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Wednesday, April 4, 2018

PA Ed Policy Roundup April 4: Lawmakers need to try again to find solutions on school safety | Opinion


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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Lawmakers need to try again to find solutions on school safety | Opinion



PSBA Legislative Forecast: Spring Edition webinar APR 4, 2018 • 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Learn the latest updates on the highest legislative priorities in this free webinar for members, presented by the PSBA Government Affairs team. Hear suggestions for how school leaders can most effectively advocate for their districts and communities. Also, get a forecast of the spring legislative session, mapping what to expect from bills moving in the House and Senate.



Lawmakers need to try again to find solutions on school safety | Opinion
Penn Live Guest Editorial By Susan Spicka Updated Apr 3, 8:45 AM; Posted Apr 3, 8:45 AM
Susan Spicka, of Shippensburg, is executive director of the advocacy group, Education Voters of Pa. 
It's not quite the French Revolution, but the callous remarks from several Republican members of the state House Education Committee on the topic of school safety last month struck an eerily familiar chord. We can all question how we've arrived at a point in our culture when we have active shooter drills in our schools and teach students to throw things at armed assailants firing high-powered rifles. None of it makes sense. But the job of our legislators is to make sense of it. Not to dismiss it. And certainly not to laugh about it -- as these members did, glibly suggesting the committee go watch students practice throwing rocks as part of their school's active shooter drill. Let them eat cake, indeed. It's time we have some real leadership from our state legislators. It's time to put partisanship aside and work on real solutions that address gun violence in our communities and schools. That means the House Education Committee needs a do-over on its hearing from March 15.
http://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2018/04/lawmakers_need_to_try_again_to.html#incart_river_index

Wolf extends fundraising lead over 3 Republicans in primary
Penn Live By Marc Levy The Associated Press Updated Apr 3, 5:54 PM; Posted Apr 3, 5:09 PM
Editor's note: This story was updated with new information at 5:54 p.m. April 3, 2018.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) -- Millions more dollars poured into the Pennsylvania governor's race in 2018, as Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf extended his fundraising lead over the three Republican candidates vying for the party's nomination to challenge him, according to reports filed at the state's Tuesday deadline. Wolf reported more than $14.7 million in the bank for November's general election, or $8.5 million more than his nearest rival, Republican state Sen. Scott Wagner of York County, who made millions in the waste-hauling industry. With seven weeks until May 15's primary election, Wagner reported $6.2 million in cash in the bank. Paul Mango, a former health care systems consultant from suburban Pittsburgh, had $3.3 million and Laura Ellsworth, a longtime commercial litigation lawyer from suburban Pittsburgh, had $434,000.
http://www.pennlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/04/wolf_extends_fundraising_lead.html#incart_river_index

Laura Ellsworth: a different voice for the GOP | John Baer
Philly Daily News by John Baer, STAFF COLUMNIST  baerj@phillynews.com Updated: APRIL 3, 2018 — 5:13 PM EDT
This is just for your consideration. It is not an endorsement. I’ll never suggest how you should vote, only that you should vote. But every once in a while, I come across a candidate who strikes a chord uncommon to the often-clanky music of politics, and I like to point it out. Laura Ellsworth is such a candidate. She is, you may know (though I’m betting many don’t), a Republican running for governor in the May 15 primary. She’s up against fellow Pittsburgher Paul Mango and party-endorsed York County State Sen. Scott Wagner, both with lots more money in the race to face Gov. Wolf in the fall. Mango and Wagner are fighting over which is more conservative, each seeking to win the hearts of the party’s right-leaning base. Ellsworth is seeking broader, less ideological support at a time when ideology is driving politics — and driving us all apart. Naturally, she’s been given next to no chance to win. Our campaign-finance laws and closed primaries work against such candidates. Yet hers is a voice that ought to be heard. It doesn’t pander. It doesn’t promise impossible things. It has a genuine quality. She talks about people more than about politics. Says she’s not in the game to be a politician but to get things done for the people of Pennsylvania, “who’ve been waiting too long to get things done.”
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/pennsylvania-laura-ellsworth-gop-primary-governor-john-baer-wagner-mango-20180404.html

Gubernatorial candidate Paul Mango advocates changes to education system
By Eric Scicchitano The Daily Item April 3, 2018
Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of stories on Pennsylvania’s Republican gubernatorial candidates following meetings with The Daily Item’s editorial board.
SUNBURY — Republican gubernatorial candidate Paul Mango backed school vouchers and the elimination of school property taxes, framed the opioid addiction crisis as a social issue and criticized the state Supreme Court’s decision to redraw Congressional district maps in a visit with The Daily Item’s editorial board Tuesday. The state public school system isn’t succeeding in preparing students to be competitive in a global economy and to be good citizens, Mango said, adding that the blame extends beyond the school. Inventive experimentation to evolve the public school model combined with parent choice is needed to improve education, he said. “Something is broken,” said Mango. “I know what we have today is very similar to when I was in elementary school 55 years ago. It has not adapted. I don’t think the public school system has innovated nearly as much as it could given the technology available.”Mango recommends the creation of education savings accounts, splitting the cost to educate a public school student — taking $9,000 from the average $18,000 cost to pay for home schooling or private school.
http://www.dailyitem.com/news/gubernatorial-candidate-paul-mango-advocates-changes-to-education-system/article_34ba7a24-37a6-11e8-9d6f-d37038fa1713.html

SB1095: PSBA supports proposal to provide alternative pathways to graduation
PSBA Press Release April 3, 2018
The Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) supports legislation introduced today by Senator Thomas McGarrigle (R-Chester/Delaware) that provides multiple pathways for demonstrating readiness for graduation in addition to passing Keystone Exams. “This new proposal allows various assessments and pieces of evidence to be used to show proficiency rather than using Keystone Exams as the sole consideration of student success. The proposal appropriately recognizes the attainment of knowledge and skills relevant to students’ individual career pathways,” said PSBA Chief Executive Officer Nathan G. Mains. The proposal under Senate Bill 1095 is the culmination of recommendations from the Department of Education and extensive discussion and collaboration with leaders in the education community, including PSBA. The bill revises the current requirement that calls for students to pass the state-developed Keystone Exams in Literature, Algebra I and Biology in order to graduate. Although the graduation requirement was intended to begin in the 2016-17 school year, the General Assembly has delayed the effective date twice, with the mandate now set to be effective in the 2019-20 school year unless a new plan can be enacted.
https://www.psba.org/2018/04/psba-supports-proposal-to-provide-alternative-pathways-to-graduation/

“Gov. Tom Wolf appointed Zogby on March 9 as the first financial administrator for any of the state’s 500 school districts. Zogby is an employee of the state Department of Education. The 11,500-student Erie School District had to accept oversight of a financial administrator in exchange for receiving the $14 million, believed to be the largest one-time budgetary increase the General Assembly has granted to a school district. “
Financial monitor arrives at Erie School District
GoErie By Ed Palattella   Posted Apr 3, 2018 at 2:28 PM Updated Apr 3, 2018 at 6:05 PM
Charles Zogby, a former state education and budget secretary, pledges to help the school system stay stable and “help the district get where it wants to be.” During a two-hour meeting at the Erie School District on Tuesday, Charles Zogby got a crash course on the district’s financial challenges and educational goals. Zogby, the school district’s newly appointed state-paid financial administrator, sat at a table with schools Superintendent Brian Polito, School Board President Frank Petrungar, Assistant Superintendent Bea Habursky and some of the district’s other top education, human resources and finance officials. “It was like drinking from a fire hydrant,” Zogby joked afterward. And Zogby is just getting started. Though he officially began his new $148,000-a-year post on March 26, he spent his first day at the Erie School District on Tuesday, when the district reopened after its spring break. The previous week, Zogby, 56, a former Pennsylvania education and budget secretary, met with state education officials in Harrisburg to learn about the Erie School District’s finances, including the development that led to his job — the $14 million in additional and recurring state aid that the district started receiving on March 14.
http://www.goerie.com/news/20180403/financial-monitor-arrives-at-erie-school-district

“The mayor’s announcement is scheduled for 10 a.m. in City Hall. Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. and Otis Hackney, the city’s chief education officer, are also scheduled to attend.”
Who will run Philly schools? Kenney to name 9 to new school board Wednesday
Inquirer by Kristen A. Graham, Staff Writer  @newskag |  kgraham@phillynews.com Updated:APRIL 4, 2018 — 5:37 AM EDT
Mayor Kenney on Wednesday will name the nine people who will determine the future of the Philadelphia School District, its $3 billion budget, and over 200,000 students in traditional public and charter schools. Kenney will choose a new Board of Education, making good on a promise to pick a local governing body for the city’s public school system. He will pick from among 45 nominees chosen by a school board nominating panel. The nine unpaid board members will begin running the school system July 1, after the state-created School Reform Commission ceases to exist. Kenney and his advisers have said he went into the board decision with an open mind, and that some of the names put forward by the nominating panel were not previously known to the mayor’s office. The nominating panel first gave Kenney 27 names to consider and then, after the mayor asked for a pool with more educators and parents in the mix, submitted 18 more names. Whom Kenney will choose is a closely guarded secret. But two likely picks are Joyce Wilkerson and Christopher McGinley, who were until last week members of the SRC. Wilkerson was chair, and McGinley headed the policy committee.
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/mayor-kenney-names-new-philly-school-board-20180404.html

For $20M, some Philly schools to get makeovers
Inquirer by Kristen A. Graham, Staff Writer  @newskag |  kgraham@phillynews.com Updated: APRIL 3, 2018 — 4:36 PM EDT
The Philadelphia School District will spend $20 million on updating primary grade classrooms in 11 city schools next school year. If you want to know whether the investment is worth it, just ask Katherine Carter. Carter, principal of Alain Locke Elementary in West Philadelphia, surveyed a first-grade class — some children writing sentences, others reading books, others stringing letter beads together, some puzzling through literacy activities on iPads — and nodded definitively. “It’s increased engagement,” said Carter, whose school was part of a pilot this year to modernize classrooms in targeted struggling schools across the city. “It’s increased excitement. We’re seeing improvements.” With the school system preparing for a return to local control – and a proposed accompanying cash infusion that would improve its budget picture considerably, bringing the district’s long-term spending plan into structural balance – Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. is planning to invest in areas he thinks will move the district forward.
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20millon-philly-schools-makeovers-alain-locke-20180403.html

Classroom upgrades: District tackles early literacy with center-based learning
The notebook by Bill Hangley Jr. April 3, 2018 — 4:19pm
Philadelphia School District officials hosted a visit to Locke Elementary in West Philadelphia to show off one of the modernized classrooms that they hope will boost early-childhood literacy – and to announce that dozens more will soon get the same treatment.  “Even the little stools – they’re rocking stools, so the kids don’t have to keep still. They wiggle! So the kids really like those,” said principal Katherine Carter with a smile, as she stood in one of her newly painted, brightly lit 1st-grade classrooms. The classroom upgrades aren’t just cosmetic, said Carter, but designed around a “center-based” instruction model. The modernized rooms feature iPads and other new materials, clusters of modular desks, and dedicated spaces for small groups to work on reading, writing, and math. “I’ve seen improvements in their reading levels,” Carter said. “The instructional centers are much more rigorous, and the students are much more engaged … it’s amazing.”
http://thenotebook.org/articles/2018/04/03/classroom-upgrades-district-tackles-early-literacy-with-a-center-based-approach

For aspiring chefs, cooking is all work, no glamour
Inquirer by Allison Steele, Staff Writer  @AESteele |  asteele@phillynews.com Updated: APRIL 4, 2018 — 5:40 AM EDT
Nerves almost got the best of Abria Goldsmith during her first cooking competition over the winter. Her hands shook, her mind was scattered, and she struggled to finish on time. Determined to make sure her training would get her through the next round, she prepared for the finals by cooking endless plates of chicken. “I practiced for two weeks straight,” said Goldsmith, an 18-year-old senior at North Philadelphia’s Murrell Dobbins CTE High School. “I tournéed, like, 45 potatoes. I wanted to get to where I didn’t have to think about what I was doing.” Last month, Goldsmith competed against 18 other high school students for scholarships to local and national culinary schools in the Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP), a nonprofit that has trained aspiring chefs around the country for more than 25 years. This week, Goldsmith was awarded a full-tuition scholarship to the Culinary Institute of America in New York.
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/careers-through-culinary-arts-program-competition-scholarship-20180404.html

Abington apologizes for mishandling of $25M donation that called for high school renaming
Inquirer by Kathy Boccella, Staff Writer  @Kathy_Boccella |  kboccella@phillynews.com Updated: APRIL 3, 2018 — 3:41 PM EDT
Abington School District wants a do-over. After a week of controversy, school officials on Tuesday apologized for the way they handled a deal to rename their high school after an alumnus who is donating $25 million to renovate the aging building, and said they would replace the pledge agreement with a new, more transparent one. In a letter to the community, Superintendent Amy Sichel, school board president Raymond McGarry, and vice president Susan Arnold said that the board would vote to rescind the agreement April 10, and a new pact would be made available at that time. The board would then vote on the new agreement on April 24. The school board had voted last Tuesday to change the name of the high school to Abington Schwarzman High School after Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman in exchange for his mega-gift. The board never sought public comment and didn’t give the community advance notice about the vote.
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/abington-high-school-apology-steven-schwarzman-25-million-donation-20180403.html

Teacher rebellion puts red-state Republicans on defensive
Inquirer by SEAN MURPHY, The Associated Press Updated: APRIL 3, 2018 — 7:28 PM EDT
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A teacher rebellion in red states from West Virginia to Arizona has put Republicans on the defensive, forcing them to walk a fine line in the months before midterm elections between placating constituents who are angry over education cuts and conservative supporters who want a smaller government and low taxes. In Oklahoma, most Republicans last week broke with the party orthodoxy and endorsed hundreds of millions of dollars in tax increases to fund public schools and give teachers a raise of 15 to 18 percent. They acted after Oklahoma teachers demanded action, inspired by a nine-day strike in West Virginia, where they won a 5 percent raise. The rebellion also has spread to Kentucky where teachers thronged the state Capitol Monday to protest cuts in pensions. And in Arizona, restive teachers also are demanding a 20 percent pay raise.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politics/20180403_ap_d402da32fe364dd292b908676f71cf9c.html

Letter: An update on homeschooling in Pa.
Delco Times Letter by Kathleen Lopez, Havertown POSTED: 04/03/18, 7:09 PM
To the Times: As a graduate of Marple Newtown schools, I know that Sam Alfonsi’s years in the school district and his test-prep and tutoring services have been highly valued by the community. However, Mr. Alfonsi is not up-to-date on Pennsylvania’s Home Education law. In his letter to the editor, Mr. Alfonsi states that the “homeschooling program ... must be approved by the local school district in which the child attends.” This is not accurate; Pennsylvania school districts do not provide direct oversight to homeschooled students in this way. While a homeschool supervisor (often a parent) must notify the school district annually via notarized affidavit and a list of educational objectives, the school district does not “approve” the course of learning. The homeschool supervisor is required to have a qualified evaluator (as defined by law) review the student’s portfolio and provide a written report to the school district certifying that an appropriate education has occurred. Homeschooling in the Philadelphia area has been growing over the past several years, especially among non-religious families and – perhaps surprisingly – families from highly rated school districts. Mr. Alfonsi suggested that people may be looking to homeschool based on school shootings. Although many homeschool families recognize that the risk of a school shooting locally is still statistically small, they do recognize the larger potential risk for psychological harm presented by active shooter drills and school lockdowns.
http://www.delcotimes.com/opinion/20180403/letter-an-update-on-homeschooling-in-pa

Some schools are easing up on strict cellphone policies
Morning Call by Sarah M. Wojcik Contact Reporter Of The Associated Press April 3, 2018
The rigid cellphone policy at Northampton Area School District was costing administrators two to three hours a day to enforce. A cellphone left in the open by a student was enough to merit a write-up and a trip to the assistant principal’s office for discipline, according to Superintendent Joseph Kovalchik. By 2011, as cellphones became increasingly common among students, the superintendent said administrators realized something had to change. The policy implemented that year prepared the district for what has, in many schools, become an embrace of new technology and the lessons that go with it. New data shows that the percentage of K-12 schools banning cellphones across the nation has dropped from more than 90 percent in 2009-10 to 66 percent in 2015-16, according to a survey conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics. The shift was especially stark among high schools — those with cellphone bans dropped from 80 percent to only 35 percent in the same period, the survey says. Across the Lehigh Valley, school policies vary. Some districts, such as Easton Area and Catasauqua Area, have strict policies relegating cellphones to lockers, according to student handbooks.
http://www.mcall.com/news/education/mc-nws-schools-cell-phones-policy-20180402-story.html


There are better ways to assess students than with high-stakes standardized tests. These schools are using them with success.
Washington Post Answer Sheet Blog By Valerie Strauss April 3 at 12:00 PM Email the author
For years, education policy dictated that student standardized test scores be central in the assessment of students (not to mention teachers and principals and schools) — despite protests by parents, educators, students and even assessment experts. More recently, however, we’ve seen reductions in how often students are tested and in the importance of the results — and now there are schools finding success with assessment alternatives. This post details that success and how it can be expanded to other schools and districts. This was written by Monty Neill, executive director of the National Center for Fair & Open Testing, a nonprofit group known as FairTest that works to end the abuse of standardized tests.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2018/04/03/there-are-better-ways-to-assess-students-than-with-high-stakes-standardized-tests-these-schools-are-using-them-with-success/?utm_term=.a7a07623b2c3

“Lawmakers last month left out of their massive spending package several initiatives that DeVos championed or put forward in the Education Department’s budget proposal, including a $1 billion grant program to promote school choice. This year’s package did include $400 million for charter school grants, which was a $58 million or 17 percent increase over the previous year. Rather than adopting proposed cuts of $9 billion to the agency’s discretionary spending, Congress increased it $3.9 billion — nearly 6 percent over 2017 levels, according to the Committee for Education Funding.”
Hard lessons for Betsy DeVos in D.C.
Melissa Nann Burke, Detroit News Washington Bureau Published 11:58 p.m. ET April 3, 2018
Washington — Education Secretary Betsy DeVos came here from the Grand Rapids area to reform education and expand alternatives to traditional public schools, but her agenda has been rebuffed by a Republican-led Congress and stymied by the polarized climate surrounding her tenure. Education experts say her Department of Education has few policy wins to tout after more than a year, and a series of stumbles in high-profile forums — from her confirmation hearing to a mid-March CBS “60 Minutes” interview — hurt her ability to effectively harness the bully pulpit. “She has learned quite a bit on the job,” said Mike Petrilli, president of the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a policy group in Washington that supports school choice. “This is a whole new kind of role for Betsy DeVos. She was used to being somebody who was a strategist in the background, and wasn’t someone who was out front giving a lot of speeches. She wasn’t very good at it at first and, on the whole, she’s gotten better at it. Though I think the ‘60 Minutes’ interview indicates she still has some growing to do.” DeVos seemed to struggle with certain questions in the “60 Minutes” segment, including those about declining public school performance in Michigan, where she spent years advocating for taxpayer funding for charter and private schools.
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/2018/04/03/congress-rebuff-devos-school-agenda/33526807/


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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