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Sunday, October 1, 2017

PA Ed Policy Roundup Oct. 1: PA schoolchildren will have their day in court!

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Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup Oct. 1, 2017:
PA schoolchildren will have their day in court!


Blogger note: The Ed Policy Roundup was offline last week for vacation.  Today’s special edition focuses solely on last Thursday’s PA Supreme Court decision regarding school funding.

Pennsylvania has the dubious distinction of having the most inequitable school funding between wealthy and poor school districts in the country. Although the General Assembly did a great job enacting a basic education funding formula last year, it only applies to new dollars (currently about 7% of total funding) and will take another 20 years to implement unless the legislature makes a commitment for significant and sustained additional funding. 

Legislators who are passionate about funding school choice options that diminish resources available to our high poverty school districts don’t seem particularly concerned about providing adequate resources to the vast majority of school children in those districts.



Our Schools at Risk: How to Stop Funding Cuts, Bensalem HS, October 3 at 7 PM - 9 PM
Public Meeting Hosted by Education Voters PA Tuesday, October 3 at 7 PM - 9 PM
Bensalem HS, North Wing Audion, 4319 Hulmeville Rd., Bensalem 19020
Learn about the threats to our public schools and how YOUR advocacy efforts can make a difference. Join Education Voters of PA to learn about how state policies and school funding are impacting your local schools and how you can come together in your communities to stand up for public school students.  Additional guests include Dan Urevick-Acklesberg from the Public Interest Law Center who will give an update on the Supreme Court ruling, and representatives from Public Citizens for Children and Youth. 



“Today’s ruling ensures that our schoolchildren across Pennsylvania will finally have their day in court,” said Deborah Gordon Klehr, executive director of Education Law Center – PA, which brought the suit along with the Public Interest Law Center and pro bono counsel from O’Melveny & Myers LLP. “We look forward to presenting extensive evidence proving that decades of underfunding and inequity in our public education system violate Pennsylvania’s Constitution.”
“The Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s landmark decision today vindicates the principle that adequate and fair school funding is a constitutional mandate, not a political issue,” said Michael Churchill, an attorney with the Public Interest Law Center. “Now that the court has ruled that education funding is subject to judicial review, we hope the Governor and legislature will work with us and our partners to bring Pennsylvania into constitutional compliance by ensuring that every school has adequate resources.”
Ed Law Center: Pa. Supreme Court Delivers Major Victory for Schoolchildren across the Commonwealth in School Funding Case
Education Law Center Website September 28, 2017
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court today delivered a major victory to hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvania students by ordering the Commonwealth Court to hold a trial on whether state officials are violating the state’s constitution by failing to adequately and equitably fund public education. The lawsuit – William Penn School District, et al. v. Pennsylvania Dept. of Education, et al. – was filed in 2014 on behalf of parents, school districts, and statewide organizations in response to the failure in Harrisburg to adequately fund public education and provide students with the resources they need to succeed academically. In a sweeping decision, the Court agreed that it has a clear duty to consider the case and ensure legislative compliance with the state’s Education Clause, which requires the General Assembly to “provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education” for Pennsylvania’s schoolchildren. The Court also found no basis to deny consideration of claims by parents and school districts that the legislature’s grossly unequal funding discriminates against children based on where they live and the wealth of their communities.  Read the decision here. “Judicial review stands as a bulwark against unconstitutional or otherwise illegal actions by the two political branches,” Justice David N. Wecht wrote in his majority opinion. “It is fair neither to the people of the Commonwealth nor the General Assembly itself to expect that body to police its own fulfillment of its constitutional mandate.”
http://www.elc-pa.org/2017/09/28/pa-supreme-court-delivers-major-victory-for-schoolchildren-across-the-commonwealth-in-school-funding-case/

PILCOP: PA. SUPREME COURT DELIVERS MAJOR VICTORY FOR SCHOOLCHILDREN ACROSS THE COMMONWEALTH IN SCHOOL FUNDING CASE
Justices say school funding subject to judicial review, order trial
Public Interest Law Center Website September 28, 2017
HARRISBURG – SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 – The Pennsylvania Supreme Court today delivered a major victory to hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvania students by ordering the Commonwealth Court to hold a trial on whether state officials are violating the state’s constitution by failing to adequately and equitably fund public education. The lawsuit – William Penn School District, et al. v. Pennsylvania Dept. of Education, et al. – was filed in 2014 on behalf of parents, school districts, and statewide organizations in response to the failure in Harrisburg to adequately fund public education and provide students with the resources they need to succeed academically.
In a sweeping decision, the Court agreed that it has a clear duty to consider the case and ensure legislative compliance with the state’s Education Clause, which requires the General Assembly to “provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education” for Pennsylvania’s schoolchildren. The Court also found no basis to deny consideration of claims by parents and school districts that the legislature’s grossly unequal funding discriminates against children based on where they live and the wealth of their communities. “Judicial review stands as a bulwark against unconstitutional or otherwise illegal actions by the two political branches,” Justice David N. Wecht wrote in his majority opinion. “It is fair neither to the people of the Commonwealth nor the General Assembly itself to expect that body to police its own fulfillment of its constitutional mandate.”
https://www.pubintlaw.org/cases-and-projects/pa-supreme-court-delivers-major-victory-for-schoolchildren-across-the-commonwealth-in-school-funding-case/

Philly Bar Association Chancellor Applauds Pa. Supreme Court Decision That School Funding Case Must Be Heard
Philadelphia Bar Association Website September 29, 2017
Deborah R. Gross, Chancellor of the 12,000-member Philadelphia Bar Association, today issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania’s landmark decision to reinstate a lawsuit challenging the state’s school funding system:
We applaud the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania for holding that our courts should decide this legal challenge to a system that fails to meet the needs of our public schools and depends increasingly on property taxes to support these schools. We congratulate the Education Law Center, The Public Interest Law Center and all of the petitioners for their tireless efforts in litigating the issue of whether challenges to the Pennsylvania Constitution’s Education Clause may be judicially addressed. As Justice Wecht noted, ‘Judicial review stands as a bulwark against unconstitutional or otherwise illegal actions by the two political branches.’"
http://www.philadelphiabar.org/page/NewsItem?appNum=4&newsItemID=1001734

“With this ruling, the court reversed its longstanding position that school funding is a legislative prerogative and that the courts should not get involved. “Judicial review stands as a bulwark against unconstitutional or otherwise illegal actions by the two political branches,” the ruling said. The advocates argued that the funding system had grown so out of whack that it violated two clauses of Pennsylvania's constitution: one mandating a "thorough and efficient" education to all students in the Commonwealth, and another guaranteeing equal protection under the law to all citizens. The Court ruled that the current funding system violates both provisions.”
In victory for advocates, Supreme Court rules that school funding lawsuit can go ahead
Decision reverses longstanding view that courts should stay out of education funding and could lead to upheaval of the current system
The notebook by Dale Mezzacappa September 28, 2017 — 12:34pm
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has handed a huge victory to education advocates who for decades have argued that the state's system for funding education is profoundly inequitable and discriminatory. In a 5-2 decision, the seven justices ruled Thursday in an 86-page decision that a lawsuit seeking reform brought by several school districts and individual parents, including some from Philadelphia, can proceed to trial. "It is exciting that now a serious look can be taken on whether this is an equitable school funding system we have," said Len Rieser, the former longtime executive director of the Education Law Center, one of the groups representing the plaintiffs. Rieser is also a member of the Notebook board of directors. Pennsylvania not only has the widest gaps between wealthy and poor school districts of any state in the country, but residents of low-income districts often tax themselves at much higher levels to raise much less money for their schools. That is because state education aid has not kept up with need -- and the way the state aid is distributed for decades has been more beholden to politics than to a reliable formula that is based on measures of poverty, tax effort, and other criteria.  
http://thenotebook.org/articles/2017/09/28/supreme-court-rules-that-school-funding-lawsuit-can-go-ahead

“While Pennsylvania recently adopted a new funding formula — directing added money to districts with more poor students or students learning English, among other factors — it only applies to a fraction of the state’s education spending.”
Pa. Supreme Court opens door to school funding overhaul
Inquirer by Maddie Hanna, Kristen A. Graham & Kathy Boccella - Staff Writers Updated: SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 — 6:16 PM EDT
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Thursday reinstated a lawsuit challenging the state’s school-funding system, a victory for struggling districts long seeking relief from what they say is an unjust structure that relies too heavily on property taxes and doesn’t meet schools’ needs.
The decision — a departure from past court rulings dismissing such challenges — restores a lawsuit first brought by the William Penn School District in Delaware County. But its outcome could impact districts across the state, including Philadelphia’s. It was hailed as a “landmark” by plaintiff attorneys, who said it could redefine the state’s educational landscape, praised by Gov. Wolf, and assailed as “very alarming” by Republican legislators. But any impacts wouldn’t be immediate; the decision overturns a Commonwealth Court ruling and sends the case back to trial court. Courts “must take great care in wading deeply into questions of social and economic policy, which we long have recognized as fitting poorly with the judiciary’s institutional competencies,” Justice David Wecht wrote in the majority opinion. But “it is fair neither to the people of the commonwealth nor to the General Assembly itself to expect that body to police its own fulfillment of its constitutional mandate.”
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/pa-high-court-revives-school-funding-suit-20170928.html

Pennsylvania high court revives suit over how public schools are funded 
Pennsylvania's highest court is reviving a lawsuit that says the state is failing in its obligation to provide an adequate education to public school students. 
Morning Call by Mark Scolforo, Of The Associated Press
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania's highest court on Thursday revived a lawsuit that claims the state is failing in its obligation to students, a case that could eventually have a dramatic effect on the shape of public education in the state. The Supreme Court's 5-2 ruling reversed a decision by a lower court that in 2015 had thrown out the challenge to how schools are funded. The case now returns to Commonwealth Court, which had dismissed it unanimously on grounds the litigation raised political questions that were not appropriate for the judiciary to settle. For an administrator in Panther Valley School District, one of six school districts that joined students and parents in the challenge, the decision brought hope for a change in the state education funding scheme that the plaintiffs say is flawed and fails to ensure every school district has adequate funding. “It’s encouraging,” Superintendent Dennis Kergick said. “It’s nice to know that [the court recognizes] the fact that there are some inadequacies that currently exist in the school funding system.”
The Carbon County school district serves 1,800 students, but has no school librarians, no assistant principals and one disciplinarian who moves among the three schools. That’s the result of budget shortfalls caused by the state education funding system, which doesn’t provide enough money to pay for state-mandated programs and places a disproportionate burden on local taxpayers, Kergick said. “Something has to give somewhere. We’re looking forward to it,” he said.
http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-nws-pennsylvania-school-funding-supreme-court-20170928-story.html

“The decision overturns more than 150 years of court decisions, said Steve Miskin, spokesman for House Speaker Mike Turzai, R-Allegheny, a defendant. “You have a court that is not just trying to interpret the law, but they’re trying to legislate.”
Court allows school funding lawsuit by Greater Johnstown, other districts to proceed
Johnstown Tribune Democrat By MARK SCOLFORO  The Associated Press Sep 29, 2017
HARRISBURG – Pennsylvania’s highest court on Thursday revived a lawsuit that claims the state is failing in its obligation to students, a case that could eventually have a dramatic effect on the shape of public education in the state. The Supreme Court’s 5-2 ruling reversed a decision by a lower court that in 2015 had thrown out the challenge to how schools are funded. The plaintiffs include the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools, the NAACP Pennsylvania State Conference and six school districts: Greater Johnstown, William Penn, Panther Valley, Lancaster, Wilkes-Barre Area and Shenandoah Valley. The case now returns to Commonwealth Court, which had dismissed it unanimously on grounds the litigation raised political questions that were not appropriate for the judiciary to settle. The majority opinion by Justice David Wecht said courts should not duck their responsibility to monitor the General Assembly’s decisions, both concerning the state constitution’s requirement of a through and efficient education and the lawsuit’s allegations that poorer districts are being discriminated against.
http://www.tribdem.com/news/court-allows-school-funding-lawsuit-by-greater-johnstown-other-districts/article_f0b9fd5a-a4bf-11e7-a2c7-273f789b299f.html

Erie schools to review state Supreme Court funding decision
GoErie By Ed Palattella  Posted Sep 28, 2017 at 12:31 PMUpdated Sep 28, 2017 at 4:51 PM
The high court sent back to Commonwealth Court a lawsuit that claims statewide disparities in school funding are unconstitutional. The Erie School District has considered joining the case.
In March, as its budget woes worsened, the Erie School District looked at joining a lawsuit before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court as a possible option to achieve funding equity. The lawsuit got a big boost on Thursday, when the Supreme Court refused to dismiss it and sent it back to state Commonwealth Court for further review. The Erie School District, however, may decide not to join the suit, whose outcome could ultimately affect whether the state must provide more funding to poorer public school systems such as the Erie School District. Whether the Erie School District becomes a party to the case is up for discussion, Superintendent Brian Polito said. The Erie School Board in March unanimously approved a resolution that directed the school district’s solicitor, Tim Wachter, to have the district join the funding case if it returned to state Commonwealth Court — the action that the state Supreme Court ordered on Thursday. If the district joined the suit as a petitioner, it would present evidence of its funding problems to bolster the overall case. Polito said he will discuss with the School Board whether the district should now join the suit. Since the board’s vote in March, the state has set aside an additional $14 million in funding for the Erie School District this academic year with the possibility that the increase becomes recurring.
http://www.goerie.com/news/20170928/erie-schools-to-review-state-supreme-court-funding-decision

“The legislative branch has shown a remarkable reluctance to tackle the issue of inequitable school funding head on. Is it time to have this debate in court and let the judicial branch have a say? Hell, yeah!”
Our view: At long last, school funding heads to court
Wilkes Barre Times Leader Editorial September 30th, 2017 5:46 pm
To be blunt, it’s about time.
There is a scene in the musical 1776, when the Continental Congress is voting on whether or not to debate independence. Road Island representative Stephen Hopkins, played with crusty glee in the movie by Roy Poole, comes back from “the privy” to find the vote deadlocked, with his choice the tie breaker. His response: “Well, in all my years I ain’t never heard, seen nor smelled an issue that was so dangerous it couldn’t be talked about. Hell yeah! I’m for debating anything. Rhode Island says yea!” That likely was the sentiment for many advocates who have spent years, even decades, trying to change school funding in Pennsylvania when the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a lawsuit about that issue should be heard. Wilkes-Barre Area is one of six school districts to join the suit, known on the docket as “William Penn School District, et. al, v. Pennsylvania Dept. of Education, et. al. This is an old issue. The argument has long been that the quality of a public education depends too heavily on where you live, for two reasons: School funding relies too heavily on local property taxes, and the state has been too cheap to cover the differences and level the playing field. The lawsuit simply says the state is not meeting a obligation in the state Constitution to to “provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education.”
http://www.timesleader.com/opinion/editorials/677186/our-viewat-long-last-school-funding-heads-to-court

PA Supreme Court orders trial on public school funding
Citizens Voice by MICHAEL P. BUFFER / PUBLISHED: SEPTEMBER 28, 2017
Pennsylvania's Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the Commonwealth Court to hold a trial on whether public school funding across the state is inequitable and violates the state Constitution. 
Wilkes-Barre Area and five other school districts — William Penn, Panther Valley, Lancaster, Greater Johnstown and Shenandoah Valley  — initiated the litigation in 2014. The state Supreme Court's 5-2 ruling reversed a lower court decision to dismiss the challenge to how schools are funded. The case now heads back to Commonwealth Court for a full trial. Advocates can now present evidence proving their claims, and lawyers for the six school districts will ask the court to expedite the trial, according to a news release. “We look forward to presenting extensive evidence proving that decades of underfunding and inequity in our public education system violate Pennsylvania’s Constitution,” Deborah Gordon Klehr, executive director of The Education Law Center – PA, said in the news release.
http://citizensvoice.com/news/pa-supreme-court-orders-trial-on-public-school-funding-1.2248591

“This is vindication that what we’ve been so upset about for so long is accurate, and we look forward to our day in court for our kids and for our communities,” said William Penn School District Board Member Jennifer Hoff. “This is what we’ve been praying for for a long time.” The suit accuses state officials of violating the Education and Equal Protection clauses of the state constitution by underfunding low-income school districts to the extent that students there could not meet state standards set by the Legislature.”
William Penn School District, parents win key ruling in education funding fight
By Alex Rose, Delaware County Daily Times POSTED: 09/28/17, 5:41 PM EDT 
Pennsylvania’s highest court is sending the question of whether the state has failed in its obligation to provide an adequate education back to the Commonwealth Court. The state Supreme Court’s 5-2 ruling Thursday reverses the lower court’s 2015 dismissal of a petition filed by parents, education advocates and a half-dozen school districts in the state, including the William Penn School District. “The Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s landmark decision today vindicates the principle that adequate and fair school funding is a constitutional mandate, not a political issue,” said Michael Churchill, an attorney with the Public Interest Law Center. “Now that the court has ruled that education funding is subject to judicial review, we hope the governor and Legislature will work with us and our partners to bring Pennsylvania into constitutional compliance by ensuring that every school has adequate resources.” The case was dismissed on preliminary objections from the respondents, which include Gov. Tom Wolf, Senate President Pro Tempore Joseph Scarnati, House Speaker Michael Turzai, the state Board of Education and Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera, but now heads back to Commonwealth Court for a full trial. If successful, the petitioners could drastically reshape how schools in Pennsylvania are funded.
http://www.delcotimes.com/general-news/20170928/william-penn-school-district-parents-win-key-ruling-in-education-funding-fight

Editorial: Nothing fair about education funding in Pa., William Penn
Delco Times Editorial POSTED: 09/28/17, 8:26 PM EDT
The National Geographic Channel this week learned something Jameira Miller and the other students and families of the William Penn School District have known for a long time. They’re not getting a fair shake when it comes to education. The TV channel this week aired “Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America.” It displayed something we have detailed countless times in this space. Now, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that those families deserve their day in court. Yesterday the state high court revived a lawsuit filed in part by William Penn families that claims Pennsylvania is cheating their children and kids in other poverty-stricken areas, failing in its obligation to students. It had been tossed out by a lower court. But the Supreme Court, without ruling on the merits of the case, ruled plaintiffs deserve the right to make their case. It now goes back to Commonwealth Court. The way education funding is allocated in Pennsylvania has created an uneven, tilted system that is stacked against kids like Miller and those who attend schools in the William Penn district. The show highlighted the stark differences, in particular when it comes to technology, offered in terms of technology to kids in William Penn, as opposed to those just a few miles away in the much more affluent Lower Merion School District.
http://www.delcotimes.com/opinion/20170928/editorial-nothing-fair-about-education-funding-in-pa-william-penn

"In no other state do students in poor districts receive so much less than their peers in wealthier districts," said Maura McInerney with the Education Law Center.”
Those challenging fairness of Pa. school funding will have day in court
WHYY Newsworks BY AVI WOLFMAN-ARENT SEPTEMBER 28, 2017
In a decision that could eventually shake Pennsylvania's educational landscape, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a lawsuit challenging the commonwealth's public school funding system can move forward. The court did not compel the state Legislature to redistribute money — not yet. It simply said the judiciary can consider whether legislators have satisfied clauses in the state Constitution that require Pennsylvania to provide equal protection under the law and a "thorough and efficient system of public education." The 5-2 ruling reversed decades of precedent, and it opens the door for a breakthrough challenge to the state's educational funding system. If that challenge succeeds, Pennsylvania school districts could see dramatic changes in state aid. "This is what we've been praying for for a long time," said Jennifer Hoff, president of the William Penn School District, which banded together with other districts and advocates to bring the lawsuit. The case will likely move to Commonwealth Court next, where justices will rule on the merits of the constitutional argument rather than simply mulling whether to get involved. Progressive education advocates hailed the decision as a major step forward for education equity. Many have long claimed Pennsylvania's method for disbursing education dollars is among the most backward in the nation, exacerbating gaps between rich and poor.
http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/education/item/107520-those-challenging-fairness-of-pa-school-funding-will-have-day-in-court?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+KeystoneCrossroads+%28Keystone+Crossroads%29

Divided Pa. Supreme Court revives legal battle over fairness of public school funding
Penn Live By Matt Miller mmiller@pennlive.com Posted on September 28, 2017 at 5:28 PM
More than two years after Commonwealth bowed out of a legal battle over the adequacy - or rather the inadequacy - of public school funding, the state Supreme Court has ordered it to bow back in. That directive came in an 86-page opinion Justice David N. Wecht issued Thursday that revives a lawsuit six school districts - the Lancaster School District among them - filed against the state Legislature and Department of Education. The districts claim Pennsylvania's school funding system, which relies heavily on property taxes, is patently unfair and creates an imbalance of financing between wealthy and poor school districts. That imbalance violates the civil rights of students in the financially disadvantaged districts, the school officials and a bloc of parents of students who joined them in the suit contend. Commonwealth Court dismissed the lawsuit in April 2015, concluding it was improper for the court to intervene in what is a legislative matter.
Wecht and a majority on the Supreme Court saw it differently. They found that the suit's dismissal was premature and that the districts and their parent allies should at least have a chance to flesh out their arguments. So back to Commonwealth Court the dispute goes.
http://www.pennlive.com/news/2017/09/divided_pa_supreme_court_reviv.html

EdVotersPA: PA schoolchildren will have their day in court!
Education Voters PA Website Posted on September 29, 2017 EDVOPA Posted in blog
On Thursday, September 28th, the PA Supreme Court issued a landmark decision. It ordered the Commonwealth Court to hold a full trial on PA’s school funding lawsuit.  The Court agreed with the plaintiffs that education funding should be subject to judicial review. They ruled that the courts have a duty to ensure that the state’s school funding system does not violate the state constitution or discriminate against students because of where they live or the wealth of their communities. This decision is a major victory for public school students in PA.
This trial will give families the opportunity to share stories of how the deprivation in schools caused by Pennsylvania’s grossly inadequate and discriminatory school funding system harms children throughout the commonwealth. This trial will shine a bright public light on the absolute failure of the PA legislature to provide all schoolchildren with the resources they need in their classrooms. We are very grateful for the families and school leaders who had the courage to join the lawsuit and tell their stories. We are also very grateful for the  skilled attorneys at the Public Interest Law Center and the Education Law Center of PA who have dedicated countless hours to this case. Click HERE to read their statement on today’s ruling.
We also want to acknowledge that today’s court decision was not made in a vacuum.  Advocates banded together in every corner of Pennsylvania and worked collectively to contribute to a body of knowledge of the inadequacies and imperfections in the current system. You made a sustained effort for years to demonstrate clear demand for action that would fix Pennsylvania’s broken school funding system so that every student will have an opportunity to learn and succeed.
http://educationvoterspa.org/blog/pa-schoolchildren-will-day-court/

PSBA: Court ruling on school funding case positive development
This week the Pennsylvania Supreme Court with a 5-2 vote reversed a decision by a lower court, which threw out the challenge regarding equity in the state's system of funding public schools. The decision now returns the case to Commonwealth Court, whose decision two years ago dismissing it had been unanimous. The lawsuit, William Penn School District vs. Pennsylvania Dept. of Education, was filed in November 2014 by a broad-based coalition of parents, school districts and nonprofit organizations. The plaintiffs include: six school districts — William Penn, Panther Valley, Lancaster, Greater Johnstown, Wilkes-Barre Area and Shenandoah Valley — the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools (PARSS), and the NAACP Pennsylvania State Conference. The plaintiffs argued that the state's system of funding public education is so inadequate and unequal that it violates state constitutional provisions requiring a “thorough and efficient system of public education” and equal treatment under the law. “The Supreme Court’s decision in the William Penn case is a refreshing departure from previous unwillingness to allow judicial review of whether our current school funding system truly lives up to our constitution’s mandate that the General Assembly provide for the maintenance and support of a ‘thorough and efficient system of public education,'” said Nathan Mains, CEO of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association. Pennsylvania now joins the majority of other states with similar constitutional mandates whose courts have considered funding equity challenges. “But the case is far from over, and it will be quite some time before it will come back to the Supreme Court for a definitive ruling on whether our current school funding approach passes constitutional muster,” Mains continued. “This underscores PSBA’s belief that the most effective way of ensuring that all public schools in Pennsylvania are adequately funded is to work with our General Assembly to address funding inequity, rather than wait for a court to dictate a solution. The decision in this case gives all concerned good reason to work harder and faster to get there.”
https://www.psba.org/2017/09/court-ruling-school-funding-case-positive-development/

Rep. Krueger-Braneky: Pa. Supreme Court decision is victory for ‘thorough, efficient education’
Rep. Leanne Krueger-Braneky    September 28, 2017 | 5:29 PM
FOLSOM, Sept. 28 – State Rep. Leanne Krueger-Braneky, D-Delaware, issued the following statement on today’s Pennsylvania Supreme Court opinion:
“Today’s Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision was a victory for the children of our commonwealth. Congratulations to the plaintiffs, including William Penn School District, on winning an important battle in what has proven to be a long fight for equitable funding for our public schools. "The equality gap in public school funding is especially stark in Delaware County, as documented recently by National Geographic. Today, I'm thinking of students like Jameria Miller, a senior at Penn Wood High School, whose belief in herself and in what she and all students deserve is a call for elected officials to act. "I believe today's decision reinforced what legislative Democrats and Governor Tom Wolf have said every time: Under the GOP-controlled legislature, our commonwealth is failing to provide a ‘thorough and efficient’ education for young people. The Supreme Court, in allowing our students, parents and school districts to seek legal redress, makes clear that the law is on our side. “I urge my colleagues in the General Assembly to recognize that ongoing inequity in our schools is a dire threat to the future of the commonwealth – and deeply unfair to our blameless young people – and to work together and in good faith toward a fair, responsible budget funding package that relies on sustainable and recurring revenues – not more borrowing, more gambling or raids on funds intended for essential functions such as transportation, infrastructure and public health. “Thanks to the persistent petitioners – led by the Education Law Center of Pennsylvania and the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia – who have been on the front lines of this fight for Pennsylvania students and families.”
http://www.pahouse.com/Krueger-Braneky/InTheNews/NewsRelease/?id=93650

PHILLY CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT CLARKE’S STATEMENT ON PA SUPREME COURT EDUCATION FUNDING DECISION
In Council News, Darrell L. Clarke, News by PHL Council September 28, 2017
Philadelphia, Sept. 28, 2017 – Council President Darrell L. Clarke (5th District) on Thursday issued the following statement on today’s Supreme Court opinion:
“The petitioners — to whom I am sympathetic — in William Penn School District, et al. v. Pennsylvania Dept. of Education, et al. have earned an important victory today. The schools, students, and families who lead the fight for fair and just distribution of education funding in Pennsylvania deserve our congratulations and gratitude. “The Commonwealth’s children have been starved of a ‘thorough and efficient’ education for far too long, and the current state budget impasse does not bode well for political redress in the near future. As has so often been the case in our nation’s history, the brightest glimmer of hope for justice is within our judiciary. Today’s majority opinion, while not decisive of petitioners’ complaint, does acknowledge they deserve an opportunity to pursue their case. “It is a sorry state of affairs when a state so blessed with resources both natural and manufactured is so defined by partisan politics. I believe that a majority of Pennsylvanians agree that the Commonwealth is not fulfilling its constitutional obligation to provide every child with a quality public education. “Again, I thank the brave petitioners – aided by the NAACP, the Education Law Center of Pennsylvania, and the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia – for leading this fight on behalf of public school students throughout the Commonwealth.”
http://phlcouncil.com/council-president-statement-on-pa-supreme-court-education-funding-decision/

PHILLY COUNCILMEMBER GYM RESPONDS TO HISTORIC SCHOOL FUNDING VICTORY IN PA SUPREME COURT
In Council News, Helen Gym, News by PHL Council September 28, 2017
Philadelphia, PA – September 28, 2017 – Councilmember Helen Gym (At-Large) made the following statement on today’s Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling on William Penn School District et. al. v. Pa. Department of Education et. al.:
Today, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, in a landmark decision, paved a path toward establishing a more just and equitable funding plan for school districts. They ruled that a lawsuit must go forward to determine whether the state’s method of distributing school funding results in unconstitutional deprivation in economically disadvantaged school districts. This ruling is a victory for students, for families, and for sustained organizing by communities over decades of struggle.
It is also a clear indictment of Pennsylvania’s school funding system, the most inequitable in the nation. The plaintiffs in the case have effectively argued that funding deficiencies prevent many districts from meeting the academic standards set by the state. When state legislators neglect their constitutional mandates, the courts must step in to hold them accountable. That’s why I commend and thank the resilient and powerful advocates, parents, school boards, and a heroic legal community for pursuing equity and justice in this case over decades. I look forward to the next stage – a trial – in which the people will speak. We will talk of our experiences of shuttered schools, buildings in disrepair, poorly resourced classrooms, and a legislature that has failed time and again in its central duty to fund our schools equitably. State lawmakers don’t have to wait for the courts to step in. They can fix this now by stepping up for our schools. The Pennsylvania General Assembly must create a budget plan that prioritizes school funding and ensures that all public schools have equitable access to adequate resources. As the Court stated in its decision, “constitutional promises must be kept.” As a mother of public school graduates and students, I look forward to helping the Court make that a reality.
http://phlcouncil.com/councilmember-gym-responds-to-historic-school-funding-court-victory

EdWeek: Pennsylvania Supreme Court Orders School Funding Trial
Education Week District Dossier Blog By Corey Mitchell on September 29, 2017 10:54 AM
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has reinstated a lawsuit that argues that the state's school-funding system violates the state's constitution. The ruling, which restores a lawsuit first filed by the William Penn schools, could set the stage for a complete overhaul of the state's educational landscape, attorneys for the plaintiffs say.  But any effects wouldn't be immediate; the decision merely overturns a Commonwealth Court ruling and sends the case back to trial court. The list of plaintiffs includes six school systems, the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools, and the NAACP Pennsylvania State Conference. Lawyers for the districts have maintained that the state's adoption of academic standards, not in place when prior funding lawsuits were dismissed, meant it had a responsibility to provide adequate funding to meet them. The majority opinion by Justice David Wecht issued Thursday argues the courts should evaluate whether the constitutional promise of providing a thorough and efficient education is being met and determine if the lawsuit's allegations that poorer districts are shortchanged has merit. "It just brings tears to my eyes that we're allowed to go further with this," Superintendent Jane Harbert of the William Penn schools told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "We're fighting a battle not just for William Penn but for the whole state of Pennsylvania." Advocates for small and rural districts have long fought to change the state's school-funding system, which allows for wide spending gaps between low- and high-income districts.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/District_Dossier/2017/09/pennsylvania_supreme_court_ord.html

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules School Funding Inequity Lawsuit Must Go to Trial
The74 By MARK KEIERLEBER | September 28, 2017
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. (Photo by: Joe Sohm/Visions of America/UIG via Getty Images)
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Thursday revived a lawsuit by school districts and parents that aims to force changes to the commonwealth’s school funding formula, long considered among the nation’s most inequitable. The decision directs the lower Commonwealth Court to hold a trial in the case. The court had thrown out the case in 2015, ruling that school funding decisions are the responsibility of the legislature, not the courts — a move backed by years of legal precedent. But Thursday’s 5–2 decision ordered a trial to determine whether funding inequities between school districts violate the equal-protection provision of the Pennsylvania Constitution and the commonwealth’s obligation to provide students with a “thorough and efficient system” of education. “It is a mistake to conflate legislative policymaking pursuant to a constitutional mandate with constitutional interpretation of that mandate and the minimum that it requires,” said the majority opinion by Justice David Wecht. Pennsylvania’s formula to fund schools, which relies heavily on local property taxes, has long been the subject of hot debate, and for years Pennsylvania courts have maintained that any changes must be made by the legislature.
A March report by the Education Law Center, which represents plaintiff districts in the lawsuit, argued that the school funding mechanism creates widespread inequality, particularly for schools that serve students of color and those from low-income households. Only four states provide a lower share of state revenues to public schools, according to the report, and Pennsylvania is among 14 states that provide high-poverty schools with fewer resources than wealthier districts.
https://www.the74million.org/pennsylvania-supreme-court-rules-school-funding-inequity-lawsuit-must-go-to-trial/

Lower Merion and Penn Wood high schools featured in National Geographic doc on the digital divide in America
Inquirer by Nick Vadala, Staff Writer  @njvadala |  nvadala@philly.com Updated: SEPTEMBER 25, 2017 — 3:35 PM EDT
The National Geographic Channel’s latest documentary takes viewers to two Philadelphia-area high schools to highlight the struggles many American students face in trying to access the internet, the channel recently announced. Titled Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America, the documentary explores internet and technology access issues through the stories of students at Lower Merion and Penn Wood High Schools, among other schools throughout the country. Without a Net director Rory Kennedy selected the two area schools  to “show the stark contrast that can exist in opportunities even just miles apart.” Despite the schools’ close distance, access to technology and learning materials differs significantly. Lower Merion, for example, boasts 3-D printers and a robotics team, while Penn Wood in Southeastern Delaware County often lacks basic learning tools like textbooks. The film focuses primarily on Jameira Miller, a Penn Wood graduate currently enrolled at the Villanova University School of Business, and her parents, Jamella and Bryant, as they navigate the digital divide. The family also filed a suit against the Pennsylvania Department of Education in 2014 that focused on fair education funding.
http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/celebrities/lower-merion-penn-wood-national-geographic-channel-without-a-net-digital-divide-20170925.html


Our Schools at Risk: How to Stop Funding Cuts, Bensalem HS, October 3 at 7 PM - 9 PM
Public Meeting Hosted by Education Voters PA Tuesday, October 3 at 7 PM - 9 PM
Bensalem HS, North Wing Audion, 4319 Hulmeville Rd., Bensalem 19020
Learn about the threats to our public schools and how YOUR advocacy efforts can make a difference. Join Education Voters of PA to learn about how state policies and school funding are impacting your local schools and how you can come together in your communities to stand up for public school students.
https://www.facebook.com/events/1735449410093965/

Seventh Annual Pennsylvania Arts and Education Symposium, November 2, 2017 Camp Hill
The 2017 Pennsylvania Arts and Education will be held on Thursday, November 2, 2017 at the Radisson Hotel Harrisburg Convention Center in Camp Hill.  See the agenda here.
Early Bird Registration ends September 30.
https://www.eplc.org/pennsylvania-arts-education-network/


STAY WOKE: THE INAUGURAL NATIONAL BLACK MALE EDUCATORS CONVENING; Philadelphia Fri, Oct 13, 2017 4:00 pm Sun, Oct 15, 2017 7:00pm
TEACHER DIVERSITY WORKS. Increasing the number of Black male educators in our nation’s teacher corps will improve education for all our students, especially for African-American boys.  Today Black men represent only two percent of teachers nationwide. This is a national problem that demands a national response.  Come participate in the inaugural National Black Male Educators Convening to advance policy solutions, learn from one another, and fight for social justice. All are welcome.

Save the Date 2017 PA Principals Association State Conference October 14. 15, 16, 2017 Doubletree Hotel Cranberry Township, PA

Save the Date: PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference October 18-20, Hershey PA

Registration now open for the 67th Annual PASCD Conference  Nov. 12-13 Harrisburg: Sparking Innovation: Personalized Learning, STEM, 4C's
This year's conference will begin on Sunday, November 12th and end on Monday, November 13th. There will also be a free pre-conference on Saturday, November 11th.  You can register for this year's conference online with a credit card payment or have an invoice sent to you.  Click here to register for the conference.
http://myemail.constantcontact.com/PASCD-Conference-Registration-is-Now-Open.html?soid=1101415141682&aid=5F-ceLtbZDs

Save the Date! NSBA 2018 Advocacy Institute February 4-6, 2018 Marriott Marquis, Washington D.C.
Registration Opens Tuesday, September 26, 2017


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