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Keystone State Education Coalition
Pennsylvania Education Policy Roundup
for May 15, 2014:
PA Charters Received $350M
from Districts for Special Ed in 2012-13; spent $156M on Special Ed
"Himes and leaders with the Pennsylvania
Association of Rural and Small Schools and the Pennsylvania
Charter school advocates criticize funding proposal for special education in Pennsylvania
Charter school advocates criticize funding proposal for special education in Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh
Tribune-Review By Megan
Harris Published: Tuesday, May 13, 2014, 11:09 p.m.
Two companion bills aiming to reallocate special education funding in Pennsylvania are under fire because of how they would distribute those funds to charter schools. Charter school advocates argue that the bills would decrease funding for their special education students and hinder their ability to provide adequate student care. But supporters of the legislation maintain that charters are dramatically overfunded now compared to traditional public schools. About 2,930 students receive special education services in Western Pennsylvania's 25 charter schools. Statewide, charters enroll 15,312 special students.
Two companion bills aiming to reallocate special education funding in Pennsylvania are under fire because of how they would distribute those funds to charter schools. Charter school advocates argue that the bills would decrease funding for their special education students and hinder their ability to provide adequate student care. But supporters of the legislation maintain that charters are dramatically overfunded now compared to traditional public schools. About 2,930 students receive special education services in Western Pennsylvania's 25 charter schools. Statewide, charters enroll 15,312 special students.
State education association leaders argued on Tuesday that
charter school advocates are disseminating “false and misleading information”
about House Bill 2138 and Senate Bill 1316.
“The sky is not falling as the comments from charter schools
suggest,” said Jay Himes, executive director of the Pennsylvania Association of
School Business Officials.
Critics say charter
schools profit from special ed overpayments
Wilkes-Barre TImes Leader By Mark Guydish - mguydish@civitasmedia.com May 13.
2014 11:27PM
Luzerne County school districts paid $3.8 million to charter schools in special-education tuition in 2012-13, and a group of education associations pushing for reform contend that was likely double what the charters spent. “We are here to address the inaccuracies and hyperbole perpetuated by the charter school community on the impact of legislation” that would alter the formula used to determine how much charters get for special-education students, Jay Himes said at the start of a web conference Tuesday.
Luzerne County school districts paid $3.8 million to charter schools in special-education tuition in 2012-13, and a group of education associations pushing for reform contend that was likely double what the charters spent. “We are here to address the inaccuracies and hyperbole perpetuated by the charter school community on the impact of legislation” that would alter the formula used to determine how much charters get for special-education students, Jay Himes said at the start of a web conference Tuesday.
Pa. Auditor General Pushes
for Tougher Charter School Oversight
Education Week Charters
and Choice Blog By on May 13, 2014 4:40 PM By Arianna Prothero
Pennsylvania's auditor
general is calling for more stringent oversight of the state's charter schools,
including the creation of an independent statewide board to oversee the
publicly-funded, independent schools. In a new report, Pennsylvania's auditor general, Eugene
DePasquale, recommends tougher oversight of charters in what he said would
address persistent problems he ran across while auditing charter schools.
"We saw the same issues over and over again," said DePasquale.
"We would pass it on to the [state] education department and nothing would
get done about it." He pointed specifically to charters that have received improper
lease reimbursements. An oversight
board, says DePasquale, would function as both "an enforcer and a
repository for what is and isn't working."
For example, DePasquale said he's received complaints that some charter
schools report inflated numbers of special education students.
The idea has tentative
support from the Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools. The organization's
executive director, Robert Fayfich, said an independent oversight board could
help improve consistency and quality among charter school authorizers. "Unless we have strong authorizers, we
will never have a strong charter sector," Fayfich said. "Now whether
that recommendation is the right way to get at that, that's what we need to
discuss."
Guest Column: Investing in
high quality Pre-K benefits children
Delco Times By JACK WHELAN and JOHN W. PECK, Times Guest
Columnists POSTED: 05/14/14, 9:32 PM EDT |
Jack Whelan is the
District Attorney of Delaware County and John W. Peck is the District Attorney of Westmoreland County
The call for providing increased access to high quality
pre-kindergarten programs is not a rallying cry heard only from educators. It’s
one coming from all segments of the community and for a good reason. As prosecutors, our job is to hold criminal
offenders responsible for their actions, which unfortunately also includes
juvenile offenders. When we deal with them, we often think about their
childhood and what led them to their criminal behavior. We see children and
young adults who are on a self-destructive path and question: Could this have
been prevented in the first place?
Fortunately, there is an intervention that has been proven to work.
Investing in high-quality Pre-K can help ensure that every child has the best
chance possible for academic and social success.
"As in past years, Watson stressed the impact of the
district's contributions to the Pennsylvania
School
Greater Latrobe School District
Tribune-Review By Stacey
Federoff Thursday,
May 15, 2014, 12:01 a.m.
Unless state funding determines otherwise, Greater Latrobe School District residents could pay about $26 more in property taxes next year. In a presentation to the school board this week, business administrator Dan Watson said he and the finance committee recommended the approval of a proposed budget for 2014-15 of slightly more than $51 million with a 1 mill tax increase. One mill would provide about $335,000 for the district. The average assessed value of a home in the district is $25,861, Watson said.
Unless state funding determines otherwise, Greater Latrobe School District residents could pay about $26 more in property taxes next year. In a presentation to the school board this week, business administrator Dan Watson said he and the finance committee recommended the approval of a proposed budget for 2014-15 of slightly more than $51 million with a 1 mill tax increase. One mill would provide about $335,000 for the district. The average assessed value of a home in the district is $25,861, Watson said.
Still Black and White
After Brown
A diverse group of
parents, students, teachers, community leaders, and elected officials rallied
at Freedom Corner in the Hill District yesterday to mark the 60th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. Under a
surprisingly scorching sun, one speaker after the next noted that we have yet
to see the full promise of that historic Supreme Court case. Rev. Freeman of the Resurrection
Baptist Church
in Braddock and President of the PA Interfaith Impact Network, talked about the
impact of the 1954 Brown decision on his fourth grade classroom
in highly segregated Georgia .
He reminded the crowd of about 50 that we are part of a much larger movement
for equity and educational justice.
"The education of children is a difficult and complex
process, because people are difficult and complex. There is no magic bullet, no
messiah that can right every educational wrong. There is no program, however
cleverly developed and implemented, that will fit the needs of every
child. The hucksters who would
reduce the art of teaching children to a technical set of skills that even the
inexperienced can impart are misguided. Children are so much more than empty
receptacles waiting to be filled or scores on standardized tests."
The education of children
cannot be uniform
the notebook by Eileen
DiFranco on May 14 2014
Posted in Commentary
Eileen M. DiFranco, R.N., is a certified school nurse
who has proudly served the schoolchildren of Philadelphia Philadelphia
…..Human behavior is unpredictable. Organizations that choose
not to account in their planning for the vagaries of human behavior will make
costly errors. Take those who believe
that streamlining, codifying, and making all procedures and products uniform
will somehow make people more “efficient.” In education, this thinking has led
to thinking of children, a truly unpredictable group, as “seats” that “perform”
on demand. To these reformers, all
teachers have to do is stuff children full of canned programs and employ
scripted practices, then voilá, success! Any teacher worth his or her salt will
tell you this belief is not only naïve, but also destructive -- because it
ignores the other factors that have made the child into what he or she is.
Somewhere between the endless drilling of skills and constant filling of test
bubbles, the child’s humanity is lost.
We have to come together to
give our children the future they deserve: Jill Sunday Bartoli
By Jill Sunday Bartoli on May 14, 2014 at 2:00 PM
Jill Sunday Bartoli is a Democratic candidate
for the Pennsylvania Carlisle .
PennLive is allowing candidates on the spring and fall ballots a single op-Ed
in each election cycle.
Julian Bond tells the
great story of two people—let's call them Mary and John-- walking along a river
and suddenly seeing a baby floating by in the water. They immediately jump in
to rescue the baby, but as soon as they get out they see another baby coming
down the river. So they jump in to
rescue that baby too. And then they see a third baby in the river, and a
fourth, and a fifth.
Suddenly Mary jumps out
of the water and starts walking along the riverbank. John yells at
her to come back and help rescue the babies that are floating down the
river. But Mary says, "I'm going
upstream to see who is throwing the babies in the river, and make them stop
it."
With regard to the
health, education and welfare of our children in Pennsylvania , we are still in the business
of rescuing a few babies from the river rather than stopping the policies that
throw far too many of them in.
Pushback on standardized
testing around the country getting stronger
To get an idea of what is going on around the country in
regards to the growing anti-standardized testing movement, look at the
following collection of stories that have come out in the last week or about
the growing resistance around the country to high-stakes standardized testing.
This list was issued by the National Center
for Fair and Open Testing, a non-profit organization known as FairTest that
is dedicated to ending the misuse and abuse of standardized testing. FairTest
puts out an updated list every
week. This week’s blast includes
stories from at least 20 states as well as links to some new reports. You
can see from the URLs the range of publications across the country that are
covering the issue and the variety of stories. Here’s the list:
Are school closings the ‘new
Jim Crow’? Activists file civil rights complaints.
Arguing that school closures in cities across the country
disproportionately affect African American students, community activists filed
three federal civil rights complaints Tuesday challenging closures in Newark,
New Orleans and Chicago and called on the Obama administration to halt similar
efforts elsewhere. “Children are being
uprooted, shuffled into schools that are no better than the ones they came
from,” said Judith Browne Dianis, co-director of the Advancement Project, one
of several organizations that are calling their effort the Journey for Justice
Alliance. “In each city, African American children’s hopes of equal educational
opportunity are being dashed.” The
complaints, sent to the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights and the
Justice Department, charge that students of color from Newark, Chicago and New
Orleans have been disproportionately affected by school closures and
charter-school expansions. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits
discrimination in the use of federal funds by schools and other institutions.
Charters, School Closings
Targeted in New Complaints From Civil Rights Group
Education Week Charters
and Choice Blog By on May
14, 2014 12:59 PM |By guest blogger Arianna Prothero
Minority communities are unfairly targeted for school closures, according to complaints filed this week with the U.S. Department of Education's civil rights office and the U.S. Department of Justice. The Advancement Project, a civil rights advocacy group based inWashington , filed
three complaints Tuesday on behalf of a coalition of community and
education justice organizations. The complaints allege that school closures and
privatization in Chicago , New
Orleans , and Newark ,
N. J., violated Title VI of the landmark Civil Rights Act because they
disproportionately affected African-American and Latino communities. "In each of the cities where we filed
Title VI complaints, African-American children are being uprooted, shuffled
around, and ultimately sent to schools that are no better than the one that
closed," Advancement Project Co-Director Judith Browne Dianis said in a statement.
Minority communities are unfairly targeted for school closures, according to complaints filed this week with the U.S. Department of Education's civil rights office and the U.S. Department of Justice. The Advancement Project, a civil rights advocacy group based in
Congress: Senate Education
Panel OKs Preschool Expansion on Partisan Vote
Education Week Politics
K12 Blog By on May
14, 2014 11:43 AM
In an unsurprisingly
partisan vote, the Senate education committee gave its stamp of approval to legislation that would make President Barack Obama's
vision for expanding preschool to more low- and moderate income 4-year-olds a
reality. Although the measure has strong
backing from the administration—and Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, the chairman of
the Senate panel that oversees K-12 spending and policy—its political prospects
are iffy at best. The bill was approved on a 12-10 vote, with no GOP
support. Republicans on the
committee made it clear that they were uniformly against the measure, in part
because it would create a brand new federal program with a hefty pricetag—more
than $30 billion over the first five years. The bill doesn't include any sort
of mechanism to cover that cost, and the administration's proposal to pay for
it—a new tax on tobacco products—went over like a lead balloon in Congress.
NSBA School Board News Today by Joetta Sack-Min|May 14th, 2014
The Oklahoma House of Representatives has honored Frances M.
Percival for her work as the longest-serving school board member in Oklahoma ’s history. She
also is the longest-serving female elected official in the United States,
according to state Rep. Mike Shelton.
Leaders of the Oklahoma House of Representatives surprised
Percival with a resolution “for her many contributions to the Millwood School
District and the State of Oklahoma,” which was adopted by unanimous consent and
three standing ovations. The resolution was then delivered to the Senate for
consideration.
Dinniman: Roundtable
Discussion on Education in Pa. set for May 21
Senator Dinniman's website
MAY 13, 2014
WEST CHESTER (May 13) – State Senator Andy Dinniman
announced today that he is bringing together education professionals and
advocates from throughout the region for a roundtable discussion on critical
issues in education on Wednesday, May 21 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the Technical College High School –
Brandywine Campus.
“Parents, teachers, students and education professionals from
suburban and urban school districts across Pennsylvania recently united against
the expansion of the Keystone
Graduation Exams,” Dinniman said. “Now, another pressing issue will bring
together suburban and urban schools from throughout the region – the need to
adequately support and sustain public education for the future.” The panel will feature education
professionals from Bucks, Chester, Montgomery, Delaware and Philadelphia
counties as well as representatives from major education organizations, including:
·
Joe Ciresi, President, Spring-Ford Area School
District Board of Directors.
·
Helen Gym, Parents United of Philadelphia.
·
Bill LaCoff, President-Elect of the Pennsylvania
School Board Association, Owen J. Roberts School District Board of Directors.
·
Larry Feinberg, Keystone State Education
Coalition, Haverford Township School District Board of Directors.
·
Joe O’Brien, Executive Director, Chester County
Intermediate Unit.
·
Joan Duvall-Flynn, President and Education
Committee Chair of the NAACP, Media Branch.
·
Hillary Linardopoulos, Philadelphia Federation
of Teachers.
·
Korri Brown, President, Southeast Region,
Pennsylvania State Education Association.
·
Mike Churchill, Public Interest Law Center of
Philadelphia.
·
Mark Miller, Director, Network for Public Education,
Vice-President of the Centennial School District Board of Directors.
Pennsylvania Education Summit
Wednesday, June 11, 2014 from 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM (EDT) Camp Hill, PA
PA Business-Education Partnership
Featuring:
Welcome By Governor Tom Corbett (invited)
Remarks Acting Secretary of Education Carolyn Dumaresq
(confirmed)
Perceptions & comments of business leaders, educators,
college presidents, and advocacy groups
Full agenda here: http://www.bipac.net/pbc/2014-PA-Education-Summit-Agenda.pdf
Registration: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/pennsylvania-education-summit-tickets-11529363637?aff=eorgf
“How Public School Funding
Works in Pennsylvania—Or Doesn’t: What You Need to Know” When: Friday, May
30, 2014, 9 am to 12 pm Where: Marriott Hotel in Conshohocken, PA
Session I: "Funding Schools: What Pennsylvania Can Learn from Other States"
Key Pennsylvania legislators and public officials will respond to a presentation by Professor Robert C. Knoeppel of Clemson University, an expert on emerging trends and ideas in public school finance.
Session I: "Funding Schools: What Pennsylvania Can Learn from Other States"
Key Pennsylvania legislators and public officials will respond to a presentation by Professor Robert C. Knoeppel of Clemson University, an expert on emerging trends and ideas in public school finance.
Introduction: Representative Steve Santarsiero
Moderator: Rob Wonderling, President and CEO, GreaterPhiladelphia Chamber of Commerce
Panel:
Charles Zogby, Secretary of the Budget, Commonwealth of PA, Senator Patrick Browne, Senator Anthony Williams, Representative Bernie O'Neill, Representative James Roebuck
Session II: "Why Smart Investments in Public Schools Are Critical toPennsylvania
Moderator: Rob Wonderling, President and CEO, Greater
Panel:
Charles Zogby, Secretary of the Budget, Commonwealth of PA, Senator Patrick Browne, Senator Anthony Williams, Representative Bernie O'Neill, Representative James Roebuck
Session II: "Why Smart Investments in Public Schools Are Critical to
A discussion with a panel of CEOs who are major employers in
the region.
Introduction: Rob Loughery, Chair, Bucks County Commissioners
Panel (confirmed to date):
Michael Pearson, President and CEO, Union Packaging, Philip Rinaldi, CEO, Philadelphia Energy Solutions, Bryan Hancock, Principal, McKinsey & Company, and author: "The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America's Schools"
You can register for this free event here:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-public-school-funding-works-in-pennsylvania-or-doesnt-what-you-need-to-know-tickets-11527064761?ref=ebtnebregn
Introduction: Rob Loughery, Chair, Bucks County Commissioners
Panel (confirmed to date):
Michael Pearson, President and CEO, Union Packaging, Philip Rinaldi, CEO, Philadelphia Energy Solutions, Bryan Hancock, Principal, McKinsey & Company, and author: "The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America's Schools"
You can register for this free event here:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-public-school-funding-works-in-pennsylvania-or-doesnt-what-you-need-to-know-tickets-11527064761?ref=ebtnebregn
2014 CONFERENCE ON THE STATE OF EDUCATION IN PENNSYLVANIA
60 YEARS AFTER BROWN HOW ARE THE CHILDREN? WHAT ARE THE
ISSUES?
Saturday, May 31, 2014 - 9:00 AM
– 3:00 PM (8:30 Registration)
MARCUS FOSTER STUDENT UNION 2ND
FLR. CHEYNEY UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, DE Co. Campus
Keynote
Speaker: Dan Hardy – Retired Reporter -Philadelphia Inquirer
Distressed Schools: How Did it
Come to This?
PANELS:
- The State of Education in Pennsylvania 60
Years after Brown
- Keystones and Graduation: Cut the
Connection
- How Harrisburg Cut District Funding,
Poured on the Keystones, and Connected them to Graduation
- Financing Our Schools: What Does it Cost
to Educate a Child in 2014 and How Should We Fund It?
- Effective Advocacy – How to be
Heard in Harrisburg - And - What We Need to be Saying
For
more info and registration: http://www.naacpmediabranch.org/#
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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