Daily postings from the Keystone State
Education Coalition now reach more than 3250 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,
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These daily emails are archived and
searchable 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?
Keystone State Education Coalition
Support growing in GOP for extraction tax on natural gas
PSBA
members in Bucks, Montgomery, Chester and Delaware Counties
PSBA
Buxmont Region 11 and Penns Grant Region 15 Combined Region/Legislative Meeting
-- Thursday, May 15, at William Tennent High School
- Buffet dinner/registration, 6 p.m. ($8 charge for
dinner) - Program, 7:30 p.m. -- Minority Senate Education Committee Chair
Hon. Andy Dinniman will introduce guest speaker Diane Ravitch, author and
education historian, and former Assistant Secretary of Education. Retiring House Education Committee Chairman
Paul Clymer will also be honored for his long time (1981) public service.
“There’s some support for an extraction tax in some
quarters,” said Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Jake Corman, R-Centre.
“I don’t think it becomes a real discussion until the budget numbers
crystallize. But if there’s a $500 million-plus hole to fill, I don’t know that
people are going to want to go into the budget and peel away education
spending. Then an extraction tax becomes a more serious discussion than it has
in the past.” House Appropriations
Committee Chairman Bill Adolph, R-Delaware, agreed with Corman. “It’s something we definitely have to
consider,” Adolph said.
Support growing in GOP for extraction tax on natural gas
By MARC
LEVY, Associated Press POSTED: 04/20/14, 5:34 AM EDT |
"Pennsylvania's share of school funding
has dipped from 50 percent in the 1990s to about 35 percent today, ranking it
47th in the nation. Poor districts with weak tax bases haven't been able to
fill the gap. And some districts, including Philadelphia
Inquirer Editorial: For schools, money matters
Inquirer Editorial: For schools, money matters
POSTED: Sunday, April 20, 2014, 1:09 AM
The drama created by the
Philadelphia School District's attempt to force new work rules on the teachers'
union doesn't mean the inequitable funding that hamstrings schools across
Pennsylvania is any less of a problem.
In fact, there's a good case for making school funding the top issue in
this year's governor's race. Voters should place the fiscal shape of local
schools in context with Gov. Corbett's business tax breaks, which have yet to
be matched by job creation.
"State Sen. Andy Dinniman, D-Chester, didn't mince words
about PILCOP's assessment.
"They're right," he said. "We aren't
meeting our obligation." Dinniman,
minority chair of the Senate Education Committee, said the report confirms his
belief that the state is underfunding the education of many students across
Pennsylvania – specifically those from lower- and middle-class
backgrounds."
Half of Pa. public schools fail to meet state's expectations, new study
says
thenotebook
by Kevin McCorry for NewsWorks on Apr 18 2014 Posted in Latest news
A new
analysis from the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia finds 49 percent
of Pennsylvania public schools fail to meet the state's overall proficiency
expectations. PILCOP's report centers on 2012-2013 state standardized test
scores in reading and math – measuring student performance at all public
schools, district, charter or otherwise.
Schools
not meeting the state's proficiency target are situated in 72 percent of
Pennsylvania's school districts, or 357 out of 499, the report said. "This is a widespread problem,"
said Michael Churchill, PILCOP executive director. "I think there's a
popular image that a few distressed school districts are having these problems,
and that, generally, the state is doing well, but that is not what this data
shows."
Gov. Corbett's re-election
campaign 'unflappable' amid challenges, criticism
Trib Live By Tom
Fontaine Published: Sunday, April 20, 2014, 10:30 p.m.
Gov. Tom Corbett is under fire from all directions. Four Democrats seeking the party's nod to run against Corbett in November are laying waste to his first-term record. Bob Guzzardi, a Republican challenger in the May 20 primary, contends Corbett broke campaign promises and alienated the party's base. Two of three voters disapprove of Corbett's job performance, according to a recent poll.Pennsylvania 's five previous governors
comfortably won second terms when the state began allowing them to seek
re-election in 1970. “I was never
projected to win any race I've ever won,” Corbett said in an interview with the
Tribune-Review. “We made promises to the people of Pennsylvania ; we kept those promises. We
haven't raised taxes. We've controlled our spending.”
Gov. Tom Corbett is under fire from all directions. Four Democrats seeking the party's nod to run against Corbett in November are laying waste to his first-term record. Bob Guzzardi, a Republican challenger in the May 20 primary, contends Corbett broke campaign promises and alienated the party's base. Two of three voters disapprove of Corbett's job performance, according to a recent poll.
Dems in Pa. governor's race
vow to close loophole, say firms skirt corporate tax
Pittsburgh
Tribune-Review By Melissa
Daniels Published: Friday, April 18, 2014, 10:37 p.m.
Four Democrats running for governor say they're eyeing a way to collect millions of dollars from companies that exploit the so-called “Delaware loophole” to skirt corporate taxes, but critics say some estimates of the problem are faulty. It's right there in the first bullet point of candidate Tom Wolf's tax reform proposal. “Because of the Delaware loophole, 70 percent of the companies that do business in the state do not pay corporate net incomes taxes,” his Fresh Start plan says. “Tom Wolf will push for the ‘combined reporting' of corporate profits, which will reduce the ability of corporations to avoid paying their fair share.” The “loophole” refers to Pennsylvania-based companies with subsidiaries in Delaware, a state with no corporate income tax. By transferring profits there, some companies don't report income to Pennsylvania and avoid paying tax.
Four Democrats running for governor say they're eyeing a way to collect millions of dollars from companies that exploit the so-called “Delaware loophole” to skirt corporate taxes, but critics say some estimates of the problem are faulty. It's right there in the first bullet point of candidate Tom Wolf's tax reform proposal. “Because of the Delaware loophole, 70 percent of the companies that do business in the state do not pay corporate net incomes taxes,” his Fresh Start plan says. “Tom Wolf will push for the ‘combined reporting' of corporate profits, which will reduce the ability of corporations to avoid paying their fair share.” The “loophole” refers to Pennsylvania-based companies with subsidiaries in Delaware, a state with no corporate income tax. By transferring profits there, some companies don't report income to Pennsylvania and avoid paying tax.
The idea, and the math
behind it, are hotly debated among pro-business groups and advocates seeking to
increase state revenue.
Monday last day to register
to vote in May 20 primary
Posted: Sunday,
April 20, 2014 10:49 pm | Updated: 4:30 am, Mon Apr 21, 2014.
Monday
is the last day for Lancaster
County Lancaster County
Government Center 150 N. Queen St .
The office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Voters can check www. VotesPA.com to
check their registration status, download a voter registration form and find
information on their polling place.
In PA schools, movement to keep school
librarians on the books
WITF Written
by Mary
Wilson, Capitol Bureau Chief | Apr 17, 2014 3:20 PM
Things
may be looking up for school libraries in the commonwealth.
Researchers
say school libraries across Pennsylvania are still lacking the proper
resources, but staffing levels may be increasing in the next school year. In 2011, the Pennsylvania School Librarians
Association did a statewide survey of 78 percent of the school districts in the
commonwealth, and found many programs wanting. Subsequent studies tracked
changes in staffing levels - because budget cuts made the state Department of
Education unable to follow such developments alone. Mary K. Biagini, associate professor of
information science at the University of Pittsburgh, assisted with the surveys.
The big drop happened about three years ago with state budget cuts, when about
100 school librarian positions were eliminated.
Jackson Elementary music
program gives students a 'Home'
KRISTEN A. GRAHAM, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER Monday, April 21, 2014, 1:07 AM
Everything about this
South Philly rock band is unlikely.
Consider: its budget is zero, and all of its gear is donated. None of
its musicians had picked up an instrument until recently, and some have yet to
hit puberty. But Home, the remarkable Andrew Jackson
Elementary School Philadelphia School District schools lack music programs, but Jackson , at 12th and
Federal, has built a strong arts curriculum, with partnerships allowing it to
offer dance, theater, and fine arts.
Group fighting to preserve
district for Steel
KENDRA BROOKS says Steel
Elementary is the last public school in Nicetown. And if she has a say, it will
stay that way. Brooks, president of the
Steel Student Advisory Council, has been working nonstop - printing flyers,
going door-to-door and organizing folks - in an effort to galvanize the
community for the May 1 vote on the future of the school. She said she's making sure Steel parents are
informed of their rights and choices regarding the vote, which will determine
whether Steel, on Wayne Avenue
near Rowan Street ,
remains a district-run school or is handed over to Mastery Charter Schools.
Mastery already runs the neighborhood middle and high schools. "I really feel the district wants
Mastery to take over Steel," said Brooks, who works 12 hours a day for the
council, including weekends. "I don't think they thought there would be
opposition or that parents would rally."
G-A officials: District faces
financial crisis
Officials cite state's distribution formula for educational
funding 04/18/2014 07:44:17 PM EDT
GREENCASTLE >> If the state's funding distribution
method does not change, Greencastle-Antrim School District officials say they
will have to take drastic measures to keep afloat financially. G-A could recover a $1.5 million deficit it
is facing in the 2014-15 school year by cutting kindergarten. It could cover
half of it by not replacing seven outgoing teachers; $600,000 of it by ending
involvement with Franklin County Career and Technology Center
Thursday's workshop
school board meeting attracted a much bigger audience than usual, which was
what officials wanted. "It was
great to see the turn out because we really are in a critical situation and the
public needs to know it," Hoover
said.
Little time, no money to implement new graduation mandate
The
last thing our schools and taxpayers need is another unfunded government
mandate. But here we go again. The
Common Core State Standards Initiative is sponsored by the National Governors
Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers. It is a state-led
effort that established a single set of educational standards for kindergarten
through 12th grade in English, language arts, and math.
By
Karen BlackledgeThe Daily Item April
19, 2014
Breaking up with the School Reform
Commission will be hard to do
CENTRE SQUARE A
BLOG BY CHRIS SATULLO APRIL 21, 2014
Those
whom the gods would destroy, they first grant their wishes.
Two out
of three Philadelphians want to see an end to the School Reform Commission, and
to direct state involvement in running the city school system.
That
finding comes from a survey of 554 city residents commissioned by the
Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (AKA the teachers union, so take the
results with whatever ration of salt you think wise). Still, those results track pretty well with
what I've heard from city residents in community forums and conversations over
the last decade.
PSP DIRECTOR SAYS DUMP LOW PERFORMING
SCHOOLS
Philly
Trib Written by Wilford
Shamlin III April 17, 2014
A
panelist who spoke out in favor of a portfolio school model that “dumps the low
performers” has set off controversy about Philadelphia public schools. Mark Gleason, executive director of the
Philadelphia School Partnership, an organization that solicits millions of
dollars in donations in support of innovative school programs, made the remarks
during a panel discussion at the annual meeting of the American Educational
Research Association, held this month at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Gleason said the portfolio school was a
business term borrowed from Wall Street and was part of an educational model
that allows for a diverse number of operators. It debuted in New Orleans, which
was forced to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, before expanding to other major
cities, including New York City and Philadelphia.
Delco charter school receives
federal health grant
Philly.com by Mari A.
Schaefer LAST UPDATED: Friday,
April 18, 2014, 1:08 AM
CHESTER The Chester
Community Charter School received a $750,000 U.S. Department of Education
physical education program grant to develop a initiative that supports healthy
eating and recreation, the school announced.
Children's Healthy Eating Supports Their Education and Recreation
(CHESTER) strives to improve diet and exercise by increasing the number of
students who exercise an hour a day and encouraging children to eat fruit twice
a day and vegetables three times a day.
NPR
from WBUR by DAVID
SCHARFENBERG April 13, 201411:32 AM ET
Listen
to the Story Weekend
Edition Sunday 4 min 17 sec
It's a
Wednesday morning at the Eliot K-8 Innovation School. Teacher Jodi Doyle is
working with a small group of preschool students interested in domes. "What do you think the difference is
between a dome and an arch?" she asks.
The lesson doesn't go exactly as planned. Doyle wants the kids to build
their domes with wire, but she wants the children to come up with that idea
themselves. The kids used wire several months ago for a related project, and
she hopes they'll remember. "Is
there anything else in this classroom we could use that might hold the shape of
a dome?" she asks. "Books!"
they answer. Preschool is getting a lot
of attention these days. President Obama and mayors across the country are
touting preschool as an important investment in the economy. As policymakers weigh the costs and benefits
of "preschool for all," they're trying to figure out what actually
works in the classroom. One of the
places they're looking is Boston.
The New
York Times editors
appear to be catching on to the fact that the proliferation and misuse of high
stakes testing are not only a huge waste of resources that are actually
doing more harm than good, but are also a "distraction" from the very
real problems of poverty and inequality. It's about time.
Seven things kids need to read better
(and raising standards isn’t one of them)
For two
decades, Ellie Herman was a writer/producer for television shows
including “The Riches,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Chicago Hope” and “Newhart.”
Her fiction has appeared in literary journals, among them The Massachusetts
Review, The Missouri Review and the O.Henry Awards Collection. In 2007, she
decided, “on an impulse,” she wrote, to become an English teacher and got a job
at a South Los Angeles charter school that was
97 percent Latino and where 96 percent of the students lived below the poverty
line. She taught drama, creative writing, English 11 and 9th grade
Composition at a charter high school in South Los Angeles
until 2013, when she decided to stop teaching and spend a year visiting
classrooms and learning from other teachers. She is chronicling the lessons she
is learning on her blog, Gatsby
in L.A., where the following post appeared. I’ll be posting more work from
her soon.
Republicans See Political Wedge in
Common Core
New
York Times By JONATHAN MARTIN APRIL 19, 2014
Public Interest Law Center of
Philadelphia
People keep asking us what they can do to
help with the public education funding crisis. Next Thursday, Philadelphia
attorneys can help by simply taking their lunch break at City Hall.
LAWYERS DAY OF ACTION FOR EDUCATION Thursday, April 24th
co-hosted
with the Education
Law Center
Join your fellow attorneys at City Hall on Thursday, April 24 to
tell City Council that Philadelphia cannot function without good public
schools, and high-quality public schools require adequate funding. We will ask
City Council to extend the sales tax to provide $120 million in recurring
annual revenue to Philadelphia's public schools.
We will hold an optional webinar on
Wednesday, April 23 at 4:00 p.m. to prepare you with talking points and more
background information. RSVP for the webinar or day of action here.
Please RSVP, forward this email to your colleagues and
join us on the 24th in sending a unified message to City Council members that
the legal community supports public education.
Public Citizens for Children and Youth
(PCCY) will Host an Education Funding Forum in Delaware County on May 7th
On May
7th, PCCY will host a forum that discusses the state of school
funding in Delaware
County 501 Bywood Avenue ,
Upper Darby PA 19082 from 6:30pm-8pm.
Attendees will get a budget update from Sharon Ward of the Pennsylvania
Budget and Policy Center , hear from School Board members representing
Upper Darby, William Penn, and Haverford
School Districts
Please
RSVP by clicking here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1OjFpJwTHnZwRqh0Q5Tdp0KHYaI1Jg0XNvGpmeYMmIyA/viewform
PSBA Advocacy Forum and Day on the Hill
May 5-6, Mechanicsburg & Harrisburg
Make an impact on the legislative process by attending PSBA’s Advocacy Forum and Day on the Hill, May 5-6. Day one will provide legislative insights on pensions, training on being an effective advocate, and media relations. Dr. G. Terry Madonna, leading Pennsylvania political analyst, will discuss the legislative landscape in his usual lively and informative style. How to Be an Effective Advocate -- Hear from former Allwein Advocacy Award winners Larry Feinberg, Roberta Marcus and Tina Viletto on how to successfully support your issues. At noon, Rep. Dave Reed, Majority Policy Chairman, will address participants.
On day two, participants will start with a breakfast at the Harrisburg Hilton with Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley as guest speaker and then hit the ground running with visits to legislative offices in the State CapitolSpace is limited so register early. Click here for more details and to register online.
May 5-6, Mechanicsburg & Harrisburg
Make an impact on the legislative process by attending PSBA’s Advocacy Forum and Day on the Hill, May 5-6. Day one will provide legislative insights on pensions, training on being an effective advocate, and media relations. Dr. G. Terry Madonna, leading Pennsylvania political analyst, will discuss the legislative landscape in his usual lively and informative style. How to Be an Effective Advocate -- Hear from former Allwein Advocacy Award winners Larry Feinberg, Roberta Marcus and Tina Viletto on how to successfully support your issues. At noon, Rep. Dave Reed, Majority Policy Chairman, will address participants.
On day two, participants will start with a breakfast at the Harrisburg Hilton with Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley as guest speaker and then hit the ground running with visits to legislative offices in the State CapitolSpace is limited so register early. Click here for more details and to register online.
Registration
fee of $50 includes lunch and dinner on May 5 and breakfast on May
6.
Educating the Voter: A Forum on Public
Education featuring Democratic gubernatorial candidates - April 30th 6:00 pm
Phila Central Library
Presented by Committee of Seventy, Congresso and
Philadelphia Education Fund
Wednesday,
April 30, 2014 at 6:00PM
Join Democratic gubernatorial candidates Katie McGinty, Tom Wolf, Allyson Schwartz and Rob McCord for a discussion on public education.
Please
click here to
register.
PSBA
nominations for offices now open!
Deadline April 30th
PSBA Leadership Development Committee seeks strong leaders for the association
Members interested in becoming the next leaders of PSBA are encouraged to complete an Application for Nomination no later than April 30. As a member-driven association, the Leadership Development Committee (LDC) is seeking nominees with strong skills in leadership and communication, and who have vision for PSBA. Complete details on the nomination process, links to the Application for Nomination form, and scheduled dates for nominee interviews can be found online by clicking here.
PSBA Leadership Development Committee seeks strong leaders for the association
Members interested in becoming the next leaders of PSBA are encouraged to complete an Application for Nomination no later than April 30. As a member-driven association, the Leadership Development Committee (LDC) is seeking nominees with strong skills in leadership and communication, and who have vision for PSBA. Complete details on the nomination process, links to the Application for Nomination form, and scheduled dates for nominee interviews can be found online by clicking here.
How the Business Community Can Lead on
Early Education
Economy
League of Greater Philadelphia
Join
business and community leaders to learn about how you can help make sure every
child arrives in kindergarten ready to succeed. On April 29th, the Economy
League of Greater Philadelphia and the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and
Southern New Jersey will host a forum featuring business leaders from around
the country talking about why they’re focused on early childhood education and how
they have moved the needle on improving quality and access in their states.
Featured
Speakers
- Jack Brennan, Chairman Emeritus of The
Vanguard Group
- Phil Peterson, Partner, Aon Hewitt and
Co-Chair of America’s Edge/Ready Nation
- And more to be announced!
- Date & Time Tuesday, April
29, 2014 | 5-7 PM
Registration begins at 5 PM;
program from 5:30 to 7:00 PM
- Location Federal Reserve Bank of
Philadelphia
10 North Independence Mall West Philadelphia,
PA 19106
Registration:
http://worldclassgreaterphila.org/worldclasscouncilforum
PILCOP Special Education Seminars 2014
Schedule
Public
Interest Law Center of Philadelphia
Tuesday, April 29th,
12-4 p.m.
Wednesday, May 14th,
1-5 p.m. and 6-8 p.m.
2014 PA 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.
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