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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup March 2, 2016:
Pa. needs a fair school
funding formula, now
PA Ed Policy Roundup will not publish tomorrow,
Thursday March 3rd. We’ll be back and
catch up on Friday March 4th.
Pa. needs a fair school
funding formula, now | Opinion
By Express-Times guest columnist Michael Faccinetto on
March 01, 2016 at 3:14 PM
Michael Faccinetto is president of the
Bethlehem Area School Board.
Thanks to a nearly nine-month budget stalemate, Pennsylvania state government
began 2016 without a full budget, leaving the short- and long-term needs of
every school — and every student — up in the air. In the short term, the partial spending plan
signed by Gov. Tom Wolf provided desperately needed money for schools and human
services, but only enough to stave off closures and further cuts for a few
months. Because of inadequate funding in
recent years, many districts have eliminated programs, laid off teachers, or
reduced academic support for students. The budget deadlock only made things
worse. Scores of districts have borrowed emergency funds to keep the
doors open and many have depleted their reserves, which will only prolong the
amount of time it will take for them to recover. In the long term, the budget gridlock means
that one of the fundamental issues facing Pennsylvania — fixing our broken
public school funding system — remains unresolved.
Cash-flow crises causes
Quakertown to take 'extraordinary measures'
The Intelligencer By Gary Weckselblatt, staff writer Posted: Tuesday, March 1, 2016 5:45 pm
The Quakertown
school board will suspend any payments due the state and to develop a plan to
save $5 million by June 30. Staff
furloughs and a spending freeze will be considered. The "extraordinary measures" were
explained in a letter from the board of school
directors to the Quakertown community and district employees on the district's
website Tuesday. Titled "District
cash flow in jeopardy," the message said the district is in a financial
crises because the state has not provided nearly $14.2 million in funding. Quakertown expected to receive nearly $24
million in state subsidies this year. However, Gov. Tom Wolf's budget veto on
Dec. 29 released only half of the district's basic education funding, about
$9.7 million, leaving Quakertown $14.2 million short.
“There needs to be accountability,” Burch said. “School districts are required to meet
deadlines or else we face penalties. Yet the Legislature was supposed to pass
their budget in June. That never happened.”
Brentwood
School District to borrow money, citing state budget impasse
Trib Live BY STEPHANIE HACKE | Tuesday, March 1, 2016,
8:21 p.m.
Brentwood Borough
School District will be out of money by the end of May — barring “a miracle” or
passage of the state budget, Superintendent Amy Burch said. Eight months have passed with no state budget
for 2015-16, and Brentwood, like many school districts across the commonwealth,
is feeling the financial squeeze, Burch said.
The district has banned outside spending, cut purchases of desks and is
closely monitoring all other purchases. Yet,
just paying the bills will drain the $3.5 million fund balance that the
district had June 30. The district anticipated only using $983,000 from its
reserve during the 2015-16 school year.
“The School Board also expressed its support for school
districts involved in a lawsuit against the state over fair education funding
for districts.”
Closing programs could help Millcreek budget gap
By Erica Erwin 814-870-1846 Erie Times-News March 2, 2016 04:27 AM
ERIE, Pa. -- One
answer to the Millcreek Township School District's math problem could be the
elimination of its Montessori and alternative education programs. Aaron O'Toole, the district's director of
finance and administration, presented that option and a menu of others to the
Millcreek School Board on Tuesday night as the district continues to work to
bridge a $2.64 million gap in the 2016-17 budget. Eliminating the Montessori and the
alternative education programs, along with increasing property taxes to a
state-set maximum, would leave the district with a $188,000 surplus, O'Toole
said. The district operates four
Montessori classrooms, two each at Belle Valley and Grandview elementary
schools. Sixty-four students are enrolled in the program, which costs the
district $419,000 a year to operate, O'Toole said. Only 35 students are enrolled in the
alternative education program at the Millcreek Learning Center. That program
costs $809,000 a year to run. "We
have a general idea that we want to preserve the programs that reach the most
kids," Hall said, referring to the low enrollment in both programs.
Schools start to feel
budget impasse pinch in Franklin County
After over half a
year of deliberations, many Pennsylvanians are wondering how close the state is
to resolving the budget crisis and how a lack of money is going to begin to
have an impact on them.
The Record Herald By Zach Glenn zglenn@therecordherald.com Feb. 27, 2016 at 9:00 AM
After over half a year of deliberations, many Pennsylvanians are wondering how close the state is to resolving the budget crisis and how a lack of money is going to begin to have an impact on them. March 1 will mark eight months since the fiscal year began and eight months without a complete budget. The legislature last came close to reaching an agreement with Gov. Tom Wolf in December when a no-tax increase budget that was sent to the Senate by the House earlier that month was passed in an attempt to avoid a shutdown, according to state Sen. Richard Alloway, a Republican who represents Franklin County. Wolf vetoed around $7 billion in spending which specifically targeted schools, health services, agriculture, corrections and the legislature.
http://www.therecordherald.com/news/20160227/schools-start-to-feel-budget-impasse-pinch-in-franklin-county?Start=1
After over half a year of deliberations, many Pennsylvanians are wondering how close the state is to resolving the budget crisis and how a lack of money is going to begin to have an impact on them. March 1 will mark eight months since the fiscal year began and eight months without a complete budget. The legislature last came close to reaching an agreement with Gov. Tom Wolf in December when a no-tax increase budget that was sent to the Senate by the House earlier that month was passed in an attempt to avoid a shutdown, according to state Sen. Richard Alloway, a Republican who represents Franklin County. Wolf vetoed around $7 billion in spending which specifically targeted schools, health services, agriculture, corrections and the legislature.
http://www.therecordherald.com/news/20160227/schools-start-to-feel-budget-impasse-pinch-in-franklin-county?Start=1
Pennsylvania Education Secretary Pedro A. Rivera
Announces Partnership For School Bullying Prevention Helpline
Secretary of
Education Pedro A. Rivera today announced a partnership with the
Highmark Foundation and the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
to operate the Department of Education's Bullying Prevention Consultation
helpline. The helpline serves as a
resource to Pennsylvania students, families, and schools to help them
develop strategies to address bullying and resolve bullying situations. "Students learn and focus most
effectively when they feel safe and cared for," Rivera said during a visit
to Harrisburg School District's Marshall Math Science Academy.
"Schools across the country are looking at ways to prevent bullying and
its harmful impacts, and this partnership is one of the initiatives Pennsylvania has
put in place to support our students, schools, and families and help our
children achieve."
How many local York County
students attend cyber charters?
York Daily Record by Angie Mason,
amason@ydr.com3:53 p.m. EST March 1, 2016
More than a thousand
students in York County are choosing cyber charter schools for education - and
school districts are increasingly providing online options as well. The online schools are frequently criticized
- districts say the tuition paid far outpaces what it costs the cyber charters
to educate students, and none of the cyber charters scored above a 70,
generally considered passing, on the most recent School Performance Profile.
But they remain a popular option for some students. Here's a look at cyber charters' impact in
York County.
New parent resource center
opens in North Philly elementary school
WHYY Newsworks BY KEVIN MCCORRY MARCH 1, 2016
Ahead of
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney's push to create 25 "community
schools," the Philadelphia School District is also working to make its
schools hubs for community engagement. On Tuesday, the
district unveiled a new parent resource center inside Thomas Pierce Elementary
in North Philadelphia. Funded by a
nearly $225,000 three year grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Education,
a once unused room in the school will become a workspace and technology center
for parents in the community. Superintendent
William Hite said the district aims to give all of its schools such a space. "We're trying to update the resources in
those rooms so that parents have access to things like how to enroll children
in high schools, information about how they can help teach their children to
read, do math, how they can become involved, how they can complete job
applications themselves," he said.
Bipartisan proposal would
allow citizens to decide lawmaker compensation
The PLS Reporter Author: Jason Gottesman/Tuesday, March 1,
2016
A bipartisan
proposal introduced in the House, and soon to be introduced in the Senate,
would create a commission of citizens that would decide at what level lawmakers
should be compensated, sponsors toldThe PLS Reporter Tuesday. The proposal, based on a similar endeavor
currently in place in California, is considered by those pushing for it to be a
good government reform measure that stems from the infamous 2005 pay raise. Rep. John Lawrence (R-Chester) embodied the
proposal in House Bill 269 earlier this session and Sen. Rob Teplitz
(D-Dauphin) recently started circulating a co-sponsorship memo for similar, but
not identical, legislation in the Senate.
Rep. Lawrence said Tuesday that it is important in terms of good
government to put the ability to set legislator pay in the hands of taxpayers
and take it out of the hands of legislators.
Blogger comment: Perhaps PA legislators could benefit from
some training too, especially around their responsibility to pass a budget by
June 30th. And let’s not
forget about charter school boards – see next article……
PA House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda - School Board
Training
Posted: February 29, 2016 12:19 PM
From: Representative Stan Saylor
To: All House members
Subject: School Board Training
In the near future,
I plan to introduce legislation regarding school board member training.
Please join me by
cosponsoring legislation that will require each newly elected, appointed, or
current school board member to undergo a training program regarding the skills
and knowledge pertaining to running a school district. The training program
will be developed by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, in consultation
with the Pennsylvania School Boards Association and the Pennsylvania
Association of School Business Officials.
Beginning in the
2017-2018 school year, each newly elected or appointed school board member must
complete a training program that will consist of eight hours of instruction to
include the following:
- Instruction and academic programs;
- Personnel;
- Fiscal management;
- Operations;
- Governance
Each school board member who is reelected or
reappointed must complete within one year, an advanced training program that
will consist of four hours of instruction, including information on changes to
Federal and State public school law and regulations, fiscal management and
other information deemed appropriate by the Department of Education. Any school board member who is in office on
the effective date of this legislation, must complete the training program
required for newly elected or newly appointed school board members by June
30th, 2018. The purpose of this legislation is to ensure
that our local school board members have the necessary knowledge to carry out
the vital responsibilities associated with running our local school districts.
“Charter school board members will have to get training in
“sound fiscal management” if legislation approved overwhelmingly by the Georgia
House of Representatives Monday also passes through the state Senate.”
Georgia legislation cracks down on charter school
finances
6:37 p.m. Feb. 29 by Ty Tagami / The
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Charter school board
members will have to get training in “sound fiscal management” if legislation
approved overwhelmingly by the Georgia House of Representatives Monday also
passes through the state Senate. House Bill 895 by Rep. Rahn Mayo, D-Decatur, requires
charter board members to get several hours of training a year. It also builds a
firewall between school principals and school money, declaring that the leader
shall not serve simultaneously as the finance chief. It passed 162-8. Financial mismanagement and alleged theft
from an Atlanta charter school drew attention to charter school finances last
year. In July, the Latin Academy Charter School’s board of directors
reported that more than $600,000 was taken from the school. The
school’s founder and another staff member had access to the accounts, school
officials said at the time. The incident put the school at risk. At a committee hearing last week, Mayo said
he wanted to hold charter schools to a “high standard.” The Georgia Charter
Schools Association chief, Tony Roberts, declared full support for the bill.
The association worries about bad actors ruining the reputation of charter
schools in general, and Roberts said he embraced HB 895 “so the only person who
has their hands on the money isn’t the school leader.” The legislation now moves to the Senate,
where it can be approved, amended, rejected or left to die.
http://m.ajc.com/news/news/local-education/georgia-legislation-cracks-down-on-charter-school-/nqZ8b/
Pa. state revenues jump in
February; show 1.8% growth for the fiscal year to date
Penn Live By Charles Thompson | cthompson@pennlive.com Email the
author | Follow on Twitter on March 01, 2016 at 7:09 PM
The February returns
are in. State government revenue
collections exceeded budget office estimates for the month, and are now running
$60.7 million over projected results for the first eight months of fiscal
2015-16. General fund
revenues are also running 1.8 percent ahead of last year's collections, for
growth of $314 million through February.
That pace will be watched intently by the Wolf Administration and state
lawmakers in the months to come as they prepare for the next round of debates
on whether and how much to raise taxes.
We've notified Pa. officials about our budget
stalemate
Post Gazette Letter by BETH FRIEL March 2, 2016 12:00 AM
I decided not to pay
my state taxes this year. Here is a letter explaining why.
Feb. 29, 2016 — To
the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue:
As small-business
owners, my husband and I owe taxes to the state of Pennsylvania. Although these
taxes are due by April 15, we do not anticipate being able to pay them by that
date. Unfortunately, we have not been able to come to agreement on our budget
and, therefore, funds cannot be released for payment to nonessential services.
Since the state has stopped providing services, the state is in the
nonessential category. While we
are committed to working through this budget stalemate, we do not foresee being
able to meet on this issue in the next six months due to other pressing
business. I’m sure you can empathize with us.
Nazareth teachers' pact
proposal trims raises, maintains health plan
By Rudy Miller | For lehighvalleylive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on March 01, 2016 at 3:50 PM, updated March
01, 2016 at 8:06 PM
The Nazareth Area School District teachers' compromise plan trims proposed raises but hangs on to
traditional health care as opposed to a PPO plan. Teachers union President Adele Mitch released
details of the proposal Tuesday afternoon after administrators and the board
had a chance to review it. The teachers
have been working without a contract since Aug. 31. She said 97
percent of the teachers ratified the four-year proposal at a meeting Monday
night. "They want to get back to
the business of educating students without this distraction," Mitch said. The teachers have
proposed only step and column movement raises in the first year of the deal,
2015-16. Those raises are handed out as teachers gain experience and advanced
degrees.
“A recent update to federal education law requires states
to include at least one nonacademic measure in judging school performance. So
other states are watching these districts as a potential model. But the race to
test for so-called social-emotional skills has raised alarms even among the
biggest proponents of teaching them, who warn that the definitions are unclear
and the tests faulty.”
Testing
for Joy and Grit? Schools Nationwide Push to Measure Students’ Emotional Skills
New York Times By KATE ZERNIKE FEB. 29, 2016
SAN FRANCISCO — The
fifth graders in Jade Cooney’s classroom compete against a kitchen timer during
lessons to see how long they can sustain good behavior — raising hands,
disagreeing respectfully and looking one another in the eye — without losing
time to insults or side conversations. As
reward for minutes without misconduct, they win prizes like 20 seconds to kick
their feet up on their desks or to play rock-paper-scissors. And starting this
year, their school and schools in eight other California districtswill
test students on how well they have learned the kind of skills like
self-control and conscientiousness that the games aim to cultivate — ones that
might be described as everything you should have learned in kindergarten but
are still reading self-help books to master in middle age.
The Concentration of
Poverty in American Schools
An exclusive analysis uncovers
that students of color in the largest 100 cities in the United States are much
more likely to attend schools where most of their peers are poor or low-income.
The Atlantic by JANIE BOSCHMA AND RONALD BROWNSTEIN FEB 29, 2016
In almost all major
American cities, most African American and Hispanic students attend public
schools where a majority of their classmates qualify as poor or low-income, a
new analysis of federal data shows. This
systemic economic and racial isolation looms as a huge obstacle for efforts to
make a quality education available to all American students. Researchers have found that the single-most powerful predictor of racial
gaps in educational achievement is the extent to which students
attend schools surrounded by other low-income students. Underscoring the breadth of the challenge,
the economic segregation of minority students persists across virtually all
types of cities, from fast-growing Sunbelt places like Austin, Denver, Dallas,
and Charlotte to struggling Rust Belt communities like Detroit, Cleveland, and
Milwaukee, to the nation’s largest metropolitan centers, including New York,
Los Angeles, Chicago, and Houston. But cities, educators, and researchers are
also exploring new ways to abate the negative impact of concentrated poverty on
black and brown students.
Testing Resistance & Reform News: February 24 -
March 1, 2016
FairTest Submitted
by fairtest on March 1, 2016 - 1:10pm
The 2016 testing
season is underway both in several state K-12 public school systems and for
university admissions. Not surprisingly, this year's wave of standardized
exams is generating even more intense push back from students, parents,
educators and community activists fed up with test misuse and overuse. That
grassroots pressure is forcing policy makers to respond, often by reducing the
most egregious examples of testing overkill.
Astronaut Scott Kelly to return from nearly a year in
space: 'We did it!'
Morning Call by
Associated Press March 1, 2016
Astronaut Scott
Kelly closed the door Tuesday to an unprecedented year in space for NASA, flying back to the planet and loved
ones he left behind last March. Kelly
and his roommate for the past 340 days, Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko,
check out of the International Space Station on Tuesday night, U.S. time. By the time their capsule lands in Kazakhstan
on Wednesday, the pair will have traveled 144 million miles through space,
circled the world 5,440 times and experienced 10,880 orbital sunrises and
sunsets. Kelly photographed the first
five sunrises of his waking day Tuesday, posting the pictures on Twitter,
before quipping, "I gotta go!" His final tweet from orbit came
several hours later: "The journey isn't over. Follow me as I rediscover
#Earth!
Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators
(PASA) 2016 Education Congress April
6-7, 2016
professional
development program for school administrators
Focus: "The
Myths of Creativity: The Truth about How Innovative Companies Generate Great
Ideas" Featured Presenter: Dr.
David Burkus
April 6-7, 2016 Radisson
Hotel Harrisburg in Camp Hill
The program will
focus on how school leaders can develop and utilize creativity in education
management, operations, curriculum and leadership goals. The second day will
allow participants to select from multiple discussion/work sessions focusing on
concepts presented by Dr. Burkus and facilitated by school leaders who have
demonstrated success in creative thinking and leadership in schools across the
commonwealth.
Deadline for hotel
accommodations: March 15
See the PASA website
for more information at: www.pasa-net.org/2016edcongress.
The Pennsylvania Budget
and Policy Center will host its Annual Budget Summit on Thursday, March 3, 2016
9:00 - 3:30 at the Hilton Harrisburg.
PA Budget and Policy Center website
Join us for an in-depth look at the Governor's 2016-17 budget proposal, including what it means for education, health and human services, and local communities. The Summit will focus on the leading issues facing the commonwealth in 2016, with workshops, lunch, and a legislative panel discussion. Space is limited, so fill out the form below to reserve your spot at the Budget Summit.
PA Budget and Policy Center website
Join us for an in-depth look at the Governor's 2016-17 budget proposal, including what it means for education, health and human services, and local communities. The Summit will focus on the leading issues facing the commonwealth in 2016, with workshops, lunch, and a legislative panel discussion. Space is limited, so fill out the form below to reserve your spot at the Budget Summit.
Thursday, March 3,
2016 Hilton Hotel, Harrisburg Pennsylvania
The event is free,
but PBPC welcomes donations of
any size to help off-set costs.
PASBO 61st Annual
Conference and Exhibits March 8 - 11, 2016
Hershey Lodge and Convention Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Hershey Lodge and Convention Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania
PA Legislature Joint public hearing-on
Federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
PA House
and Senate Education Committees
03/14/2016 10:30 AM Hearing
Room #1 North Office Bldg
PSBA
Advocacy Forum & Day on the Hill
APR 4, 2016 • 9:00
AM - 5:30 PM
Join
PSBA and your fellow school directors for the third annual Advocacy Forum on
April 4, 2016, at the State Capitol in Harrisburg. This year’s event will have
a spotlight on public education highlighting school districts’ exemplary
student programs. Hear from legislators on how advocacy makes a difference in
the legislative process and the importance of public education advocacy.
Government Affairs will take a deeper dive into the legislative priorities and
will provide tips on how to be an effective public education advocate. There
will be dedicated time for you and your fellow advocates to hit the halls to
meet with your legislators on public education. This is your chance to share
the importance of policy supporting public education and make your voice heard
on the Hill. Online advanced registration will close on April 1, 4 p.m. On-site
registrants are welcome.
PenSPRA's Annual Symposium, Friday
April 8th in Shippensburg, PA
PenSPRA,
or the Pennsylvania School Public Relations Association, has developed a
powerhouse line-up of speakers and topics for a captivating day of professional
development in Shippensburg on April 8th. Learn to master data to
defeat your critics, use stories to clarify your district's brand and take
your social media efforts to the next level with a better understanding of
metrics and the newest trends. Join us the evening before the
Symposium for a “Conversation with Colleagues” from 5 – 6
pm followed by a Networking Social Cocktail Hour from 6 – 8 pm.
Both the Symposium Friday and the social events on
Thursday evening will be held at the Shippensburg University Conference
Center. Snacks at the social hour, and Friday’s breakfast and lunch is
included in your registration cost. $125 for PenSPRA members and $150 for
non-members. Learn more about our speakers and topics and register today at
this link:
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.
2016 PA Educational
Leadership Summit July 24-26 State College
Summit Sponsors:
PA Principals Association - PA Association of School Administrators
- PA Association of Middle Level Educators - PA Association of
Supervision and Curriculum Development
The 2016
Educational Leadership Summit, co-sponsored by four leading Pennsylvania education associations,
provides an excellent opportunity for school district administrative teams and
instructional leaders to learn, share and plan together at a quality venue in
"Happy Valley."
Featuring Grant
Lichtman, author of EdJourney: A Roadmap to the Future of Education,
Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera (invited), and Dana
Lightman, author of POWER Optimism: Enjoy the Life You Have...
Create the Success You Want, keynote speakers, high quality breakout
sessions, table talks on hot topics and district team planning and job alike
sessions provides practical ideas that can be immediately reviewed and
discussed at the summit before returning back to your district. Register and pay by April 30, 2016 for the
discounted "early bird" registration rate:
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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