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administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, Governor's
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These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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Keystone
State Education Coalition
PA
Ed Policy Roundup September 26, 2016
Charter
Reform Should Protect Taxpayers, not Management Company Profits
Beaver County Times By The Times
Editorial Board September 25, 2016
State Auditor General Eugene
DePasquale didn’t mince words last week when he released a scathing 95-page
audit report of the Midland-based Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School. His
message was clear: The state’s charter school law needs to be reformed
immediately.
“It should be a clarion call to
change the law to make sure that this type of nonsense doesn’t happen again,”
DePasquale told The Times. The
“nonsense” he cited in the audit, which covered from May 2011 to March 2016,
included numerous administrative failings, multiple conflicts of interest and a
culture that enriched a favored few -- all of which traced back to PA Cyber
founder Nick Trombetta, who left the school in 2012. Trombetta was indicted by
a federal grand jury on several charges in 2013 and is now awaiting sentencing
after pleading guilty last month to tax conspiracy as a part of scheme that
involved funneling more than $8 million to a company he created to mask
earnings from the IRS. Although
Trombetta was not actively involved in PA Cyber’s operation after leaving in
2012, much of the audit findings point to his actions while in charge,
including creating multiple spin-off companies and holding overlapping roles in
them. All the while, the money that came pouring into PA Cyber as it continued
to grow found its way to those other companies in one form or another.
“The Legislature should reform the
charter law to ensure that charter schools are held to the same level of
accountability as the conventional public school districts from which they draw
their funding.”
Editorial: Legislature must revisit charter lawTimes Tribune BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD / PUBLISHED: SEPTEMBER 26, 2016
Citing self-dealing, sweeping conflicts of interest, poor record-keeping
and questionable governance, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale’s new audit of
the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School is yet another convincing call for the
state Legislature to reform the cyberschool law. Charter schools are privately
operated public schools. They draw their money from the public school districts
where their students reside. Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School has students
statewide. It has more students than the Scranton School District, about
10,000. During the 2013-2014 school year, it was paid about $118.6 million in
public money. The blistering audit
covers a period from May 13, 2011, through March 11, 2016. It alleges that the
board had failed to properly oversee business conducted by the school’s
founder, board members themselves, family members and related businesses.
Letters: Time for a tougher Pa. charter
school law
Inquirer Letter by James Roebuck Updated: SEPTEMBER 26, 2016 — 3:01
AM EDT
James Roebuck,
Democratic chairman, Pennsylvania House Education Committee, Philadelphia
In this year's budget
debate, Gov. Wolf, I, and other Democratic legislators pushed for a larger
restoration of school funding that had been cut under former Gov. Tom Corbett
("Pa. has more to do on school funding fairness," Aug. 25). That
restoration would have sent more school funding through the new, fairer
formula. That formula is the product of
difficult, bipartisan compromise. We must restore and increase education
funding so the share distributed through the new formula continues to increase. We also need reform of Pennsylvania's nearly
20-year-old charter school law. That would increase accountability and
oversight and provide hundreds of millions of dollars of savings for school
districts, especially many lower-income districts such as Philadelphia that
were hit hardest by the Corbett-era cuts.
While recent charter school oversight changes are helpful, there is only
so much the Wolf administration can do unless the legislature changes the law.
I have introduced a strong, bipartisan bill, H.B. 1328, that would do exactly
that (http://is.gd/PACharterReform2015). Some charter schools are well-run, but we
shouldn't overpay for any of them. In light of reports from the auditor general
and last month's guilty plea of former Western Pennsylvania charter school head
Nick Trombetta, we need reform like H.B. 1328.PA House Cosponsorship Memoranda Representative James R. Roebuck, Jr. June 2015
As you are aware, Governor Tom Wolf set forth an ambitious Education funding agenda and as part of his historical proposal he hopes to implement reforms on the charter sector -- specifically, funding for cyber charter schools, which currently receive funding at levels on par with what is spent by a students' home district. In an effort to build upon the Governors leadership on this issue, I intend to introduce legislation that will make comprehensive changes to the Charter and Cyber Charter School Law. While I do support charter school entities, I believe major revisions are needed regarding the governance, financing and accountability of these public schools. I believe my legislation, which includes provisions passed in HB 530, coupled with the Governor’s proposal will result in significant savings to our school districts and provide much needed reforms to the Charter School law.
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20150&cosponId=18452
Capitolwire: Auditor General reiterates call for charter school law reform
Keystone Alliance for Public Charter Schools - Capitolwire.com By Carley Mossbrook Staff Reporter September 23, 2016
HARRISBURG (Sept. 22) – Pennsylvania’s top fiscal watchdog released another charter school audit Thursday he says bolsters his claims that the commonwealth’s charter school law is in dire need of reform. In his latest audit, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said his office uncovered what he called “intermingled relationships that put individual self-interests above student needs” within three Beaver County schools. “Our audits of PA Cyber [Charter School], the Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School, and, to a much lesser extent, Midland Borough School District, illustrate just how poorly our charter school law is protecting students and taxpayers and ensuring that education dollars help students learn, not help individuals profit,” DePasquale said at a news conference in the Capitol. DePasquale’s office found that Nicholas Trombetta, superintendent of the school district from 1995 to 2002, founded and served in leadership positions at both PA Cyber and the Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School, and founded and served as president of the management company contracted by the schools.
http://www.keystonecharters.org/single-post/2016/09/23/Capitolwire-Auditor-General-reiterates-call-for-charter-school-law-reform
Auditor General Says Charter School Audit
Shows Issues
WeAreCentralPA.com Published
09/22 2016 06:47PM
Harrisburg, Pa. -The audits were
conducted on the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School, the Lincoln Park Performing
Arts Charter School and the Midland Borough School District. Auditor General Eugene DePasquale says that
the audits illustrate how poorly the charter school law is protecting students
and taxpayers as well as ensuring that taxpayer dollars are being used to help
students learn, rather than turning individual profits. One of the reasons he says that the charter
school law needs an overhaul is that the charter school management company was
operating without boundaries or accountability to charter school officials or
to the taxpayers. The major issues found in the audits include problems with
curriculum and the management company and failure from the board and
administration to govern. DePasquale has
a special
report on charter school law reform where he outlines recommendations
on how to improve accountability, effectiveness and transparency. He says his
criticisms shouldn't be an indictment on charter schools in general and that
there are excellent charter schools and performing arts centers in
Pennsylvania.
Auditor
General releases charter school audits, calls for overhaul of the law
PSBA Website September 23, 2016
This week state Auditor General
Eugene DePasquale held a news conference to once again call for an overhaul of
Pennsylvania’s 20-year old charter school law, highlighting recent audits of
three charter schools and recommending changes. These changes are in addition
to the recommendations he first made in aspecial report issued in 2014. Click here to read the auditor general’s news release that
contains links to the individual audit reports of three charter schools. PSBA believes that this latest
audit further underscores the need for reform to the existing charter school
law. The association recently released a report examining
Pennsylvania charter school revenues, expenditures and transparency. The
findings of the report highlight the need for reform and suggest the need for
further study into how charter schools are operated.
Blogger note: Congratulations to these
folks; this kind of journalism should also be brought to bear on charter
schools that use taxpayer dollars. Statewide,
there has been virtually no coverage of charter school board meetings…
“Ultimately, this is about the kind of
watchdog journalism that seeks to increase government transparency and hold
elected officials accountable for their actions.”
The journalists who evaluated LNP’s
coverage described it as an “impressive commitment to follow the school board
shenanigans and expand reporting into fiscal audits.”
LNP, staff members receive Pa. NewsMedia Association's G. Richard
Dew Award
LANCASTERONLINE |
Staff September 25, 2016
LNP and three of its staff
members have won the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association Foundation’s most
prestigious award for excellence in journalism.
The 2016 G. Richard Dew Award recognizes the news organization,
reporters Kara Newhouse and Susan Baldrige, and Opinion Editor Suzanne Cassidy
for their coverage of the embattled Manheim Township school board over the past
year. Their articles and editorials shed
light on the board’s violation of the state’s open-meetings law, the abrupt and
unexplained resignation of a superintendent, and the district’s solid financial
picture despite program cuts and deficit warnings. “We are extraordinarily honored to receive
this award,” LNP Executive Editor Barbara Hough Roda said. “It recognizes our
newsroom’s commitment to grabbing hold of an important story, digging deeply,
reporting thoroughly, remaining tenacious and keeping the public informed every
step of the way.
Beaver County Times By J.D. Prose
jprose@calkins.com September 25, 2016
Democratic 15th Legislative
District candidate Mike Rossi is using the state auditor general’s blistering
audit of the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School to charge incumbent state Rep.
Jim Christiana with ignoring pleas over the years to strengthen a weak charter
school law.
“He did not fight the fight,”
Rossi said Friday, claiming that requests from the public and education
officials to legislators, including Christiana, to revamp the charter law “fell
on deaf ears.” Christiana, however, said a
desperate Rossi was making “baseless accusations” and simply trying to drum up
interest in his campaign. “Rossi’s campaign continues to be a series of
baseless accusations to get attention and my voting record doesn’t lie,” the Republican
legislator from Brighton Township said.
Video: Parents from across Pa. weigh in on
education funding
Keystone Crossroads/WHYY
Newsworks BY JESSICA KOURKOUNIS
SEPTEMBER 26, 2016As part of the Keystone Crossroads' continued look at education funding in Pennsylvania, multimedia journalist Jessica Kourkounis set out across the state to speak to parents about how they were feeling. "I interviewed parents in cities and towns who are from varied circumstances and backgrounds. They are parents of public school children and charter school students. Some of their school's situations are more dire than others but they are all feeling that something needs to be done to address the complicated funding issues facing Pennsylvania. Every parent is looking for the same thing for their children in school; equality, safety, learning and preparation for their children's future."
25 Sep 2016 — Erie
Times-News by Ed Palattella ed.palattella@timesnews.com
The Erie School District has
already started to find ways to prevent another crisis in its 2017-18 budget,
due by July 1. It is waiting on the
state to make its plans more formal. As of Friday, officials at the
12,000-student district said it had yet to receive a $2 million payment from
the state Department of Education. The
payment will comprise the first half of the $4 million in emergency funding
that the district is expected to receive from the state this year to alleviate
its current budget problems. The district's chronic funding shortfalls have
Superintendent Jay Badams again contemplating, in the years ahead, closing the
district's four high schools, and sending the students to outlying districts,
to offset a possible deficit of $8 million to $10 million in 2017-18 alone. Receipt of the $2 million, according to
district officials, will trigger the process by which the district will
officially enter into what as known as financial watch status, in which it will
work with the state Department of Education to improve its finances. State law also requires that, once the
district gets the $2 million, the secretary of education, Pedro A. Rivera, will
notify the district that it has been "identified for financial watch
status." The district had yet to
receive that notification on Friday, said its lawyer, Tim Wachter, who also
said the district had yet to receive the $2 million. The district has enough
money in its $185.5 million budget to go without the funding for now, officials
said.
Refugee students sue for their place in
public education
Inquirer by Michael Matza, Staff Writer Updated: SEPTEMBER 26, 2016 —
5:32 AM EDT
From flashpoints around the world
- wars in Africa and the Middle East, terrorism in Asia, gang violence in
Central America - tens of millions of migrants have run for their lives in just
the past few years, creating crises of epic scale for many destination nations. A small fraction, about 85,000 annually, find
a haven in the United States as refugees. Last year, 2,645 were resettled in
Pennsylvania, including 510 in Philadelphia. New Jersey became home to 314, 91
of whom moved to the Camden area. Overall,
40 percent of recent refugees are minors. Many have limited schooling, if any.
Many speak little English, if any. And so they can find themselves in another,
increasingly troubled place: the intersection of immigration and public
education. Experts say school is invaluable
for integrating children into American life. The same experts concede the
difficulties, particularly with older youth.
For instance, what should a school district - legally obligated to
educate students until age 21 - do with a foreign-born 19-year-old who reads at
a fifth-grade level? That question,
among others no less contentious, is being argued in a closely watched legal
case pitting the School District of Lancaster against six refugee students.
Fitch Maintains Chester Community Charter
School's (PA) Revs on Negative Watch
Yahoo News CHICAGO--(BUSINESS
WIRE)-- September 22, 2016
Fitch Ratings has maintained
approximately $52.38 million of charter school revenue bonds, series 2010A
issued by the Delaware County Industrial Development Authority, PA (DCIDA) on
Rating Watch Negative. The bonds, which are rated 'BB-' by Fitch, were issued
on behalf of Chester Community Charter School (CCCS). SECURITY - The series 2010A bonds are secured
by pledged revenues of CCCS, backed by a mortgage on the property and
facilities leased by the school and a debt service reserve (DSR) cash-funded to
transaction maximum annual debt service (TMADS) of about $4.1 million.
Management fee payments to CSMI, LLC (CSMI) are subordinated to the payment of
debt service and DSR replenishment.
Politicians trying to dump humanities education will hobble our economy
By THE EDITORS |
Scientific American October 2016 Issue
Kentucky governor Matt
Bevin wants students majoring in electrical engineering to receive state
subsidies for their education but doesn't want to support those who study
subjects such as French literature. Bevin is not alone in trying to nudge
higher education toward course work that promotes better future job prospects.
Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, a former presidential candidate, put
it bluntly last year by calling for more welders and fewer philosophers. Promoting science and technology education to
the exclusion of the humanities may seem like a good idea, but it is deeply
misguided.Scientific American has always been an ardent supporter
of teaching STEM: science, technology, engineering and mathematics. But
studying the interaction of genes or engaging in a graduate-level project to
develop software for self-driving cars should not edge out majoring in the
classics or art history. The need to
teach both music theory and string theory is a necessity for the U.S. economy
to continue as the preeminent leader in technological innovation. The
unparalleled dynamism of Silicon Valley and Hollywood requires intimate ties
that unite what scientist and novelist C. P. Snow called the “two cultures” of
the arts and sciences.TeachHub.com By: Jordan Catapano
“What are they thinking?” might be something teachers ask about their school’s board of education. At times it might be challenging for teachers to understand what drives the decisions the school board makes; at other times, the school board can seem like a nebulous backroom body of political dealings that puts the teaching profession and actual student learning on the backburner. Because school board meetings typically take place at night – long after teachers and students leave – and because board members typically have jobs of their own that prevent them from regularly visiting during school hours, there might be a feeling of disconnect between teachers, the teaching profession, and their governing boards. Every school board is different. In an effort to help teachers become more acquainted with boards’ perspectives and decisions, here are a few insights into your average board that may prove helpful.
http://www.teachhub.com/teaching-profession-what-school-boards-wish-you-knew?utm_content=bufferda154&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Trib Live Opinion BY TOM
PURCELL | Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016, 5:24 p.m.
Get this: After many schools have
phased out cursive writing lessons across America, more schools are bringing
the lessons back. As it goes, technology
was such just a few short years ago that the emergence of electronic documents
— completed on computer keypads — no longer required a handwritten signature. However, according to The Economist,
technology innovations in handwriting recognition are reversing the trend. As
more people forgo “clunky” desktop computers in favor of mobile devices,
handwriting is now a faster way to input data than keyboards. “As a result,” reports The Economist, “a
number of school boards in America have instigated a return to basics —
especially time spent learning longhand.”
Philadelphia Business Journal by Nancy Moses Guest Columnist Sep 22, 2016, 3:55pm EDT Updated Sep 23, 2016, 9:26am EDT
When I met with longtime
education activist and new Philadelphia Councilwoman-At-Large Helen
Gym, the school year had just started. I wanted to know why anyone would
take on public education: Philadelphia’s toughest challenge. What I learned was
nothing less than inspirational.
What is your connection to the
issue of public education?
My parents were immigrants to
this country and they could only provide me with so much. The public spaces –
my school, park, and recreation center-- became very vital places for me to
access resources that my parents simply could not provide. Later, as a teacher,
I found public education totally transformative, exciting, and world-expanding.
When I became a parent with three children of my own, I was faced with
decisions that became very personal.
I’ve always felt education was a
place of incredible possibility, a place that was always challenging and
exciting and that exposed me to people who were eternally hopeful.
2016
National Forum on K-12 Philanthropy
Philanthropy Roundtable Nearly 250 individual philanthropists, family members, private foundation leaders, and experts gathered in California’s Bay Area for The Philanthropy Roundtable’s 2016 National Forum on K-12 Philanthropy. Attendees had the opportunity to tour innovative local schools in Silicon Valley that are pioneering new personalized learning models, and participate in interactive workshops with the field’s leading experts and practitioners. They also heard firsthand from visionary leaders in K-12 philanthropy.
Coffee and Networking - 9:30 a.m. Program - 10:00 a.m. to Noon
Technical College High School
(Brandywine Campus) - 443 Boot Rd., Downingtown, PA 19335
RSVP by clicking here. There is no fee, but a RSVP is
required. Please feel free to share this invitation with your staff and
network. SPEAKERS:
An Overview of the EPLC Report on High School CTE will be presented by:
Ron Cowell, President, The
Education Policy and Leadership Center
Statewide and
Regional Perspectives Will Be Provided By: Dr. Lee Burket, Director, Bureau of Career & Technical Education, PA Department of Education
Jackie Cullen, Executive Director, PA Association of Career & Technical Administrators
Dan Fogarty, Director of Workforce Development & COO, Berks County Workforce Development Board
Kirk Williard, Ed.D., Director of Career, Technical & Customized Education, Chester County Intermediate Unit
Thursday, September 29, 2016 at 5:30 PM
The Crystal Tea Room, The Wanamaker Building
100 Penn Square East, Philadelphia, PA
Honoring: Pepper Hamilton LLP, Signe Wilkinson, Dr. Monique W. Morris
And presenting the ELC PRO BONO AWARD to Paul Saint-Antoine & Chanda Miller
of Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP
The Public Interest Law Center invites you
to its 2016 Annual Event: “Of the People, By the People, For the People.” Thursday,
Oct 6, 2016 at 6:00 PM
FringeArts 140 N. Columbus Blvd.,
Philadelphia, PA
Honoring: Soil
Generation, Nicholas Chimicles, and Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP
http://www.pubintlaw.org/2016event/
Registration
for the PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference Oct. 13-15 is now open
The conference
is your opportunity to learn, network and be inspired by peers and
experts.
TO REGISTER: See https://www.psba.org/members-area/store-registration/ (you must be logged in to
the Members Area to register). You can read more on How to Register for
a PSBA Event here. CONFERENCE WEBSITE: For
all other program details, schedules, exhibits, etc., see the conference
website:www.paschoolleaders.org.
The 2016 Arts and Education Symposium will be held on October 27 at the Radisson Hotel Harrisburg Convention Center. Sponsored by the Pennsylvania Arts Education network and EPLC, the Symposium is a Unique Networking and Learning Opportunity for:
·
Arts Educators
·
School Leaders
·
Artists
·
Arts and Culture Community Leaders
·
Arts-related Business Leaders
·
Arts Education Faculty and Administrators in Higher Education
·
Advocates
·
State and Local Policy Leaders
Act 48 Credit is
available.Program and registration information are available here.
PA Principals Association website Tuesday, August 2, 2016 10:43 AM
To receive the Early Bird Discount, you must be registered by August 31, 2016:
Members: $300 Non-Members: $400
Featuring Three National Keynote Speakers: Eric Sheninger, Jill Jackson & Salome Thomas-EL
SAVE THE DATE LWVPA Convention 2017 June
1-4, 2017
Join the
League of Women Voters of PA for our 2017 Biennial Convention at the beautiful
Inn at Pocono Manor!
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