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
If any of your colleagues would like to be added to the
email list please have them send their name, title and affiliation to KeystoneStateEdCoalition@gmail.com
PA Ed Policy Roundup for Dec. 9, 2019
Charters, Vouchers,
Tax Credits, DeVos: Mike Turzai is thinking about running for Pa. governor –
again
Charter Appeals Board: What’s holding up appointments on
this powerful state education board?
PA Capital Star By Elizabeth Hardison December 8, 2019
Whether they know it or not, Pittsburgh taxpayers have spent the past six
months in the middle of an ongoing standoff between the Democratic Wolf
administration and leaders in the state Senate. The issue at hand? The membership of a state oversight board that many
Pennsylvanians have probably never heard of. Wolf and the Senate leaders have
spent months trying to agree on appointees to Pennsylvania’s Charter School
Appeals Board, which can reverse local school boards’ decisions to block new
charter schools or to close existing ones. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh’s city’s
public school district has spent tens of thousands of dollars sending attorneys
to appear before the board in Harrisburg, where they’ve fruitlessly tried to
resolve a dispute with a local charter school network. The Charter School
Appeals Board has tried on three separate occasions to settle
their case. Each time, they’ve failed.
Mike Turzai is
thinking about running for Pa. governor - again
Penn Live By
Chris Brennan | The Philadelphia Inquirer Posted Dec 07, 2019
NEW YORK — Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: Pennsylvania House
Speaker Mike Turzai has an interest in seeking higher office. “I’m
very positive on the idea of running for governor,” Turzai said Friday at the
state Republican Party’s annual lunch during the Pennsylvania Society gathering in
Manhattan. “We take one step at a time.” The weekend political retreat was
bustling with potential Democratic 2022 candidates for governor. State Attorney
General Josh Shapiro is expected to run. State Treasurer Joe
Torsella could be a contender in that primary, or may run for the U.S.
Senate. Turzai, who has represented part of Allegheny County since 2001,
said he thinks Lt. Gov. John Fetterman might also run. “But I
feel very positive about an opportunity for the Republican Party to win the
governorship in 2022,” said Turzai, who was a candidate for governor for just under three months in 2017 and
2018. He dropped out of that race when the Republican Party endorsed former
State Sen. Scott Wagner for governor. Gov. Tom Wolf,
who defeated Wagner in 2018, is term-limited, so the governor’s seat will be up
for grabs by both parties in 2022.
“The key is that while all CUSD students
with special needs come with a hefty $40K for a charter school, they are not
all created equal. Students on the autism spectrum are expensive to teach; they
make up 8.4% of CUSD special ed student population, but only 2.1% at Chester
Community Charter School, and a whopping 0% at Widener and Chester Community
School of the Arts. Emotionally disturbed students are also costly; they make
up 13.6 % of special ed at CUSD, 5.3% at Chester Community, and zero at the
other two. Intellectual disabilities make up 11.6% for CUSD, 2.8% for CCCS, and
zero for the others.
Speech and language impaired, however,
are pretty inexpensive to educate. CUSD carries 2.4% of the special ed
population in this category, but the three charters carry 27.4%, 20.3% and
29.8%.”
Peter Greene: Who
Ripped Off the Public Schools in the Chester-Upland District in Pennsylvania?
Diane Ravitch’s
Blog By dianeravitch December 8, 2019 //
Is Chester-Upland
School District the frog in the boiling pot of water that is a warning to every
other school district in the state of Pennsylvania? The Chester Community
Charter School is a subject of endless fascination. It has absorbed 70% of the
elementary school students in the impoverished district of Chester-Upland in
Pennsylvania. Its scores are low, lower even than the district schools. It is
owned by an extremely wealthy suburban lawyer, who is a major campaign
contributor to Republicans in the state. He receives a healthy profit every
year from the charter school in Chester-Upland, despite the fact that the
school is low-performing. Meanwhile, the school district has been in
receivership since 2012, while the charter school is thriving. The district has
been bankrupted by payments to the charter school and to cyber charters. That
is the way the state law was written by charter-friendly Republicans in the
Legislature.
Everyone’s already talking about Pennsylvania’s big 2022
elections. Just don’t ask the candidates.
Inquirer by Chris Brennan, Updated: 35 minutes ago
NEW YORK — As
Pennsylvania’s political community descended on midtown Manhattan this past
weekend for an annual gathering of cocktail parties and fund-raisers, there was
no shortage of speculation about the next big elections on the horizon after
2020: races for governor and U.S. Senate in 2022. The weekend in New York known
as Pennsylvania
Society is in
some sense when future campaigns are born. A wide cross-section of political
operatives, potential candidates, and their supporters sound each other out and
size each other up. Some of the only people not talking about it? The
candidates most likely to actually run.
Pennsylvania property
tax cut proposals unveiled: See how these 5 plans stack up
By FORD TURNER THE MORNING CALL | DEC 06, 2019 | 10:40 AM
A months-long study
of how to reform Pennsylvania’s school property tax system culminated Friday
morning when a working group of lawmakers released five different plans for
reducing the much-despised tax across the state by raising other taxes. The
various plans were cobbled together by the informal group, which represented
both parties and both chambers of the General Assembly and included
representatives of the Wolf administration. It was headed by Sen. David Argall,
a Schuylkill County Republican who has been seeking property tax elimination or
reduction for years. The plans cut Pennsylvania property taxes by up to $8.5
billion statewide using a variety of approaches, mostly involving increases of
personal income tax or sales taxes. One plan ― the fifth of the five options ―
would eliminate school property taxes completely. However, that tax elimination
would apply mainly to owner-occupied homes, and would not include business
properties and second homes. The first meetings of the work group, which
included about 15 lawmakers, happened in midsummer. They continued through last
month. “I am glad we are complete,” Argall said in an interview. “It took
longer than I would have preferred, but the members wanted to do a very
thorough review, and that’s what we did.” The five options were delivered to
House and Senate leaders of both parties on Thursday morning, Argall said.
School pension costs to rise about $100 million next year
but that’s good news
Penn Live By Jan
Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Updated Dec 06, 6:29 PM;Posted Dec 06, 6:18
PM
Pennsylvania’s
school districts can expect to pony up more money to cover for their pension
costs next year but perhaps they can find some relief in knowing it won’t be as
much as was previously projected. The Pennsylvania Public School Employees’
Retirement System on Friday set the annual employer contribution rate that
school districts and the state will pay for the 2020-21 fiscal year, beginning
July 1, at 34.51% of schools’ payroll. That is up from this year’s $34.29%
rate. That increase will push the total bill that the state and districts share
to $4.86 billion – roughly $100 million more than taxpayers paid this year. But
here’s the good news, pension system officials say. It could have been worse. “We
know the employer contribution rate remains high, however, the smaller than
expected increase should be seen as positive news to employers and
policymakers,” said PSERS executive director Glen Grell. “It shows PSERS
funding level continues to improve thanks to the ongoing budgetary support of
Gov. Wolf and our legislators, and the prudent investment decisions made by
PSERS investment professionals and board of trustees.”
Can a diverse neighborhood now integrate its schools? In
Mount Airy, it’s happening.
WHYY By Huntly
Collins, The Philadelphia Notebook December 6, 2019
This article
originally appeared on The Philadelphia
Notebook.
For decades,
Philadelphia’s liberal Mount Airy neighborhood has faced an uncomfortable
truth: while the area is racially and economically integrated and proud of it,
Mt. Airy’s public elementary schools are predominantly black, with large
numbers of low-income students. But that is now changing at the two K-8 schools
in West Mt. Airy. At Henry W. Houston Elementary, where about 80% of the
students are black and most are low-income, 22 percent of the school’s 55
kindergarten students this fall are white, up from just 6% last year. At the
same time, the school is beginning to attract more black middle-class families
who once opted for charters, other public schools or pricey private-school
alternatives. “On the first day, everyone was welcoming,” recalled Kate Bryant,
an educator and white parent who enrolled her daughter Alice, 5, in Houston’s
kindergarten this fall. She and her husband Peter are products of public
education and have fond memories of walking to their neighborhood public school
in upstate New York. While having racially integrated neighborhood schools may
not be on the top of the agenda of School District officials now beginning work
on a comprehensive plan to reorganize the entire public school system, it is on
the mind of a growing number of young families in Mt. Airy, including the
Bryants.
Philly students join in national Climate Strike
Unlike the
last strike, the District excused protesters' absences if they submitted notes
from their parents.
Joseph Staruski December
7 — 2:21 pm, 2019
On Friday morning,
hundreds of Philadelphia students walked out of their schools to participate in
a Climate Strike organized by Sunrise Philly, a nonprofit student advocacy
organization. The Sunrise Movement held dozens of Climate Strikes on Friday across the nation. This
was the second round of strikes this school year, and leaders told the crowd
gathered at Thomas Paine Plaza that there will be more. Louisa Hanson,
17, a Central High School senior and spokesperson for Sunrise Philly,
said the group had a few central goals including ending the fossil fuel
infrastructure in the city and curbing emissions. Sunrise Philly aims to
prevent the re-opening of an oil refinery in South Philadelphia. Before
Philadelphia Energy Solutions closed the site after explosions and a
catastrophic fire, the refinery was the largest producer of
emissions in the city, with more
than four times the amount of pollution of the next highest facility. Hanson
said the group also opposes the 10-year tax-abatement for real estate
development in the city. This week, City Council voted unanimously to cut the value of the tax breaks essentially in half for real
estate developers. The bill was amended to slow down the phase-out of the
abatement after Mayor Kenney said he would not sign it. “The loss of those
taxes is leaving us in toxic schools,” she said.
McClinton announces $500K grant award for local school
district
Rep. Joanna E.
McClinton December 5, 2019
PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 5 – State Rep. Joanna McClinton, D-Phila., chairwoman of the House
Democratic Caucus, announced that a $500,000 grant has been awarded to the
William Penn School District. “For the second year in a row, I’m grateful and
humbled to have played a part in securing this important Ready to Learn grant
funding for the William Penn School District,” McClinton said. “We know that
children in lower Delaware County are underserved due to unfair education
funding. This grant is a step in the right direction toward fixing that
imbalance.” The funds were awarded as part of the Ready to Learn Block Grant
program through the Department of Education. The grant is intended to help
schools establish, maintain, or expand academic programs in alignment with
commonwealth education standards. “Every dollar of extra funding for William
Penn School District will make a world of difference,” McClinton said. “The
Ready to Learn grants can be used to fund such pivotal areas as pre-K, STEM
learning, teacher training, and full-day kindergarten.” While she praised Gov.
Tom Wolf for his continued commitment to funding basic education in
Pennsylvania, McClinton said there’s still more work to be done. “To be
clear, I am very excited that William Penn School District will have this
additional funding at their disposal to benefit teachers, students and parents.
But I also remain committed to ensuring that we not only continue to increase
basic education funding in Pennsylvania, but that we ensure it is distributed
in a fair and equal way,” McClinton said.
Have questions about
Ephrata's school start times study? Here's your chance to ask.
Lancaster Online by
ALEX GELI | Staff
Writer Dec 8, 2019
Ephrata Area School
District will shed more light Monday on its study
of secondary school start times. The school is hosting a community meeting with medical experts and
district officials who will share sleep research and answer questions from the
community, district spokeswoman Sarah McBee said. Questions may be submitted
prior to the event at bit.ly/EphrataSleep. The district also held three student sessions this week and plans to
hold meetings with staff next week. Since early spring, Ephrata has studied
start times and whether the district’s current middle and high school start
times — 7:20 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., respectively — matched students’ physical and
mental health needs. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the National Sleep
Foundation and others say teenagers generally suffer from a lack of sleep due
to puberty and delayed sleep onset and wake times. A state-commissioned
report released
in October suggested later secondary school start times would benefit students.
Bringing learning to
life: Garnet Valley Middle School teacher's horticulture, aquaculture class
proves wildly popular
Delco Times By
Susan Serbin Times Correspondent December 9, 2019
“It ticks all
the boxes.” The common expression heard these days means the matter at hand
successfully satisfies all the necessary elements. Simply put, Michael
Krautzel’s Healthy Living through Horticulture and Aquaculture course at Garnet
Valley Middle School ticks all the boxes. It aligns with students’ career
exploration; adds to the health curriculum and complements STEM options; has
district support; receives community support; and – most of all – is
wildly popular with some of the most enthusiastic students imaginable. “Mike’s
course has the ‘four C’s’ we stress: collaboration, critical thinking,
creativity and community,” said GVMS Principal Lisa Stenz. “They are 21st
century skills needed. The career piece in a middle school course brings
learning to life for either college or career.” Although this is a new health
elective in the 2019-20 school year, Stenz had no problem working it into the
overall curriculum. A major change in the middle school scheduling structure
enabled the addition of this class. She expressed the same enthusiasm as
students and Krautzel himself. “You understand what is going on when you see
the kids respond and hear how they describe learning.”
Curmuducation Blog by Peter Greene Sunday,
December 8, 2019
Next Saturday,
December 24, some assortment of Democratic
Presidential hopefuls will offer their two cents about education. The crowd will be an invitation-only group of about a thousand public
education stakeholders, including yours truly. The Network for Public Education
kindly gave me the chance to attend this event, and I am looking forward to it.
If you are not among the thousand invitees, you can still catch the evens as
they unfold on several
streaming options. NBC News
Now, MSNBC.com and NBC News Learn are all supposed to be carrying it, with
MSNBC doing some coverage of it throughout their programming. You can also head
to this page for a look. If nothing
else, I'm sure many of us will be tweeting along madly throughout the day (find
me at @palan57). Right now most of the big names are expected (though not, as of the
moment, Booker or Bloomberg). Vice President Joe Biden, Mayor Pete Buttigieg,
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer and Sen. Elizabeth Warren
(Harris had expected to attend but then, well...). Do I think amazing,
momentous things are going to happen? I do not--any candidate who cant get his
message locked and loaded for this particular crowd has to be exceptionally
dense. The format doesn't allow for many surprises-- candidates talk,
moderators ask stuff, crowd (or at least carefully selected members thereof)
get to ask questions, rinse and repeat.
Idea for presidential candidates' forum in Pittsburgh
started in nation's capital
PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE DEC 8, 2019 12:06 AM
The conversation
that spawned the idea to hold a forum on education for Democratic presidential
candidates in Pittsburgh took place months ago at the American Federation of
Teachers building in Washington, D.C. But grassroots organizations,
teachers unions and public school advocacy groups in Pennsylvania and around
the country. have for years been laying the groundwork that they hope will make
education a key issue in the 2020 presidential race and beyond. “You see the
difference about the importance of public education right now,” said Randi
Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers. “As the
world gets more complicated and complex, and there’s such division outside of
schools, public schools become even more important.” The Public Education
Forum 2020 being held Saturday at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in
Downtown, will provide an opportunity for many of the leading candidates to air
their stance on some of the major issues facing public education today.
Pete Buttigieg releases $1 trillion-plus plan for
early-childhood and K-12 education
Washington Post Answer
Sheet By Valerie Strauss Dec. 7, 2019 at 6:01 a.m. EST
Democratic
presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg is unveiling a broad new education plan
on Saturday that pledges to spend $700 billion over a decade to create a
high-quality child care and preschool system that he said would reach all
children from birth to age 5 and create 1 million jobs. The 37-year-old mayor
of South Bend, Ind., also promised to spend $425 billion to strengthen
America’s K-12 public schools, targeting federal investments and policy to help
historically marginalized students. He would boost funding for schools in
high-poverty areas as well as for students with disabilities, and promote
voluntary school integration. And he said he would ensure that all charter
schools — which are publicly funded but privately operated — undergo the same
accountability measures as schools in publicly funded districts. With Buttigieg
rising in some polls in the early state races for the Democratic Party’s
presidential nomination, new scrutiny is being given to his proposals and his
efforts to win over African American voters, who constitute a key part of the
party’s base but who have not largely warmed to his campaign.
Charter Schools;
Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
PENNSYLVANIA
BULLETIN PROPOSED RULEMAKING DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION [ 22 PA. CODE CH. 711 ]
PSBA
New and Advanced School Director Training, Haverford
Thursday December
12, 2019 • 4:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Haverford
Middle School, 1701 Darby Road, Havertown, PA 19083
The award winning documentary Backpack Full of
Cash that explores the siphoning of funds from traditional public
schools by charters and vouchers will be shown in three locations in the
Philadelphia suburbs in the upcoming weeks.
The film is
narrated by Matt Damon, and some of the footage was shot in Philadelphia.
Members of the
public who are interested in becoming better informed about some of the
challenges to public education posed by privatization are invited to attend.
At all locations, the film will start promptly
at 7 pm, so it is suggested that members of the
audience arrive 10-15 minutes prior to the start of the
screening.
………………………………………….
Backpack Full of
Cash hosted by State
Senator Maria Collett, and State Representatives Liz Hanbidge and Steve Malagari
Monday,
December 2, 2019
Wissahickon
Valley Public Library, Blue Bell 650 Skippack Pike Blue Bell, PA 19422
………………………………………….
Backpack Full of
Cash hosted by
Montgomery County Democracy for America (Montco DFA)
Thursday,
December 5, 2019
Jenkintown Library
(Park and enter at rear.)
460 York Road
(across from IHOP) Jenkintown, PA 19046
………………………………………….
Backpack Full of
Cash hosted by State
Representatives Mary Jo Daley, Tim Briggs, and Matt Bradford
Monday,
January 6, 2020
Ludington
Library 5 S. Bryn Mawr Avenue Bryn Mawr,
PA 19010
A Networking and
Supportive Event for K-12 Educators of Color (teachers, school counselors, and
administrators)! Thursday, December
12, 7:00-8:30 pm Villanova University, Dougherty Hall, West Lounge
You are cordially
invited to this gathering, with the goal of networking and lending support and
sustenance to our K-12 Educators of Color and their allies. This is your chance
to make requests, share resources, and build up our community. Please feel free
to bring a school counselor, teacher, or administrator friend! Light
refreshments provided.
Where: Villanova
University, Dougherty Hall, West Lounge (first floor, back of building)
Directions, campus
and parking map found here
Parking: Free
parking in lot L2. Turn on St. Thomas Way, off of Lancaster Avenue. You will
need to print a parking pass that will be emailed shortly before the event to
all who register.
Questions? Contact
an event organizer: Dr. Krista Malott (krista.malott@villanova.edu), Dr.
Jerusha Conner (Jerusha.conner@villanova.edu), Department of Education &
Counseling, and Dr. Anthony Stevenson, Administrator, Radnor School District
(Anthony.Stevenson@rtsd.org)
PSBA Alumni Forum: Leaving school board service?
Continue your connection and commitment to public education by joining PSBA Alumni Forum. Benefits of the complimentary membership includes:
Continue your connection and commitment to public education by joining PSBA Alumni Forum. Benefits of the complimentary membership includes:
- electronic access to PSBA Bulletin
- legislative information via email
- Daily EDition e-newsletter
- Special access to one dedicated annual briefing
Register
today online. Contact Crista Degregorio at Crista.Degregorio@psba.org with questions.
Save the Date: PSBA/PASA/PAIU Advocacy Day at the Capitol-- March 23, 2020
PSBA Advocacy Day
2020 MAR 23, 2020 • 8:00 AM - 2:30 PM
STRENGTHEN OUR
VOICE.
Join us in
Harrisburg to support public education!
All school leaders
are invited to attend Advocacy Day at the state Capitol in
Harrisburg. The Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA), Pennsylvania
Association of Intermediate Units (PAIU) and the Pennsylvania Association of
School Administrators (PASA) are partnering together to strengthen our advocacy
impact. The day will center around meetings with legislators to discuss
critical issues affecting public education.
Registration: As a
membership benefit, there is no cost to register. Your legislator
appointments will be coordinated with the completion of your registration. The
day will begin with a continental breakfast and issue briefing prior to the legislator
visits. Registrants will receive talking points, materials and leave-behinds to
use with their meetings. Staff will be stationed at a table in the Main Rotunda
during the day to answer questions and provide assistance.
Sign up today
at myPSBA.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
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:
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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