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?
SB1085: Senators Pileggi, Williams, Erickson
talk charter school reform
SB1085 would create an 18-member Charter School
Funding Advisory Commission, consisting of the secretary of education; six
legislators, four of them from the majority party; and, appointed by the
governor, 11 representatives of charters, school districts, and a
university. ….the commission is not
bipartisan. Sixteen of the 18 members come from, or will be appointed by, the
majority party."
“It also removes language
allowing charters and districts to negotiate enrollment caps, an aspect that
has drawn criticism from traditional education advocates. They argue it will
allow unfettered expansion. “School
districts have used various techniques to try to limit the enrollment of
charters schools,” Pileggi said.“The intent of this bill is to further make
clear and make effective the statutory intent of not having limits on charter
school enrollments and make that educational option available to as many
students and parents.”
SB1085:
Senate won't be any easy sell
By John Kopp, Delaware County
Daily Times POSTED: 12/08/13, 8:46
PM EST |
There is little argument among state
legislators and educators that Pennsylvania ’s
charter school law needs substantial changes.
Drafting a reform bill that will satisfy everyone at the table has
proven a bit more difficult. The latest
proposal, Senate Bill 1085, includes comprehensive amendments to a law that
mostly has gone unaltered since its inception in 1997.
The bill contains provisions designed to
increase transparency and accountability of both cyber and brick and mortar
charters. It alters the funding amounts received by charters and the methods in
which they receive it. It also amends the process for granting and extending
charters, including provisions permitting universities to grant charters.
Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-9,
of Chester ,
said the bill will not come up for a vote until January at the earliest. When
it does, he said, the bill likely will include amendments.
Senate
Bill 1085; Regular Session 2013-2014
Pennsylvania General Assembly website
Bill Sponsors: SMUCKER, WILLIAMS, BAKER, FOLMER, WAUGH, ALLOWAY, PILEGGI, VANCE and EICHELBERGER
Bill Sponsors: SMUCKER, WILLIAMS, BAKER, FOLMER, WAUGH, ALLOWAY, PILEGGI, VANCE and EICHELBERGER
More info: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/BillInfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&bn=1085
Our weekend posting included the Ed Law
Center’s analysis of SB1085, coverage of the controversy surrounding the bill
by Kathy Bocella at the Inky and an op/ed…..
PA Ed Policy Roundup
for December 8,
2013 : SB1085 “could create more than 100 potential new authorizers
of charter schools …able to establish and control public schools with no input
from their local communities”
http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2013/12/pa-ed-policy-roundup-for-december-8.html
Pennsylvania
School Districts 4th Annual AP District Honor Roll (2013)
From the College Board
The following honor roll consists of the 40 Pennsylvania school
districts that simultaneously achieved increases in access to Advanced
Placement® courses for a broader number of students and also maintained or
improved the rate at which their AP students earned scores of 3 or higher on an
AP Exam.
Lehigh
Valley school districts listed on AP District Honor Roll
By Peter
Panepinto | The Express-Times on December 08, 2013 at 10:00 PM ,
Four Lehigh
Valley school districts are among 40
in Pennsylvania
to be listed on the College Board's fourth annual AP
District Honor Roll. At least two
districts from Hunterdon County also made the honor roll with 36 New Jersey districts
listed.
The districts were honored for increasing
access to Advanced Placement coursework while also maintaining or increasing
the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on AP exams, according
to the College
Board. Find a list of all the school
districts on the College Board's fourth annual AP District Honor Roll here.
Should
revenue from sale of taxi medallions benefit Philly schools?
WHYY Newsworks BY KEVIN MCCORRY DECEMBER 9, 2013
Follow the money. Taxi medallions in Philadelphia , depending on the market, can
sell for as much as $400,000, or more. And
over the next decade, the Philadelphia Parking Authority, which oversees the
Taxicab and Limousine Division, will authorize creation of 150 new taxicab
medallions. The new medallions will be
specifically designated for wheelchair-accessible cabs.
Right now, there's just one
wheelchair-accessible cab for every 20,000 Philadelphians who can't be
accommodated by standard taxicabs.
Revenue expected from sale of the new
medallions at $400,000 each works out to $60 million. The PPA plans to issue 20
to 30 medallions per year for the first two years -- starting in 2014 -- and
then 15 medallions per year after that. Over the course of eight to 10
years, the medallions are expected to raise roughly $6 million per year.
So where will that money go?
Report
Examines Community
Schools and Expanded
Learning Opportunities
Education Week Time and Learning Blog By Alyssa
Morones on December 6, 2013
A new study reveals the mutually beneficial
interaction between community schools and expanded learning opportunities and
highlights best practices for meeting the needs of the students they aim to
serve. The report, titled The
Growing Convergence of Community Schools and Expanded Learning Opportunities, comes
from the Institute for Education Leadership's Coalition for Community Schools,
an alliance that advocates for community schools as a strategy to leverage
resources to best meet the needs of children and families.
Community
schools are formed through partnerships with community resources and
focus on academics, health and social services, youth and community
development, and engagement. Their curricula are more personalized and
emphasize real-world learning. The report says, "Community schools are one
example of school and community partnerships that are taking hold in cities and
districts."
2014
Gubernatorial Candidate Plans for Education and Arts/Culture in PA
Education
Policy and Leadership
Center
Below is an alphabetical list of the 2014 Gubernatorial Candidates and
links to information about their plans, if elected, for education and
arts/culture in Pennsylvania . This list will be updated, as more information becomes available.
PA SPECIAL
EDUCATION FUNDING FORMULA COMMISSION
Public
Meeting, 12/11/2013 ,
10:00 AM Hearing Room 1, North Office
Building
Public hearing to consider final recommendations and release
final report)
FEBRUARY 1ST, 2014
The DCIU Google Symposium is an opportunity for teachers,
administrators, technology directors, and other school stakeholders to come
together and explore the power of Google Apps for Education. The
Symposium will be held at the Delaware County Intermediate Unit. The
Delaware County Intermediate Unit is one of Pennsylvania ’s 29 regional educational
agencies. The day will consist of an opening keynote conducted by Rich Kiker followed
by 4 concurrent sessions.
NPE National Conference
2014
The Network for Public Education November 24, 2013
The Network for Public Education is pleased to announce our
first National Conference. The event will take place on March 1 & 2, 2014
(the weekend prior to the world-famous South by Southwest Festival) at The University of Texas
at Austin . At the NPE National Conference 2014, there
will be panel discussions, workshops, and a keynote address by Diane Ravitch.
NPE Board members – including Anthony Cody, Leonie Haimson, and Julian Vasquez
Heilig – will lead discussions along with some of the important voices of our
movement.
In the coming weeks, we
will release more details. In the meantime, make your travel plans and click
this link and submit your email address to receive updates about the NPE
National Conference 2014.
Congratulations! Getting elected to the school
board was the easy part…..
PSBA New Board Member Training: Great Governance, Great Schools !
November 2013-April 2014 Register Online » Print Form »
November 2013-April 2014 Register Online » Print Form »
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
offices. One intern will support education policy work including the Pennsylvania School Funding Campaign. The second
intern position will support the work of the Pennsylvania Arts Education Network. Ideal
candidates have an interest/course work in political science/public policy,
social studies, the arts or education and also have strong research,
communications, and critical thinking skills. The internship is unpaid, but
free parking is available. Weekly hours of the internship are negotiable. To
apply or to suggest a candidate, please email Mattie Robinson for
further information at robinson@eplc.org.
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. Our
first time back in New Orleans
since the spring of 2002!
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
Join the National
School Boards
Action Center
Friends of Public Education
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
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