Daily postings from the Keystone State Education
Coalition now reach more than 3000 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
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg
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?
Pennsylvanians Want a School
Funding Formula
Press Event Monday September 23rd, 11:30 am Capitol Rotunda, Harrisburg
Every child in Pennsylvania
Grassroots Advocacy by
Education Voters PA; Education Matters in the Cumberland
Valley and the Keystone State
Sign up here if you
may be able to join us to represent your schools and community: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/104e0endYpVYcPxSyfG9V_DOIVAB0J3AVI0-20Q8Yylw/viewform
First order of business
in September - SAVE THE DATE 9/23
First order of business: A “thorough
and efficient system of education.”
Education Voters of Pennsylvania September 5, 2013
The legislature returns to Harrisburg
“According
to the Philadelphia
Public School
Legislators give $30.3M to 21 school districts behind closed doors
Legislators give $30.3M to 21 school districts behind closed doors
PA One of Only Three
States Without Education Funding Formula
No
accuracy, fairness, or transparency possible without sound formula
WHYY
Newsworks By Elizabeth Fiedler @EAFiedler September 5, 2013
Pennsylvania
Association of Rural and Small Schools Executive Director Joe Bard said that
across the state other schools are feeling the same fiscal pain as Philly.
"We have many districts that are struggling for existence because of
inadequate state funding and the inability, because of Act 1, to raise their
local taxes above a set amount without going to referendum," Bard said.
More info on PARSS – the Pennsylvania Association of
Rural and Small Schools
PA Special Education Funding Formula Commission
Upcoming Meeting
Save the
date: September 19 tentative meeting date in Reading
To consider
charter and cyber special education funding
Special Education Funding Formula Commission Website
Why charter schools need better oversight
Charter
schools were designed to allow founders the freedom to design and run schools
as they wish outside the traditional school system bureaucracy. Here’s a case
for why some of that freedom needs to be reined in. This was written by Jeff
Bryant, an associate fellow at theCampaign
for America’s Future and the owner of a marketing and communications
consultancy that serves numerous organizations including Human Rights Watch,
Doctors Without Borders, PBS, and International Planned Parenthood Foundation.
He writes extensively about public education policy at The
Education Opportunity Network, where this
appeared. Follow Jeff on Twitter: jeffbcdm
Senator Smucker sets sights on charter school reform
NIKELLE SNADER / The York Dispatch 505-5431 / @ydschools Updated: 09/03/2013
State Sen.
Lloyd Smucker will take another crack at reforming the charter school system in
Pennsylvania
The reform
bill would allow universities to authorize charter schools, a partnership that
would encourage quality education for children across the state, said Smucker,
R-Lancaster.
The bill,
introduced last week, also aims to make charter schools have the same
transparency public school districts do.
If the bill passes, charter schools will need to conduct open meetings
and comply with the Public Official and Employee Ethics Act.
Smucker
said the accountability requirements in his proposal would ensure the charter
schools are held to the higher standards they claim.
Smucker Seeks Responsible
Reform of Charter
School
Senator
Smucker’s website August
20, 2013
“Charter
schools are public schools, so we have an obligation to see that they are run
right and perform up to standards,” Smucker said. “Pennsylvania
Under SB
1085, accountability measures for charters include: complying with the open
meetings law, the open records law, and the ethics act; requiring more detailed
reporting and disclosure; and undergoing an annual independent audit.
Reprise PPG Vintage 2007: Cyber-school empire under
attack
By Jonathan
D. Silver / Pittsburgh March
18, 2007 12:00 am
In the past
seven years, Nicholas Trombetta has climbed from small-town Beaver County
Detractors
claim Dr. Trombetta has misused the public's money and engaged in a range of
questionable business practices at his booming Pennsylvania Cyber
Charter School Midland
Although it
is not clear exactly what state Attorney General Tom Corbett Jr. is
investigating, a statewide grand jury whose term recently ended heard testimony
over several months about alleged financial shenanigans within Dr. Trombetta's
network. Prosecutors are expected to continue presenting evidence to a new
grand jury next month.
K12, Inc. online schools: a view from the inside
David ReberTopeka K-12 Examiner
September 5, 2012
K12, Inc.,
a publicly-traded, for-profit online charter school company, has flooded the Kansas
For-profit
companies like K12, and the politicians they work to elect, tout online
education as a wonderful new education reform -
and even describe it as the future of public education. Yet a recent report from
the National Education
Policy Center
at the University
of Colorado
Forging a practical path to pension reform: Glen
Grell
By Patriot-News Op-Ed By Glen R. Grell on September 05, 2013
at 12:45 PM
State Rep. Glen R. Grell, a
Republican, represents the Cumberland County-based 87th House District. He is a
member of the Public School Employees Retirement Board and serves as chairman
of the Republican Caucus Task Force on Pension Reform.
With the
state Legislature returning to session in a few weeks to tackle a myriad of
questions including pension reform, some issues are worth considering.
First, Pennsylvania
The funding
issues surrounding the state pension systems are complex, but as it stands now,
these systems together are operating with an unfunded liability of at least $41
billion – and growing. Our pension debt
is now far greater than our annual state expenditures on education, human
services, transportation and public safety – combined.
Public hearing to examine
public education funding cuts Tuesday, Sept. 10th in Philadelphia
HARRISBURG,
Sept. 5 – House
Democratic Policy Chairman Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, announced today the
committee will hold a hearing about Pennsylvania’s public education and funding
cuts from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 10 at the Franklin Institute,
Fifth Floor Conference Center, 222 North 20th St.,
Philadelphia.
State Rep.
Brian Sims, D-Phila., requested the hearing and will serve as co-chairman. The
hearing will focus on the importance of public education and how decreasing
state funding is hurting schools all over the Commonwealth.
The current
hearing agenda is:
- 2 p.m. – Welcome and opening
remarks
- 2:10 p.m. – Panel one:
- Dr. Richard Ingersoll,
professor of education and sociology,
- Jamira Burley, executive
director, Philadelphia Youth Commission
- 2:35 p.m. – Panel two:
- Laurada Byers, co-founder,
- Mark Gleason, executive
director, Philadelphia School Partnership
- 3 p.m. – Panel three:
- Helen Gym, co-founder, Parents
United
- Jerry Jordan, president,
Philadelphia Federation of Teachers
- 3:25 p.m. – Panel three:
- Kathleen Melville,
communications coordinator for Teachers Lead Philly and teacher at
- Christine Carlson, founder,
Greater Center City Neighborhoods School Coalition
- 3:50 p.m. – Closing remarks
The
hearing is open to the public and media coverage is invited.
Parents Considering Legal
Action Over Hobbled Philadelphia Schools
CBS Philly By Mike DeNardo September
5, 2013 1:36 PM
PHILADELPHIA
(CBS) — With short-staffed Philadelphia 
opening in four days (see related stories), parents are weighing their legal
options.
opening in four days (see related stories), parents are weighing their legal
options.
Tired of
waiting for answers on how schools can open Monday with overcrowded classes and
barely any counselors or support staff, parents are looking at taking matters
into their own hands.
Helen Gym,
founder of Parents
United for Public Education, says parents are meeting with attorneys to
talk about the process of filing complaints with the Pennsylvania Department
of Education.
.
Parents get legal tips for special-ed needs
Susan
Snyder, Inquirer Staff Writer LAST UPDATED: Thursday, September 5, 2013 , 11:11 PM POSTED: Thursday, September 5, 2013 ,
8:16 PM With the start of
school just days away, parents and advocates for children with autism, physical
disabilities, or other special needs are becoming increasingly concerned that
the Philadelphia School District will not be able to adequately educate those
students because of staff and budget cutbacks. A group of parents met Thursday
with officials from the nonprofit Public
Interest Law
Center in Philadelphia
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20130906_Special_education__Parents_learn_how_to_hold_cash-strapped_Phila__schools_accountable.html#YkwibP95SlXFLCDH.99
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20130906_Special_education__Parents_learn_how_to_hold_cash-strapped_Phila__schools_accountable.html#YkwibP95SlXFLCDH.99
Countdown, Day 4: Talks
to resume Friday; Philly teachers are under a 'status quo' contract
The
notebook by Dale Mezzacappa on Sep 05 2013
Teachers'
contract negotiations took a break on Thursday for Rosh Hashanah, with plans to
resume Friday and likely continue through the weekend. "The expectation is that they are going
to go on into the weekend," said District spokesman Fernando Gallard.
Meanwhile,
teachers are working under what is known as a "status quo" contract.
How is that different from a contract extension? It means that nothing changes: Teachers will
get paid whatever they were paid in June and will not get automatic increments
they might qualify for due to working an additional year or acquiring an
additional degree.
"Status
quo means status quo," said George Jackson, spokesman for the Philadelphia
Federation of Teachers. Gallard confirmed that this is the case. It also means that, for now, the benefits
package is intact.
Laid-off school counselor
gets a star turn
By Susan Snyder, Inquirer Staff Writer POSTED: September 02, 2013
A former Masterman School
guidance counselor gained rock-star status Saturday when she was invited onto a
Made in America festival
stage to make a pitch for counselors laid off from the Philadelphia School
District
Taking the
mike from Flavor Flav, Heather Marcus urged the crowd watching Public Enemy to
contact elected officials to tell them to "stop playing games and stand up
for students."
"Do
you think every child in Philadelphia
The crowd
roared back.
Philly Schools:
Really, who knows anything?
Philly.com
Opinion by LISA HAVER POSTED: Friday, September 6, 2013 , 3:01 AM
Lisa Haver is a retired teacher and
co-founder of the Alliance
DOES anyone really understand the current state of thePhiladelphia
School District
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20130906_Schools__Really__who_knows_anything_.html#6hyXv7el98j0Z4Yt.99
DOES anyone really understand the current state of the
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20130906_Schools__Really__who_knows_anything_.html#6hyXv7el98j0Z4Yt.99
The Color of School
Closures (Graphic)
National Opportunity to Learn Campaign Posted
on: Tuesday April 23rd, 2013
Mass school
closings have become a hallmark of today's dominant education policy agenda.
But rather than helping students, these closures disrupt whole communities. And
as U.S. Department of Education data suggests, the most recent rounds of mass
closings in Chicago, New York City and Philadelphia disproportionately hurt
Black and low-income students.
Common Core Assessment Myths and Realities:
Moratorium Needed From More Tests, Costs, Stress
Fairtest.org
Submitted by fairtest on September 3, 2013 - 12:55pm
Under No Child Left Behind (NCLB), each state set its own learning
standards and developed tests to measure them. But NCLB’s failure to spur
overall test score gains or close racial gaps led “reformers” to push for
national, or “common,” standards. With millions in federal Race to the Top
money and NCLB “waivers” as incentives, all but a few states agreed to adopt
Common Core standards. Two multi-state consortia — the Smarter Balanced
Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness
for College and Careers (PARCC) — won federal grants to develop Common Core
tests, which are due to be rolled out in 2014-15. Here are the
realities behind major Common Core myths.
A Map of Who's Got the
Best (and Worst) Internet Connections in America
Gizmodo by REUBEN FISCHER-BAUM
In the
digital age, access to high speed internet is fundamentally important. But some
regions of the country are still left out in the cold. We took a look at where
you can get the best—and not best—internet in the U.S.
Diane Ravitch will be speaking in
Philly at the Main Branch of the Philadelphia 7:30 pm ..
Diane Ravitch | Reign
of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America
When: Tuesday,September 17,
2013 at 7:30PM
Where: Central Library
Cost: $15 General Admission, $7 Students
Ticket and Subscription Packages
Tickets on sale here:
When: Tuesday,
Where: Central Library
Cost: $15 General Admission, $7 Students
Ticket and Subscription Packages
Tickets on sale here:
Yinzers - Diane Ravitch will be
speaking in Pittsburgh on September
16th at 6:00 pm at Temple Sinai
Free and open to
the public; doors open at 5:00 pm
Hosted by Great
Public Schools (GPS) Pittsburgh : Action United,
One Pittsburgh , PA
Interfaith Impact Network, Pittsburgh
Co-sponsored byCarlow Univ. School
of Education, Chatham Univ. Department of Education, Duquesne
Univ. School
of Education, First Unitarian Church
Social Justice Endowment, PA State Education Association, Robert Morris Univ.
School of Education & Social Sciences, Slippery Rock
Univ. College
of Education, Temple Sinai , Univ.
of Pittsburgh School of Education
Children’s activities provided by the Carnegie Library ofPittsburgh
and Carnegie Mellon University
Co-sponsored by
Children’s activities provided by the Carnegie Library of
Join the National School Boards
Action Center
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
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.
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:
Electing PSBA Officers:
2014 PSBA Slate of Candidates
Details on each candidate, including
bios, statements, photos and video are online now
PSBA Website Posted 8/5/2013
The 2014 PSBA Slate of Candidates is being officially published to the
members of the association. Details on each candidate, including bios,
statements, photos and video are online at http://www.psba.org/elections/.
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
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).
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