Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now
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administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, Governor's
staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, Wolf education transition
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leaders, business leaders, faith-based organizations, labor organizations,
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These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup November 18, 2015:
Large & diverse coalition urges PA Senate to
reject SB76 property tax elimination bill
"The bill now goes
before the full House. Saylor said he doesn't anticipate any action before the
state adopts a budget, and that the issue could be part of the budget process
moving forward."
State committee OKs
Keystone exam delay
It
would delay making the exams a graduation requirement until 2019.
York Daily Record by Angie Mason, amason@ydr.com1:50 p.m. EST
November 17, 2015
The state House
education committee passed a bill Tuesday that would postpone making the
Keystone exams a graduation requirement until 2019. The end-of-course exams are currently set to
become a graduation requirement with the class of 2017. The House committee
approved Senate Bill 880, already adopted by the Senate over the summer,
with an amendment that would require the state education department to look at
alternatives in addition to the Keystones and report on those within six
months. Rep. Stan Saylor, R-Windsor
Township, who chairs the committee and offered the amendment, said there's a
need to do more than just delay, because otherwise the problem will just keep
coming up.
Delay in Keystone Exam graduation
testing requirement wins House panel approval
By Jan Murphy |
jmurphy@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on
November 17, 2015 at 12:53 PM, updated November 17, 2015 at 12:54 PM
Legislation to
impose a two-year moratorium on the state's graduation testing requirement won
passage of the House Education Committee on Tuesday. This proposal would push back the use of the
Keystone Exam or a project-based assessment as a graduation requirement until
the 2018-19 school year. The bill, which
passed the Senate in June by a vote of 49-0, was amended by the House panel to add a provision
requiring the state Department of Education to study alternatives to the
Keystone Exams and report its findings to the House and Senate education
committees within six months. Committee
Chairman Stan Saylor, R-Red Lion, said he proposed adding that to the bill to
help inform the discussion about what will happen when the moratorium expires
and to avoid having to extend the moratorium longer.
House Education Committee approves two-year delay on
Keystone Exam graduation requirement
A proposal to delay
the Keystone Exam graduation requirement was approved by the state House
Education Committee today. The committee
voted unanimously in favor of Senate Bill 880, according to a staffer for Sen. Lloyd
Smucker, the Republican from West
Lampeter Township
Keystone exams: Questions
and answers
the notebook By Dan Hardy on Nov 17, 2015
02:40 PM
What are the
Keystone exams?
In 2009, the Pennsylvania
State Board of Education voted to establish statewide end-of-course exams in
order to set uniform benchmarks for key academic subjects. The tests began in
2011. The tested subjects are Algebra 1, Biology, and Literature. Seven other subjects were to be added later.
Civics & Government and English Composition are supposed to be tested next,
but no rollout schedule has been set. Originally,
test scores were to count for at least 30 percent of a student’s final grade
for each subject; it was left to each school board to determine if the exam
would be a graduation requirement, but if not, districts would have to develop
a local test that met state approval. In
2013, the 30 percent requirement was dropped but passing the Algebra, Biology
and Literature Keystones or an equivalent local or national exam became a
graduation requirement, starting in the 2016-17 school year.
Nick Trombetta's attorney-client privilege not
violated, judge rules
Diverse Coalition of Business Groups, Faith
Communities, Education Associations, and Other Advocates Sign Letter Opposing SB76
Property Tax Elimination
Posted by PA Budget and Policy
Center
Date: Monday, November 16, 2015
To: Members of the Senate of Pennsylvania
From: Concerned organizations
RE: Opposition to Senate Bill 76, Property
Tax Elimination
We, the undersigned
organizations, representing advocates for education, combating hunger, the
business, manufacturing, legal and banking communities, religious institutions
and clergy, school districts and administrators, among many others, are opposed
to Senate Bill 76. The roots of our objections are as diverse and varied as the
constituencies we represent, reflecting a broad range of concerns and
perspectives. We are united, however, in our opposition to passage of this
legislation. Senate Bill 76 calls for a
fundamental re-organization of Pennsylvania’s taxation and educational systems.
The potential negative consequences that could result from the implementation
of Senate Bill 76 are vast, and many significant questions remain unanswered.
In light of these uncertainties and significant risks, the organizations listed
below respectfully urge you to oppose Senate Bill 76. We recognize that school property taxes are a
genuine concern for many across that Commonwealth, and we will continue to
offer our expertise and assistance to develop a responsible approach to address
the financial concerns where it is most needed, using sustainable and proven
strategies.
"Corman said he has told
Wolf and other negotiating partners that any school property tax debate in the
Senate would have to include a vote on legislation to eliminate the tax. A
strong contingent of senators support the move and it is close to having enough
support to pass, Corman said. "I
told that to everybody, so they're all very aware that we're going to go
through this process," Corman said. "If it passes, then we have to
sit down and discuss what we want to do."
SB76: Pennsylvania
Morning Call by Marc Levy Of
The Associated Press Nov. 17, 2015
MvGarrigle said that since
the proposal would just shift the tax burden to other forms without creating
any new revenue, he would no longer support it. He said that he supports a
natural gas extraction tax to help fund schools, and without that piece of
legislation, which isn’t included in any current budget proposals, he wouldn’t
support SB 76. “The extraction tax is
not part of this budget and so I can’t support (SB 76),” he said. “Without the
shale tax you’re shifting $14 billion to a personal income tax and a sales tax.
I can’t do that to the hard-working people of my district.”…. He also opposes the bill because it will take
local control away from elected school boards and give it to Harrisburg
Senator McGarrigle drops
support of SB76 school-tax measure
By Vince Sullivan,
Delaware County Daily
The Pennsylvania
Senate tabled a vote Tuesday on legislation that would eliminate local property
taxes to fund schools — and one Delaware
County
SB76: Property tax elimination
vote put off amid technical concerns
The PLS Reporter Author: Jason Gottesman/Tuesday, November
17, 2015
A tentatively
scheduled vote on a plan that would completely eliminate school district
property taxes in Pennsylvania
was nixed Tuesday amid technical concerns that sponsors of the plan have agreed
to address in advance of a vote by the full Senate now tentatively scheduled
for next week. "Today was supposed
to be a full Senate vote to consider the elimination of school property taxes –
a proposal drafted by over 80 grassroots taxpayer advocacy groups from across
the state," read a released statement from the proposal's sponsors.
"Some minor technical concerns regarding the bill’s implementation have
been raised. We agreed to make tweaks to the proposal and have it considered
next week by the full Senate.” When
asked about the proposal, Senate Appropriations Committee Majority Chairman Pat
Browne (R-Lehigh) said there is an interest in moving the proposal next week so
long as the issues are taken care of.
"If we get it wrong, we
will get phone calls at home. We will get stopped in the supermarket... and
ultimately, if we continue to get it wrong, they will vote us out,"
Lewisburg School Board President Kathy Swope said at a school funding rally
this week. They'd prefer to stay with
the current law that permits boards to avoid referendum as long as they live
within inflation-based indexes, plus potential exemptions for soaring retired
teachers' pensions and special education costs.
One middle-ground proposal
being looked at would require referendums on tax increases, but permit a school
board to override voter rejection with support from a two-thirds board
majority. Republicans are also eyeing a
proposal that might exempt from a referendum those districts that finance 80
percent or more of their annual budgets with local revenues."
Referendum: The great Pennsylvania
Penn Live By Charles Thompson |
cthompson@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on
November 17, 2015 at 8:21 PM, updated November 17, 2015 at 8:22 PM
The promise of property tax relief that Gov. Tom Wolf refused to
completely drop during this year's budget stalemate came roaring back to life
last week. That said, it's still not at
all clear whether this revival will make a final agreement on a 2015-16 state
budget easier or harder to wrap up. Wolf and legislative
leaders said Nov. 10 that their "framework" agreement contains a 20.8
percent hike in the state's 6 percent sales tax, to 7.25 percent, to fund a new
pot of money to offset school property taxes on residences. Here's a look at how that proposal is taking
shape, or not, in the final round budget negotiations, and what could still
blow it up.
Education associations visit legislators to press for
budget passage and elimination of back-end referendum proposal
PSBA website Nov 16,
2015
School directors,
superintendents, principals, school business officials and Intermediate Unit
executives all will converge on the State Capitol on Monday, Nov. 16, to meet
with legislators on the critical importance of passing a state budget. Now in
the fifth month without a state budget, many school entities across the state
are feeling the financial burden caused by the lack of state funding. As talk
of a potential budget deal increases, school leaders hope to impress upon
policymakers not only the need for a state budget, but a budget that will
provide fair and equitable funding for the education of Pennsylvania children. Four particular areas of interest will be
addressed by school officials, including back-end referendum; increased funding
for education and approval of the Basic Education Funding formula; special
education expenses to charter schools; and school construction reimbursements
from the state. Of particular concern
among those traveling to Harrisburg
is recent talk of a mandatory back-end referendum and the elimination of the
Act 1 index and its exceptions. If such a deal goes through, any and all school
tax increases would be required to go to the voters for a referendum. School
leaders are concerned that such a move would tie the hands of locally elected
school directors to raise revenue needed to fund schools. Many costs, such as
pension, charter tuition payments and special education costs, are out of the
control of local school districts. If unable to balance a budget to pay such
expenses, the only option left would be draconian cuts to student programs and
services.
Pension reform vehicle
introduced, scheduled for committee vote
The PLS Reporter Author: Jason Gottesman/Tuesday, November
17, 2015
A vehicle for the
pension reform proposal that is being worked on as part of the budget framework
was introduced by Sen. Pat Browne (R-Lehigh) Tuesday as Senate Bill 1071 and
has already been scheduled to be considered by the Senate Finance Committee
Wednesday morning. As reported
Monday, that committee will also be considering municipal pension reform
legislation Wednesday as well. According
to Sen. Browne, the legislation as introduced is merely a vehicle at this point
and reflects much of what was in Senate Bill 1, which was vetoed by the
governor earlier this year. “The reason
for that is to put a bill in that can carry the final product,” he said. “That
bill was structured to carry reforms for both systems, so it was appropriate
for us to use that as a vehicle for the final product.”
In city elementary
schools, a campaign for libraries
by Kristen A. Graham, Inquirer Staff
Writer Updated on NOVEMBER
18, 2015 — 1:08 AM EST
Across the city,
many classrooms lack what Alison Walters has cobbled together from 10-cent yard
sales, book-club deals, and the proceeds of side jobs she works "to
support my teaching habit": a colorful, voluminous classroom library. City and school officials want to change
that. On Tuesday,
Mayor-elect Jim Kenney, Superintendent William R. Hite Jr., and 30 other
leaders gathered at Clara Barton School
to launch a $3.5 million fund-raising campaign aimed at placing libraries in
every Philadelphia
School District
Lawmakers' pay remains
stagnant for only second time in 21 years
Penn Live By Jan Murphy |
jmurphy@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on
November 17, 2015 at 3:44 PM
Even though state
lawmakers' base pay will stay at $85,339 for the coming year, it is only
the second time in 21 years that their salary has remained stagnant. The other
time was in 2010. A 1995 law provides
for an automatic annual cost-of-living adjustment for state lawmakers as well
as judges and top executive branch officials. The annual adjustments, which are
based on the year-to-year change in the federal consumer price index for the
Mid-Atlantic Region, rarely exceeded 3 percent but as you can see below, they
add up.
Here is how this law
has changed the base legislative pay since 1995:
Audit warns of bleak finances for West
Mifflin schools
By Mary Niederberger
/ Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette November 18, 2015 12:00 AM
An audit of the West
Mifflin Area School District to be released this morning by state Auditor
General Eugene DePasquale paints a bleak financial picture of the district,
citing two consecutive years of negative fund balances and the repeated
refinancing of debt far into the future.
But superintendent Dan Castagna, who released the audit to the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, said he believes the district has weathered a “perfect
storm” of significantly lowered real estate assessments, a decline in state
funding and an economic downturn in the community in recent years.
With the ESEA Conference
Set to Kick Off, Is the End Near for NCLB?
Education Week
Politics K-12 Blog By Alyson Klein on November
17, 2015 5:02 PM
After eight years
and at least three serious attempts, Congress is finally moving forward on
bipartisan, bicameral legislation to rewrite the
almost-universally-despised No Child Left Behind Act, the
current version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The preliminary agreement—or
"framework"—as the lead negotiators, Reps. John Kline, R-Minn.,
and Bobby Scott, D-Va., and Sens. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.,
and Patty Murray, D-Wash., are calling it—is not the final
word. Instead, it's a jumping off point to set the stage for an official
conference committee that is likely to begin—and maybe even end—this
week. The names of the lawmakers
who will make up the House portion of that conference committee were just announced.
It's pretty expansive list as far as these things go, possibly because
Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin ,
the new speaker, wants to signal that many perspectives will be represented.
NSBA applauds next step toward modernized ESEA
NSBA website Charlotte BlaneNovember 17, 2015
In another step
toward a modernized education bill, the U.S. House of Representatives today
named conferees for the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)
Conference Committee. Senate action to appoint conferees is expected
soon. John Kline (R-Minn.)
Chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee officially
announced the first conference meeting will take place Wednesday, November 18,
at 2:30 p.m. "NSBA applauds
Congress for taking the next step toward a modernized education bill,” said
Thomas J. Gentzel, Executive Director, National School Boards Association. “As
conferees move forward this week, NSBA welcomes the open process to put
finishing touches on a bi-partisan compromise." "Our nation's schoolchildren deserve a
world-class public education, and NSBA acknowledges the positive momentum
toward a bill to support local school district leadership and community
ownership to ensure student success."
- See more at: http://www.nsba.org/newsroom/nsba-applauds-next-step-toward-modernized-esea#sthash.xzp6DeKw.dpuf
Unions Eye L.A. Charter
Schools
Efforts to organize teachers in the country’s
largest system could have nationwide repercussions
Wall Street Journal By KRIS MAHER Nov. 16, 2015 7:39 p.m. ET
(paywall)
As teachers unions
ramp up efforts to organize the fast-growing charter school movement, one of
the biggest and most contentious fights is taking place at a chain of schools
in Los Angeles .
Testing Resistance & Reform News: November 11 -
17, 2015
FairTest Submitted
by fairtest on November 17, 2015 - 1:26pm
It may be hard to
believe but the already fast pace of assessment reform news continues to
accelerate, reflecting the rapidly growing strength of the grassroots movement
against standardized testing misuse and overuse. Activists will pay particular
attention to Washington DC
National NCLB
Overhaul May Soon Begin Moving on Capitol Hill
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2015/11/lawmakers_announce_...
National Will President Obama's Education "Reformers" Acknowledge Their Own Failures
http://www.livingindialogue.com/will-president-obamas-education-reformer...
National Concrete Victories Won By the Testing Reform Movement (So Far)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2015/11/17/concrete-...
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2015/11/lawmakers_announce_...
National Will President Obama's Education "Reformers" Acknowledge Their Own Failures
http://www.livingindialogue.com/will-president-obamas-education-reformer...
National Concrete Victories Won By the Testing Reform Movement (So Far)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2015/11/17/concrete-...
Education Bloggers Daily
Highlights 11-17-15
THE PENDING PA
BUDGET AGREEMENT - How
will it Impact Your Schools and Your Taxes; and is it What You Want for
Pennsylvania?
ST PAUL’S BAPTIST
CHURCH AUDITORIUM ONE HAGERTY BLVD JUST OFF RT 202 BYPASS AT the MATLACK ST
EXIT WEST CHESTER, PA 19382 610-692-2446
It’s time for the
law makers to pass a budget. DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN WITHOUT YOUR INPUT! Pennsylvania needs a responsible budget
that invests in the future.
PSBA New School Director
Training
School boards who will welcome new directors after the election should
plan to attend PSBA training to help everyone feel more confident right from
the start. This one-day event is targeted to help members learn the basics of
their new roles and responsibilities. Meet the friendly, knowledgeable PSBA
team and bring everyone on your “team of 10” to get on the same page fast.
- $150 per
registrant (No charge if your district has a LEARN Pass. Note: All-Access
members also have LEARN Pass.)
- One-hour lunch
on your own — bring your lunch, go to lunch, or we’ll bring a box lunch to
you; coffee/tea provided all day
- Course
materials available online or we’ll bring a printed copy to you for an
additional $25
- Registrants
receive one month of 100-level online courses for each registrant, after
the live class
Nine locations
for your convenience:
- Philadelphia
area — Nov. 21 William Tennent HS, Warminster (note: location changed from
IU23 Norristown)
- Pittsburgh
area — Dec. 5 Allegheny IU3, Homestead
- South Central
PA and Erie areas (joint program)— Dec. 12 Northwest Tri-County IU5,
Edinboro and PSBA, Mechanicsburg
- Butler area —
Jan. 9 Midwestern IU 4, Grove City (note: location changed from Penn State
New Kensington)
- Allentown area
— Jan. 16 Lehigh Career & Technical Institute, Schnecksville
- Central PA —
Jan. 30 Nittany Lion Inn, State College
- Scranton area
— Feb. 6 Abington Heights SD, Clarks Summit
- North Central
area —Feb. 13 Mansfield University, Mansfield
Register here: https://www.psba.org/2015/09/new-school-director-training/
NSBA Advocacy
Institute 2016; January 24 - 26 in Washington ,
D.C.
Housing and meeting registration is open for Advocacy Institute 2016. The theme, “Election Year Politics & Public Schools,” celebrates the exciting year ahead for school board advocacy. Strong legislative programming will be paramount at this year’s conference in January. Visit www.nsba.org/advocacyinstitute for more information.
Housing and meeting registration is open for Advocacy Institute 2016. The theme, “Election Year Politics & Public Schools,” celebrates the exciting year ahead for school board advocacy. Strong legislative programming will be paramount at this year’s conference in January. Visit www.nsba.org/advocacyinstitute for more information.
PASBO 61st Annual
Conference and Exhibits March 8 - 11, 2016
Hershey Lodge and Convention Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Hershey Lodge and Convention Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania
The Network for Public Education 3rd
Annual National Conference April 16-17, 2016 Raleigh , North Carolina
The
Network for Public Education is thrilled to announce the location for our 3rd
Annual National Conference. On April 16 and 17, 2016 public education advocates
from across the country will gather in Raleigh, North Carolina. We chose Raleigh to highlight the tremendous
activist movement that is flourishing in North Carolina. No one exemplifies
that movement better than the Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, who will be the
conference keynote speaker. Rev. Barber is the current president of
the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, the National NAACP chair of
the Legislative Political Action Committee, and the founder of Moral Mondays.
Interested in letting our
elected leadership know your thoughts on education funding, a severance tax,
property taxes and the budget?
Governor Tom Wolf,
(717) 787-2500
Speaker of the
House Rep. Mike Turzai, (717) 772-9943
House Majority Leader Rep. Dave Reed, (717) 705-7173
Senate President Pro Tempore Sen. Joe Scarnati, (717) 787-7084
Senate Majority Leader Sen. Jake Corman, (717) 787-1377
House Majority Leader Rep. Dave Reed, (717) 705-7173
Senate President Pro Tempore Sen. Joe Scarnati, (717) 787-7084
Senate Majority Leader Sen. Jake Corman, (717) 787-1377
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