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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for
December 27, 2014:
Grinch steals
Democracy in York PA
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"...Corbett's efforts to advance the
fortunes of private, parochial and charter schools frequently brought him into
conflict with public school boosters."
What will history say of Gov.
Tom Corbett's tenure in Pennsylvania
By The Associated
Press on December 25, 2014 at 2:10 PM
And amid historic Republican gains in state legislatures across
the country — including in Pennsylvania
— Corbett was the only sitting GOP governor to lose his seat to a Democratic
challenger in the Nov. 4 election. Whether
history will be kinder than voters in assessing the governor's track record
remains to be seen.
State cleared to take over
York City School District
WITF Written by Emily Previti /Keystone Crossroads | Dec 26,
2014 11:01 AM
(York ) -- State officials can take over
the struggling York
City School
District
York County Judge Stephen Linebaugh issued his decision Friday,
less than a month after the Pennsylvania Department of Education filed its
petition for a receivership – as a state takeover is called. State officials have said they would, if
approved for a receivership, bring in Charter
Schools USA York likely will be the
first city in the Commonwealth - and only one in the nation – where public
education is provided exclusively by a private company.
State takes control of York
City School District
York Daily Record Staff
report UPDATED: 12/26/2014 03:08:31 PM EST
The York City School District
has entered receivership, according to a ruling Friday in York County court. David Meckley has been named receiver. He is
granted all of the school board's powers except for levying taxes. He now has
the authority to move forward, without the school board's consent, with plans
to convert all district schools into charters run by the Florida-based Charter Schools USA
"Gov.-elect Tom Wolf, a Democrat who
takes office Jan. 20, has said he opposes the move to turn the schools into
charter schools. Corbett, a Republican, has sought to boost avenues for public
school students to attend private, parochial and charter schools, frequently
bringing him into conflict with public school boosters."
Bucks County
Courier
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A judge gave approval Friday to Gov. Tom
Corbett administration's bid to take over the troubled York City School District
and place it in receivership, a decision opposed by the district, labor union
and state school boards association that was quickly appealed. The decision by York County President Judge
Stephen Linebaugh gives more authority to the Corbett administration's
appointee to carry out a plan to make York
City 's public schools the first in Pennsylvania to be
turned into privately run charter schools.
If upheld, the approximately 7,500-student district would
become the third Pennsylvania
school district to be placed into receivership.
Questions still linger about
the fate of the York City School District
Penn Live By Candy Woodall |
cwoodall@pennlive.com on December 26, 2014 at 5:12 PM,
updated December 26, 2014 at 9:21 PM
A York County court ruling said it's OK for the state to
takeover the York
City School
District
President Judge Stephen Linebaugh on Fridayissued
his decision – a move that could pave the way to the district's full
conversion to charter schools. Or the
issue could
be tied up in court appeals for months and Linebaugh's decision may be
overturned.
Students react to York City
York Dispatch by NIKELLE
SNADER 505-5431 / @ydschools 12/26/2014 02:59:00 PM EST
A handful of students and staff members met outside the York City York
City
DeSantis and junior Nicole Harman said they've been following
the case closely. But the decision was still a disappointment, DeSantis said.
"We were prepared for the worst, but you still hope for
the best," she said.
Both students said they got involved with protesting the
decision because they're worried about programs and what will happen to staff
members at the school.
Attorney: Appeal already
filed in York City
ERIN
JAMES and NIKELLE SNADER / The York Dispatch 505-5431
/ @ydschools
POSTED: 12/26/2014 09:13:29 AM EST
Control of the York City School District
will transfer to a state appointee following a York County Spring Garden
Township York City
Marc Tarlow, representing York City School District
York City School District,
other groups appeal court decision on state takeover
Penn Live By Candy Woodall |
cwoodall@pennlive.com on December 26, 2014 at 5:11 PM,
Within minutes of the judge's ruling, the York City School District
Wolf, others react to York City
THE YORK DISPATCH POSTED:
12/26/2014 01:41:57 PM EST
Here is some of the reaction to Friday's court decision turning
over control of the York
City School
District
Gov.-elect Tom Wolf, other
leaders respond to state takeover of York
City School
District
Penn Live By Candy Woodall |
cwoodall@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter
A York County judge on Friday gave the state permission to put the York City School District under the leadership of David Meckley, a 63-year-old businessman and lifelong York County resident. Part of his recovery plan for the district is a full conversion to charter schools.
A York County judge on Friday gave the state permission to put the York City School District under the leadership of David Meckley, a 63-year-old businessman and lifelong York County resident. Part of his recovery plan for the district is a full conversion to charter schools.
Receivership and a conversion to charter schools is opposed by
Gov.-elect Tom
Wolf, state Rep. Kevin Schreiber, D-York City, parents, school board
members and the district's 550 union employees.
Meanwhile, the state Department of Education and a school-choice
advocacy group support the judge's decision and a switch to charter schools. Here's what they're saying:
STATEMENT: PSBA disappointed
with judge’s decision in York
City School
District
PSBA website December 26, 2014
The Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) is extremely
disappointed with a decision made by York County Judge Stephen Linebaugh today,
which turns the York
City School
District York City School District from the locally elected school board
and turn operations over to Charter
Schools USA
“PSBA calls on outgoing Acting Secretary of Education Carolyn
Dumaresq and David Meckley to delay any final decisions to turn the district
over entirely to a privately run charter school operator until the incoming
Wolf administration has had a chance to weigh in on the issue,” said PSBA
Executive Director Nathan Mains.
“The decision has ignored the will of the community and created
a dangerous precedent of putting the entire public education system in the
hands of a corporate entity that is not accountable to the students or
taxpayers,” Mains said.
PSBA will be reviewing the shortcomings of today’s ruling and
deciding what course of action to take going forward.
Trib Live by Melissa
Daniels Friday, Dec. 26, 2014, 12:36 p.m.
A proposal to turn the York City School District into Pennsylvania's first all-charter school system moved forward Friday despite opposition from the district, the teachers union and community members. York County President Judge Stephen Linebaugh ruled to place the district into state receivership under appointee David Meckley. The district opposed the decision, and its attorney Marc Tarlow quickly moved to appeal, according to The Associated Press. Meckley plans to bring in Charter Schools USA, a Florida-based operation, to run York's eight schools, establishing the first all-charter district in the state.
A proposal to turn the York City School District into Pennsylvania's first all-charter school system moved forward Friday despite opposition from the district, the teachers union and community members. York County President Judge Stephen Linebaugh ruled to place the district into state receivership under appointee David Meckley. The district opposed the decision, and its attorney Marc Tarlow quickly moved to appeal, according to The Associated Press. Meckley plans to bring in Charter Schools USA, a Florida-based operation, to run York's eight schools, establishing the first all-charter district in the state.
Education Week By Denisa R.
Superville on December 26, 2014 3:54 PM
A Pennsylvania judge on Friday
approved the state's request to appoint a receiver to oversee the York City
School District
The order by President Judge Stephen P. Linebaugh of the Common Pleas Court
in York County
PSEA President: Court
decision puts interests of for-profit company ahead of students in York City
School District
PSEA Press Release Posted December 26th, 2014 for Pennsylvania
State Education Association
HARRISBURG (December 26, 2014) – A court decision granting Gov.
Tom Corbett’s last-minute request to put the York City School District under
the control of a state receiver ignores the will of the community, puts
students’ education at risk, and paves the way for a corporate takeover of the
city’s schools, the president of the state’s largest school employee union
said.
PSEA President Michael Crossey said that the Corbett
administration’s last-ditch effort to take over the school district and turn
its schools over to charter schools is unnecessary, inappropriate, and
dangerous. “York ’s citizens don’t want this, the elected
school board doesn’t want this, and parents and educators don’t want this,”
Crossey said. “With less than a month left in his term, there was no need for
the Corbett administration to take this step and undermine the wishes of York ’s citizens and their
elected leaders.”
PCPCS Applauds York
Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools website December
26, 2014
Albert Einstein had said “If you always do what you always did,
you will always get what you’ve always got.” Unfortunately this quote has been
appropriate in the School District of the City of York
where the academic performance of the district has languished among the worst
in Pennsylvania
for years. Today’s decision by President
Judge Stephen Linebaugh to enable the District to be placed into receivership
provides the opportunity to bring in new ideas and potentially break the
historical cycle of disservice to the children of York. Over the past few
months, multiple alternative ideas have been proposed to improve the delivery
of education in York
and all have been rejected by those in charge of the District. Whether the new approach will succeed is yet
to be seen, but at least it proposes something other than the status quo which
has failed miserably in serving the children.
Is Second Worst Good Enough
for York
Commonwealth Foundation website NOVEMBER 10,
2014 | Commentary by JAMES PAUL
Note: This commentary was published in the York
Daily Record.
The second lowest-performing school district in Pennsylvania is asking
for more time to improve but refusing recommended reforms. Unfortunately, more
time is not something students and families in York City York City
Despite this dismal achievement, the York City School Board
recently rejected
a compromise proposal to convert three district schools into charter
schools. The Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA), the state’s
largest teachers’ union, wants to maintain the failing status quo.
"But make no mistake-- this is not good
news. It's particularly bad news if you are in PA's other high-poverty
districts. If it becomes this easy, this simple for a state to simply hand a
school district to a for-profit charter, then in the long run, nobody is safe.
Well, except all the people running those charter corporations, cheerfully
converting public tax dollars to private profits. If you care about public education, you may
not know much about York , PA
Curmuducation Blog by Peter Greene Friday, December 26,
2014
Merry Christmas to the teachers, taxpayers, students, parents
and elected school board of York ,
PA. Florida ."
A lump of coal would have been an improvement. York is one step closer to being the first
district in the country converted straight to full charter takeover. Here are some of the salient points to keep
in mind as this story continues to unfold (because appeals are going to be
filed with all the quickness, you may be sure).
Merry Christmas. We’re Stealing
Your Schools.
GadflyOnTheWall Blog by Steven Singer December
27, 2014 stevenmsinger
Merry Christmas. We’re stealing your schools.
That’s the message from the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania to York City School
Critics
balk at state’s change in reading specialist certification
Times Leader By Mark Guydish mguydish@civitasmedia.com
Last updated: December 24. 2014 2:52AM - 676 Views
The state quietly changed the requirements for certification as
a school reading specialist, a move that has sparked criticism that the
government has dumbed down a complex job, eliminating the need for a master’s
degree in favor of simply passing a test. “What a disservice to our children,”
said Jodi Loughlin, assistant teaching education professor at Misericordia
University and a reading specialist for 15 years at Shenandoah Valley School
District before coming to Misericordia. The
job of a reading specialist “involves everything from diagnosing a student with
difficulty in reading to prescribing an instructional plan,” Loughlin said. “I
think what people don’t understand is that there are so many aspects to
reading.” She cited phonic awareness, comprehension, vocabulary and fluency, to
name a few.
New Pa.
Morning Call By Eleanor Chute Of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette December 24, 2014
Will you have to undergo a background check to help out in your
child's classroom?
If parents want to help out at their child's holiday party at
school, do they need to undergo a criminal background check first? This question and others about the line
between volunteer and visitor might become more difficult to answer starting
Wednesday, when a new state child protective services law takes effect. The law, among other things, expands
background checks for school volunteers and requires school employees,
independent school contractors and volunteers in direct contact with children
to update clearances every 36 months.
It also spells out the duties of teachers and other
"mandated reporters" in reporting suspected child abuse and the
criminal penalties if they fail to do so.
Sandusky-inspired child
protection law burdensome for schools
By Jan Murphy |
jmurphy@pennlive.com on December 26, 2014 at 1:01 PM
A new state law designed to provide an additional layer of
protection for children is proving to be a bureaucratic headache, not
to mention an unfunded mandate, for school officials.
Act 153 requires anyone who has direct contact with
children or are responsible for their welfare whether in a paid or unpaid
position to update their criminal history background check and child abuse
clearance every three years. It begins to take effect on Wednesday.
The law is a part of a package of measures put in place to
address deficiencies in child protective laws that crystallized in the
aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual assault scandal.
Several school districts surveyed say this law, though well
intentioned, carries with it some unintended consequences in making sure
everyone comes into and remains in compliance.
Montgomery News Souderton Independent By Jarreau Freeman jfreeman@montgomerynews.com
@JarreauFreeman on Twitter Friday, December 26, 2014
The Souderton Area School Board approved the renewal of a five-year contract between the district and SCSC during the Dec. 18 legislative meeting. The contract renewal was approved by a 5-4 vote. Board members Janet Flisak, Matt Holliday, Ken Keith, board Vice President Thomas Kwiatkowski and board President Scott Jelinski voted yes and board members Jill Basile, Nicholas Braccio, William Brong and Donna Scheuren voted no. Prior to the vote, board members weighed in on how difficult this vote was, many of them stating that a charter school in a high-performing district, such as theirs, was unnecessary while others called on legislators for charter school reform. “I think the Souderton charter school is excellent and one of the best charter schools in
A charter school is a school that receives public funding, but operates independently.
There Can Be No Successful All-Charter School
Huffington Post by Peter Greene, Teacher
and writer; blogger, curmudgucation.blogspot.com
Posted: 11/21/2014 11:10 pm
EST Updated: 11/21/2014 11:59 pm EST
Writer-researcher Mark Weber published a piece about charters on NJSpotlight this week that
deals with charter schools in New Jersey, but which has implications for the
charter movement all across the US. Weber
is perhaps better known in the "edubloggoverse" as Jersey Jazzman,
and his research prowess (coupled with that of Julia Sass Rubin of Ruthers) is
highly respected. This piece brings together much work that he's published in
the past; a trip through the pages of his blog will reveal considerable more
detail for those who want it. The bottom
line is that New Jersey
charters do not serve the same population as the districts that house them.
Specifically, they serve a smaller percentage of poor students and students
with extra learning challenges.
January 23rd–25th, 2015 at The Science Leadership
Academy , Philadelphia
EduCon is both a conversation and a conference.
It is an innovation conference where we can come together, both
in person and virtually, to discuss the future of schools. Every session will
be an opportunity to discuss and debate ideas — from the very practical to the
big dreams.
PSBA Master School Board
Director Recognition: Applications begin in January
PSBA website December 23, 2014
The Master School Board Director (MSBD) Recognition is for
individuals who have demonstrated significant contributions as members of their
governance teams. It is one way PSBA salutes your hard work and exceptional
dedication to ethics and standards, student success and achievement,
professional development, community engagement, communications, stewardship of
resources, and advocacy for public education.
School directors who are consistently dedicated to the
aforementioned characteristics should apply or be encouraged to apply by fellow
school directors. The MSBD Recognition demonstrates your commitment to
excellence and serves to encourage best practices by all school directors.
The application will be posted Jan. 15, 2015,
with a deadline to apply of June 30. Recipients will be notified by the MSBD
Recognition Committee by Aug. 31 and will be honored at the PASA-PSBA School
Leadership Conference in October.
If you are interested in learning more about the MSBD
Recognition, contact Janel
Biery, conference/events coordinator, at (800) 932-0588, ext. 3332.
It's abuse 101 and it's happening because money talks loudest and people are accepting the abuse. Unless/Until that stops, it will only continue. By any means necessary, WE need to protect our Democracy from the shenanigans of the super rich and their cronies like the crooked pols.
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