Daily postings from the Keystone State Education
Coalition now reach more than 3050 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school
directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers,
Governor's staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, 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 and searchable 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?
Six new cyber charter school
applications before PDE; No
cyber charter in PA made AYP for 2012
“Acting
Secretary of Education Dr. Carolyn Dumaresq provided the Board a report of PDE
activities. ….She noted there are six new cyber charter school applications
before PDE; hearings on these applications will be held November 15 – 22”
Education Policy and Leadership Center
Pennsylvania
Department of Education 2013 Cyber
Charter School
- 2013
Public Hearing Notice (PDF)
- 2013
Cyber Hearing Agenda 11-15-13 (PDF)
- 2013
Cyber Hearing Agenda 11-21-13 (PDF)
- 2013
Cyber Hearing Agenda 11-22-13 (PDF)
- List
of 2013 Cyber Charter School Applications Received (PDF)
No cyber
charter in Pennsylvania
By Mary Niederberger Pittsburgh Post-Gazette January 23, 2013
7:37 AM
Recalculated figures for attaining Adequate Yearly
Progress on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment exams for 2012
released by the state Department of Education show that the number of charter
schools hitting the targets for AYP dropped from 77 to 43.
With the recalculation, no cyber charter school in Pennsylvania
Column:
Keystone exams will fail to access Pa.
By ANDY DINNIMAN, Times
Guest Columnist 11/14/13, 11:25 PM EST |
Andy Dinniman, a Chester County Democrat, is state Senator for Pennsylvania ’s 19th Senatorial
District and minority chair of the Senate Education Committee.
Everyone supports higher academic standards and
accountability in education. Though controversial, I believe the new
Pennsylvania Core Standards (Common Core) are a positive step for education. However, in the false name of raising
academic standards and accountability, the Corbett administration is attempting
to assess these new standards through the implementation of the Keystone
Graduation Exams – high-stakes tests that will result in higher property taxes,
less classroom instruction, more “teaching to the test,” and the potential for
a generation of students to be branded as failures. The Pennsylvania Department of Education and
the Pennsylvania State Board of Education have proposed the Keystone Graduation
Exams to the Pennsylvania Independent Regulatory Review Commission, which is
set to vote on them on Nov. 21. I
encourage you to join me in opposing the Keystone Graduation Exams. Here’s why.
Dinniman,
Overwhelming Majority of Area
School
Senator Andy Dinniman November 13, 2013
WEST CHESTER (November 13) – State Senator
Andy Dinniman and nearly every school superintendent in southeastern
Pennsylvania oppose the proposed Keystone Graduation Exams and have asked
Pennsylvania’s IRRC (Independent Regulatory Review Commission) to vote against
the exams on Nov. 21.
Fully 58 of the 61 superintendents and all four
intermediate unit directors serving students and taxpayers in Chester,
Montgomery, Delaware, and Bucks counties believe there are “major challenges
and concerns with the current implementation strategy of the Keystone Exams and
Pennsylvania’s school accountability system,” according to the signed letter
delivered to IRRC commissioners on Nov. 4.
In addition, many local school districts have passed
resolutions opposing the Keystone Graduation Exams, including the Great Valley
School District , Tredyffrin-Easttown
School District , Radnor
School District , and Haverford School District
The school districts’ concerns include new,
substantial costs to local taxpayers in the hundreds of millions of dollars;
the inherent unfairness of the proposed high-stakes tests; a complete lack of
direction from the Pennsylvania Department of Education over how to implement
and use the Keystone Exams; and perhaps most importantly, the negative impact
that preparing for and taking so many required standardized tests has on public
schools – many of which are performing excellently.
Common
Core/Keystone Exams: The PA State Board of Education (Board) has submitted the
final-form regulation entitled “Academic Standards and Assessment."
The Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) plans to meet
and act on this regulation at our public meeting at 10:00 a.m. on
Thursday, November 21, 2013.
Regulation #6 – 326: Academic Standards
and Assessment
Amends existing regulations to reflect Pennsylvania
The agenda and any changes to the time or date of
the meeting will be posted on IRRC’s Web site at www.irrc.state.pa.us.
Please note that any comments should be submitted to the Board prior to the
48-hour blackout period, which begins at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday,November
19, 2013. Please provide IRRC with a copy of any comments submitted, as
well. Please note that all correspondence and documents relating to a
regulation submitted to IRRC are a matter of public record and appear on IRRC’s
Web site.
For a copy of the regulation or if you have any
substantive questions regarding the regulation, please contact the Board
at (717) 787-3787.
You can also download the final-form regulation from IRRC’s Web site using the
following link:
A fourth one files request to expand
By Eleanor Chute / Pittsburgh November 15, 2013 11:34 PM
In a district already expecting to spend $54.9
million on charter schools in 2014, Pittsburgh Public Schools has received
applications from three new charter schools for next fall and a request to
expand an existing one….. Charters are public schools open to
state residents. Under state law, districts must pay for each resident who
attends a charter school. In the case of Pittsburgh
Petition asks
Pittsburgh
School closing, building sale among requests
By Eleanor Chute / Pittsburgh November 15, 2013 11:44 PM
With one legislative meeting left before four new
Pittsburgh Public Schools board members are sworn in, Great Public Schools
Pittsburgh is asking the board to delay voting on three key issues.
The organization has started a petition on
change.org, signed by more than 550 supporters, asking the board to wait until
new members are sworn in to vote on:
* A contract with Teach for America
* Start of the process to close Pittsburgh Woolslair
K-5 on the Lawrenceville-Bloomfield border.
* Sale
The petition states, "This newly elected board
represents the largest board turnover in over two decades, and the new board,
duly elected by Pittsburgh
Bill would
allow public schools to eliminate or reduce property tax
By Barbara
Miller Staff Writer bmiller@observer-reporter.com
publishednov 13,
2013 at 10:59 pm
(updated nov 13,
2013 at 10:59 pm )
published
Never again pay a property tax bill to your school
district?
While the idea, on its face, may sound enticing,
taxes are going to fund public schools. If a bill in the state Legislature
becomes law, it would be a question of which taxes, and how much of each, would
finance public education. What’s known
as House Bill 1189 contains no provision to alter the taxing options of either
municipalities or counties, so, even if the bill passed, it would have no effect
on real estate taxes levied by those governmental bodies. Sponsored by state Rep. Seth Grove, R-York,
House Bill 1189 is an amendment to the Local Tax Enabling Act giving school
districts the option of reducing or eliminating school property taxes. A
co-sponsor is Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Jefferson.
State
Responds to PILCOP Philly Nurse Shortage Complaint
On November 8th, we received a letter from the Pennsylvania Department of
Education in response to the group complaint we filed on behalf of Parents United for Public
Education regarding the shortage of nurses. In the letter, the state
indicates that it will investigate the lack of nurses specifically related to
students with disabilities by reviewing current staffing plans and conducting
onsite visits. The Department of Education further states that it is not
responsible for investigating this complaint related to non-disabled students
and places that responsibility with the Office of Student Services. The state
is also referring the matter to the Department of Health. The letter does not
indicate if the department has any plans to meet with parents or advocates
during its investigation. Please continue to report nursing shortage issues
through www.myphillyschools.com to
keep the pressure on the state. Click here to read the letter.
For more information on the complaints
project, click here.
Appeals
board: New Hope
ERIN
JAMES / The York 11/15/2013 07:35:50 AM EST
The fight to save New Hope Academy
A state-level decision Thursday means the York City
charter school will not have to close by Jan. 15, as New Hope Pennsylvania 's
charter school appeals board voted unanimously Oct. 15 to close New Hope New Hope first alleged by the York City School District New Hope
Administrator
returns to working with the students
KATHY BOCCELLA, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER November 15, 2013 , 2:01 AM
The light snowfall Tuesday reminded Darlene Davis of
one of the minor, if inescapable, annoyances of her former job as a school
superintendent. Every time it snowed,
she would have to make the call: school or no school. And no matter which she
choose, people would complain about it. "Some
people say, 'I can't believe you closed'; others say, 'I can't believe you
opened.' You can't make everyone happy," said Davis, 56, who spent three
years as chief of the Cheltenham School District in Montgomery County Davis Widener Partnership
Charter School
“Davidson, 51, has a
reputation for being a conservative Democrat. Some Democrats are concerned
about her votes regarding women’s health care rights and her support of school
vouchers, according to Smith.”
Davidson
could face a challenge in 164th
If state Rep. Margo Davidson, D-164, of Upper Darby , decides to run for re-election next year,
she could face a challenger in the primary election. Lansdowne Democrat Billy J. Smith is eyeing
the seat. Smith, 38, is an attorney who previously served on Lansdowne Borough
Council. He primarily handles criminal defense cases and was previously an
assistant district attorney in Philadelphia
“But reading scores are
notoriously difficult to improve. While math scores on tests such
as NAEP have improved substantially since testing began in the early 1990s,
reading scores have increased only by slim margins. Experts believe
that’s because children learn math mostly at school, while they learn most of
their language skills at home, much of it before they even enter school. Neuman said that means states wanting to make
significant improvements in early reading need to target parents before their
children reach school, or even preschool.”
States Insist
on Third Grade Reading
Pew Charitable Trusts Stateline By Adrienne
Lu, Staff Writer November 15, 2013
Educators have known for decades that learning how
to read by the third grade is a critical milestone for children. Students who
fall too far behind by the third grade rarely catch up.
One recent study found that students who don’t read well by the
third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school. Despite progress in some states, only 35
percent of fourth graders across the country are proficient inreading, according to the most recent National Assessment
of Educational Progress (NAEP), released earlier this month.
PSBA welcomes
new heads of Government Affairs and Member Services
PSBA Press Release 11/15/2013 Steve Robinson, Dir. of
Publications and PR
John Callahan and Lin Carpenter recently joined PSBA
as senior director of Government Affairs and assistant executive director of
Member Services, respectively. "We
are excited to have these talented leaders join us in public education
advocacy. Their expertise will be a great asset to this organization,"
said PSBA Executive Director Nathan Mains.
- See more at: http://www.psba.org/news-publications/headlines/details.asp?id=6584#sthash.TlkBl8kJ.dpuf
Congratulations! Getting
elected to the school board was the easy part…..
PSBA New
Board Member Training: Great Governance, Great Schools
November 2013-April 2014
November 2013-April 2014
Announcing School Board
Academy ’s New Board Member Training:
Great Governance, Great
Schools
You will need a wealth of information quickly as you
jump out of the starting block and hit the ground running as a newly elected
member of the board of school directors. New board members, as well as veterans
who might like a refresher, will want to make the most of the opportunity to
attend PSBA's New Board Member Training Program: Great Governance, Great Schools
EPLC is recruiting current undergraduate or graduate students to
serve as part-time interns
EPLC
is recruiting current undergraduate or graduate students to serve as
part-time interns beginning January or May of 2014 in the downtown Harrisburg Pennsylvania School Pennsylvania
Join us as we celebrate their accomplishments!
Tuesday,November
19, 2013 5:30 pm
- 8:30 pm WHYY, 150 North 6th Street , Philadelphia
Invitations coming soon!
Tuesday,
Invitations coming soon!
Register: http://tinyurl.com/m8emc4m
Building
One Pennsylvania November
21, 2013 6:00-8:00 PM
IBEW Local 380 3900 Ridge Pike Collegeville, PA
19426
Building One Pennsylvania is an emerging
statewide non-partisan organization of leaders from diverse sectors -
municipal, school, faith, business, labor and civic - who are joining together
to stabilize and revitalize their communities, revitalize local economies and
promote regional opportunity and sustainability. BuildingOnePa.org
Just announced: The Last Waltz Philly benefit for Philadelphia School
WXPN The Key November
5, 2013 | 12:25 PM |
By Bruce
Warren
On
Saturday, November 30th the Trocadero Theatre hosts The Last Waltz Philly, a benefit
for Philadelphia Bryan
Proceeds
will benefit four Philadelphia organizations that focus on education: Parents
United for Public Education, the Passyunk Square Civic Association Education Committee, theFriends of Horatio B. Hackett School and the School
District of Philadelphia’s Music Education Instrument Repair Program.
The National School Boards Association 74th Annual
Conference & Exposition April 5-7, 2014 New Orleans
The
National School Boards Association 74th Annual Conference &
Exposition will be held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans , LA. New Orleans
General Session speakers include education advocates
Thomas L. Friedman, Sir Ken Robinson, as well as education innovators Nikhil
Goyal and Angela Maiers.
We have more
than 200 sessions planned! Colleagues from across the country will present
workshops on key topics with strategies and ideas to help your district. View
our Conference Brochure for highlights on sessions
and focus presentations.
- Register now! – Register for both the conference
and housing using our online system.
- Conference Information– Visit the NSBA conference
website for up-to-date information
- Hotel List and Map - Official NSBA Housing Block
- Exposition Campus – View new products and
services and interactive trade show floor
Questions? Contact NSBA at 800-950-6722 (NSBA) between
the hours of 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. EST.
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
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