Daily postings from the Keystone State Education
Coalition now reach more than 3060 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school
directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers,
Governor's staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, PTO/PTA
officers, parent advocates, teacher leaders, 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
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These daily emails are archived and searchable at
http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.org
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The Keystone State Education Coalition is
pleased to be listed among the friends and allies of The Network for Public Education. Are you a member?
The Top Five Reasons Your State Senator Should Oppose
SB 1085
SB1085
Advocacy Alert:
The legislature returns to
work today. Please contact your PA state
senator ASAP to express concerns with SB1085 Charter Reform bill.
Charter reform should not
diminish accountability and local control over the expenditure of tax dollars.
Contact
info here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/member_information/contact.cfm?body=S
If you have a few more
minutes to spare please consider also contacting Senate Majority Leadership:
In New
Jersey
Did you catch our weekend posting?
PA Ed Policy Roundup for January 11, 2014 :
If Pennsylvania
was still following the school funding formula enacted in 2008, an additional
$2 billion would be available to help all of Pennsylvania
http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2014/01/pa-ed-policy-roundup-for-january-11.html
"The governor wants to put more
money in public education, and I think that's something you're going to hear
about in the budget," Zogby said. "Everybody
looks at the individual line items," Zogby said. "And then you get
into education, it's always of interest — how much is coming to my school districts?
Every lawmaker wants a spreadsheet."
Corbett
budget speech to kick off months of talks
Pennlive.com By The Associated
Press on January
11, 2014 at 11:00 AM
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The annual Harrisburg
ritual known as the governor's budget address is about to bring Pennsylvania's
power elite to the state House chamber for the chief executive to review his
record in office, lay out policy priorities and unveil his proposal for the coming
year's spending. This year's speech will
be given by a Republican incumbent with a fairly extensive record behind him
and a nine-month re-election campaign in front of him. He also faces low
popularity ratings, a challenging revenue forecast and a pack of would-be
Democratic candidates nipping at his heels.
When Gov. Tom Corbett climbs the dais in about three weeks to deliver
his fourth budget address, he might be wondering if what he is about to say
will either seal political defeat in November or send him on to a second term.
Liquor sales, pensions are top issues on agenda
By Karen Langley / Post-Gazette Harrisburg January 12, 2014
11:38 PM
“Time spent at Radnor High underscores the gap that moved Hughes:
the dichotomy between Philadelphia and strong
suburban districts such as Lower Merion ,
Council Rock, and Tredyffrin/Easttown.
It's the difference between students with constant access to counselors
and nurses and students without those services always guaranteed; between a
school with myriad after-school opportunities and those with few; between
teachers with ample supplies and those who have to go begging for copier
paper.”
At
Radnor High, a look at 'what schools should be'
KRISTEN A. GRAHAM, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER Sunday,
January 12, 2014 ,
2:02 AM
RADNOR Jillian Hughes attends a public school
with 22 Advanced Placement courses, 96 percent of students going on to college
or trade school, and a sense of community so strong that 300 students formed a
club just to turn up and cheer at school sporting events. "We have everything we need,"
Hughes, 15, said of Radnor High. Moved
by the Philadelphia School District 's extraordinary budget crunch and the
wide gulf between her own education and that of city students, Hughes recently
gathered and distributed supplies for pupils at one Philadelphia
By Eleanor Chute / Pittsburgh January 12, 2014 11:37 PM
After the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
awarded Pittsburgh Public Schools $40 million in 2009 to help improve teacher
quality, the district and its teachers have received national attention for
working together. Now the two sides have
been at an impasse for months over scores to be used to determine teacher
ratings -- distinguished, proficient, needs improvement and failing -- in a new
teacher evaluation system going into effect this school year.
The ongoing dispute in a portion of the
Empowering Effective Teachers initiative has raised some concerns about the
future of the Gates grant, but Gates spokeswoman Deborah Veney Robinson said
last week, "We have not said we're considering pulling the grant."
Holocaust
education in Pa.
Philly.com Opinion by Ilene Munetz Pachman
Sunday, January
12, 2014 , 2:02 AM
is a writer and retired teacher in Bucks
County who helped lead the successful effort to honor Raoul Wallenberg with a
commemorative U.S. postage stamp The
Pennsylvania Senate could vote as early as Monday on a potentially historic
piece of legislation, the newly amended bill to mandate Holocaust education. Nearly 70 years after the Nazi death camps of
World War II were liberated, and with genocide still occurring in our explosive
world, it's past time for our educators to teach the lessons of the Holocaust.
In fact, it's the precise time for our State Senate to pass the bill (which
would return to the House, where the legislative language has been weaker) and,
hopefully, finally - a wonderful prospect - get it before Gov. Corbett for his
signature.
On Dec. 9, the Senate Appropriations Committee
changed the language in the bill, from may teach the Holocaust
back to shall. The amended legislation echoes earlier bills
proposed by State Rep. Brendan Boyle (D., Phila.) and State Sen. Anthony Hardy
Williams (D., Phila.). When House Republicans voted down Boyle's bill, State
Rep. Paul Clymer (R., Bucks) proposed the compromise that did not mandate
Holocaust education.
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20140112_Holocaust_education_in_Pa___A_must__not_a_may.html#PsWT5O79MhBOXdwi.99
Feeding
the Edu-Tech beast
Tribune-Review Commentary By Michelle
Malkin Sunday, Jan.
12, 2014 , 9:00 p.m.
The Common Core school standards' gold rush is on. Apple, Pearson, Google, Microsoft and Amplify all are cashing in on the federal one-size-fits-all standards/testing/textbook racket. But the Edu-Tech boondoggle is no boon for students. It's more squandered tax dollars down the public school drain. Even more worrisome: The stampede is widening a dangerous path toward invasive data mining. According to the Silicon Valley Business Journal, the Edu-Tech sector “is expected to more than double in size to $13.4 billion by 2017.” That explosive growth is fueled by Common Core's top-down digital learning and testing mandates.
The Common Core school standards' gold rush is on. Apple, Pearson, Google, Microsoft and Amplify all are cashing in on the federal one-size-fits-all standards/testing/textbook racket. But the Edu-Tech boondoggle is no boon for students. It's more squandered tax dollars down the public school drain. Even more worrisome: The stampede is widening a dangerous path toward invasive data mining. According to the Silicon Valley Business Journal, the Edu-Tech sector “is expected to more than double in size to $13.4 billion by 2017.” That explosive growth is fueled by Common Core's top-down digital learning and testing mandates.
Read more: http://triblive.com/opinion/featuredcommentary/5380653-74/google-district-common#ixzz2qH40hWN8
In
New Jersey
Philly.com by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Friday, January
10, 2014 , 8:20 PM
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/new_jersey/20140110_ap_f43833af9f104ab7a378c305ffd71ed9.html#mstRTUWGgkSVrHff.99
‘The
Procedure’ and how it is harming education
Do you know what “The Procedure” is and why it
is a problem for education? Here to explain is Marion Brady, a veteran
classroom teacher, who has written history and world culture textbooks
(Prentice-Hall), professional books, numerous nationally
distributed columns (many are available here),
and courses of study. His 2011 book, “What’s
Worth Learning,” asks and answers this question: What knowledge is
absolutely essential for every learner? His course of study for secondary-level
students, called “Connections: Investigating Reality,” is free
for downloading here. Brady’s website is www.marionbrady.com.
The
Civil Rights of Children
New York Times By THE EDITORIAL BOARDJAN. 11,
2014
Most school officials try to apply
disciplinary policies fairly and in compliance with federal laws that forbid
racial discrimination. Even so, a large and troubling body of data — some if it
gathered by the federal government — shows that black and Hispanic students are
disproportionately and unjustifiably subjected to suspension, expulsion or even
arrest for nonviolent offenses that should be dealt with in the principal’s
office. As a result, minority children
who are already at greater risk of dropping out are being ejected from school
and denied the right to an effective public education.
Come
to Harrisburg
Show your School Spirit with PCCY!
In 25 days the Governor will introduce his
budget plan for 2014-2015. Based on past performance, the next budget may
do little to meet the needs of Pennsylvania Philadelphia
and the surrounding counties of Bucks, Chester , Delaware and Montgomery Harrisburg
Click here to sign-up and get details. For more
information please email Shanee Garner-Nelson at shaneeg@pccy.org.
NAACP:
Public Discussions Scheduled on PA Charter
School 12:30
pm Media PA.
NAACP Press Release January 9, 2014
Open and public discussion of PA Senate Bill
1085, a charter school expansion plan now due third consideration in the PA
General Assembly, will be held on January 18, 2014 in the community room of Campbell AME
Church , at 3rd and Olive Streets in Media , PA. 2:00 PM . A light lunch will be available between 12:30
and 1:00 PM “Local
control of public education through the elected school board is under threat
for each of the 500 school districts in Pennsylvania Garnett
Valley
A panel of informed education experts has been
assembled to enlighten the public concerning the contents and implications of
SB 1085. Sue Tiernan, school board member from West
Chester Area School District and David Lapp of the Education Law Center
More info contact:
Bettie McClairen at Urban_parent@yahoo.com
2014
PA Gubernatorial Candidate Plans for Education and Arts/Culture in PA
Education
Policy and Leadership
Center
Below is an alphabetical list of the 2014 Gubernatorial Candidates and
links to information about their plans, if elected, for education and
arts/culture in Pennsylvania
2014 PICASSO PROJECT SCHOOL AWARDS
Representatives
from winning schools and partner organizations are invited to join us for the
grants award ceremony on Monday, January 27, 2014 at the World
Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut
Street 6:00pm . RSVP to
info@pccy.org or call 215-563-5848 x11.
January
24th – 26th, 2014 at The Science
Leadership Academy
in Philadelphia
EduCon is
both a conversation and a conference.
It is an
innovation conference where we can come together, both in person and virtually,
to discuss the future of schools. Every session will be an opportunity to
discuss and debate ideas — from the very practical to the big dreams.
FEBRUARY 1ST, 2014
The DCIU Google Symposium is an opportunity for teachers,
administrators, technology directors, and other school stakeholders to come
together and explore the power of Google Apps for Education. The
Symposium will be held at the Delaware County Intermediate Unit. The Delaware
County Intermediate Unit is one of Pennsylvania
NPE National Conference
2014
The Network for Public Education November 24, 2013
The Network for Public Education is pleased to announce our
first National Conference. The event will take place on March 1 & 2, 2014
(the weekend prior to the world-famous South by Southwest Festival) at The University of Texas
at Austin
In the coming weeks, we
will release more details. In the meantime, make your travel plans and click
this link and submit your email address to receive updates about the NPE
National Conference 2014.
The National School Boards Association 74th Annual
Conference & Exposition April 5-7, 2014 New Orleans
The National School Boards Association 74th Annual
Conference & Exposition will be held at the Ernest
N. Morial
Convention Center in New Orleans , LA. New Orleans
General
Session speakers include education advocates
Thomas L. Friedman, Sir Ken Robinson, as well as education innovators Nikhil
Goyal and Angela Maiers.
We have more than 200 sessions planned!
Colleagues from across the country will present workshops on key topics with
strategies and ideas to help your district. View our Conference
Brochure for highlights on sessions and
focus presentations.
·
Register
now! – Register for both the conference and housing using our online
system.
·
Conference
Information– Visit the NSBA conference website for up-to-date information
·
Hotel
List and Map - Official NSBA Housing Block
·
Exposition
Campus – View new products and services and interactive
trade show floor
Join the National
School Boards
Action Center
Participate in a voluntary network to urge your U.S. Representatives and Senators to support
federal legislation on Capitol Hill that is critical to providing high quality
education to America
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