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
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?
Keystone State Education Coalition
Philly charters get $100M
more for special ed than they spend; debate rages in Harrisburg
Trombetta claims government
used illegal evidence in PA Cyber
Charter School
By Rich Lord / Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette June 4, 2014 10:48 PM
Seeking to defeat a federal criminal case against a cyber
school pioneer, attorneys for Nick Trombetta on Wednesday accused prosecutors
of improperly recording conversations involving his past lawyers. Mr. Trombetta, the founder and former CEO of
the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter
School
Some of those attorneys represented PA Cyber or its vendors and
subcontractors, but the memorandum claims that they also represented Mr.
Trombetta of East Liverpool ,
Ohio
CBS Pittsburgh
KDKA Andy Sheehan June 4, 2014 9:31 PM
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — He created an empire — a revolution in
cyber education.
But federal prosecutors say instead of serving cyber students,
Nick Trombetta siphoned off $8 million in taxpayer dollars to fund his own
lavish lifestyle. It all included a
corporate plane, luxurious homes, a sprawling real estate holding and a million
dollars in cash. The collective spoils of an alleged scheme years in the
making. “We alleged that this was a
conscious, intentional scheme to steal public money that was to be used to
educate our children.”
It’s something that Trombetta denied when he was arraigned last
August.
Blogger's note: take your time and read this next
paragraph through a couple times. Maybe
three times….
"This pattern was repeated in other
heavily charterized districts, ELC found, including Chester-Upland. There, the
state’s largest brick-and-mortar charter school is managed by the for-profit
management firm of Gov. Corbett’s largest single campaign contributor four
years ago, Vahan Gureghian. In that
year, Chester Community Charter School enrolled 42 percent of the students in
the bankrupt district, but 46 percent of the special education students – and
80 percent of those were diagnosed with the mildest, least-expensive
disability. The per-student payment for
a special education student in Chester
City charters get $100M more
for special ed than they spend; debate rages in Harrisburg
the notebook by Dale
Mezzacappa on Jun 05 2014
Posted in Latest news
"But amazingly, in Pennsylvania
Baker: The Commonwealth
Triple-Screw: Special Education Funding & Charter
School Payments in Pennsylvania
School Finance 101 Blog by Bruce Baker Posted on June 5,
2012
This post is the second
in a series (of unknown number) focusing on how states harm local public school
districts through illogical, ill-conceived state school finance systems and
components of those systems. One goal of this post is to illustrate the types
of problems/manipulations that exist in state school finance systems, how they
work, and the severity of the problems they can cause. I have written
previously, for example, how states find ways to actually use state aid to make
their finance systems less equitable (school finance pork). I have also written
about policies like census based financing of special education and it’s
adverse effects on high need districts. The Commonwealth Triple-Screw takes it
to another level.
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania operates a
school funding system that on average provides systematically less state and
local revenue per pupil to the state’s highest need large and mid-size city
districts. Among the nation’s most “screwed” city districts are Philadelphia , Reading and Allentown .
Letter: State lawmakers
tackled special ed; now we await the ‘big fix'
Delco Times LTE by Susan
Gobreski and Susan Spicka 06/05/14, 9:38 PM EDT |
To the Times:
This year something
extraordinary happened in the polarized Capitol in Harrisburg . Legislators put aside their
partisan differences and came together in a bipartisan Special Education
Funding Commission which worked to address the problems in the way that Pennsylvania funds
special education services. They came
together to do what is right for children who need special education services,
to try to fix the law. The current system is woefully underfunded and tax
dollars are not sent to school districts or charter schools based on the actual
costs of the services students receive.
After months of working with families of children with special needs and
other stakeholders, the commission created a thoroughly-planned, fair, and new
system that would allocate state tax dollars to all public schools in Pennsylvania the same
way, based on students’ needs.
Unfortunately, all of
the commission’s hard work may be derailed and this common sense legislation,
which is known as the “special education funding and accountability reform
bill” might be left on the side of the road.
Charter schools strongly oppose this legislation. Because Pennsylvania ’s entire
system for funding public schools is broken, charter schools currently receive
more state dollars for special education than they spend on services for
students.
SUSAN GOBRESKI,
Education Voters Pennsylvania
SUSAN SPICKA, Education
Matters in theCumberland
Valley
Push is on to fix charter
school funding
House members propose
bill, while the Corbett administration wants commission to study the issue.
June 04, 2012 |By Patrick Lester, Of The Morning Call
The acrimonious tug of
war over tax dollars used to fund charter and virtual charter schools in Pennsylvania is
intensifying with the latest attempt at reform that educators on both sides of
the issue say is overdue. Public school
officials, who have long clamored about the high cost of funding and lack of
oversight of schools responsible for teaching more than 100,000 Pennsylvania students, joined state representatives in Harrisburg on Monday to
pitch a bill they say will improve accountability and protect taxpayer
dollars. The proposal, backed by several
state education groups, including the Pennsylvania School Boards Association
and the Pennsylvania State Education Association, will rival a charter
school-backed bill that calls for a state commission to study the funding
issue, something the state Department of Education supports. The issue could come to a head over the next
three weeks as lawmakers try to hammer out a 2012-13 budget.
Special-education charter
funding skews the numbers in Pennsylvania
The Tribune-Review By
Patrick Varine and Daveen Rae Kurutz Published: June 4, 2014
Frazier School District business manager Kevin Mildren compared the state's formula for special-education funding to taking a size 10 shoe and trying to force it on every foot in Pennsylvania.
Frazier School District business manager Kevin Mildren compared the state's formula for special-education funding to taking a size 10 shoe and trying to force it on every foot in Pennsylvania.
Charter schools,
privately operated but publicly funded, were set up to provide alternatives for
parents who sought a different approach to their children's education. When
parents choose a charter school, districts must redirect taxpayer money — known
as tuition — for those children's education to the new school. For special-education students, often the sum
is greater than the cost in the student's home district because of a flawed
funding approach that does not reflect the services a student needs, critics
say. “The calculation for outside
tuition, it causes me a lot of difficulty, because it's more than what it would
cost internally,” Mildren said. Charter
schools are required to provide the same type of education to students as a
public school and yet receive more money to do so in many cases.
Capitolwire: Tensions grow
over special education funding formula
By Christen
Smith Staff Reporter Capitolwire June 02, 2014
HARRISBURG (June 2) — As lawmakers hunker down for another
budget season, the fate of a slew of education proposals — including the
hotly-contested special education funding formula — hang in the balance. When the General Assembly recessed last
month, Senate Bill 1316 was left sitting on the chamber floor
amidst growing concern over the legislation’s impact on the state’s 160-plus
charter schools. Proponents of the bill
— which would scrap the state’s assumption that 16 percent of students in each
district require special education services in favor of a formula that weighs
factors like student needs, poverty, property tax levels and “rural and small
district conditions” — laud the legislation as a good step forward that better
addresses the needs of each individual school district. Critics, in short, describe
the bill as the end of charter schools “as we know it.”
Are PA charters receiving windfall special
ed payments? Check out this oldie-but-goody
that continues to be one of the most visited postings on the KEYSEC website.
PA Charter Schools: $4 billion taxpayer dollars with no
real oversight
"The local share of total school
funding has increased from 37 percent in 2010-11 to 45 percent in 2013-14,
according to the report."
Survey paints bleak picture
of Pa.
By on June 05, 2014 at 3:33 PM
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) —
Rising costs and shrinking state and federal aid at Pennsylvania's public
schools are exacerbating a pattern of property-tax increases, school program
cutbacks and employee layoffs, two statewide groups representing school
managers said Thursday.
The report by the
Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators and the Pennsylvania
Association of School Business Officials sums up responses from 279 of the
state's 500 school districts, ranging in size from Philadelphia to some of the smallest
districts. The groups have compiled the reports annually since the 2010-11
school year. The report said more than
three-fourths of the responding districts plan to increase local property taxes
next year.
"Increased
property taxes are an annual fact of life in the great majority of school
districts statewide — irrespective of poverty level, region or size," the
report said.
Study shows Pa.
By Eleanor Chute / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette June 5, 2014 9:35 AM
A school budget survey
released today by the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators and the
Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials found the financial
condition of school districts continues to worsen. In a news release on the organizations'
fourth annual survey, Jim Buckheit, executive director of PASA, said,
“Unfortunately, this year’s survey results show that the landscape has not
changed and the financial condition of school districts across the Commonwealth
continues to deteriorate. “These
financial challenges continue to create significant obstacles in maintaining
the high-quality educational programs provided to students.”
The organizations cited
reduced levels of state and federal contributions to total school costs,
steeply rising pension costs and other increased costs, saying they have led to
"unprecedented reductions in programs and school staff."
Survey of school districts
says property taxes likely to keep rising
Pittsburgh
Tribune-Review By Megan
Harris Published: Thursday, June 5, 2014, 1:03 p.m.
Pennsylvania school officials estimate the cost of educating students will rise again this year, and they pledge more local property tax increases despite significant reductions in faculty, staff and resources. That forecast was the result of the fourth annual survey of school district budgets from the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators and the Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials. More than three-quarters of respondents said they plan property tax increases next year, the highest figure in five years. About 280 of the state's 500 school districts responded.
Pennsylvania school officials estimate the cost of educating students will rise again this year, and they pledge more local property tax increases despite significant reductions in faculty, staff and resources. That forecast was the result of the fourth annual survey of school district budgets from the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators and the Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials. More than three-quarters of respondents said they plan property tax increases next year, the highest figure in five years. About 280 of the state's 500 school districts responded.
Report: Fourth
Annual PASA-PASBO Report on School District
Budgets
PASA/PASBO June 2014
Click here (pdf - REVISED) to read the
press release
Click here (pdf) to read the report.
Bill aiming to curtail
teacher seniority clears hurdle in Pa. House
WHYY Newsworks BY KEVIN
MCCORRY JUNE 5, 2014
In a bipartisan 16-8 vote, the Pennsylvania House
Education Committee has greenlighted a bill that would eliminate
state-mandated seniority protections for teachers. HB 1722, sponsored by state Rep. Tim Krieger,
R-Westmoreland, would require districts to base layoffs on a teacher's
performance as measured by the state's new teacher evaluation system. Now, 499 of Pennsylvania 's 500 school districts are
required to base teacher layoff and recall decisions on the inverse order of
seniority, sometimes referred to as "last in, first out."
Corbett endorses
"hybrid" pension plan; no consensus yet on current-year savings
By on
June 05, 2014 at 10:02 AM
Reform of Pennsylvania 's public
pension systems isn't necessarily the sexiest of issues, but it is shaping up
to be one of the big prizes in this year's state budget lottery. And just like the members of a
jackpot-winning PowerBall pool, if legislative leaders and Gov. Tom Corbett do
craft a winning ticket in this politically charged debate, they'll have a
second question to decide:
Take the prize of
reduced future costs to the state now, or later?
Corbett – seeking
re-election to a second term in an already tough budget year - says cash in quick. He
has already baked $170 million in pension savings into his 2014-15 spending
plan.
Without that so-called
"collar" on taxpayer-funded employer pension contributions that are
scheduled to grow by more than $600 million, Budget Secretary Charles Zogby
said a budget hole the administration places at $1.5 billion now will be closer
to $1.7 billion.
Using some winnings
from pension savings now to lower the employer contributions this year will
help free more money for other priorities like school funding and aid to the
intellectually disabled, Zogby said.
Some disagree.
Scarnati's plan to get
lawmakers, elected officials out of the pension plan is worth considering: John
L. Micek
By on
June 05, 2014 at 10:51 AM
If there's one thing
that makes Budget Season in the state Capitol consistently entertaining, it's
the endless capacity for the surprise turn of events that you never see coming
— the ones that stump and flummox even the most jaundiced observers of the
three-ring circus that is state government.
From the $75 million film tax credit brouhaha under formerGov. Ed
Rendell to the
last-minute collapse of liquor privatization and Gov. Tom Corbett's plan to offer tax credits to Royal Dutch Shell PLC to someday (maybe, possibly) build a
natural gas processing plant in western Pennsylvania, the annual debate over
the spending plan is nearly bottomless in its potential for shenanigans. But in the midst of all that
whiplash-inducing nuttiness, it's also possible for someone to have an actual
good idea that advances the cause of the body politic and reinforces your
belief in government's ability to, well, do good stuff for the electorate.
So I'm willing to give
at least a preliminary shout-out to Senate
President Joe Scarnati, who came out this week and advanced the
radical, yet stunningly rational, notion that it's time to move elected officials in the legislative,
executive and judicial branch out of Pennsylvania's defined-benefit pension
system.
PhillyDeals: Plan to
stall growing gap in state pension
By Joseph N. DiStefano, Inquirer Staff Writer POSTED: June
02, 2014
How to get out of a $50 billion hole?
First, stop digging, reasons State Rep. Mike
Tobash (R., Pottsville ).
Tobash has a plan - a moderate plan, by today's standards - to
stall the growing gap between the billions Pennsylvania's politically appointed
pension trustees have invested, in hopes the money will magically grow very
fast, and the tens of billions actually needed to keep future pensions flowing
to ex-teachers, prison guards, legislators, and other public servants.
This gap between assets and liabilities, which totals about $50
billion for the combined State Employees ( SERS) and Public School
Employees ( PSERS) Retirement Systems, burns a hole in every
Pennsylvanian's wallet. That's because state law requires that theGeneral
Assembly and local school districts pay more into the pension plans each
year, until the gap starts closing.
The Pottstown
Mercury has done a good job covering the causes and effects of the pension
crisis; this site has links to several articles following the issue:
"The Muñoz Marín vote means
that parents at the two district schools tapped this year for possible charter
takeover have voted against those changes."
Parents at Phila. school
reject takeover by charter
KRISTEN A. GRAHAM, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER POSTED: Thursday,
June 5, 2014, 8:52 PM
After a bitterly fought battle, parents at Luis Muñoz Marín
Elementary have voted to keep their school a part of the Philadelphia public school system, rejecting
a charter organization's takeover proposal.
According to results announced by Philadelphia School
District North Third Street school, which has 700
students in kindergarten through eighth grade. A decision is expected soon.
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20140606_Parents_at_Phila__school_reject_takeover_by_charter.html#Rv1uKkIGSco2Ck5y.99
'Entanglements' with
Tobyhanna church cited; appeal still possible
By Jenna Ebersole Pocono Record Writer June 05, 2014
More than 330 students
could be looking for a new school — and their teachers for new jobs — after
what may be the final step in a fraught charter revocation process ended in
victory for the Pocono Mountain School District on Tuesday. The district has fought the Pocono Mountain
Charter School
The state's Charter
Appeal Board, which has been at the center of the battle for several years,
voted unanimously Tuesday to revoke the charter. The vote was the board's third
in as many years on the issue and confirmed a vote to revoke the charter last
summer.
Center for Public Education The EDifier June 5, 2014
EdWeek’s annual Diplomas Count report shows that the U.S.
high school on-time graduation rate has hit an all-time high with 81 percent of
students graduating within four-years of entering high school. You may
remember back in April another report also found high school graduation
rates were at an all-time high. Both reports were based on similar data so it
is not surprising they found similar results. But this most recent report sheds
a brighter light on how state graduation rates have changed over time,
especially between 2007 and 2012 —the most recent year available to calculate
graduation rates. An examination of EdWeek’s data shows that in 2007, 19 states
had graduation rates below 75 percent. By 2012 that number dropped to just six
states. In fact, just two states (Nevada and Mississippi ) currently
have graduation rates under 70 percent compared to 11 states back in 2007.
So, states are in fact
making tremendous progress in improving their on-time high school graduation
rates at a time when many states have actually made it harder to earn a high
school diploma. What remains to be seen is if this trend will continue t as
states implement the Common Core State Standards,
a more rigorous set of benchmarks that aim to prepare all students for college
and careers. If states provide districts with the resources they need to
effectively implement the CCSS, it is likely more students will not only earn a
high school diploma but be more successful after high school as well.
In 2016,
Democrats Have Good Reason to Run Against Obama's Education Record
The political weakness of the common core,
charter schools, and other reform ideas
The New Republic By Conor P. Williams
June 3, 2014
There’s a very real possibility that the
Democratic Party is about to undergo a powerful shift on education policy. As others
have noted, it’s an area where Democrats are meaningfully divided into
competing camps. It’s also an area where the Obama Administration’s efforts
have sparked both wide-ranging policy changes and widespread criticism. Obama
has advanced significant new policies, and many of those policies are
experimental, controversial, or both. And there’s evidence that a Clinton
Administration would mean a substantial departure from those
reforms.
Big Brother: Meet the Parents
Politico By STEPHANIE SIMON |
6/5/14 5:03 AM EDT
This story is part of a POLITICO series examining the
unchecked expansion of private-sector data collection and the implications for
consumer privacy.
You’ve heard of Big Oil and Big Tobacco. Now get ready for Big
Parent.
Moms and dads from across the political spectrum have mobilized
into an unexpected political force in recent months to fight the data mining of their children. In a frenzy of activity,
they’ve catapulted student privacy — an issue that was barely on anyone’s radar
last spring — to prominence in statehouses from New York
to Florida to Wyoming .
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2014/06/internet-data-mining-children-107461.html#ixzz33lJsbgXa
Mega-rich Walmart heirs give
almost none of their own money to Walton Family Foundation
byLaura
Claws onFollow
fo rDaily Kos Labor WED JUN
04, 2014 AT 09:52 AM PDT
Just how greedy are the Walmart heirs of the Walton family?
Despite having a combined $140 billion in wealth, as much as 42 percent of the
American population, and a reputation as philanthropists, the living Walmart
heirs have barely
contributed anything to their family's namesake foundation.
According to a new report from Making Change at Walmart, neither Rob Walton nor
Alice Walton has contributed a single dollar to the Walton Family Foundation,
Jim Walton gave $3 million in 1998, and sister-in-law Christy has given $52
million. (Maybe because she wasn't raised with Walton family values?) To put it
in context:
The combined lifetime contributions of the second generation
Walmart heirs and their family holding company to the Walton Family Foundation
come to $58.49 million, or:
·
About .04% of the Waltons’ net worth of $139.9
billion;
·
About .34% of the estimated $17.1 Billion in
Walmart dividends that Rob, Jim, Alice and Christy received during the years we
analyzed;
·
Less than one week’s worth of the Walmart
dividends the Waltons will receive this year;
·
Less than the estimated value of Rob Walton’s
collection of vintage sports cars.
Cloaking
Inequity Blog by Julian
Vasquez Heilig May 23, 2014 | | 1
Comment
WE NEED YOUR HELP! Do you believe in public education? Do you
want US policymakers to understand why decision makers in Chile have now
judged vouchers to be problematic after 30 years of universal implementation?
Do you have frequent flier miles you can donate? Sponsor a grad student
today! This summer, I along with eight
UT-Austin graduate students will travel to Santiago, Chile in August 2014 with
Professor Julian Vasquez Heilig to conduct field research that will result in a
policy brief, op-eds and a peer-reviewed academic paper detailing recent changes in
Chile’s market-based education policy proposed this past April by Chile’s
current Education Minister Nicholas Eyzaguirre.
Legacy of Brown v. Board of
Education After 60 Years -
EPLC "Focus on Education" TV Program on PCN - June 8 at 3:00 p.m.
EPLC "Focus on Education" TV Program on PCN - June 8 at 3:00 p.m.
The next EPLC "Focus on Education" episode
will air this coming Sunday, June 8 at 3:00 p.m. on PCN television.
This June 8 panel will discuss the significance of the 1954 Brown v.
Board of Education decision by the U.S. Supreme Court and its significance
today; the current picture of racial segregation in public schools; whether, in
Pennsylvania, we are improving or getting worse; the responsibility of state
government; the effects of the "school choice" movement on
segregation and integration in public schools; and much more.
The panel will include:
·
Ron Cowell, President of The Education
Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC) and Host of the "Focus on
Education" programs;
·
Homer C. Floyd, Former Executive
Director, Pennsylvania
Human Relations Commission;
·
Rhonda Brownstein, Esq., Executive
Director, Education
Law Center
·
Erica Frankenberg, Ed.D., Assistant
Professor, Department of Education Policy Studies, Penn State University
Visit the EPLC web site for related resources.
PSBA opens nominations for
the Timothy M. Allwein Advocacy Award
The nomination process is now open for the Timothy M. Allwein Advocacy Award. This award may be presented annually to the individual school director or entire school board to recognize outstanding leadership in legislative advocacy efforts on behalf of public education and students that are consistent with the positions in PSBA’s Legislative Platform. Applications will be accepted until July 16, 2014. The July 16 date was picked in honor of Timothy M. Allwein's birthday. The award will be presented during the PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference in October. More details and application are available on PSBA's website.
The nomination process is now open for the Timothy M. Allwein Advocacy Award. This award may be presented annually to the individual school director or entire school board to recognize outstanding leadership in legislative advocacy efforts on behalf of public education and students that are consistent with the positions in PSBA’s Legislative Platform. Applications will be accepted until July 16, 2014. The July 16 date was picked in honor of Timothy M. Allwein's birthday. The award will be presented during the PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference in October. More details and application are available on PSBA's website.
Education
Policy and Leadership Center
Click
here to read more about EPLC’s Education Policy Fellowship Program, including:
2014-15 Schedule 2014-15 Application Past Speakers Program Alumni And More
Information
PCCY invites you to get on
the School Spirit Bus to Harrisburg on Tuesday June 10th for Fair and Full
School Funding!
Public Citizens for Children and Youth
On Tuesday June 10th, Public Citizens for Children
and Youth (PCCY) will be going to Harrisburg. Join committed parents,
leaders, and community members from around state to make it clear to Harrisburg
that PA students need fair and full funding now! We are providing free
transportation to and from Harrisburg as well as lunch. Please
arrive at the United
Way Building 1709 Benjamin Franklin
Parkway no later than8:15am. The bus will
depart at 8:30am sharp! Reserve your seat today by emailing us
at info@pccy.org or
calling us at 215-563-5848
x11. You can download and share our flyer by clicking here. We hope to see you there!
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
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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