Daily
postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 1800
Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors, administrators,
legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, PTO/PTA officers, parent
advocates, teacher leaders, education professors, members of the press and a
broad array of P-16 education advocacy organizations via emails, website,
Facebook and Twitter.
These daily
emails are archived at http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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on Twitter at @lfeinberg
For January
18, 2013
Corbett's coming pension fight: altering benefits for current teachers
and state employees
Patriot
News By Donald Gilliland |
dgilliland@pennlive.com on January 17, 2013
Pension
reform isn't the high-profile, headline-grabbing kind of initiative that most
politicians would stake their re-election on, but Gov. Tom Corbett isn't most
politicians. Corbett, who came into
office promising to right the commonwealth's fiscal ship, is not only making
pension reform his signature policy going into re-election, he's betting this
year's budget on it.
The
political danger is two-fold: Real reform risks the considerable ire of nearly
300,000 current state employees and school teachers as well as the unions that
represent them. And the details of pensions, generally, make the average
taxpayer's eyes glaze over.
PASBO: “Eliminating this
windfall would save Pennsylvania taxpayers from paying more than a half billion
dollars over the next six years to charter and cyber charter schools simply due
to projected pension rate increases. The
flawed charter school funding formula produces a windfall to charters and
overinflates the tuition payments paid by school districts to charter and cyber
charter schools. The formula requires school districts to include 100% of state
mandated retirement costs in the tuition calculation, not a district's real
cost. The flawed tuition calculation means that the real cost is twice the
actual net expense to school districts, while section 22 P.S. Section 8535 also
provides that the state shall reimburse charters and cyber charter schools 50%
of their pension costs.”
Elimination of the PA charter school pension “double dip” could
save school districts and taxpayers $50 million per year
Letter to Secretary Tomalis
with cc to Governor Corbett, June 15, 2012 from PASBO, PARSS, PSBA, PLUS and PASA
The tuition calculation
contained in the Charter School Law includes the expenditures for employee
pensions incurred by school districts. As you aware, school districts are
reimbursed for 50% (or up to the aid ratio percentage for poorer districts) of
the cost of providing state mandated pensions. However, school districts are
currently required to use 100% of the pension cost in the charter school
calculation. There is a double-dip in the charter school funding formula since
charter schools are also provided 50% reimbursement for their pension costs.
Philly SRC faces a loud,
angry crowd over school closings
Kristen A. Graham, INQUIRER
STAFF WRITER January 17, 2013 , 10:01 PM
Shouting, waving signs,
and drowning out officials, hundreds of students, parents, and community
members angry at plans to shut 37 Philadelphia
"I have never been
more disappointed in this city as a whole," said Naeemah Felder, parent of
a daughter at Pepper
Middle School
"I want to stay in
my neighborhood, because McCloskey is closest to where I live," fourth
grader Lamar Robinson said. McCloskey
School
"AMY is a unique
school. You will destroy it," said Dennis Dorfman, longtime counselor at
Alternative for Middle Years Program at James Martin
School Penn
Treaty Middle
School
"We know what you
want. Stop privatizing our schools," an audience member yelled.
District officials have
said they must close dozens of schools to save the nearly bankrupt school
system, which has 53,000 empty seats.
Ramos: 'I'd be lying if I said a moratorium
was in any way feasible'
The Notebook by Dale
Mezzacappa on Jan 17 2013
Hundreds of parents, students
and teachers came directly to the School Reform Commission Thursday night to
noisily challenge the District's plans to close 37 schools and reconfigure
dozens more.
Carrying signs, chanting,
shouting and interrupting, the overflow crowd made it difficult for the SRC to
conduct business. More than 80 people signed up to speak, almost all to argue
on behalf of individual schools and many to demand a one-year moratorium on any
closings.
Philadelphia School
Martha Woodall and Kristen
A. Graham, Inquirer
Staff Writers January 18, 2013
The Philadelphia School Reform Commission said
Thursday night that the district's oldest charter school did not deserve to be
renewed because of low test scores and financial problems.
By a vote of 4-0, the commission began the
process of pulling the charter of Community Academy of Philadelphia in
Kensington, established in 1997. A nonrenewal hearing was set for Feb. 25.
Pittsburgh
By Eleanor Chute / Pittsburgh January 17, 2013 12:11 am
The Pittsburgh Public
Schools board Wednesday night approved spending up to $2.4 million in grant
money for consultants to help it "envision" the future. The Fund for Excellence, a local consortium
of foundations, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will each pay $1.2
million to hire FSG, a Seattle firm, to provide "expertise and technical
assistance" as the district works on "envisioning a 21st century
educational delivery model."
Duquesne charter school has 'appeal,' says
state-appointed official
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review by
Rachel Weaver January 16, 2013 ,
10:32 p.m.
The state-appointed financial recovery officer for the embattledDuquesne City School District
The state-appointed financial recovery officer for the embattled
“People have said they really
need a school in town,” Paul Long said. “They want a centerpiece of the
community and to be proud of the education. This is the most helpful way of
doing that.” Long said he is exploring “how to make that work financially.”
Obama Evaluating Early
Childhood Education Push In Second Term
Huffington Post by Joy Resmovits Joy.resmovits@huffingtonpost.com
01/18/2013
Arne Duncan, President
Barack Obama's education secretary, has a slogan that summarizes his tenure and
the view of his mission that he shares with his boss. "Education is the
civil rights issue of our generation," Duncan
….To address these and other
issues, the White House is considering a major step to boost early childhood
education. According to sources close to the administration, Duncan
Tweet Thine Enemy
How “narrowcast” is the
education policy debate?
Education
Next By Michael Petrilli January 17, 2013
People today are awash in news,
commentary, analysis, and opinion. Whereas newspapers used to have a lock on
the “public debate,” the field of play has now expanded infinitely, to
incorporate blogs, Twitter, Facebook, and on and on. Anyone with a good idea, a
flair for writing, and an Internet connection has a shot at influencing public
opinion.
Yet amidst the flood of words
and images, we information consumers are adapting in a predictable, if
unsettling, way: migrating toward sources that share our underlying biases and
prejudices, which is leading to less real dialogue and inevitably to greater
polarization.
From KUOW NPR by ANN DORNFELD January 17, 2013 12:54 PM
Listen
to the Story All Things Considered 4 min 4 sec
An entire school of teachers in
Seattle Seattle
Who’s next?
Gregory Michie is a teacher at a Chicago
SAVE THE DATE: 2013 Pennsylvania
Budget Summit
Many Pennsylvanians have
sent a clear message to Harrisburg Policy Center
for an in-depth look at the Governor's proposal and an update on the federal
budget -- and what they mean for communities and families across Pennsylvania
2013 Pennsylvania
Budget Summit
Thursday, February 21, 2013 ,
9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
HiltonHarrisburg , 1 North Second Street, Harrisburg , PA
Hilton
EPLC 2013 REGIONAL WORKSHOPS
FOR SCHOOL
The Education Policy and Leadership Center, with the Cooperation
of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) and Pennsylvania
Association of School Business Officials (PASBO), will conduct A Series of Regional Full-Day
Workshops for 2013
Pennsylvania School Board Candidates. Registration is $45 and includes
coffee/donuts, lunch, and materials.
Philadelphia Region Saturday, February 2, 2013
– 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, 1605 W. Main Street, Norristown, PA 19403
Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, 1605 W. Main Street, Norristown, PA 19403
Harrisburg Region Saturday, February 9,
2013– 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Pennsylvania School Boards Association Headquarters, 400 Bent Creek Boulevard, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Pennsylvania School Boards Association Headquarters, 400 Bent Creek Boulevard, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Pittsburgh Region Saturday, February 23, 2013 – 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Doubletree Hotel Pittsburgh/Monroeville, 101 Mall Blvd., Monroeville, PA 15146
Doubletree Hotel Pittsburgh/Monroeville, 101 Mall Blvd., Monroeville, PA 15146
2013 PSBA Leadership Symposium on
Advocacy and Issues
April 6, 2013 The Penn Stater Convention Center Hotel; State College, PA
Strategic leadership, school budgeting and advocacy are key issues facing today's school district leaders. For your school district to truly thrive, leaders must maintain a solid understanding of these three functions. Attend the 2013 PSBA Leadership Symposium on Advocacy and Issues to ensure you have the skills you need to take your district to the next level.
April 6, 2013 The Penn Stater Convention Center Hotel; State College, PA
Strategic leadership, school budgeting and advocacy are key issues facing today's school district leaders. For your school district to truly thrive, leaders must maintain a solid understanding of these three functions. Attend the 2013 PSBA Leadership Symposium on Advocacy and Issues to ensure you have the skills you need to take your district to the next level.
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