Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now
reach more than 3525 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors,
administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, Governor's
staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, Wolf education transition
team members, Superintendents, PTO/PTA officers, parent advocates, teacher
leaders, business leaders, education professors, members of the press and a
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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
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The Keystone State Education Coalition is an endorsing member of The Campaign for Fair Education Funding
PA Ed Policy Roundup for February
5, 2015:
Incentive or
Indecent Proposal? Should a small non-elected group of people, meeting in
private make public policy based upon how much money they have?
Upcoming Basic Education Funding Commission hearings
scheduled in Montgomery County and Dauphin County
PA
Basic Education Funding Commission website
Thursday, February 5, 2015, 10 am Montgomery
County , Central Montco Tech HS, 821 Plymouth Road, Plymouth Meeting, PA
Thursday, February 26, 2015, 11 amDauphin County
Thursday, February 26, 2015, 11 am
Penn Live: The rise of
charter schools in Pa.
Penn Live By Daniel
Simmons-Ritchie | simmons-ritchie@pennlive.com Email the
author | Follow
on Twitter on February 02, 2015 at 11:45 AM, updated February 02,
2015 at 12:57 PM
It's a plan reviled by teachers, loathed by parents, and
decried by local politicians, but against huge opposition, York
may become the third city in America
to privatize the entirety of one of its public school districts. How did a public school system in the
midstate rise to the forefront of a national experiment in education reform?
And how did an entire community lose control of its own decision-making
ability? The answer to both those questions, education researchers and public
watchdogs say, lies in large part on a concerted, multi-million dollar campaign
over the past decade by for-profit schools to alter Pennsylvania law. Those changes, and the industry lobbying that
continues behind-the-scenes, have implications for teachers and students across
the entire state. It's a subject we have tackled in a series entitled "The
Rise of Charter Schools in Pa. "
Here's a list of the individual posts that have been part of
this package:
Charter schools, public
funds: 'There is no easy or magic solution' for education in Pennsylvania
Penn Live By Kari Larsen |
klarsen@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on
February 04, 2015 at 12:00 PM, updated February 04, 2015 at 1:03 PM
While PennLive has reported on the rise of
charter schools in Pennsylvania, commenters have also contributed their
perspective on the impact of charter takeovers, the transformation of education
laws in Pa.
and more.
"Haver, a retired district teacher,
said the SRC "should reject their offer because one small group of people
who are not elected officials and meet in private should not be making that
decision based on how much money they have."
But some officials in Harrisburg
A $35 million attempt to add
more charter schools
KRISTEN A. GRAHAM AND MARTHA WOODALL, INQUIRER STAFF WRITERS
LAST UPDATED: Wednesday, February 4, 2015, 7:10 PM
In an effort to enroll up to 15,000 more students in new
charter schools, the nonprofit Philadelphia School Partnership has offered up to
$35 million to the city school system.
The one-time gift, to be given over three years, would consist
of up to $25 million for charters and a separate $10 million offer to expand
strong district schools.
It is not clear is whether the School Reform Commission will
approve any new charters or accept the stunning sum, which was offered late
Wednesday, and came as news to many and proved immediately polarizing.
Group offers $35M for new
Philly charter schools
Inquirer by Kristen Graham and Martha Woodall POSTED: WEDNESDAY,
FEBRUARY 4, 2015, 5:08 PM
There's major news afoot in the Philadelphia school landscape: Philadelphia
School Partnership is offering up to $35 million over three years to clear the
way for the School Reform Commission to approve new charter schools, The
Inquirer has learned. The money would
pay for new charters for 14,000 Philadelphia
students. Thirty-nine charter applications await the SRC, which could decide on
them next week. Mark Gleason, executive
director of PSP, said the group is trying to "take the cost issue off the
table for the district." District
officials have said that approving new charter schools would mean taking money
away from existing traditional public schools.
"We are trying to make it cost-neutral for the district, so they
consider the applications on their own merits," Gleason said. What's not clear is whether the SRC will
accept the money or approve any new charters, officials said.
A startling proposition: $25
million to add more charters
the notebook By David
Limm on Feb 4, 2015 08:15 PM
The Philadelphia School Partnership has laid down a startling
proposition before the financially starved School District .
If the School Reform Commission approves up to 15,000 new charter school seats
over the next three years, the influential school reform group will fund the
expansion to the tune of $25 million -- and throw in $10 million for the
District.
As the District considers the applications of 39 new charter
schools, PSP is asking that high-quality charter operators be approved,
particularly those already running schools performing at or above the state's
benchmark rating of a good school.
WHYY Newsworks BY KEVIN
MCCORRY FEBRUARY 5, 2015
The Philadelphia School Partnership says it will commit $25
million to the Philadelphia
school district to help offset the stranded costs of charter expansion over
three years. The district has been weighing
40 applications for new charter schools, but the added costs of charter
expansion have caused some advocacy groups, specifically Public
Citizens for Children and Youth, to warn against expansion entirely. PSP executive director Mark Gleason said he's
not advocating the approval of any specific charters, only those that can
improve outcomes for low-income students.
"... But now, new, stealthier sources
of money are emerging. The new funding
sources share a common bond...charter schools. That's right, educating Philadelphia
Attytood: Waiting on the Kids
With No School Nurses PAC
Philly Daily News Attytood Blog by Will Bunch
POSTED: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2015, 5:15 PM
Money in politics is a lot like water -- it tends to pool up in
the lowest places. In an election year, traditionally, politicians like nothing
better than a contract fight over garbage hauling, or cable franchises, or
casino licenses. That's when the campaign donations really start flying, when
business executives think they can get a leg up by writing a few checks.
You may have heard that there's an election for mayor in Philadelphia this year.
It's been hard to find A-list candidates, for sure -- but it's even harder to
find the money. Through the end of last year, the
leading four candidates had raised just 1/8th -- 1/8th!!! -- of what the Top 4
candidates had raised in 2007
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/attytood/Waiting-On-Kids-With-No-School-Nurses-PAC.html#ilK8kL916AhxIjeE.99
PACs with charter school ties
enter mayoral race fray
Philly.com by RYAN BRIGGS, THE NEXT MAYOR POSTED: Wednesday, February 4, 2015, 11:14
AM
It's no secret that the Philadelphia mayor's race has become
part of a proxy war over differing educational philosophies — between "ed
reformers," who have argued for increased school choice and charter school
options in the Philadelphia School District, and "traditional"
education advocates. It was
reported on Monday that a
group of influential "ed reformers" from Bala Cynwyd, who have
advocated for charter school expansion, are again lining up behind candidate
and State Sen. Anthony Williams. That organization, the Susquehanna
International Group, also supported Williams' failed run for governor in 2010
and has pumped almost $500,000 into two political action committees (PACs),
presumably to support his mayoral campaign. But Monday's campaign finance
disclosures also revealed that other ed-reform PACs are moving to back
Williams.
Follow the Money: Who gave/received school
privatization contributions in Pennsylvania
Six
millionaires/billionaires contributed $1,482,604 to privatize
democratically-governed Pennsylvania
From the notebook: "A breakdown of
PSP's calculations, released by PSP in an
accompanying document, shows that the group assumes that each student in a
charter costs the District an additional $2,000 for one year only. Others
have argued that the cost to the District of each new charter seat is
as high as $7,000 per student and continues for multiple years."
How many students on charter
school waiting lists? Hint: It's not 40K
The inaccuracy of waiting lists makes measuring demand
for charters difficult.
the notebook By Dan Hardy on Feb 4, 2015 04:50 PM
But what about the size of waiting lists at individual charter
schools? Are those meaningful numbers? By
state law, every Pennsylvania
charter school that does not have enough seats for all applicants must keep a
waiting list to draw from when openings occur.
Who should new Philly
charters serve? Critics and hopefuls make their cases
WHYY Newsworks BY LAURA
BENSHOFF FEBRUARY 4, 2015
What charter schools does Philadelphia
need? That's the question the School Reform Commission is tasked with answering
by selecting from this year's round of 40 new charter applicants. The district urged charters to set up shop in
neighborhoods where the neediest, most expensive to educate students live. But
many new charter hopefuls, including investment banker Ben Persofsky, decided
to take a different tack.
Education secretary: 'I could
not pass up the opportunity to help shape public education'
Penn Live By Jan Murphy |
jmurphy@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on
February 04, 2015 at 1:03 PM, updated February 04, 2015 at 1:06 PM
Being tapped to take charge of the department to work with
Gov. Tom Wolf in tackling his top priority of getting Pennsylvania 's public
education system "back on track" may strike some as an awesome
responsibility. ut Secretary-designate Pedro Riveraconsiders
it a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that he just couldn't pass up. Rivera, who was born and raised in
Philadelphia, spent 13 years in the Philadelphia School District as a teacher,
principal and central office administrator before becoming superintendent of
the 11,500-student Lancaster School District in 2008.
State public education
funding short-changing students
Bradford Era By SCOTT GRAHAM Superintendent Northern Potter School
District
I have been extremely fortunate to spend almost my entire
career working in rural, largely farming communities. Just about every day, a
student, parent or community volunteer will step up and, in some way,
demonstrate that unique character that defines our community. It’s a great job, and I love coming to work
every day, but after a little more than 25 years in rural education, I am
deeply concerned that our district and many others in rural Pennsylvania are falling behind. I am very proud of our students and their achievements. Our
kids work hard. Our teachers and staff work hard. I am proud of our district
and I am confident that we deliver a great education. But our state’s system for funding public education is
short-changing our students. Budget cuts have hit our classrooms hard. Programs
have been cut and classes have become more crowded. We need more resources. We need a school funding formula that
is predictable, equitable, sustainable, fair and adequate. Right now, that
simply is not the case.
"Education: On average, state school
districts spend $14,622 per student; however, the difference in the amount
spent by the highest spending district ($28,419) and the amount spent by the
lowest spending district ($9,803) simply is not fair. Money does matter. I know
that it is possible to establish a funding formula for education that is
equitable, adequate, and accountable.
Funding doesn’t come easy, but multiple
revenue sources have already been discussed for years. Options include: A
Marcellus shale severance tax; charter school funding reform (local school
districts are currently required to pay charters over $300 million more a year
than the actual costs of educating a student); and a shift from less reliance
on property taxes toward a fairer progressive income tax (Pa. currently has the
lowest personal income tax of all states that levy the tax)."
Another View: Democrats and
Republican must work together to solve problems
By Mike Sturla, Delco
Times Guest Columnist POSTED: 02/04/15, 10:57 PM EST |
State Rep. Mike Sturla is
a Democrat representing Lancaster
County
Over the past four years, Pennsylvanians were able to witness
the attempt by the Corbett administration and Republican-controlled Legislature
to cut their way to prosperity with a focus on social and political ideology
versus sound governmental policy. Together, they abandoned Pennsylvania ’s
education funding formula (Pennsylvania
is one of only two states without a formula) and drastically cut basic
education funding which led to higher local property taxes, larger class sizes
and lower test scores. They passed across the board business tax cuts, cut long
range capital budget projects, and assaulted workers’ rights. Pennsylvania sank from 7th in the nation in
job creation to 50th. They passed legislation that the courts deemed
unconstitutional; tried one-time budget funding schemes that caused the state’s
bond rating to be downgraded three times; tried to sell off assets (lottery and
liquor stores) for one-time gains; and slashed or privatized the state
workforce, which led to delays, backlogs, and ineffective government services.
Editorial: School funding
fairness needs citizen support
An editorial by Philadelphia Daily News reprinted here
Tuesday made a strong case for a fair schools funding formula in Pennsylvania , a cause
which we have championed repeatedly over the past year. Pennsylvania is one of only three states that
does not have a comprehensive school-finance formula to distribute state money
to local school districts, the editorial stated, quoting a study by Pew’s
Philadelphia Research Initiative. The
study explains the dilemma that is playing out in school districts in urban
areas or low-income towns. That dilemma
-- having fewer education dollars despite a higher tax burden on homeowners --
was the topic of a joint meeting last week in Pottstown
between school and borough officials, and the result was a challenge to wage a
grassroots effort for change. Fair
education funding advocate Lawrence Feinberg said change would not come easily.
Feinberg, a school board member in Haverford and one of 11 circuit riders for
the Campaign for Fair Education Funding, described the effort to put some sort
of sense to Harrisburg ’s
method for funding public schools as “pushing a rock up a hill.”
Capitolwire: House Education
Committee rehashes PlanCon reform debate
PSBA's website Feb 4, 2015
State pulls 2014 SAT data,
citing errors
Ethan Lott
Research Director-Pittsburgh Business
Times Feb 4, 2015, 12:14pm EST UPDATED: Feb 4, 2015, 5:01pm EST
The state Department of Education has pulled data listing the
SAT and ACT performances of Pennsylvania
high schools after errors were discovered in the data.
It was alerted to the error after the Philadelphia Business
Journal and Pittsburgh Business Times posted data on their websites.
State backtracks on SAT
scores, releases new data
By Jacqueline Palochko Of The Morning Call February 4, 2015
Sorry, Lehigh
Valley Parkland at 1633. But on Tuesday, the department of education
had released a different set of scores that high school guidance counselors and
principals probably wished were true. The rankings were still mostly the same,
with Northewestern at the top both days, but all schools had better scores
according to Tuesday's numbers.
Want to run for school board?
This event's for you
By Angie Mason amason@ydr.com @angiemason1
on Twitter UPDATED: 02/04/2015 03:45:39 PM EST
So you think you want to be a school board member? Then the York Suburban
School District
Leopold-Sharp said York Suburban has been fortunate to have
more than enough candidates for office in recent years, but some area board
elections don't draw enough candidates for seats. The event is a good
opportunity for those interested in running to learn more about the office.
Drawbaugh said serving on the school board is an important
community function, so people need to understand what they're getting into.
Perkasie News Herald By Jarreau Freeman jfreeman@montgomerynews.com @JarreauFreeman
on Twitter Published: Tuesday, February 03, 2015
East Rockhill >> It seems upcoming 2015-16 budget talks
in the Pennridge School District
By Pamela
Sroka-Holzmann | The Express-Times on February 04, 2015 at 9:47 PM,
updated February 04, 2015 at 10:14 PM
The Nazareth
Area School Board on Wednesday night approved a 2015-16 preliminary
budget that
calls for a 2.4 percent increase in real estate taxes. Under the preliminary $77 million spending
plan, real estate taxes would go up 1.2 mills. One mill equals $1 for every
$1,000 of a property's assessed value, so the owner of a home assessed at the
district's average of $79,053 would pay $95 more in annual property taxes next
year.
What Would It Mean to ‘Fix’
No Child Left Behind?
New York Times Room for Debate FEBRUARY 3, 2015
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act is up for
reauthorization, and Congress is busyreviewing
the federal education law, which since 2001 is often referred as No Child
Left Behind. At issue are fundamental
issues like whether the federal government can direct states on how to
hold schools accountable.
What would it mean to “fix” the legislation?
Testing Burden on ELLs Needs
Easing, Federal Officials Say
Education Week By Corey
Mitchell Published Online: February 3, 2015
Libia Gil, the head of the U.S. Department of Education's
office of English-language acquisition, says she's working with Secretary of
Education Arne Duncan to ease the burden
of testing for English-learners and
their teachers. "We do believe
in annual testing, but we also believe there's overtesting. It's coming from
all over. You have state assessments, you have local assessments, you have classroom
assessments—some for different purposes, not all for accountability," said
Ms. Gil, a veteran bilingual and dual-language educator who came to OELA in
September 2013.
"Too much testing that's not meaningful and not helpful,
we don't support that," Ms. Gil said last month in an interview with Education
Week. "What we do support is very clear, precise measures. That
challenge is to [determine] what are the most reliable and credible
assessments."
EPLC
"Focus on Education" TV Program on PCN - Sunday, February 8 at
3:00 p.m.
Panel 1: Curriculum,
Assessment and Academic Opportunities for All Students
Dr. Richard D. Nilsen, Executive
Director, Pennsylvania
Panel 2: Career and
Technical Education
Jackie Cullen, Executive Director,
Pennsylvania Association of Career and Technical Administrators
Dr. Clyde Hornberger, Educational Consultant and Former Director, Lehigh Career & Technical Institute
All EPLC "Focus on Education" TV shows are hosted by EPLC President Ron Cowell.
Dr. Clyde Hornberger, Educational Consultant and Former Director, Lehigh Career & Technical Institute
All EPLC "Focus on Education" TV shows are hosted by EPLC President Ron Cowell.
Campaign for Fair Education
Funding Seeks Campaign Manager
Campaign for Fair Education Funding February 2, 2015
The Campaign for Fair Education Funding seeks a campaign
manager who is a strategic thinker and an operational leader. This position
could be filled by an individual or firm. The manager will lead the day-to-day
operations of the campaign and its government relations, communications,
mobilization and research committees and work in partnership with the campaign
governing board to set and implement the campaign’s strategic direction.
Sign-up for weekly email updates from the
Campaign
The Campaign for Fair
Education Funding website
PA Basic Education Funding
Commission website
Thorough and Efficient: Pennsylvania
Arguing that our state has failed to ensure that essential
resources are available for all of our public school students to meet state
academic standards.
Sign up for National School Boards Association’s Advocacy Network
Friends of
Public Education http://p2a.co/nsbac
Register
Now! EPLC 2015 Regional Workshops for School Board Candidates and Others
The Education Policy and Leadership Center, with the
Cooperation of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) and
Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials (PASBO), will
conduct A Series of Regional Full-Day Workshops for 2015
Pennsylvania School Board Candidates. Incumbents,
non-incumbents, campaign supporters and all interested voters are invited to
participate in these workshops.
Pittsburgh Region Saturday, February 21, 2015 – 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Allegheny Intermediate Unit, 475 East Waterfront Drive, Homestead, PA 15120
Allegheny Intermediate Unit, 475 East Waterfront Drive, Homestead, PA 15120
Harrisburg Region Saturday, March 7, 2015– 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Pennsylvania School Boards Association Headquarters, 400 Bent Creek Boulevard, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Pennsylvania School Boards Association Headquarters, 400 Bent Creek Boulevard, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Philadelphia Region Saturday, March 14, 2015 – 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, 2 W. Lafayette Street, Norristown, PA 19401
Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, 2 W. Lafayette Street, Norristown, PA 19401
PILCOP: Children with
Emotional Problems: Avoiding the Juvenile Justice System, and What Does Real
Help Look Like?
This session will help you navigate special education in order
to assist children at home not receiving services, those in the foster care
system or those in the juvenile court system. CLE and Act 48 credit is
available. This session is co-sponsored
by the University of Pennsylvania School of Policy and Practice, a Pre-approved
Provider of Continuing Education for Pennsylvania
licensed social workers. Click here to purchase tickets
NPE 2015 Annual Conference – Chicago
January 4, 2015 NPE 2015 Annual Conference, NPE National Conference
Early-bird discounted Registration for the Network for
Public Education’s Second Annual Conference is now available at this address:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/network-for-public-education-2015-annual-conference-tickets-15118560020
These low rates will last for the month of January.
The event is being held at the Drake Hotel in downtown Chicago
There will be a welcoming social event 7 pm Friday night,
at or near the Drake Hotel — details coming soon. Featured speakers will be:
§
Jitu Brown, National Director – Journey
for Justice, Kenwood Oakland Community Organization, Network for Public
Education Board of Directors
§
Tanaisa Brown, High School Senior, with
the Newark
Student Union
§
Yong Zhao, Author, “Who’s Afraid of
the Big Bad Dragon?“
§
Diane Ravitch in conversation with
§
Lily Eskelsen Garcia, NEA President and
§
Randi Weingarten, AFT President
§
Karen Lewis, President, Chicago
Teachers Union
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