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
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These daily emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg
Join the .@PASchoolsWork Twitter Storm Today from 12 to 1
in Support of Increased State Support for K12 Funding
Pa
Schools Work: Sign the Petition & Join the April 4th Twitter
Storm!
The PA Schools Work campaign is hoping to get
thousands of signatures from school leaders and others across the state to
increase state support for k-12 education. Please add your name to the petition
that urges Governor Wolf and the General Assembly to increase their investment
in education. Click here to sign and share the petition.
Additionally, please join Pa Schools Work partners
for a LIGHTNING LUNCH HOUR from 12 noon- 1 p.m. on APRIL 4-to create a Twitter
storm! The goal of the Twitter storm is
to collect thousands of signatures on the petition urging adequate school
funding by generating a flurry of tweets around PA SCHOOL FUNDING. Click here to view the Pa Schools Work guide
for the April 4 Twitter Storm.
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. We
will continue rolling out cyber charter tuition expenses for taxpayers in
education committee members, legislative leadership and various other
districts.
In 2016-17, taxpayers
in .@SenatorGeneYaw’s school districts in Bradford, Lycoming, Northumberland,
Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga and Union Counties had to send over $12.1 million
to chronically underperforming cybers that they never authorized. #SB34
(Schwank) or #HB526 (Sonney) could change that.
Links to additional bill information and several resources have been
moved to the end of today’s postings
Data Source:
PDE via PSBA|
Athens Area SD
|
$684,419.05
|
|
Canton Area SD
|
$219,358.83
|
|
East Lycoming SD
|
$344,467.40
|
|
Elk Lake SD
|
$405,257.03
|
|
Jersey Shore Area SD
|
$729,876.96
|
|
Lewisburg Area SD
|
$379,109.93
|
|
Loyalsock Township SD
|
$316,848.82
|
|
Mifflinburg Area SD
|
$637,452.00
|
|
Milton Area SD
|
$479,346.64
|
|
Montgomery Area SD
|
$276,927.33
|
|
Montoursville Area SD
|
$421,833.77
|
|
Montrose Area SD
|
$579,536.52
|
|
Muncy SD
|
$277,320.39
|
|
Northeast Bradford SD
|
$296,059.29
|
|
Sayre Area SD
|
$419,764.25
|
|
South Williamsport Area SD
|
$421,718.98
|
|
Southern Tioga SD
|
$650,426.40
|
|
Sullivan County SD
|
$559,653.40
|
|
Towanda Area SD
|
$153,080.56
|
|
Troy Area SD
|
$461,898.42
|
|
Warrior Run SD
|
$457,774.04
|
|
Wellsboro Area SD
|
$472,963.79
|
|
Williamsport Area SD
|
$1,808,347.82
|
|
Wyalusing Area SD
|
$650,750.46
|
|
|
$12,104,192.08
|
Central Pa. school district says children aren’t getting
needed mental health services
A York
school district occupational therapist said one of every five children has
symptoms that meet the diagnosis for a mental health disorder. Eighty percent
go untreated.
PA Post by Brett
Sholtis APRIL 03, 2019 | 05:50 AM
(York) – Speaking
to state House Democrats, Dr. Adrienne Johnson painted a harrowing picture she
says is all too common. “Seven-year-old child presents to my office with
nausea, attended by a caregiver,” she said. “This child is significantly
underweight, speaks very little, has bruising on the shins, and the adult
states that the child sleeps very poorly and frequently has nightmares.” The
child shows signs of trauma, Johnson said. As is often the case, general
practitioners like her are the first to discover that a child may be a victim
of abuse. She can refer the child to a specialist, and if appropriate, contact
authorities. However, physicians don’t see patients frequently enough to
address long-term mental health issues, and there aren’t enough psychiatrists
and therapists to meet demand. Johnson was one of nine York County experts to
speak to Democratic state representatives March 28 in a policy committee
hearing focused on childhood mental health. They were there to make the case
for more funding and resources as the school district grapples with what it
calls “overwhelming mental health needs.” Panelists repeated many of the same
problems: Long wait times for services. A shortage of psychiatrists and therapists.
Massive case loads for social workers. And children who need mental health
services, but who are not getting them.
Pennsylvania’s busy special election season continues as
parties pick nominees for 33rd Senate District
PA Capital Star By Elizabeth Hardison April 1, 2019
Local Democratic
and Republican party activists in south-central Pennsylvania have selected
their respective nominees for a special election in Pennsylvania’s 33rd Senate
District, a reliably Republican seat that was most recently held by Sen.
Richard Alloway, R-Adams. Republican nominee Doug Mastriano, a military
historian and veteran, will face Democratic contender Sarah Hammond, a local
government employee, on May 21. The 33rd Senate seat has been empty since
February, following Alloway’s unexpected resignation. Alloway told reporters
when he resigned that he had become disillusioned with
politics. The seat
represents Adams County and part of York, Cumberland, and Franklin counties,
and has been held by Republicans since 1940, according to a Wilkes University
elections database.
In defiance of Harrisburg, Pittsburgh passed its own gun
control laws. What happens next?
PA Capital Star By Sarah Anne Hughes April 3, 2019
Pittsburgh City
Council on Tuesday gave final approval to three gun control bills introduced
following the October massacre at the Tree of Life synagogue. With Mayor Bill
Peduto committed to signing the package, the Western Pennsylvania city is
embarking on territory at once familiar and untrodden as it takes the
regulation of firearms into its own hands. The bills passed with six “yes”
votes as well as three “nos” from members concerned about possible legal
challenges and issues of preemption in Harrisburg. Pittsburgh already knows a
thing or two about that. In 1993, the city
as well as Philadelphia banned assault-style weapons. The Legislature responded
the following year by amending the state’s Uniform Firearms Act to prevent the
municipal passage of any ordinance “dealing with the regulation of the
transfer, ownership, transportation, or possession of firearms.” “If we were
the state and the federal government, we could vote on these,” Council member
Darlene Harris, a conservative Democrat, said before Tuesday’s vote. “All it’s
gonna bring us is lawsuits.”
APPS plans to challenge Philly school board, alleging
violation of the Sunshine Act
Board
president Joyce Wilkerson says there are no plans to take new votes.
The notebook by Dale Mezzacappa April 3 — 4:49 pm, 2019
The Alliance for
Philadelphia Public Schools (APPS) plans to pursue its challenge, in court if
necessary, of how the Board of Education responded to a disruption during
its March 28 meeting. The members recessed to a private room and continued the meeting
there, and APPS members contend that this violated the state’s open meetings
law, known as the Sunshine Act. The board left the auditorium after students and adults who were
furious at its 7-2 vote to adopt a
policy requiring metal detectors in all schools shouted and chanted, making it very difficult to
continue conducting business. “If we have to, we will sue them,” said APPS
co-founder Lisa Haver. “This is a bad precedent. We understand they were put in
a bad position … but they’ll have to fix it.” The board members
and school officials went to a committee room in another part of the building
to continue the meeting, which they live-streamed. They took votes on more than
a dozen resolutions, including one adopting the lump sum budget for fiscal year
2020. State law requires that to be done at least 60 days before final adoption
by May 31.
I say enough with the failing schools narrative. Teachers
perform miracles every day for our students.
Public Source First-person essay by Steven Singer | 23 hours ago
Steven Singer is a
teacher at Steel Valley Middle School.
Editor's note: This
is a first-person essay in response to recent PublicSource stories on the
racial achievement gap in Allegheny County school districts. The author of the
essay is a teacher in the Steel Valley School District. Our reporting showed
the Steel Valley High School to have the highest racial achievement gap in the
county. Steel Valley Middle School, where the author of the essay teaches, also
had significant achievement gaps. The high school and middle school are on the
state Department of Education's Additional Targeted Support and Improvement
List, which requires the district to come up with an action plan to address low
test scores from black students. You can read more about racial achievement
gaps in the county here.
“Mom, I’m going to
college.” “I love you, too.” “It’s not real.”
I flashed these and
other phrases on the screen in my eighth-grade classroom during a February
class. I told my students to take notes and try to figure out what all of these
phrases had in common. As I continued showing the phrases, it became more
obvious to the students.
“What are you
following me for?” “I can’t breathe.” “Please don’t let me die.”
Eventually one of
my eighth-grade students caught on.
“‘I can’t breathe?’
Wasn’t that Eric Garner?”
And then it all
fell into place. These were the last words of African-American men wrongly
killed by police. As a white teacher at Steel Valley Middle School with classes
of mostly students of color, I don’t mind talking about race and prejudice in
school. In fact, I find it essential to doing the job properly. The lesson I
described led to some deep discussions about the role of law enforcement, rules
of engagement and justice. And it almost didn’t happen because of standardized
testing.
MBIT culinary instructor receives prestigious honor
Bucks County Courier
Times By Chris English Posted Apr 3, 2019 at 2:46 PMUpdated
Apr 3, 2019 at 2:46 PM
Middle Bucks
Institute of Technology culinary arts and sciences instructor Michael McCombe
was named 2019 Chef of the Year by a Delaware Valley culinary association.
Food and everything
about it is the obsession of Michael McCombe, and he has the recipe for success
in the classroom too. McCombe, a culinary arts and sciences instructor the last
27 years at the Middle Bucks Institute of Technology in Warwick, works
tirelessly to make sure his students are as prepared as possible to get a job
in the ever-expanding food industry. That dedication and McCombe’s overall
kitchen skills were honored recently when the Plumsteadville resident was named
2019 Chef of the Year by the American Culinary Federation’s Philadelphia
Chapter of the Delaware Valley Chefs’ Association. “I was shocked because there
are so many good people out there,” said McCombe, who in addition to being a
culinary instructor is also a certified executive chef. “When I accepted the
award, it was a humbling experience to be in a room with people of such talent
and dedication to the industry.” But as much as he appreciated the recognition,
McCombe said he gets even more satisfaction out of working with his students
and honing their skills in an area that has become multifaceted.
“But what does this kind of advocacy look
like on the ground? Today we're featuring two mothers in the
Tredyffrin/Easttown district in Pennsylvania who have started a local
group, Everyone
Reads,that has been urging their
district to overhaul their literacy program. Whether you're inspired by their
work—or view them as the
"crazy moms" with
an axe to grind—Education Week thought
readers would find it enlightening to hear about their journey from worrying
about their own kids' reading to advocating for a broad-based look at district
literacy.”
Meet the Moms Pushing for a Reading Overhaul in Their
District
Education Week By Stephen Sawchuk on April 3, 2019 3:47 PM
Research on how
kids learn to read has not always penetrated the teaching profession, though
that's generally no fault of the teachers: It's that approaches to reading
based on the mechanics of language don't appear to be consistently taught in
teacher-preparation programs or in early reading professional-development
opportunities. While this has been a long-standing problem, it's entered
the national agenda again ever since journalist Emily Hanford wrote a hard-hitting piece on the lack of systematic phonics instruction in the early grades. But
there's one thing that's changed since the last skirmish in the reading wars:
The social-media revolution. Now, platforms like Twitter and Facebook have
exploded with parents, researchers, and educators advocating for a systematic
approach to teaching reading. Among the most successful pushes has come from
the dyslexia community: Grassroots groups like Decoding Dyslexia now claim chapters in all 50 states. And as of March 2018, 42
states have laws supporting dyslexic students that have put an emphasis on
early screening for dyslexia and teaching that includes phonics instruction and
phonemic awareness, according to the International Dyslexia Association. One of
the key points advocates for these approaches make is that, while phonics and
phonemic awareness are mandatory for dyslexic students, they're also best
practice for teaching all students.
Financial ties between HISD charter, founder draw
scrutiny before renewal vote
Houston Chronicle
by Jacob Carpenter April 2, 2019 Updated: April 2, 2019 6:31 p.m.
A trio of
intertwined charter school networks operating within Houston ISD have paid or
lent at least $17 million during the last five years to a company owned by
their highest-ranking employee, an unusual arrangement drawing criticism from
some HISD school board members ahead of a vote to renew their contracts. Financial
records show the Energized For Excellence, Energized For STEM and Inspired For
Excellence academies have maintained deep ties with a company controlled by
Lois Bullock, who founded the three networks and works as the head of schools
for each. Over the past half-decade, Bullock’s company has served as the
landlord for Energized For Excellence Academy, taking in $10.8 million in lease
payments, and received a $4.2 million loan from the organization, records show.
Bullock’s company also earned about $2 million over five years for her “labor
and job benefits,” an annual amount roughly equivalent to the compensation of
HISD’s superintendent. The three charter networks enroll about 4,000 students
at eight campuses, while HISD serves nearly 210,000 students.
Trump Administration Sued Over
Rollback of School Lunch Standards
New York Times By Erica L. Green and Sean Piccoli April 3, 2019
A coalition of
states and advocacy organizations sued the Trump administration on Wednesday
over its rollback of school nutritional standards championed by the former
first lady Michelle Obama that required students be served healthier meals. In
lawsuits filed Wednesday, the groups claim that the administration illegally
issued rules last year that weakened requirements that school meals contain
less salt and more whole grains. The rules were part of the Healthy,
Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, a crucial part of Mrs. Obama’s signature “Let’s Move”
campaign. The suits
claim the Agriculture Department violated the Administrative Procedure Act,
issuing its rules with little public notice and no reasoned explanation and
against overwhelming opposition from the public. The courts have already struck
down a series of high-profile rule changes by the administration for the same
reason.
PA Schools Work Berks County Thu, April 11, 2019 6:00 PM
– 8:00 PM EDT
Berks County Intermediate Unit 1111 Commons Boulevard Reading,
PA 19605
PA Schools Work is
organizing in Berks County. We are looking for advocates to fight for more
funding for our students. Agenda will include detailed information about individual
school districts, meeting with local Berks representatives to share your
stories, statewide support for your efforts and much more. We want to work
together to make a difference. School leaders, parents, community members and
local citizens that care about education are all welcome. Registration starts
at 6 with meeting beginning at 6:30. Networking available so bring material to
share about your organization too. If you have any questions, please contact
Sandra at smiller@circuitriderforpaschools.org.
Success Starts Here is a multi-year public awareness
campaign sharing positive news in PA public education.
.@PSBA .@PasaSupts .@PAIU .@PenSPRA1 .@PSEA .@PAPRINCIPALS .@SuccessStartsPA Read more stories and share your own on http://www.SuccessStartsHere.org .
Together we can harness the power of all to make a difference in our schools and communities! Hear from the experts and learn how to advocate! Free breakfast & givewaways. Don't miss out!
Sponsored by Norristown Men of Excellence, The Urban League of Philadelphia & PA Schools Work.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/norristown-parents-students-for-education-tickets-59590097586
The League of Women Voters of Delaware County and the Delaware County Intermediate Unit present: EPLC 2019 Regional Training Workshop for PA School Board Candidates (and Incumbents) April 27th 8am – 4:30pm at DCIU
Ron Cowell of The Pennsylvania Education Policy and Leadership Center will conduct a regional full day workshop for 2019 Pennsylvania School Board Candidates.
Date & Time: Saturday, April 27, 2019, 8am to 4:30pm
Location:
Delaware County Intermediate Unit, 200 Yale Ave. Morton, PA
Incumbents, non-incumbents, campaign supporters and all interested voters
are invited to participate in this workshop. Registration is $75 (payable by
credit card) and includes coffee and pastries, lunch, and materials. For
questions contact Adriene Irving at 610-938-9000 ext. 2061.To register, please visit http://tinyurl.com/CandidatesWksp
PSBA: Nominations for
the Allwein Society are welcome!
The Allwein Society is an award program recognizing school directors who
are outstanding leaders and advocates on behalf of public schools and students.
This prestigious honor was created in 2011 in memory of Timothy M. Allwein, a
former PSBA staff member who exemplified the integrity and commitment to
advance political action for the benefit of public education. Nominations are
accepted year-round and inductees will be recognized at the PASA-PSBA School
Leadership Conference, among other honors.
PSBA: 2019 State of
Education report now online
PSBA Website February 19, 2019
The 2019 State of Education report is
now available on PSBA.org in PDF format. The report is a barometer of not only
the key indicators of public school performance, but also the challenges
schools face and how they are coping with them. Data reported comes from
publicly available sources and from a survey to chief school administrators,
which had a 66% response rate. Print copies of the report will be mailed to
members soon.
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
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
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/
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
PSBA Tweet March
12, 2019 Video Runtime: 6:40
In this installment of #VideoEDition, learn about legislation
introduced in the PA Senate & House of Representatives that would save millions
of dollars for school districts that make tuition payments for their students
to attend cyber charter schools.http://ow.ly/RyIM50n1uHi
PSBA Summaries of Senate Bill 34 and House Bill 526
PSBA Sample Board Resolution in Support of Statewide
Cyber Charter School Funding Reform
PSBA Sample Board Resolution in Support of Senate Bill 34
and House Bill 256
How much could your school district and taxpayers save if
there were statewide flat tuition rates of $5000 for regular ed students and
$8865 for special ed.? See the estimated savings by school district here.
Education Voters PA
Website February 14, 2019
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2019&sind=0&body=S&type=B&bn=34
Has your state
representative cosponsored HB526?
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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