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, 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.
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Keystone
State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for Nov. 16, 2020
As record
number of students seek cyber charter school options, school districts struggle
with costs
Congratulations to #323 @CentralFultonSD for passing the charter funding
reform resolution on November 10. Thank you to Representative Jesse Topper,
Senator Judy Ward and PSBA Ambassador @DaleKirsch.
Report: Schools need $4B+ more in state funding
Delco Times by Alex Rose November
15, 2020
Dr. Eric Becoats, superintendent of the William Penn School District, said the district currently has two social workers trying to serve 5,000 students spread across 11 sites.
Pennsylvania’s public schools were
underfunded by about $4.6 billion in the 2018-19 school year, according to a
new report authored as part of an ongoing lawsuit alleging the state has failed
its obligation to ensure that every student receives the basic resources they
need to be college and career ready by the time they graduate high school. The
suit, captioned William Penn School District et al. v. the Pennsylvania
Department of Education et al., was originally filed in 2014 against the
governor and legislative leaders by the Public Interest Law Center and the
Education Law Center on behalf of six school districts, seven parents, the
Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools (PARSS) and the NAACP Pennsylvania
State Conference. The Commonwealth Court initially dismissed the case, which
was later reversed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. After dispensing with
several objections, the suit is now in the summary judgment phase and Judge
Renee Cohn Jubelirer has set a Dec. 7 date for all briefs to be filed. Penn
State University Assistant Professor of Education Dr. Matthew Kelly is
presented as an expert witness in that case and his 110-page report outlines
just how imbalanced the petitioners say education funding has become in
Pennsylvania.
Want some cliff notes on the school funding lawsuit currently in
the Commonwealth Court? Check this out: https://fundourschoolspa.org/faq
School Funding Lawsuit Webinar Nov 19, 2020 07:00 PM
Public Interest Law Center and Education Law
Center
Join attorneys from the Public Interest Law
Center and Education Law Center to learn about Pennsylvania's school funding
lawsuit. If you live in a plaintiff district--The School District of Lancaster,
Johnstown Area, Wilkes-Barre Area, William Penn, Panther Valley and Shenandoah
Valley--you will have an opportunity to hear directly from attorneys in the
case about opportunities to support the lawsuit in your community. This webinar
is open to anyone who would like to learn more about the lawsuit.
Register here: https://krc-pbpc-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0vf-qupzksG9aCbcMrzXxpN7nc2J68016m
Feds reject Pa.’s plan to spend up to $300M in stimulus
money for school property tax relief
Gettysburg Times By Ed Mahon and Cynthia
Fernandez Spotlight PA November 15, 2020
For more than a decade, state lawmakers have
sent yearly payments to Pennsylvania’s school districts so they can lower
residents’ property tax bills. These payments are funded by gambling revenue,
which has taken a major hit this year as the coronavirus forced casinos to shut
down for months before reopening under new restrictions. Gov. Tom Wolf’s
administration and Republicans who control the legislature thought they had a
solution to make up for the shortfall: State lawmakers this spring approved a
plan to use up to $300 million in federal coronavirus dollars toward the
promised $621 million in relief. But in mid-September, the federal government
rejected Pennsylvania’s plan, Spotlight PA has learned. School districts are
now waiting for the last $200 million, which was due in October, leaving them
on the hook at a time when many are already struggling with large local revenue
losses and cost increases for items like cyber charter school tuition. “That is
the challenge that folks are dealing with right now,” said Hannah Barrick,
assistant executive director for the Pennsylvania Association of School
Business Officials.
https://www.gettysburgtimes.com/news/spotlight_pa/article_5a14c636-5513-5b65-873a-45016e955d17.html
As COVID hospitalizations rise in Philly, our civic
leaders have lost the stamina to keep us safe | Expert Opinion
PJ Brennan, For The Inquirer Posted: November
13, 2020 - 4:12 PM
PJ Brennan, MD, is an infectious disease
physician and chief medical officer of the University of Pennsylvania Health
System
The COVID-19 pandemic is not over. Daily
cases are reaching or exceeding springtime numbers, and every indication tells
us that the current phase will be worse than the first wave last spring. As
cases began to rise in this region over the past month, our hospitals at first
saw very small increases in their COVID-19 census. Patients in the hospital
were younger at first, and were getting well and going home quickly. The trend
changed quickly: the average age of patients admitted to Penn Medicine
hospitals is now greater than 60. The number of patients arriving is growing
each day, as are those who need to go to the intensive care unit – a week ago 10% of our
COVID patients were in the ICU; now it’s 25% of them. These beds are
at a premium, and some hospitals in the area have had to divert patients coming
to them by ambulance to avoid overcrowding. We are at a crucial inflection
point where civic leaders and individual members of the public need to take
immediate action to reverse this course. Since the pandemic hit, we have
learned much about the disease and the best ways to treat it, so deaths are
less frequent. But the lower mortality rate has tricked many members of the
public into believing that the serious hazards of the pandemic may be past.
That is fool’s gold. Serious consequences of COVID remain prevalent, including
long-term disability – across the nation and in our health system, doctors have
had to develop specialized COVID recovery clinics to monitor and manage
persistent symptoms that stretch on long after patients leave the hospital. And
we know enough now about this disease to know the statistics are portentous:
even if the death rates remain low, higher numbers of deaths will surely follow
as we see greater numbers of cases.
As record number of
students seek cyber charter school options, school districts struggle with
costs
Times Tribune BY SARAH HOFIUS HALL STAFF WRITER Nov 15,
2020 Updated 7 hrs ago
The rising costs for the 37 school districts
in Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming counties
put more pressure on already-strained budgets, according to a report from the
Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials. The bills come as the
coronavirus pandemic creates uncertainty and families seek safety, stability —
and a cyber charter school education for their children. In Lackawanna County
alone, districts expect to spend an additional $6 million for cyber charter
school tuition this academic year. Since the pandemic began in March, an
additional 469 students left their traditional public schools to learn online
through charter schools, according to a Sunday Times analysis. Last year, the
10 school districts paid cyber charter schools about $14 million to educate
1,002 students. Two months into this academic year, school leaders project to
pay a combined $20 million in tuition bills this year for the 1,471 students
enrolled. For districts struggling with pandemic-related revenue shortfalls,
the added expenses strengthen the calls for charter school funding reforms. In
Scranton, the additional $2.6 million in cyber bills makes up more than half
the district’s $4 million budget deficit for 2021. “We have serious concerns
with this. This is taxpayer money,” Scranton Superintendent Melissa McTiernan
said. “The pandemic has put a strain on everyone.”
More cyber charter school students takes toll on already
strained school district budgets
FOX56 by Viktoria Hallikaar Friday,
November 13th 2020
(WOLF) — With coronavirus keeping many
students out of traditional school settings, some are turning to cyber charter
schools. But local superintendents say increasing enrollment could strain
already burdened budgets. That's a problem that could end with a tax raise or
programs for their own school districts could end up being shrunk or even cut. You
still have buildings, teachers and staff, and more to pay for, and so even if
some students leave, district costs aren't necessarily going down. "There
will be public schools, school districts, in a lot of trouble
financially," said Jeff Groshek, the superintendent of the Central
Columbia School District. "It just can't continue. It just can't" Groshek,
like many others, has seen more kids turning to cyber charter schools, 23 more
students this school year alone. It's different from the cyber options offered
in-district, and so when the student leaves, the money goes with them. "We're
spending $635,000 on 42 students," Groshek explained. "Our entire
athletic budget or extracurricular programs, we spend $512,000 and that affects
hundreds and hundreds of students, so it's out of control."
Cyber charter school costs skyrocket in Luzerne County
Wilkes
Barre Citizens Voice By STEVE MOCARSKY and SARAH HOFIUS HALL STAFF WRITERS Nov 15,
2020 Updated 5 hrs ago
Facing a coronavirus pandemic expected to
continue this school year and limited educational options in her school
district, Heather Jones enrolled her daughter in a cyber charter school.
“When the world stopped in March and then
they went to online classes, she went for weeks with a faceless curriculum. It
was a struggle every day,” Jones said in a phone interview last week.
…From October 2019 to last month, the state’s
14 cyber charter schools saw a 63% increase in enrollment, with most of that
happening after the pandemic caused schools to close in March. As of Oct. 1,
62,331 students are enrolled in the cyber charter schools, according to the
Pennsylvania Department of Education. Seven of the 11 school districts in
Luzerne County that provided enrollment and cost data for this story — Dallas,
Greater Nanticoke Area, Hazleton Area, Lake-Lehman, Pittston Area, Wyoming Area
and Wyoming Valley West — saw charter school enrollment increase by a combined
average of 57%.
Montgomery County school buildings ordered closed for two
weeks amid coronavirus surge
Inquirer by Maddie Hanna, Updated: November 13, 2020
The Montgomery County Board of Health on
Friday ordered all K-12 schools to close for two weeks beginning Nov. 23, a
mandate county officials described as a necessary attempt to help slow the
surge in coronavirus infections. Despite outcry from parents, the
five-member board voted unanimously to impose the order, which directs schools
to revert to virtual instruction. Members said that while they had heard
parents' frustration, the shutdown was a proactive approach to a rapidly
escalating problem. “If we don’t do this, we will be in a significantly worse
situation post-Thanksgiving holiday,” said Barbara Wadsworth, a board member
who is senior vice president of patient services and chief nursing officer at
Main Line Health. The order applies to both public and private schools, along
with school sports and extracurricular activities.
https://www.inquirer.com/news/montgomery-county-pa-coronavirus-schools-closing-20201113.html
Montgomery County votes for all schools to go virtual as
COVID-19 rises
WHYY By Miles
Bryan November 13, 2020
All K-12 public and private schools in
Montgomery County will move entirely online for two weeks starting Nov. 23 to
slow the spread of coronavirus. The order does not make an exception for
students with special needs, and also cancels extracurricular activities. The
order was passed unanimously by the county’s Board of Health Friday, despite
hundreds of parents and residents speaking out against the move online. “I
completely understand parents’ concerns,” said board member Francis Jeyaraj, a
pediatrician. “But these are difficult times for all of us. It’s a total
community effort.” Board member Martin Trichtinger invoked a quote attributed
to hockey great Wayne Gretzky about skating towards where the puck is going to
be to justify his vote. “To be honest that is what we are trying to do here,”
he said. “We are trying to put our county in the best position possible.” Montgomery
County’s COVID-19 test positivity rate has more than doubled in the last month.
https://whyy.org/articles/montgomery-county-votes-for-all-schools-to-go-virtual-as-covid-19-rises/
Parents denounce Montgomery County COVID-19 school
closures in two weekend protests
Inquirer by Harold Brubaker, Posted: November 15, 2020-
5:07 PM
Jamie Erfle has never seen her children
appreciate school as much as they have this fall.
“They’re just so excited to be back in
school,” Erfle said of her second and fourth graders, who attend the
Wissahickon School District’s Shady Grove Elementary School in Ambler. “They
wake up early. They are so excited to get on the bus.” But that will end soon,
at least temporarily, because the Montgomery County Board of Health on
Friday ordered all K-12 schools
to revert to online instruction for
two weeks starting Nov. 23 to block what officials fear could develop into a
substantial coronavirus outbreak in schools after Thanksgiving.
Ridley schools OK $900G for coronavirus mitigation
Deco Times By Barbara Ormsby Times
Correspondent November 16, 2020
RIDLEY TOWNSHIP — The Ridley School Board
approved the submission at its November meeting of $912,284 for allowable
expenses in COVID-19 mitigation measures to Delaware County CARES Act budget. The
funds are part of the $98 million allocation the county received under the
Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. Among the items the school
district used in its buildings in an effort to protect students and employees
from the virus that has caused a world-wide pandemic are disinfectant wipes,
hand sanitizers, soap dispensers and electrostatic sprayers and chemicals to
disinfect larger areas, including buses, and air purifiers with HEPA filters
for classroom use. Items such as signage, sticker and floor tape for social
distancing in buildings along with educational technology for at-home learning,
or internet connectivity services for students in qualifying low-income
families are also on the list. Other COVID-19 related instructional materials
include instructional read-a-loud bags and items to store individual teacher
and student materials.
Central York High School is closing because of COVID
cases; football playoff game still on
Teresa Boeckel York Daily
Record November 13, 2020
Central York School District reported Friday
that its high school would be closed through Nov. 29 because of
coronavirus cases. The building was to close at dismissal on Friday, the
district said. The state Department of Health recommended that the high school
close. Students will switch to remote learning during the closure. The rest of
the buildings in the district will remain open.
Catholic Diocese, North Hills, Kiski, Karns City
COVID-19 forces more school closures across Pittsburgh
region
PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE NOV 13, 2020 4:49 PM
More schools in southwestern Pennsylvania on
Friday said they would be transitioning to remote instruction as the region
continues to experience a spike in COVID-19 cases.
North
Allegheny, Seneca, Highlands
Closure announcements for area school districts continue
as COVID-19 cases spike
LAUREN LEE Pittsburgh Post-Gazette NOV 16,
2020 5:29 AM
School districts across the area are
continuing to announce building closures and other adjustments as COVID-19
cases steadily rise. The North Allegheny School District announced Sunday
its intermediate high school will move to remote learning on Monday and
Tuesday. The school will also have a two-hour delay on Monday so the district
can prepare for the change.
Pittsburgh Public Schools returning to all remote
instruction next week
Trib Live by TEGHAN SIMONTON | Friday, November 13,
2020 3:40 p.m.
Pittsburgh Public Schools will close all
school buildings and return to fully remote instruction next week, district
officials confirmed. The district had reopened for in-person instruction — for
a small number of students — on Nov. 9. Those students included those with
special needs and English learners. The majority of students are still learning
from home until January. “In consultation with our district physician and
aligned to guidance by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, we will
transition back to full-time E-Learning for all students,” said Superintendent
Anthony Hamlet in a statement. “While it was a joy to actually see children and
teachers in our buildings again, the safety of our students, staff and families
is a top priority. We cannot ignore the continued growth of covid-19 in our
area.”
New cases prompt Penn-Trafford to close Penn Middle
School through Wednesday
TRIBUNE-REVIEW | Sunday, November
15, 2020 4:59 p.m.
Penn Middle School will be closed Monday
through Wednesday because of an increase in covid-19 cases. Penn-Trafford School District officials
notified parents in a letter emailed Sunday from Superintendent Matthew Harris.
There are five active covid-19 cases at the school, two of which were added
over the weekend. Four of the five people who tested positive were in the
school building while they were contagious, Harris wrote.
Staff member at Hunt Elementary tests positive for
covid-19
TRIBUNE-REVIEW by BRIAN C. RITTMEYER | Sunday,
November 15, 2020 7:24 p.m.
A staff member at Roy A. Hunt Elementary
School in Arnold has tested positive for covid-19, New Kensington-Arnold acting
Superintendent Jon Banko said Sunday. Four people who were in close contact
with the unidentified employee are quarantined, Banko said.
North Pocono School District has second case of COVID-19
Times Tribune Nov 14,
2020 Updated 7 hrs ago
The North Pocono School District announced
Saturday that a middle school staff member has tested positive for COVID-19. In
a message posted on the
district's website and on Facebook, the district said it
was notified Saturday of one confirmed case at the North Pocono Middle School.
The staff member, who last worked Nov. 6, is
not assigned to classroom activities. No staff or students will need to
quarantine as a result of this case. This new case is the second positive case
for the school district this school year.
Easton Area High School to remain remote till after
Thanksgiving break
By JENNIFER SHEEHAN THE MORNING
CALL | NOV 14, 2020 AT 9:59 AM
Remote learning will remain in place at
Easton Area High School until after Thanksgiving due to the number of positive
COVID-19 cases, district officials announced. In a letter to parents and staff,
the district said remote learning will be in effect until Dec. 1, when students
and teachers are expected to return for hybrid learning. Easton joins a number
of other high schools in the Lehigh Valley including Emmaus and Parkland that
have shifted temporarily to remote learning in light of positive cases. Out of
Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, 47 — including Lehigh and Northampton — are on the
state’s watch list because of high case counts. Lehigh and Northampton are now
categorized as having “substantial” coronavirus community transmission, which
applies to counties with more than 100 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents or
more than a 10% positivity rate over the past seven days. The state
education and health departments recommend school districts move to fully
remote learning when there is substantial community transmission, though the
decision rests with local school officials.
3 Lancaster County schools suspend in-person instruction
until Thursday due to COVID-19
Lancaster Online by ALEX GELI | Staff Writer Nov 13,
2020
Three Lancaster County schools are suspending
in-person instruction until Thursday because of new COVID-19 cases. Eastern
Lancaster County School District on Friday announced it's extending remote
learning for students at Garden Spot High School and Garden Spot Middle School.
The two schools closed Thursday and Friday of
this week after the district discovered three new cases - one each at the high
school, middle school and Brecknock Elementary School - and one probable case
at the middle school. District Superintendent Bob Hollister said in a letter updating
families Friday there has been another COVID-19 case and three additional
probable cases at the Garden Spot secondary campus. Athletics and
extracurricular events scheduled during this time will be canceled. Manheim
Central Middle School is also shifting to remote instruction until Thursday.
The school has six active positive cases and eight probable cases, according to
a letter sent to middle school families Friday. Approximately 88 people have
consequently had to quarantine.
Carlisle Area School District closes all schools through
Nov. 30 due to COVID-19
Sentinel Staff November 15, 2020
Carlisle Area School District Superintendent
Christina Spielbauer said Sunday that all schools in the district will be
closed through Nov. 30 due to increasing cases of COVID-19 in the district and
the county. Spielbauer said in a letter to parents that the district has had 10
positive confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the last six days, with several more
tests pending. She noted that many of these cases have resulted in exposure in
most of the district's school buildings.
Paul Muschick: Why we decided to let our son continue
with in-person high school classes
By PAUL MUSCHICK THE MORNING
CALL | NOV 13, 2020 AT 8:00 AM
My wife and I had a discussion this week that
I suspect many families are having now.
Should we pull our son from in-person classes
because COVID-19 cases are spiking in Pennsylvania? What criteria would we use
to decide? We live in Berks County, one of about three dozen counties where
health officials say there is substantial community spread of the virus.
Lehigh and Northampton have substantial
spread, too. The state Health and Education departments recommend only remote
instruction under those circumstances. Health Secretary Rachel Levine said
Thursday it is up to school districts to decide whether to follow that
recommendation. She previously has said the state does not intend to order
schools to shut down in-person classes. That’s the way it should be. Each
district should make that decision, based on its capabilities to protect
students and staff and based on input from its residents.
Most school districts that have in-person
classes aren’t shutting their doors, despite the rising numbers and the state’s
recommendation. That leaves it up to parents to decide whether to stick with
it. We are.
First lady should lead effort to end racism in Pa. school
funding | Letter
Lehigh Valley Live Letter By Crystal
Echeverria Express-Times
Letters to the Editor Updated Nov 13, 2020; Posted Nov 13,
2020
I am a student who had the opportunity to
intern with a firm that does research, marketing, and outreach for fair school
funding, Support Equity First. I’ve learned about the blatant racism in Pennsylvania
school funding. On a robotics trip to Bucks County, my
friends and I witnessed this inequity firsthand. Our hearts dropped when we
toured the high school and saw the Olympic swimming pool. How was it fair that
these schools could afford to host and succeed in robotics competitions when we
barely had enough recycled parts to get our robot to work? I am asking First
Lady Frances Wolf and others to take action.
Teachers cheer the end of the DeVos era — but what comes
next under President-elect Biden?
Inquirer by Kristen A. Graham, Maddie Hanna and Melanie Burney, Updated: November 14, 2020- 2:56
PM
Fatimah Hayes is overjoyed that Joe Biden won
the presidency.
It means, as Biden noted in his victory
speech, that after four years of feeling demoralized, educators will have “one
of their own in the White House” — incoming first lady Jill Biden is a
community college English teacher. “I’m ecstatic for the possibilities and the
hope to have someone who is qualified to be in charge," said Hayes, a
social studies teacher at Pennsauken High School. After having a president who
slammed “failing government schools” and promoted private schools as
alternatives, public education advocates are hopeful a Biden administration
will bring renewed focus to traditional public schools, which educate the vast
majority of the nation’s students. The president-elect has promised more
funding for public schools and stronger leadership on reopening amid COVID-19. Stef
Feldman, Biden’s policy director, told education reporters
last month that the administration’s priorities
would include “setting national safety guidelines that are guided by science
and empowering local decision-making regarding safe reopening of schools.” Marie
Blistan, a Washington Township special-education teacher and president of the
New Jersey Education Association, the state’s largest teachers' union with more
than 200,000 members, said the election of Biden “is going to be a world of
difference.”
Viral sub shortage has Pottstown Schools looking at
'permanent subs'
Delco Times by Evan Brandt ebrandt@21st-centurymedia.com
@PottstownNews on Twitter November 15, 2020
POTTSTOWN — Coronavirus has had an
impact on so many aspects of our lives, some of them unanticipated. That's true
in public education as well, as Pottstown School District officials have found
over the past months. First, there was a sudden closing of schools in
March with many Pottstown
families without the computer equipment or Internet connections to
allow students to continue their education. Then, like many districts,
Pottstown wrestled with whether to allow athletics to continue and when, or if,
to re-open to allow some return to classes, even part-time.
Another unforeseen curveball is the extreme
shortage of substitute teachers. Before any of us ever heard the word
"coronavirus," Pennsylvania was suffering from a shortage of
teachers. And the pandemic has made many of the teachers who are working,
reluctant to increase their risk of exposure by teaching in the classroom.
Adopt the resolution against racial inequity!
School boards are asked to adopt this
resolution supporting the development of an anti-racist climate. Once adopted,
share your resolution with your local community and submit a copy to PSBA.
Learn more: http://ow.ly/yJWA50B2R72
Adopt the 2020 PSBA resolution
for charter school funding reform
In this
legislative session, PSBA has been leading the charge with the Senate, House of
Representatives and the Governor’s Administration to push for positive charter
reform. We’re now asking you to join the campaign: Adopt the resolution: We’re
asking all school boards to adopt the 2020 resolution for charter school
funding reform at your next board meeting and submit it to your legislators and
to PSBA.
Resolution for charter funding reform (pdf)
Link
to submit your adopted resolution to PSBA
323 PA school boards have
adopted charter reform resolutions
Charter school funding reform continues to be
a concern as over 300 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.
https://www.psba.org/2020/03/adopted-charter-reform-resolutions/
Know Your Facts on Funding and Charter Performance. Then
Call for Charter Change!
PSBA Charter Change Website:
https://www.pacharterchange.org/
The Network for Public Education Action Conference has
been rescheduled to April 24-25, 2021 at the Philadelphia Doubletree Hotel
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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