Thursday, April 7, 2016

PA Ed Policy Roundup April 7: Controversy continues over Gov. Wolf’s school funding distribution

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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup April 7, 2016:
Controversy continues over Gov. Wolf’s school funding distribution



Campaign for Fair Education Funding - Rally for Public Education
Save the date: May 2nd at the Capitol



Wolf angers GOP with funding formula that gives smaller hikes to most school districts
Morning Call by Steve Esack Contact Reporter Call Harrisburg Bureau April 6, 2016
Most Lehigh Valley school districts would get less of a financial boost from under Gov. Tom Wolf's formula th
HARRISBURG — Most Lehigh Valley school districts would get less of a financial boost from the state under a formula developed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf than they would under a method championed by a bipartisan coalition spearheaded by the Legislature.  With the start of next fiscal year less than 21/2 months away, Wolf's plan is drawing heat from Republican lawmakers who accuse him of playing politics with students by forgoing the bipartisan formula he previously praised.  On Tuesday, Wolf announced he will use his own mathematical formula to distribute the extra $208 million in education money to districts hardest hit by 2010-11 budget cuts.  It's not right to start a new funding method without first restoring $370 million in cuts districts endured five years ago, Wolf said.  "Since Day One, I have been fighting for historic investments in education at all levels," Wolf said in a statement. "The new fair funding formula, which I support, cannot truly be fair unless the cuts are fully restored."

Here's what the difference between school funding formulas means to your district
Penn Live By Jan Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on April 06, 2016 at 7:22 PM, updated April 06, 2016 at 8:16 PM
Gov. Tom Wolf has a different idea from Republican lawmakers on how the $5.9 billion included in the 2015-16 budget for basic education funding and Ready to Learn block grants should be distributed.  Gov. Tom Wolf opened up a new front in that nearly yearlong budget battle by announcing his administration plans to distribute the $200 million in new education funding in a way of his choosing and not the Republicans, who control the House and Senate.  He outlined his so-called restoration formula on Tuesday for the $200 million in new funding added to the basic education funding and block grant budget lines.  Meanwhile, Republican leaders are challenging whether he has the authority to distribute the dollars the way he sees fit. They want him to use the bipartisan-backed formula recommended by the Basic Education Funding Commission last summer to distribute the basic ed dollars and not stray from the formula used for the block grant monies.   So how would your district fare under the two plans? The following is a spreadsheet modified from information provided by the House Republican Appropriations Committee that compares the two formulas.

Lehigh Valley schools may finally see all of state school funding
By Sara K. Satullo | For lehighvalleylive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on April 06, 2016 at 8:52 PM, updated April 06, 2016 at 10:53 PM
Nine months after Pennsylvania's state budget deadline passed, Lehigh Valley school districts got a glimpse of the total state funding they can expect to see this year.  Gov. Tom Wolf late on Monday announced his own restoration school funding formula to allocate the remaining 2015-16 school funding.  "Money will start going out to districts," said Jeff Sheridan, Wolf's press secretary.  Although, Wolf's actions may spark another budget stand off with the GOP, which is threatening a lawsuit, Pennlive.com reports.  Lehigh Valley school districts will see a total basic education funding increase of $7.86 million under Wolf's restoration formula.  Most Lehigh Valley schools see less funding under Wolf's formula than they would have under a bi-partisan new funding formula, according to a spreadsheet being circulated by Republicans.

How school funding is being distributed
Centre Daily Times BY MEGAN HEALEY APRIL 6, 2016 9:21 PM
Megan Healey is deputy press secretary for Gov. Tom Wolf.
A major part of the 2015-16 budget, which became law last week without Gov. Tom Wolf’s signature, is determining how to allocate basic education funding to help to restore the devastating education cuts by the previous administration and the legislature in 2011 while making Pennsylvania’s funding for schools more equitable. But first, let’s take a look back to when the school crisis in Pennsylvania began.
What happened to school funding beginning in 2011?
In short? Republicans cut $1 billion from education.
The effect? During that time, the state failed to fulfill its fundamental responsibility of funding our schools. This led to massive staff reductions, the elimination of academic programs, and soaring property taxes in more than 90 percent of districts. At the same time, student achievement levels fell across the board.
Where do we stand now?
While Wolf allowed the 2015-16 budget to become law, he vetoed the accompanying fiscal code bill. He did this, in part, because it directed the commonwealth to borrow up to $2,500,000,000 for reimbursements for school construction projects — that’s money that was never appropriated in the Republican budget.  They also did not include any funding to make the payments on that debt. Further, because of Pennsylvania’s growing structural deficit and Republicans’ failure to address their own fiscal gimmicks and irresponsibility, the state cannot go to the bond market to borrow because of its current status.

How much money will your school district get?
York Daily Record by  Angie Masonamason@ydr.com2:36 p.m. EDT April 6, 2016
Gov. Tom Wolf said he wants to make up for cuts of past years.
Gov. Tom Wolf has released information about how he plans to distribute additional school funding for 2015-16.  After Wolf allowed the Republican-crafted 2015-16 state budget to pass into law without his signature, there remained questions about how additional money included for schools would be dispersed among districts, because Wolf vetoed the fiscal code.  The fiscal code would have distributed the money using a new basic education funding formula recommended by a commission. But in January, after approving a half-year budget, Wolf used a different formula, saying he wanted to make up for cuts of past years.

Even with funding increase, school leaders remain concerned
Times Tribune BY SARAH HOFIUS HALL, STAFF WRITER Published: April 7, 2016
Northeast Pennsylvania school districts will see an additional $10.1 million in state funding under the budget that became law last month.  After nine months without a state budget, payments — especially an increase — are welcome, superintendents said Wednesday. However, the leaders also said they have greater concerns, such as being reimbursed for construction projects or charter school costs.  During the budget impasse, districts borrowed millions and warned that schools may be forced to close.  This week, school leaders received their first glimpse at what they can expect to receive.  For the remainder of the 2015-16 school year, an additional $50 million will be allocated to districts to restore partially the charter school reimbursement program and restore other cuts made by former Gov. Tom Corbett.  In January, the state released emergency funding, including an additional $50 million for the Ready to Learn Block Grant program, which many districts use to fund full-day kindergarten.  “Obviously, we’re happy with any type of money we can accept into our budget,” Carbondale Area Superintendent Joseph Gorham said.

Slight uptick in schools seeking to exceed tax limits
WITF Written by Mary Wilson, Capitol Bureau Chief | Apr 5, 2016 6:11 PM
Pennsylvania school board members came to the Capitol on Monday, some of them downright weary.  "It's been a grueling year," said Nathan Mains, director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association. PSBA was in town for its annual legislative lobbying day. Its members wanted to underscore the damage caused by the budget stalemate.  Taken together, they said, school districts have had to borrow more than a billion dollars to keep their doors open during the more than eight-month impasse. As schools pay that back, they'll also be on the hook for thousands of dollars in interest payments and legal fees. 35 of the 500 school districts in the commonwealth have seen their credit ratings take a hit.  All this was mentioned by Stacey Thompson, treasurer of Keystone School District in Clarion County.  "These are sacrifices," said Thompson, "that the school districts, students, parents, community, and personnel had to endure due to our legislature and governor not working together."  Thompson also pointed out the number of school districts that have applied for a special exception to raise their local taxes above a state-mandated limit.

PA School Funding Lawsuit
Going to Court for Fair Funding
Education Voters PA website
Public education advocates have a very important role to play in demanding action and then holding state lawmakers accountable for ensuring that all schools receive adequate and equitable funding to meet our children’s educational needs.
Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia (PILCOP) and Education Law Center- PA have filed a lawsuit on behalf of individuals, school districts and organizations, making the complaint that the funding system in Pennsylvania is not only wrong, it violates the Constitution.  Throughout Pennsylvania, our schools have not received adequate and equitable funding to meet our children’s educational needs.  But our Constitution says, “The General Assembly shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education to serve the needs of the Commonwealth.”

PA fiscal code veto a concern for Mahanoy Area business administrator
Republican Herald BY JOHN USALIS Published: April 6, 2016
MAHANOY CITY — Mahanoy Area Business Administrator John J. Hurst provided an update on the passage of the state budget and the governor’s veto of the state’s fiscal code during Thursday’s meeting of the school board.  Hurst presented his comments during his administrator’s report, saying that the lack of the fiscal code will hurt school districts, including Mahanoy Area. Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed the fiscal code legislation on March 25, which is connected to the state budget that Wolf decided not to sign but also said he would not veto.  “As regards to the state budget for the current fiscal year, there are two items on a good note,” Hurst said. “One is that we have a budget now and, two, it included $50 million more for education funding. However, the two negatives associated with it is, one, the fiscal code was vetoed. Unfortunately, that fiscal code included how that money was going to be given out to school districts. We don’t know as of yet how much money we’re going to get.”  Hurst added, “Secondly, the fiscal code also includes the authorizing legislation for the PlanCon borrowing. That was vetoed as well, so as of right now, there are no plans to borrow money for the PlanCon funding that all schools across the state get.”  The PlanCon, Planning and Construction Workbook, fund is administered by the state Department of Education and reimburses school districts for school construction project.

“The district’s current $3.9 million deficit includes the loss of $1.5 million in state reimbursements from the Planning and Construction Workbook (PlanCon) program which were eliminated statewide in the 2015-16 budget. The district has traditionally been reimbursed a portion of debt payments prior to this year.”
Baldwin-Whitehall school board hears budget presentation that includes tax hike, expense cuts
Post Gazette By Margaret Smykla April 7, 2016 1:14 AM
A 0.83-mill tax increase and $2.1 million in expense cuts will be required to produce a balanced budget for the 2016-17 school year in the Baldwin-Whitehall School District, according to district business manager Mark Cherpak.  He made the remarks during his presentation at Wednesday’s school board meeting on estimated revenue for the upcoming school year. Expenditures will be discussed at next Wednesday’s board meeting.  At 7 p.m. on April 19, a special board meeting at the administration building will feature a detailed budget presentation.  The proposed new real estate millage rate of 19.25 mills is the maximum hike allowed by the state over the current millage of 18.42 mills. The increase reflects the district’s Act 1 index for 2016-17 of 3.2 percent, or 0.59 mills, and $450,000 in approved exemptions for retirement increase costs, or 0.24 mills.

State money starts flowing to HASD
Hazelton Standard Speaker by MARIA JACKETTI Published: April 5, 2016
During days when every penny counts, the Hazleton Area School District has some good news to report.  During a brief, special meeting of the board Tuesday night, district Business Manager Tony Ryba said $5 million in state funds were released to the district Monday.  This is just a portion of the funds owed to the district, but it was the first state-guaranteed money since January, when Gov. Wolf released a lump sum for the fall term.  “We were worried since last week we were checking online and no funds had been released,” Ryba said.  The district also received another financial boost at a time when it is much needed.  The board approved a tax lien sale with Commonwealth Tax Strategies.  This sale may bring another $3.6 million into the district within the next few weeks.  In the meantime, the district remains in the same situation as 500 other districts across the state ... waiting.

“The lion's share of the added expenses comes from state-mandated retirement contributions, which will cost the district an extra $846,000 next year.”
Greensburg Salem's proposed budget shows spending increasing faster than revenue
Trib Live BY JACOB TIERNEY  | Wednesday, April 6, 2016, 11:00 p.m.
The Greensburg Salem School District's earliest draft of its 2016-17 budget shows expenses going up about $1.1 million while revenues would rise only about $413,000 if there is no tax increase.  District Business Manager Jim Meyer presented the proposed budget to the school board at its agenda meeting Wednesday.

“As required by the state, the district's retirement contribution will increase by about $562,000, or 17 percent.”
Burrell School District considers 3 percent tax hike
Trib Live BY LIZ HAYES | Wednesday, April 6, 2016, 10:00 p.m.
Burrell School Board is considering a nearly 3 percent property tax increase for the 2016-17 school year.  Even with the additional $383,000 a tax hike will bring in, district officials face a $280,000 deficit in the $29.8 million spending plan presented by Business Manager Jennifer Callahan.  Next year's expenses are expected to increase by about 2 percent over this year's $29.1 million budget due largely to three factors, according to Callahan:

Pennsylvania’s budget deficit is a ticking time bomb
Chestnut Hill Local Opinion Posted on April 6, 2016 by Sue Ann Rybak
According to www.merriam-webster.com, there are three definitions for the word budget, with the third stating that a budget is “an official statement from a government about how much it plans to spend during a particular period of time and how it will pay for the expenses.”  Pennsylvania’s 2015-2016 state budget failed to include that. It contained a much-needed increase in funding for education and other important services, but failed to address the need for more revenue.  The state faces a $2 billion deficit that will only continue to grow unless legislators and Gov. Tom Wolf agree on a way to close it.  State spending is not unusually high, so why is there a structural deficit? The bottom line is that over the years the state has consistently lost revenue thanks to tax breaks and loopholes for corporations.

Pa. Democrats: Governor punishing us for supporting GOP budget
TribLive BY KARI ANDREN  | Wednesday, April 6, 2016, 5:54 p.m.
A letter sent by 11 Pennsylvania lawmakers to Gov. Tom Wolf, accusing him of punishing them for their support of a Republican-crafted state budget.
Some Democratic lawmakers who broke ranks and voted for a Republican-crafted state budget say Gov. Tom Wolf is punishing them by hampering their ability to solve basic constituent problems.  In a letter to the governor Tuesday, 11 lawmakers said that starting about two weeks ago, their staffers were told by contacts at a number of state agencies they must go directly through Wolf's office for assistance. Prior to that, staff members worked through their agency contacts to resolve simple constituent issues, the legislators said.  “It's a very childish effort. I don't know what anybody thinks they're proving by doing this,” said state Rep. Nick Kotik, D-Kennedy, one of the signers of the letter. “I represent 62,000 people, and I do the best job I can to vote what I think is in their best interest. I don't think this kind of response is appropriate.”

Dissident House Democrats accuse Wolf Administration of political bullying
Penn Live By Charles Thompson | cthompson@pennlive.com  Email the author | Follow on Twitter  on April 07, 2016 at 7:19 AM, updated April 07, 2016 at 7:37 AM
A group of House Democrats who broke with Gov. Tom Wolf on the state budget impasse last month are now asserting they are being politically bullied by Wolf's office for their fiscal independence.  The lawmakers voiced their complaints in a letter to Wolf, and in a closed-door caucus with their colleagues Tuesday.  In the letter, a copy of which was shared with PennLive, the members explained their budget vote - which was believed to be a key to Wolf's March 23 decision to accept the budget package after nine months of fighting.  And they stated they want to continue to work with the first-term governor to help achieve his aims of increased school funding and fixing the state's structural budget deficit.

Politicians, union leaders, and teachers blast Philly school turnaround plans
Inquirer by Martha Woodall, Staff Writer Updated: APRIL 7, 2016 — 1:08 AM EDT
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, and Katie McGinty, candidate in the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate, joined local union and political leaders Wednesday in opposing a turnaround plan for an elementary school in North Philadelphia.  "If you didn't know the school was slated for essentially a destabilizing turnaround, you would never have known that by walking through the school," Weingarten said after an hour-long tour of E.W. Rhodes Elementary School. "In fact, you would have said: 'Wait a minute. This is a place where parents want to send their kids, where educators want to work, where the kids are engaged.' "  Rhodes, at 2900 W. Clearfield St., is one of four elementary schools Superintendent William R. Hite has targeted for district-run academic makeovers. Under the approach he outlined last month, staff will be required to reapply for their jobs; no more than half could remain.

Make up your own mind about the Philly soda tax
Al Dia By Edgardo González April 5, 2016
Edgardo González was born in Puerto Rico and has lived in Philadelphia for the past 30 years.  He is the board chair of Taller Puertorriqueño, the oldest and largest Latino arts and culture organization in Pennsylvania. He is a graduate of Jefferson University, and is well-known as a community activist working with civic, cultural and political groups in the Philadelphia area.
In the weeks ahead, Latino Philadelphians will be bombarded by advertisements claiming that a sugary drink tax will close bodegas and place a disproportionate burden on poor Latino families. While I personally support Mayor Kenney’s plan to use this tax to expand pre-k, create community schools and rehabilitate our neighborhood parks, rec centers and libraries, I’m not writing to persuade you. I am writing because — regardless of whether you’re for the tax, against it or undecided — you should be able to form your opinion based on the facts. And, unfortunately, the soda tax’s opponents have already shown little regard for the truth in their advertisements.
While the opposition has frequently claimed that this tax would cause small businesses, especially bodegas and corner stores, to suffer, when a national sugary drink tax was enacted in Mexico, overall beverage sales did not decline. In fact, just the opposite happened: the rise of bottled water consumption outpaced the decline in sugary drinks. Additionally, in Berkeley, where a sugary drink tax was also passed last year, not one small business has closed due to the tax. Contrary to the opponents’ advertisements, the evidence suggests that, while a tax may cause people to drink fewer sugary drinks, it doesn’t mean they’ll stop buying from their local bodega — they’ll just buy bottled water or diet soda instead.

Nationwide Debate Over Transgender Bathrooms Comes To Pine-Richland School District
CBS Pittsburgh April 6, 2016 8:38 PM By Brenda Waters
RICHLAND TOWNSHIP (KDKA) — The Pine-Richland School District doesn’t have a specific policy on the use of restrooms for transgender students, but changes could be on the way.  Currently, the practice in the district is that transgender students can use the bathroom of the gender they identify with, or a private bathroom, such as one in the nurse’s office.  But it all came to a head at a school board meeting Monday night when several parents talked about their worries. They said they are concerned about safety, privacy and whether their children will feel uncomfortable if they use the same restrooms as transgender students.

A matter of degrees
The good news is that the number of Philadelphia high school students who graduate and enroll in college is on the rise. The bad news? Only one in five get a degree.
The notebook by Dale Mezzacappa April 5, 2016 — 10:27am
Nearly six in 10 graduates from District high schools eventually enroll in college.  But more than six years after graduation, two-thirds of those who started college hadn’t finished. That means that only one in five high school graduates had attained a post-secondary degree or certificate in that time period.  This was the major finding of From Diplomas to Degrees, a report from Paul Harrington and Neeta Fogg of the Center for Labor Markets and Policy at Drexel University. The study was undertaken for the Philadelphia Youth Network and Project U-Turn.  Philadelphia’s college enrollment rate for high school graduates – 58 percent – is below the national average of 65 percent. But it is “close to what one would expect from a large urban area,” Fogg said in an interview.  Most telling among the findings, she said: Success depends on “where and when you enroll, if you enroll right away, if you have a plan, if you do this in a deliberate way.” If students “stumble into college, it doesn’t lead to a successful outcome.”  Completing college is crucial, because data show that students with some college, but no degree, fare no better in the labor market than high school graduates.  The data show that the great majority of Philadelphia graduates “stumble” toward their future rather than get the kind of guidance they need. Most enroll in two-year colleges, but success is more likely in four-year institutions. And many delay their matriculation, even though those who go to college immediately have a far better chance of graduating.  More than that, the data show that many are unprepared, academically and otherwise, for the rigors and demands of college.

Taking High School Courses In College Costs Students And Families Nearly $1.5 Billion
When Andrea Diaz was applying to colleges, she got good news and bad news. The good news was that American University, a private four-year university in Washington, D.C., wanted her. The bad news was that it required her to come to campus early to take two summer developmental-level courses in math and English.  "I was traumatized by it," Diaz says, "because I felt that they didn't see in me the potential to do well in college."  When is a college course not really a college course? When it's classified as "developmental," or, less euphemistically, "remedial." These courses cover material considered high-school level, typically in math or English composition.  "It was teaching us sentence structure and how to write an essay and verbs and pronouns," Diaz says of the English course she took as a pre-frosh. "It was such an elementary course, I was very surprised."

The Policy That Could All But Eliminate Achievement Gaps Between Rich And Poor Students
Poor students enter kindergarten already lagging behind their more affluent peers.
Rebecca Klein Editor, HuffPost Education 04/05/2016 09:01 am ET
The odds are stacked against low-income, black and Hispanic children before they even start school.  Low-income children enter kindergarten 13 months behind their more affluent peers in reading. Black and Hispanic children are nearly seven months and 12 months behind white students in reading, respectively. The initial disparities make it difficult for disadvantaged and minority students to catch up through high school and college.   But a simple policy prescription could narrow those gaps, suggests a new paper from the Center for American Progress.   The analysis looks at how a high-quality universal preschool system could affect achievement gaps between groups of students. Less than 20 percent of black, Hispanic and lower-income students currently attend high-quality early-education programs at schools or other education centers, the study’s authors estimate — but about 24 percent of white children and nearly 30 percent of higher-income children do. White children are more likely to be enrolled in high-quality programs. 

“New York had the most opt-outs of any state last year, with more than 240,000 third through eighth grade students skipping tests, according to FairTest. It was followed by high numbers in New Jersey, Colorado, Washington, Illinois, California and Oregon.  Hard numbers for this year's exams aren't expected until summer, though some counties were already reporting. In Mohawk Valley, N.Y., about 89 percent of students declined to take the test, while in Rochester, about one-third opted out, Politico reported.”
Common Core Opt-Out Debate: In New York, Thousands Of Students Skip Standardized Tests
International Business Times BY JULIA GLUM @SUPERJULIA ON 04/06/16 AT 12:19 PM
Spring means more than just a fine dusting of pollen everywhere you look: For elementary and secondary students, it's standardized testing time. And for a growing group of frustrated parents, it's opt-out season.  About 14,000 students in New York state decided not to take their mandatory language arts exams this week in part because they were aligned with Common Core, a national set of education standards that have drawn political and parental ire since they were adopted by states in 2010, Politico's Capital New York reported Wednesday. It's at least the second year of widespread coordinated protests against the standards, which critics have argued were badly implemented and are too uniform, pointing to a general dissatisfaction with mandatory testing and classroom intervention.  “It’s a free country,” mom Terri-Anne Davis told the Wall Street Journal. “People should enjoy their civil liberties, which include determining what’s best for their child.”


Susan Spicka of Education Voters PA and PA Budget Secretary Randy Albright are guests on EPLC’s “Focus on Education” one-hour program that will be broadcast initially on PCN on Sunday, April 10, at 3:00 p.m.
Education Policy and Leadership Center
Susan Spicka is the guest for the first half of the program and discusses the work of Education Voters PA and the Campaign for Fair Education Funding and related education funding issues.
Secretary Randy Albright is the guest for the second half of the program and discusses a broad range of education funding issues, including the 2015-2016 and the 2016-2017 budgets.

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:

Briefing: Public Education Funding in Pennsylvania
TUE, APR 12 AT 8:30 AM, PHILADELPHIA, PA
Join attorneys Michael Churchill, Jennifer Clarke and Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg for a briefing on:
  • the current budget impasse
  • the basics of education funding
  • the school funding lawsuit
  • the 2016-2017 proposed budget
 1.5 CLE credits available to PA licensed attorneys.  Light breakfast provided.
WHEN: Tuesday, April 12, 2016 from 8:30 AM to 10:00 AM (EDT)
WHERE: United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey - 1709 Benjamin Franklin Parkway 1st Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19103

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.

Electing PSBA Officers – Applications Due by April 30th
All persons seeking nomination for elected positions of the Association shall send applications to the attention of the chair of the Leadership Development Committee during the month of April, an Application for Nomination to be provided by the Association expressing interest in the office sought. “The Application for nomination shall be marked received at PSBA Headquarters or mailed first class and postmarked by April 30 to be considered and timely filed. If said date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, then the Application for Nomination shall be considered timely filed if marked received at PSBA headquarters or mailed and postmarked on the next business day.” (PSBA Bylaws, Article IV, Section 5.E.).
Open positions are:
In addition to the application form, PSBA Governing Board Policy 302 asks that all candidates furnish with their application a recent, print quality photograph and letters of application. The application form specifies no less than two and no more than four letters of recommendation, some or all of which preferably should be from school districts in different PSBA regions as well as from community groups and other sources that can provide a description of the candidate’s involvement with and effectiveness in leadership positions. PSBA Governing Board Policy 108 also outlines the campaign procedures of candidates.
All terms of office commence January 1 following election.

Join the Pennsylvania Principals Association at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 21, 2016, at The Capitol in Harrisburg, PA, for its second annual Principals' Lobby Day.
Pennsylvania Principals Association Monday, March 21, 2016 9:31 AM
 To register, contact Dr. Joseph Clapper at clapper@paprincipals.org by Tuesday, June 14, 2016. If you need assistance, we will provide information about how to contact your legislators to schedule meetings.
Click here for the informational flyer, which includes important issues to discuss with your legislators.

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

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