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PA Ed Policy Roundup for July 10, 2015:
Gov. Wolf: Pennsylvanians have a choice of investing
adequately and fairly in our public education system, or not doing that
Gov. Wolf vetoes pension
reform bill as budget stalemate rhetoric intensifies
The PLS Reporter Author: Jason Gottesman/Thursday, July 9,
2015
Gov. Tom Wolf
Thursday vetoed the General Assembly-passed pension reform plan as rhetoric
from both sides intensified and Pennsylvania ’s
budget stalemate entered its ninth day. In vetoing the
pension reform bill—which would have moved new state and public school hires
into a hybrid cash-balance and 401(k)-like pension plan—Gov. Wolf said there
were portions of the legislation he could support, but the plan would hinder
the Commonwealth’s ability to attract new, highly qualified employees. “I understand the need for pension reform,
but this legislation provides no immediate cost savings to taxpayers and does
not maximize long-term savings for taxpayers. We need pension reform that
works," he said in a statement on the veto. "There are provisions
within this legislation, which as part of a comprehensive pension proposal I
could support; however, Senate Bill 1 does not address the problems facing our
pension system comprehensively and fairly."
"Between them, the
pension funds for state employees and teachers may be more than $50 billion
short. And teacher pensions are “the giant sucking sound for school budgets,”
said John Callahan, senior director of government affairs for the Pennsylvania School
Wolf says he'll veto public pension bill; GOP
criticizes his actions
By Chris Potter / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
July 9, 2015 11:30 PM
Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed
a Republican-drafted overhaul of Pennsylvania ’s
public pensions Thursday, a move that is raising temperatures in what is
already becoming — legislatively, at least — a long, hot summer. The legislation, Senate Bill 1, would have
ended the traditional defined-benefit pension for future state and public
school workers, instead enrolling them in a 401(k)-style plan. The bill would
have applied to the legislators’ own future paychecks, but not to public-safety
workers or to existing employees. Mr.
Wolf’s veto follows similar rebukes last week of a Republican budget and liquor
privatization plan. Public-sector unions, who were staunch backers of Mr.
Wolf’s 2014 election, hailed the move.
"Rather than detailing
his position on the proposed shift to a 401(k)-style system, Wolf offered a few
other reasons for rejecting the Republicans' pension bill. He said one piece of
it would have violated federal tax law. He also wants to see immediate savings
to help school districts facing big pension bills. For that short-term relief,
Wolf has proposed borrowing money."
Wolf cagey on pension
position as Pa.
WHYY Newsworks BY MARY WILSON JULY 10, 2015
Democratic Gov. Tom
Wolf isn't ruling out a switch to 401(k)-style retirement plans for Pennsylvania 's future
state and school employees. "I
think we can actually come up with a pension plan that's fair to employees and
that meets the concerns that have been expressed by taxpayers," said Wolf
when asked if he could sign such a proposal.
After nine days of review, Wolf vetoed a GOP-backed bill Thursday to
overhaul the state's public retirement benefits. The measure's biggest change
would be for new hires of the state and public schools. Instead of a guaranteed
pension payout upon retirement, they would invest employee and employer
contributions into a 401(k)-style savings plan.
Surprising no one, Gov.
Wolf vetoes pensions - hope you didn't make plans: John L. Micek
Penn Live By John L. Micek | jmicek@pennlive.com Email
the author | Follow on Twitter on
July 09, 2015 at 1:02 PM, updated July 09, 2015 at 1:10 PM
It took Gov. Tom Wolf all of 10 seconds
on Thursday to confirm what most of Pennsylvania's political and chattering
class had suspected for the last 10 days: A mere 24 hours before the
deadline, he's finally vetoed a Republican-authored
pension reform plan.
"I'm going to veto it," Wolf said during an early
morning interview on KQV-Radio in Pittsburgh. Hours later, Wolf made it official, and issued a statement confirming the veto.
And with it, whoever was silly enough to make summer vacation plans flung them
out the window, as the prospect of a
weeks-long stalemate calcified from mere supposition into a
reality nearly as suffocating as Harrisburg 's
August humidity.
"Wolf’s press secretary,
Jeff Sheridan, said, “The entire commonwealth would be worse off” if Wolf
signed off on the Republican’s budget.
“Chairman Adolph and the other Republican leaders have given us
multibillion dollar deficits, struggling schools and rising property taxes. It
is time for Chairman Adolph and the Republicans to stop ignoring math and to
stop pretending that their same gimmicks, irresponsibility and deficits will
help move the commonwealth forward.”
Adolph: Guv’s veto
withholds $13B from service providers
By Kristina Scala, Delaware County Daily
"Republicans are
ignoring the will of the people of Pennsylvania
Gov. Wolf compromises, GOP
won't (letter)
Mark Nicastre is a spokesman for Gov. Tom
Wolf.
In his budget
address, Gov. Tom Wolf told Republicans and Democrats alike to bring him
different ideas and he would listen. But, he also said that simply saying no is
not an option.
In an effort to hear
from Republican leaders and members, the governor made outreach a priority. He
went above and beyond. The governor put on his calendar time for weekly
meetings with Republican leadership; he dropped in on dozens upon dozens of
Republican members around the Capitol and invited every member of the
Legislature — some on multiple occasions — to break bread, literally, with him
at the governor's residence over breakfast, lunch and dinner. On the night before
and the morning of the governor's budget address, Sens. Corman and Scarnati
were no shows for traditional briefings where the governor explains his budget
proposal. Immediately following his address, Republican leaders rejected the
governor's budget outright — without ever having a conversation. In the end, the Republicans passed a budget
that contained their priorities and nothing else. The Republican budget failed
to include a common-sense severance tax, it does not restore cuts made by
Republicans to education over the last four years or reduce property taxes, and
the Republican budget would increase — rather than responsibly address — the
structural budget deficit.
Centre Daily Times Opinion BY KERRY BENNINGHOFF July 10, 2015
Kerry
Benninghoff, R-Bellefonte, represents the 171st state House District.
The hard truth is
that Pennsylvania
is in an unnecessary budget stalemate because Gov. Tom Wolf has chosen politics
over governing. The governor recently
vetoed a responsible spending plan, withholding billions of dollars in
undisputed state and federal funds from day care centers, nursing homes, public
schools and other organizations that serve our most vulnerable citizens,
putting them and those they serve at risk for no good reason. The balanced budget vetoed by Wolf makes
record investments in pre-K-12 education (more than any budget in Pennsylvania ’s 239-year
history), provides more money for our higher education institutions, enables
the state police to hire 350 new troopers and increases funding for critical
health line items.
Read more here: http://www.centredaily.com/2015/07/10/4829430/pennsylvania-taxpayers-deserve.html#storylink=cpy
"A state government
commission has recommended a new funding formula for distributing state funds
to school districts, but Manderino says its still up in the air whether that
formula would be applied to all state appropriations or only new state dollars.
The recommendation also doesn’t specify how to fill in various education
funding cuts made over the last several years.
Manderino says that school districts have been increasingly forced to
rely on local sources to stay up and running – which has led to higher taxes
and uneven funding across the state. School districts in wealthier areas have
weathered the storm okay, but many poor districts in rural or urban areas have
not. “We have the hugest gap between
rich and poor school districts, and therefore rich and poor students, of any
state,” Manderino says."
Labor and Industry
Secretary Talks Budget & Education in State College
StateCollege.com by Michael Martin Garrett on
July 09, 2015 11:19 AM
She wants to foster
economic development and job creation in Pennsylvania
– but she freely admits there’s just one small problem with that. The state
government is currently without a budget, and may be without one for an
extended period of time while lawmakers wage fiscal war in Harrisburg .
Speaking to business and community leaders at a meeting of the Chamber
of Business and Industry of Centre County on Wednesday, Manderino says the
budget stalemate reveals an important truth about the state of the Keystone State
Gov. Tom Wolf says
Republican budget made him 'sad' for public schools
Pennsylvanians have
a choice, said Gov. Tom Wolf in a visit to Hambright
Elementary School in Manor Township Penn Manor School District
Where Pa.
the notebook By WITF staff on Jul 9, 2015
09:53 AM Audio Runtime 19:36
Last month, the
Basic Education Funding Commission unveiled its updated school funding formula
after more than a year of work reviewing the process. The Senate Education
Committee crafted a bill around the recommendations made by the Basic Education Funding
Commission to more equally distribute resources to schools. The bill was vetoed
last week.
On today's program,
Keystone Crossroads' Kevin McCorry joins WITF's Dennis Owens to discuss the
funding situation for school districts across the commonwealth. Also in the
studio will be Sens. Mike Folmer (R-Lebanon) and Robert Teplitz (D-Perry), who
were part of the Basic Education Commission, John Callahan from the
Pennsylvania School Boards Association, and Pennsylvania Secretary of Education
Pedro Rivera.
Here's why you should
ignore Scott Wagner's distorted view of public schools: Art Haywood
PennLive Op-Ed By Art Haywood on July 09, 2015 at
2:00 PM
State Sen. Art Haywood, a Democrat,
represents the Philadelphia-based 4th Senate District.
A recent op-ed from
State Sen. Scott Wagner, R-York, regarding public education spending in Pennsylvania ("Pa. doesn't need
to spend more on schools, it needs to spend more wisely") contained
some glaring omissions that must be addressed.
As a result of these omissions, Wagner makes the false argument that Pennsylvania schools are
already adequately funded. Wagner
says that Pennsylvania
is 12th in the nation for per-pupil spending. Per-pupil
spending is a calculation of the average dollars spent on each student in Pennsylvania . This figure has little relevance for students
in poor and minority districts. In a state with the largest gap between poor
and wealthy education funding, average school district spending is not actual
spending. We have schools without librarians in short distance of schools with
state-of-the-art technology labs.
Curmuducation Blog by Peter Greene Thursday,
July 9, 2015
Brace yourself, Pennsylvania teachers.
The cut scores for last years tests have been set, and they are not
pretty. Yesterday the State
Board's Council of Basic Education met to settle their recommendations to
the State Board of Education regarding cut scores for the 2014-2015 test
results. Because, yes-- cut scores are set after test results are in, not
before. You'll see why shortly. My
source at the meeting (don't laugh-- I do actually have sources of information
here and there) passed along some of the results, as well as an analysis of the
impact of the new scores and the Board's own explanation of how these scores
are set. The worst news is further down the stage, but first I have to explain
how we get there.
Morning Call By Laura
Olson Call Washington Bureau July 10, 2015
The U.S. Senate
approved an amendment from Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey on Thursday that aims
to prevent school employees from quietly taking a job in a new district after
being suspected of sexually abusing a child.
The proposal is a scaled-back version of a bill that Toomey has
sponsored with West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin. The Pennsylvania Republican
has been persistently promoting that measure in Senate floor speeches and in TV
ads purchased by his re-election team. Toomey's
legislation attempted to do two things: require tougher, standardized
background checks for school workers in every state, and prohibit school
districts from assisting an employee suspected of sexual misconduct with a
minor from taking a position in a new district.
The effort faced
opposition from both sides of the aisle, with some teachers' groups' seeking
exceptions to the background check rules. Some Republicans — including
Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander, who is shepherding the chamber's education bill
through debate — had concerns about imposing on the rights of state and local
governments to regulate schools.
"He has restored the
reputation to a system that was so lacking when he arrived.
That is called credibility. He has consistently shown grace under
pressure, which is one definition of courage. Hite makes a good salary. But, it's no
surprise, given his performance, that the SRC wanted to give him a $60,000
bonus. And it's no surprise that Hite turned it down, saying it would be unfair
given the district's finances. We call
that leadership."
DN Editorial: SAVING
PRIVATE HITE: The superintendent got a vote of confidence. He deserves the
Medal of Honor
Philly Daily News Editorial POSTED: Friday, July 10, 2015, 12:16 AM
IN A VOTE of
confidence, the School Reform Commission last week said it owed Superintendent
William Hite what it called a "performance bonus." It should have been called combat pay. That's the extra pay
given to members of the U.S.
military who serve in "designated combat zones or hazardous duty
areas." That pretty much describes the Philadelphia School
District
Interim receiver appointed
for Chester Upland
By Vince Sullivan, Delaware County Daily
MEDIA COURTHOUSE
>> President Judge Chad F. Kenney granted a petition from the state’s
Department of Education during a Thursday morning hearing to appoint
Dr. Francis Barnes as interim receiver of the Chester Upland School District. Barnes has been serving as the district’s
chief recovery officer since January, after an attempt by the department to
remove Joseph Watkins as receiver. Watkins announced last month that he was
moving on to a new position with a private social media company effective July
1. He agreed to stay until Thursday to allow a new receiver to be
appointed. A former secretary of
education under Gov. Ed Rendell, Barnes has been a school administrator for 45
years and attorneys for the district and the elected school board supported his
appointment. Kenney praised the efforts
of Watkins during his tenure, which began in December 2012, saying that most of
the issues facing the district have been resolved. Educational programs have
seen improvement, schools are safer and the condition of the district’s school
buildings is getting better, he said. The only thing left to correct is the
chronic underfunding that leads to its structural deficit, Kenney said. The
judge felt it was important to note that to manage expectations for Barnes’
tenure as receiver.
Haverford OKs budget, 2.8
percent tax hike
Delco Times By Lois Puglionesi, Times Correspondent POSTED: 07/09/15, 10:55 PM EDT
HAVERFORD >>
The Haverford School Board voted 8-0 at a recent meeting to adopt a $107
million final budget for Fiscal Year 2015-16, with no changes from the proposed
version. Included is a 2.8
percent millage increase that raises rates to 29.4719 mills. The new rate will add $132 to taxes on the
average residential property assessed at $164,121, for a total $4,837. The balanced budget
did not require a draw down from the fund balance, which has recovered to $7.47
million. Also approved was a $171
Homestead/Farmstead exclusion, which will appear as a credit for those enrolled
in the program. This year’s Act 1 Index
allowed for a 1.9 percent tax increase. However, the district obtained an
exception for Public School Employees’ Retirement System costs.
Two kinds of community
schools
the notebook Commentary By James H.
Lytle on Jul 9, 2015 11:30 AM
James H. Lytle is Practice Professor of
Educational Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of
Education, a former District administrator, and a former superintendent in
Trenton.
During their primary
campaigns, Democratic mayoral candidate Jim Kenney and City Council President
Darrell Clarke both said community schools were part of their vision for
improving public schooling. Their frequent allusions to this school model
suggest that community schools will gain more attention as the November
election nears and might even become a key part of Clarke’s and presumptive
Mayor Kenney's education agenda in 2016.
For Kenney, "community schools" are educational facilities
that house schools but also offer things like medical care, social services,
and community educational resources. They create a single point of contact that
can keep students from missing school for things like doctor’s appointments and
can reach families where they are. Clarke
shares that view. He sees schools as community centers, where kids and families
can receive health care, psychological counseling, employment training, and
referrals to other public assistance. These centers could be in or near schools
and would host a multidisciplinary team of service providers, including social
workers, alcohol and drug counselors, and other health professionals. They
would also provide other services like tax education, GED preparation and
college-readiness programs.
The concept of a
community school, however, has a range of interpretations in both policy and
practice. More broadly, community schools typically fall under two types of
approaches: “communities in schools” and “communities and schools.”
Understanding the differences can help clarify and extend Kenney and Clarke's
vision for how this approach might play out in Philadelphia .
Are We Paying Too Much in
Taxes, or Not Enough?
Education Week
Opinion By Dave Powell on July 8, 2015 10:37 AM
I've written several
times already about the politics of education in my local community, and how
they played out in a recent school board election. My sense is that the issues
we face here—especially with regard to funding education and ensuring that the
needs and interests of students come first, ahead of the needs and interests of
others—are issues that people face in a lot of communities around the country. They came to a head in that election because
five people ran together as a group for seats on the school board promising to
advance school policies that were simultaneously good for taxpayers and good
for students. These five candidates made it clear that they were mad as hell
and just weren't going to take it anymore. Their brand of rebellion was a kind
that we have all become accustomed to in the age of "Taxpayer Protection
Pledges" and reductions in government services: the famous plan concocted
by conservatives to starve the beast until we can get it down to the size
where it can be drowned in the bathtub, as
professional activist Grover Norquist once so eloquently put it, is slowly coming
to fruition. That bathtub image is a chilling one when you think of our
government as something that was created of, by, and for the people, to borrow
the words of a somewhat more thoughtful political actor.
Some states would lose big money with proposed
education funding changes
Congress’s
debate about rewriting the nation’s main education law has featured
high-profile disagreements over testing, vouchers and
school accountability,
but there is another issue that has just as much potential to derail the
legislation: Money. A forthcoming
amendment from Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) would change the formula used to
allocate Title I funds, a move that would create big winners and losers
among the states. Thirty-six states and
the District of Columbia
would gain Title I dollars, which are meant to educate poor children. But
that leaves 14 states that would see cuts, including big losers New York (whose districts would lose $310 million), Illinois ($188 million) and Pennsylvania
Senate passes amendment to restore local governance in
public education
NSBAwire on July 9,
2015 Charlotte Blane
As the leading voice
for public education, the National School Boards Association (NSBA) continues
to advocate on behalf of school board members throughout the country to ensure
that their policy concerns are represented during the modernization of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). NSBA has
worked closely with senators on both sides of the aisle to consider provisions
that underscore the importance of strong local governance and community
ownership for our nation’s 90,000 school board members who work to provide all students
with a high quality public education.
The Senate voted this morning on several amendments, including Amendment
2079 to the Every Child Achieves Act (S. 1177), which would
help ensure that local stakeholders have a stronger voice in both the regulatory
and guidance processes for ESEA. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a former school
board member and past president of the Nebraska Association of School Boards,
introduced the amendment with Senators Angus King (I-Maine) and Jon Tester
(D-Mont.) to “ensure that communities have ultimate authority over their school
districts,” and “strengthen the relationship among local school board members
and parents.” NSBA is pleased that the amendment passed by a voice vote.
- See more at: http://www.nsba.org/newsroom/senate-passes-amendment-restore-local-governance-public-education#sthash.APjK327o.dpuf
House narrowly votes to
renew No Child Left Behind after drama
The Hill By Cristina
Marcos July 08, 2015, 06:53
pm
The House on
Wednesday voted to reauthorize the No Child Left Behind law, resurrecting a
bill that Republican leaders were forced to pull from the floor earlier this
year due to conservative opposition. Passage
fell narrowly along party lines on a vote of 218-213, with 27 Republicans
joining all Democrats in opposition to nearly derail it on the floor. For most of the roll call, the bill had more
votes against it than in favor. Many Republicans either held out their votes
until the last minute or changed their votes under pressure from GOP leaders. Conservative lawmakers had pushed for the
adoption of several amendments allowing schools to opt out of No Child Left
Behind requirements. Only one of those amendments, from Rep. Matt Salmon
(R-Ariz.), was adopted, with lawmakers voting 251-178 to allow parents to
exempt their children from testing.
“Parents are
becoming increasingly fed up with such constant and onerous testing
requirements, as well as the teachers,” Salmon said during floor debate. A separate proposal from Reps. Mark Walker
(R-N.C.) and Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) would have allowed states to opt out of No
Child Left Behind and still receive federal funding. That amendment failed
195-235, as 49 Republicans aligned with Democrats to defeat it.
"An analysis of
local news reports and school district data by The New York Times found that at
least one out of every six students eligible to take the third- through
eighth-grade tests in New York State sat at least one of them out this past
school year, part of the so-called opt out movement. Parent groups and the
state teachers union fueled the movement to try to force changes to the tests
and how they are used (test results are an important factor in teacher
evaluations)."
New York Times By ELIZABETH A. HARRISJULY 9, 2015
A new company has
been chosen to develop the assessments for New York State
Questar Assessments,
a company based in Minneapolis ,
received a five-year, $44 million deal, the State Education Department said on
Thursday. The previous contract, for $32 million, was held by Pearson, an
international education company based in London
that has become a lightning rod in education policy around the country.
Testing Resistance & Reform News: July 1 - 7, 2015
Fairtest Submitted
by fairtest on July 7, 2015 - 12:57pm
After victories
reining in testing misuse and overuse in several states and good proposals
continuing to move forward in other state legislatures, the assessment reform
movement's focus shifts to Capitol Hill where the Senate will debate a
bipartisan proposal to replace the failed "No Child Left Behind" law
with a bipartisan package. FairTest and its allies are pushing for further
amendments to take Washington 's
foot off the testing accelerator by reducing the volume of federally mandated
tests.
National Finally,
Congress to Debate "No Child Left Behind" Overhaul
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2015/07/06/finally-c...
Black and Brown Parents' Groups Call for End to "Oppressive, High-Stakes Standardized Testing and Sanctions"
http://www.j4jalliance.com/media/openletter/
What You Can Do NOW! -- Tell YourU.S. Senators to Kill
Every-Kid-Every-Year Testing
http://fairtest.org/roll-back-standardized-testing-send-letter-congres
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2015/07/06/finally-c...
Black and Brown Parents' Groups Call for End to "Oppressive, High-Stakes Standardized Testing and Sanctions"
http://www.j4jalliance.com/media/openletter/
What You Can Do NOW! -- Tell Your
http://fairtest.org/roll-back-standardized-testing-send-letter-congres
"This era has not been
good for students; nearly a quarter live in poverty, and fully 51% live in
low-income families. This era has not been good for teachers, who feel
disrespected and demeaned by governors, legislatures, and the U.S.
Diane Ravitch’s
devastating Arne Duncan critique: The education secretary earned his F
It will take years to recover from the damage
that Arne Duncan's policies have inflicted on public education
Salon.com by DIANE RAVITCH THURSDAY,
JUL 9, 2015 10:43 AM EDT
Lyndsey Layton of
the Washington Post has written a sympathetic article about Arne Duncan and the waning
of his powers as Secretary of Education. He is a nice guy. He is a close friend
of the president. He cares about individual children that he met along the way.
The pending reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act will
prohibit him and future Secretaries from interfering in state decisions about
standards, curriculum and assessment. His family has already moved back to Chicago . But he will stay
on the job to the very end.
When Obama was
elected, many educators and parents thought that Obama would bring a new vision
of the federal role in education, one that freed schools from the
test-and-punish mindset of George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind. But Arne
Duncan and Barack Obama had a vision no different from George W. Bush and
doubled down on the importance of testing, while encouraging privatization and
undermining the teaching profession with a $50 million grant to Teach for America to
place more novice teachers in high-needs schools. Duncan never said a bad word about charters,
no matter how many scandals and frauds were revealed.
"But now his children
will attend a progressive private school in Chicago, a school that does not
follow key school reform policies that his Education Department has set for
public schools. It does not, for
example, use the Common
Core State Duncan Ariel
Community Academy ,
a public school founded by a team of people that included Duncan
Education Secretary Duncan’s children to go to Chicago
Education
Secretary Arne Duncan grew up in Chicago
and attended the private, prestigious University of Chicago Laboratory Schools.
The pre-K-12 Lab Schools are progressive institutions that, according to its
Web site, “ignite and nurture an enduring spirit of scholarship, curiosity,
creativity, and confidence” and “value learning experientially, exhibiting
kindness, and honoring diversity.” The
teachers there are unionized and respected by administrators. President Obama’s
two daughters attended the school before moving to Washington in 2009, and Chicago Mayor Rahm
Emanuel’s children are enrolled there now. And in the fall, Duncan ’s children will be attending Lab, too,
while his wife works there.
Budgets, Testing Commanded
State Lawmakers' Attention
Education Week by By Andrew
Ujifusa Published Online:
July 7, 2015
State legislatures
began their sessions this year as they did in 2011, on the heels of a year
heavy on state elections—and victories by Republicans. But for the most part, their recent K-12
action hasn't set off shock waves the way Wisconsin
lawmakers did four years ago when they and GOP Gov. Scott Walker curtailed
collective bargaining for public school teachers and most other public
employees. Instead, legislatures
continued to rebuild and revamp their K-12 budgets during a modest economic
recovery, at the same time they re-examined how to deliver educational services
and assess students' performance.
EPLC "Focus on Education"
TV Program on PCN - Sunday, July 12 at 3:00 p.m.
Part 1:
Discussion on the Financial Condition of School Districts in Pennsylvania
Jay D. Himes,
Executive Director, PA Association of School Business Officials and
Dr. Tim Shrom, Business Manager, Solanco School District
Dr. Tim Shrom, Business Manager, Solanco School District
Part 2: An Interview with Dr. Don Francis,
President, Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania
All EPLC "Focus
on Education" TV shows are hosted by EPLC President Ron Cowell.
Visit the EPLC and the Pennsylvania School Funding Project web sites for
various resources related to education and school funding issues.
"Focus on Education" is a monthly program focusing on
education issues in Pennsylvania .
The program has most recently covered topics including the
National Math + Science Initiative; Pennsylvania 's
Political and Legislative Landscape and Its Implications for Funding
Education; Ethics in School Districts ,
the Role of Intermediate Units, Reactions to Governor Wolf's 2015-2016 State
Education Budget Proposal; and Physical Education and Health Education Issues
for Students. Past programs are posted on the EPLC site.
"Focus on Education" airs on the second Sunday of each month at 3:00 p.m. EST on Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) and then airs again several times throughout the same month.
"Focus on Education" airs on the second Sunday of each month at 3:00 p.m. EST on Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) and then airs again several times throughout the same month.
Nominations for PSBA's
Allwein Advocacy Award now open
PSBA July 7, 2015
PSBA July 7, 2015
The Timothy M.
Allwein Advocacy Award was established in 2011 by the Pennsylvania School
Boards Association and may be presented annually to the individual school
director or entire school board to recognize outstanding leadership in
legislative advocacy efforts on behalf of public education and students that
are consistent with the positions in PSBA’s Legislative Platform. The 2015 Allwein Award nomination process
will close on Aug. 28, 2015. The 2015 Allwein Award Nomination Form is available online.
More details on the award and nominations process can be found online.
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
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.
PSBA POSTED
ON JUN 29, 2015 IN PSBA
NEWS
The Pennsylvania
School Boards Association gives an overview of the newly proposed Basic
Education Funding Formula.
Sign up here to receive a weekly
email update on the status of efforts to have Pennsylvania
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 »
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