Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now
reach more than 4050 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors,
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These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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‘Spectacular’ growth in teaching profession, but big changes are afoot, landmark Penn study says
Inquirer by Kristen A. Graham, Posted: 59 minutes ago
The teaching profession is transforming, according to research to be released Tuesday: It is larger than ever, but more unstable; it's attracting more educators of color than ever, but losing them at higher rates than white teachers. The Great Recession brought school layoffs, but that trend has reversed, and the number of teachers nationwide is increasing far faster than the rate of students, according to federal data. Between 1988 and 2016, the number of teachers nationwide increased by more than three times the number of students. "The growth in teaching has been spectacular, and our point is, there is going to be a price," said Richard Ingersoll, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education, who has been studying the profession for 30 years. Ingersoll is lead author of the updated research. "I don't see this growth as sustainable." gThere have been steep increases in special education teachers, educators who instruct English language learners, and elementary-level enrichment teachers — those who teach a subject like foreign language or robotics. There's been a 90 percent increase in math teachers, and a 94 percent increase in science teachers — due in part to changing graduation requirements in schools across the country.
http://www2.philly.com/philly/education/teaching-profession-big-changes-afoot-landmark-penn-study-says-20181023.html
“From 2008 to 2016, state spending on special education increased by $72 million. But costs increased by $1.54 billion. Of PA’s 417 districts, more than 83% are paying a greater share of special education costs since 2008.”
Southeast PA pays waaay more for special ed–October 19, 2018
34 Districts surrounding PHL pay highest share
PCCY Website October 19, 2018
The basic skills you learn as a child, thankfully, stay with you your whole life. How to read. How to tie your shoes. How you learn best. Unfortunately, being denied the opportunity to learn basic skills can stay with you your whole life as well. For many children with disabilities in Pennsylvania, the promise of such opportunities are a cruel pipe dream–and their numbers are growing. The number of children who need special education services in the Commonwealth are rising, but the state share of funding is declining, according to a new report from the Education Law Center and PA Schools Work, of which PCCY is a lead organization.
https://www.pccy.org/news/southeast-pa-pays-waaay-special-ed-october-19-2018/
Editorial: Keystone alternatives are needed
Altoona Mirror EDITORIALS OCT 23, 2018
Pennsylvania’s decision to walk away from heavy-handed reliance on the Keystone Exams as a basis for high school graduation acknowledges that standardized testing alone isn’t a reliable mechanism for upping students’ prospects for achieving success as adults. While the demonstrate-proficiency-on-the-exams-or-else approach to graduation was built upon good intentions — the hope of better preparing students for college and the work world — in the broader picture, that initiative represented shortsightedness. That shortsightedness should have been recognized sometime long before plans for the requirement ever were shifted into the proverbial high gear. As can now be said confidently, delays in actually putting into effect the proficiency-or-else rule have been beneficial in preventing harm that some students, otherwise successful in school and preparing well for their lives after graduation, might have experienced. However, the study and work — and the hundreds of millions of dollars spent — to develop Keystone Exams tests in algebra, biology and literature have helped to improve the state’s education system. Even the tests’ critics admit that.
http://www.altoonamirror.com/opinion/editorials/2018/10/keystone-alternatives-are-needed/
Voter registration increases rare for Pa. midterms and show voter excitement, experts say
PA Post by Emily Previti OCTOBER 23, 2018 | 05:00 AM
Voter registration is up this year across the board – which is rare for Pennsylvania during a midterm election year. Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated or third-party voters’ registration increased during 2018, which didn’t happen for any other midterm going back at least two decades, according to a PA Post analysis of Pennsylvania Department of State archived registration data going back to 1998. Experts say the trend seems to quantify excitement among voters in Pennsylvania and across the country amid national political polarization. Registration often surges for the opposing party of a sitting president, noted Dan Mallinson, assistant professor of public policy and administration at Penn State Harrisburg.
https://papost.org/2018/10/23/voter-registration-increases-rare-for-pa-midterms-and-show-voter-excitement-experts-say/
Gun control, once a third rail, now a key issue as Democrats seek to control House
Inquirer by Justine McDaniel, Posted: October 23, 2018- 5:13 AM
Two years ago, when Democrat Chrissy Houlahan began running for Congress, people told the military veteran and former high school teacher to stay away from one topic: Gun control. "There was a caution to me … that it wasn't a quote-unquote winning issue," she recalled. But she ignored the advice. And since she announced her candidacy, a rash of mass shootings, including the one in February in Parkland, Fla., have rocked the country. Supporting major gun-control policies, she has been endorsed by gun-safety groups and is favored to win a newly redrawn seat that in its last configuration has been long held by Republicans. The shift Houlahan noticed in the Sixth District, which now covers Chester County and part of Berks County — suddenly there was "permission to talk" about gun issues, she said — is one that activists say is echoed nationwide. Gun control, once considered a third rail in American politics, has emerged as a prominent issue in races across the country, particularly in several key congressional districts.
http://www2.philly.com/philly/news/gun-control-rights-election-2018-midterms-pennsylvania-houlahan-parkland-20181023.html
Jeff Bartos: ‘Pennsylvania is being left behind’
Intelligencer Opinion By Jeff Bartos Posted Oct 22, 2018 at 2:01 AM
The running mate of Republican Scott Wagner, Bartos says the current administration isn’t doing enough to build the state’s economy. On the eve of the 2018 Primary, my running mate Scott Wagner and I were shaking hands with customers at a diner in Johnstown when I met an elderly gentleman who shared the following: “My son, my daughter-in-law and my grandchildren moved to Texas because there are better job opportunities there than in this part of Pennsylvania.” Then, holding both of my hands, the gentleman asked me, “What are you going to do to keep others’ children and grandchildren here in Pennsylvania?” For 20 months, I have had the distinct privilege to campaign across the commonwealth and meet thousands of Pennsylvanians. Sadly, I have heard this gentleman’s story again and again in places like my hometown of Reading and so many other forgotten regions of Pennsylvania. I am running to be the next lieutenant governor because I believe Pennsylvania can be the fastest growing, most dynamic state in the nation — a place young people eagerly look to move to rather than regretfully (but necessarily) decide to leave. This has not been a focus for the current administration. With all the economic prosperity and opportunity occurring nationally, Pennsylvania is being left behind.
http://www.theintell.com/opinion/20181022/jeff-bartos-pennsylvania-is-being-left-behind
PA-8 and PA-17: Two key Pa. congressional races look more likely for Dems | Monday Morning Coffee
Penn Live By John L. Micek jmicek@pennlive.com Updated 11:54 AM; Posted 8:24 AM
Good Monday Morning, Fellow Seekers.
Two weeks out from Election Day, that Democratic blue wave we've been hearing so much about might look a little less certain. But the party's path to control of the U.S. House of Representatives continues to run through Pennsylvania. Surveying the state's political topography, the crew at Crystal Ball, the prognosticating newsletter run by University of Virginia political sage Larry Sabato, is awarding upgrades to a pair of Pennsylvania races. One isn't particularly surprising, though the other may come as a relief to a certain incumbent United States congressman. Moving from "Lean Democrat" to "Likely Democrat" is the all-incumbent 17th District race in western Pennsylvania, pitting Democratic U.S. Rep. Conor Lambagainst Republican Rep. Keith Rothfus; and the 8th District race in northeastern Pa. between incumbent Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright and Republican John Chrin.
https://www.pennlive.com/capitol-notebook/2018/10/two_key_pa_congressional_races.html#incart_river_index
York City district will apply to end recovery status this summer
Lindsay C. VanAsdalan, York Dispatch Published 11:43 a.m. ET Oct. 22, 2018
The York City School District has officially decided to apply to end its financial recovery status when its state-mandated plan ends next summer. The district's chief recovery officer, Carol Saylor, announced at the board's Oct. 17 monthly action meeting that she is working on the justification — a written document outlaying the reasons the district is ready to be released — to give to the state's education secretary when the plan is up in June. She said she plans to share the full report with the board once completed. Board President Margie Orr said both she and Superintendent Eric Holmes agreed with Saylor's assessment that the district is doing very well. "We see no reason for the Department of Education to oversee us," she said. District spokeswoman Erin James wrote in an email that the administration is working with Saylor to submit the application, and until that process is complete, they are declining to speak about it publicly. If termination is granted, the district will then go into a status called monitoring, Saylor said, meaning the plan remains in place for five years, with the chief recovery officer continuing to report to the secretary on the district's progress.
https://www.yorkdispatch.com/story/news/2018/10/22/york-city-district-apply-end-recovery-status-summer/1695302002/
GETTING ON TRACK TO GRADUATION ACROSS FOUR COHORTS:
Ninth Grade On-Track Patterns in the School District of Philadelphia, 2013-2017
Philadelphia Education Research Consortium by Molly Pileggi, Kendra Strouf
Why this study - This brief is an addendum to an earlier report, Getting on Track to Graduation, published in May 2018 by the Philadelphia Education Research Consortium (Crofton and Neild, 2018). Focusing on two cohorts of first-time ninth grade students (the Classes of 2019 and 2020), Getting on Track to Graduation examined the extent to which students earned the number and type of course credits required to be considered on-track to graduation. This brief extends analyses from the earlier report with data from two additional cohorts of first-time freshmen (the Classes of 2017 and 2018) to better understand whether the patterns described in the original report have been consistent over time.
https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/fd267a_a3224d6a237d4cda851dff1227b09c94.pdf
School District of Lancaster, IU13 to enhance science programming thanks to Chesapeake Bay watershed grants
Lancaster Online by ALEX GELI | Staff Writer October 23, 2018
School District of Lancaster will provide more than 2,500 students in sixth through eighth grades with hands-on watershed education, thanks to a federal grant award announced Monday. The district has partnered with Maryland-based NorthBay — which received a $112,000 grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Bay Watershed Education and Training program — and the Lancaster County Conservancy to integrate inquiry-based, on-site learning into the science curriculum at each of its four middle schools, plus the K-8 Martin School. The program will allow teachers and students to explore the Chesapeake Bay watershed and learn how choices made today could impact their communities later. Grant recipients were announced Monday at an event featuring Pennsylvania Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera, SDL Superintendent Damaris Rau, Lancaster County Conservancy President and CEO Philip Wenger and others at the Climber’s Run Nature Preserve in Pequea.
https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/school-district-of-lancaster-iu-to-enhance-science-programming-thanks/article_fb3e8532-d634-11e8-9e08-435e08ad9653.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share
Downingtown Superintendent Emilie Lonardi completes term as president of PASA
Daily Local by Digital First Media October 22, 2018
DOWNINGTOWN — They say if you want something done, ask a busy person.
Downingtown school Superintendent Dr. Emilie Lonardi successfully completed her term as president of the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (PASA) on Friday. She served a one-year term as leader of more than 800 members of the PASA organization, which includes school district superintendents, intermediate unit executive directors and charter school chief administrative officers.During her year of service as PASA president, Lonardi helped develop a new six-year strategic plan for the association. She worked with PASA staff to strengthen the organization's professional development program and put PASA on solid financial footing. As president, Lonardi represented the organization in important discussions with state and federal policy makers on a variety of issues such as funding mandates and school safety and security.
Lonardi held this position during her recent transition to the Downingtown Area School District. She joined Downingtown in July 2017 after serving as the West York School District superintendent for 19 years.
https://www.dailylocal.com/news/downingtown-superintendent-emilie-lonardi-completes-term-as-president-of-pasa/article_006688a2-d62b-11e8-9311-d3b787135763.html
The Parent & Community Advisory Council will provide input and guidance to the Board by communicating the interest and concerns of Philadelphia public school parents/caregivers and community members. Applications are due by 5 PM on November 9, 2018.
Would you like to use your voice to be a champion for public education?
https://www.philasd.org/schoolboard/parent-community-advisory-council/
Public schools for private gain: The declining American commitment to serving the public good
When schooling comes to be viewed mainly as a source of private benefit, both schools and society suffer grave consequences.
Phi Delta Kappan by David F. Labaree October 22, 2018
We Americans tend to talk about public schooling as though we know what that term means. But in the complex educational landscape of the 21st century — where charter schools, private schools, and religious schools compete with traditional public schools for resources and support — it’s becoming less and less obvious what makes a school “public” at all. A school is public, one might argue, if it meets certain formal criteria: It is funded by the public, governed by the public, and openly accessible to the public. But in that case, what should we make of charter schools, which are broadly understood to be public schools even though many are governed by private organizations? And how should we categorize private schools that enroll students using public vouchers or tax credits, or public schools that use exams to restrict access? For that matter, don’t private schools often serve public interests, and don’t public schools often promote students’ private interests? In short, our efforts to distinguish between public and nonpublic schools often oversimplify the ways in which today’s schools operate and the complex roles they play in our society. And such distinctions matter because they shape our thinking about education policy. After all, if we’re unclear which schools deserve what kinds of funding and support, then how do we justify a system of elementary, secondary, and higher education that consumes more than $800 billion in taxes every year and consumes 10 to 20 or more years of every person’s life?
http://www.kappanonline.org/labaree-public-schools-private-gain-decline-american-commitment-public-good/
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
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