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 Jan. 10, 2020
School Leaders:
Register today for @PSBA @PASA @PAIU Advocacy Day at the Capitol on March 23rd and you could be the
lucky winner of my school board salary for the entire year. Register now at http://mypsba.org
For more information: https://www.psba.org/event/advocacy-day-2020/
Preventing the next mass shooting: Secret Service is
training hundreds of teachers, cops at Bucks high school
Inquirer by Maddie Hanna, Updated: January 9, 2020- 5:38 PM
More than 200
representatives from schools and police departments across Pennsylvania met
with the U.S. Secret Service at a Bucks County school Thursday to learn how to
identify signs of a situation all hope they never confront — the next school
shooting or other violence. “This is about early prevention,” said Jeffrey
McGarry, a social science research specialist at the Secret Service National
Threat Assessment Center. “We want to identify troubled students early, before
they even develop an idea.” The training at Council Rock High School South,
closed to the public, was the first in the region since the center
released a
report in November analyzing
41 incidents of targeted school violence nationwide between 2008 and 2017. It
also comes as the state has had an increase in fighting and other violence in
schools, as well as students reporting feeling depressed or threatened. Students
“are carrying invisible backpacks to school every day,” including burdens of
depression and anxiety, David Volkman, executive deputy secretary of the
Pennsylvania Department of Education, told teachers, administrators, and law
enforcement attendees during opening remarks at Thursday’s training. He said
his department now considers social workers “a must-have in our schools” and is
working to increase their ranks across the state’s districts.
“On expanding school choice: Schroeder said he doesn’t support
expansion of the charter school movement. He also does not support putting more
money in the Educational Improvement Tax Credit program, which primarily
provides companies tax breaks for donations to scholarship organizations,
“without far greater accountability on how that money is spent.” Arnold favors
expanding school choice, saying he believes every student should have the
opportunity to get the education that works best for them.”
Tuesday’s special election to fill Pa. Senate seat (48th
District) vacated after lawmaker’s arrest: What you need to know
Penn Live By Jan
Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Today 5:01 AM
Voters in three
southcentral Pennsylvania counties have the opportunity to go to the polls on
Tuesday and cast a vote for the person they want representing them in the
Pennsylvania Senate. Two men’s names will appear on the ballot: Democrat
Michael Schroeder and Republican Dave Arnold. The winning candidate will
receive a $90,335-a-year post for a term that expires at the end of November
2022. The candidates come from clearly different backgrounds. Schroeder is a
61-year-old college history professor and community/environmental activist.
Arnold, 48, is the Lebanon County district attorney and has held that post
since 2006. The special election was called following the resignation of former
Republican Sen. Mike Folmer, who
stepped down last fall after facing a charge of child pornography possession.
Talk Out of School: Topics: Charter Schools; The federal
charter schools program; Cyber Charters
WBAI Wed, Jan 8, 2020 10:00 AM Audio Runtime: 1:00:10
The New York State
Legislature is considering lifting the charter school cap. Is that a good or a
bad idea? In this episode, Carol
Burris, the Executive Director of the Network for Public Education, talks
with writer Peter Greene and parent activist Susan Spicka of Pennsylvania on
the problems of letting charter schools growth without caps. Peter talks about where the Democratic candidates stand on school
privatization and Susan talks about the money drain on public schools that is
caused by charter schools. The serious problems caused by cyber charters
are explained. Listeners are encouraged to read NPE's new report on the federal
charter schools program, Asleep at the Wheel.
Principal of KHSA: Don’t start a charter. Invest in my
school instead.
"Our
school accepts all children, not just children whose parents are able to
complete applications or show up to charter lotteries."
The notebook Commentary by Nimet Eren January 9 — 3:37 pm, 2020
Recently, my
school, Kensington Health Sciences Academy (KHSA) has been at the center of
Philadelphia’s debate about charters vs. traditional schools. KHSA is a neighborhood
public high school serving 465 amazing children in the Kensington neighborhood.
We have four career pathways, three of which are health-related Career and
Technical Education (CTE) programs. During the summer of 2019, the Philadelphia
School Partnership (PSP), a nonprofit organization that invests in educational
projects across the city, met with me to discuss the goals we had for our
school. We talked extensively about what we have learned from the partnerships
we have created, especially in medical settings. Then, PSP asked to visit us on
Sept. 25 for the morning. It was a wonderful visit, and our teachers and
students were engaged in great learning, as they are every day. The day
finished with an in-depth conversation about the challenges of building
partnerships with settings such as hospitals and clinics. Then, before
Thanksgiving break, I received an email from PSP stating that they had “an
exciting opportunity for KHSA” and that they wanted to share it with me. I was,
of course, elated and scheduled a meeting with them on Dec. 2. The news they
wanted to share was that they were giving seed money to a potential charter
founder to form a health sciences charter high school in North Philly. I was
confused. How was this an exciting opportunity for KHSA? It actually felt like
creating unfair competition for my school for resources that are already
scarce, especially because charters can manipulate admissions and enrollment
policies to their benefit, and neighborhood schools cannot.
McClure will re-open in stages starting Wednesday;
parents concerned
Press barred
from meeting attended by about 50 parents.
The notebook by Bill Hangley Jr. January 10 — 12:09 am, 2020
District officials
have delayed the reopening of McClure Elementary in Hunting Park until later
next week, sparking frustration from parents and calls for change from
teachers’ union officials. Officials shared the information at a parents-only
meeting held Thursday evening at nearby Roberto Clemente Middle School. McClure
was initially closed on December 19, along with Carnell Elementary, following
the discovery of damaged and thus potentially dangerous asbestos in both
schools. Cleanup at McClure was initially expected to wrap up by January 2, but
instead the school will reopen in stages, with K-5 students returning on
Wednesday, January 15, and pre-K students returning the following week, parents
were told. Carnell is slated to reopen on January 13. About fifty parents and
staff gathered at McClure on Thursday to ask questions and hear officials
explain the timeline for repairs. They were told that asbestos has been
successfully abated in over a dozen places in McClure, including classrooms and
hallways. But officials also told parents that work in two locations –
McClure’s gym and a modular pre-k classroom – will continue after students
return, and won’t be complete until February. That didn’t sit well with many
McClure parents, such as Betzaida Burke, who said she won’t be sending her
children into any building that poses an active health risk.
In PFT-sponsored rally, elected officials call District’s
response to asbestos ‘negligent’ and demand changes
In a
scathing letter, they sought revised procedures for cleanup and inspection and
for union involvement in communications to staff and families.
The notebook by Dale Mezzacappa January 8 — 8:19 pm, 2020
The teachers’ union
and elected officials ratcheted up pressure on Philadelphia School District
officials Wednesday with a rally in front of Carnell Elementary, one of the
schools that has been closed due to fears of dangerous loose asbestos. Carnell
is due to open Monday. While repeating prior calls for more state money to help
the District with environmental cleanup and upkeep of its aging infrastructure,
most of the officials signed a scathing letter that called the District’s response to the discovery and repair of
potentially hazardous damage in schools “troubling,” “haphazard,” and
“negligent.” As he has before, State Sen. Vincent Hughes, a Democrat, said the
state should dip into its $300 million “rainy day fund” to help pay for needed
school repairs. Democratic State Rep. Joe Hohenstein said Gov. Wolf needs to
make school infrastructure improvement a major piece of his new budget. But the
letter, signed by two City Council members, two state senators, four state
representatives, and U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle, lit into Superintendent William
Hite and his team for “process-based deficiencies that are putting the safety
of our children and educators at risk.” Those who signed have affected schools
in their districts.
“Navish said bringing charter school
students back into the district would help immensely. She noted Penn Hills has
847 students enrolled in charter schools with a per-student tuition rate of
about $13,600 for regular education and about $32,000 for special education.”
Penn Hills School District’s 2020-21 preliminary budget
contains tax hike, no program cuts
Trib Live Michael
DiVittorio Thursday, January 9, 2020 | 10:51 PM
Penn Hills School
District officials would have to find a way to fill an estimated $3.2 million
budget shortfall even with a real estate take hike of nearly 7%. That’s one of
several revelations made during a 2020-21 preliminary budget presentation made
a special meeting Thursday. “This is only a starting point,” said district
Business Manager Eileen Navish. Navish offered three budget scenarios to the
board. No program cuts were part of any proposed plan. The first scenario
includes no tax hike and a $6.1 million deficit. The second includes a tax
increase of 1.0319 mills, or 3.6%, and a $4.6 million deficit. That would raise
taxes to the Act 1 index ceiling, a state formula that limits tax hikes. The
third — and recommended — scenario includes a 2.0319-mill hike. That includes
an additional mill to account for pension and special education expenses.
Start school later? Quakertown
explores letting teenagers sleep in
By JACQUELINE PALOCHKO THE MORNING CALL | JAN 09, 2020 | 3:39 PM
Candice Titus’ 12th
grade son wakes up at 6:15 a.m. daily to attend Quakertown Community High
School. After school ends at 2:10 p.m., he heads to an after-school job at
Walmart, where he works about 25 hours a week. Some nights he gets home at 10
p.m., goes right to bed, and starts all over again the next day. It’s a long
day, Titus said, and most days he’s wiped out. That’s why she supports changing
the start time for high school students from 7:10 a.m. to after 8 a.m. “It would make a
huge difference,” Titus said of the extra hour of sleep her son would get a
night. Even though her son
is graduating, Titus has two younger children in elementary school. She hopes
by the time they reach secondary school, the start times will be later. Her
wish might come true. The Quakertown Community School District has formed a
committee to explore start times. The Bucks County district is following the
national and state trend of districts considering later start times for
secondary students because studies show teenagers should get between eight and
nine hours of sleep a night. Quakertown is not looking to make changes for the
2020-21 school year, but this month will post on its website a survey seeking
feedback from parents, teachers and students on the issue. Meanwhile the
committee, made up of district officials and parents, will continue exploring
the topic, soliciting additional feedback and ultimately providing a
recommendation to the school board.
Ephrata schools would
start up to 45 minutes later under new proposal
Lancaster Online by
ALEX GELI | Staff
Writer January 9,
2020
Ephrata Area is one
step closer to becoming the first Lancaster County school district to
significantly delay
school start times. The school
board this week directed Ephrata administrators to move forward with a plan
that would delay school start times at every grade level — from five minutes
for elementary students to 45 minutes for middle school students — starting in
the 2020-21 school year. It chose that plan, which the board could vote on as
early as next month, over another that essentially would swap elementary and
intermediate school start times with secondary schools. Ephrata has studied the
issue since spring 2019 in response to mounting scientific research that says
teenagers don’t get enough sleep partly because of early school start times.
Those students thus have a higher risk of irritability, anxiety, impulsivity
and other mental and physical health problems. Research suggests secondary schools start at 8:30 a.m. or later. Under
Ephrata’s proposal, middle and high school students would start at 8:05 a.m.
and 8:10 a.m., respectively. “It really seems like an opportunity to
drastically improve some of the elements of our student experience, especially
for adolescents,” Superintendent Brian Troop said.
Troop said
administrators factored medical research and shifts schools across the state
and country have made into the proposed change in start times.
North Hills school board OKs policy on members’ social
media
Guidelines
can be revisited in the future
Post-Gazette by SANDY TROZZO JAN 9, 2020 1:25 PM
The North Hills
school board has adopted a policy that governs board members’ online behavior. The policy, which
was approved at the board’s Jan. 2 meeting, mirrors similar policies for
students, staff and administrators. “We have to start somewhere, and this is a
great start,” said board member Annette Giovengo Nolish. “We hold our staff and
students accountable for social media, but I think we should hold ourselves
accountable as well.” The short policy tells board members to avoid posting any
information that violates the state school code or district policies, and
recommends that any page or post that discusses district issues include a
disclaimer that the opinion is that of the board member only.
York City schools ask for public opinion with tough
decisions ahead
Lindsay C VanAsdalan, York
Dispatch Published 10:10 a.m. ET Jan. 8, 2020 | Updated 6:10 a.m. ET Jan.
10, 2020
Deficit spending is
unsustainable, according to York City School District budget
projections, but the district's financial position probably won't improve
much when lawmakers roll out the state's 2020 budget, officials said. York City
School District officials are eyeing budget-writing season and, with
state budget numbers coming in soon, the administration is expecting some tough
decisions later this year. “The money's just not there," said
Superintendent Andrea Berry of state funding, adding that though she does
not expect unlimited funding, it is not even equitable, which makes it
very difficult to run a district in financial recovery. The district's 2019-20
budget projected a deficit of about $6.38 million to be covered with
the district's fund balance. Most of the 23 recovery plan initiatives in
progress — instituted because the state marked the district for financial and
academic improvements in 2012 — would see no increase in spending. But
an additional $1.2 million would be needed to expand district academies,
leaving about $5.56 million in the district's fund balance at the end of 2020,
according to estimates. Berry said in working with a shortfall, it's important
to hear from as many stakeholders as possible to "frame our thinking"
to build a recovery-based budget that is conscious and fiscally responsible. That’s
why the administration said they decided to engage city residents
Monday, Jan. 6, in the first of six public meetings, to hear about the
district's perceived strengths, weaknesses and priorities.
As lunch debt grows in the district, Dover officials
respond to backlash
Lindsay C VanAsdalan, York
Dispatch Published 10:48 a.m. ET Jan. 9, 2020 | Updated 1:18 p.m. ET Jan.
9, 2020
Dover Area School
District officials said Tuesday that they had a fiduciary responsibility to
hire a collection agency pursue families of students with lunch debt. And, they
said, public pushback against the move is rooted in widespread
misconceptions of the issue. Dover Area was among several York County districts
that, this past year, hired a collection agency as the amount of cash owed for
school lunches grew. Local school officials have blamed the state Legislature's
"lunch shaming" legislation for the growth in the number of students
in arrears. Superintendent Tracy Krum wanted to address
the criticism alleging that the district was going after students
unnecessarily, especially those on free and reduced lunch. "The
comments that were made to raise this question to begin with a few months ago
is the perception that we as a district are heartless going after parents who
can't afford to pay for lunch," said board Treasurer Steve Cook at a
Tuesday, Jan. 8 meeting. As a district with 50% low income enrollment district,
people believe the district is targeting recipients of free and reduced
lunch, but district officials said that's not the case.
Does D.C.’s school choice system hurt neighborhood
schools?
Washington Post By Perry Stein Jan. 9, 2020 at 6:00 a.m. EST
When D.C. families
choose a school that is not their assigned neighborhood campus, they tend to
select schools that educate fewer students from low-income families, according
to an 86-page study released Thursday from the Office of the D.C. Auditor. The
result: Traditional neighborhood public schools, particularly in low-income
neighborhoods, struggle with declining enrollment over the long term and have
higher concentrations of students living in poverty. Smaller schools are more
expensive to operate, leaving campuses with less money to hire staff. The
plight of those schools is also complicated in the middle of the school year
when students transfer from other campuses and school systems, arriving after
per-pupil funding has been allocated. That causes schools to be even more
cash-strapped. The study — conducted in partnership with the Johns Hopkins
School of Education Center for Research and Reform in Education — marks the
auditor’s most comprehensive examination of enrollment and transfer patterns
among the District’s nearly 100,000 public school students. Kathy Patterson,
the D.C. auditor, said the findings illustrate the unintended consequences of
having a city with many school options for families.
PA SCHOOLS WORK:
Special Education Funding Webinar Tue, Jan 14, 2020 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM EST
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 in Dec & Jan
Additional sessions now being offered in
Bucks and Beaver Counties
Updated location for Mechanicsburg on
January 11th
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,
January 11, 2020 — Eagle View Middle
School, 6746 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050 Room:
Performing Arts Center
- Saturday, January 25,
2020 — Bucks County IU 22, 705 N Shady Retreat Rd, Doylestown, PA 18901
- Monday, February 3,
2020 — Beaver Valley IU 27, 147
Poplar Avenue, Monaca, PA 15061
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
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. Click here for more information or register
at http://www.mypsba.org/
School
directors 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
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.