PA Ed Policy Roundup April 2, 2018 Catch Up on Our Spring Break Postings

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

Visit us on Facebook at KeystoneStateEducationCoalition

Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg

Keystone State Education Coalition

PA Ed Policy Roundup April 2, 2018

Catch Up on Our Spring Break Postings

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 30, 2018
Despite 112 Cosponsors, Turzai, Metcalfe Stymie Redistricting Reform Legislation
Sentencing set for Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School founder Nick Trombetta https://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2018/03/pa-ed-policy-roundup-march-30-despite.html

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 29, 2018
F&M poll: Support For Gun Control At All-Time High; 86% of registered PA voters favor expanded background checks for gun purchases
https://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2018/03/pa-ed-policy-roundup-march-29-f-poll.html

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 28, 2018
Florida Parkland Students Guest Editorial in The Guardian
https://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2018/03/pa-ed-policy-roundup-march-28-florida.html

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 27, 2018
Next Goal for Student Gun-Control Activists: Win at the Polls
https://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2018/03/pa-ed-policy-roundup-march-27-next-goal.html

PA Ed Policy Roundup March 26, 2018
Statewide: Thousands Join ‘March for Our Lives’ Protests Against Gun Violence
York, Red Lion, Lancaster, Beaver County, Centre County, Scranton, Hazelton, Greensburg, Stroudsburg, Mercer County, Lewisburg, Erie, Harrisburg, Allentown, Easton, Pittsburgh, Doylestown, West Chester, Pottstown, Berks County, Delaware County, Philly
https://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2018/03/pa-ed-policy-roundup-march-26-statewide.html

PA: Charter Fraud Finally Headed to Jail
Curmuducation Blog by Peter Greene Saturday, March 31, 2018
Nick Trombetta is finally going to be sentenced.
Trombetta is the founder-operator of PA Cyber Charter School (until 2013, just as the fertilizer met the fan) and also the founder of Lincoln Performing Arts Center School and some other charter-related businesses. PA Auditor General Eugene DePasquale (the guy who called PA charter laws the worst in the nation) found a number of issues, including hiring family members for big-money jobs, and funneling giant gouts of money to a no-oversight management company. All shady and costing the taxpayers millions of dollars, but also, as DePasquale notes, perfectly legal under Pennsylvania charter law. The state of Pennsylvania was never going to so much as bother him because, by PA charter law, he was perfectly within his rights to hire a computer company that was co-owned by a trustee (board member). The feds, however, were another matter. They caught Trombetta stuffing his own pockets with $8 million of taxpayer money. Trombetta fought the charges, but in 2016 finally fessed up. Since then, his sentencing has been repeatedly postponed, but is now scheduled for his sentencing for tax fraud and conspiracy in July. The conspiracy part is because Trombetta had some partners in this web of fraud who helped him cook the books. 
http://curmudgucation.blogspot.com/2018/03/pa-charter-fraud-finally-headed-to-jail.html?spref=tw

Op-ed: Chef Nick Elmi praises a ‘breakfast hero’ helping PA schoolkids combat hunger
A new state program will provide $900,000 in morning meal funding.
Billy Penn by NICK ELMI APR 02 2018  ·  6:45 A.M.
Pennsylvania schools have until Friday, April 6, to apply for funding to start or expand breakfast programs under a new $900,000 grant initiative offered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Funds may be used for equipment, staff training, learning, building support, marketing or other. More information is available here. Chef Nick Elmi is owner of Laurel and ITV, and co-owner of Royal Boucherie, all acclaimed restaurants in Philadelphia. He trained at Philly’s famous Le Bec-Fin, and won Bravo’s Top Chef Season 11.
Bringing great food to my community is my pride and joy. As a chef, I spend countless hours considering how best to prepare and showcase ingredients to provide my guests with a dining experience they’ll remember. Today, I want to tell you about someone who has worked just as tirelessly to make sure his students get a healthy meal at school each and every morning. His name is Martin Lorenzo, and he is my breakfast hero. As director of food service at the Gateway School District in Allegheny County, Mr. Lorenzo knows that well-nourished kids do better in the classroom. That’s why he’s been determined to make sure as many kids as possible get a healthy breakfast each morning. Much like I need good ingredients to do French cooking right, kids need proper fuel to learn and grow. A healthy school breakfast is as important to students as a textbook or a pencil. Yet three out of four public school teachers say students regularly come to school hungry, according to anti-hunger nonprofit Share Our Strength. When kids aren’t getting the consistent nutrition they need, it impacts their health and growth, and has negative consequences on their ability to learn and engage at school. Food provides the fuel they need to succeed. Alongside the dedicated food and nutrition team at Gateway, Mr. Lorenzo has worked with school staff and leadership to take creative approaches to serve breakfast during the school day, making it possible to reach many more kids in need of a morning meal.
https://billypenn.com/2018/04/02/op-ed-chef-nick-elmi-praises-a-breakfast-hero-helping-pa-schoolkids-combat-hunger/

Coalition presses Penn, other tax-exempt organizations to support Philadelphia public schools
Our City Our Schools presented its plan for $191 million in annual school funding with a rally on the University of Pennsylvania campus.
The notebook by Greg Windle March 31, 2018 — 10:11am
The activists central to the dissolution of the School Reform Commission want to raise at least $191 million a year for Philly’s public schools by closing tax loopholes for corporations and real estate developers and raising tax revenue from the city’s wealthiest. And they’ve got a plan to do it. The coalition began its campaign March 28 with a protest at the University of Pennsylvania. Students, teachers, activists and alumni flooded the university council, demanding that it make payments in lieu of taxes — what’s called a PILOT program — to help fund the city’s schools. After all, they said, Penn does not pay city property taxes but sits on an endowment of over $10 billion. Penn and Columbia are the only Ivy League universities that don’t pay PILOT. “For so many years, giant corporations and developers have avoided paying their taxes and we know with the new Trump tax bill it’s only going to get worse,” said Antione Little, a central organizer with the Our City Our Schools Coalition. “Our funding proposal would raise a billion dollars for our schools over the next five years without raising taxes on working people. “For too long, corporations like Comcast, universities like Penn, and developers like Brandywine Realty have made windfall profits without paying their fair share of taxes,” Little said.  The coalition applauds Mayor Kenney for closing the District’s looming budget deficit, but demands further investment in the city’s schools. Its new report proposes four main sources of revenue, which would total $191 million annually — and if property values were updated to match fair market value, that could drive the revenue as high as $301 million annually. 
http://thenotebook.org/articles/2018/03/31/coalition-presses-penn-other-tax-exempt-organizations-to-support-philadelphia-public-schools

Four changes we need from Harrisburg lawmakers | Editorial
by The Inquirer Editorial Board Updated: MARCH 30, 2018 — 3:19 PM EDT
This is the first editorial of The Agenda, an ongoing series examining key issues facing the region and Pennsylvania. In the coming months we will tackle state reforms, the opioid crisis, guns and more. Talk to us at agenda@phillynews.com.
What exclusive and expensive club in Pennsylvania has just 253 members, an annual budget of $325 million, and a staff of more than 2,220? Here’s a clue: This bloated bunch spends your money but routinely resists transparency. If you guessed the Pennsylvania General Assembly, you get the same prize as the rest of us — an oversized, underperforming government with a penchant for partisan bickering and a long history of rebuffing reform — until legislators hear a clamor from angry voters. For example, there was the surprise, middle-of-the-night pay raises legislators voted to give themselves in 2005, just before adjourning for a long summer break. They had to rescind that a few months later and grudgingly agreed to some procedural reforms after angry constituents voted a few legislators out of a job. Then came the “Bonusgate” criminal investigation, netting 12 Democrats and eight Republicans in 2008 and 2009 for using taxpayer resources to run political campaigns, putting a stop to that shady tradition. It shouldn’t take scandal and political peril to secure commonsense reforms. It might take an election, though: Most General Assembly seats are up for election this year — all 203 in the House and 25 of the 50 in the Senate. This is when voters have leverage.
http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/editorials/harrisburg-pennsylvania-legislature-reform-editorial-20180330.html

Students plan more rallies, other action on school safety, gun control
Trib Live by JAMIE MARTINES  | Friday, March 30, 2018, 4:39 p.m.
Students across Southwestern Pennsylvania took to the streets of Greensburg, Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., last week to protest the state of school safety and gun control laws. If that didn't get lawmakers' attention, what students do next might. The Parkland, Fla., students at the helm of the national March for Our Lives movement are now calling on peers across the county to organize town halls with state and federal lawmakers in their communities. Local students already have started planning such events. Organizers of the Pittsburgh March for Our Lives, which drew 10 times the number of people expectedMarch 24, have tentative plans to hold a town hall the weekend of April 7. They will invite local lawmakers and candidates for seats in the newly drawn 17th and 18th congressional districts, said Erin Simard, a junior at Shady Side Academy and one of the Pittsburgh march organizers. More details will be released on the group's Facebook page, Allegheny Student Forum.
http://triblive.com/news/education/safety/13481768-74/students-plan-more-rallies-other-action-on-school-safety-gun-control

Editorial: Secure schools with real guards
Bucks County Courier Times April 1, 2018
When government officials are under pressure to do something, they rarely embrace bold action. Instead, they engage in the appearance of doing something by announcing a study. Usually the study is undertaken by some sort of panel or commission that includes an impressive collection of exceptional people. You know they’re exceptional because they usually have fancy titles before their names or academic degrees after their names making it clear that they’re smarter than the rest of us. Such a panel was announced by Gov. Wolf this week. Eschewing the popular “blue ribbon” title for his study group, Wolf announced the “School Safety Task Force.” To his credit, Wolf’s panel will include parents and students — in other words, regular people — in addition to experts from education and law enforcement. “Ensuring the safety of Pennsylvanians, especially our children, is my top priority as governor,” Wolf said. Until, of course, he’s done running for re-election. But for now Wolf said his chief objective is to “make sure our schools are a safe place for our children to learn.” Wolf’s action comes on the heels of student demonstrations across the country and state following the shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida, where 17 people were murdered by a deranged gunman wielding a military-style assault rifle. The task force, Wolf explained, “will evaluate issues like funding for school safety initiatives, access to physical and mental health support programs, effectiveness of state requirements for training and security, and quality of reporting or anonymous tip tools.”
http://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/opinion/20180401/secure-schools-with-real-guards

Meet the Only K-12 Education Program to Get Cut in the Spending Bill Trump Signed
Education Week Politics K12 Blog By Andrew Ujifusa on April 2, 2018 7:31 AM
The new federal spending levels recently approved by President Donald Trump include a $2.6 billion boost for the U.S. Department of Education. But what's the story behind that number?
Big programs intended for disadvantaged students, special education, and career and technical education are getting significant boosts. Title IV, a big block grant that can be spent on various initiatives, got a nearly three-fold increase. However, it's not just that the major line items got increases. Several smaller programs that deal with magnet schools, arts in education, and the Special Olympics got more money too. In fact, we could only find one K-12 program in the Education Department's new budget that is getting less money in fiscal 2018 than it did in fiscal 2017. That distinction (so to speak) goes to the School Leader Recruitment and Support program. Housed at the department's Office of Innovation and Improvement, School Leader Recruitment and Support's objectives are pretty much what its name suggests. It aims to help with the recruitment, training, and retention of principals and assistant principals in high-needs school districts. These grants have paid for stipends for principals serving as mentors, financial incentives for aspiring principals, and professional development and leadership training.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2018/04/trump_spending_bill_signed_federal_education_program_just_one_cut.html


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 20^th 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

Gerrymandering: Fair Districts PA Statewide Calendar of Events

https://www.fairdistrictspa.com/events

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.

http://dlvr.it/Q5d0c8 

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.