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.
These daily
emails are archived and searchable at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
Visit us on Facebook at KeystoneStateEducationCoalition
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg
If any of your colleagues would like to be added to the
email list please have them send their name, title and affiliation to KeystoneStateEdCoalition@gmail.com
Keystone
State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for Feb. 18, 2021
The $1 billion plan
to close the gap between growing and shrinking Pa. school districts
All School Directors: PSBA Monthly Zoom Exchange Feb 18 12:30 - 1:30 PM
Join other PSBA-member school directors for cross-district networking
and discussion on education hot topics, legislative updates and advocacy
strategies. All School Directors: Monthly Exchange will be held via Zoom at
12:30 p.m. every third Thursday of the month, January through June.
Geographic-based breakout rooms will be utilized to allow for discussion among
school directors in the same regions of the state. Learn more or register: http://ow.ly/rW4F50DrrCq
Dover Area School
District calls need for charter school law reform 'urgent'
Erin
Bamer York Dispatch February 17, 2021
Dover Area
School District officials are calling on state legislators to reform
Pennsylvania's charter school law to reduce expenses for school
districts. The school board voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve a
resolution requesting the reform as part of the meeting's consent agenda. The
resolution argues that the current law for charter school funding is
unfair to school districts and calls the need for reform
"urgent." "School districts are struggling to keep up with
growing charter costs and are forced to raise taxes and cut staffing, programs
and services for their own students in order to pay millions of dollars to
charter schools," the resolution said. School districts pay charter
schools tuition for each student enrolled in a charter within the
district. Dover spokesperson Bradly Perkins said his district pays charter
schools about $12,000 per regular education student and nearly $27,000 per
special education student. The resolution said existing charter
school law is unfair because districts pay charter schools based on the
district's tuition rate instead of what the charter needs to educate the
student. The debate over charter school funding has increased over the past
year as enrollment spiked for cyber charter schools during the COVID-19
pandemic.
Charter School
Funding – Examining the 25% Myth
POSTED
ON FEBRUARY 17, 2021 IN PSBA NEWS Video Runtime 1:04
Do charter
schools really receive 25% less funding per student than school districts? In
2018-19, Pennsylvania school districts in total spent over $2 billion in
mandated payments to charter schools. And yet, as the need for charter school
funding reform builds momentum, charter school advocates maintain that the
system disproportionally benefits school districts. Is this an accurate
statement? To unlock the 25% myth, it is important to understand the revenue
and the reasons surrounding charter school funding issues. Watch
this video on the PA Charter Change website to
learn more, and advocate for charter change!
https://www.psba.org/2021/02/charter-school-funding-examining-the-25-myth/
Blogger note: this piece includes an
embedded table: Which school districts benefit from hold harmless, and which
don't
The $1 billion plan
to close the gap between growing and shrinking Pa. school districts
Inquirer by
Cynthia Fernandez, Posted: February 18, 2021- 5:00
AM
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan
newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The
Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters.
HARRISBURG —
When Pennsylvania passed a new formula to distribute money for public schools
in 2016, it was hailed as a major step toward equity and away from an arbitrary
system built on decades-old enrollment data. “Prior to today, Pennsylvania was
one of only three states in the nation without a fair funding formula,” Gov.
Tom Wolf said at the time. “We still have a lot of
work to do in order to restore funding, but we are now closer to resolving the
inequity in Pennsylvania’s school funding distribution.” But nearly five years
later, many
of the disparities it aimed to address remain. Part of the issue: Only a fraction of state
education funding actually goes through the formula, designed to help poor and
underfunded districts. Most of the public school subsidy is distributed using
an approach called “hold harmless,” which guarantees districts never lose state
funding regardless of enrollment changes. An average shrinking district saw
funding increase by $3,200 per student over the past three decades, according
to a January report from Public Citizens for Children and Youth, a nonprofit
led by a member of former Gov. Ed Rendell’s cabinet. Per-pupil funding in an
average expanding district, meanwhile, has grown by just $1,000. More than 80%
of the state’s Black, Hispanic, or Latinx students attend growing school
districts, according to the report. But the hold harmless policy is not solely
to blame for the inequities in the state’s system. Pennsylvania ranks 47th in the nation for the share of
K-12 public education funding that comes from the state, a path that began
after the state stopped reimbursing school districts for 50% of their costs in
the 1980s.
Advocates Gearing Up for Fair School Funding fight
Digital
Notebook by Evan Brandt Wednesday, February 17, 2021
As debate
begins over Gov. Tom Wolf's budget, which includes a massive infusion of
funding for public schools, advocates for fair school funding are gearing up
their efforts to build support, seeing this perhaps as their best chance to
gain ground on the issue. An advocacy group named PA Schools Work held an
on-line tutorial Tuesday on the issue, and how it would be affected by Wolf's
budget plan. First some basics: Pennsylvania currently ranks 47th in the
nation for state funding a public schools. To make that embarrassing statistic
worse, the state's funding also currently favors districts with dwindling white
student populations over districts with growing non-white populations. To
remedy that, Harrisburg adopted a "fair-funding formula" a few years
back aimed at leveling the educational playing field based on things like
community poverty and the number of English-language learners in a given
district. But that act of fairness is undermined annually by the fact that the
formula only applies to a small portion of the state's education funding. This
year, it's 11 percent. Another arcane relic of legislative action is
something called "hold harmless," which means no district, even if it
is losing population, will ever get less state funding than the year before.
http://evan-brandt.blogspot.com/2021/02/advocates-gearing-up-for-fair-school.html
'A perfect storm':
How quarantines, staff shortages and a shrinking substitute teacher pool have
complicated in-person learning
Lancaster
Online by ALEX GELI | Staff Writer February 18, 2021
One day in
early December, Ephrata High School math teacher Kris Miller took a rather
peculiar approach in class. He had his students read an article from a recent
edition of Scholastic News. “Could You Clone Your Pet?” the headline read. Miller
then went around the room and asked students to share their pets’ names and
decide whether they’d consider cloning them. After all, who doesn’t want their
pet to live forever? “Charice? No,” Miller said, uncharacteristically fumbling
on the student’s name. “Charis,” the student said, correcting him. “Charis.
Darn it,” Miller said.
“I used to
have, um, three cats, but now I only have two because one of them died,” Charis
said.
“Oh, that’s
sad,” Miller said. “Did you ever think about cloning your cat?” “No,” Charis
said.
It’s not
every day Miller has such a discussion with his students. That’s because, on
this day, Miller wasn’t teaching math. He was teaching fourth-grade at Highland
Elementary School.
It was part
of a temporary volunteer initiative at Ephrata Area School District to recruit
high school teachers to fill empty classrooms at the elementary and middle
school level. The district was facing a higher amount of teacher quarantines
due to holiday gatherings and out-of-state travel.
While
teacher quarantines and staff shortages were of heightened concern around the
holidays, it’s been a nagging issue for all Lancaster County school districts
this pandemic-plagued school year as administrators think of every possible way
to keep school buildings open.
Philly’s school
reopening was pushed back again
Inquirer by
Kristen A. Graham, Posted: February 17, 2021- 10:51
AM
The
Philadelphia School District has pushed back its reopening date for a third
time.
Superintendent
William R. Hite Jr. said Wednesday 9,000 prekindergarten through second grade
students won’t return on Feb. 22 as planned but will instead go back March 1 amid
an ongoing building safety dispute between the district and its teachers union.
Students had been scheduled to return Monday. The news left him “deeply
disappointed,” the superintendent said. Hite maintains that schools are safe
but said he will not bring children back to classrooms that aren’t ready for
them. Teachers were due back Feb. 8 but, at the direction of Philadelphia
Federation of Teachers president Jerry Jordan, refused to report to school
buildings and have been working from home. City school buildings have been
closed since March.
Philadelphia school
reopening delayed again — this time until March 1
Teachers
union says district ‘made right decision’; still no word from mediator
Chalkbeat
Philly By Johann Calhoun and Dale
Mezzacappa Feb 17, 2021, 10:44am EST
The
Philadelphia school district has pushed back reopening of schools for a third
time, with a new target date for early grades set for March 1, Superintendent
William Hite announced Wednesday. The one-week delay for prekindergarten to
second grade is the latest twist in the district’s third attempt to reopen
school buildings, which have been closed since last March. Hite said he was
“deeply disappointed” to make the decision, which was due to the ongoing
mediation between the district and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. “I
believe we all agree on reopening schools,” Hite said. “The dispute has been
how can we do that safely and the district needs to address that.”
City Council grills
Hite on reopening as return to classrooms stuck in limbo
WHYY By Emily
Rizzo February 17, 2021
Members of
city council pressed School District of Philadelphia Superintendent William
Hite on issues of public trust during a hearing Wednesday on school reopening
plans. The Children and Youth and Education committees hosted the hearing after
Hite announced earlier in the day that a return to classrooms for city
children would
be delayed until March 1 amid a dispute with the
Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. Testimony from Hite and other district
officials lasted almost two hours, as councilmembers raised concerns about
safety and transparency. Councilmember Helen Gym told Hite she’s heard
“consistent articulation of a deep-seated lack of trust that the district has
not made itself immediately available to ordinary families.” She said families
need a “real place” for “questions to be asked and answered,” especially
regarding health and safety issues.
Philly schools should
not reopen until all staff can be guaranteed a COVID vaccine | Expert Opinion
Rhea Powell,
For the Inquirer Posted: February 17, 2021 - 11:55 AM
Rhea Powell
is an internal medicine physician in Philadelphia.
As a
physician and a parent of elementary-aged children, I was eager to read the
recent guidance
from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on strategies schools can use to lower
the risk of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The CDC guidance is an
important step toward reopening schools, and I applaud their attention to
masking, physical distancing, and maintaining healthy facilities. The CDC
recommendations describe vaccination of school staff as an important additional
layer of COVID-19 prevention, yet they stop short of deeming it essential for
in-person school. But here in Philadelphia, vaccination of school staff is
critical for a safe and successful school reopening. Philadelphia schools face
many challenges to implementing the mitigation strategies recommended by the
CDC, particularly those related to maintaining healthy facilities. Our school
buildings were already in urgent need of repair before the pandemic, and now we have an
emergent need: to ensure that schools can support educational activities
without exacerbating the toll that COVID-19 takes on our community.
Unfortunately, there are no quick or easy solutions to create healthy school
facilities in Philadelphia. Fixing our schools requires huge investments in
infrastructure for public education.
Ciresi appointed to
Special Education Funding Commission
Rep. Joseph
Ciresi News Release February 17, 2021 | 2:52 PM
HARRISBURG,
Feb. 17 –
State Rep. Joe Ciresi, D-Montgomery, was recently appointed to the Special
Education Funding Commission, a position recommended by Democratic Leader
Joanna McClinton, D-Phila., and approved by House Speaker Bryan Cutler,
R-Lancaster.
The SEFC, which was established in 2013, reviews and
makes recommendations regarding special education funding in the commonwealth.
Its focus over the last two years has been reviewing the formula that directs
state funding to school districts in Pennsylvania that have the greatest need
for additional resources based upon the cost of each special education
student.
“I am truly
honored by this appointment and offer my gratitude to Leader McClinton and
Speaker Cutler for entrusting me with the responsibility of serving in the best
interest of our state’s special education students and teachers,” said Ciresi,
who was appointed at the beginning of this 2021-22 legislative session to serve on the House Education Committee, as well.
“Ensuring
fair funding of education is one of my top priorities as a legislator, and my
background as a school board member for 12 years has given me insight on
education policy in general and special education in particular. I am ready to
get to work to ensure those school districts with the greatest special
education needs are recognized and funded fairly, since having access to fair
resources is what our students deserve.”
https://www.pahouse.com/Ciresi/InTheNews/NewsRelease/?id=118466
Blogger note: Arthur Dantchick is a
partner of Jeff Yass and steady contributor to candidates supporting school privatization
efforts.
“Kerr, though she identified
herself as a "pragmatic Democrat," did not oppose vouchers, and saw
support from conservative and pro-voucher groups. She
accepted a $15,000 contribution from Arthur Dantchik, a Pennsylvania-based
donor who backs school choice.”
Wisconsin primary
election results: Kerr and Underly advance in DPI race
Rory
Linnane Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
In the
primary race for state superintendent of schools, former Brown Deer
superintendent Deborah Kerr and Pecatonica superintendent Jill Underly declared
victories Tuesday night, pitting them against each other in the general
election April 6. In Milwaukee, four candidates will advance to the general
election for two contested seats on the school board. With some absentee
ballots yet uncounted, Aisha Carr and Dana Kelley led in District 4; and Alex
Brower and Jilly Gokalgandhi led in District 5. Brower and Kelley ran
on a socialist slate together backed by the teachers union.
PIAA notebook: Board
passes motion requiring all participants to wear masks for state playoffs
STEVE
ROTSTEIN Pittsburgh Post-Gazette srotstein@post-gazette.com FEB 17, 2021 6:48 PM
The PIAA
board of directors addressed a number of topics during Wednesday’s Zoom
meeting, including one pressing issue that’s been on everybody’s minds going
into the postseason — mask enforcement. For the upcoming PIAA postseason
tournaments for all winter sports, teams will be required to complete and
submit a COVID-19 screening form and face covering certification form prior to
competing. The screening form will ask participants whether they’ve experienced
any recent COVID-19 related symptoms, and the certification form will allow
schools to list any players who have been granted medical exemptions to play
without wearing a mask. PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi said the forms
will not be required for playoff games at the district level, but will be available
for any schools that wish to use them. “It provides communication between the
schools so they know who has taken the exception, and also that they have
pre-screened all their athletes,” Lombardi said.
Tentative contract
agreement reached, Mars school district and teachers union say
Post Gazette
by Sandy Trozzo, freelance writer: suburbanliving@post-gazette.com.First Published February 17, 2021, 10:24pm
The Mars
Area School Board and Mars Area Education Association have reached a tentative
agreement, according to a joint statement issued by John L. Kennedy, board
president, and Joe Graff, president of the teachers’ union, Wednesday night.
The statement said that both parties will finalize the contract language for
ratification votes within the next couple of weeks. The teachers’ union planned
to strike Friday if an agreement was not reached by then. The two sides had
held 18 bargaining sessions, including a 5.5-hour session Tuesday night.
Is it safe to open
schools? Yes, but ...
Washington Post
By Laura
Meckler, Karin
Brulliard and Brittany
Shammas Feb. 17, 2021 at 7:32 p.m. EST
For months,
school districts throughout the country have struggled with whether and how to
reopen buildings that, in some cases, have been shuttered for nearly a year.
With bullish talk and promised support, President Biden raised expectations
that reopenings would accelerate this spring. The stakes are enormous. Going
back is frightening for many teachers and parents, especially with coronavirus rates remaining at high levels and new
variants of the virus emerging. And yet the negative consequences of all-remote
learning are significant, too. Children are forfeiting academic progress and struggling emotionally. Some parents are unable to work while their
children are at home. But sorting out the science of the matter has been
complicated for administrators and parents. The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention weighed in last week with a detailed set of guidelines that answered many questions but raised
others.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2021/02/17/covid-schools-open/
Join Education Voters
for "PA School Funding and Advocacy 101" for an overview of school
funding issues, an update on the school funding lawsuit and more.
Education Voters
PA February 2021
Click HERE to register for one of our webinars.
Fri, Feb 19, 12:00pm–1:00pm EST
Tue, Feb 23, 7:00pm–8:00pm EST
Questions we
will answer include:
- How are schools funded in PA?
- Who decides how much funding my local
schools get?
- What is the Basic Education Funding
Formula (fair funding formula)?
- Why does Pennsylvania have the widest
funding gap between wealthy and poor school districts of any state in the
country?
- How are charter schools funded and how
can the current system be reformed?
- How can I most effectively advocate for
the school funding students in my district and throughout Pennsylvania's
need and deserve?
We will also
provide a brief update on Pennsylvania's school funding lawsuit, which is
scheduled to go to trial this year. (Visit www.FundOurSchoolsPa.org to learn more!) And we'll have plenty
of time for Q&A. I hope that you'll join us and/or share this invitation with people in your network who are
interested in learning more and getting involved.
Virtual Town Hall on
education fair funding co- sponsored by Avon Grove Charter School and
Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools set Feb. 24
West Chester
Daily Local by MediaNews Group February 6, 2021
WEST GROVE—There
will be a virtual Town Hall Meeting on Fair Funding in Education on Wednesday,
Feb. 24 at 7 pm. The public is invited. The Town Hall is being co- sponsored by Avon Grove Charter School and Pennsylvania
Coalition of Public Charter Schools. Topics include: problem solve fair
funding solutions; learn how public schools are funded in PA.; learn
about the differences between charter & district schools funding.
All are
welcome. RSVP Link - https://forms.gle/8of8ARxr7Zfdfmp97.
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/
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
The 2021 PA
Educational Leadership Summit, hosted by the PA Principals
Association and the PA Association of School Administrators
(PASA), is being held from August 1-3 at the Kalahari Resorts and
Convention Center, Poconos.
PA
Principals Association Thursday, February 11, 2021 8:54 AM
PIL Hours
Available! See links below to register and for further information.
Click here for the informational flyer and details.
NPE/NPE Action
Conference In Philly was rescheduled to October 23/24 due to concerns w/
COVID19.
Network for
Public Education
NPE will be
sending information to registrants very soon!
https://npeaction.org/2021-conference/
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
358 PA school boards have
adopted charter reform resolutions
Charter school funding reform continues to be
a concern as over 350 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/
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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