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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for April 29, 2015:
Pa. school
funding panel expected to issue recommendations in June/ Williams super PAC (Yass,
Dantchick, Greenberg) boosts spending to $800K/week
Southeastern PA Regional Meeting on
School Funding
Wednesday April 29th 7:00 pm Springfield High School Auditorium, 49 West Leamy Avenue, Springfield, PA 19064
Wednesday April 29th 7:00 pm Springfield High School Auditorium, 49 West Leamy Avenue, Springfield, PA 19064
Info and Registration: HERE
Wolf's Twitter
Town Hall recap: Charter schools, pensions, and hot dogs
Penn
Live By Megan Lavey-Heaton | mheaton@pennlive.com Email
the author | Follow on Twitter on
April 28, 2015 at 6:11 PM
Gov. Tom
Wolf held a Twitter Town Hall to mark his 100th day in office on April 28. The
thirty-minute conversation with residents via Twitter covered his proposed
budget, how he's doing in office and his opinion on hot dogs. You can read the
full discussion below.
Wolf's budget
is a moment of truth for Pennsylvania. And we have to seize it: Jim Hertzler
PennLive Op-Ed By Jim Hertzler updated April 28,
2015 at 4:50 PM
Jim Hertzler, a Democrat, is a
Cumberland County Commissioner. He is also chairman of
the Assessment and Taxation Committee of the County Commissioners
Association of Pennsylvania.
With a
new Governor of a party opposite that of the majority in the General Assembly,
the conventional wisdom is that Harrisburg is in for a long, hot summer. It doesn't have to be that way: if only
everybody could put a lid on the jockeying for partisan advantage and political
posturing long enough to get the work of the people of Pennsylvania done.
There's
no question that Gov. Tom Wolf has advanced a very bold and ambitious
agenda.
I see it
as an agenda that truly challenges the mediocrity of the status quo; an agenda
that's focused on making Pennsylvania the very best that it can be; an agenda
that restores our faith in the birthplace of America as a leader among states
and nations once more.
Pa. school
funding panel expected to issue recommendations in June
WHYY
Newsworks BY MARY WILSON APRIL
28, 2015
A panel
tasked with creating a more equitable way of doling out state funding to school
districts in Pennsylvania is expected to wrap up its work in early June, just
weeks before the state budget deadline, when lawmakers expect a crush of issues
to crowd the negotiation table.
For the
past year, the Basic Education Funding Commission has spent the past year
studying funding methods and developing its suggestions for funding
Pennsylvania education – a system with the largest gap between rich and poor school districts of
any state in the country.
"From
what I hear, they're really doing some good work and should come up with their
findings within a few weeks," said Gov. Tom Wolf, who has also proposed a
large tax shift to bump up state aid to school districts. Even one of Wolf's emerging political
adversaries, Senate President Pro Tem Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, said he also
hopes the panel's recommendations yield a speedy deal on divvying up state
funding.
Williams super
PAC (Yass, Dantchick, Greenberg) boosts spending
WHYY
Newsworks DAVE DAVIES OFF MIC A
BLOG BY DAVE DAVIES APRIL
28, 2015
In the
wake of a couple of polls showing former City Councilman Jim Kenney leading in
Philadelphia's Democratic mayoral primary, the super PAC backing state Sen. Tony
Williams has boosted its spending on television ads to nearly $800,000 a week. American Cities, the committee funded by
three wealthy pro-school choice executives, had been spending about
$500,000 a week on its TV buys, according to two sources familiar with
political ad placements on local stations.
American Cities' total TV ad spending on the mayor's race now exceeds
$3.2 million. Those ad buys cover the period through next Monday.
Here’s a related prior KeySec posting…
Follow the Money: Who gave/received school privatization
contributions in Pennsylvania in 2014.
Was your legislator a recipient?
Six millionaires and billionaires contributed $1,482,604 to
privatize democratically-governed Pennsylvania public education.
“Similar events have been taking place statewide with the
goal of keeping the public informed and engaged, Feinberg said. Additionally,
such events will hopefully encourage people to engage their legislators on the
issue.”
Community
meeting slated April 29 in Delco on school funding formula
News of Delaware County By Lois Puglionesi Published: Tuesday, April 28,
2015
Haverford
Township School director and chairman of the Delaware County School Boards
Legislative Council Larry Feinberg will serve as moderator for a panel
discussion on public school funding in southeastern Pennsylvania, 7 p.m., April
29, at Springfield High School, 49 W. Leamy Ave. Local school district leaders will discuss
how state funding issues impact children's educational opportunities, local
taxes and communities.
The public is invited and will have opportunities to ask questions and learn how to support fair and adequate state funding for public schools in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Panelists include Springfield School District School Board president and Delco Chamber of Commerce board member Frank Agovino, Springfield superintendent James Capolupo, Lower Merion School District acting superintendent Wagner Marseille, William Penn School District Superintendent Joe Bruni, Upper Darby school District Superintendent Richard Dunlap, Stanley Johnson, executive director of Operations for Phoenixville Area School District, and Susan Gobreski, executive director of Education Voters of PA.
http://www.delconewsnetwork.com/articles/2015/04/28/news_of_delaware_county/news/doc553fbba1414a3608481356.txt
The public is invited and will have opportunities to ask questions and learn how to support fair and adequate state funding for public schools in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Panelists include Springfield School District School Board president and Delco Chamber of Commerce board member Frank Agovino, Springfield superintendent James Capolupo, Lower Merion School District acting superintendent Wagner Marseille, William Penn School District Superintendent Joe Bruni, Upper Darby school District Superintendent Richard Dunlap, Stanley Johnson, executive director of Operations for Phoenixville Area School District, and Susan Gobreski, executive director of Education Voters of PA.
http://www.delconewsnetwork.com/articles/2015/04/28/news_of_delaware_county/news/doc553fbba1414a3608481356.txt
“According to a report from district business manager Randy
Brown, State College Area pays out about $12,000 per regular education student
to attend a charter school, and almost $24,000 for a charter school student in
special education. The district has 382
students who attend charter schools.”
State College
school board approves renewal for Young Scholars Charter
Centre Daily Times BY BRITNEY MILAZZO bmilazzo@centredaily.comApril
27, 2015
STATE
COLLEGE — The State College Area school board unanimously approved a
five-year renewal of Young Scholars of Central Pennsylvania Charter School on
Monday.
Superintendent
Bob O’Donnell said that it’s up to the district to decide if the Ferguson
Township school will continue to operate.
Charter schools are partially funded by districts that have students who
attend them. In March, a team of
administrators including O’Donnell and Assistant Superintendent Michael Hardy
performed an onsite evaluation of the charter school.
“They’re
the largest charter (school) in the area,” O’Donnell said. “It’s a large part
of our budget and we do a thorough survey.”
Read
more here: http://www.centredaily.com/2015/04/27/4722103_state-college-school-board-approves.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy
East Penn whittles proposed tax hike to
3.78 percent
By Kevin Duffy Special to The Morning Call April 28, 2015
The East
Penn School Board came closer Monday to finalizing a budget for the 2015-16
school year that includes a likely tax hike.
The proposed budget, revised for the second time since the initial
January presentation, calls for a 3.78 percent tax increase for residents while
sparing programs and staffers from cuts.
"I don't want to cut programs and personnel; I want to maintain
what we have," Superintendent Michael Schilder said. The increase would bring the property tax
rate by about .63 of a mill to 17.294 mills. The administration trimmed the
proposed tax increase down from the 5.18 percent that the board heard
previously.
Garnet Valley
teachers step up pressure for new contract
Delco Times By Susan L. Serbin, Times Correspondent
POSTED: 04/28/15,
11:55 PM EDT
CONCORD
>> Last night’s Garnet Valley School Board meeting could be seen as a
further division of teachers, board and community. But the Garnet Valley Education Association
clearly dominated the discussion about the yet-to-be settled contract. More
than half of the nearly 400 member of the bargaining unit, joined by a large
contingent of parents, turned out prior to the meeting and robustly showed
unity.
Saucon Valley wants nonbinding arbitration
in teacher contract dispute
By Christina Tatu Of The Morning Call April 28, 2015
Hoping
to avoid a strike, the Saucon Valley School Board on Tuesday approved a
resolution to move to nonbinding arbitration if the next negotiating session
with the teachers union doesn't result in a tentative contract agreement. The
next talks are scheduled for May 7.
Dozens
of teachers attended the board meeting to speak out about the impasse that has
dragged on for three-and-a-half years. Teachers said they are disappointed the
full board hasn't taken part in the bargaining.
The board meeting was the first since an April 15 union meeting where
teachers voted to authorize a strike, giving their negotiating committee the
power to call for a walkout. They held strikes in 2005, 2008 and 2009.
Saucon Valley
teachers pack meeting urging board to table
Lehigh
Valley Live By Sara K. Satullo | For lehighvalleylive.com Email
the author | Follow on Twitter on April 28,
2015 at 8:57 PM, updated April 28, 2015 at 9:35 PM
Saucon Valley teachers packed
Tuesday'sschool board meeting, urging
the board to join them at the negotiating table. The two sides have a bargaining session
scheduled May 7, but the board is sending its labor solicitor Jeffrey Sultanik
and district Business Manager Dave Bonenberger to negotiate on its
behalf.
New life for
an embattled Kensington charter school
MARTHA
WOODALL, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER LAST
UPDATED: Tuesday, April 28, 2015, 3:40 PM POSTED: Tuesday, April 28,
2015, 3:39 PM
Community
Academy of Philadelphia Charter School, which has been fighting for its life
for several years, won a victory Tuesday in Harrisburg. By a vote of 4-3, the state Charter Appeal
Board said the Kensington school deserved a new, five-year operating agreement. In 2013, following a public hearing, the
School Reform Commission voted not to give the school a new operating agreement
because of low test scores and concerns about its financial management.
Read
more at http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20150429_New_life_for_a_Kensington_charter_school.html#imIs4RHqSzu3pdOa.99
With union
vote looming, questions arise over charter-school consultants
REGINA
MEDINA, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER MEDINAR@PHILLYNEWS.COM,
215-854-5985 POSTED: Wednesday, April 29, 2015, 12:16 AM
STAFFERS
and union organizers say ASPIRA Inc. of Pennsylvania has hired a New York firm
with a troubled past to hold mandatory anti-union meetings at ASPIRA's Olney
Charter High School. Teachers at Olney
Charter are to vote tomorrow on whether to form a union with the Alliance of
Charter School Employees, an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers.
Randy
McCarthy and Andrew Gallin of National Consultants Associated Ltd. held several
hours of meetings with staffers at the North Philadelphia school in recent
days, including three meetings yesterday. Attendees called the meetings
"anti-union" and questioned their timing during a critical period
before Keystone Exams and the school's senior projects.
Chesco's
Rustin advances to national STEM competition
Philly.com by Justine McDaniel LAST UPDATED: Wednesday,
April 29, 2015, 1:08 AM
Rustin advances to
national STEM competition after being 2d in Pa.
WEST
CHESTER West Chester Rustin High School's Science Olympiad team will advance to
the national tournament after placing second in the state competition Saturday. "These kids have just worked so hard
since September, and to see them just do their best when it mattered the most,
I get emotional just thinking about it," said head coach Greg Byrd, a
physics teacher. Harriton High School in
Montgomery County came in first and will also go to the nationals. The competition involves science, technology,
engineering and math challenges ranging from exams to experiments.
Let’s be fair,
and smart: Fund preschool education
Lancaster Online by The LNP Editorial Board Posted: Wednesday, April
29, 2015 6:00 am
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s call to boost preschool
education funding by $120 million statewide received Republican support Monday at a Head Start center in
Lancaster. Wolf wants to boost overall spending to $256.5 million for the
2015-16 school year, up from $136.5 million this school year — an 88 percent
increase that includes $100 million more for Pennsylvania’s Pre-K Counts and $20 million more for Head Start. Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts is a state
program for children ages 3 through prekindergarten considered at risk of
school failure and with incomes up to 300 percent of the federal income poverty
level. Head Start is a federal program for families at or below the poverty
level of $24,250 in annual income for a family of four.
Everyone
seems to agree that high-quality preschool education is a net plus for society.
‘Teachers of the world, unite. You have
nothing to lose but your rubrics.’
Washington
Post Answer Sheet Blog By Valerie Strauss April 28 at 12:36 PM
Hardly a week goes by where some education-related group gathers
somewhere to talk about something, but a gathering of education activists this
past weekend in Chicago was different from the usual. It was the second
annual conference of the Network for Public Education, an advocacy organization
started by education historian and activist Diane Ravitch and some of her
allies, and it attracted more than 600 teachers, parents, students, union
leaders, school board members and others from around the country. It reflects
the growth and seriousness of the movement that is fighting corporate school
reform. Sometimes incorrectly labeled in
the media as being union-launched and led, the movement against the
privatization of public education and standardized test-based accountability
systems has grown in large part because the people in schools who have
traditionally kept quiet about reforms they found ineffective or harmful to
students — teachers, principals and superintendents — began to speak out publicly.
Parents began to to organize and students did as well.
Report: Millions of dollars in fraud,
waste found in charter school sector
Washington
Post Answer Sheet Blog By Valerie Strauss April 28 at 10:32 AM
A new report released on Tuesday details fraud and waste totaling
more than $200 million of uncovered fraud and waste of taxpayer funds in the
charter school sector, but says the total is impossible to know because
there is not sufficient oversight over these schools. It calls on Congress to
include safeguards in legislation being considered to succeed the federal No
Child Left Behind law. The report,
titled “The Tip of the Iceberg: Charter School Vulnerabilities To Waste,
Fraud, And Abuse,” was released jointly by the nonprofit organizations Alliance to
Reclaim Our Schools and the Center for Popular
Democracy. It follows a similar report released a year ago by
the same groups that detailed $136 million in fraud and waste and mismanagement
in 15 of the 42 states that operate charter schools. The 2015 report cites $203
million, including the 2014 total plus $23 million in new cases, and $44
million in earlier cases not included in last year’s report.
Education
Justice Platform
GPS Town Hall Forum this
Wednesday! April 29th from 5:30 –
7:30 pm at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary’s Hicks Memorial Chapel
Our
coalition, Great Public Schools Pittsburgh, has just released an important
education justice platform. See below for the short version, or click
here for the full version. The six organizations of the coalition worked
together to develop this platform to help educate and inform school board
candidates and other education advocates about the specific issues facing our
schools in anticipation of this spring’s primary election – when four of nine
school board positions will be on the ballot.
The GPS
education justice platform calls on candidates running for school board to
commit to the following:
- full funding for the PPS schools our
children deserve
- charter school accountability
- sustainable community schools
- welcoming and inclusive teaching and
learning environments
- support for educators who help our
children learn and grow
- universal early childhood education
- less testing, more learning
- transparency, accountability and
collaboration
Do you
care about these issues? Please come to our GPS Town Hall Forum this
Wednesday! April 29th from 5:30 – 7:30 pm at the Pittsburgh Theological
Seminary’s Hicks Memorial Chapel (616 N Highland Ave, Pittsburgh, PA
15206).
Beyond a New School Funding
Formula: Lifting Student Achievement to Grow PA's Economy
Wednesday, May 6, 2015 from 7:30 AM to 10:00 AM (EDT)
Harrisburg, PA
7:30 am: Light breakfast fare and registration; 8:00 am:
Program
Harrisburg University Auditorium, Strawberry Square 326 Market
Street Harrisburg, PA 17101
Opening Remarks by Neil D. Theobald, President, Temple
University
SESSION I: THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF ACHIEVEMENT GAPS IN
PENNSYLVANIA’S PUBLIC SCHOOLS with introduction by Rob Wonderling,
President, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, and Member, Center on
Regional Politics Executive Committee.
Presentation by Lynn A. Karoly, Senior Economist, RAND
Corporation
SESSION II: WHAT CAN PENNSYLVANIA LEARN FROM THE WORLD’S
LEADING SCHOOL SYSTEMS? with introduction by David H. Monk, Dean,
Pennsylvania State University College of Education.
Presentation by Marc S. Tucker, President and CEO,
National Center on Education and the Economy
Sessions to be followed by a response panel moderated
by Francine Schertzer, Director of Programming, Pennsylvania Cable Network
Program presented by the University Consortium to Improve
Public School Finance and Promote Economic Growth
Common Core Forum: A Closer Look at the PA Core
Standards
Thursday, May 7, 6:30 - 8:00 pm Radnor Middle
School
150 Louella Avenue,
Wayne, 3rd floor
Presented by the Leagues of
Women Voters of Chester County, Haverford,
Lower Merion, Narberth and Radnor.
Supported by the Radnor School District
Panelists Include:
Fred Brown, K-12
Math Supervisor, School District of Haverford Township
Jon Cetel, Education
Reform Agent, PennCAN
Mary Beth Hegeman,
Middle School Teacher, Lower Merion School District
Cynthia Kruse,
Delaware County Intermediate Unit
Susan Newitt,
Retired Elementary Teacher, Lower Merion School District
Wendy Towle,
Supervisor of Language Arts & Staff Development, T/E School District
Larry Wittig,
Chairman of the State Board of Education
PHILLY DISTRICT TO HOLD
COMMUNITY BUDGET MEETINGS
PHILADELPHIA—The School District of Philadelphia, in
partnership with local organizations, will host community budget meetings.
District officials will share information about budget projections and request
input on school resources and investments. Partnering groups include the
Philadelphia Education Fund, POWER (Philadelphians Organized to Witness Empower
& Rebuild), Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY), local clergy and
community advocates. All meetings will be held 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The
dates and locations are as follows:
Wednesday,
May 6
Dobbins High
School, 2150 W. Lehigh Ave.
Tuesday,
May 12
South Philadelphia High
School, 2101 S. Broad St.
Thursday,
May 14
Congreso, 216
West Somerset St.
Wednesday,
May 20
Martin Luther King High
School, 6100 Stenton Ave.
Nominations for PSBA
offices closes April 30
PSBA Leadership Development Committee seeks strong leaders for the association
Members interested in becoming the next leaders of PSBA are encouraged to complete an Application for Nomination no later than April 30. As a member-driven association, the Leadership Development Committee (LDC) is seeking nominees with strong skills in leadership and communication, and who have vision for PSBA. The positions open are:
PSBA Leadership Development Committee seeks strong leaders for the association
Members interested in becoming the next leaders of PSBA are encouraged to complete an Application for Nomination no later than April 30. As a member-driven association, the Leadership Development Committee (LDC) is seeking nominees with strong skills in leadership and communication, and who have vision for PSBA. The positions open are:
- 2016 President Elect (one-year term)
- 2016 Vice President (one-year term)
- 2016 Eastern Section at Large Representative -
includes Regions 7, 8, 10, 11 and 15 (three-year term)
Complete details on
the nomination process, including scheduled dates for nominee interviews, can
be found online by clicking here.
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