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 January 18, 2021
This article should
be required reading for new Pennsylvania legislators & staff: .Virtual
Reality: Cyber Charter Schools and The Need for Reform
Chester Upland: In
Pennsylvania, The Dismantling of a Public School System
Forbes by Peter Greene Senior Contributor Jan 15, 2021,10:34am EST|2
views
As the new
year begins, one Pennsylvania public school district faces the prospect of
being completely dismantled and handed over to charter operators.
Chester-Upland School District is poised to become an example of what can
happen to a public school district that needs assistance and gets nothing but
trouble instead. CUSD has weathered every sort of challenge a district can
face, but may now be on its last legs, about to make history as the first
Pennsylvania district to be completely privatized.
Here's some related
PA Ed Policy Roundup history...
http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2019/07/pa-ed-policy-roundup-july-16-2019.html
This article should be required reading
for new Pennsylvania legislators & staff:
Virtual Reality:
Cyber Charter Schools and The Need for Reform
Pennsylvania
Bar Association Quarterly, January 2021 By SUSAN L. DEJARNATT, Philadelphia County
Member of the Pennsylvania Bar
Susan L.
DeJarnatt is a Professor of Law at Temple University Beasley School of Law.
ABSTRACT
Pennsylvania needs to reform its system for funding cyber charter schools. The
fourteen cyber charters draw students and tuition dollars from nearly every
public school district across the state, but those districts have no say in
authorizing or overseeing cyber charters. Though the cybers are a financial
drain on the districts, they are money makers for their operators due to
weaknesses in the Charter School Law. First, the Charter School Law (CSL)
directs the districts to remit the exact same per pupil funding to a cyber
charter as they do to a bricks and mortar charter, even though the costs of
running a cyber are much lower. Second, the per pupil payment a district must
provide to the charter is based on the per pupil spending of that sending
district, not on the charter’s cost to educate the student. Finally, cybers,
like all charters, receive much higher payments for students with special
education needs, but cybers, like all charters, have no obligation to spend
that extra money on special education. The CLS should be revised to account for
the true costs of operating cyber charter schools and to provide for a voice
for districts in the oversight and accountability of these programs.
https://www.pabar.org/pdf/2021/PBA-Quarterly-CyberCharterSchools.pdf
AFTPA, PFT Leaders
Call for Elected Officials to Return Yass Donations
Philadelphia
Federation of Teachers Press Release JANUARY 15, 2021
PHILADELPHIA— In
response to new reporting showing that Jeffrey Yass funded efforts to overturn
the 2020 election, AFT Pennsylvania President Arthur Steinberg, Philadelphia
Federation of Teachers President Jerry Jordan, and Pittsburgh Federation of
Teachers President Nina Esposito-Visgitis issued the following statement:
“For years,
billionaire Jeffrey Yass has funded efforts to destroy public education. In
fact, in 2015, he and two of his associates poured millions into a failed
Philadelphia mayoral bid that only served to galvanize the city’s commitment to
public education. Elected officials in Pennsylvania continue to benefit from
enormous contributions from Students First and their various political arms,
almost exclusively funded by Mr. Yass and his Susquehanna Group colleagues. “Today,
reporting
emerged that further exposed Yass’ political agenda, noting that he and his associates backed
efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, which as we all know, was
carried out to the letter of the law. “Knowing that Mr. Yass’ agenda extends
beyond his disgraceful attacks on public education, and in fact to the heart of
our democracy, should shock every elected official who has received his
generous funding in the name of ‘school choice.’ “We call on any elected
official who believes in democracy to immediately return any contributions from
Mr. Yass or his affiliated political committees.”###
https://pft.org/aftpapftjan152021/
Diagram of Yass’
Donations and Related PACS in 2020
Philly Power
Research October 2020
https://twitter.com/lfeinberg/status/1350447963714285568/photo/1
“Public records show the Club for
Growth’s largest funders are the billionaire Richard Uihlein, the Republican co-founder of the Uline shipping supply company in Wisconsin, and
Jeffrey Yass, the co-founder of Susquehanna International Group, an options
trading group based in Philadelphia that also owns a sports betting company in
Dublin. While Uihlein and Yass have kept a lower profile than other billionaire
donors such as Michael Bloomberg and the late Sheldon Adelson, their backing of
the Club for Growth has helped to transform the organization from one
traditionally known as an anti-regulatory and anti-tax pro-business pressure
group to one that backs some of the most radical and anti-democratic Republican
lawmakers in Congress.”
Billionaires backed
Republicans who sought to reverse US election results
Guardian
analysis shows Club for Growth has spent $20m supporting 42 rightwing lawmakers
who voted to invalidate Biden victory
The Club for
Growth’s biggest beneficiaries include Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, the duo who
led the effort to overturn the election result.
The Guardian
by Stephanie
Kirchgaessner in Washington @skirchy Fri 15 Jan 2021 05.00 EST
An anti-tax
group funded primarily by billionaires has emerged as one of the biggest
backers of the Republican lawmakers who sought to overturn the US election
results, according to an analysis by the Guardian. The Club for Growth has
supported the campaigns of 42 of the rightwing Republicans senators and members
of the House of Representatives who voted last week to challenge US election
results, doling out an estimated
$20m to directly and indirectly support their campaigns
in 2018 and 2020, according to data compiled by the Center
for Responsive Politics. About 30 of the Republican hardliners received more
than $100,000 in indirect and direct support from the group. The Club for
Growth’s biggest beneficiaries include Josh
Hawley and Ted
Cruz, the two Republican senators who led the
effort to invalidate Joe Biden’s electoral victory, and the newly elected
far-right gun-rights activist Lauren
Boebert, a QAnon conspiracy theorist. Boebert was
criticised last week for tweeting about the House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s
location during the attack on the Capitol, even after lawmakers were told not
to do so by police.
Pa. schools to
receive $2.2 billion in federal aid to deal with COVID-19 impact
Penn Live By Jan Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Updated Jan 15, 4:02 PM; Posted Jan 15,
3:51 PM
Pennsylvania
schools can now start applying for a share of the $2.2 billion in federal
stimulus funds being made available to public schools to assist them in navigating
through the affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and help them and their students
recover from its impacts. The money will be distributed in monthly allotments
to school districts, charter schools and cyber charter schools using the same
formula Congress uses to drive out Title I-A formula, which takes into account
the number of low-income students. The state is choosing not to make any money
available to non-public schools, according to information on the department’s
website.
The
estimated allocation for districts and charter schools can be found on its website.
Blogger Commentary:
According to PDE,
Cyber Charters are slated to get $49 million in ESSER II funding. What reimbursable
PPE, technology, reopening or student learning loss costs do they have?
|
Preliminary ESSER II Allocations for Cyber Charters January 2021 |
|
|
Cyber Charter School |
LEA Share of ESSER II Funds |
|
Achievement House CS |
$665,155.00 |
|
Agora Cyber CS |
$9,053,723.00 |
|
Achievement House CS |
$665,155.00 |
|
Central PA Digital Learning Foundation CS |
$125,369.00 |
|
Commonwealth Charter Academy CS |
$13,034,768.00 |
|
Esperanza Cyber CS |
$1,651,346.00 |
|
Insight Pa Cyber CS |
$2,680,336.00 |
|
Pennsylvania Cyber CS |
$10,616,296.00 |
|
Pennsylvania Distance Learning CS |
$1,017,794.00 |
|
Pennsylvania Leadership Charter School |
$2,770,186.00 |
|
Pennsylvania Virtual CS |
$2,531,909.00 |
|
Reach Cyber CS |
$4,349,471.00 |
|
Total |
$49,161,508.00 |
|
Susq-Cyber CS |
not listed |
|
21st Century Cyber CS |
not listed |
|
Data Source: PDE Website |
The Coronavirus Response and Relief
Supplemental Appropriations Act’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency
Relief Fund (ESSER II) delivers more than$2.2 billion in emergency relief to
Pennsylvania’s school districts and charter schools. Anticipated federal dollars for each PA school district, charter
school and cyber charter….
ESSER II Fund
Allocations
PDE Website January
15, 2021
Preliminary
2020-21 LEA allocations from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency
Relief Fund (Winter Award) appear below. Preliminary allocations are based on
LEA share of Preliminary FY 20-21 State-Determined Title I Calculated
Allocation (based on entire award amount to LEAs with no state admin set
aside).
Public Schools Facing
Deficits Amid Surge In Cyber Students
Butler Radio
Posted By: Tyler Friel on: January 15, 2021
Public
schools across Pennsylvania are facing significant financial issues as a result
of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of main drivers of budget concerns center around
the funding of charter schools. More students enrolled in cyber charter schools
this year, which are funded partially by public schools. According to a new
report from the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators, the 500
public schools in the Keystone State have paid charter schools $475 million this
school year. Specifically, cyber charter schools have received $350 million in
funding. Locally, this issue has been raised by school districts like Mars,
which has indicated a nearly $1.3 million looming budget shortfall due to
increased enrollment in cyber charter schools.
https://butlerradio.com/public-schools-facing-deficits-amid-surge-in-cyber-students/
Senator Lindsey M.
Williams Named Minority Chair of Senate Education Committee; Announces
Priorities For 2021-22 Session
Senator
Williams Website January 15, 2021
Harrisburg,
Pa. − January 15, 2021 − Senator Lindsey M. Williams announced today that she has been
named the Democratic Minority Chair of the Senate Education Committee for the
2021-22 Session by Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny). Senator Williams
will serve along with Majority Chair Senator Scott Martin (R-Lancaster).
Senator Williams previously served as the only Freshman Democratic Senator on
the Education Committee during the 2019-2020 Session. “I am
honored to be named Education Chair by Senator Costa,” said Senator Williams.
“Working families across the Commonwealth struggle with education issues, from
finding an affordable high-quality pre-k program through managing higher
education costs. We need to support our students, educators, staff, families,
and communities as they continue to navigate learning during the COVID-19
pandemic. I’m excited to get to work.”
Senator
Williams’ top priorities for the Senate Education Committee during the 2021-22
Session include:
- Preventing or limiting property tax
increases through charter school funding reform;
- Engaging students as primary
stakeholders in education to hear their viewpoints on how proposed
legislation will impact their learning experience;
- Improving access to high quality pre-K
and childcare programs across the Commonwealth;
- Providing much needed supports for our
educators;
- Working with our community colleges,
technical schools and PA State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) schools
to create a Pennsylvania system of public higher education that properly
funds our institutions and reduces student borrowing costs;
- Increasing support for Career and
Technical Education (CTE) programs;
- Creating a Task Force to develop
curriculum standards that integrate Black History throughout the K-12
education experience;
- Increasing mental health support for
Pennsylvania students by decreasing the counselor to student ratio in all
buildings;
- Continuing funding summer school
programs that allow students to be engaged in education year-round;
- Ensuring that Special Education and
Alternative Education students are given the equitable resources that they
need to succeed and thrive;
- Promoting the adoption of the community
schools model in districts across Pennsylvania;
- Addressing the statewide teacher
shortage; and
- Improving the communication between the
Department of Education and our school districts and local school board
members.
###
https://www.senatorlindseywilliams.com/williams-named-minority-chair-of-senate-education-committee/
Pa. state senator
dies from brain cancer at age 49
Penn Live By Jan Murphy | jmurphy@pennlive.com Updated Jan 17, 2021; Posted Jan 17,
2021
Pennsylvania
Sen. Dave Arnold died Sunday at home with his wife and daughter by his side,
ending a 15-month battle with brain cancer. Arnold was 49 years old. He took the oath of office last January to represent the 48th senatorial district,
which covers all of Lebanon County and parts of Dauphin and York counties. At
the time, he said he considered it an honor to be given the opportunity to
“work for the public and to do things for the benefit of the public.”
https://www.pennlive.com/news/2021/01/pa-senator-dies-from-brain-cancer-at-age-49.html
Despite challenges,
Martin Luther King’s legacy lives on at namesake school in Philadelphia
Chalkbeat
Philly By Johann Calhoun Jan 15, 2021, 8:36pm EST
Khym Lawson
remembers when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee,
on April 4, 1968, and recalls the widespread grief and riots that followed in
Philadelphia. “I remember we lived on 26th Street in North Philadelphia and all
the people were outside,” she said. “I was at home watching TV and remember how
upset people were.” Lawson, who is the president of the Associated Alumni of Martin
Luther King High School, graduated from the school in 1979 in its third
graduating class. She’s proud to be a graduate of a school named for the civil
rights hero. Every year around Jan. 15, King’s birthday, educators across the
United States honor his legacy by teaching about civil rights leaders and
holding larger discussions about race in America and Black Lives Matter. This
year, with the unrest following the deaths of unarmed Black men at the hands of
police and the racist rhetoric of the 2020 election, those conversations are
taking on heightened importance — particularly at King’s namesake school in
West Oak Lane.
With pandemic and
national unrest, MLK Day of Service takes on new meaning
WHYY By Ximena Conde January 17, 2021
When
Germantown resident Matthew George organized street cleanups across
Philadelphia for Sunday as an MLK Day of Service event, he didn’t anticipate the country
would be keeping an eye on state capitals for possible
“armed protesters” falsely claiming malfeasance in the
2020 election. “That’s unfortunate, but that gives us a chance to revitalize
[Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s] mission and keep that dream alive,” said George,
co-founder of I Love
Thy Hood. Since summer 2019, the program has provided
block captains and other neighborhood volunteers with bright orange trash cans
and garbage bags in an effort to combat the city’s litter problem. Sunday’s
garbage cleanups took place in Germantown, North Philadelphia, South
Philadelphia, and Kensington. Still, for some of the more than 60 volunteers
spread across Chelten Avenue, one of Germantown’s commercial corridors,
Sunday’s acts of service felt different — carried more weight, even — within
the context of the past year.
https://whyy.org/articles/with-pandemic-and-national-unrest-mlk-day-of-service-takes-on-new-meaning/
“The school district pays more than $4
million per year in tuition for charter school students, he said, and there has
been an increase this year in the number of district students enrolled in cyber
charter schools. The tuition paid is the same, regardless of whether the
charter school student is enrolled in a brick and mortar charter school or a
cyber charter school. The rate for Souderton Area students enrolled in a
charter school is $13,088.69 for regular education students and $32,918.82 for
special education students, Pawling said in answer to an emailed question for
this article. Districts with their own cyber school programs, however,
have shown that the costs are much less than the rates set for the cyber
charter schools, Superintendent Frank Gallagher said. The district's cost for
its Souderton Area Online Academy cyber program is $2,000 to $3,000 per
student, he said. "It has to stop. If we can do it for two or $3,000
properly, there's no reason we should be paying what I think are exorbitant
rates," board President Ken Keith said later in the meeting.”
First look at
Souderton Area School District budget for 2021-2022 shows 3 percent tax hike,
$6.6 million gap
Souderton
Independent By Bob
Keeler bkeeler@21st-centurymedia.com @bybobkeeler on Twitter Jan 14, 2021 Updated Jan 15, 2021
FRANCONIA —
The first look at what will become Souderton Area School District's 2021-2022
budget is a starting point with a lot of work remaining before a final vote in
June, district officials said at the board's Jan. 13 Finance Committee meeting.
That starting point increases property taxes by 3 percent, this year's state
cap, along with showing almost $6.6 million more expenses than revenue,
Director of Business Affairs Brian Pawling said. A three percent tax hike
would be the largest in years for the district which increased taxes .91% for
the 2020-2021 budget and has only had a tax hike of more than 1 percent twice
in the past seven years.
Avon Grove Charter to
host town hall on fair funding
West Chester
Daily Local Opinion by Kristen Bishop Jan 15, 2021
Kristen
Bishop is Superintendent of the Avon Grove Charter School
It is hard
to imagine another moment in history when the importance of education has been
more apparent throughout our communities. It doesn’t matter if your children go
to public school districts, public charter schools, or private schools. It has
never been clearer to see that schools play an essential role in our local
community’s social, economic, and political prosperity and stability. Now is
the time for us adults to come together and collectively problem-solve fair
solutions for our educational system so that we can emerge from this crisis
stronger than ever. Our children depend on it. The Daily Local News printed
an article quoting extensively from Mr. Fisher, President of the Coatesville
Area School District Board. First, Mr. Fisher claims that “Charter schools are
not held to the same standard as public schools, and are not required to
provide the same level of public accountability as a public school district.” Public
charter schools are accountable to the same standard as public school
districts. I would argue that we are held to a higher degree of accountability
because our students choose our schools and can leave at any time if we do not
serve them well.
Over 2,000 Allentown
School District homes to get free internet in partnership with T-Mobile
By MARGIE
PETERSON THE MORNING CALL | JAN 18, 2021 AT 6:00 AM
Allentown
School District is partnering with T-Mobile to make sure children of all
backgrounds have reliable access to the internet, which has become especially
vital during the pandemic as ASD students take classes entirely online. At
Thursday’s school board committee-meeting-of-the-whole held remotely, it was
announced that ASD will tap into T-Mobile’s 10 Million Project, enabling 2,025
households in the district to receive high-speed internet access with wireless
hot spots and free unlimited data. The access plan is expected to be available
to the district for five years. ASD Superintendent Thomas Parker hailed the
partnership as an important step in reducing “the digital divide” in which
well-off students have laptops and consistent internet service while low-income
kids do not.
Wake up. Eat. Zoom.
Repeat: The daily struggle of virtual high school | Opinion
None of us
has to pretend that virtual school is normal or easy.
by Amani
Rivers, For the Inquirer Published Jan 15, 2021
Amani Rivers
is a junior at William Penn Charter School and a participant in the Acel Moore High School Journalism Workshop, which first published a version of this
article.
Wake up, eat
breakfast, join Zoom meetings. Eat lunch, join more Zoom meetings, sleep. Ditto
the following day and the remaining days of any given week. This happens to be
a typical schedule for most Philadelphian high school students who have been
confined to their homes during the global pandemic. For many of us, it can be
stressful to wake up and go through the same uneventful routine each day. As a
junior at William Penn Charter School in Philadelphia, it would be an
understatement to say I have found virtual school difficult. It may not appear
as though high school students have been struggling with online classes, but
remote learning comes with an array of issues, students everywhere feeling the
weighted impact. “People think online school is easier than the actual
experience,” said Anthony Rivers Jr., a junior at LaSalle College High School
in Wyndmoor. “In reality, I would rather wake up every morning and spend eight
hours in a building with 500 people rather than spending eight hours in my room
in front of a computer screen.”
School District of
Lancaster students to return to classroom Jan. 25; virtual options available
Lancaster
Online by ROBYN MEADOWS | LNP CORRESPONDENT January 17, 2021
After months
of virtual instruction, School District of Lancaster students will return to
the classroom on Jan. 25. On Tuesday, the school board approved a plan that
allows students to choose from three options:
1. Attend class in-person for five days a
week for a full day.
2. Learn virtually from home via Zoom
along with students who choose in-person instruction.
3. Enroll in the district’s virtual
school, Cyber Pathways Academy.
The board
split the plan into three separate votes for elementary, middle and high
school.
Pottstown May Delay Return to In-Person Classes
Digital
Notebook by Evan Brandt Friday, January 15, 2021
A hybrid
return to classes in the Pottstown School District may be delayed beyond
January.
During a
school board workshop session Thursday, Superintendent Stephen Rodriguez
updated the board on the latest developments and a majority indicated support
for maintaining the current cyber-learning program through the end of the third
marking period. It was just a straw vote, but a formal vote on the decision is
likely to come at the next board meeting scheduled for Jan. 21. "The cons
are not alleviated enough to justify going back," said Board Vice
President Katina Bearden. "There are too many cons for too few pros"
to justify returning to in-person learning, said board member Raymond rose. In
November, the school board tentatively decided students and staff would not
return to in-person education, with the exception of special education and some
pilot programs, until at least January.
http://evan-brandt.blogspot.com/2021/01/pottstown-may-delay-return-to-in-person.html
Democracy Needs to Be
Taught in School
If ever
there was a moment to revive civics instruction, isn’t this it?
Bloomberg
Opinion By Andrea
Gabor January 14, 2021, 10:00 AM EST
Last week’s
attack on the U.S. Capitol may have been incited by President Donald Trump
and right-wing politicians, but it was supported by millions of their
followers. News reports and public opinion polls make it clear that many Americans believe
evidence-free assertions by Trump and his allies of massive voter fraud in the
November election and their lies about the power of public officials to overturn the result. The riot
was just the latest and most appalling evidence that a wide swath of the
American public doesn’t understand democratic norms. That’s why it should serve
as a sputnik moment for an ambitious revival of civics instruction along with expanded training in news
literacy. Nobody’s claiming that the violent extremism on display on Jan. 6
owes its rise mainly to the decades-long de-emphasis of U.S. classroom civics.
But it should be a clue that civics is too important to relegate to a semester
or two of high school or to sacrifice to other curricular goals. It needs to be
woven throughout the K-12 curriculum and go beyond rote instruction in the
three-branch structure of the U.S. government, how a bill becomes law
and the ins-and-outs of the electoral college.
Allentown School
District to become first in state to take advantage of program using cameras to
catch school bus stop sign scofflaws
By MARGIE
PETERSON THE MORNING CALL | JAN 15, 2021 AT 12:57 PM
Olivia
Clark-Ortiz of Allentown was allowed to stay up past her bedtime Thursday night
to celebrate an important lesson: One person’s fight for change can produce a
powerful good that reverberates across her community and the state. That person
would be Olivia’s mother, Amber Clark, who first approached the Allentown School Board in October 2017 about the problem of speeding drivers
zooming past stopped school buses while children are getting on or off. In one
instance, Clark had to yank her small daughter out of the way as Olivia tried
to board a bus on Allen Street between 14th and 15th streets before
kindergarten classes at Arts Academy Elementary Charter School. That experience
spurred Clark to launch a campaign to get stop-arm cameras on school buses in
Pennsylvania by allowing districts to partner with companies that install and
operate the cameras at no cost to districts. The companies recoup the expense
through fines on the scofflaw drivers that ignore the buses’ flashing lights
and stop-arm. Clark worked with state Sen. Pat Browne, a Lehigh County Republican
who co-wrote legislation establishing the program. Gov. Tom Wolf signed it into
law July 1.
“After decades of federal legislation
that emphasized mandating standardized testing and tying school and teacher
evaluations to the scores; imposing financial austerity on public institutions;
incentivizing various forms of privatization; and undermining teachers'
professionalism and labor rights, there is a keen appetite for a new direction
for school policy.”
Joe Biden has a
golden opportunity to strengthen public education
Alternet by Jeff Bryant January 14, 2021
In picking
Connecticut Commissioner of Education Miguel Cardona to be his nominee for U.S.
secretary of education, President-elect Joe Biden appears to have made a Goldilocks
choice that pleases just about everyone. People who rarely agree on education
policy have praised the decision, including Jeanne Allen, CEO of the Center for
Education Reform, a nonprofit group that advocates for charter schools and
school choice, who called Cardona "good news," and
education historian Diane Ravitch, who also called the pick "good
news" because he does not seem to be aligned with advocates for charter
schools and vouchers. Sara Sneed, president and CEO of the NEA Foundation, a
public charity founded by educators, called Cardona an "ideal
candidate," in an email, and hailed him for "his emphasis on the need
to end structural racism in education and for his push for greater educational
equity and opportunity through public schools."
But as Biden
and Cardona—should he be approved, as most expect—begin to address the array of
critical issues that confront the nation's schools, there's bound to be more of
a pushback. Or maybe not?
John Coltrane - Naima
(Take 2 / Audio) “Blue World”
YouTube 16,676
views •Sep 27, 2019
Music video
by John Coltrane performing Naima (Take 2 / Audio). © 2019 UMG Recordings, Inc.
Check out John Coltrane’s previously unreleased album “Blue World” recorded at
Van Gelder Studios in 1964
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O5JpesJwHE&list=OLAK5uy_kk4jsX5ObgxeKLCuNBxpsP9TFlX0s96Zo
PA SCHOOLS WORK: New
Tools for Public Education Advocates in PA
Thu, Jan 21, 2021
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM EST
PA Schools
Work partner Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials will hold a
digital workshop to roll out their new suite of tools on their Data Dive
website to show parents, educators, and public education advocates how they can
use the site (including interactive data maps and graphic visualizations) when
talking to other members of their community, legislators, media, etc. Don't
miss this first-look at these innovative tools for PA public school advocates!
Register here:
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register
Attend the NSBA 2021
Online Experience April 8-10
NSBA is
pleased to announce the transformation of its in-person NSBA 2021 Annual
Conference & Exposition to the NSBA 2021 Online Experience. This experience
will bring world-class programming, inspirational keynotes, top education
solution providers, and plentiful networking opportunities. Join us on April
8-10, 2021, for a fully transformed and memorable event!
https://www.nsba.org/Events/NSBA-2021-Online-Experience
PSBA Spring Virtual Advocacy Day - MAR 22, 2021
PSBA Website January 2021
All public school leaders are invited to join
us for our spring Virtual Advocacy Day on Monday, March 22, 2021, via Zoom. We
need all of you to help strengthen our advocacy impact. The day will center
around contacting legislators to discuss critical issues affecting public
education. Registrants will receive the meeting invitation with a link to our
spring Virtual Advocacy Day website that contains talking points, a link to
locate contact information for your legislator and additional information to
help you have a successful day.
Cost: Complimentary
for members
Registration: Registration
is available under Event Registration on myPSBA.org.
https://www.psba.org/event/psba-spring-virtual-advocacy-day/
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
339 PA school boards have
adopted charter reform resolutions
Charter school funding reform continues to be
a concern as over 330 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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