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Urge your House member to support SB1095 graduation reforms.
Tell your PA House member we need
graduation reforms under SB 1095, which was unanimously passed by the Senate in
June and unanimously voted out of the House Education Committee yesterday:
PSBA Legislative Alert August 27, 2018
Deadline
to register to vote is October 9. How to
Use Pennsylvania’s Online Voter Registration:
To
vote in the next election, you must complete your application by 10/09/2018
Here’s PSBA’s summary of SB1095. Please consider reaching out to your PA House members today to urge them to support this legislation and to have them ask House Leadership to bring SB1095 up for a vote before the full House before the legislative session ends.
Summary of Senate Bill 1095: Changes to high school graduation requirements
Provisions of Senate Bill 1095, as amended in the House Education Committee on Sept. 24, 2018
Prime Sponsor: Senator Thomas McGarrigle (R-Chester/Delaware)
Quick summary: Senate Bill 1095 amends the Public School Code by establishing alternative pathways for high school graduation and making other changes. The bill creates four options that students who are not proficient on the three Keystone Exams in Algebra I, literature and biology may use to meet requirements to graduate. Schools are not required to offer related supplemental instruction. Provisions for project-based assessments are eliminated. The bill applies to school districts, intermediate units, area vocational-technical schools/career and technical education centers, charter schools, cyber charter schools, regional charter schools or multiple charter school organizations.
Effective date: The act will become effective immediately upon the governor’s signature. Requirements for high school graduation will be effective in the 2021-22 school year. The legislation establishes requirements for high school graduation and calls for the State Board of Education to revise regulations as necessary to implement the provisions.
https://www.psba.org/2018/09/summary-sb1095-092418/
Editorial: New school year, old funding problem
Pottstown Mercury and Delco Times Editorial Sep 23, 2018
A new school year is underway. Students have new clothes, new pencils and backpacks, and in some districts, new buildings to explore. As this new year begins, a lingering issue looms over public schools in our region. Families, educators and property owners have been pressing for decades to change Pennsylvania’s public school funding and fix a system that has been broken for 40 years.Today, as students trek to their classrooms in a new school year, Pennsylvania has the distinction of the widest funding gap in the nation between wealthy and poor districts. The victims are not only the students in poorer districts but also property owners who carry the tax burden of funding education. The state is ranked 47th among the 50 states for its funding share compared to states who dedicate revenue to public schools from state lotteries, business taxes and other broad sources. In Pennsylvania, the property tax and the underfunding of poorer schools is not an issue for schools in counties where real estate value is adequate to educate their students. In the urban areas and towns of southeastern Pennsylvania, however, there are more students and a greater need. Fixing the problem would mean spreading the burden, which is not in the realm of political reality.
https://www.delcotimes.com/opinion/editorial-new-school-year-old-funding-problem/article_2a1021c0-be59-11e8-9f35-0f585bf9cc3b.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
“One study mentioned in the NYT report found that when black children had a black teacher between third and fifth grades, boys were significantly less likely to later drop out of high school, and both boys and girls were more likely to attend college. The findings were more significant among low-income students.”
Studies: Students perform better when teachers share their race, gender
Lancaster Online by ALEX GELI | Staff Writer Sep 13, 2018
Students perform better when they're taught by teachers who look like them, research shows.
The New York Times recently reported on several studies that show students, particularly nonwhite males, don't perform as well with teachers who don't share their race or gender. "The homogeneity of teachers is probably one of the contributors, the research suggests, to the stubborn gender and race gaps in student achievement, the report says. "Over all, girls outperform boys, and white students outperform those who are black and Hispanic." In June, LNP reported that Hispanic students in the School District of Lancaster felt overlooked -- or worse, targeted -- because of the color of their skin or the way they speak. Pennsylvania Department of Education data show in 2016-17, the 803-member staff at the district was 89 percent white, 5 percent Hispanic and 4 percent black. The district’s 11,336 students were 13 percent white, 60 percent Hispanic and 17 percent black.
https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/studies-students-perform-better-when-teachers-share-their-race-gender/article_4e40e1cc-b6bd-11e8-a625-e7162427848b.html
Hamlet hopes to shrink racial achievement gap in Pittsburgh schools. New test scores show a long way to go.
Public Source by Mary Niederberger | 24 hours ago
There were smiles all around at the Pittsburgh Public Schools “State of the District” event last week as the audience of district officials, advocates, politicians and foundation representatives watched performances by the Brashear High School Nepali dance team, the Miller PreK-5 African Drummers and the Faison K-5 choir. But the goodwill generated was not enough to overcome school board president Regina Holley’s concerns about data released during the event that showed test scores across the district are barely moving forward and that a wide achievement gap still exists between black and white students. “The gap is very wide. It’s not moving fast enough,” said Holley, a retired principal in the Pittsburgh district. Her comments came despite the theme of the event: “It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon.” “As you can see, these numbers are not 100 percent. As an educational organization, we cannot stop." Among the goals of the district’s five-year strategic plan unveiled by Superintendent Anthony Hamlet in April 2017 is increasing proficiency for all students in literacy and math and eliminating “racial disparity in achievement levels of African-American students.”
https://www.publicsource.org/hamlet-hopes-to-shrink-racial-achievement-gap-in-pittsburgh-schools-new-test-scores-show-a-long-way-to-go/
Editorial: Keep the momentum going on school safety initiatives
Lancaster Online by THE LNP EDITORIAL BOARD September 24, 2018
THE ISSUE: Twenty-eight school administrators, police officers and elected officials gathered Sept. 17 at Warwick High School to discuss school safety issues and policy. The forum, held by Republicans in the state Senate Majority Policy Committee, was one of several the committee is holding across Pennsylvania. It focused, according to LNP’s Sam Janesch, mostly on mental health services for students, the new statewide anonymous reporting tool, the importance of school resource officers and improvement of schools’ physical safety. The topic of gun violence was also addressed, although not extensively.
When it comes to school safety, how often do we stop and put ourselves in the shoes of the students? We found ourselves moved by the concerns of Lampeter-Strasburg High School junior Lauren Kneisley, who wrote the following in a letter titled “Worried about school safety” that appeared in LNP on Sept. 18: “For high school students, the start of the school year means assemblies, papers to get signed, and, at my school, new computers for everyone. But after sitting through an hourlong assembly that told me what forms need to be signed, and explained in great detail what I can and cannot wear, I still have no idea what we would do if there were an active shooter. ... “I feel that the school district has a responsibility to address this problem, much like it addresses fire drills and severe weather drills. I know that the teachers have ‘armed intruder’ drills when students aren’t in the building, and that’s progress. But in the event that it happens, we aren’t going to have time to listen to our teacher give us instructions, we would need to act; we need a plan. “I am not a politician. I am a teenager, and I am affected by this problem. It’s not something we can pretend isn’t happening. To do so would be incredibly dangerous.”
We hear you, Lauren. You deserve a plan. And answers. And action from leaders. There’s good news. Others hear you, too. We were heartened by last week’s meeting of school administrators, police officers and elected officials at Warwick to discuss school safety in Pennsylvania.
https://lancasteronline.com/opinion/editorials/keep-the-momentum-going-on-school-safety-initiatives/article_8e9021e0-bdeb-11e8-958e-2b9609032e1f.html
Philly’s $40,000 cab ride, and what it says about modern, urban education
The Notebook/WHYY By Avi Wolfman-Arent September 24, 2018
If you squint just right, Roberta Bellamy looks like she’s living in a public school paradise. On mornings when everything goes as planned, a taxi driver pulls up to her house in West Philadelphia at 7:20 a.m. and whisks her son, Kareem, to a private school in the suburbs. A special aide rides alongside him, ensuring the 45-minute ride goes smoothly. This kind of personalized morning commute is typically reserved for the ultra-rich, but Bellamy doesn’t pay a penny. The School District of Philadelphia covers the cab, which costs roughly $228 a day, or $41,040 over a 180-day school year. The district also pays Kareem’s aide $17,500 each year.
https://whyy.org/articles/phillys-40000-cab-ride-and-what-it-says-about-modern-urban-education/
After another twist, Pa. Supreme Court to hear Lower Merion tax case
WHYY By Avi Wolfman-Arent September 25, 2018
In 2016, aviation attorney and Lower Merion resident Arthur Wolk sued his school district claiming it misrepresented its finances in order to secure a tax increase without voter approval. More than two years later, that case has mutated into a civil procedure clash that will go before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Wednesday. The case has even attracted the attention of the state ACLU, which filed an amicus brief backing the school district’s right to appeal the original decision. By the time the legal dust clears, Wolk’s wonky crusade could end up altering local tax policy and the ability of appellants to make speedy appeals to higher courts. All the while, residents in one of Pennsylvania’s wealthiest enclaves wonder whether they’ll get a major refund.
So, how did we get here?
https://whyy.org/articles/after-another-twist-pa-supreme-court-to-hear-lower-merion-tax-case/
Report: Stationing police in schools is costly, causes trauma for students of color
Philly parents have different opinions on whether officers should stay.
The notebook/WHYY NEWS by Darryl C. Murphy September 21 — 5:47 pm, 2018
A new report by the Advancement Project and the Alliance for Educational Justice says that police should not be stationed in schools. The two advocacy groups believe that school police officers create hostile environments for black and brown students and contribute to the trauma that many students experience outside of school. Philadelphia was among the cities featured in the report. For some city parents, though, the idea of removing school police officers is just unthinkable. Terri Seward, whose daughter attends Bartram High School in Southwest Philadelphia, isn’t buying the argument that school police create a prison-like atmosphere. She said those officers are a necessity. “It’s a little bit comforting to me to see [the] presence of police here,” she said. “I would want to see them here. And that’s because of the environment that we live in. Unfortunately, that’s where we are.” Robin Roberts, an active parent at Carver High School of Engineering & Science, agreed with the report’s findings that school police officers can present a false sense of security while criminalizing students. She said that keeping the peace in schools has a different meaning for some students.
https://thenotebook.org/articles/2018/09/21/reports-stationing-police-in-philly-schools-costly-causes-trauma-for-students-of-color/
Lengthy teachers contract dispute ends in Dallas
Citizens Voice BY MICHAEL P. BUFFER / PUBLISHED: SEPTEMBER 24, 2018
DALLAS TWP. — The long, contentious contract dispute between the Dallas School Board and the union for school district teachers is officially over. After working three years under an expired union agreement and going on strike a total of 31 days during the previous two school years, the teachers have a new contract that ends Aug. 31, 2023. The school board unanimously approved the new deal in a special meeting Sunday night that lasted two minutes. The average union salary is increasing from $62,076 in 2017-18 to $69,223 this year, Business Manager Grant Palfey said. Teachers didn’t advance pay-scale steps after the previous union agreement expired Aug. 31, 2015 and will not receive retroactive pay under the new deal for the three previous years, Palfey said. Negotiators reached a tentative deal Wednesday night. Union members approved the deal after meeting for nearly two hours Thursday afternoon.
https://www.citizensvoice.com/news/lengthy-teachers-contract-dispute-ends-in-dallas-1.2389370
Gov. Wolf: Debates aren't needed to show the "stark contrast" between himself and GOP Scott Wagner
Penn Live By Jan Murphy jmurphy@pennlive.com Updated Sep 24, 5:40 PM; Posted Sep 24, 5:34 PM
Gov. Tom Wolf says the reason he isn't participating in more debates with Republican opponent Scott Wagner is not because he's afraid to debate him. "The election process in a democracy is five months of continuous debate where I'm laying out the stark contrast that exists between me and my opponent and I will continue to do that through Election Day," Wolf told the sell-out crowd gathered at the Harrisburg Hilton for the Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon on Monday. He said the longstanding tradition of having three debates between the candidates - one in the eastern part of the state, one in the central part and one in the west - made no sense to him.
https://www.pennlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/09/gov_wolf_said_voters_dont_need.html#incart_river_index
Scott Wagner has a 'shocking new plan' to close Pa. schools? No, not really | Analysis
Penn Live By John L. Micek jmicek@pennlive.com Updated Sep 24, 2:19 PM; Posted Sep 24, 11:58 AM
On Monday morning, Gov. Tom Wolf's re-election campaign breathlessly blasted out a press release to campaign reporters: "Scott Wagner unveils shocking new plan to close Pennsylvania schools," it blared, warning of a "a seismic shift in Pennsylvania's education system." Wait? What? A bit of background: In a piece published in the Bradford Era over the weekend, the former York County state senator mused aloud on a number of subjects, public education being one of them. Here's the germane section:
https://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2018/09/a_shocking_new_plan_to_close_p.html#incart_river_index
Scott Wagner’s running a campaign like Trump’s, but at least he’s running a campaign
Philly Daily News by John Baer | baerj@phillynews.com Updated: September 23, 2018 - 3:51 PM
Let's talk about Scott Wagner's campaign, since Gov. Wolf's is inert. Wagner is working it. Even if it's scattergun. Even if it's imitative of Donald Trump in 2016. Underdogs, after all, try everything. For example: Wagner recently gave a speech in Wilkes-Barre that included parts of a 2016 screed, supposedly penned by an 80-year-old Trump supporter, comparing Muslim refugees and "illegal aliens" to "rabid, messy, mean raccoons" infesting one's basement. Not necessarily an analogy appreciated by folks fond (or even tolerant) of diversity — especially people of color. The story suggests that then-candidate Trump's support came from lots of people who wanted the "raccoons" gone and didn't care a bit about attributes or flaws of any person who could get rid of them. "It's a great story," Wagner told his Wilkes-Barre audience before sharing it. "Interesting perspective." And although he toned it down by not specifically mentioning immigrants or refugees, he repeated its assertion that "we are being invaded … becoming a nation of victims" in which every "Tom, Ricardo, and Hasid" gets special rights, to the point we can't recognize our country. Pretty Trumpy, yeah? Hardly a message of inclusion. But then, last week, Wagner pitched himself to people of color.
http://www2.philly.com/philly/columnists/john_baer/scott-wagners-running-a-campaign-like-trumps-but-at-least-hes-running-a-campaign-20180923.html
I'm a high school teacher. Thanks, but no thanks, for your intrusive 'ethics' bill, Rep. Tallman | Opinion
Penn Live Guest Editorial By Mitchell Orr Updated Sep 22; Posted Sep 22
Retiring State Rep. Will Tallman, R-Adams, is seeking support for a bill, dubiously titled the "Teacher Code of Ethics" which containing edicts equally as vague, would forbid teachers from introducing "into class any controversial subject matter that is not germane to the topic of the course being taught." Tallman is worried that teachers are using their limited time and personal resources on "political [and] ideological indoctrination." As a teacher, I completely agree with Tallman- we should not be using our time with a captive audience of impressionable youth to advocate a political ideology. In fact, I believe every teacher would agree with that statement. However, this bill goes beyond the prevention of "political indoctrination." If passed, this legislation would produce a chilling silence in the classroom. In addition to the likely fact this bill is unconstitutional, it is a historically bad idea.
https://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2018/09/im_a_high_school_teacher_thank.html#incart_river_index
Is The Big Standardized Test A Big Standardized Flop?
Forbes by Peter Greene Contributor Sep 20, 2018, 10:52am
Since No Child Left Behind first rumbled onto the scene, the use of a Big Standardized Test to drive accountability and measure success has been a fundamental piece of education reform. But recently, some education reform stalwarts are beginning to express doubts. There are plenty of reasons to doubt the validity of the Big Standardized Test, be it PARCC or SBA or whatever your state is using these days. After almost two decades of its use, we've raised an entire generation of students around the notion of test-based accountability, and yet the fruits of that seem.... well, elusive. Where are the waves of students now arriving on college campuses super-prepared? Where are the businesses proclaiming that today's grads are the most awesome in history? Where is the increase in citizens with great-paying jobs? Where are any visible signs that the test-based accountability system has worked?
https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2018/09/20/is-the-big-standardized-test-a-big-standardized-flop/?utm_source=FBPAGE&utm_medium=social&utm_content=1786735775&utm_campaign=sprinklrForbesMainFB#334363724937
EdPAC reception helps support election of pro-public education leaders
Do you want to help strengthen public education in the commonwealth? Join with EdPAC, a political action committee that supports the election of pro-public education leaders to the General Assembly. EdPAC will hold a fundraising reception at the 2018 PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference on Wednesday, Oct. 17 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Cocoa 2-3. More details to come! Visit the conference website to register online.
PSBA Officer Elections: Slate of Candidates
PSBA members seeking election to office for the association were required to submit a nomination form no later than June 1, 2018, to be considered. All candidates who properly completed applications by the deadline are included on the slate of candidates below. In addition, the Leadership Development Committee met on June 17 at PSBA headquarters in Mechanicsburg to interview candidates. According to bylaws, the Leadership Development Committee may determine candidates highly qualified for the office they seek. This is noted next to each person's name with an asterisk (*). Voting procedure: Each school entity will have one vote for each officer. This will require boards of the various school entities to come to a consensus on each candidate and cast their vote electronically during the open voting period (Aug. 24-Oct. 11, 2018). Voting will be accomplished through a secure third-party, web-based voting site that will require a password login. One person from each member school entity will be authorized as the official person to register the vote on behalf of his or her school entity. In the case of school districts, it will be the board secretary who will cast votes on behalf of the school board. A full packet of instructions and a printed slate will be sent to authorized vote registrars the week of August 7. Special note: Boards should be sure to add discussion and voting on candidates to their agenda during one of their meetings in August, September or October before the open voting period ends.
https://www.psba.org/2018/07/psba-officer-elections-slate-candidates/
2nd Annual National Black Male Educators Convening, Oct. 12-14,
Philly
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 2nd National Black Male Educators
Convening to advance policy solutions, learn from one another, and fight for
social justice. All are welcome. Register to attend. Nominate a speaker.
Propose a workshop. Sponsor the event.
Save the Dates PASA/PSBA School Leadership Conference –
Hershey, Oct. 17-19, 2018
Mark your calendar! The Delegate Assembly will take place Friday, Oct. 19, 2018, at 2:30 p.m.
Housing now open!
Housing now open!
“Not only do we have a superstar lineup of keynote speakers including Diane Ravitch, Jesse Hagopian, Pasi Sahlberg, Derrick Johnson and Helen Gym, but there will be countless sessions to choose from on the issues you care about the most. We will cover all bases from testing, charters, vouchers and school funding, to issues of student privacy and social justice in schools.”
Our Public Schools Our Democracy: Our Fight for the Future
NPE / NPE Action 5th Annual National Conference
October 20th - 21st, 2018 Indianapolis, Indiana
We are delighted to let you know that you can purchase your discounted Early Bird ticket to register for our annual conference starting today. Purchase your ticket here.
Early Bird tickets will be on sale until May 30 or until all are sold out, so don't wait. These tickets are a great price--$135. Not only do they offer conference admission, they also include breakfast and lunch on Saturday, and brunch on Sunday. Please don't forget to register for your hotel room. We have secured discounted rates on a limited basis. You can find that link here. Finally, if you require additional financial support to attend, we do offer some scholarships based on need. Go here and fill in an application. We will get back to you as soon as we can. Please join us in Indianapolis as we fight for the public schools that our children and communities deserve. Don't forget to get your Early Bird ticket here. We can't wait to see you.
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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