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Wednesday, February 13, 2019

PA Ed Policy Roundup Feb. 13: “Stanford University researchers said their analysis showed severe shortfalls in reading and math achievement. The shortfall for most cyber students, they said, was equal to losing 72 days of learning in reading and 180 days in math during the typical 180-day school year.”


Started in November 2010, 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
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg

“Stanford University researchers said their analysis showed severe shortfalls in reading and math achievement. The shortfall for most cyber students, they said, was equal to losing 72 days of learning in reading and 180 days in math during the typical 180-day school year.”


The death of cyber charter schools in Pa.?
WHYY By Avi Wolfman-Arent February 13, 2019
A new bill in the Pa. State Senate could mean the end for cyber charter schools in the state
A proposal with potentially dire consequences for Pennsylvania’s cyber charter schools re-emerged in Harrisburg this session. And one of the politicians pushing it now has a key education post in the state capital. The proposal, formally introduced as Senate Bill 34 last month, would require a family to pay out-of-pocket tuition to attend a cyber charter school if their home district offers a “cyber-based program equal in scope and content.” Depending on its interpretation and implementation, this measure could halt the flow of millions in taxpayer dollars from traditional school districts to cyber charters. If the law applies to any school district with some sort of digital learning program, cyber charters could be in big trouble. “I think cyber charter schools would no longer exist,” said Maurice Flurie III, CEO of Commonwealth Charter Academy, the state’s second-largest cyber charter. Last week, Rep. Curt Sonney (R-Erie) announced plans to introduce a similar bill in the State House. Sonney has authored legislation like this in past sessions. But it’s the first time he’ll do so as chair of the House Education Committee, a position he assumed in January. In a co-sponsorship memo, he said his bill “will encourage school districts to offer full-time cyber education programs to their students, will encourage students to enroll in these school district programs, and ultimately will result in savings for school districts.”

Blogger note: over the next several days we will continue rolling out cyber charter tuition expenses for taxpayers in education committee members and legislative leadership districts.
In 2016-17, taxpayers in Senate Ed Cmte Vice Chairman .@SenatorDiSanto’s districts had to send over $17.9 million to chronically underperforming cybers that their locally elected school boards never authorized. SB34 (Schwank) could change that.
Data source: PDE via PSBA


Central Dauphin SD
$4,538,413.84
Derry Township SD
$406,498.27
Fannett-Metal SD
$221,019.71
Greenwood SD
$369,748.03
Halifax Area SD
$514,902.61
Harrisburg City SD
$5,145,276.66
Lower Dauphin SD
$1,005,883.29
Millersburg Area SD
$460,016.97
Newport SD
$732,724.63
Susquehanna Township SD
$1,071,229.95
Susquenita SD
$1,019,985.13
Upper Dauphin Area SD
$666,597.06
West Perry SD
$1,321,308.11
Williams Valley SD
$502,100.89
               Total:
$17,975,705.15


Blogger note: Total cyber charter tuition paid by PA taxpayers from 500 school districts for 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 was over $1.6 billion; $393.5 million, $398.8 million,  $436.1 million and $454.7 million respectively.
Bipartisan, bicameral interest in saving our 500 PA school districts up to $450M/year. 
SB34 @SenJudySchwank, (D-11 Berks) referred to Senate Education Committee January 11, 2019:
“Under my legislation, a district that offers a cyber program equal in scope and content to the cyber charter school will not be responsible for the tuition costs. Instead, tuition costs will be treated in cyber situations the same as they are when resident students attend non-district brick-and-mortar schools.”
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/billInfo.cfm?sYear=2019&sInd=0&body=S&type=B&bn=0034 …
House Education Committee Chairman Curtis Sonney (R-4, Erie) co-sponsorship memo dated Feb. 5, 2019:: 
“I am preparing to introduce legislation that will require a student or the student’s parent/guardian to pay for the student’s education in a cyber school if the student’s school district of residence offers a full-time cyber education program”
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20190&cosponId=28226 …

“Stanford University researchers said their analysis showed severe shortfalls in reading and math achievement. The shortfall for most cyber students, they said, was equal to losing 72 days of learning in reading and 180 days in math during the typical 180-day school year.”
Reprise 2015:Study: Cyber charter schools failing their students
By Martha Woodall, Inquirer Staff Writer, Posted: October 27, 2015
A massive national study of online charter schools has found that 70 percent of students at cyber schools are falling behind their peers at traditional public institutions. The study, released Tuesday by three policy and research centers, found the online schools have an "overwhelming negative impact."  Stanford University researchers said their analysis showed severe shortfalls in reading and math achievement. The shortfall for most cyber students, they said, was equal to losing 72 days of learning in reading and 180 days in math during the typical 180-day school year. "While the overall findings of our analysis are somber, we do believe the information will serve as the foundation for constructive discussions on the role of online schools in the K-12 sector," said James Woodworth, senior quantitative research analyst at Stanford's Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO). Another scholar, Brian Gill, a researcher at Mathematica Policy Research in Cambridge, Mass. cautioned, "I don't think we should view these findings as saying that online education does not work." The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, an advocacy group based in Washington, said the findings were so troubling that the report should be "a call to action for authorizers and policymakers." Pennsylvania's 14 cyber schools, which enroll more than 35,000 students, were among those studied. Pennsylvania, Ohio, and California account for half the nation's 200,000 students who were enrolled in approximately 200 cyber schools in 2011-12.

Guest Column: Why poor public schools will remain impoverished
By the Rev. Michael Robinson Delco Times Guest Columnist February 13, 2019
The Rev. Michael Robinson is a resident of Lansdowne and serves as senior pastor of Greater Enon Missionary Baptist Church in Philadelphia. He is a national award-winning college administrator, and a 2017 recipient of the Industry Icon Award by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
As long as we continue to fund local school districts based on the tax base of those respective districts, poor school districts will always remain poorly funded and under-performing, and hard pressed to attract top teachers. A radical option, that’s equitable, is to pool all state and federal taxes earmarked for public schools districts in one pot of money. Divide this designated line item by the total head count of students attending specific school districts. This ensures that every district is funded equitably. It’s a fair approach to leveling the playing field of educational funding. Currently, students attending school districts in very affluent communities receive greater resources and funding because they draw from a wealthy tax base of residents. The result is higher salaries for teachers, greater in-class resources for the teachers/students, and well maintained school facilities and buildings. The opposite is true for students attending school districts that are located in impoverished communities. School districts that draw from an impoverished tax base of residents will experience extremely limited in-class resources for teachers/students, poorly maintained buildings, poorly maintained facilities, and most likely consistently under-performing students.

Abraham Lincoln never let criticism get in the way of the good of the country | Mike Folmer
Penn Live Opinion By State Sen. Mike Folmer, guest contributor Updated Feb 12, 4:01 PM; Posted Feb 12, 4:01 PM
State Sen. Mike Folmer, a Republican, represents the 48th Senate District, which includes parts of Dauphin, Lebanon and York counties. He writes from Harrisburg.
In these times of extreme rhetoric and deep political divisions, consider the words of President Lincoln, whose birthday we celebrate today: “Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.” Abraham Lincoln’s contemporaries attacked him in editorials, speeches, journals, diaries, and private letters. Even without Twitter and social media, they criticized his upbringing, his lack of formal education, and even his appearance. Harper’s Weekly told readers: “He is not a brilliant orator; he is not a great leader.” An Ohio Congressman agreed: Lincoln “is universally an admitted failure, has no will, no courage, no executive capacity . . . .” A New Yorker wrote Lincoln was “a barbarian, Scythian, yahoo, or gorilla.” After a Cabinet meeting, Lincoln’s own Attorney General wrote in his diary: “I greatly fear he has not the power to command.”

Activists rally for more funding for early childhood learning programs
Connect FM 96.7 Posted on February 13, 2019 by wcednews
Harrisburg, PA – Lawmakers and activists joined together in Harrisburg recently, calling for early childhood learning programs in the state to get better funding. Start Strong PA is a statewide advocacy campaign to increase access to affordable, high-quality child care for Pennsylvania’s families and their children through policy and investment, starting with infants and toddlers. Start Strong PA is connected to Early Learning PA (ELPA), a broad-based coalition that advocates access to high-quality early learning opportunities for all Pennsylvania children. Senator Jay Costa and other speakers at the kick-off rally spoke about the importance of putting adequate funding behind early childhood education. According to them, prioritizing spending on early-learning programs will save the commonwealth long-term costs because children are better prepared to graduate school on time and are well positioned to enter the workforce with good paying jobs.

What’s the best way to teach math?
WHYY By Alan Yu February 12, 2019
A boy in Lafayette, Indiana, recently thought his struggle with math was an emergency. He called 911 and told the operator he’d had a bad day at school and had tons of homework. The operator asked him what he was struggling with and helped him do an addition problem, ¾ + ¼. He thanked her, and then apologized for calling. The police department tweeted out the call, and explained that while “they train for many emergency situations, homework help is not one they plan for.” First responders probably aren’t the best people to call with a math crisis, but education researchers agree math is a national problem. It’s stressful, and students sometimes hate math for the rest of their lives. People in the United States talk repeatedly about how the country lags behind the rest of the world in math. In the past couple of years, some teachers have wondered: What if there is something wrong with the way they teach math to students? We found two approaches to solving this problem.

OJR panel to host sleep health forums
The Mercury By Laura Catalano For MediaNews Group ry 12,
SOUTH COVENTRY — The issue of sleep health and early school start times continues to awaken strong feelings in the Owen J. Roberts School District. In an effort to determine how to best ensure adolescent sleep health, the school board’s pupil services committee is hosting two informational/educational public meetings. The first of those meetings will be held at 7 p.m. on Thursday, February 21 in the high school LGI room. The second meeting is scheduled for March 14, also at 7 p.m. in the high school LGI room. During a school board committee of the whole meeting Monday evening, several board members said they were hoping to get as many district residents to attend the sleep health meetings as possible, since a potential change to later school start times will have far-ranging implications for students, teachers, parents and even residents who don’t have school-age children. “This is going to impact a lot of people,” said school board President Lisa Huzzard. The purpose of the meetings are two-fold. For one thing, organizers want to present information on current research on adolescent sleep health, which is driving a movement toward later school start times. In addition, the school board wants to gauge public opinion on the concept of moving to later start times in the district. “We hear from a lot of people who are in favor of it,” noted board member Leslie Proffitt, who chairs the pupil services committee. “We just want people to come together to talk about it. This is a really great way for people to get their voices heard.”

Villanova property owners fight Lower Merion over use of eminent domain
LOWER MERION — A fight is brewing in Villanova over money and the Lower Merion School District’s use of eminent domain to take private property for playing field space. Last week, attorney Michael Faherty, representing John A. Bennett and Nance Di Rocco as the owners of 1835 County Line Road in Villanova, filed preliminary objections to the school district’s plans to take their property through eminent domain. In the filing, they are accusing the district of abusing the eminent domain law by sweeping in and grabbing the property when Villanova University had already made an offer to purchase the site. At the same time, they are also accusing the district of forcing them out of the property sooner if they fight the district’s eminent domain deal. In response, the district said the owners were given a good deal in that besides getting more money than Villanova had offered they were also going to be able to live on the property rent-free until it is needed by the district in 2023. At the same time, since the district would own the land Bennett and Di Roicco would no longer have to pay property taxes.

Eastern Pa. group to launch program to help homeless youth in Armstrong, Indiana, Washington and Westmoreland counties
Trib Live by STEPHEN HUBA | Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019, 3:12 p.m.
The problem of youth homelessness in Western Pennsylvania is getting renewed attention from an agency on the opposite end of the state. Valley Youth House, based in Bethlehem, recently received $407,348 in grant funding for youth homelessness programs, including $175,460 to start a Host Home Program in four Western Pennsylvania counties – Armstrong, Indiana, Washington and Westmoreland. Officials with the Western Pennsylvania Continuum of Care , or COC, say Butler County also will be part of the pilot project. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development distributes homelessness resources through the Continuum of Care system. Funding for the Host Home Program comes from Home4Good , a collaborative initiative of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh and the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency.

How to talk to kids about race | Opinion
Brendon Jobs, for the Inquirer Updated: February 12, 2019 - 8:06 AM
Brendon Jobs is the director of diversity and inclusion at the Haverford School, where he teaches Modern World History and Modern Black Lives in the Upper School. Jobs also teaches history methods at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education (GSE) in the Independent School Residency Program.
Growing up, I remember how disconnected home and school seemed to be when it came to discussions about race. My parents, both Trinidadian immigrants, often talked about race to help me and my siblings understand what school rarely acknowledged in the 1990s and early 2000s: that racially stressful moments occurred frequently, and had significant impact. But we often didn’t feel comfortable bringing up these issues at school, where our concerns were often met with silence, denial, or even in some cases discipline. Parents and educators often have different methods for engaging the social reality of racism in America. But imagine if home and school partnered to encourage open discussion. Reimagining in-the-moment interactions that we experience across social differences also holds profound potential for reimagining cross-racial interactions in society at-large. School can be a starting point to help heal social divides. Kids need to develop a sense of competence and confidence in both navigating racially stressful situations and in interpreting the realities of the world that confronts them. In a 2014 article for the National Association of Independent Schools magazine, Ali Michael and Eleonora Bartoli describe how silence on race throughout our childhoods, intended to teach us that race shouldn’t matter, instead inaccurately teaches that race doesn’t have an impact in people’s lives.

New Philly Charter Application from American Paradigm: Tacony Academy Charter at St. Vincent
Alliance for Philadelphia Public Schools February 12, 2019 appsphilly.net by Diane Payne
Tacony Academy Charter School at St. Vincent, 7201 Milner Street 9136
Management Company:  American Paradigm Schools
Proposed enrollment: 900 students at scale
Proposed cost to SDP for 5-year term:   $39,837,160.
APPS members have attended all hearings and  reviewed all applications and attachments on this year’s new charter applications, as we have done in years past. APPS is a member of the Our City Our Schools Coalition (OCOS). Both APPS and OCOS are advocating for a moratorium on the creation of new charters and the expanding of existing ones. The District cannot afford and does not need any more charters.  Charter Schools represent the largest single item in the District’s budget–⅓ of the budget goes to fund charters. This causes direct harm to public school students as fewer resources are available to fix toxic buildings and hire more support staff. The Board has read and heard the legal opinions of several local attorneys, including Susan DeJarnett from the Beasley School of Law at Temple University, on the expense of charters, the many problems with the PA Charter Law, and the responsibility of the District to weight the financial health of the District when making decisions on charter expansion.  APPS members have cited the opinion of David Lapp, who represented the Education Law Center and is now with Research for Action, in his testimonies; links to the opinions of both attorneys have been made available to the Board.

Urooba Abid | All Penn alumni should send their kids to public schools
Urooba Unplugged | Penn graduates sending their kids to private schools is an inherently selfish decision
Daily Pennsylvanian By Urooba Abid 02/10/19 11:21pm
Often, I hear my peers share their plans to send their future kids to private schools. Whether that opinion is rooted in their own private school experiences or their terrible public school experiences, they will make the assertion that it’ll be much easier for their kids to get into a school like Penn if they send them to elite private schools rather than public school. Many Penn students will share their support for the issue of public education. But a rare amount will be willing to put their own children on the frontline.  Penn graduates sending their kids to private schools is an inherently selfish decision.  Many of those who send their children to private schools believe that private education is better than public. Essentially, they are acknowledging faults in the public school system, but instead of doing something to change it, they choose to pay to give their children a leg up. They are saying that because they can afford it, their children deserve a better education than all the other kids who cannot afford to leave the public school system.  And yet ironically, as Ivy League graduates, we will have exactly the kind of social capital that can make that public school system better.  As eventual Penn alums, no matter where we came from, we will all be part of a privileged, elite class of citizens. No matter what we end up doing, we received a top tier education. We will have the potential to be change-makers in whatever fields we pursue. We will have connections with influential peers in all fields.  

Stopping a school shooting: How prepared is Pennsylvania?
WHTM By: Dennis Owens  Updated: Feb 13, 2019 01:53 AM EST
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) - If February 14, 2018 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida were a test, lots of folks flunked it. A failure of epic proportions. As a shooter wandered the hallways killing 17 and wounding 17 more, the school's only armed officer hid. Responding police set up a perimeter but stayed outside the school and didn't rush the shooter. Some of the school's teachers and staff were poorly trained, others forgot their training. That heavy criticism was leveled in an official after-action report released in January of this year. It was a must-read for officials in Pennsylvania. "These incidents are over within five minutes and huge casualties occur," said Marcus Brown, Director of Pennsylvania's Homeland Security. "If law enforcement doesn't take action immediately, it will result in more loss of life." Brown says with confidence that every law enforcement officer in this state knows what to do and is trained to do it. "They immediately respond to where the gunfire is coming from and if it's inside a school, like it was in this situation, then they're going in the school and again listening for the sound of the gunfire and going toward the gunfire to stop the shooter." But typically in school shootings, police are not the first on the scene.  "These teachers with no training are expected to protect 40 kids. That's a tall ask," said Senator Mike Regan (R-York/Cumberland). Regan helped craft last year's Act 44, which gives $60 million to harden Pennsylvania school buildings and protect its children.

Could a tax on video games help prevent school shootings? One Pa. lawmaker hopes so.
Inquirer by Laura McCrystal, Updated: 11 minutes ago
Seeking funding for school safety measures to prevent shootings, a Pennsylvania state lawmaker is proposing a 10-percent sales tax on violent video games. Rep. Christopher Quinn (R., Delaware), said the tax revenue would be distributed to school districts undergoing projects to improve safety, such as installing bulletproof glass, metal detectors, or security cameras.  “The crux of the bill is I’m simply trying to make schools safe," Quinn said. “It’s about identifying a source of funding to help combat the growing violence." But the gaming industry as well as some experts who study the impact of video games see Quinn’s bill as misguided — and potentially unconstitutional. Researchers have found that there is no link between violent video games and horrific acts of violence such as school shootings, said Patrick Markey, a professor of brain and psychological sciences at Villanova University and co-author of Moral Combat: Why the War on Violent Video Games is Wrong. Markey said his research has shown dips in violent crimes when people are playing video games. The most likely explanation for that, he said, is that video games give teenagers something to do and “keeps them off the street.” “So if this bill’s intention is to reduce violent crime, it really does have it kind of backwards in a way,” Markey said.

Since Parkland
·         12 months
·         1,200 American kids killed by guns
·         1,200 stories about the lives they led, reported by teen journalists across the country
Why We Spent a Year Reporting on Child Gun Deaths
In Parkland, kids who endured the unspeakable emerged with a blunt message for the grownups of America: You are failing us. Their frustration was initially and primarily directed at elected officials in Washington and state capitals around the country, but it also extended to the media. Standing alongside their peers from Chicago, St. Louis, and the District of Columbia, they accurately criticized journalists for mobilizing to cover mass shootings while devoting relatively little attention to the chronic gun violence that exposes children in some city neighborhoods to danger every day. “Since Parkland” was conceived as an antidote to that imbalance — one powered by young people themselves.

Tom Marino's election opponent picked by Dems to fill 12th District vacancy
Penn Live By John Beauge Special to PennLive Updated Feb 12, 4:13 PM
The Democrat who lost last November to incumbent U.S. Rep. Thomas A. Marino will be his party's nominee to fill the 12th District vacancy created by the congressman's unexpected resignation. The state party Tuesday announced Marc Friedenberg, an assistant teaching professor at Penn State, would be its candidate. Marino beat him 150,558 to 75,822, last November. Republicans hold a large registration edge in the district that stretches from Perry County to the New York State. Because Friedenberg was the only Democrat to apply, the party committees in the 15 counties recommended him instead of gathering for a nominating convention. The state executive committee then voted to officially nominate him as the party's candidate. Republicans have yet to name their candidate to be on the ballot for the special election to be held in conjunction with the May 21 primary.

California governor taps renowned educator Linda Darling-Hammond to head state Board of Education
By Valerie Strauss February 12 at 11:37 PM
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) just tapped Linda Darling-Hammond, a giant in the world of education, to head the 11-member state Board of Education. During his first State of the State address Tuesday, Newsom announced that Darling-Hammond would work alongside the newly elected state superintendent, Tony Thurmond, to help “confront” problems plaguing California’s public schools. Referring to last month’s six-day strike by Los Angeles teachers, he said: The teachers’ strike in LA is over — but the need to confront its  underlying causes has only just begun. Understaffed schools, overcrowded  classrooms, pension pressures, the achievement gap, and charter school growth — these stressors are showing up all over the state, right here in Sacramento, in Fresno, and Oakland. ...Seven years ago, we invested $47.3 billion in our schools. Next year, with your support, we’ll invest more than $80 billion — that includes $576 million for special education. But it’s not enough. We’re still 41st in the nation in per pupil funding. Something needs to change.  We need to have an honest conversation about how we fund our schools at a state and local level. Darling-Hammond is one of the most renowned names in education. An expert in teacher education and educational equity, she served as transition chief to Barack Obama after his 2008 presidential election win, and many in the education world thought he would select her as secretary of education.

Newsom names new head of State Board of Education in California
Linda Darling-Hammond to succeed Michael Kirst on powerful state education body
EdSource by Louis Freedberg FEBRUARY 12, 2019
In his first State of the State speech Tuesday morning, Gov. Gavin Newsom named Linda Darling-Hammond, a Stanford University professor emeritus and one of the nation’s most prominent education researchers, to head California’s State Board of Education. Thank you for doing this, Linda,” Newsom said in his speech, acknowledging Darling-Hammond, who was in the chamber in the State Capitol. Darling-Hammond, who currently chairs the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, will succeed another Stanford professor emeritus, Michael Kirst, who led the state board during Jerry Brown’s first terms as governor, as well as his last two terms. Kirst, a close advisor to Brown for over four decades on education matters, decided to step down from the board in December at the end of Brown’s four terms as governor. Darling-Hammond and Kirst have been close collaborators, and in fact live within blocks of each other adjoining the Stanford campus. She will be the first African-American woman to head the 11-person board, which plays a key role in formulating and overseeing implementation of multiple education policies and reforms in what is by far the nation’s largest school system. It serves 6.2 million children, who comprise 1 in 8 public schoolchildren in the U.S.

Extra arts education boosts students’ writing scores — and their compassion, big new study finds
Chalkbeat BY MATT BARNUM  February 12, 2019
When you’re the big fish, it’s not OK to pick on the little fish just because you can. That’s an important lesson for everyone. But some Houston first-graders got a particularly vivid demonstration in the form of a musical puppet show, which featured fish puppets and an underlying message about why it’s wrong to bully others. The show left an impression on the students at Codwell Elementary, according to their teacher Shelea Bennett. “You felt like you were in that story,” she said. “By the end of the story they were able to answer why [bullying] wasn’t good, and why you shouldn’t act this way.” The puppeteer’s show was part of an effort to expand arts education in Houston elementary and middle schools. Now, a new study shows that the initiative helped students in a few ways: boosting students’ compassion for their classmates, lowering discipline rates, and improving students’ scores on writing tests. It’s just the latest study to find that giving students more access to the arts offers measurable benefits. And adding time for dance, theater, or visual arts isn’t at odds with traditional measures of academic success, according to the research — which amounts to one of the largest gold-standard studies on arts education ever conducted. “Arts learning experiences benefit students in terms of social, emotional, and academic outcomes,” write researchers Dan Bowen of Texas A&M and Brian Kisida of the University of Missouri.

At House Education Hearing, Lawmakers Differ Sharply on Why Teachers Are Underpaid
Education Week Politics K12 By Andrew Ujifusa on February 12, 2019 2:47 PM
Washington - At the first House education committee hearing on K-12 schools this Congress, Democrats in control of the committee pushed Tuesday for more resources from the federal government to raise teacher pay and repair schools. But Republicans said that education spending increases have failed to adequately address these issues or to help students academically. Democrats took control of the House in the November midterms for the first time since 2011, and Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., now the committee chairman, chose to highlight "underpaid teachers and crumbling schools" in his first hearing. He and other Democrats, as well as American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and two other witnesses, argued that a variety of crises in public schools, from broken heating systems and pervasive mold to teachers forced to take second jobs, called for a greater federal investment in buildings and educators.  But ranking member Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., and other Republicans pushed back on this premise. They said that a huge spike in spending on administrative staff over several decades had deprived teachers of better salaries. Instead, they indicated that school choice, rather than relying on more funding from Washington, would drive innovation and market competition and help teachers' ability to get better salaries.


PSBA Members - Register for Advocacy Day at the Capitol in Harrisburg Monday April 29, 2019
All PSBA-members are invited to attend Advocacy Day on Monday, April 29, 2019 at the state Capitol in Harrisburg. In addition, this year PSBA will be partnering with the Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units (PAIU) and Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (PASA) to strengthen our advocacy impact. The focus for the day will be meetings with legislators to discuss critical issues affecting public education. There is no cost to attend, and PSBA will assist in scheduling appointments with legislators once your registration is received. The day will begin with a continental breakfast and issue briefings prior to the legislator visits. Registrants will receive talking points, materials and leave-behinds to use with their meetings. PSBA staff will be stationed at a table in the main Rotunda during the day to answer questions and provide assistance. The day’s agenda and other details will be available soon. If you have questions about Advocacy Day, legislative appointments or need additional information, contact Jamie.Zuvich@psba.org  Register for PSBA Advocacy Day now at http://www.mypsba.org/
PSBA members can register online now by logging in to myPSBA. If you need assistance logging in and registering contact Alysha Newingham, Member Data System Administrator at alysha.newingham@psba.org or call her at (717) 506-2450, ext. 3420

Board Presidents’ Panel
Learn, discuss, and practice problem solving with school leader peers facing similar or applicable challenges. Workshop-style discussions will be facilitated and guided by PSBA experts. With the enormous challenges facing schools today, effective and knowledgeable board leadership is essential to your productivity and performance as a team of ten.
Locations & Dates
Due to inclement weather, some dates have been rescheduled. The updated schedule is below.
Feb. 12, 2019 — Parkland High School (Section 8) Cancelled.
Feb. 12, 2019 — Lackawanna CTC (Section 4) Cancelled.
Feb. 13, 2019 — Bedford CTC (Section 6)(Rescheduled from Jan. 29)
Feb. 21, 2019 — Danville Area High School (Section 3)(Rescheduled from Jan. 31)
Feb. 28, 2019 — St. Marys Area High School (Section 2)(Rescheduled from Jan. 31)
Mar. 28, 2019 — Crawford Cty CTC (Section 1)(Rescheduled from Jan. 30)

PSBA Sectional Meetings - Ten convenient locations in February and March
School safety and security is a complex, multi-perspective topic impacting school entities in dramatic ways. This complimentary PSBA member meeting featured in ten locations will offer essential updates and information on Safe2Say reporting, suicide awareness related to student safety, school climate, and emergency preparedness planning. Representatives from the Attorney General’s office, PEMA, and a top expert in behavioral health will be presenting. Updates on legislation impacting your schools will be presented by PSBA staff. Connect with the experts, have your questions answered, and network with other members.
Locations and Dates
Section Meetings are 6-8 p.m. (across all locations).
Register online by logging in to myPSBA.

Open Board Positions for 2019 PA Principals Association Election
Thursday, January 10, 2019 9:05 AM
Margaret S. (Peg) Foster, principal, academic affairs, in the Crestwood School District, has been appointed by President Michael Allison to serve as the chairperson of the 2019 PA Principals Association Nominations Committee to oversee the 2019 election. Her committee consists of the following members: Curtis Dimmick, principal in the Northampton Area School District; Jacqueline Clark-Havrilla, principal in the Spring-Ford School District; and Joseph Hanni, vice principal in the Scranton School District.   If you are interested in running for one of the open board positions (shown below) in the 2019 election, please contact Stephanie Kinner at kinner@paprincipals.org or (717) 732-4999 for an application. Applications must be received in the state office by Friday, February 22, 2019.

Pennsylvania schools work – for students, communities and the economy when adequate resources are available to give all students an equal opportunity to succeed.
Join A Movement that Supports our Schools & Communities
PA Schools Work website
Our students are in classrooms that are underfunded and overcrowded. Teachers are paying out of pocket and picking up the slack. And public education is suffering. Each child in Pennsylvania has a right to an excellent public education. Every child, regardless of zip code, deserves access to a full curriculum, art and music classes, technical opportunities and a safe, clean, stable environment. All children must be provided a level chance to succeed. PA Schools Work is fighting for equitable, adequate funding necessary to support educational excellence. Investing in public education excellence is the path to thriving communities, a stable economy and successful students.
http://paschoolswork.org/

Indiana Area School District Safety & Security Symposium March 15, 2019
Indiana Area School District Website
Background: It’s 2019, and school safety has catapulted as one of the top priorities for school districts around the country. With an eye toward providing educators with various resources and opportunities specific to Pennsylvania, the Indiana Area School District -- in collaboration with Indiana University of Pennsylvania, PA Representative Jim Struzzi, and as well as Indiana County Tourist Bureau-- is hosting a FREE safety and security symposium on March 15, 2019. This safety and security exchange will provide information that benefits all stakeholders in your education community: administrators, board members, and staff members alike. Presenters offer valuable resources to help prepare your organization to continue the discussion on safety and security in our schools.  Pre-registration is required, and you will be invited to choose the breakout sessions that you feel will have the most impact in your professional learning on these various topics, as well as overall impact on your District’s systems of operations. Please take time to review the various course breakout sessions and their descriptions.  Don’t miss this opportunity to connect and learn.
How to Register: Participants attending the Safety Symposium on March 15, 2019, will have the option to select a maximum of 4 breakout sessions to attend on this day.  Prior to the breakout sessions, attendees will hear opening remarks from former Secretary of Education - Dr. Gerald Zahorchak.  We want to empower the attendees to exercise their voice and choice in planning their day!  Please review the various break out session descriptions by clicking on the "Session Descriptions" on the right-hand side of this page.  On that page, you will be able to review the sessions offered that day and register for the symposium.  
https://www.iasd.cc/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1491839&type=d&pREC_ID=1637670

Annual PenSPRA Symposium set for March 28-29, 2019
Pennsylvania School Public Relations Association Website
Once again, PenSPRA will hold its annual symposium with nationally-recognized speakers on hot topics for school communicators. The symposium, held at the Conference Center at Shippensburg University, promises to provide time for collegial sharing and networking opportunities. Mark you calendars now!
We hope you can join us. Plans are underway, so check back for more information.
http://www.penspra.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

Save the Date:  PARSS Annual Conference May 1-3, 2019
Wyndham Garden Hotel, Mountainview Country Club
Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools
https://www.parss.org/Annual_Conference


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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