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Tuesday, March 20, 2018

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 20: SB383: Tell PA lawmakers: Arm schools with resources, not guns!


Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 4050 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, school solicitors, principals, charter school leaders, 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, Instagram and LinkedIn.

These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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SB383: Tell PA lawmakers: Arm schools with resources, not guns!



2018 PSBA Advocacy Day April 16, 2018 Harrisburg
Join PSBA and your fellow school directors for the annual Advocacy Day on Monday, April 16, 2018, at the State Capitol in Harrisburg. PSBA is partnering with Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units to have a stronger voice for public education. Hear how advocacy makes a difference in the legislative process and the importance of public education advocacy. This event is free for members; registration is required.
Register online here: http://www.mypls.com/Default.aspx?tabid=3753



EITC: Auditor General DePasquale Raises Concerns about Accountability of Educational Improvement Tax Credits 
PA Auditor General’s Office Press Release March 19 2018
HARRISBURG (March 19, 2018) – Auditor General Eugene DePasquale today raised concerns about the lack of accountability and transparency in how Educational Improvement Tax Credits (EITC) are used throughout the state. “I was alarmed by concerns recently raised about an assistant principal at the Yeshiva School in Pittsburgh less than two years after an elementary teacher at the school was fired over allegations of sexual abuse of a child,” DePasquale said. “These incidents raise questions about how this school protects children and handles such serious allegations. “Because it is a private school, my department is precluded from conducting an audit, but this raises a broader issue because the school receives state funding from the Educational Improvement Tax Credit program,” he said. “It is time for a serious review of the lack of any accountability for schools that receive these funds. “I will discuss with DCED Secretary Davin how best to provide additional accountability measures for schools receiving state tax dollars without being subject to the same level of scrutiny as public schools that my office audits,” he said, acknowledging that DCED has no control over which schools receive the EITC funding.


SB383: Tell PA lawmakers: Arm schools with resources, not guns!
Education Voters PA Website March 2018
Right now PA lawmakers are considering legislation that would allow teachers to carry concealed weapons and militarize our children's schools. They are also making decisions about how much they are willing to spend to keep students safe in schools. It is critical that lawmakers hear from their constituents NOW, so that they can take into account the priorities of voters in their districts when making these decisions. Tell lawmakers that school safety extends beyond militarized buildings to include addressing the emotional and psychological safety of students and the root causes of violence. If lawmakers are serious about improving student safety, it is time for them to get serious about providing the significant recurring funding school districts need to create safe and healthy learning environments for our children.
Ask your state lawmakers to:
https://actionnetwork.org/letters/pa-lawmakers-arm-schools-with-resources-not-guns?clear_id=true

SB383: Bill allowing armed school employees advances in Pennsylvania Legislature
Post-Gazette by LIZ NAVRATIL Harrisburg Bureau lnavratil@post-gazette.com MAR 19, 2018 8:44 AM
HARRISBURG — A month after a shooting at a Florida high school left 17 people dead, Pennsylvania legislators are once again mulling whether to arm teachers and other school employees. Sen. Don White, a Republican from Indiana County, has introduced in each of the three most recent sessions legislation that would allow school districts to create their own policies about whether employees who receive training should be permitted to access guns on school property. His first two efforts failed. Now, at a time when national debates about gun control and school safety have intensified, his bill has advanced farther than ever before. For now, the bill faces opposition in the governor’s office -- Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf has said he would veto it — but that could change if one of the Republican candidates wins the governor’s race later this year. At a debate earlier this month, all three Republican candidates for governor said they were open to the idea of allowing teachers to have guns in classrooms.
http://www.post-gazette.com/news/education/2018/03/19/pennsylvania-schools-guns-legislation-teachers-districts-don-white-policies/stories/201803160117

“The bill, which was among the topics discussed throughout Thursday morning and into the afternoon at a hearing before Pennsylvania’s House Education Committee, envisions a different reality. School districts could decide if personnel should be armed and, if so, the districts would be required to coordinate with local law enforcement. Sen. Donald White, who represents rural portions of Western Pennsylvania, introduced SB 383 a year ago so employees in a shooting have “more choices than just locking a door, hiding in a closet or diving in front of bullets to protect students,” a 2017 memo says.”
SB383: From Wilkinsburg to Harrisburg, citizens and lawmakers alike discuss issue of arming school employees
Public Source by  Jeffrey Benzing  | March 15, 2018
Pennsylvania State Rep. Ed Gainey fears he’d be shot dead during a mass shooting if he were a gym teacher armed to protect a school. In that scenario, he imagines being seen by a police officer who doesn’t know him, who only sees an unknown black man with a gun, and wrongly pulls the trigger. “He’s got a second to think. My life is gone,” said Gainey, D-Allegheny, at a community meeting in Wilkinsburg on Wednesday evening focused on the concerns of arming school teachers and staff in the state. Wilkinsburg police officer Don Hamlin acknowledged to a crowd of about 20 people that an officer in a crisis scenario could wrongly target an armed but well-meaning individual. “The police may accidentally shoot one of these teachers who we don’t know is one of these teachers packing a gun,” Hamlin said outside the meeting, which was convened by local groups concerned that a state bill to arm teachers and school staff could gain momentum after a Feb. 14 mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Fla.
https://www.publicsource.org/from-wilkinsburg-to-harrisburg-citizens-and-lawmakers-alike-discuss-arming-teachers-in-pennsylvania/

Students: 1 million expected at anti-gun-violence marches
WHYY By Jennifer Peltz, Associated Press March 19, 2018
NEW YORK (AP) — Students from the Florida high school where 17 people were fatally shot last month expect more than 1 million participants in upcoming marches in Washington and elsewhere calling for gun regulations, students said Monday. More than 800 March for Our Lives demonstrations are planned around the world Saturday, sparked by the Feb. 14 shooting in Parkland, Florida. “It just shows that the youth are tired of being the generation where we’re locked in closets and waiting for police to come in case of a shooter,” Alex Wind, a junior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, told The Associated Press. “We’re sick and tired of having to live with this normalcy of turning on the news and watching a mass shooting,” he added. Since the massacre, Stoneman Douglas students have been at the forefront of a push to tighten gun restrictions and protect schools. They have led rallies and lobbied lawmakers in Washington and Florida’s capital, Tallahassee. Last Wednesday, tens of thousands of students around the U.S. walked out of their classrooms to demand action on gun violence and school safety. Stoneman Douglas students fanned out Monday to discuss the marches with media outlets in New York, including NBC’s “Today” show and “CBS This Morning.”
https://whyy.org/articles/students-1-million-expected-anti-gun-violence-marches/

Pennridge High School students plan more Saturday detention protests to call for stronger gun control
Pennridge High School students turned what was supposed to be punishment for holding a student walkout into another form of protest against gun violence.
Morning Call by Binghui Huang and Jacqueline Palochko Contact Reporters March 19, 2018
Pennridge High School students — calling themselves #Pennridge 225 — are turning what was supposed to be punishment for holding a student walkout last week into another form of protest against gun violence. On Saturday, 46 students — the first group of about 225 Pennridge High students — showed up to serve detention for ignoring the district’s warning that they should not participate in a national walkout on the one-month anniversary of the shooting deaths of 17 students and staff at a Parkland, Fla., high school. Instead of sitting in their seats, the detention servers pinned the names of gun violence victims on their clothing. They linked arms and sat in a circle as classmates placed flowers in the center. A video of the students sitting on the floor of their school cafeteria on Saturday has been spreading on social media, prompting messages of support from prominent gun control advocates and celebrities, including Chelsea Clinton, actor Patton Oswald and Lauren Hogg, sister of David Hogg, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student who has become a leading student voice in the call for stronger gun laws.
http://www.mcall.com/news/education/mc-nws-pennridge-students-detention-protest-20180318-story.html

Smart Talk: PSBA’s John Callahan on opposition to property tax elimination bill SB76
Smart Talk Monday, March 19, 2018: Written by Scott LaMar, Smart Talk Host/Executive Producer | Mar 18, 2018 8:48 PM
It's well-documented that property taxes are one of the most disliked taxes in Pennsylvania and it's been that way for a long time.  There have been numerous efforts over the past four decades to eliminate or at least reform property taxes. Republican State Senator David Argall of Schuylkill County appeared on Smart Talk Tuesday to discuss a bill that would do away with property taxes and make up the revenue with higher income and sales taxes and expand the items subject to sales tax.  Not everyone is on board with the plan though. There are school districts that don't want the state to have more control over their funding and think the property tax is reliable. John Callahan of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association makes their case on Monday's Smart Talk.
http://www.witf.org/smart-talk/2018/03/psba-on-opposition-to-property-tax-elimination-billembattled-fish-and-boat-commission-direector-john.php

“The Kansas Supreme Court in October ruled that the current formula fails the state constitution's requirement to adequately fund education and also doesn't distribute school dollars fairly between districts.”
Kansas study finds link between school funding, outcomes
THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW | Monday, March 19, 2018, 9:48 a.m.
A hand-picked consultant deliver an answer that Kansas Republican leaders didn't want: There is a link between education spending and student outcomes.
Lori Taylor, a Texas A&M University professor, told lawmakers on Friday they need to spend another $1.7 billion over five years to reach their stated performance goals or $2 billion to reach their enhanced outcomes,according to the Kansas City Star. “The analysis finds a strong, positive relationship between educational outcomes and educational costs,” Taylor said in her 157-page study. She also said a 1 percentage point increase in graduation rates is associated with a 1.2 percent increase in costs in lower grades and a 1.9 percent increase in costs at the high school level. Lawmakers hoped to scrape by with a proposed increase of $600 million to meet an April 30 deadline from the Kansas Supreme Court to rewrite their school funding formula. The report is the result of a years-long lawsuit in which several school districts sued the state for more money.
http://triblive.com/news/education/taxes/13438507-74/kansas-study-finds-link-between-school-funding-outcomes

Pa. congressional district map upheld as U.S. Supreme Court, federal judges reject Republican challenges
Inquirer by Jonathan Lai & Liz Navratil - Staff Writers Updated: MARCH 19, 2018 5:24 PM EDT
HARRISBURG — Just one day before congressional candidates had to file nominating petitions, the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington and the federal District Court here both declined on Monday  to grant requests from Republicans to block the new Pennsylvania congressional district map from going into effect for the May 15 primary. By improving Democrats’ chances of picking up seats in an important swing state, the new map has already changed the landscape for the congressional elections, with more people expressing an interest in running and some veteran politicians reconsidering their chances of success. The courts’ decisions on Monday disappointed Republicans —some of whom will likely face a tougher path to re-election — and delighted Democrats, who are hoping to regain control of the House.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/state/pennsylvania-congressional-map-federal-lawsuit-dismissed-gerrymandering-20180319.html

With new maps locked in, Pennsylvania elbows to center stage in fight for control of U.S. House
Penn Live By Charles Thompson cthompson@pennlive.com Updated Mar 19, 11:04 PM; Posted Mar 19, 9:57 PM
Republicans couldn't hide their frustration Monday over federal court rejections of requests to block new congressional maps drawn by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The question now is, can they convert their anger into useful political energy in the 18 new U.S. House districts overlaying the Keystone State? The final maps were set Monday afternoon, when the U.S. Supreme Court, in a one-sentence order, opted not to insert itself into a bitter state court redistricting case in which Pennsylvania's high court found the degree of voter-sorting that went into the current map here violated state constitution guarantees of "free and equal" elections.
http://www.pennlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/03/pennsylvania_elbows_to_center.html

Supreme Court keeps revised Pa. congressional map in place
WHYY By Associated Press Katie Meyer, WITF March 19, 2018 Updated: 9:30pm
Within hours of one another on Monday afternoon, the U.S. Supreme Court and a lower federal district court rejected Republican appeals against the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s decision to redraw the state’s congressional map. That leaves the state GOP with very few avenues to fight the new map before this year’s midterm elections, with primaries scheduled for May. In January, the majority-Democratic Pa. Supreme Court declared the state’s congressional district lines unconstitutionally gerrymandered to favor Republicans, who controlled the mapmaking process in 2011. The court ultimately redrew the map with the help of an independent expert from Stanford University. The court-drawn map made Democrats significantly more competitive.
Republicans were—and still are—outraged.
https://whyy.org/articles/supreme-court-keeps-revised-pa-congressional-map-place/

It's game on as GOP is dealt double-barreled defeats on redistricting | Analysis
Penn Live By John L. Micek jmicek@pennlive.com Updated Mar 19, 5:11 PM; Posted Mar 19, 3:55 PM
 (*Updated with comment from legislative leaders)
Tell them why they don't like Mondays.
PennLive's Charlie Thompson reports:
"The U.S. Supreme Court has again refused to bring the nation's high court into Pennsylvania's Congressional redistricting war. A court majority on Monday denied state Republican legislative leaders' request for an emergency stay that would block the use of a district map drawn by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in the looming election cycle. The map was imposed Feb. 19, four weeks after the court ruled Pennsylvania's existing map violated the state constitution's guarantee of "free and equal" elections by marginalizing Democratic vote counts through extreme gerrymandering. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito had denied an earlier stay request on Feb. 5, during a time when the legislature and Gov. Tom Wolf still had a window to adopt a corrective plan through traditional legislation."
The ruling from the high court didn't mince words. It was one sentence of legalese, a 'Boy, Bye,' of jurisprudence: "The application for stay presented to Justice Alito and by him referred to the court is denied." Boom. Right in the (legal) briefs. The Supremes' ruling came about an hour after a three-judge federal panel in Harrisburg dismissed another challenge, this one brought by members of the state's GOP congressional delegation. 
http://www.pennlive.com/capitol-notebook/2018/03/its_game_on_as_gop_dealt_doubl.html#incart_river_index

Editorial: It’s deadline day for nominating petitions; & we finally have a map
Delco Times Editorial POSTED: 03/20/18, 5:57 AM EDT
In rapid fashion yesterday two court rulings delivered the word that the horde of candidates looking to run for Congress has been waiting for. The new Congressional map of Pennsylvania’s districts will remain in place for the primary elections. Candidates interested in running for Congress from Pennsylvania have until 5 p.m. Tuesday to file their nominating petitions. And yesterday they got answers to the big question that has been hanging over the race. Now all they need is the requisite 1,000 signatures. First a panel of federal judges rejected an appeal from Republican members of Congress, including Chester County Rep. Ryan Costello, R-6. That was followed about an hour later from the U.S. Supreme Court that they would not get involved in a challenge filed by Republican members of the Pa. House and Senate.
http://www.delcotimes.com/opinion/20180320/editorial-its-deadline-day-for-nominating-petitions-amp-we-finally-have-a-map

No debate…we’re in Uncharted Territory
PCCY Website March 16, 2018
High school junior Charlene Canning may very well be the best young debater in the country. But she, and the rest of her Penn Wood HS team, will be denied the national stage simply because they’re in the wrong district. Other teams may cruise to nationals but Charlene’s team’s funding will only take them as far as the state championship because per-student funding varies so widely and irrationally. This week, Charlene spoke as part of a panel discussion about PCCY’s latest report, Uncharted Territory: Implications of Rising Charter Enrollment in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Suburbs. It follows a report we published in January detailing the impact of charter school governance under PA’s terrible charter law.  Charlene’s issue, says report author and PCCY research associate David Loeb, is a clear example of the inequities of PA’s school funding system, which are baked into the charter payment system, resulting in wildly different charter payments depending on the wealth of a student’s district. While Penn Wood HS isn’t a charter, Charlene explains that money going to charter schools means less money for traditional public schools. (Her district, William Penn, is one of the plaintiffs suing the state over school funding.)
http://www.pccy.org/news/no-debate-uncharted-territory-march-16-2018/

Pennsylvania needs charter school reform now
Intelligencer Opinion By Ana Meyers Posted at 6:00 AM March 20, 2018
Ana Meyers is executive director for PA Coalition of Public Charter Schools.
As a parent of six children, I cherish watching my children come home daily with excitement in their eyes to tell me about what they learned in school. I wish the same was true for every parent in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, for many families there is little or no choice for parents to provide their children with a good education from a quality school as our traditional public education system continues to fail far too many children and their families. Today, Pennsylvania offers a variety of other education options such as a strong public charter school system that includes cyber charter schools, the Education Improvement Tax Credit as well as regulations that allow parents to teach their children at home. Charter schools have successfully provided an education alternative to children since June 1997 and are one of the greatest success stories of education reform in the commonwealth. They have been the catalyst of major reforms by creating competition in the education marketplace. Furthermore, charter schools provide Pennsylvania children the opportunity to leave behind their failing schools and attend a school of their parents’ choice; therefore, putting education back in the hands of parents — not in the hands of government bureaucrats.
http://www.theintell.com/opinion/20180320/pennsylvania-needs-charter-school-reform-now

Erie School District finally looks ahead
GoErie By Ed Palattella  Posted at 2:00 AM March 18, 2018
A $14 million funding boost fuels strategic plan for education. After years of uncertainty, “We have some money and some time,” superintendent says. The two events were coincidental in their timing, but taken together they captured the Erie School District’s unique situation. On Tuesday evening, the school district held the second of its two public sessions to get input on the development of its long-term strategic plan. And on Wednesday morning, the district received a $14 million wire transfer from the state Treasury Department. The $14 million is the additional funding that the General Assembly in 2017 approved for the school district to help it remain solvent and improve its buildings and programs. The $14 million boost, which from now on is a permanent part of the school district’s annual state subsidy, will allow it to pursue the goals in the strategic plan, which is to be done by May. The plan will focus on educational improvements, including updating the district’s curriculum.
http://www.goerie.com/news/20180319/erie-school-district-finally-looks-ahead

Data breach may have put Pa. teachers' personal information at risk
A data breach in the Pa. Department of Education's Teacher Information Management System caused by a state employee error potentially compromised current and former teacher's personal information.
Penn Live By Jan Murphy jmurphy@pennlive.com Updated Feb 26; Posted Feb 26
A data breach of a state Department of Education database may have potentially compromised personal information including Social Security numbers of Pennsylvania's current and former teachers. A red notice was posted at the top of the department's website through the weekend noting a "security incident on the Teacher Information Management System." The breach, which occurred between 12 noon and 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, was caused by an error made by an employee in the governor's Office of Administration, said Dan Egan, a spokesman for that office.
http://www.pennlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/02/data_breach_may_have_put_pa_te.html


All-girls auto shop class teaches students to be confident, self-sufficient
Students of Meyers Park High in Charlotte, N.C. are participating in an auto shop introductory class as part of a larger effort to offer female students pathways to hands-on careers. The class aims to teach girls to troubleshoot and fix their own cars.
Christian Science Monitor By Ann Doss Helms, The Charlotte Observer/Associated Press / March 19, 2018
When the morning bell rings at Myers Park High, 16 girls are in the auto shop at the back of campus, ready to pop some hoods and get under the chassis. "If you're not getting your hands dirty, you're not doing it right," beams Miley Chavez, who dreams of opening her own garage and calling it The Lady Wrenchers. Myers Park High, nestled in one of Charlotte's most prestigious neighborhoods, is best known for producing International Baccalaureate graduates who compete for top scholarships and Ivy League Schools. But the booming auto shop there – the all-girls introductory class is the latest addition – illustrates a crucial part of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools' strategy: All schools should offer pathways to hands-on careers as well as college. And those career-technical classes should try to attract students who might not traditionally sign up.
https://www.csmonitor.com/layout/set/amphtml/USA/Education/2018/0319/All-girls-auto-shop-class-teaches-students-to-be-confident-self-sufficient

Why Are Black Students Punished So Often? Minnesota Confronts a National Quandary
New York Times By ERICA L. GREEN MARCH 18, 2018
MINNEAPOLIS — When Erin Rathke, the principal at Justice Page Middle School, is called to extract a student from class, she hears the same plea over and over again, most often, she has to admit, from black children: “The teacher only sees me.” The plea weighs heavily at Justice Page, where African-American students are 338 percent more likely to be suspended than their white peers. “It’s painful sometimes, but I have to say, ‘Yes, that’s probably true,’” Ms. Rathke said. It is a reality that district leaders here have been grappling with for years: The Minneapolis school district suspends an inordinate number of black students compared with white ones, and it is struggling to figure out why. Last year, districtwide, black students were 41 percent of the overall student population, but made up 76 percent of the suspensions. Numbers like that prompted the Obama administration in 2014 to draft tough new policies to try to address racial disparities in school discipline across the country. Now, the Trump administration is trying to reverse those policies — in part, administration officials say, as a response to school shootings like the massacre last month at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/18/us/politics/school-discipline-disparities-white-black-students.html

Betsy DeVos will testify before the U.S. House Appropriations Committee at 10 a.m. today. The hearing will be webcast live.
FY19 Budget - Department of Education Tuesday, March 20, 2018 10:00 AM in 2358-C Rayburn Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Witness: The Honorable Betsy DeVos, Secretary, Department of Education
Webcast: This hearing will be webcast.
https://appropriations.house.gov/calendar/eventsingle.aspx?EventID=395133

Betsy DeVos Has Visited One ‘Underperforming’ School – A DC Charter
When DeVos said to Stahl, “It all comes down to individual kids,” what she really means is that there is no place in her worldview for the communal enterprise we know as public education.
By Jeff Bryant Published on Wednesday, March 14, 2018 by The Progressive
In the much-written-about 60 Minutes interview of U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos by CBS reporter Lesley Stahl there was a telling exchange when Stahl queried DeVos on whether she had visited any “bad schools.” DeVos replied, “I have not intentionally visited schools that are underperforming.” But DeVos has visited an underperforming school—only she called it a “a shining example.” The school, which will be closed at the end of the school year due to poor academic performance, was the Excel Academy Public Charter School, an all-girls charter in Washington, D.C. First Lady Melania Trump and Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan accompanied DeVos on the visit in 2016. Trump called the charter school “an exceptional example.” The school was in trouble with the District’s charter school oversight board when DeVos and company visited. Less than nine months later, the board voted unanimouslyto close the school, with the board chair saying, “The trend for student performance over the past several years has been negative, despite any benefits that may have occurred.”
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2018/03/14/betsy-devos-has-visited-one-underperforming-school-dc-charter


2018 PSBA Advocacy Day April 16, 2018 Harrisburg
Join PSBA and your fellow school directors for the annual Advocacy Day on Monday, April 16, 2018, at the State Capitol in Harrisburg. PSBA is partnering with Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units to have a stronger voice for public education. Hear how advocacy makes a difference in the legislative process and the importance of public education advocacy. Government Affairs will take a deeper dive into the legislative priorities and will provide tips on how to be an effective public education advocate. There will be dedicated time for you and your fellow advocates to hit the halls to meet with your legislators on public education. This is your chance to share the importance of policy supporting public education and make your voice heard on the Hill. This event is free for members; registration is required.
Register online here: http://www.mypls.com/Default.aspx?tabid=3753
https://www.psba.org/event/2018-psba-advocacy-day/

NPE: Join us in a Day of Action April 20th to Stop Gun Violence in our Schools
Network for Public Education February 16, 2018 by Darcie Cimarusti
After the slaughter of students and staff in Parkland, Florida, the time for action has never been more urgent. The politicians sit on their hands as our children and their teachers are murdered in their schools. We will be silent no more! The failure to enact rational laws that bar access to guns designed for mass shootings is inexcusable. It is past time to speak out and act. Pledge your support to stop gun violence here. We call for mass action on April 20, the anniversary of the horrific shootings at Columbine High School. We urge teachers, families, students, administrators and every member of the community to engage in acts of protest in and around their schools. Create actions that work best in your community.  Organize sit-ins, teach-ins, walkouts, marches–whatever you decide will show your school and community’s determination to keep our students safe. One elementary teacher suggested that teachers and parents link arms around the school to show their determination to protect children.
https://networkforpubliceducation.org/2018/02/join-us-day-action-stop-gun-violence-schools/

PASA Women's Caucus Annual Conference "Leaders Lifting Leaders"
May 6 - 8, 2018 Hotel Hershey
**REGISTRATION NOW OPEN**
Featured Speakers...
*Dr. Helen Sobehart - Women Leading Education Across Continents: Lifting Leaders from Here to There
*Dr. Tracey Severns - Courageous Leadership
*Dr. Emilie Lonardi - Lead and Lift: A Call for Females to Aspire to the Superintendency
*Deputy Secretary Matt Stem - Update from the PDE
Registration: https://www.pasa-net.org/wcconf


MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD! Join the PA Principals Association, the PA Association of School Administrators and the PA Association of Rural and Small Schools for PA Education Leaders Advocacy Day at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 19, 2018, at the Capitol in Harrisburg, PA.  
A rally in support of public education and important education issues will be held on the Main Rotunda Steps from 1 p.m. - 2 p.m.
Visits with legislators will be conducted earlier in the day. More information will be sent via email, shared in our publications and posted on our website closer to the event.
To register, send an email to Dr. Joseph Clapper at clapper@paprincipals.org before Friday, June 8, 2018.
Click here to view the PA Education Leaders Advocacy Day 2018 Save The Date Flyer (INCLUDES EVENT SCHEDULE AND IMPORTANT ISSUES.) 

SAVE THE DATE for the 2018 PA Educational Leadership Summit - July 29-31 - State College, PA sponsored by the PA Principals Association, PASA, PAMLE and PASCD.  
This year's Summit will be held from July 29-31, 2018 at the Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, State College, PA.

Any comments contained herein are my comments, alone, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of any other person or organization that I may be affiliated with.

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