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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for
September 13, 2014:
Terry Madonna
talks school funding on Pennsylvania Newsmakers with Jay Himes and Sherri Smith
Concerned with adequate,
equitable, predictable, sustainable #paedfunding? Follow new @PACircuitRider and @CircuitRiderSE accounts on
twitter
Act 1 Index for FY 2015-2016 is 1.9%
NOTICES: DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Index Calculation Required by the Taxpayer Relief Act [44
Pa.B. 5883]
6926.333(l)), the Department of Education (Department) has
calculated the index for Fiscal Year (FY) 2015-2016. Under section 333(l) of
the Taxpayer Relief Act (53 P. S. §
The index is the average of the percentage increase in the
Statewide average weekly wage and the Employment Cost Index. For FY 2015-2016,
the base index is 1.9%.
For school districts with a market value/income aid ratio
greater than 0.4000, an adjusted index will be posted on the Department's web
site at www.education.state.pa.us by September 30, 2014.
Joining host
Terry Madonna for a discussion of public school funding are Jay Himes, Executive Director of the PA
Association of School Business Officials, and Sherri Smith, President-Elect of the PA
Association of School Administrators. (segment starts at 13:10; runtime 10:20)
Pension reform, liquor
privatization will be tough challenges in Pennsylvania
By Charles Thompson |
cthompson@pennlive.com on September 12, 2014 at 2:06 PM,
updated September 12, 2014 at 3:29 PM
This story was updated at 3:30 p.m. to add links to prior
stories on some of the issues mentioned.
Sometimes success in life is all about recognizing your
limitations, and doing the best you can to work around them. It's going to be like that for the
Pennsylvania Legislature this fall.
On the most complex issues of the day: dealing with the state's soaring pension costs; deciding whether,
and how, to modernize the state-run sales of wine and liquor; or
legalizing forms of marijuana for medicinal uses; the odds for passing
legislation aren't great.
But there are a lot of other items – bills that haven't been
the subject of summer speaking tours by Gov. Tom Corbett, or massive lobbying
by well-heeled business interests and labor unions – that very well could get
done. And some of them may literally be
lifesavers.
That's the backdrop for the General Assembly's election season,
four-week legislative session starting Monday.
First, a little bit about why the heavily-lobbied, headline-making
issues aren't likely to get resolved.
Corbett facing questions over
education review in Pa. House
WHYY Newsworks BY MARY
WILSON SEPTEMBER 12, 2014
Pennsylvania House lawmakers plan hearings to grill the Corbett
administration on its plan to review state academic standards implemented last
March. Gov. Tom Corbett recently called
for a review of the Pennsylvania Core, so-named because it blends national
benchmarks called Common Core and objectives designed by commonwealth
officials. The confusion over education
standards all goes back to their name, said state Rep. Seth Grove, R-York. "When the administration decided to keep
Common Core in the name of the academic standards they were moving forward
with, it confused a lot of people because they assumed that the administration
was adopting Common Core and not moving away from it," Grove said.
Bills letting PA teachers
carry guns and NRA sue municipalities await Legislature
By Steve
Esack,Call Harrisburg
Bureau September 12, 2014
State lawmakers gradually return to session Monday from their
summer break.
Lawmakers don’t have to be in House and Senate chambers for roll
call until 1 p.m. and neither chamber is expected to finalize many
controversial bills dealing with state pension systems and medical marijuana on
Monday. But that doesn't mean the Legislature is not going to make
fireworks during the three-day session. The
Senate Education Committee gets the session off with a bang by holding a
hearing at 9:45 a.m. Tuesday on a bill to allow teachers and other school
employees to carry concealed firearms on the job. The bill is
by Sen. Don White, R-Indiana.
Polls put Corbett behind in
governor’s race
Wolf leads as voters express frustration with the
status quo
James P. O'Toole / Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette September 13, 2014 12:00 AM
Two new surveys tell a familiar story: Gov. Tom Corbett trails
his challenger, Democrat Tom Wolf, by a wide margin. But the polls from Quinnipiac University
Teachers probably would have
to pay for own background checks under Toomey's bill
State educators and administrators support U.S. Sen. Pat
Toomey's bill that would expand background checks for school employees and
private contractors, but many are left wondering who would pay for the
additional investigations. While Pennsylvania has
required state criminal background checks for new employees since 1986 and
federal background checks since 2006, Toomey's proposal — the Protecting
Students from Sexual and Violent Predators Act — would require all educators
and contractors to submit to background checks periodically through four major
state and federal registries. Regardless
of tenure, school employees would be checked against state and federal
background databases, child abuse and neglect registries, the fingerprint
identification system of the FBI and the National Sex Offender Registry.
Cost: The cost of those checks would be about $40
per person, and it would most likely be paid by the employees, officials said.
"Bethlehem
Area School
District
Lehigh Valley Dual Language
Charter School wins appeal
By Rudy Miller
| The Express-Times on September 11, 2014 at 12:45 PM,
updated September 11, 2014 at 2:54 PM
An appellate court has rejected an appeal filed by the
Bethlehem Area School District to block a second building for the Lehigh
Valley Dual Language Charter School.
The kindergarten-through-eighth-grade school at 551 Thomas St. in
Bethlehem wants to open a second building to handle its increasing
enrollment. The
school wants to open a middle school at the former Seton Academy on Sixth
Avenue in Bethlehem for grades six, seven and eight.
The school district has argued state law allows only
Philadelphia charter schools to operate out of more than one building. The state charter school appeals board agreed
with the district, but the decision wasoverturned
by a three-judge Commonwealth Court panel.
The Bethlehem Area School District appealed to reargue its case
before the full panel of all 11 Commonwealth Court judges. That appeal was
rejected today.
By Lynn
Olanoff | The Express-Times on September 11, 2014 at 8:59 PM,
updated September 11, 2014 at 9:07 PM
Participants in a Bethlehem NAACP
forum on charter schools tonight assailed charters for causing a new form of
school segregation. "We could end
up with segregation in another form," Bethlehem NAACP President Esther Lee
said of charter schools. "It's not 1909, but it's close."
Bethlehem
Area School District Superintendent Joseph Roy, who participated as an
attendee, also said charter schools are causing segregation. "People go because they don't want their
kids around kids who speak Spanish or poor kids," Roy said. "It's a
way to siphon kids out of the school system and make them less diverse." Roy called charter schools the greatest
financial threat to the Bethlehem Area School District. Charter schools are
costing the school district $20 million this year, causing the district to cut
programs especially for students in need, Roy said.
"The kids who need it most are the ones who are getting
hurt," he said. "To me, it's actually a civil rights issue."
City school crisis dire for
us all
INGA SAFFRON, INQUIRER
ARCHITECTURE CRITIC LAST UPDATED: Thursday, September 11, 2014,
12:34 PM
Last month, a smart young writer at the Washington Post named
Lydia DePillis wrote a provocative article about cities and families that lit
up every urbanists' social-media feed. In it, she observed something parents
have known for a long time: Kids are expensive. "Why, from a purely
economic standpoint, would a city on the make try to attract families at
all?" she asked.
The question stopped me in my tracks. For America's comeback
cities, the ability to land and keep middle-class families is considered a
badge of success. Over the last decade, Philadelphia has definitely become a
city "on the make." It has proudly drawn thousands of new residents
of childbearing age - that millennial generation - and showered them with the
amenities they love, from bike lanes to beer gardens to spray parks, in the hope
they'll stay and raise families here.
The irony, of course, is that this week the city's grossly
underfunded schools just barely managed to open on schedule. Basic educational
amenities that suburban districts take for granted, such as guidance counselors
and nurses, are a luxury. Even if the legislature approves Philadelphia's
$2-a-pack tax on cigarettes, it may not be enough to get the district through
the year, never mind next year or the year after.
By thenotebook on Sep 12, 2014 11:16 AM
Making sense of the numbers
The Notebook's school profiles provide
a lot of detail about the 90 public high schools and their programs. Here we
provide statistics about their students and how they are performing. That is
important information as you think about where to attend high school.
You’ll find data about all the District-run high schools and
charters below. For each school, you can see the enrollment and whether it
serves large percentages of low-income and special education students and
English language learners. Student
attendance is often a good indicator of how engaged students are. Keep in mind
that a school with 90 percent attendance has twice as many students absent as
one of the same size with 95 percent attendance. The number of suspensions
tells you about school climate, though a large school might be expected to have
more suspensions than a small one.
York Suburban named one of
top schools in state, nation
NIKELLE
SNADER / The York Dispatch 505-5431 / @ydschools
POSTED: 09/12/2014 03:08:48 PM EDT | UPDATED:
ABOUT 15 HOURS AGO
The school district also ranked 83rd in the nation for ensuring
that students in low-income families performed at a comparable rate to other
students in the district, according to the magazine's "Beating the
Odds" rankings.
Fatal Attraction: America
Yong Zhao's Blog 13 SEPTEMBER 2014 273
[This is the introduction to my latest book Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Dragon: Why China has the Best (and
Worst) Education System in the World published by Jossey-Bass in
September 2014. Also available onAmazon and Barnes & Noble.]
In 2009 Dr. Beverly Hall, former superintendent of the Atlanta
Public Schools, was named America’s National Superintendent of the Year for
“representing the ‘best of the best’ in public school leadership.”[1]Hall
was hosted in the White House by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. In 2010,
the American Educational Research Association honored her with its
Distinguished Community Service Award, which “recognizes exceptional
contributions to advancing the use of education research and statistics.”[2] Also
in 2010, President Obama appointed Hall to the elite National Board for
Education Sciences.
In 2013, Hall was indicted by a grand jury in Georgia for
“violation of Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations Act, false
statements and writings, false swearing, and theft by taking.”[3] The
Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organization Act is a law typically used
against Mafia leaders. If she is convicted, Hall faces 45 years in prison.
What made Hall a national hero is precisely what brought
about her downfall.
Newsweek's High School
Rankings for 2014: Two Lists Are Better Than One
Newsweek By Zach Schonfeld / September 8, 2014 11:18 AM EDT
For more than a decade, Newsweek has published
an annual list of America ’s
Top High Schools, ranked primarily according to a ratio of AP/IB exams to the
number of students graduating. This year we’re doing things a little
differently.
The White House Blog Chart of the Week: More
Students Are Graduating High School than Ever Before
The White House Blog Tanya Somanader September
12, 2014
As students head back to school, Secretary Arne Duncan hit the road this week on the Department of Education’s annual back-to-school bus tour to discuss how we can help every student receive a complete and competitive education in order to reach their full potential.
As students head back to school, Secretary Arne Duncan hit the road this week on the Department of Education’s annual back-to-school bus tour to discuss how we can help every student receive a complete and competitive education in order to reach their full potential.
After all, a high-quality education is a pre-requisite to
success in today’s economy. It's a national imperative that every student
graduate from high school prepared for college and for a career. And thanks to
the dedication of our teachers and educators and the hard work of our students,
more young people are graduating and earning their high school diplomas than
ever before.
Check out the chart below to see how our high school
graduation rate is the highest it has ever been -- then share it with everyone
who needs to know.
In U.S.
Americans view preschool education as less important
than other education levels
Gallup Politics by Jeffrey M. Jones September 8, 2014
PRINCETON, NJ -- Seven in 10 Americans say they favor using
federal money to make sure high-quality preschool education programs are
available for every child in America. Twenty-eight percent oppose the idea.
WA Supreme Court finds
Legislature in contempt on education funding
Seattle Times Politics Northwest Blog Posted by Joseph O'Sullivan September 11, 2014 at
9:44 AM
The Washington state Supreme Court is holding the Legislature
in contempt for not making enough progress toward fully funding public
education but, for now, is holding off on sanctions.
In an order Thursday in the landmark McCleary
school-funding case, the court said it won’t
issue any sanctions until at least the close of the 2015 legislative
session. After that, action could be swift.
“On the date following adjournment of the 2015 session, if the State has
not complied with the court’s order, the State shall file in the court a
memorandum explaining why sanctions or other remedial measures should not be
imposed,” reads the order, which was signed by Chief Justice Barbara Madsen. The decision was unanimous. Read the
order for yourself here.
EPLC "Focus on
Education" TV Program on PCN - Sunday, Sept. 14 at 3:00 p.m.
Two Panels: 1) "Paying for College InPennsylvania
Two Panels: 1) "Paying for College In
The next EPLC "Focus on Education" episode
will air this coming Sunday, September 14 at 3:00 p.m. on PCN
television. This September 14 show will be comprised of two
30-minute panels. The first will cover "Paying for College
In Pennsylvania
Panel 1: "Paying for College in Pennsylvania"
will include:
·
Ron Cowell, President of The Education
Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC) and Host of the "Focus on
Education" programs;
·
Gregory L. Gearhart, Past President, PA
Association of Student Financial Aid Advisors and Director of Financial Aid,
Messiah College;
·
Sonya Mann-McFarlane, Higher Education
Access Partner, PHEAA Division of PA School Services; and
·
Kathleen F. McGrath, Esq., Bureau
Director, PA 529 College Savings Program, Pennsylvania Treasury Department
Panel 2: "School Employees Pension Crisis" will
include:
·
Ron Cowell, President of The Education
Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC) and Host of the "Focus on
Education" programs;
·
Jeffrey B. Clay, Executive Director,
Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System (PSERS)
·
Jay D. Himes, CAE, Executive Director,
Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials
·
State Representative Mike Tobash, 125th
Legislative District - Schuylkill/Berks Counties, Pennsylvania House of
Representatives
PUBLIC Education Nation October
11
The Network for Public Education will hold a historic event in one month's time.
The Network for Public Education will hold a historic event in one month's time.
PUBLIC Education Nation will deliver the
conversation the country has been waiting for. Rather than featuring
billionaires and pop singers, this event will be built around intense
conversations featuring leading educators, parents, students and community
activists. We have waited too long for that seat at someone else's table.
This time, the tables are turned, and we are the ones setting the agenda. This event will be livestreamed on the web on
the afternoon of Saturday, October 11, from the auditorium of Brooklyn New School,
a public school. There will be four panels focusing on the most critical issues
we face in our schools. The event will conclude with a conversation between
Diane Ravitch and Jitu Brown.
Please join us for a symposium
on:
“Funding
Pennsylvania's Public Schools: A Look Ahead”
This event is co-sponsored by the
University of Pittsburgh Institute of Politics and the Temple University
Center
When: Friday, October 3, 2014, 8:30 am to 12 pm
Where: Doubletree Hotel Pittsburgh in Green Tree, PA
Session I:
"Forecasting the Fiscal Future of Pennsylvania's Public
Schools"
A panel of legislators and public
officials will respond to a presentation by Penn State Professor William
Hartman and Tim Shrom projecting the fiscal trajectory of Pennsylvania’s 500
school districts over the next five years and by University of Pittsburgh
Professor Maureen McClure discussing the implications for school finance of an
aging tax base.
Session II: "Why Smart
Investments in Public Schools Are Critical to Pennsylvania's Economic
Future"
Following an address by Eva Tansky
Blum, Chairwoman and President of the PNC Foundation, a panel of business
and labor leaders will discuss the importance of public school funding
reform to the competitiveness of regional and state economies.
We look forward to your participation!
Back to School
Special Education Boot Camp Saturday, September 20, 2014 8:30 A.M.- 3:00 P.M.
Public Interest Law Center of
Philadelphia
United Way Building 1709 Benjamin
Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, 19103
Join presenters from: Temple University · McAndrews Law
Offices · ARC
PA Education for All
Coalition · Delaware Valley Friends School
PA Dyslexia and Literacy Coalition
Attend workshops on: Early Intervention · Dyslexia · Discipline · Charter
Schools
Inclusion · Transition
Services
Details and Registration: http://bit.ly/1nSstB7
Education Law
Center Celebrating Education Champions 2014
On September 17, 2014 the Education
Law Center will hold its annual event at the Crystal Tea Room in the Wanamaker
Building to celebrate Pennsylvania’s Education Champions. This year, the event
will honor William P. Fedullo, Chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association; Dr.
Joan Duvall-Flynn, Education Committee Chair for the Pennsylvania State
Conference of NAACP Branches; and the Stoneleigh Foundation, a Philadelphia
regional leader on at-risk youth issues.
Pennsylvania Arts Education
Network 2014 Arts and Education Symposium
The 2014 Arts and Education Symposium will be
held on Thursday, October 2 at the State Museum
of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg, PA. Join us for a daylong convening of
arts education policy leaders and practitioners for lively discussions about
the latest news from the field.
The Symposium registration fee is $45 per person.
To register, click
here or follow the prompts at the bottom of the page. The Symposium will include the following:
Register Now – 2014 PAESSP
State Conference – October 19-21, 2014
Please join us for the 2014 PAESSP State Conference, “PRINCIPAL
EFFECTIVENESS: Leading Schools in a New Age of Accountability,” to be
held October 19-21 at the Sheraton Station Square Hotel, Pittsburgh,
Pa. Featuring Keynote Speakers: Alan
November, Michael Fullan & Dr. Ray Jorgensen. This year’s conference will provided PIL
Act 45 hours, numerous workshops, exhibits, multiple resources and an
opportunity to network with fellow principals from across the state.
PASA-PSBA School Leadership
Conference (Oct. 21-24) registration forms now available online
PSBA Website
PSBA Website
Make plans today to attend the most talked about education
conference of the year. This year's PASA-PSBA
School Leadership Conference promises to be one of the best with new
ideas, innovations, networking opportunities and dynamic speakers. More details
are being added every day. Online registration will be available in the
next few weeks. If you just can't wait, registration
forms are available online now. Other important links are available
with more details on:
·
Hotel
registration (reservation deadline extended to Sept. 26)
·
Educational
Publications Contest (deadline Aug. 6)
·
Student
Celebration Showcase (deadline Sept. 19)
·
Poster
and Essay Contest (deadline Sept. 19)
Voting for PSBA officers
and at-large representatives opens Sept. 9
PSBA Website 9/8/2014
The slate of candidates for 2015 PSBA officer and at-large
representatives is available online. Photos, bios and
videos also have been posted for candidates. According to recent PSBA
Bylaws changes, each member school entity casts one vote per office. Voting
will again take place online through a secure, third-party website -- Simply
Voting. Voting will open Sept. 9 and closes Oct. 6. One person from the school entity
(usually the board secretary) is authorized to register the vote on behalf of
the member school entity and each board will need to put on its agenda
discussion and voting at one of its meetings in September. Each person
authorized to cast the school entity's votes received an email on Aug. 13 and a
test ballot was sent to them on Aug. 28. In addition, a memo from PSBA
President Richard Frerichs will be mailed in the coming days to all board
secretaries and copied to school board presidents and chief school
administrators.
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