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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for June 16, 2015:
By a vote of 49-0, the PA Senate on Monday passed a
bill that would postpone using the Keystone Exams as a graduation requirement
until 2019
Republicans claim
agreement reached on structural deficit; administration says conversations are
ongoing
The PLS Reporter Author: Jason Gottesman/Monday, June 15,
2015
Republicans in the
legislature are claiming a major breakthrough in the steps toward a budget
agreement: agreement between them and the Wolf administration on a deficit
number. According to House
Appropriations Committee Chairman Bill Adolph (R-Delaware), the agreement
reached with the governor late last week puts the current structural deficit at
$1.2 billion. “The meeting took place
maybe last Tuesday or Wednesday and the meeting was with the four chairmen of
the Appropriations Committee and the four executive directors as well as the
Budget Secretary as well as the governor himself,” Rep. Adolph told The
PLS Reporter. “After about an hour
and a half discussion, there has been agreement that the starting point for
this year is somewhere around $300 million and the structural deficit that we
are working with is somewhere at $1.2 billion.”
Rep. Adolph said “it was a good meeting” and one where everyone agreed
to where the starting point is for the budget.
Comparing Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf tax plan with GOP plan
Morning Call By Eric Holmberg PublicSource June 15, 2015
Gov. Tom Wolf and
the Pennsylvania House of Representatives have advanced plans that give
significant property tax relief to homeowners by increasing the state sales and
income taxes. But the two plans
diverge when it comes to who would benefit most. The $4.9 billion property tax relief plan
backed by House Republicans directs more money to residents in school districts
with the highest property tax bills, which would favor wealthier school
districts. The plan also reduces the property tax rate in every school
district, extending more of the perks to businesses than under Wolf's proposal. "We tried to drive [property tax relief]
to the areas that had the highest property taxes, but in a way that helps
everyone," said Rep. Seth Grove, R-Dover Township
KATHY
BOCCELLA, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER LAST
UPDATED: Tuesday, June 16, 2015, 1:08 AM POSTED: Monday, June 15,
2015, 6:05 PM
The state Senate
unanimously passed a bill Monday that would delay by two years a requirement
that high school students pass Pennsylvania 's
Keystone exams to graduate. Under the
plan, the proficiency tests - in algebra 1, biology, and literature - will not
go in effect for incoming freshmen until the 2018-19 school year. Some people would like to see the exams
postponed indefinitely. "I would have
liked to have seen a bill passed that ended the Keystones, period, but that's
not possible at this stage," said Sen. Andy Dinniman (D., Chester) who
cosponsored the bill with Lloyd Smucker (R., Lancaster), chairman of the Senate
Education Committee. What Senate Bill
880 does is give legislators more time to come up with a way to help schools
pay for remediation and project-based assessments for students who fail the
exam, he said.
Senate votes to delay use
of state tests as graduation requirement
Penn Live By Jan Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com
Email the author | Follow on Twitter
on June 15, 2015 at 5:30 PM, updated June 15, 2015 at 7:28 PM
on June 15, 2015 at 5:30 PM, updated June 15, 2015 at 7:28 PM
By a vote of 49-0,
the Senate on Monday passed a bill that would
postpone using the Keystone Exams as a graduation requirement until
2019. The legislation, sponsored by Sen.
Lloyd Smucker, R-Lancaster County, delays for two years the graduation
requirement for students to pass the end-of-course exams in algebra, biology
and literature – or an alternative project-based assessment for those who have
undergone remediation and re-taken the exams but didn't achieve a passing
score. "While I strongly believe in
holding schools accountable and ensuring that our high school graduates are
career- and college-ready, these exams have created some unintended
consequences that should be taken into consideration," said Smucker, who
chairs the Senate Education Committee. "The
intent of the exams is admirable, but the implementation has presented concerns
that may be best addressed by pushing the pause button and working through
them." The measure now goes to the
House for consideration.
What could a new school
funding formula mean for Pennsylvania
The time for a new
school-funding formula is now. Education
leaders have been saying that for years, but state legislators may finally take
heed in coming months. The state’s Basic
Education Funding Commission is wrapping up a year of work on the issue. The
15-member panel met almost daily in recent weeks, according to Sen. Lloyd
Smucker, and is expected to release a proposal for a new formula on Wednesday. Here's a primer on the commission's work and
how its recommendations could affect Pennsylvania
public schools.
Trib Live By Sam
Janesch Monday, June 15, 2015, 5:33 p.m.
HARRISBURG —
Putting more taxpayer money toward education is a fundamental piece of Gov. Tom
Wolf's proposed budget, and this week, a special commission is expected to
introduce a formula for distributing education funding to schools. The Basic Education Funding Commission,
composed of 15 legislators and administrators, was established last June to
find an alternative formula that would consider school district enrollment,
relative wealth, local support and more. Pennsylvania has the widest disparity in spending between
affluent and poor school districts, according to the U.S. Department of
Education.
Philly school funding battle comes to a head this week
Watchdog.org
By Evan Grossman / June 15, 2015
This is a very big
week for the fiscally distressed School
District of Philadelphia
Seeking new,
recurring funding from city and state taxpayers to fill a looming $85 million
budget deficit, the district will learn in the coming days how much it can
expect from lawmakers in City Hall and, indirectly, in Harrisburg. The
Philadelphia City Council will formalize its aid package later this week, while
the Basic Education Funding Commission is expected to make school funding recommendations
to the Legislature. The district must
have a budget in place for next year by the end of this month. Also in limbo is
the $159 million Gov. Tom Wolf proposed sending to Philly in his budget, which
has not been ratified in Harrisburg .
A Southwest
Phila . school that runs on fumes
KRISTEN A.
GRAHAM, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER LAST
UPDATED: Tuesday, June 16, 2015, 1:08 AM POSTED: Monday, June 15,
2015, 6:25 PM
The principal was in
midsentence when her cellphone alarm chirped, a jarringly cheerful reminder of
what many city schools lack. The alert
meant it was time for Cheryl Hackett to summon one of her Mitchell Elementary
students for a blood-sugar check. The seventh grader's numbers had been high,
and the principal was worried, because this was one of the days the school had
no nurse. Four miles away, politicians
in City Hall were discussing how much money the Philadelphia School
District
New rating system finds nearly all Pennsylvania
By Eleanor Chute /
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette June 15, 2015 12:00 AM
In the first year of
many school districts using a new statewide teacher evaluation system, a
greater portion of teachers was rated satisfactory than under the old system. In figures released by the state Department
of Education, 98.2 percent of all teachers were rated as satisfactory in
2013-14 — the highest percentage in five years — despite a new system that some
thought would increase the number of unsatisfactory ratings. In the four prior years, 97.7 percent of
teachers were rated satisfactory in all but 2009-10, when 96.8 percent were.
These figures count teachers in school districts, career and technical centers,
intermediate units and charter schools. Among other things,
critics of the old system questioned whether too many of the state’s teachers
were being rated satisfactory in a system that relied only on observation and
had only two categories: satisfactory and unsatisfactory. The new system uses a variety of measures for
four performance categories, which determine satisfactory or unsatisfactory
ratings.
PSBA says mandate relief bills provide common sense
solutions to save tax dollars
PSBA website June
15, 2015
PSBA supports a
legislative package of “common sense” mandate relief bills that would save
millions of tax dollars. House Bill 1119 and 1112 will be considered by the
House Education Committee on Monday, June 15, that will provide critically
needed mandate relief for school districts and taxpayers, and urges the General
Assembly to enact the bills swiftly. “With
the economic challenges facing school districts, we can no longer afford to
operate under the status quo, and our school districts need meaningful relief
from the mandates that will likely consume much of their budgets,” said PSBA
Executive Director Nathan Mains. “To ensure that we are giving our students the
education they deserve, school districts need the flexibility and broad
discretion to suspend the costly mandates that do nothing but direct money from
away from our classrooms and valuable educational programs.” “Additionally, those mandates that provide no
educational value to students and do nothing to promote increases in student
achievement should simply be repealed.”
Cheaper, faster Internet?
These Lancaster County
In the final months
of the school year, Penn
Manor School
District Study Island
"Last year, the state’s
Basic Education Funding payments to Chester Upland
By Vince Sullivan, Delaware County Daily
Penn Live By Allison Dougherty | Special to PennLive on
June 15, 2015 at 10:45 PM
CAMP HILL – The Camp
Hill School District's 2015-16 budget is a done deal.
The school board on
Mon. voted 7-2 to adopt a $20.38 million spending plan for next year, which is
about 2.1 percent greater than this year's budget. The proposal includes increases in healthcare
and retirement costs, among other expenditures. The board did not adopt a
recommendation made by the board's budget and finance committee not to replace
an outgoing special education teacher. The recommendation was made with an eye
to cutting costs. The costs for the
special education teacher are included in next year's budget.
The spending plan
contains a revenue shortfall. Some of the gap between revenue and expenditures
is expected to be filled with $250,000 from funds set aside for increases in
pension costs, leaving roughly $88,771 outstanding, which is expected to
be funded from additional reserves.
Penn Live By M. Diane McCormick | Special to
PennLive on June 15, 2015 at 9:51 PM, updated June 15,
2015 at 9:52 PM
Harrisburg School
Board adopted a budget for the 2015-16 school year that, for the second year in
a row, doesn't increase taxes. Under the
$137.8 million spending plan, the owner and resident of a home assessed at
$42,000 would get a homestead exemption and pay $750 in property taxes.
Properties without homestead exemptions are levied $2,792 for every $100,000 in
assessed value. The final budget's total
exceeds a $136.4 million preliminary spending plan approved in May, but the
budget is balanced, with revenue equaling spending. The budget includes
increases for trash collection and new elementary teachers to meet rising
enrollment, said board Vice President Jim Thompson.
"Member Mike Berk said
the higher taxes are only maintaining the status quo, rather than adding staff
or educational programming.
"It's rather sad that we have to raise taxes and we're not getting
anything out of it. We're barely treading water," Berk said. He said school districts await a remedy
that will reform how state pensions are funded, as districts'
pension costs have outpaced revenues."
South Middleton final
budget gets approval, raises taxes
Penn Live By Elizabeth Gibson | Special to PennLive on
June 15, 2015 at 9:17 PM, updated June 15, 2015 at 9:24 PM
Two hold-outs failed
to halt the school board's approval of the 2015-16 spending plan for South Middleton
School District
Penn Live By Monica Von Dobeneck | Special to
PennLive on June 15, 2015 at 6:32 PM, updated June 15,
2015 at 6:35 PM
The Lower Dauphin
School Board passed its final budget June 8 with no changes from the
preliminary budget passed a month earlier.
There will be no tax increase in the 2015-16 school year. Taxes will
remain at 18.42 mills. That means a home assessed at $100,000 will pay $1,842
in real estate taxes. The $59.4 million
budget is 2.2 percent higher than this year's. But if the district removes the
extra $1.1 million it will have to pay in pensions this year, the increase is
only .3 percent, according to superintendent Sherri Smith. The district will be
paying $6.6 million toward the Public School Employees Retirement System this
year.
Trib Live By Karl
Polacek Tuesday, June 16, 2015, 12:46 a.m.
When Mt. Pleasant Area School Board meets June 22, a tax increase of more than 2 mills for district residents will be on the agenda. During Monday's agenda meeting, board President Robert Gumbita read the proposed final budget resolution calling for a 2.1762 mill increase in the real estate levy. Brent Filak, business manager, said that during the last meeting, several weeks ago, the budget deficit was $417,700. Since that time, minor changes reduced the projected deficit to $368,261. The present tax rate is 83.7 mills. A mill brings in about $148,000.
When Mt. Pleasant Area School Board meets June 22, a tax increase of more than 2 mills for district residents will be on the agenda. During Monday's agenda meeting, board President Robert Gumbita read the proposed final budget resolution calling for a 2.1762 mill increase in the real estate levy. Brent Filak, business manager, said that during the last meeting, several weeks ago, the budget deficit was $417,700. Since that time, minor changes reduced the projected deficit to $368,261. The present tax rate is 83.7 mills. A mill brings in about $148,000.
By Sara K. Satullo | For lehighvalleylive.com Email
the author | Follow on Twitter on June 15,
2015 at 7:41 PM, updated June 15, 2015 at 9:04 PM
Bethlehem Area School District taxpayers
will see their school tax bills rise by 2.9 percent for 2015-16. The school board approved a
$247.2 million spending plan in a 7-2 vote Monday night. Directors Basilio A.
Bonilla Jr. and Rogelio Ortiz voted against the budget. Ortiz said he thought it was too great a tax
hike for senior citizens. "At their
age they shouldn't be worried about taxes being raised," Ortiz said.
"They've paid their fair share."
Bonilla apologized to district senior citizens for failing to convince
the board to enact a senior citizen property tax rebate this year. "We missed that
opportunity," Bonilla said. While
the budget raises taxes, it does include the expansion of full-day kindergarten to
all 16 district elementary schools next year, accounts for the construction of
the new Nitschmann
Middle School
In a split vote, the
Central York school board during its
meeting on Monday approved the district's budget for the upcoming
year. The proposed 2015-2016 budget
projects more than $80 million in revenue, an increase of nearly $2.1 million
over the current budget, which stood at $77.98 million. Approximately 77
percent of the revenue will be generated locally, 22 percent by the state and 1
percent on a federal level. The board
also voted to increase the millage rate from 18.22 to 18.97, the second year in
a row the members have voted to increase the rate. That means an increase of
$75 for the owner of a house assessed at $100,000. Expenses are expected to increase by almost
$2.2 million and will result in a total deficit of $670,439, which is
approximately $200,000 more than the previous year's.
Taxes to rise, positions
cut in OV district budget
Bradford Era By ALEX DAVIS Era Reporter a.davis@bradfordera.com | 0 comments Posted: Saturday, June 13, 2015 10:00
am
SHINGLEHOUSE — Taxes
would increase by roughly 2 percent and some positions would be eliminated
under Oswayo Valley School District
Taxes to slightly increase
in Smethport school district
By FRAN De LANCEY Era Correspondent delancey401@yahoo.com | 0 comments
Posted: Thursday, June 11, 2015 10:00 am
SMETHPORT —
Taxpayers in the Smethport
Area School
District
As Jeb Bush Officially
Declares 2016 Run, A Quick Review of His K-12 Record
Education Week By Andrew
Ujifusa on June 15, 2015 4:07 PM
Former Florida Gov.
Jeb Bush officially declared that he will seek the presidency next year during
a speech at the Kendall campus of Miami
Dade College
in Miami on
June 15. He has perhaps the most extensive and complicated track record in
education among all the Republican presidential hopefuls. Bush, who served two terms as Florida governor before
leaving the office in 2007, has been a presumptive GOP candidate for many
months. In the early stages of exploring a run for the White House, he left his
role as head of the Foundation for Excellence in Education, the national K-12
policy group he founded. At his request, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice took
over as chairwoman of the organization's board of directors. Bush had used the foundation to lobby other
states to adopt policies similar to those he championed as Florida governor regarding school choice and
literacy. It has exerted notable
influence in a variety of states' education policy decisions over the last
several years, and spawned an affiliate of state superintendents, Chiefs for
Change, that recently ended its formal relationship with the foundation. Let's take a quick look at Bush's record.
Here’s what Jeb Bush really did to public education in
Florida
ormer Florida
governor Jeb Bush formally announces his campaign for the 2016 Republican
presidential nomination during a kickoff rally in Miami on June 15. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)
Now that Jeb Bush is
officially in the race for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, expect
his campaign to talk a lot about school reforms he spearheaded in Florida when
he was governor from 1999-2007, and about his role as a leader in the national
corporate school reform movement. You will hear about his reforms —
standardized test-based “accountability,” for example, and “school choice” —
along with claims of success in helping to transform schools. But there are big
questions about his claims: Did his Florida
reforms really accomplish what he says they did? When he talks about helping
schools, which ones is he talking about?
Here’s what you won’t hear — and what is vital to know to fully assess
Bush’s education reform record and to understand why his critics call him a
privatizer — and not a reformer — of public education.
Rally in West Chester for
a State Budget Chester
County
Tuesday, June 16th
at Noon Location: Old Courthouse Steps
in West Chester Corner of High and Market Streets
Join parents, teachers, students, school staff, community advocates, and
local leaders to demand a state budget that invests in your community, your
students, and your schools.
Speakers include: Carolyn Comitta, Mayor of West Chester
Dr. Robert Langley, Lincoln
University,
Lincoln-AAUP
President
Dr. Curry Malott, West
Chester University
College of Education
Dr. Kenneth Mash, East
Stroudsburg University,
APSCUF President
Susan Carty, President, PA
League of Women Voters, Retired Educator
Contact Doug Brown at 717-236-7486 for more information
Come to Harrisburg on June 23rd for an All for
Education Day Rally!
Education Voters PA website June 1, 2015
On June 23 at the Capitol in Harrisburg, Education Voters will be
joining together with more than 50 organizations to send a clear message to
state lawmakers that we expect them to fund our schools in this year’s
budget. Click
HERE for more information and to register for the June 23 All for Education Day
in Harrisburg. Join us as we speak up for the importance of
funding our schools fairly and at sufficient levels, so that every student in
PA has an opportunity to learn. Community,
parent, education advocacy, faith, and labor organizations will join together
with school, municipal, and community officials to hold a press conference and
rally at 12:00 in the main rotunda and to make arrangements to meet with
legislators before and after the rally. We
must send a strong message to state lawmakers that we are watching them and
expect them to pass a state budget that will fund our schools this year. Please
come to Harrisburg on June 23 to show broad support for a fair budget for
education this year.
Register Now – PAESSP
State Conference – Oct. 18-20 – State College, PA
Registration is now
open for PAESSP's State Conference to be held October 18-20 at The
Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel in State College, PA! This year's
theme is @EVERYLEADER and features three nationally-known keynote
speakers (Dr. James Stronge, Justin Baeder and Dr. Mike Schmoker), professional
breakout sessions, a legal update, exhibits, Tech Learning Labs and many
opportunities to network with your colleagues (Monday evening event with Jay
Paterno). Once again, in conjunction
with its conference, PAESSP will offer two 30-hour Act 45 PIL-approved
programs, Linking Student Learning to Teacher Supervision and Evaluation
(pre-conference offering on 10/17/15); and Improving Student Learning
Through Research-Based Practices: The Power of an Effective Principal (held
during the conference, 10/18/15 -10/20/15). Register for either or both PIL
programs when you register for the Full Conference!
REGISTER TODAY for
the Conference and Act 45 PIL program/s at:
Apply
now for EPLC’s 2015-2016 PA Education Policy Fellowship Program
Applications are
available now for the 2015-2016
Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP).
The Education Policy Fellowship Program is sponsored in Pennsylvania by The
Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC).
With more than 400 graduates in its first sixteen years, this
Program is a premier professional development opportunity for educators, state
and local policymakers, advocates, and community leaders. State Board of
Accountancy (SBA) credits are available to certified public accountants. Past participants include state policymakers,
district superintendents and principals, charter school leaders, school
business officers, school board members, education deans/chairs, statewide
association leaders, parent leaders, education advocates, and other education
and community leaders. Fellows are typically sponsored by their employer
or another organization. The Fellowship
Program begins with a two-day retreat on September 17-18, 2015 and
continues to graduation in June 2016.
Click here to read about the Education Policy
Fellowship Program.
Sign up here to receive a weekly
email update on the status of efforts to have Pennsylvania adopt an adequate,
equitable, predictable and sustainable Basic Education Funding Formula by 2016
Sign up to support fair funding »
Campaign for Fair
Education Funding website
Our goal is to
ensure that every student has access to a quality education no matter where
they live. To make that happen, we need to fundamentally change how public
schools are funded. The current system is not fair to students or taxpayers and
our campaign partners – more than 50 organizations from across Pennsylvania -
agree that it has to be changed now. Student performance is stagnating. School
districts are in crisis. Lawmakers have the ability to change this formula but
they need to hear from you. You
can make a difference »
COMMUNITY MEETING: PUBLIC
SCHOOL FUNDING IN BERKS COUNTY
Berks County IU June 23,
7:00 - 8:30 pm
Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2015 Time:7:00 – 8:30 p.m. | Registration begins
at 6:30 p.m.
Location: Berks County Intermediate Unit, 1111 Commons Boulevard,
Reading, PA 19605
Local school district leaders will discuss how state funding issues are
impacting our children’s education opportunities, our local taxes, and our
communities. You will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn how you
can support fair and adequate state funding for public schools in Berks County. State lawmakers who represent Berks County
have been invited to attend to learn about challenges facing area schools.
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