
2013
Premium article access courtesy of Edweek.org.
The
National Assessment of Educational Progress is widely viewed as the most
accurate and reliable yardstick of U.S. students’ academic knowledge. But when it comes to many of the ways the
exam’s data are used, researchers have gotten used to gritting their teeth.
Yinzers - Save the Date: Diane
Ravitch will be speaking in Pittsburgh
on September 16th at 6:00
pm . Location and details to
come.
Save the Date: Diane Ravitch will be
speaking in Philly at the Main Branch of the Philadelphia Free Library on September 17 at 7:30
pm . Details to come.
Participate
in a voluntary network to urge your U.S.
Representatives and Senators to support federal legislation on Capitol Hill
that is critical to providing high quality education to America ’s schoolchildren
Know Your Child’s Rights! 2013-2014 Special Education
Seminars
The Law Center ’s
year-long Know Your Child’s Rights! seminar series on special
education law continues in 2013-2014 with day and evening trainings
focused on securing special education rights and services. These seminars are intended for parents,
special education advocates, educators, attorneys, and others who are in a
position to help children with disabilities receive an appropriate education.
Every session focuses on a different legal topic, service or disability and is
co-led by a Law Center staff attorney and a guest
speaker.
This year’s
topics include Tips for Going Back to School; Psychological Testing, IEEs and
Evaluations; School Records; Children with Autism; Transition Services;
Children with Emotional Needs; Discipline and Bullying; Charter Schools;
Children with Dyslexia; Extended School Year; Assistive Technology;
Discrimination and Compensatory Education; and, Settlements. See below for descriptions
and schedules of each session.
PSBA is accepting applications to fill vacancies in NSBA's grassroots
advocacy program. Deadline to apply is Sept. 6.
PSBA members: Influence
public education policy at the federal level; join NSBA's Federal Relations
Network
The
National School Boards Association is seeking school directors interested in
filling vacancies for the remainder of the 2013-14 term of the Federal
Relations Network. The FRN is NSBA's grassroots advocacy program that provides
the opportunity for school board members from every congressional district in
the country who are committed to public education to get involved in federal
advocacy. For more than 40 years, school board members have been lobbying for
public education on Capitol Hill as one unified voice through this program. If
you are a school director and willing to carry the public education message to Washington , D.C. ,
FRN membership is a good place to start!
PSBA members will elect
officers electronically for the first time in 2013
PSBA 7/8/2013
Beginning
in 2013, PSBA members will follow a completely new election process which will
be done electronically during the month of September. The changes will have
several benefits, including greater membership engagement and no more absentee
ballot process.
Below is a
quick Q&A related to the voting process this year, with more details to
come in future issues of School Leader News and at www.psba.org.
More information on the overall governance changes can be found in the February
2013 issue of the PSBA Bulletin:
2014 PSBA Officer Slate
of Candidates
PSBA website 7/24/2013
The 2014
PSBA Slate of Candidates is being officially published to the members of the
association. More details on each candidate, including bios, statements, photos
and video will be available soon online.
See more
at: http://www.psba.org/news-publications/headlines/details.asp?id=5861#sthash.uyC3nC24.dpuf
October 15-18, 2013 | Hershey Lodge & Convention Center
Important change this year: Delegate Assembly (replaces the
Legislative Policy Council) will be Tuesday Oct. 15 from 1 – 4:30 p.m.
The
PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference is the largest gathering of elected
officials in Pennsylvania
and offers an impressive collection of professional development opportunities
for school board members and other education leaders.
Registration:
https://www.psba.org/workshops/?workshop=17
The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, State College , PA
The state
conference is PAESSP’s premier professional development event for principals,
assistant principals and other educational leaders. Attending will enable you
to connect with fellow educators while learning from speakers and presenters
who are respected experts in educational leadership.
Featuring
Keynote Speakers: Charlotte Danielson, Dr. Todd Whitaker, Will Richardson &
David Andrews, Esq. (Legal Update).
EPLC
Education Policy Fellowship Program – Apply Now
Applications are available now for the 2013-2014 Education Policy
Fellowship Program (EPFP). The Education Policy Fellowship Program is
sponsored in Pennsylvania
by The Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC).
With more than 350 graduates in its first
fourteen years, this Program is a premier professional development opportunity
for educators, state and local policymakers, advocates, and community
leaders. State Board of Accountancy (SBA) credits are available to
certified public accountants.
Past participants include state policymakers,
district superintendents and principals, school business officers, school board
members, education deans/chairs, statewide association leaders, parent leaders,
education advocates, and other education and community leaders. Fellows
are typically sponsored by their employer or another organization.
The Fellowship Program begins with a two-day
retreat on September 12-13, 2013 and continues to graduation
in June 2014.
"They
don't feel they should be subject to this law, or, candidly, subject to
you," Mutchler told senators on the state government committee, which is
considering legislation to amend the five-year-old law. "They are a cancer
on the otherwise healthy right-to- know-law."
By Amy Worden, Inquirer Harrisburg
Bureau POSTED: May 15, 2013
PA Charter Schools: $4
billion taxpayer dollars with no real oversight
Charter schools - public funding without public scrutiny
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