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
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PA Ed Policy Roundup for Nov. 1, 2019
Turzai’s Op-Ed,
citing averages, chooses to ignore fundamental inequity baked into legislature’s
school funding (blogger opinion)
“The No. 1 obstacle to student
achievement, though, is money, Parker said. While the state’s portion of
per-student funding in Allentown is nearly twice that of Salisbury Township,
Allentown doesn’t have the ability to raise what it needs in local taxes.
Income disparity handicaps the schools, Parker said, creating an imbalance that
cannot be rectified. “The biggest crisis in our city is how we manage our
public schools. We’re spending a lot of time just trying to keep on the
lights,” he said. “The narrative cannot be that our kids get educated with less. Because the question then becomes why? Why should these kids
get less?”
Neighbors on opposite
sides of the tracks: A look at Harrison-Morton and Salisbury middle schools
THE MORNING CALL |
By SARAH M. WOJCIK OCT 31, 2019 | 7:00 AM
This story is part
of The Morning Call's ongoing series about poverty in the Lehigh Valley.
Salisbury Middle
School students scurry through a brightly lit hallway on their way to class one
Tuesday in September, many of them cradling district-issued iPads along with
textbooks and folders. Some of the 50-year-old school’s features betray its age
— bright blue carpet lining walls, or wooden doors with edges worn smooth with
time. But for the most part, it’s a sunny place for students to navigate the
bridge between childhood and adolescence. The school’s amenities suggest it has
ample resources: dry-erase boards and smart boards, guitars for music
instruction, a fitness room with treadmills and weights, a well-stocked
woodshop with no shortage of technology, and a student lounge with games and a
television. Windows brighten the hallways and air conditioning ensures students
won’t suffer through the hottest days of the school year. Things look a lot different
at Harrison-Morton Middle School in the neighboring Allentown School District.
That building dates to 1874, when Ulysses S. Grant was president, though it had
a major overhaul during Harry Truman’s presidency. Thomas Smith, Allentown
facilities director, counts more on luck to keep things running than his
colleagues in other Lehigh Valley districts do. “They have plans. My plan is to
open school each day,” Smith said, holding up crossed fingers. “That’s my
plan.”
Opponents of school choice should quit the punitive
rhetoric | Opinion
Mike Turzai, For the Inquirer November 1, 2019
Rep. Mike Turzai is now in his 10th term in
the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He is in his third term as House
speaker.
Pennsylvania spends
more than $33 billion in state and local taxes on public education. In all, 38.6% of our
state’s General Fund budget, or over $13 billion
annually, is
dedicated to primary education pre-K-12, and over $20 billion is raised by
school districts through their state-empowered taxing authority. Thanks to
these record levels of spending, Pennsylvania ranks third of the 50 states and
Washington, D.C., in average teacher salary, average starting teacher salary,
and average school spending per student when these figures are adjusted for
cost of living. We also rank third in average teacher salary as a percentage of
median household income, with the average Pennsylvania public school teacher
making nearly 20% more than our state’s median household, without counting
pension or medical benefits. We are leading the nation, ranking in the top
three states across all these categories.
Reprise March 2015: Pennsylvania schools lead in unequal
funding, data show
Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette by ELEANOR CHUTE MAR 14, 2015
Pennsylvania’s
school districts have the most inequitable spending for poor students in the
nation, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Its numbers show that the state’s school districts that have high numbers of
impoverished students spent about a third less than those with low numbers of
impoverished students.
In a phone news
conference Friday, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan — along with Marc
Morial, president of the National Urban League — highlighted the differences as
part of his efforts to urge Congress to consider ensuring that high-poverty
schools get the resources they need as members weigh the reauthorization of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Mr. Duncan said some Republican
proposals do just the opposite, giving more money to well-off districts.
“Where you live determines what type of
education you receive in the Lehigh Valley and elsewhere in Pennsylvania. Where
the tax base is high, the educational offerings tend to be many. Where it is
low, the options decline.”
Segregation in
Pennsylvania schools: How a ZIP code determines the quality of a child’s
education
THE MORNING CALL |
By JACQUELINE PALOCHKO, SARAH M. WOJCIK and MICHELLE MERLIN OCT 31, 2019 | 7:29 PM
Students at
Allentown’s Harrison-Morton Middle School look forward to hearing the squeaky
wheels of the technology cart approaching their classroom, though the iPads
they hold may not be the latest models and time with them is limited. A luxury
in Allentown schools, such technology has become a necessity for many suburban
students — something they’re accustomed to tapping at-will and often. Technology
is one of the many things that separate students in Pennsylvania’s school
districts, where wealth equates to quality. Food is another. That’s why the
staff at Donegan Elementary School on Bethlehem’s South Side sends students
home with a bag of healthy snacks on weekends. Because clothing also can divide
students who have from those who have not, the Bethlehem Area School District
installed a washer and dryer at Donegan, ensuring children have access to clean
clothes. Language sets students or schools apart, too. And so do ZIP codes,
education reformers say, effectively segregating students by income and race.
School choice is not the source of education’s ills in
Philly or elsewhere | Opinion
Zach Wright, for the Inquirer Updated: October 31, 2019 - 7:01 AM
Zach Wright is a former Philadelphia teacher
of the year, communications activist for Education Post, and assistant
professor at the Relay Graduate School of Education supporting teachers in
Philadelphia and Camden.
In recent policy
proposals, both Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have beat the tired drum of maligning school choice as an enemy of
public education, calling, rightly, for the eradication of
for-profit charter schools while
also calling, shortsightedly, for charter moratoriums or funding divestment. Leaders
in the Keystone State have moved to be tougher on charters as well. Gov. Tom
Wolf argued that “Pennsylvania’s
charter law is the
worst in the nation” and has imposed reforms that would change funding laws for
charter schools likely to the detriment of their funding. Wolf has most
sharply critiqued cyber
charter schools, a
perspective that may indeed have merit. But charter critics like Sanders’ call
for a moratorium on all charter schools, eliminating the possibility for their
expansion, which seems extreme. The argument in favor is that charters not only
divert funds away from traditional public schools but also exacerbate
inequities and segregation within American schools. It is undeniable that
America’s education system is socioeconomically and racially stratified and
inequitable, and has been so since its founding.
Pittsburgh school board delays police memorandum vote.
Activists say it favors police, not students.
Public Source by Stephanie
Hacke | October 29, 2019
Parents and
community activists say many changes still need to be made to a proposed
memorandum of understanding between Pittsburgh Public Schools and city police
to ensure the most vulnerable students’ rights are protected. School
board members decided at its Oct. 28 hearing to wait yet another month to vote on the
agreement with
city police that outlines how officers can respond to certain incidents on
school property or at school-sponsored activities. The board now plans to take
action later in November, following further board discussion at its Nov. 6
workshop meeting. Representatives from social justice organizations
Education Rights Network, One Pennsylvania and the ACLU of Pennsylvania rallied
before the board’s Oct. 28 public hearing, demanding changes be made to the
memorandum of understanding [MOU] before its passage. They also rallied to
encourage the board to expand the district’s suspension ban for non-violent
infractions for students in pre-K to second grade to now go through fifth
grade. Statistics show that Black students and students with disabilities
are suspended at a disproportionate rate. Instead of suspension, the advocates
and students present at the rally said they want to see services offered to
help students.
Philly schools using email, calls, and even home visits
to help kids get required vaccines
Inquirer by Allison Steele, Updated: October 31, 2019- 2:17 PM
Over the summer,
parents of Philadelphia students got phone calls, text messages, and letters
reminding them to have their children vaccinated. By Monday’s deadline’s for
immunizations, the district may start planning home visits to families that
have not provided medical records or sought exemptions. District officials on
Thursday said they want to minimize the number of students who are excluded
from attending school for vaccine-related reasons. This year, students were
given 60 days to provide their records or obtain a religious, medical or
philosophical exemption. Karyn Lynch, the district’s chief of student support
services, said that as of this week, about 3,600 children were not yet in
compliance with school policies. The next step, she said, is contacting
families directly to learn why the student has not been vaccinated or sought an
exclusion, and offering to help make appointments.
Erie teachers near a deal; district costs would rise 2%
GoErie By Ed
Palattella Posted
at 12:14 AM
Tentative 2-year
contract with Erie School District would increase pay, make teachers, retirees
pay more for insurance. The Erie School District and its teachers’ union are
closing in on a landmark labor contract – the first deal negotiated under the
guidelines of the district’s newly implemented state-mandated financial
improvement plan. The district and the Erie Education Association have reached
a tentative two-year pact that would increase overall pay by an average of 2.55
percent a year but also would require teachers and other professionals and
retirees to pay more for health insurance. The deal, if approved, would cost
the district an additional 2.06 percent a year in 2019-20 and 2020-21, or an
average of $1.2 million a year, according to district figures. The additional
payments toward health insurance would help offset the cost of the pay
increase. The 830-member EEA is to vote on the proposal on Thursday afternoon.
If the union ratifies the deal, the Erie School Board would vote on it at its
regular monthly meeting on Nov. 13, Erie schools Superintendent Brian Polito
said. The EEA’s five-year contract expired on June 30. The new deal would be
retroactive to July 1. The EEA is composed of teachers, nurses, counselors and
school psychologists. Contracts with the EEA, the Erie School District’s
largest labor union, are always significant, but this tentative deal has added
importance due to the financial improvement plan. The deal is also the first
that Polito has negotiated with the EEA since he started as superintendent of
the 11,000-student district in July 2017.
Pennsylvania schools get 56.3% of their funds from local
taxes, NEA reports
The Center Square October 30, 2019
More than 56
percent of Pennsylvania public education funding comes from local tax revenues,
the seventh highest level among the 50 states and Washington, D.C., according
to data from the
National Education Association. Revenue per student in Pennsylvania, based on average daily attendance
figures, stood at $19,233 last year, the NEA data shows. Of the total revenues
flowing to public education in the state, federal government funds made up 5.6
percent of the total and state funds amounted to 38.1 percent, the NEA
reports. Nationwide, 47.1 percent of education funds came from state
funds during the 2017-18 school year, according to the NEA. And over the same
time period, 45.4 percent of school revenues came from local tax dollars, the
analysis reported. The federal portion was 7.5 percent. The average revenue
amount allocated per student in the United States stood at $12,602 in 2017-18,
based on fall enrollment figures, the NEA said.
Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf signs historic election reform bill
into law
Penn Live By Jan
Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Updated Oct 31, 2019;Posted Oct 31, 2019
Gov. Tom Wolf put
his signature on what has been described as the most significant change to
Pennsylvania’s election laws in more than 80 years when they were written. By
signing the
bill into law,
registered voters will soon be able to cast their ballot from the convenience
of their own home in every election – primary, general or special – without
having to provide an excuse as to why they can’t make it to the polls on
Election Day. Voters will be able to cast ballots by mail beginning with next
year’s primary on April 28. They also will be able register to vote as late as
15 days before an election, instead of the 30-day period that has been the rule
for decades. Further, they will be able to submit their mail-in or absentee
ballot right up until 8 p.m. on the day of the election. The law allows for a
permanent mailing list for voters requesting to automatically receive an
application for a mail-in or absentee ballot in another convenience. Perhaps
the most controversial change relates to eliminating “straight-party voting” -
the option of pushing one button to vote for all the candidates in a single
party in general elections.
Pa. lawmakers speak out on House impeachment rules vote
Penn Live By Ron
Southwick | rsouthwick@pennlive.com Posted Oct 31, 2019
Pennsylvania’s
congressional delegation didn’t deliver any surprises when it came to the House
vote on the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. All of the Keystone
State’s Republicans voted against the impeachment rules package while
Pennsylvania’s Democratic lawmakers voted for it. The House
approved the measure, which lays
out the procedures lawmakers will follow in the investigation, with a 232-196
tally.
EDITORIAL: Board should rescind contract
The York Dispatch Editorial Board Published
5:28 a.m. ET Nov. 1, 2019
Here's your Word of
the Day, South Western school board members: Optics. It's what frames public
opinion. It defines arguments. It dictates perceived reality. And, after
contracting with a debt collection agency owned
by the family of school board member, the optics aren't good. The recent no-bid contract with J.P. Harris
Associates was already going to be problematic from a political standpoint. Siccing
for-profit debt collectors on students and their families for perhaps a couple
of hundred dollars-worth of unpaid cafeteria bills was already going to be a
tough sell for an over-taxed public wondering where all the money goes. Then,
in one of the most tone-deaf moves in recent memory, the school board and
administrators forgo a bid process. Instead, eight of the district's nine board
members voted to ratify the deal with J.P. Harris. Board member James
Harris abstained. That abstention was key here. Harris didn't vote
because he had a clear conflict of interest. His father owns the
Mechanicsburg-based collection agency.
Grassroots Education Network- October 2019 Newsletter
Network for Public Education October 30, 2019
2:11 pm
The NPE Grassroots
Education Network is a network of over 145 grassroots organizations nationwide
who have joined together to preserve, promote, improve, and strengthen our
public schools. If you know of a group that would like to join this powerful
network, please go here to sign on. If you have any questions about the NPE
Grassroots Education Network please contact Marla Kilfoyle, NPE Grassroots
Education Network Liaison at marlakilfoyle@networkforpubliceducation.org
PSBA New and Advanced
School Director Training in Dec & Jan
Do you want
high-impact, engaging training that newly elected and reseated school directors
can attend to be certified in new and advanced required training? PSBA has been
supporting new school directors for more than 50 years by enlisting statewide
experts in school law, finance and governance to deliver a one-day foundational
training. This year, we are adding a parallel track of sessions for those who
need advanced school director training to meet their compliance requirements.
These sessions will be delivered by the same experts but with advanced content.
Look for a compact evening training or a longer Saturday session at a location
near you. All sites will include one hour of trauma-informed training required
by Act 18 of 2019. Weekend sites will include an extra hour for a legislative
update from PSBA’s government affairs team.
New School
Director Training
Week Nights:
Registration opens 3:00 p.m., program starts 3:30 p.m. -9:00 p.m., dinner with
break included
Saturdays: Registration opens at 8:00 a.m., program starts at 9:00 a.m. -3:30 p.m., lunch with break included
Saturdays: Registration opens at 8:00 a.m., program starts at 9:00 a.m. -3:30 p.m., lunch with break included
Advanced
School Director Training
Week Nights:
Registration with dinner provided opens at 4:30 p.m., program starts 5:30 p.m.
-9:00 p.m.
Saturdays: Registration opens at 10:00 a.m., program starts at 11:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m., lunch with break included
Saturdays: Registration opens at 10:00 a.m., program starts at 11:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m., lunch with break included
Locations
and dates
- Saturday, December 7 — AW Beattie
Career Center, 9600 Babcock Blvd., Allison Park, PA 15101
- Saturday, December 7 — Radnor
Township School District, 135 S. Wayne Ave., Wayne, PA 19087
- Tuesday, December 10 — Grove City
Area School District, 511 Highland Avenue, Grove City, PA 16127
- Tuesday, December 10 — Penn Manor
School District, 2950 Charlestown Road, Lancaster, PA 17603
- Tuesday, December 10 — CTC of
Lackawanna County, 3201 Rockwell Ave, Scranton, PA 18508
- Wednesday, December 11 — Upper St. Clair
Township SD, 1820 McLaughlin Run Road, Upper St. Clair, PA 15241
- Wednesday, December 11 — Montoursville
Area High School, 700 Mulberry St, Montoursville, PA 17754
- Wednesday, December 11 — Berks County
IU 14, 1111 Commons Blvd, Reading, PA 19605
- Thursday, December 12 — Richland
School District, 1 Academic Avenue, Suite 200, Johnstown, PA 15904
- Thursday, December 12 — Seneca Highlands
IU 9, 119 S Mechanic St, Smethport, PA 16749
- Thursday, December 12 — School
District of Haverford Twp, 50 East Eagle Road, Havertown, PA 19083
- Saturday, December 14 — State College
Area High School, 650 Westerly Pkwy, State College, PA 16801
- Saturday, January 11, 2020 — PSBA
Headquarters, 400 Bent Creek Blvd, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Film Screening: PERSONAL STATEMENT with director Julie
Dressner Penn C89 Sat, November 9, 2019, 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM EST
Location: Zellerbach
Theatre, Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, 3680 Walnut Street, Philadelphia,
PA 19104
Please join us for
a free screening and panel discussion of PERSONAL STATEMENT. This award-winning
documentary film created by a Penn alumna features three inspirational high
school seniors who are working as college counselors in their schools and are
determined to get their entire classes to college, even though they are not sure
they are going to make it there themselves. Screening will be followed by a
panel discussion with director Julie Dressner (C’89), cast member Enoch
Jemmott, Netter Center founding director Dr. Ira Harkavy (C'70 GR'79), and
others. Free and open to the public! (Registration strongly encouraged but not
required.)
Webinar: Introduction
to PSBA’s Equity Toolkit
NOV 12, 2019 • 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
The equity toolkit
supports school entities as they incorporate equity into district practice.
This webinar will offer a walk-through of the components of the toolkit, from
the equity lens approach to the equity action plan. Participants are encouraged
to ask questions and share experiences throughout the webinar.
Facilitator: Heather Bennett J.D., Ph.D., director of equity services
Pennsylvania School Boards Association
Pennsylvania School Boards Association
Registration URL: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1261156731797681154
*Note: registration closes one hour prior to the event.
*Note: registration closes one hour prior to the event.
UPDATE: Second Workshop Added Thursday, November
14, 2019 9:30 am to 3:00 pm: Adolescent Health and School Start Times:
Science, Strategies, Tactics, & Logistics Workshop in Exton, PA
The first workshop on November 13 sold out in
less than 4 weeks. Thanks to recent additional sponsorships, there will
be a second workshop held on Thursday, November 14. Register HERE.
Join school administrators and staff,
including superintendents, transportation directors, principals, athletic
directors, teachers, counselors, nurses, and school board members, parents,
guardians, health professionals and other concerned community members for a
second interactive and solutions-oriented workshop on Thursday, November 14, 2019 9:30 am to 3:00 pm Clarion
Hotel in Exton, PA. The science is clear. Many middle and high schools in
Pennsylvania, and across the nation, start too early in the morning. The
American Medical Association, Centers for Disease Control, American Academy of
Pediatrics, and many other major health and education leaders agree and have
issued policy statements recommending that secondary schools start no earlier
than 8:30 am to allow for sleep, health, and learning.
Implementing these recommendations, however, can seem daunting.
Discussions will include the science of sleep and its connection to
school start times, as well as proven strategies for successfully making
change--how to generate optimum community support and work through
implementation challenges such as bus routes, athletics, and more.
For more information visit the workshop
website www.startschoollater.net/workshop---pa or
email contact@startschoollater.net
Congress, Courts, and
a National Election: 50 Million Children’s Futures Are at Stake. Be their
champion at the 2020 Advocacy Institute.
NSBA Advocacy Institute
Feb. 2-4, 2020 Marriot Marquis, Washington, D.C.
Join school leaders
from across the country on Capitol Hill, Feb. 2-4, 2020 to influence the
legislative agenda & shape decisions that impact public schools. Check out
the schedule & more at https://nsba.org/Events/Advocacy-Institute
Register now for
Network for Public Education Action National Conference in Philadelphia March
28-29, 2020
Registration, hotel
information, keynote speakers and panels:
Know Your Facts on Funding and Charter Performance. Then
Call for Charter Change!
PSBA PA Charter
Change Website September 2019
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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