Thursday, June 30, 2016

PA Ed Policy Roundup June 30: Happy Fiscal New Year’s Eve; HB530 Charter Bill Moving Today

Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 3900 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, Governor's staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, Wolf education transition team members, Superintendents, PTO/PTA officers, parent advocates, teacher leaders, business leaders, faith-based organizations, labor organizations, education professors, members of the press and a broad array of P-16 regulatory agencies, professional associations and education advocacy organizations via emails, website, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Weekend Roundup June 30, 2016:
Happy Fiscal New Year’s Eve; HB530 Charter Bill Moving Today



URGENT–Lawmakers and Governor Wolf MUST oppose HB 530–legislation that would make PA’s charter school law even WORSE
Education Voters PA Posted on June 29, 2016 by EDVOPA
The PA House is moving charter school legislation today that would make PA’s charter school law even WORSE than it already is.
HB 530 is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It is NOT a genuine effort to improve the quality of education children in the Commonwealth receive, but instead, a massive giveaway to charter schools that would damage school districts throughout the Commonwealth and undermine the quality of education children in all schools receive.



Blogger Commentary: In addition to charter provisions, HB530 would also increase the limit for the EITC program, which primarily diverts public tax dollars to unaccountable private and religious schools, from $150 million to $175 million.  These are tax dollars that are not available for the general fund.
Speaker Turzai, members of REACH foundation urge support of House Bill 530
Speaker of the House Rep Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny) along with Executive Director of the REACH Foundation, Otto V. Banks, help a press conference at the McCormick Riverfront Library to urge the passage of House Bill 530.  This legislation would increase the educational improvement tax credit (EITC) program and other programs from $150 million to $175 million allowing for more scholarships and education for children inside and out of the REACH foundation.
CLICK HERE to read the full story from The PLS Reporter.(paywall)

This is a PA House GOP list of proposed budget distribution estimates by county by school district; this is not finalized yet
Proposed 16-17 Basic Education Funding (BEF) Distribution Estimate

“The Senate version kept the underpinnings of the House plan - namely, more money for public schools, including $200 million for K-12 classroom education - but added slightly less than $40 million for higher education. The House had not included any new aid for state system universities, community colleges, and the four state-related universities.  The changes have to be approved by the House before going to Wolf for his signature. Both houses are controlled by Republicans.”
Inching toward budget deal? Pa. Senate OKs $31.5B spending plan
Inquirer by Angela Couloumbis and Karen Langley, HARRISBURG BUREAU Updated: JUNE 30, 2016 — 1:08 AM EDT
HARRISBURG - The Republican-controlled legislature appears determined to beat the clock and send Gov. Wolf a budget before the start of the new fiscal year.  Less than 24 hours after the House passed a $31.5 billion spending plan, the Senate on Wednesday tweaked the proposal and swiftly passed it in a 47-3 floor vote. The measure won the vote of every Democrat - a strong signal that it has tacit support from the Democratic governor.  "We've learned from our past, not to repeat it but to move forward," said Sen. Vincent Hughes (D., Phila.), referring to last year's nine-month impasse. "We learned from the fact that this is a divided government, learned from the fact that incremental gains are gains nonetheless."  Getting a spending plan to the governor before the Friday start of the fiscal year is a big step toward achieving an on-time budget, but does not guarantee one. The House and Senate have yet to finalize how to pay for the plan, and there's no assurance that Wolf will sign off.

Pa. Senate OKs $31.6 billion budget; how to pay for it is next
The Senate has passed the budget, which now returns to the House.
Steve Esack Contact Reporter Call Harrisburg Bureau
State Senate OKs $31.6 billion budget; how to pay for it comes next  HARRISBURG — The state Senate voted Wednesday to approve a $31.6 billion budget for the fiscal year that begins Friday. That's about $95 million more than what the House had approved Tuesday night, when other spending is adjusted.  A big chunk of the Senate's proposed increase would provide an additional $40 million for a college loan program and all taxpayer-supported universities. That would be a 2.5 percent increase for the publicly funded higher education system, which the House had flat-lined while increasing spending in all other education categories.  The Senate's 47-3 vote moves the budget back to the House, which must reconcile the differences between the two chambers and move a final spending package to Gov. Tom Wolf for his signature or veto.
After the Senate vote, Wolf thanked the leadership, saying in a statement: "As the budget moves through the process, I look forward to continuing to engage with the Legislature to discuss a sustainable revenue package."

State Senate advances House budget bill, with funding in limbo
Delco Times By Marc Levy, The Associated Press POSTED: 06/30/16, 5:40 AM EDT
HARRISBURG >> The Pennsylvania Senate took quick action on the House’s just-passed budget package Wednesday, a day before the state government’s fiscal-year deadline, although divisions remained over how to pay for the nearly $31.6 billion spending plan.  The Republican-controlled Senate voted 47-3 after making changes to the plan the House passed a day earlier with bipartisan support.  Both chambers adjourned Wednesday, to return Thursday. House Speaker Mike Turzai, R-Allegheny, said his chamber would move quickly to review the Senate’s changes, but did not say how his chamber would handle it.  The swift movement comes barely two months after the end of a record-breaking stalemate that marked the first budget between Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf and the Republican-controlled Legislature.

$31.5 billion Pa. state budget goes back to House's woodshed, at least for a day, after Senate changes
Penn Live By Charles Thompson | cthompson@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on June 29, 2016 at 9:23 PM, updated June 29, 2016 at 11:51 PM
With some deft accounting, the state Senate came up with more money for Pennsylvania's public colleges and universities Wednesday, even as it lowered total spending from a budget bill passed by the state House a day before.  The winners are the state-related universities (Penn State, Pitt and Temple), the 14 members of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, and the state's 14 community colleges.  All stand to receive a 2.5 percent bump in 2016-17 state allocations that had been frozen by the House at current-year levels.  To create the head room for that $40 million increase, the Senate took a $95.3 million annual expense for bond-funded, economic development projects out of the general fund budget

“Only three Senators—Sen. Scott Wagner (R-York), Sen. John Eichelberger (R-Blair), and Sen. Scott Hutchinson (R-Venango)—opposed the spending plan.”
Senate returns budget to House with increased higher education funding, lower spend number
The Senate Wednesday afternoon returned to the House the budget that chamber passed less than a day earlier, but increasing higher education funding by 2.5 percent and lowering the overall spend number to $31.53 billion.   Only three Senators—Sen. Scott Wagner (R-York), Sen. John Eichelberger (R-Blair), and Sen. Scott Hutchinson (R-Venango)—opposed the spending plan.  The spending plan voted on by the Senate Wednesday found its $40 million increase to be shared by Pennsylvania’s state-related schools by shifting money from lines said not to be priorities to the House or the governor and was able to obtain its bipartisan support by increasing funding in areas like the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission.
Read the full story from The PLS Reporter HERE. (paywall)

These are the five biggest things to know about the #PaBudget: Wednesday Morning Coffee
Penn Live By John L. Micek | jmicek@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on June 29, 2016 at 7:35 AM, updated June 29, 2016 at 7:52 AM
THE MORNING COFFEE
Good Wednesday Morning, Fellow Seekers.
As some of you may have heard by now, Pennsylvania could be on track to an on-time state budget for the first time in Gov. Tom Wolf's young administration.  But before you break out the party hats and start planning celebrations for 12:01 a.m. on July 1, here are the five things you need to know about where things stand:

Five more things to know about the #PaBudget: Thursday Morning Coffee
Penn Live By John L. Micek | jmicek@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on June 30, 2016 at 7:37 AM, updated June 30, 2016 at 7:39 AM
THE MORNING COFFEE
Good Thursday Morning, Fellow Seekers.
Today is June 30, which means it's the end of the 2015-16 fiscal year is nearly upon us.
And, at midnight tonight, state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler, festooned with garland and blinking lights, will make a 60-second descent down the Commonwealth statue at the top of the Pennsylvania Capitol, officially ringing in the start of the 2016-17 fiscal year at 12:01 a.m. on Friday.  Okay ... so it doesn't really happen like that ... but how cool would it be if it did?
But one part is true: Lawmakers and Gov. Tom Wolf do have until midnight tonight to pass a new state budget. And, all things being equal, it looks like they might (more or less) pull it off.
So, with that in mind, here's five more things to know about what's happening:

Chester County lawmakers applaud state budget
By Ginger Dunbar, Daily Local News POSTED: 06/29/16, 9:50 PM EDT
HARRISBURG >> As the clock ticks toward the state budget deadline, several Chester County legislators have shown their support for the $31 billion spending plan.  The House voted 132-68 Tuesday to approve the budget bill that has a Friday deadline as the fiscal year ends on July 1. The state Senate then voted on the 2016-17 budget, which includes additional educational funding, Wednesday.  All state representatives from Chester County voted in favor of Senate Bill 1073 except state Rep. John Lawrence, R-13, of West Grove, and state Rep. Dan Truitt, R-156, of East Goshen. Lawrence faces Democrat Nancy Dean of London Grove in the Nov. 8 election; Truitt faces West Chester Mayor Carolyn Comitta, a Democrat.

Budget peace in Harrisburg? The political reasons for the calm
Lancaster Online by John Baer | Philadelphia Daily News Jun 29, 2016
As Harrisburg moves toward a new state budget, let’s take a look at the short- and long-term politics involved.  You might want to sit down. This gets dizzying.  First, the budget is getting done more or less on schedule without any big-time personal taxes and amid a new cordiality under Harrisburg’s Big Top.  I sense you have questions:  Didn’t the last budget take forever because our Democratic governor and Republican Legislature are ideological opposites, and isn’t that still the case?  Yes.  Hasn’t our Democratic governor for two years called for higher personal income taxes, increased or expanded sales taxes, taxes on natural gas, all while claiming the state’s in “crisis,” tumbling into fiscal hell?  Yes.  And isn’t his argument that taxes are needed because there isn’t revenue to meet “the math” for a constitutionally mandated balanced budget, and didn’t he tell lawmakers just a few months back that they should get serious or “find another job?”  Correct.  Well, then, how to explain a fairly sudden — shall we say friendly? — shift in thinking?

Court dismisses PSBA suit over budget-fight holdup of school aid
Inquirer by The Associated Press Updated: JUNE 29, 2016 — 6:19 PM EDT
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - A Pennsylvania judge is dismissing a lawsuit over held-up state and federal school aid during a record-breaking budget stalemate.  In Wednesday's decision, Commonwealth Court Judge Mary Hannah Leavitt said the Pennsylvania School Boards Association lawsuit is effectively moot because of budget legislation that became law March 28.  The school boards association had asked the court to prevent the state from withholding the dollars in the future, and it asked for damages for the districts' borrowing costs and loss of investment income on dried-up reserves.  In her decision, Leavitt wrote that a challenge to the constitutionality of delayed budget legislation requires current evidence. She also wrote that such a stalemate is unlikely to happen again, but the issue could be litigated should another occur.
A school boards association spokesman says it's too soon to say whether it will appeal.

Commentary: 'Reform' plan doesn't fix Pa. pension crisis
Inquirer Commentary By Richard C. Dreyfuss Updated: JUNE 30, 2016 — 3:01 AM EDT
Richard C. Dreyfuss is an actuary and business consultant.
Someone once quipped that a camel is a horse designed by committee. A perfect example of this metaphor is the "stacked-hybrid" public pension plan passed by the Pennsylvania House in mid-June. Rather than fixing our broken state pension system, this plan keeps all the problems that led to billions in debt and continues to avoid paying for the promises made to public employees.  Pennsylvania taxpayers already face an unsustainable $63.2 billion pension debt - 730 percent more than just 10 years ago. This threatens future plan solvency and transfers costs to future generations. Those seeking to live, work, or invest in our state will not be pleased at a welcome committee holding out a bill for billions in unfunded pension liabilities.  Though lawmakers should be applauded for making this critical issue a priority, this latest attempt at pension reform isn't the short- or long-term solution Pennsylvanians have been waiting for.

Blogger commentary: based upon their consistent, dismal academic performance over several years, it seems to me that cyber schools have already severely impacted their students, not to mention the taxpayers who have to fund them.
Funding cuts to cyber schools in Pa. would severely impact students: PennLive letters
Letters to the Editor  by TILLIE ELVRUM, president, PublicSchoolOptions.org, Colorado Springs, Colorado  on June 29, 2016 at 3:00 PM, updated June 29, 2016 at 7:31 PM
As the Pennsylvania General Assembly considers the state budget, parents with children in public cyber charter schools hope they won't be treated like second-class citizens again.  Funding cuts ignore that cyber charters already begin with an average of 25 percent less in funding than traditional district schools, although they are required to provide an equal education. That's even more perplexing when you consider that many of our students come from traditional public schools that have failed them. They're often behind their peers and turn to cyber schools for help.  Funding cuts would severely impact our cyber schools' ability to properly educate our children, especially those with specialized needs, causing them to only fall further behind.

School funding in Pa, NJ
WHYY Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane June 28, 2016
Guests: Kevin McCorry, Donna Cooper, John Mooney runtime 48:58
Pennsylvania has adopted a new school funding formula, yet the state still distributes money largely without regard for the actual needs of students. In fact, the state gives the most funding per student to districts where enrollment has dropped sharply over the last 25 years. We’ll talk about the funding formula and how the state divides up its education cash, with KEVIN McCORRY, a statewide education reporter for Keystone Crossroads.  We’ll hear from DONNA COOPER, executive director of Public Citizens for Children and Youth as well. And we’ll get an update on New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s school funding plan from JOHN MOONEY, education reporter and founding editor and CEO of NJ Spotlight.

PA's rural schools are at a precipice
City and State PA By:  RYAN BRIGGS JUN 29, 2016 AT 12:29 PM
Along the maze of state roads that wind through Pennsylvania’s remote Northern Tier, wildflowers are blooming white and purple, and the canopy of trees glows verdant across the folds of endless rolling hills. On Route 6, the main road into Potter County, a wooden sign proclaims, “Welcome to Potter County: God’s Country.”  To the seasonal tourists and anglers, it must seem to be so. But behind this idyllic facade, God’s country is dying.   “The economic base is pretty poor here, so we lose all our best people,” says Jerry Sasala, superintendent of Austin Area School District. “A lot of retired people move in because the land is so cheap, but it’s not putting money in the economy. Everything is being hollowed out. We’re killing ourselves just to try and keep the schools up.”  Sasala’s class size is down 20 percent from a decade ago, mirroring the county’s flagging birth rate. His special education costs are way up, in backwards lockstep with a faltering local economy – 42 percent of his students come from families living near the federal poverty line. It’s a district where fracking wells, once viewed as an economic boon, now sit idle, victims of cratering petroleum prices. Longtime factory employers have shuttered – the  Piper Aircraft factory down the road from Austin was long ago converted into a state prison. Drug overdose rates in the county have doubled over the last 10 years.  But the problems in this remote school district are easy for outsiders to ignore, as might be expected for the commonwealth’s smallest school district, which graduated just 12 students this year. 

Nearly all Philly teaching positions filled, district says
The notebook/WHYY Newsworks BY AVI WOLFMAN-ARENT JUNE 28, 2016
The School District of Philadelphia announced Wednesday it has filled 99 percent of its teaching positions, a notable accomplishment given the district’s endemic vacancy woes.  The announcement follows a sustained and public push to fill every teaching position by Friday. The district will fall short of that goal, but only barely. By the end of this week, just 45 vacancies will remain, according to district superintendent William Hite. Before hiring began, 1,940 positions were open.  The district has approximately 8,100 total teaching slots — down about 300 from last year.  “We made a commitment to fully staff all schools by the start of the school year, and we plan to meet that goal,” said Hite.  In 2015, 118 positions were open when the school year began, and the shortage continued throughout the school year. When school let out just a week ago, the district had 132 unfilled teaching slots, said district spokesman Fernando Gallard.

Hite: 99% of Philly teacher positions filled
Inquirer by Martha Woodall, Staff Writer Updated: JUNE 30, 2016 — 1:08 AM EDT
Philadelphia School Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. announced Wednesday that the School District had filled 99 percent of its teaching positions and was on target to have all filled by the start of the school year.  "These classrooms are empty right now for the summer, but come September, they will be full of teachers," Hite said at a news conference at Roxborough High School.  "Last year there were too many vacancies in our schools," he said. "We recognized the problem; we took action with an aggressive recruitment and hiring strategy. We made a commitment to fully staff all of our schools by the start of the school year, and we plan to meet our goal. Families can rest assured that schools will be ready and completely staffed to welcome students in September."  Hite said the district expected to have only 45 vacancies left by week's end.

Pittsburgh school board won't rescind contract with new superintendent
Trib Live BY ELIZABETH BEHRMAN  | Wednesday, June 29, 2016, 6:54 p.m.
The majority of the Pittsburgh Public Schools board reaffirmed its support of the district's next superintendent, with the board president saying an independent investigation found Anthony Hamlet did not intentionally embellish his record or plagiarize a part of his resume.  The board voted 7-2 in a special meeting Wednesday night to allow Hamlet to be sworn in as superintendent Friday.  “We're hopeful the community will come together to welcome him on the job,” said board President Regina Holley, who voted to protect his contract. “The work that he will do is too important to continue debating over Dr. Hamlet's resume.”  Hamlet did not attend Wednesday's meeting, but the district released a statement on his behalf after the vote: “I regret the concern this situation has caused and I apologize to the parents and communities for this unintended distraction. My focus has always been the children.”  The board unanimously approved Hamlet's five-year, $210,000 contract May 18. He has been embroiled in controversy since plagiarism and apparent data embellishments were revealed in his resume, with several education-advocacy and civil rights groups calling on the school board to conduct a new search.

“Factors affecting the district's budget in the future include its contributions to the Public School Employees' Retirement System, to which Chartiers Valley will contribute $4.5 million in 2016-17. In 2010-11, by comparison, Chartiers Valley's contribution totaled about $712,000.”
Chartiers Valley reverses course, votes to raise taxes
Trib Live BY JIM SPEZIALETTI | Wednesday, June 29, 2016, 12:09 p.m.
Chartiers Valley School District officials had a change of plans with the district's $62 million budget for 2016-17.  Instead of dipping into savings to balance the budget, board members approved, by a 7-2 vote, the final budget with a 0.39-mill property tax increase.  “We really worked hard not to have a millage increase,” Superintendent Brian White said.  The property tax increase is the first for the district since 2010. The new millage is 16.6067 mills, which is lowest among Allegheny County school districts. For residents who own property assessed at $100,000, their increase will amount to $38.92. It will generate $884,000 for the district.  In May, the board approved a preliminary budget with no property tax increase by using $1.3 million in savings. Since the preliminary approval, administrators trimmed $500,000 in expenses.

“A major increase in expenditures comes from what the district must contribute to the Public School Employees' Retirement System. Districts contribute a percentage based on salaries. This year's rate is 30.03 percent, meaning South Fayette must contribute $6.45 million to the pension fund, an increase of $883,743 from last year.”
South Fayette raises taxes, uses savings to balance final budget
Trib Live BY JIM SPEZIALETTI | Wednesday, June 29, 2016, 6:00 p.m.
The South Fayette School Board approved a $52.75 million budget for 2016-17 that increases property taxes by 0.58 mills and uses nearly $1.75 million in savings.  The new property tax rate is 26.7 mills. The average value of a home in South Fayette is $143,000, translating to an increase of $83.54.  Board members had asked Director of Finance Brian Tony previously presented three other options: no tax increase while using $2.47 million in savings; a 0.5-mill increase while using $1.85 million in savings; and raising the millage up to the index allowed by the state, which is 0.8357 mills, and taking $1.4 million from savings.  By increasing the rate 0.5832 mills, the district will generate $727,253 more in revenue. The district's savings now will total $16.5 million.

“The 2016-17 budget is about $1 million larger than the previous year and most of the increase, about $877,000, comes from mandatory pension increases.”
Greensburg Salem school board raises property taxes, OKs $43.5 million budget
Trib Live BY JACOB TIERNEY  | Wednesday, June 29, 2016, 11:00 p.m.
Greensburg Salem School District residents' property tax bills will go up 2.7 mills this year after a 5-4 school board vote Wednesday.  This brings the total millage to 87.22, and will fund the district's 2016-17 budget of about $43.5 million. The budget also passed 5-4 Wednesday.  Board members Frank Gazze, Rick Payha, Robin Savage, Stephen Thomas and Barbara Vernail voted for the budget and the tax increase, with Charlotte Kemerer, Ronald Mellinger, Jeffrey Metrosky and Nick Rullo opposing both.  “This is for the betterment of our students and the quality of education at Greensburg Salem,” Vernail said.  The increase is the maximum allowed by the state and will cost the average taxpayer about $52 more a year. This is not enough to cover all expenses, so the district will use about $281,000 from its reserves to cover the cost.

Neshannock OKs school budget, tax increase
By Nancy Lowry New Castle News June 29, 2016
A budget featuring  $18.7 million in expenses and $17.9 in revenue was adopted Tuesday night by the Neshannock Township School Board.   The budget includes a 0.4261 mill property tax increase, setting the new millage rate at 15.118.  To further support the budget, board members voted to continue the one-half percent earned income tax which is shared with Neshannock Township; retained a one-half real estate transfer tax, also shared with the township and continued a $10 per capita ta, a $5 per capita tax and a $10 emergency and municipal services tax.  The budget was adopted by a unanimous 7-0 vote of the board. Voting for it were members David Antuono, Melissa Johnson, Karen Houk, James McFarland, Amy Na, Raymond Omer, and board president P.J. Copple. Absent were Dr. William Cosgrove and Larry Keith.  The district cut $13.3 million from its initial spending plan which anticipated a $2 million deficit last month.
Following Tuesday’s special meeting, Superintendent Dr. Terence P. Meehan said the difference in revenue and expenses will be made up from the district’s fund balance. He said he also anticipates the district will receive more in 2016-17 from the state than it received in the school year just finishing.

Wilkinsburg passes budget with no tax increase
By Molly Born / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette June 29, 2016 4:55 PM
The Wilkinsburg school board unanimously passed a 2016-17 budget Tuesday night that includes no tax increase.   The property tax rate will remain at 32.63 mills. The vote came a week after the board approved furloughing 20 teachers as part of the official closing of the district’s high and middle schools.   About 270 students from Wilkinsburg’s middle and high schools will move to Pittsburgh Westinghouse 6-12 on a tuition basis starting next school year, making Wilkinsburg a pre-K-6 school district this fall. 


Education Secretary Spars With Senators Over School Ratings, ESSA Timeline
Education Week Politics K12 Blog By Andrew Ujifusa on June 29, 2016 1:41 PM
Washington The top GOP Senate lawmaker for education criticized accountability proposals from the U.S. Department of Education that would require summative ratings for schools, saying such a requirement is not found in the Every Student Succeeds Act and would infringe on state autonomy.  Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., the Senate education committee chairman, told Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. in a hearing here Wednesday that he was also worried that the proposed ESSA accountability rules might give the department improper oversight over states' content standards. And both Alexander and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the committee's ranking member, expressed concerns the draft rules would make states and schools shift to the new law too quickly.   The meeting was the first time Alexander, one of ESSA's main architects, shared concerns about specific policies in the draft ESSA accountability rules, which were released late last month.

Oklahoma teachers fight education cuts by winning elections
Washington Post By Sean Murphy | AP June 29 at 7:26 PM
OKLAHOMA CITY — Inner-city high school English teacher Mickey Dollens was fed up with low pay and cuts to public education, so he decided to run for the state Legislature to fix the problem.
Then the 28-year-old from Oklahoma City became a casualty of those cuts and was laid off. He has since become a poster boy for a movement of teachers, parents and other supporters of public education trying to elect candidates who will resist cuts imposed by majority Republicans.
The group passed its first major hurdle with flying colors on Tuesday when candidates it backed knocked off two incumbent House Republicans and came close to beating a third, a rarity in Oklahoma politics. Only three GOP incumbents have lost to a primary challenger in the last 16 years.  “They’ve already cut some sports and extra-curriculars like a welding program,” said Dollens, who won his Democratic primary with more than 90 percent of the vote and now faces a Republican in November. “Then my principal brought me in and said we have to let you and 19 other teaches go.

Education Bloggers Daily Highlights 6/30/2016

Testing Resistance & Reform News: June 22 - 28, 2016
Submitted by fairtest on June 28, 2016 - 12:54pm 
A number of states are already moving to take advantage of the flexibility to overhaul assessments included in the new, federal Every Student Succeeds Act. But proposed U.S. Department of Education regulations could inhibit reforms that help improve learning and learning. If you have not weighed in already, now is the time to submit a comment -- it's easy; just click on the first link below


Appointment of Voting Delegates for the October 15th PSBA Delegate Assembly Meeting
PSBA Website June 27, 2016
The governing body boards of all member school entities are entitled to appoint voting delegates to participate in the PSBA Delegate Assembly to be held on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016. It is important that school boards act soon to appoint its delegate or delegates, and to notify PSBA of the appointment.
Voting members of the Delegate Assembly will:
1.     Consider and act upon proposed changes to the PSBA Bylaws.
2.     Receive reports from the PSBA president, executive director and treasurer.
3.     Receive the results of the election for officers and at-large representatives. (Voting upon candidates by school boards and electronic submission of each board’s votes will occur during the month of September 2016.)
4.     Consider proposals recommended by the PSBA Platform Committee and adopt the legislative platform for the coming year.
5.     Conduct other Association business as required or permitted in the Bylaws, policies or a duly adopted order of business.
The 2016 Delegate Assembly will meet on Saturday, Oct. 15, at the conclusion of the regularly scheduled events of the main PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference.

Apply Now! EPLC’s 2016-2017 Pennsylvania Education Policy Fellowship Program

Nominations now open for PSBA Allwein Awards (deadline July 16)
PSBA Website POSTED ON MAY 16, 2016 IN PSBA NEWS
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 2016 Allwein Award nominations will be accepted starting today and all applications are due by July 16, 2016. The nomination form can be downloaded from the website.
https://www.psba.org/2016/05/nominations-now-open-allwein-awards/

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:
https://s3.goeshow.com/seee/PAEdLeadershipSummit/ereg312499.cfm?clear

PA Supreme Court sets Sept. 13 argument date for fair education funding lawsuit in Philly
Thorough and Efficient Blog JUNE 16, 2016 BARBGRIMALDI LEAVE A COMMENT
https://edfundinglawsuit.wordpress.com/2016/06/16/pa-supreme-court-sets-argument-date-for-fair-education-funding-lawsuit/

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Wednesday, June 29, 2016

PA Ed Policy Roundup June 29: Pa House OKs $31.5 billion budget and moves it to Senate

Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 3900 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, Governor's staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, Wolf education transition team members, Superintendents, PTO/PTA officers, parent advocates, teacher leaders, business leaders, faith-based organizations, labor organizations, education professors, members of the press and a broad array of P-16 regulatory agencies, professional associations and education advocacy organizations via emails, website, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg

Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup June 29, 2016:
Pa House OKs $31.5 billion budget and moves it to Senate


Winnowing applicants to become Philly's first class of community schools
The notebook/WHYY Newsworks BY AVI WOLFMAN-ARENT JUNE 27, 2016
The mayor has lobbied hard for community schools, even pledging a chunk of the revenue from his hard-fought sweetened drinks tax to seed the initiative. That fight played out in public, defined by the fierce debate that so often attaches itself to big policy showdowns.  The community school selection process has been less public, partly by design. The mayor’s office doesn’t want the process to turn into a political frenzy.  It’s also indicative of the fact that the mayor’s office doesn’t have a set of rigid criteria for picking community schools. There’s no formula or set of weights city officials are using to narrow the pool of candidates. And that’s not unique to Philadelphia. Across the country, there’s no real consensus on how cities should select community schools  “There really aren’t existing best practices out there,” said Della Jenkins, an analyst at Research for Action who recently co-authored a report on community schools in practice.

Pa. House OKs budget; battle looms on how to pay for it
Inquirer by Angela Couloumbis and Karen Langley, HARRISBURG BUREAU Updated: JUNE 28, 2016 — 6:35 PM EDT
HARRISBURG - The House of Reprsentatives on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a $31.5 billion budget, with support from both Republicans and Democrats -- but a stubborn behind-the-scenes fight remains over how to pay for it.  The spending plan passed by the GOP-dominated House in a 132-to-68 vote would spend about 5 percent more than this year's $30 billion budget, and send an additional $200 million for public school education.  Both parties hailed it as an example of the bipartisan spirit that has permeated budget talks this year, unlike last, when the budget impasse dragged on for nine months. But they have yet to move legislation that details a key tax they are seeking to increase -- or even whether the money-generating proposals they have already approved would raise enough new dollars to support it.  For his part, Gov. Wolf, a Democrat, said Tuesday that he does not believe the House's plan, which would rely on new money from online gambling, among other proposals, raises enough money.

Pa House OKs $31.5 billion budget and moves it to Senate
Morning Call by Steve Esack Contact Reporte r Call Harrisburg Bureau June 28
HARRISBURG — In a bipartisan vote, the House on Tuesday evening passed a $31.5 billion budget that increases spending by 5 percent by expanding gambling options, putting higher taxes on tobacco products, counting on more alcohol sales and allowing tax cheats to pay up.  The 132-68 vote moves the 2016-17 spending bill to the Senate, which would begin its debates and votes Wednesday with the goal of moving a final spending and tax package to Gov. Tom Wolf by Thursday. The current fiscal year closes Thursday and the new one begins Friday.  But it's not clear if the timelines will be met.  The House's spending bill did not include a tax package and the Senate is not happy. Wolf also has voiced concern that the House's package is not balanced.   Still, on Tuesday night, the House's Republican and Democratic leadership praised each other for passing a budget without the partisan warfare that led to a nine-month delay in approving this year's budget to the financial detriment of school districts, counties and nonprofits.

Budget bill clears House committee, but obstacles abound
Post Gazette By Angela Couloumbis & Karen Langley Harrisburg Bureau June 28, 2016 12:25 AM
HARRISBURG — There may soon be a budget bill, but there is no budget deal.
The proposal that cleared the House Appropriations Committee on Monday night calls for the state to spend about 5 percent more next year than it did under this year's $30 billion budget.  The boost in spending would be propped up by legalizing online gambling, loosening the state’s monopoly over the sale of wine, imposing new taxes on tobacco and instituting a tax amnesty program.  But neither the Republican-dominated Senate nor the administration of the Democratic governor has committed to support it.  Jeff Sheridan, Gov. Tom Wolf’s spokesman, said Monday that the governor has not agreed to the plan.  It doesn’t fully fund one of Mr. Wolf’s spending priorities: new dollars for opioid abuse treatment and prevention.  Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman, R-Centre, expressed skepticism about aspects of the House plan: “We haven’t finalized anything,” he said, later noting, “There is no sense sending the governor something he doesn’t want, or at least won’t agree to sign.”

House passes $31.6 billion spending plan, putting Pa. on track for an on-time budget
Penn Live By Jan Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on June 28, 2016 at 6:20 PM, updated June 28, 2016 at 6:42 PM
The House on Tuesday passed a $31.6 billion spending plan for 2016-17 that sets the table for a final round of negotiations with the Senate and Gov. Tom Wolf.  The plan, which still awaits a finalized revenue plan to raise the money needed to balance spending at that level, now goes to the Senate with two days left until the fiscal year ends.  By voting 132-68 to approve the budget bill that represents a 4.8 percent increase in spending, several House members noted it could put Pennsylvania on track to pass an on-time budget.  Considering Pennsylvania endured a nine-month delay in getting a state budget finalized, "that in itself is a very good reason to vote for this budget," said House Democratic Appropriations Committee Chairman Joe Markosek of Allegheny County.  The revenue package to cover the $1.4 billion increase in spending over this year is still being finetuned in the House but it won't require an increase in sales or income tax rates. Rather, it looks to higher tobacco taxes, a tax amnesty program, gambling expansion, and liquor modernization to cover most of the new money that is needed. 

PA-BGT: House Passes $31.55 Billion Budget
PoliticsPA Written by Jason Addy, Contributing Writer June 28, 2016
The PA State Senate will begin considering a $31.55 billion budget for the 2016-17 fiscal year after the House of Representatives voted Tuesday evening to pass a 4.8% spending increase.  The budget vehicle legislation, Senate Bill 1073, passed by a132-68 vote just 20 hours after an omnibus amendment was adopted by the House Appropriations Committee. A motion was approved to bypass the rule requiring 24 hours for consideration.  The budget plan increases total spending for pre-K to 12th grade education by $250 million, and the state will meet its burgeoning pension obligations without raising income or sales taxes.  The deal still relies on an increased tax on tobacco products and new revenue from liquor privatization and expanded gaming in PA.

Pa. House approves $31.5 billion budget; Senate next
Trib Live BY CARLEY MOSSBROOK | Tuesday, June 28, 2016, 7:21 p.m.
HARRISBURG — A proposed state budget cleared its first hurdle Tuesday night, but still has a ways to go before the cash begins to flow.  The full House approved a $31.5 billion budget proposal by a vote of 132-68. The proposal would boost spending by $1.4 billion, almost 5 percent, though it is significantly less than the $33.3 billion sought by Gov. Tom Wolf.  The proposal relies on taxes raised on cigarettes and smokeless tobacco and new revenue from an online gaming proposal that also passed the House on Tuesday.  Wolf, a Democrat, and Senate Republicans, who will receive the budget in the next few days, have not agreed to it, but Rep. William Adolph, R-Delaware County, the House appropriations chairman, said it is a “middle of the road” proposal.  Wolf spokesman Jeff Sheridan said the governor is hopeful that all sides can reach an agreement.

Wolf won't endorse House budget plan, says it's not balanced
Marc Levy, Associated Press and Joshua Vaughn, The Sentinel June 28, 2016
Gov. Tom Wolf said Tuesday that he is concerned about budget legislation that passed the House of Representatives Tuesday, but said there is still time to fix it before the state embarks on a new fiscal year.  Wolf said that he could not endorse a plan that he said is out of balance, and hoped the Senate will fix its flaws.  The House's vote, 132-68, came Tuesday, two days before the state's 2016-17 fiscal-year deadline. The plan won support from House Democratic leaders, putting Wolf in a position of criticizing a plan his close allies are backing.  In the Senate, leaders are cool to the House's plans.  "I haven't agreed to this and as far as I can tell there's still some things that need to be worked out," Wolf said during a regularly scheduled appearance on KQV-AM radio in Pittsburgh.  The state's 2016-17 fiscal year starts Friday.  The nearly $31.6 billion spending plan would increase overall spending by 5 percent and K-12 public school spending by $200 million, or about 3 percent. Wolf had sought $250 million more for schools and $34 million more to bolster heroin addiction treatment programs.  Every public school district in Cumberland County would see an increase in basic education funding under the current plan, according to numbers released by the Pennsylvania House Republicans.

“The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration and is considered as a key source of revenue to help fund the proposed $31.5 billion 2016-17 state budget.  A fiscal note attached to the bill estimates it will generate a total of $266.5 million in additional revenues from the payment of licenses and fees and collections of tax revenues in 2016-17.”
House approves sweeping gambling expansion bill, sending it to Senate
Penn Live By Jan Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com  Email the author | Follow on Twitter  n June 28, 2016 at 4:47 PM, updated June 28, 2016 at 4:58 PM
Without any debate, the House voted on Tuesday 114-85 to approve a bill that would represent Pennsylvania's third expansion of gambling in six years.  It would create an online gaming industry, regulate fantasy sports betting and allows gambling in airports.  This bill will be up for final consideration in the House Thursday, and then must pass muster with the state Senate. 

Rep. Jim Christiana's bill requires local boards to post meeting agendas 24 hours in advance
Beaver County Times By J.D. Prose jprose@calkins.com  Jun 28, 2016
Two years after he first introduced it, state Rep. Jim Christiana’s bill to reform the Sunshine Act and demand more transparency from local government passed the House State Government Committee on Tuesday.  Under House Bill 1155, which passed out of committee in a 17-8 vote, school boards, local governments and county commissioners would be required to post their agendas on their websites, if they have one, at least 24 hours before a meeting.  “All government officials have a responsibility to conduct the taxpayers’ business openly and transparently,” Christiana, R-15, Brighton Township, said in a statement. “Our school districts, along with state and local governments, are spending billions of taxpayer dollars every year. It’s unacceptable to not have a public agenda in place at least 24 hours in advance.”  Boards must make detailed agendas available at meetings and post a copy at the meeting place. Additionally, boards would not be allowed to act on an issue that is not included on the posted agenda.

“After the vote, DiBello explained that his rejection of the budget was not meant as a slight against the hard work done by the business office, but more of an objection to Harrisburg’s failure to reform the current property tax and pension systems. Property taxes have increased in Spring-Ford every year since 2001, according to the district. In addition, for the next seven years the district is mandated to pad its budget with at least a 0.6 percent tax increase to pay for the rising Public School Employees’ Retirement System costs. At some point the pension system contribution is going to peak and the district wants to be in alignment financially when that happens, DiBello explained.  “We’re not going to drop a bomb on the community and hit them with a 6, 7 (percent increase) whatever it may be to try to cover that peak,” DiBello explained. “So we’re slowly building this into the budget.”
Spring-Ford board OKs $151M budget, tax hike; top administrators get raises
By Eric Devlin, The Mercury POSTED: 06/28/16, 5:11 PM EDT | UPDATED: 8 HRS AGO
OYERSFORD >> The Spring-Ford Area School Board just approved its lowest tax hike in 15 years and gave two top administrators a raise.  Now board members are blaming Harrisburg for forcing the tax increase, while praising the efforts of the administration, including its chief financial officer.  In an 8-1 decision Monday, the board approved the 2016-17 budget of approximately $151 million, which calls for a 0.7 percent tax increase. Board President Tom DiBello dissented.

"The driver that hurts the education of the students is the pension fund," he said. The district's payments to the Public School Employees Retirement System shot up in the last couple of years, which Long called "a crisis."
"It's an unfunded mandate," he said.
Parkland School District passes budget with 3.48 percent property tax increase
Margie Peterson Special to The Morning Call June 28, 2016
Parkland school directors might argue about issues in committee meetings but by the time they vote on an item at their regular board meetings, the vote is usually unanimous.  So when Director Barry Long broke ranks Tuesday to vote against the final 2016-17 budget with its 3.48 percent property tax hike, it wasn't surprising that he spoke up to defend his position. The district's $166 million spending plan and tax increase was approved 8-1.  Long said senior citizens on fixed incomes are hurting and the 3.48 percent hike is too much. He said he wanted to see the tax hike remain within the state's Act I Index of 2.4 percent. 

Erie schools work to close budget gap on deadline
By Erica Erwin  814-870-1846 Erie Times-News June 29, 2016 12:10 AM
ERIE, Pa. -- The Erie School Board could once again put its hope in Harrisburg.
The Erie School District's chief financial officer said Tuesday that, barring any new state budget developments, he will recommend that the Erie School Board pass a final 2016-17 budget that relies on anticipated additional state dollars and anticipated emergency funding to erase a $5.5 million deficit.  "We've been talking to our legislators almost daily, and they are working very hard to do something for us," Brian Polito said.  The School Board is scheduled to vote on the $185.8 million budgetWednesday at East High School, 1001 Atkins St., immediately following an unrelated public hearing scheduled for 6 p.m.  The proposed final budget approved by the School Board in May included an additional $1.6 million in anticipated state funding for the district, based on a projected increase of $100 million in education funding statewide.

Bradford Area School Board passes $38.6 million budget; no tax increase
By KATE DAY SAGER Era Reporter kdsager@bradfordera.com | 0 comments Posted: Tuesday, June 28, 2016 10:00 am
The 2016-17 Bradford Area School District general fund balance of $38.6 million, which includes no tax increase, was approved at Monday’s board meeting by a 6 to 1 measure.  Judy Bodamer, director of finance, said the final budget was lower than the originally preliminary  $39.4 million budget thanks in part to an increase in revenue.  “We were able to increase the revenues $269,098 and reduce expenditures by $95,446,” Bodamer explained. “(Increases in) revenues were largely due to grant changes.”  She said the final budget also represents a deficit of $822,099, down from $ 1.2 million.  In addition, teachers’ salaries, due to changes in personnel that stem from retirements, will decrease by $28,029. In addition, grant funds were used to purchase text books.  The millage rate will remain at 22.12 mills, therefore the average taxpayer with a home valued at $46,000 can expect to pay approximately $1,013 in school taxes next year. A taxpayer with a house valued at $100,000 can expect to pay approximately $2,212 in school taxes.

Chartiers Valley school board approves budget
Post Gazette By Deana Carpenter June 28, 2016 11:35 PM
The Chartiers Valley School Board on Tuesday voted 6-2 on the district’s $62 million 2016-17 budget which includes a 0.3892 mill tax increase. Board members Tony Mazzarini, Robert Kearney, Eric Kraemer, Mark Kuczinski, Alka Patel and Sandy Zeleznik voted in favor of the budget. Jeff Choura and Julie Murphy dissented and Jamie Stevenson was absent.  With the increase, the millage rate in the Chartiers Valley district is 16.6067 mills. Homeowners with property valued at $100,000 will pay about $1,660 in school taxes per year.  The district used about $500,000 from its fund balance to balance the 2016-17 budget. Chartiers Valley has $2.8 million remaining in its fund balance.  This year is the first year since 2010 that taxes have gone up in the Chartiers Valley District. Chartiers Valley has the lowest millage rate of any district in Allegheny County. The McKeesport Area School District had been the lowest, but it raised millage to 16.74 for the 2016-17 school year.

Plum SB OKs budget, tax increase
Trib Live BY EMILY BALSER  | Tuesday, June 28, 2016, 10:48 p.m.
The Plum School Board on Tuesday approved its $65.2 million budget and a 3 percent property tax increase. The board voted 6-3 with board members Vicky Roessler, Sue Caldwell and Steve Schlauch dissenting. The tax increase is the first in 10 years and raises the millage rate to 19.337. That's up from 18.758. With the current property-tax rate, the owner of a home assessed at $111,000 pays $2,082 a year in property taxes to the district. That will go to $2,146 a year with the tax increase. Officials have said the increase will generate an extra $850,000 for the district. The district worked to create a “bare bones” budget after a $4 million deficit was found this year. Officials have said it was due to overestimating the local tax revenue since 2013. The district also attributed rising salaries, health care and retirement costs to the deficit.The district is taking a $4 million loan to balance the budget as well as a $1 million loan to buy required new buses.

Baldwin-Whitehall budget balanced with tax hike, staffing cuts
Trib Live BY STEPHANIE HACKE  | Tuesday, June 28, 2016, 9:00 p.m.
Two years after Baldwin-Whitehall school board members lowered taxes by 2 mills, a new board majority says it's working to “right the ship,” raising taxes and making staffing cuts to balance the 2016-17 budget without draining the district's reserve.  “Don't think anybody is taking this lightly,” Karen Brown, board vice president and chair of the finance committee, said.  Board members voted 7-2 on June 22 to adopt the district's $62.4 million 2016-17 budget that included a 0.83-mill tax increase, raising the tax rate to 19.25 mills. The budget also included cuts of more than 12 professional and eight service employee positions through attrition or furloughs. Board members Martin Michael Schmotzer and Elliot Rambo dissented on votes for the budget, possible furloughs and curtailment of programs.

Easton Area's equity plan aims to put all students on equal footing
Michelle Merlin Contact Reporter Of The Morning Call June 28, 2016
About 13 percent of Easton Area School District's 1,200 staff members are minorities, an amount that doesn't come close to mirroring the student population, about half of whom are non-white.  A new five-year plan aims to shift that dynamic and make progress toward putting students of any color or socio-economic status on a more equal footing.  The district released its equity plan, formally named Diversity Alliance Plan, at a school board meeting June 21 and the board approved it at a meeting Tuesday night.  The plan outlines short-term and long-term goals for the district to help create equity for students, including hiring minority teachers, building diversity programming, increasing parent outreach and creating a new equity-focused position.  The plan aims to recognize and celebrate diversity "as an essential ingredient to the success of a democratic society and to the fulfillment of the school district's mission …" the plan's statement of purpose reads.

McGuffey buzzing about bees as students keep hives
Inquirer by KAREN MANSFIELD, The Associated Press Updated: JUNE 28, 2016 10:40 AM EDT
CLAYSVILLE, Pa. (AP) - The decline of the honeybee - the insect responsible for pollinating more than 100 crops, from apples and almonds to plums and zucchini - worries former McGuffey High School student Emily Brownlee.  Three years ago, Brownlee put together a presentation about colony collapse disorder and the plight of honeybees, which have been dying by the tens of millions since 2006.  Brownlee's passion and enthusiasm struck a chord with Superintendent Erica Kolat and Assistant Superintendent Laura Jacob, who were in the audience. They attended a bee convention to gather information about integrating bees into the school curriculum and pursued grants and funding to purchase and raise beehives on a secluded section of the campus.  The goal is twofold: to educate students about honeybees and to help play a role in the bees' preservation.


Walton Family Foundation commits $250 million for new charter school facilities
Washington Post By Emma Brown June 28 at 4:40 PM 
The Walton Family Foundation on Tuesday announced that it would commit $250 million to help urban charter schools deal with a problem that has sometimes slowed their growth: access to facilities.  The money will go to nonprofit lenders and charter school developers, who will use it to help finance buildings for new charter schools in 17 cities, including the District.  Approximately 3 million children now attend charter schools across the country. The new effort from the Walton family, heirs to the Walmart fortune, is expected to create space for an additional 250,000 students by 2027, according to the foundation, which has played a key role in driving the expansion of charters during the past two decades.

After 25 Years, What's Next For Charter Schools?
NPR by CLAUDIO SANCHEZ June 28, 20165:30 AM ET
The major advocacy group for charter schools is meeting this week in Nashville, Tenn., and there's lots to celebrate.  What began with a single state law in Minnesota has spread to a national movement of nearly 6,800 schools, serving just under 3 million students.  But at its annual meeting, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools is also using the moment to call for a fresh look at how these innovative public schools are managed and how they're held accountable.  Among the concerns is whether the failure rate of online charter schools is hurting the credibility of the movement in general.  Others inside the movement say charters "have hit a wall" — that too many are operating like traditional public schools, with unimpressive results because they've done little or nothing to innovate and adopt the most promising classroom practices.

For Detroit’s Children, More School Choice but Not Better Schools
New York Times By KATE ZERNIKE JUNE 28, 2016
DETROIT — On the face of it, Ana Rivera could have had almost any choice when it came to educating her two sons. For all the abandoned buildings and burned-down houses in her neighborhood in the southwest part of this city, national charter school companies had seen a market and were setting up shop within blocks of each other, making it easier to find a charter school than to buy a carton of milk.  But hers became the story of public education in a city grasping for its comeback: lots of choice, with no good choice.  She enrolled her older son, Damian, at the charter school across from her house, where she could watch him walk into the building. He got all A’s and said he wanted to be an engineer. But the summer before seventh grade, he found himself in the back of a classroom at a science program at theUniversity of Michigan, struggling to keep up with students from Detroit Public Schools, known as the worst urban district in the nation. They knew the human body is made up of many cells; he had never learned that.  When his school stopped assigning homework, Ms. Rivera tried enrolling Damian at other charters, but the deadlines were past, the applications onerous. Finally, she found him a scholarship at a Catholic school, where he struggled to rise above D’s all year. “He doesn’t want to hear the word engineering,” she said.  Michigan leapt at the promise of charter schools 23 years ago, betting big that choice and competition would improve public schools. It got competition, and chaos.

House Members Introduce Bill to Overhaul Career and Technical Education
Education Week Politics K12 Blog By Andrew Ujifusa on June 28, 2016 3:43 PM
A bipartisan bill to overhaul the law governing career and technical education was formally introduced by congressional lawmakers Tuesday, and aims to grant states more flexibility over federal funds and allow them to better align programs with current economic needs. 
Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act was introduced by Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., and Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-Pa. It's the proposed rewrite of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, which was last reauthorized in 2006.
Much of the bill's substance focuses on reducing bureaucracy, increasing flexibility, and trying to ensure that the programs governed by the law at the middle school, high school, and postsecondary levels are better aligned with workforce demands and produce results. According to a press release sent out by House Democrats on the committee, the bill includes provisions to, among other things:
·         Ensure that more traditionally disadvantaged and vulnerable students are served by career and technical education programs;
·         Increase a focus on skills that translate more directly into employable skills;
·         Make it easier for states to apply for federal funds under the Perkins Act;
·         Allow for unique needs of states' local areas to be factors when states are deciding how to spend Perkins money;
·         Measure the performance of the programs in terms of how the money is spent, and outcomes for various subgroups of students, as defined by the Every Student Succeeds Act, which requries data disaggregation for a larger number of student subgroups than in the past. (See page 47 of the CTE bill from Clark and Thompson for this language); 
·         Replicate promising practices by directing an increasing slice of federal resources to programs proving to work.


Appointment of Voting Delegates for the October 15th PSBA Delegate Assembly Meeting
PSBA Website June 27, 2016
The governing body boards of all member school entities are entitled to appoint voting delegates to participate in the PSBA Delegate Assembly to be held on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016. It is important that school boards act soon to appoint its delegate or delegates, and to notify PSBA of the appointment.
Voting members of the Delegate Assembly will:
1.     Consider and act upon proposed changes to the PSBA Bylaws.
2.     Receive reports from the PSBA president, executive director and treasurer.
3.     Receive the results of the election for officers and at-large representatives. (Voting upon candidates by school boards and electronic submission of each board’s votes will occur during the month of September 2016.)
4.     Consider proposals recommended by the PSBA Platform Committee and adopt the legislative platform for the coming year.
5.     Conduct other Association business as required or permitted in the Bylaws, policies or a duly adopted order of business.
The 2016 Delegate Assembly will meet on Saturday, Oct. 15, at the conclusion of the regularly scheduled events of the main PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference.

Apply Now! EPLC’s 2016-2017 Pennsylvania Education Policy Fellowship Program

Nominations now open for PSBA Allwein Awards (deadline July 16)
PSBA Website POSTED ON MAY 16, 2016 IN PSBA NEWS
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 2016 Allwein Award nominations will be accepted starting today and all applications are due by July 16, 2016. The nomination form can be downloaded from the website.
https://www.psba.org/2016/05/nominations-now-open-allwein-awards/

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:
https://s3.goeshow.com/seee/PAEdLeadershipSummit/ereg312499.cfm?clear

PA Supreme Court sets Sept. 13 argument date for fair education funding lawsuit in Philly
Thorough and Efficient Blog JUNE 16, 2016 BARBGRIMALDI LEAVE A COMMENT
https://edfundinglawsuit.wordpress.com/2016/06/16/pa-supreme-court-sets-argument-date-for-fair-education-funding-lawsuit/

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