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,
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These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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“Property taxes play an outsize role in paying for Pennsylvania's public schools because Pennsylvania plays one of the smallest proportional roles of any state in helping to foot the bill. It is 45th out of 50, supplying less than 38 percent of total revenue, according to federal data from 2016. It is a dynamic that critics blame for driving inequities between funding levels in poorer and wealthier school districts.”
It lacks votes, but Wagner rides promise to end school taxes
Morning Call Mark Levy Of The Associated Press October 13, 2018
Scott Wagner, the Republican gubernatorial candidate in Pennsylvania, had a message for Victoria Clark when she told him that she is downsizing from her four-story home, partly because of the mortgage. “Under my plan, your school property taxes will go away,” Wagner told Clark during a stop at her driveway sale while canvassing in her suburban Harrisburg neighborhood earlier this month. Ending the ability of school boards to raise billions of dollars in property taxes is one of Wagner's most prominent campaign planks, one that he consistently advocates as a salve for overburdened taxpayers and fixed-income elderly struggling to keep their homes. Eliminating more than $13 billion in school property taxes collected statewide has been a cause for some lawmakers in Pennsylvania for well over a decade. And while Wagner criticizes the man he's challenging, Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, for failing to fight for it, a leading plan in the Legislature that Wagner backs has long lacked support in both chambers.
https://www.mcall.com/news/mc-nws-wagner-property-tax-20181013-story.html
Will Democrats take back the House? Watch these 9 Pa. races
A state Supreme Court decision made a lot of districts more competitive
PA Post by Ed Mahon OCTOBER 12, 2018 | 04:40 AM
In the interactive map below, you can see how each congressional district is likely to go in November, based on The Cook Political Report ratings. The darker the red, the more likely that district is to vote Republican. The darker the blue, the more likely the district is to vote Democratic. The toss-up district is purple. You can zoom in and out to adjust the view on the map.
Whether Democrats take control of the U.S. House could come down to Pennsylvania. The Cook Political Report says that 9 out of 18 races here are either competitive right now or have the potential to be by Election Day. Only California has more congressional races in play, by that measure. The number of competitive districts is due in large part to a state Supreme Court decision to strike down the old congressional district boundaries, saying they were a partisan gerrymander. In February, the court issued its own map. Here’s a look at those nine races. We’ll update the information below as we get closer to Election Day, including with more information about debates, polling and important issues.
https://papost.org/2018/10/12/will-democrats-take-back-the-house-watch-these-9-pa-races/
Conference celebrates Black educators, advocates for even more
Phily Trib by Nathaniel Lee Tribune Correspondent Oct 14, 2018
Educators, students and parents turned out in high numbers to attend the Take A Stand Convention hosted by the Black Male Educators Convening, at the Sheraton Hotel at 201 N. 21st St. in downtown Philadelphia on Saturday. Thousand came out to hear presenters, attend workshops and participate in the various activities conducted during the daylong event. “This is our second national Black Male Educators Convening where we bind, learn and build together,” said Shariff El-Mekki, BMEC founder. “There are thousands of Black male educators here in the city of Philadelphia who are here at the Sheraton and the idea is that we come together,” he said. El-Mekki said the convention was the work of the BMEC and the Fellowship of Black Male Educators for Social Justice who he says had three pillars. “One is to advocate for Black male educators as well as for students and address the policies which impact policies and decisions. Second is to address the pipeline and influence high schoolers and career changers to make sure that retention is high and thirdly, that we have Black male educators convening like this where we come together and amplify our voices,” he said. The convention, said El-Mekki, not only provided an opportunity to celebrate Black male educators and the work that they do but also provides a platform for educators across the country to both engage in dialogue and be heard. This is critical, says El-Mekki, since only 2 percent of public educators are Black males.
http://www.phillytrib.com/news/conference-celebrates-black-educators-advocates-for-even-more/article_314a64df-ab5e-50f5-b884-b70e0593cc78.html
Report: Rising special education costs taxing school districts
The Mercury By Kevin Tustin ktustin@21st-centurymedia.com for Delco Times Oct 14, 2018
There's nothing "special" about the skyrocketing cost of special education, according to a new report. The local share of money designated to special education in school districts has continued to rise while state funding has decreased, creating “increasingly inequitable” learning environments across the Commonwealth, according to the Education Law Center. A report released on Oct. 9 by the Philadelphia-based firm says children with disabilities are being shortchanged due to underfunding by the state for special education programs. Taking a look at school district and state contributions to special education for school years from 2008-09 to 2016-17, the ELC says the state’s portion has dropped from one-third to less than one-quarter in that timeframe. In the meantime, 83 percent of school districts have had their own share of expenditures increase, with 53 districts reporting increases of 20 percentage points or more. “Pennsylvania’s growing reliance on locally designated funding to provide needed services for students with disabilities is unsustainable,” read a portion of the report. “It forces local school boards to choose between raising additional revenue to meet funding gaps, spreading limited resources across a range of programs, and/or reducing needed services and supports for students with disabilities. It exposes families to local tax increases and service cuts.” In Delaware County, Upper Darby School District has had their expenditures for special education more than double in the studied timeframe, from approximately $20 million to $41.8 million. As a percentage, the district’s share has increased from 57 to 77 percent.
https://www.delcotimes.com/news/report-rising-special-education-costs-taxing-school-districts/article_38b013ac-ceee-11e8-a3ca-6be1459da3d1.html
How a community school in Lancaster's Southeast is trying to break cycle of poverty
Lancaster Online by JEFF HAWKES | Staff Writer October 14, 2018
Two weeks before the start of school, Joseph Torres, dean of students at George Washington Elementary School, spent a muggy afternoon visiting the homes of incoming kindergartners. A big, amiable man in a loud orange T-shirt and Madras shorts, Torres strolled through the complex of the 124 units of public housing at Franklin Terrace, waving when youngsters shouted greetings. Two faculty members accompanied Torres. Meanwhile, three other teams were stopping by homes elsewhere in Washington’s attendance zone in Lancaster’s Southeast, where over 40 percent of households live in poverty, the highest concentration in Lancaster County. Almost two years ago, the Mayor’s Commission to Combat Poverty set a 15-year goal of halving Lancaster’s 29-percent poverty rate, identifying so-called community schools — which enlist outside partners to meet needs of the disadvantaged — as one of many initiatives to pursue. While the term “community school” may bring to mind a place, it’s better understood as an equity strategy, one that helps children in high-poverty schools keep up with peers in middle-class schools. While the term “community school” may bring to mind a place, it’s better understood as an equity strategy, one that helps children in high-poverty schools keep up with peers in middle-class schools.
https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/how-a-community-school-in-lancaster-s-southeast-is-trying/article_f14d016a-cd84-11e8-a453-4bd90624717e.html
“If the House and Senate intend to address the concerns of all Americans, then they need to create more space for staffers of color, particularly when it comes to senior roles. These staffers also bring a wealth of expertise and experience that will help members of Congress govern and represent their constituents effectively.”
OPED: Want to build a more diverse Capitol Hill? Start with the staff
York Dispatch by Noel Perez, Cq-Roll Call Published 10:20 a.m. ET Oct. 14, 2018
WASHINGTON – Diversity is a driving force behind a changing America: People of color now represent almost 40 percent of the U.S. population. Yet somehow, a new Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies report shows that they make up merely 13.7 percent of senior staffers in the U.S. House of Representatives. That means our elected officials’ legislative directors, communications directors, and chiefs of staff are overwhelmingly white, even in offices representing states with large Latino and African-American populations. I had a front-row view of this problem over the nine years I spent working for Rep. Xavier Becerra. I took a role on the House Democratic Caucus Diversity and Inclusion Initiative, which the Democratic Caucus launched in 2016 — and the dire need for greater staff diversity on the Hill could not have been more clear. While working to pass the Every Student Succeeds Act, for example, I found many staffers had a hard time understanding the provisions around support needed for students who were English language learners, confounding those needs with the immigration conversation. Without diverse staffers who understand the issues facing our nation’s underrepresented populations, I realized, we can’t possibly create policies that address Americans’ concerns.True — elected officials must sign off on final decisions. But it is their senior staffers who are responsible for shaping priorities, writing legislation, hiring employees, managing offices and more.
https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/opinion/contributors/2018/10/14/oped-want-build-diverse-capitol-hill-start-staff/38155247/
More local colleges are scrapping SAT requirement
Inquirer by Susan Snyder, Updated: October 13, 2018
Niki Mendrinos' high school guidance counselor told her she'd never get into the college of her choice, Pace University in New York. The reason? Her SAT scores weren't high enough. Mendrinos, a solid student and cheerleader who participated in theater and served as student government president, wasn't discouraged. She got into Pace, and every semester she'd write to that counselor with an update on her progress — when she made the dean's list, when she became senior class president, when she was selected as commencement speaker. What's more, while working on her doctoral research at Temple University, she looked at how accurately SAT scores predict a student's college success — and found that they didn't. Her research showed that freshmen with lower scores but a solid high school record outperformed freshmen overall, she said. With Mendrinos' research in hand, Temple continued to study the issue and in 2014 scrapped the requirement that students submit SAT and ACT scores. Now, Mendrinos is leading admissions at Rosemont College, a small, Catholic liberal arts school on the Main Line, which has announced that it will take the same step beginning next year. And the two area colleges are part of a virtual explosion in schools making the test optional over the last five years, said Bob Schaeffer, public education director for FairTest, the National Center for Fair and Open Testing.
http://www2.philly.com/philly/education/local-colleges-scrapping-sat-act-requirement-20181013.html
Riverview teachers' union authorizes leaders to call strike
MATT MCKINNEY Pittsburgh Post-Gazette mmckinney@post-gazette.com OCT 12, 2018
11:24 AM
The union representing Riverview School District's teachers voted overwhelmingly Thursday to authorize a strike should contract negotiations fail to advance. The 90-member union authorized the strike, with one member voting against. “We have been negotiating since January and we have been without a contract for more than 100 days but the district seems uncommitted to the process," Riverview Education Association President Mark Capsambelis said in a news release. Superintendent Margaret DiNinno said in an email that the sides have “tentatively agreed to a large number of items” and have scheduled four bargaining sessions in the coming weeks. “We look forward to these continued conversations and are hopeful that a responsible agreement that is respectful to all involved will be reached soon,” she said. The 995-student district serves the boroughs of Oakmont and Verona. The union would have to provide at least 48 hours notice before striking. The next bargaining session is set for Monday.
http://www.post-gazette.com/news/education/2018/10/12/Riverview-teachers-union-strike-authoriization-Mark-Capsambelis/stories/201810120106
Just 36 Teachers Across U.S. Graduated in 2016 Ready to Teach CS
The Journal By Dian Schaffhauser 10/08/18
In 2016, a total of 36 new teachers graduated from an American university ready to teach computer science. Texas produced the largest number of them — 15. Forty-one states didn't graduate a single new teacher prepared to teach CS. In spite of a national emphasis on the importance of computer science, just a third of high schools (35 percent) teach the subject. The outlook is worse for schools in rural areas or that have higher percentages of under-represented minority or poorer students. That's the picture offered in "2018 State of Computer Science Education: Policy and Implementation," a new report produced by the Code.org Advocacy Coalition and the Computer Science Teachers Association. The advocacy group brings together 50-plus industry, non-profit and other organizations to advocate for the addition of CS as a core part of K-12 education.
https://thejournal.com/articles/2018/10/08/just-36-teachers-across-u.s.-graduated-in-2016-ready-to-teach-cs.aspx
What Happens When States Un-Standardize Tests?
Education Week Politics K12 Blog By Alyson Klein October 11, 2018
Few educators are fans of fill-in-the-bubble standardized tests that don’t yield results until after students leave the classroom. But when states had a chance to try out richer forms of assessment under a new pilot program established by the Every Student Succeeds Act, all but two demurred, in part because the pilot comes with tough technical requirements and no extra federal funding. That doesn’t mean, though, that states are planning to stick with the Scantron sheets over the long haul. In fact, several are looking to experiment with new performance assessments that ask students to complete some sort of hands-on task to show what they know or are able to do. Others are moving to use shorter tests throughout the year, instead of one big exam at the end, or redesigning tests to better reflect material students see in the classroom.
https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/10/11/what-happens-when-state-un-standardize-tests.html
NSBA 2019 Advocacy Institute January 27-29 Washington Hilton, Washington D.C.
Register now
The upcoming midterm elections will usher in the 116th Congress at a critical time in public education. Join us at the 2019 NSBA Advocacy Institute for insight into what the new Congress will mean for your school district. And, of course, learn about techniques and tools to sharpen your advocacy skills, and prepare for effective meetings with your representatives. Save the date to join school board members from across the country on Capitol Hill to influence the new legislative agenda and shape the decisions made inside the Beltway that directly impact our students. For more information contact federaladvocacy@nsba.org.
2019 NSBA Annual Conference Philadelphia March 30 - April 1, 2019
Pennsylvania Convention Center 1101 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19107
Registration Questions or Assistance: 1-800-950-6722
The NSBA Annual Conference & Exposition is the one national event that brings together education leaders at a time when domestic policies and global trends are combining to shape the future of the students. Join us in Philadelphia for a robust offering of over 250 educational programs, including three inspirational general sessions that will give you new ideas and tools to help drive your district forward.
https://www.nsba.org/conference
EdPAC reception helps support election of pro-public education leaders
Join EdPAC for an evening reception with lieutenant governor candidates Jeff Bartos and John Fetterman on behalf of EdPAC, a political action committee that supports the election of pro-public education leaders to the General Assembly. The reception will be held during the 2018 PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference on Wednesday, Oct. 17 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Cocoa Suite 2 and 3. Visit the conference website for details and to register online. Walk-ins are welcome!
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.
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