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PA Ed Policy Roundup for May 12, 2020
Pa. schools could face devastating budget cuts due to
COVID | Opinion
Donna Cooper, For The Inquirer Updated: May
12, 2020 - 5:00 AM
Donna Cooper is executive director of Public
Citizens for Children and Youth.
At the end of the Great Recession
Pennsylvania’s public schools suffered a crushing $1 billion cut that
set back the quality of education in the state’s poorest school districts for
nearly a decade. Now, the risk of reopening schools with severe teacher
shortages, no counselors or nurses, swollen class sizes and none of the
critical enrichment options are once again very real. Schools across the state
are bracing for cuts easily twice as large as those in 2011. This time around
lawmakers must do better. The damage visited upon Pennsylvania school districts
by that massive state cut has become difficult to ignore during the pandemic.
Wealthier school districts – not dependent on state funds so not affected by
the state cut – rapidly shifted to distance learning, coupled with virtual
instruction. Meanwhile, in poorer communities the cost of giving students
computers and wireless access is out of reach. Now, Pennsylvania lawmakers are
readying for the battle over a solution to the COVID-induced state
deficit, expected to be well over $3 billion. Add to
that, school districts are projecting a $1 billion drop in
resources due to waning local tax collections, according to the Pennsylvania
School Business Officers. They estimate that across the 61 school districts in
the Philadelphia region, local revenues for schools could drop by nearly $400 million. Schools
that educate the largest share of low-income students in the state were
inadequately funded well before the pandemic. The cost to keep students and
staff safe will require additional funding, putting an even heavier burden on
districts that can ill-afford to carry them.
POSTED ON MAY 11, 2020 IN PSBA
NEWS
Eight PA education associations, including
PSBA, have formed a new task force aimed at getting Pennsylvania’s students
back into their schools and classrooms as safely as possible. The other key
education associations represented on the task force include the Pennsylvania
State Education Association (PSEA), the Pennsylvania Association of School
Administrators (PASA), the Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials
(PASBO), the Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units (PAIU), PA
Principals Association, the Pennsylvania Association of Career and Technical
Administrators (PACTA), and the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small
Schools (PARSS). The task force will review all issues related to the safe
return of Pennsylvania’s students and draft plans for school districts’ use.
The joint effort will include working groups categorized by key operational
areas that include facility/logistics, staffing, instruction, transportation,
special education, extracurricular activities, health and safety,
communication, resources and community. Issues for consideration will include
the potential staggering of school schedules to reduce the size of classrooms
and open space gatherings, enhanced cleaning procedures and equipment for
buildings and buses, implementation of additional policies related to PPE and
masks, air quality measurements and enhanced filtration, meal preparation and
serving procedures, after-school activity precautions to mitigate the potential
spread of germs, redesigning of facilities to enhance social distancing, and
procedures for student assemblies.
“Anyone who assumes that schools have been idle during the
pandemic either is not paying attention or does not have the opportunity to see
behind the scenes. I will assume the latter is true of Turzai. Consequently, it
is good that Turzai posed some questions, and I am happy to provide answers to
them from my perspective at York Suburban:”
Pa. teachers are still teaching, and our students are
still learning | Opinion
By Timothy P. Williams Capital-Star Op-Ed Contributor May 12,
2020
Timothy P. Williams is the superintendent of
the York Suburban School District in York County, Pa.
Our educators are freeloading, if you believe
the sentiments of public school detractors, even of some legislators. In a recent letter to
state Education Secretary Pedro Rivera, state House Speaker Mike Turzai,
R-Allegheny, questioned what teachers are doing during the pandemic and
reminded Rivera that “Teachers, administrators and staff are all being paid.
All medical benefits are covered.” Turzai is right, of course, about one thing;
educators continue to be paid as is required by Act 13 of 2020, which passed in
both chambers without a single dissenting vote. What he may not know is that
teachers continue to work. We all expect to be paid for the fruits of our
labors, and when that option is removed from us we all would expect to receive
unemployment compensation. So let us dispense with the divisiveness that some
would like to foster between those who are working and those who have the
misfortune of not working. Instead, let us focus on the issue before us —
public education.
School District Mandates: Their Impact on Public
Education
PSBA Special Report UPDATED MAY 2020
In December 2019, the Pennsylvania School Boards
Association (PSBA) convened a task force of its members to discuss and
formulate recommendations regarding the multitude of mandates placed on public schools
and how those mandates impact school operations and instruction. After a series
of meetings and discussions, the task force developed a series of
recommendations which would provide school districts with relief from mandates
and promote greater awareness among the General Assembly and other policymakers
of the impact mandates have on public
schools. The following task force
recommendations were approved by the PSBA Governing Board on April 20, 2020:
Will your property taxes increase? Pa. schools face
potential $1 billion in lost revenue because of coronavirus
Pennsylvania's school districts are preparing
their budgets as they face a significant loss in revenue -- up to $1 billion by
some estimates -- due to the coronavirus.
Penn Live By Steve
Marroni | smarroni@pennlive.com and Jan
Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Updated
6:30 AM; Today 5:15 AM
It’s budget time for Pennsylvania’s school
districts, and while the difference between revenue and expenses is always
tight when it comes to education, this year is particularly worrisome. The
state’s schools are looking at a loss in local revenue of roughly $1 billion in
the next school year because of the coronavirus. That’s
what the Pennsylvania Association of School Board
Officials is estimating. If the economy recovers quickly after
the coronavirus restrictions are lifted, schools still face an estimated revenue
loss of more than $850 million for the 2020-2021 school year, according to the
PASBO study. But if an economic recovery lags, the picture is bleaker to the
tune of a $1.04 billion loss out of the $18 billion school districts collect
annually. “Every school district tax source and other non-tax revenue will
suffer a precipitous decline for the upcoming school year,” to Timothy J.
Shrom, PASBO director of research, said in the PASBO report. That study breaks
down the projected local revenue loss for each Pennsylvania school
district here. With most
school districts in the Capital Region facing potential multi-million-dollar
losses, many are scrambling to balance their budgets.
Pa.’s top education official says he expects students to
return to in-person learning in the fall
Inquirer by Maddie Hanna, Updated: May 11, 2020-
3:10 PM
Pennsylvania leaders are preparing for
schools to reopen this fall, the state’s education secretary said Monday. “We
fully expect to come back to school in the fall,” Pedro Rivera said during a
virtual Senate Education Committee hearing. He said the Education Department
would provide more information in the coming weeks on how it will prepare
teachers and staff to return to school buildings that have been closed since
March due to the coronavirus outbreak.
While Rivera said previously it was possible students would not return to
in-person learning, he downplayed those comments Monday. The department’s
intention is to reopen schools while keeping students and staff safe, he said. “At
worst, school’s going to look different,” he said. Rivera’s comments came as
some senators voiced concerns about the department’s plans for reopening. Sen.
Wayne Langerholc Jr. of Bedford County, the Republican chair of the education
committee, said the secretary’s previous comments about the prospect of
students not returning to school in the fall had spurred “panic” and
“confusion” among residents.
Pa. schools expected to reopen in fall in some form,
state education secretary says
ANDREW GOLDSTEIN Pittsburgh Post-Gazette agoldstein@post-gazette.com MAY 11,
2020
State Education Secretary Pedro A. Rivera
said Monday that he expects schools to reopen in the fall, but the process will
be informed by guidance from health officials. “It is fully our intent that
we’re going to be in a place where we are going to open schools for students
when they return for their next academic year,” Mr. Rivera said during a state
Senate Education Committee hearing. “Now, preparing to do so, we understand
that we’re absolutely going to have to focus on what the research says, and
we’re going to have to use the data that’s available to drive our decisions
moving forward.” Mr. Rivera said the Department of Education is working to
devise a “framework” of multiple strategies that will allow schools to
ensure the health and safety needs of their students, staff and communities
upon reopening. The strategies will likely vary across the commonwealth
because all schools have unique needs and communities may be in different stages
of reopening. Schools in counties that remain in the red or yellow phase of the
state’s reopening plan, for example, may have to adhere to social distancing
recommendations. Mr. Rivera said the education department will provide schools
with options to make it work. “If we still have aggressive social
distancing guidelines, we’re going to then tell school districts we still have
aggressive social distancing guidelines in place, however here are strategies
that you can employ to mitigate that close contact in classrooms and in
schools,” Mr. Rivera said. “Then they’ll be able to choose from those
strategies.” State Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery/Delaware, asked Mr. Rivera
if he was concerned that some schools would resist complying with
recommendations from the state, like some businesses and counties have recently
done. Mr. Rivera said he was not worried about that because superintendents and
other school leaders frequently make choices based on public health and safety,
such as closing for snow days.
'It is fully our intent' to reopen schools in the fall,
Pa. education secretary says
Lancaster Online by ALEX GELI | Staff Writer May 12,
2020
Pennsylvania's top education official told
lawmakers on Monday that it is "fully our intent" to reopen schools
in the fall. State Education Secretary Pedro Rivera made the statement
during a Senate Education Committee hearing in
which senators, many of them logged on remotely, questioned Rivera about
continuity of education and plans to bring students back next school
year. Schools have been closed due to
the coronavirus pandemic since mid-March, and students across the state have
been learning remotely ever since. Rivera's remarks clarified comments he
shared with reporters in late April that caused a slew of news articles casting
doubt about whether schools may reopen for the 2020-21 school year. "That
headline sold a lot of papers that day," Rivera said, adding that the news
coverage misrepresented the message he tried to share. While the expectation is
for students to return in the fall, Rivera said, schools may need additional
support as they transition, and the state is working to issue research-based
guidance to help educators and students ease back into in-person
schooling. The guidance, which will follow recommendations from state
Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine, will include options for schools to
follow, such as smaller class sizes if strict social distancing guidelines are
still in effect, Rivera said. It'll also include support for schools
implementing remediation for students who have fallen behind during the school
closures, Rivera said. The ultimate goal, he said, is to keep students,
staff and faculty safe.
Pennsylvania students expected to return to school in
fall, ed chief says
Delco Times by AP May 12, 2020
HARRISBURG (AP) — Gov. Tom Wolf's education
secretary told lawmakers on Monday that he expects students to go back to
school in the fall, and the Department of Education will provide guidance in
the coming weeks to prepare teachers and staff to return to school buildings. Schools
have been closed since March under Wolf's orders to try to stop the spread of
the coronavirus, keeping more than 1.7 million public school children home and
exposing big differences in the ability of wealthier and poorer districts to
educate children online. Education Secretary Pedro Rivera, testifying in a
Senate committee hearing, acknowledged that schools will need additional aid to
respond to various challenges posed by school closures and the need to contain
the virus. He downplayed the notion that students might not return to school
buildings in the fall. The department intends to reopen schools, but keeping
students and staff safe might mean changes that involve following state Health
Department recommendations, he said. Rivera said he did not expect to require a
particular approach for each school to reopen. Rather, the department will
allow school districts to choose from various options to meet social distancing
guidelines, Rivera said.
Could next school year be hybrid? It’s an option,
Bethlehem’s superintendent says.
By Sara K. Satullo | For lehighvalleylive.com Updated May
11, 2020; Posted May 11, 2020
The Bethlehem Area School
District is already thinking about what
public school will look like if Pennsylvania schools reopen in the fall. The
state’s 500 traditional K-12 school districts pivoted to online learning after
Gov. Tom Wolf shutdown the state’s
schools March 23 amid a growing coronavirus
pandemic. Now as this school year winds down, Bethlehem school officials are
planning for what the 2020-21 school year may look like. The governor’s plan for reopening of the
state only allows schools to resume
in-person instruction when they have entered the green phase when the least
amount of restrictions on daily life are imposed. That also applies to summer
school or extended school year activities as well. The Lehigh Valley remains under
the red phase with no date to move to the yellow phase yet. Bethlehem schools
Superintendent Joseph Roy shared the scenarios being floated in a video message
to the community Monday.
LETTER: Extend school lunch waivers through summer
Yoork Dispatch by Eleni Towns, No Kid Hungry Published
12:30 p.m. ET May 11, 2020 | Updated 12:31 p.m. ET May 11, 2020
Eleni Towns is the associate director
of No Kid Hungry.
The coronavirus has caused both a
catastrophic health crisis and an economic one, pushing thousands of families
into poverty and hunger here in Pennsylvania. Even in this crisis, we’ve
been able to make sure children are still fed. Nationwide child nutrition
waivers issued by the USDA gave school districts and community groups across
our great state the ability to reach kids by allowing them to package meals for
families to pick up, or for meals to be dropped off at a child’s home. Kids
were fed. Now these nationwide waivers are set to expire at the end of June, at
the height of summer hunger. Without the flexibilities these waivers provide,
schools and community organizations will not be able to reach hungry kids with
the food they need this summer. I hope our representatives in Congress
will help us feed kids this summer by urging the USDA to extend all nationwide
child nutrition waivers through Sept. 30. The road to economic recovery begins
with families in Pennsylvania having the food they need for kids to thrive.
Ridley plans drive-through graduation ceremony
Delco Times by Pete Bannan Pbannan@21st-Centurymedia.com May 12,
2020
RIDLEY TOWNSHIP — Confronted with COVID-19
restrictions limiting in-person contact, officials at the Ridley School District
have come up with a novel twist on the traditional high school commencement - a
drive-through graduation. On Friday Principal Ken Acker sent a letter to
seniors outlining the plans for the June 9 event. “We want to first say how
proud we are of your resiliency and we understand the frustration you must feel
at this time. No one could have predicted the immense scale of this
crisis nor the impact it would have on you as a class,” officials wrote in the
letter. Graduation will begin at 5 p.m. with the first part of the ceremony
broadcast on Ridley School District’s television channel. The broadcast will
consist of prerecorded speeches from classmates and administrators. As
part of that, administrators will officially confer the honor of being a Ridley
High School graduate by calling each student’s name. Following that
program, students will be given designated times to come to the high
school in their decorated car to join in a parade as they drive through the
parking lot. The graduate, wearing cap and gown, will need to be a
passenger with another person driving and other family members are allowed in
the car but cannot get out. They will parade around the perimeter of the lot
and stop at the front of the school where their names will be announced and a
member of the high school administration will present each graduate with their
diploma.
Plum School District graduation plans finalized
Trib Live by MICHAEL DIVITTORIO | Monday, May
11, 2020 7:09 p.m.
Plum School District officials have finalized
graduation plans. An in-person commencement has not been announced. However,
seniors and their parents are invited to come to the high school May 15 for a
“graduation walk,” photos and awarding of the diploma cover. Visits are by
appointment only and scheduling must be made
by noon Thursday. It’s all part of a virtual graduation planned for May 28. High
School Principal Joseph Fishell knows the proceedings will not be how students
expected to finish out the school year. “The administration, student advisory
group, teachers, and our Parent Student Staff Organization have been meeting
weekly this past month, monitoring the covid-19 Pandemic and making plans,
revising plans until we have exhausted every avenue to provide you with the
most meaningful experience possible,” Fischell said via letter to district
families. “We have attempted to leave no stone unturned as we look for the
safest and best way to honor this important milestone in your life.”
High school yearbooks go virtual for Western Pa. grads
Trib Live by JOANNE KLIMOVICH HARROP | Monday, May 11, 2020 1:26 p.m.
For high school graduates of 2020, that chance
to write a senior yearbook message has been taken away with the pandemic. But
resourceful teenagers have found a way to sign a yearbook virtually. They’re
creating yearbooks on Instagram, the social media platform that emphasizes
photographs. In most cases, one student creates an Instagram account for the
senior class and fellow students post their photos, either the professional
senior shot or another favorite photo. They include a few words about their
next phase: college, trade school, military or gap year. Maddie Willard, of
Penn Hills, a senior at St. Joseph’s High School in
Harrison, saw that students at Burrell and Highlands had created Instragram
pages and joined in. “I wanted to start it because I know we have been stressed
and this is a way to build each other up,” Willard said. “It is uplifting and
supportive and a way to celebrate our senior year on social media.
The coronavirus has highlighted the value of
Pennsylvania’s public charter schools | Opinion
Penn Live By Ana Meyers Posted May 11, 2020
Ana Meyers is the Executive Director of the
Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools
The coronavirus pandemic has shown the need
for all of us to adapt to changes in many aspects of our lives. Education is
one the sectors that has experienced drastic changes. For most schools, the
COVID-19 crisis has required a shift from classroom teaching to online
instruction. Now is the time for parents, educators and state officials to work
together to ensure that our children have the opportunities to learn during
this difficult period. I applaud Pennsylvania Education Secretary Pedro Rivera
and his staff for their efforts to continue education services. It is clear
they are acting in the best interest of Pennsylvania’s children by asking all
schools to assist students with learning opportunities during the mandatory
closure. Pennsylvania public charter schools, both cyber and brick-and-mortar
schools, are doing their part to ensure children receive the instruction they
need. Public cyber charter schools sent a letter to the Department of
Education, offering guidance and assistance to any brick-and-mortar school,
public or private, as it adapted its traditional curriculum to virtual learning
for its students. Public cyber charter schools in Pennsylvania have been
instructing students online for the last 20 years. They have the experience and
tools to teach a large number of students from all backgrounds and economic
statuses. Their knowledge is invaluable for a school struggling with online
instruction.
“For most of the last decade, the school has consistently ranked
as one of the worst-performing schools in the state.”
Guest columnist: Cyber charter school has failed students
Pottstown Mercury Letter By Jeff Sparagana
Guest columnist May 7, 2020
Jeff Sparagana, Ed.D, is a board member of
Public Citizens for Children and Youth, https://www.pccy.org, an
advocacy group for "quality health care, child care, public education and
family stability."
In a recent article in The Mercury,
"Cyber charters offer help, but have no takers," the Agora CEO
wonders why no districts have come to them to launch their online learning
programs. The reason is obvious. No school would want to replicate Agora's
failures. The school bills itself as a strong alternative to traditional public
schools that provides students with “personalized, innovative, intensive
academic preparation that inspires and educates them to achieve their high
level of academic knowledge and skill.” For most of the last decade, the
school has consistently ranked as one of the worst-performing schools in the
state. And in 2015, Agora hit rock bottom as the lowest-performing cyber
charter school in the state and ranked 2nd from the bottom of the 475 public
school districts in the entire state. During that year, less than a third of
its 3rd graders were reading on grade level and its high school graduation rate
was less than 47%.
And while it is no longer “the worst-performing
school,” Agora’s improvements are hardly worth celebrating. In 2018, 95% of
schools were ranked higher than Agora — the Pennsylvania Department of
Education put it on a corrective action plan reserved for the poorest of all
poorly performing schools. This is a reputation it has earned. Agora’s students
score far below their peers in district schools on all measures of student
achievement. Just last school year, on the PSSA’s — Pennsylvania’s
standardized test for 3rd- 8th graders — only 32% of Agora’s students
tested at or above grade level in reading and barely 10% passed math. To make
matters worse, Agora’s abysmal graduation rate is less than 50%. For context,
the state average is about 85%. Yet, despite its appalling history and
performance, it is not only offering to “help” schools with its cyber programs,
but it is also recruiting students for next year. Every community institution
is struggling, yet continues to serve unconditionally during this crisis. Agora
Cyber Charter school’s offer to assist public school districts with online
instruction is certainly newsworthy. However, Agora has failed its students for
over a decade. The aforementioned data clearly depicts why no public school
district would ever accept help from Agora Cyber Charter school.
Over 220 school boards adopt charter reform resolutions
Charter school funding reform continues to be
a concern as over 220 school boards across the state have adopted a resolution
calling for legislators to enact significant reforms to the Charter School Law
to provide funding relief and ensure all schools are held to the same quality
and ethics standards. Now more than ever, there is a growing momentum from
school officials across the state to call for charter school funding reform.
Legislators are hearing loud and clear that school districts need relief from
the unfair funding system that results in school districts overpaying millions
of dollars to charter schools.
The school boards from the following
districts have adopted resolutions calling for charter funding reform.
Know Your Facts on Funding and Charter Performance. Then
Call for Charter Change!
PSBA Charter Change Website:
Philadelphia needs an elected school board | Opinion
Lisa Haver, For The Inquirer Updated: May
11, 2020 - 11:01 AM
Did you get your ballot for the primary
election? Be sure to send that in, because it’s important that we vote for the
people who will best represent us in Harrisburg and Washington. Our elected
officials make crucial decisions about our future every day—how tax dollars are
spent, what services may have to be cut, and now whether public schools will
thrive or face another round of devastating cuts. The state has taken the
unprecedented move of postponing this primary
election and encouraging mail-in voting
so that social distancing guidelines do not result in disenfranchisement. But
making sure that Philadelphians can select the best candidates for the Board of
Education, which oversees a $3 billion budget and makes decisions about the
conditions in which the city’s children learn—not so much. Unlike voters in
every other district in Pennsylvania, those in Philadelphia continue to be
disenfranchised when choosing their local school board. Philadelphia’s new hand-picked Board of Education was
sworn in recently, immediately after City Council’s one mandated confirmation.
The hearing, confirmation vote and swearing-in created nary a disturbance in
the force, without coverage from any major newspaper, radio or television
outlet, save the independent Public School Notebook.
Philly schools and the online learning experiment
WHYY Air Date: May 11, 2020
Listen to The Why wherever you get your
podcasts: Listen 17:28
How is online learning going in
Philadelphia’s public schools? With the typical tools, like
standardized tests, off the table this year, Superintendent William Hite says
he’s thinking about success differently than usual. But as parents and
teachers start to consider what school will look like this fall, there will be
more pressure on the school district to come up with new systems to measure it.
Guest: WHYY education reporter Avi Wolfman-Arent
AP exams are still on, but the test looks very different
The 45-minute test won't have any
multiple-choice questions. Instead, it will ask two free-response questions.
The notebook by Neena Hagen May 11 — 4:31 pm,
2020
Despite nationwide school closures and postponed
standardized tests, College Board is moving ahead with Advanced Placement (AP)
exams, scheduled for May 11-22. But students who have taken AP tests before
will hardly recognize this year’s slate of exams, which have undergone
significant modification. Normally,
an AP test consists of both multiple-choice and open-ended sections, lasts
anywhere from an hour-and-a-half to four hours, and is administered in a
classroom by a school official. This year, students will take AP exams online
at home with the aid of their notes. To make up for this unavoidable open-note
policy, College Board is nixing the multiple-choice sections of the exam and
offering instead two free-response questions, with a 45-minute total time
limit. A spokesperson from College Board said that to be fair to all students,
some of whom have had more class time than others, the exams will only cover
material that most AP teachers have taught by early March. To ensure that all
students have access to preparatory materials, College Board has provided free, live review sessions on the
Advanced Placement YouTube channel that are taught by AP instructors across the
country.
https://thenotebook.org/articles/2020/05/11/ap-exams-are-still-on-but-the-test-looks-very-different/
Virtual schooling is not homeschooling
JEREMY REYNOLDS Pittsburgh Post-Gazette jreynolds@post-gazette.com MAY 11,
2020
Skeptics make plenty of assumptions about
homeschoolers.
They’re socially stunted and sheltered from
the real world. They’re projects for uncredentialed, entitled parents. They’re
all religious fundamentalists. While these stereotypes have their share of
real-life counterparts, they’re certainly not the norm. There is no “norm.” A
dearth of reliable data makes
it difficult to speak in exact terms, but literature on the subject generally
suggests that homeschooling families are quite diverse in terms of income and
race. It also indicates that the homeschool population is increasing, with
around 3-4% of school-aged children studying at home, which equates to more
than two million kids. Now, COVID-19 has cast millions more public and
private school students into home learning environments indefinitely,
prompting heightened scrutiny of homeschooling and comparisons to traditional
education. Is it a fair comparison?
Columbia borough school board makes changes to proposed
budget
Lancaster Online by Kyle Kutz | LNP
Correspondent May 12, 2020
When: Columbia
borough school board meeting, May 7.
What happened: During a
meeting held remotely on Zoom, the board adopted a $27.13 million proposed general
fund budget for the 2020-21 school year with no tax increase.
Overview: The school
district’s real estate tax rate is set at 26.46 mills. Taxpayers with an
average assessed property would pay $2,470 in taxes. Overall, the district
projects revenues of $26.09 million in 2020-21, down 1.73% from 2019-20, and
predicts $27.13 million in expenses, up 1.94% from the current year.
Changes: Since the
budget’s initial proposal, said chief of finance and operations Keith Ramsey,
revenue projections for next school year have dropped over $900,000 due to the
economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The district will face a $1.04
million deficit between revenues and expenses. Surplus funds from the current
school year will be used to cover this deficit, Ramsey said.
Expenses: The
$515,174 increase in expenses is attributed to a $231,601 increase in salaries,
a $166,471 increase in contracted services, and a $143,202 increase in
benefits. Among higher salary costs, Ramsey said, are a 3.15% increase in
teacher salaries, 3.0% increase in administrative salaries and the addition of
a life skills support teacher, at $55,000. The district will reserve $1.2
million for charter school services, up $200,000 from the current year, and
$300,000 in tuition for River Rock Academy, up $150,000.
Benefits: The
district is set to contribute 34.51% of its payroll, or $3.1 million, toward
employee pensions in 2020-21, up 0.22% from the current year. Because of a
decline in interest rates and an increase in stock market volatility, contributions
could rise so the system can reach its average growth of 6.5%, Ramsey said.
“The case highlights the tension between advocates for religious
freedom and church autonomy, and those who argue that employees should be
protected by federal anti-discrimination laws and employers who might retaliate
against employees for reporting misconduct.”
Supreme Court examines discrimination lawsuits against
religious schools
Post Gazette by ARIANE DE VOGUE CNN MAY 11,
2020
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court struggled
Monday with where to draw a line in a dispute concerning when teachers who work
in religious schools can file employment discrimination claims. Seven years
ago, the Supreme Court recognized a "ministerial exception" for the
first time, holding that under the First Amendment the government could not
interfere with a church's hiring decisions. The justices held that the teacher
in that case could be considered a "minister" under the law,
triggering the exception. During more than an hour of arguments over the
telephone, the justices addressed the scope of that decision and whether it
bars teachers -- who say they have limited religious duties -- from bringing
suit. The justices appeared troubled at oral arguments trying to weigh what
factors should be considered when determining a teacher's religious involvement
at a religious school. In the course of arguments, replete with hypothetical
questions that could govern future cases, the justices lobbed considerations
concerning a teacher's role, title, and status as a member of the same faith or
not, but they struggled with where to draw the line.
Any comments contained herein are my comments, alone, and
do not necessarily reflect the opinions of any other person or organization
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