Daily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now
reach more than 3525 Pennsylvania education policymakers – school directors,
administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, Governor's
staff, current/former PA Secretaries of Education, Wolf education transition
team members, Superintendents, PTO/PTA officers, parent advocates, teacher
leaders, business leaders, education professors, members of the press and a
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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 an endorsing member of The Campaign for Fair Education Funding
Keystone State Education Coalition
PA Ed Policy Roundup for February
6, 2015:
"no
evidence that York
Upcoming Basic Education Funding Commission hearing
scheduled in Dauphin County
PA
Basic Education Funding Commission website
Thursday, February 26, 2015, 11 am Dauphin County, location TBA
School districts budgeting as
though Corbett were still in office
By Margie Peterson Special to The Morning Call February 5,
2015
Tom Wolf rode to victory as Pennsylvania's new governor on a
wave of anger over school funding cuts and his promise to make education a
priority. But local school officials, in
the throes of budget season, aren't exactly dreaming of dollar signs. Instead, they are acting as though Tom
Corbett were still in office, readying 2015-16 budgets that continue to
anticipate flat state funding, tax hikes and more dipping into cash reserves. The reason: School business managers are well
aware that Wolf inherited a state budget deficit of about $2 billion, which
they say is likely to put a crimp in his plans to bump up state subsidies for
schools.
WHYY Radio
Times Friday February 6, 10 am: The ongoing debate over charter schools in Philadelphia
Radio Times with Marty Moss Coan
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6
Hour 1 Guests: Donna Cooper and Mark Gleason
Last year, when the Pennsylvania legislature approved Philadelphia’s
cigarette tax to help fund City schools, lawmakers also required the
Philadelphia School Reform Commission to open the charter school application
process for the first time since 2007. As a result, in recent months, 39
organizations have applied to launch charter schools in the City and the
Commission is in the process of reviewing those proposals. Currently roughly 30
percent of Philadelphia public school students attend charter schools and with
the possibility of their expansion, the contentious debate over charter schools
has been reignited. This morning on Radio Times, we’ll look at both sides of
the issue. Our guests are DONNA
COOPER executive director of Philadelphia
Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY), an education advocacy group which
opposes opening new charter schools and MARK GLEASON,
executive director of the Philadelphia
School Partnership which advocates for charters.
- See more at: http://whyy.org/cms/radiotimes/#sthash.TpHbiSlG.dpuf
Too Good To Refuse?
A closer look at PSP’s
$35 million offer to the School
District of Philadelphia
PhillyMag Citified BY PATRICK KERKSTRA | FEBRUARY
5, 2015 AT 4:00 PM
Yesterday, the Philadelphia School Partnership made what
seemed, at first blush anyway, like an offer too good for the School
District to refuse: $35 million, in exchange for the
authorization of enough new charter schools to educate at least 11,000
kids.
“We are trying to make it cost-neutral for the district, so
they consider the applications on their own merits,” PSP Executive Director
Mark Gleason told the Inquirer’s indefatigable Kristen Graham. The
donation was supposed to “take the cost issue off the table.”
The “cost issue,” if you haven’t been following closely, is the
big financial hit the district takes every time a kid enrolls in a Philadelphia
charter school. Charter enrollment growth is one of the biggest single reasons
the district is in such extreme financial distress, which is why the School
Reform Commission hasn’t granted permission for a new charter school to open in
seven years.
Now, though, the SRC is weighing applications for 39 new
charter schools, and the board is under intense
political pressure to approve at least some of those applications, in
spite of the financial problems that charter growth creates.
Read more at http://www.phillymag.com/citified/2015/02/05/charter-schools-philadelphia-psp-35-million-offer/#A1trifM8HPeSQLtw.99
School district questions
math of pro-charter group
KRISTEN A. GRAHAM AND MARTHA WOODALL, INQUIRER STAFF WRITERS LAST
UPDATED: Thursday, February 5, 2015, 5:50 PM POSTED: Thursday,
February 5, 2015,
The Philadelphia School District says it would cost as much as
$500 million to enroll 15,000 more students in new charter schools - about 20
times more than the amount offered by a private group. The Philadelphia School Partnership this week
announced a gift of $25 million to the beleaguered school system to "take
the cost issue off the table" and encourage the district to consider 39
charter applications on their merits alone.
But were the SRC to actually add those charter seats, the actual price
tag over six years would be much higher.
"A quick review shows that a half a billion dollars is not off the
mark," said the spokesman, Fernando Gallard.
Gift to expand Philly
charters could come with costly strings attached
WHYY Newsworks BY BILL
HANGLEY FEBRUARY 6, 2015
The region's most prominent education reform advocates want to
give the Philadelphia
School District
"It has become clear that cost concerns are hindering the
[School Reform Commission] from making decisions about the charter applications
in the best interest of kids and families," said Mark Gleason, head of the
Philadelphia School Partnership, in a statement announcing the plan.
But critics say PSP's proposed donation would cover just a
fraction of the new costs charters create, potentially adding tens of millions
of dollars annually to the district's expenses.
Follow the money that
accompanies charter school growth: interactive map
Penn Live By Nick Malawskey |
nmalawskey@pennlive.com Email the author | Follow on Twitter on
February 02, 2015 at 11:30 AM, updated February 02, 2015 at 2:31 PM
Below you'll find PennLive's interactive map of campaign
contributions to politicians and their subsequent support of charter schools in
Pennsylvania. Click on
a Donor to see who they are and where they donated. Click on
a Republicanor a Democrat to see what bills they supported.
A second click -- or a click in the open space of the
interactive -- will reset the map.
"Research for Action's analysis of
state data shows that York City School District is home to the highest
concentration of non-English speakers in the state: More than 20 percent of
York City's students are classified as English Language Learners, surpassing
rates for Reading, Lancaster, Allentown, and Philadelphia. And fully one-fifth of York
There's no proof that York's
kids would be better off in a charter district: Lucas Westmaas and John Sludden
PennLive
Op-Ed By Lucas Westmaas and John Sludden on February 05, 2015 at
12:00 PM, updated February 05, 2015 at 12:02 PM
Lucas Westmaas and John
Sludden are Policy Analysts at Research for Action, a Philadelphia-based
nonprofit education research organization.
In Tom Wolf's first weeks as Governor, he is confronted with a
challenge that hits close to home: the future of the York City School District,
which is a court decision away from becoming the first all-charter district in
the commonwealth. Several interest
groups have simplified this debate into a choice between a failed status quo
and a wholly untested district overhaul. Unfortunately, the situation in York
defies such simple categorization.
It is true that the academic performance of York's public schools, as
measured by standardized test results, has consistently been among the lowest
in the state. But test scores don't tell the whole story.
"To be successful, the commission must
develop a plan that reflects the actual cost to educate children with varieties
of needs. The state has set performance standards for schools and students, and
hundreds of districts are struggling to meet them because of inadequate
resources. In districts with large numbers of low-income students, English
language learners, and students with disabilities, funding needs are much
greater. Districts like Philadelphia
Editorial: Wanted – A fair
funding formula
By the Notebook on Feb 5, 2015 10:59 AM
Since last July, a Basic Education Funding Commission has been
collecting testimony across the state, charged by Harrisburg with developing a
rational system for distributing state education aid. Their work is urgently
needed. Not only is current state
funding for most Pennsylvania districts inadequate, it is unpredictable and
subject to political manipulation. And any system that makes taxpayers in poor
districts pay tax rates two or three times higher than in affluent districts
and still end up with less revenue is deeply flawed. The system relies far too
much on local tax dollars.
But simply engineering a consistent way to divvy up existing
state dollars will not resolve the fundamental flaws in Pennsylvania funding.
CBS Philly By Jim
Melwert February 5, 2015 1:23 PM
LOWER MERION, Pa. (CBS) — A hearing was taking place today at a
Montgomery County technical school, held by a group of Pennsylvania state
lawmakers tasked with the goal of coming up with a new formula for
distributing state education funds.
It’s part of an ongoing series of meetings of the Basic Education Funding Commission, created by a 2014 law
with the goal of coming up with a formula for distributing state funds to
school districts.
In attendance today was Shirlee Howe, a mother of three
children in the Lower Merion School District, who said she hopes to convince
lawmakers that state funding fair to all districts is needed as reductions in
state funds have forced districts to hike property taxes.
“The
State cannot continue to hold all students and schools to the same high
academic standards and performance while the basic education funding is so
disproportionately unfair, inequitable and also contributes to the academic
gaps in student’s academic achievement.”
Montgomery County resident Bernadine
Ahonkhai
Montgomery County parents
urge legislators for fair education funding
By Brendan Wills, The Times Herald POSTED: 02/05/15,
3:46 PM EST |
PLYMOUTH>> As members of the Basic Education Funding
Commission met inside the Central Montgomery County Technical High School to
discuss the role of vocational schools in public education, local parents and
faith leaders met outside the school to urge legislators to come up with a fair
funding formula for K-12 public education.
“That there is wide disparity and inequity in the current funding
formula is undisputable, with the most disadvantaged, poorer schools receiving
only about half as much per pupil as their affluent counterparts,” said
Montgomery County resident Bernadine Ahonkhai. “The state cannot continue to
hold all students and schools to the same high academic standards and
performance while the basic education funding is so disproportionately unfair, inequitable
and also contributes to the academic gaps in student’s academic achievement.”
Editorial: Funding formula
for state schools is out of date
West Chester Daily Local Editorial POSTED: 02/04/15, 7:07
PM EST |
New Gov. Wolf has made increasing state aid to public education
one of his priorities, but to do anything about it now would be putting the
cart before the horse. Before the debate
begins in Harrisburg over how much to give the public schools, a decision
should be made on the formula by which the money is handed out. A special commission is looking into the
matter and its recommendations are due in June.
One thing everyone agrees on is that the current method is out-of-date
and unfair. In fact, it isn’t really even a formula. As a recent study from Pew’s Philadelphia
Research Initiative pointed out, Pennsylvania
is one of only three states that does not have a comprehensive school-finance
formula to distribute state money to local school districts.
Still no
question that students at Overbrook aren't being adequately prepared for
Keystones.
Analysis of Resources Available to Students at
Overbrook High School in Philadelphia and B. Reed Henderson High School in West
Chester
Tweet from Senator Andy Dinniman
February 5, 2015
Case Updates: PA School
Funding Lawsuit Oral Argument March 11, 2015
Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia website
Oral argument in our School Funding Lawsuit has been scheduled for March
11, 2015, at 9:30 a.m. in Harrisburg.
We ask that you mark your calendars to attend to show your
support for school funding. This case will be heard before the entire court in
Courtroom 5001 at the Pennsylvania Judicial Center.
We filed this lawsuit in Commonwealth Court on November 10,
2014 on behalf of six school districts, seven parents, the Pennsylvania
Association of Rural and Small Schools (PARSS) and the NAACP Pennsylvania State
Conference against legislative leaders, state education officials, and the
Governor for failing to uphold the General Assembly’s constitutional obligation
to provide a system of public education that gives all children in Pennsylvania
the resources they need to meet state-imposed academic standards and thrive in
today’s world. We are conducting this litigation in partnership with the
Education Law Center of Pennsylvania and a national, private law firm. Click here to learn more about this case.
Williams faces tough
questions on school choice in bid for Philly mayor
WHYY Newsworks BY SHAI
BEN-YAACOV FEBRUARY 5, 2015
Philadelphia mayoral candidate Anthony Williams went to a laid
back monthly meetup above a South Street bar last night to answer voter
questions. But it was state Sen. Williams' position on education that took
center stage. The progressive political
group Philly for Change held its candidates night in a room covered in
graffiti-style writing above Tatooed Mom's, where old bumper cars doubled as
chairs. The buttoned-down Williams seemed a bit out of his element.
"I'm grateful that I was invited here tonight, because
I've never been in this room before," Williams said. Williams has been backed by donors who are
vocally pro-charter and pro voucher and he describes himself as the
"school choice candidate." Not a popular stance with the crowd.
Years later, advocates win
transparency battle with Philly district about school closures
WHYY Newsworks BY KEVIN
MCCORRY FEBRUARY 5, 2015
n 2012, the School District of Philadelphia sought the
long-term planning advice of a management consulting firm hired
with private money to help it chart a plan for the district's long
term fiscal health. The William Penn
Foundation, a major Philadelphia-based philanthropic organization (which provides
funding to NewsWorks/WHYY), provided funding for the Boston Consulting Group to
formulate a strategy that
included finding management efficiencies, negotiating labor savings and, most
controversially, closing schools. The
BCG's recommendations, though, were kept out of the public domain — sparking a
debate about how much transparency should there be when a public entity
formulates its future plans. Last week,
after a years long court battle, transparency advocates declared victory as the
district decided to abandon the legal case and release the long-undisclosed
document regarding school closures.
Fast Action Needed on Public
Pension Reform
PA House republican Caucus 2/4/2015
By State Reps. Warren
It’s an ocean of red – a flood of debt that threatens the financial stability of our school districts for the next 30 years. The news is no better for the state government system. The systems that currently provide state workers and school district employees with their pensions are hemorrhaging. Our state is facing a more than $50 billion debt, and taxpayers are increasingly responsible for the required cash transfusion.
Following the stock market bubble in 2001 that overinflated the investment returns earned on our pension funds, legislators increased the payouts for state and school employees. Subsequent budgets then failed to fund the systems with sufficient dollars to save for those promises. After the market crash of 2008, huge sums were obliterated and the unfunded liability exploded, now totaling more than $50 billion. This is not only unfair, but it’s also unsustainable.
Both of us are working to make fundamental changes to this system so we can move our state and school district retirement systems into the modern times. We need to have a complete or a significant move to a defined contribution or 401(k)-style public pension plan so we can reduce overall costs, pay off debt and shift the risk from taxpayers.
It’s an ocean of red – a flood of debt that threatens the financial stability of our school districts for the next 30 years. The news is no better for the state government system. The systems that currently provide state workers and school district employees with their pensions are hemorrhaging. Our state is facing a more than $50 billion debt, and taxpayers are increasingly responsible for the required cash transfusion.
Following the stock market bubble in 2001 that overinflated the investment returns earned on our pension funds, legislators increased the payouts for state and school employees. Subsequent budgets then failed to fund the systems with sufficient dollars to save for those promises. After the market crash of 2008, huge sums were obliterated and the unfunded liability exploded, now totaling more than $50 billion. This is not only unfair, but it’s also unsustainable.
Both of us are working to make fundamental changes to this system so we can move our state and school district retirement systems into the modern times. We need to have a complete or a significant move to a defined contribution or 401(k)-style public pension plan so we can reduce overall costs, pay off debt and shift the risk from taxpayers.
Haverford school board lends
support to basic ed funding formula
Delco News Network By Lois Puglionesi lpuglionesi@gmai.com Thursday, February
05, 2015
HAVERFORD TWP. >> School directors unanimously
endorsed a resolution board member Larry Feinberg introduced last week, calling
for the General Assembly to take legislative action to establish a basic
education funding formula that is “equitable, adequate, comprehensive and
consistent.” The resolution notes that
the state’s share of funding to public education has decreased from 50 percent
to less than 35 percent, while state and federal mandates increase annually,
forcing local taxpayers to make up the difference. Additionally, the resolution states that the
absence of a reliable, fair and transparent formula has resulted in “great
disparities in how state education funds are distributed to school districts.”
This has harmed school districts’ ability to fairly and adequately provide
resources to meet students’ needs, especially the impoverished and disabled. Feinberg, co-founder and chair of the
Keystone State Education Coalition and chair of the Delaware County School
Boards Legislative Council, also provided an update regarding ongoing efforts
to address the issue.
"Other variables in the budget, which
will be presented to the school board Feb. 10 for adoption, are increases in
health care costs and special education expenses for the district. The 20.7
percent increase in retirement contributions for the coming school year is one
thing that is already set."
Preliminary Boyertown school
budget shows 6% tax hike
By Kaitlyn Foti, The Mercury POSTED: 02/03/15,
10:24 PM EST | UPDATED: 57 SECS AGO
Boyertown >> The Boyertown Area School District is
grappling with a $3.6 million deficit in its preliminary 2015-16 budget. To cover the deficit in the $107.4 million
spending plan without cuts or additional state funding, a property tax increase
of about 6 percent would be needed.
The numbers change drastically between the preliminary and the
final budget, Finance Director David Szablowski pointed out, but this year, the
biggest question mark is Gov. Tom Wolf’s budget presentation scheduled for
March. “Because he’s new, he gets an
extra month to make that presentation,” Szablowski said. “He got elected saying
he wants to provide adequate funding for schools.”
"Politically, the provision could cost
Sen. Alexander the support of some organizations that might otherwise embrace
the overall push in the draft legislation to scale back the federal footprint
on such matters as accountability, teacher quality, and school turnarounds.
Part of the reason: Those education organizations see it as stalking horse for
a full-fledged voucher program."
Red Flags Raised on Plan to
Let Title I Aid Follow Students
Element in ESEA bill
riles up voucher foes
Education Week By Alyson Klein
Published Online: February 3, 2015
Education groups are fighting a proposal on Capitol Hill that
would allow federal funding to follow disadvantaged students to the public
schools of their choice—an idea that school district advocates see as a pit
stop on the highway to Voucherville. The
policy—known as "Title I portability"—is included
in a draft bill to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act introduced by U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, the Tennessee Republican who
chairs the Senate education committee. Under
the proposal, which was also included in an ESEA renewal bill that passed the
House of Representatives with only Republican support in 2013, states would
have the option of allowing federal money for disadvantaged children to follow
students to any public school.
"Charter school critics argue that
charters amount to a privatization of public schools because they are run by
organizations that don’t answer to the public and in some states aren’t
subject to key rules that apply to government agencies, such as open
meetings and public records laws. Advocates for charter schools,
meanwhile, say that charter
schools are unequivocally public schools because they are open to all
children and don’t charge tuition."
Are
charter schools public or private?
Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.),
who is leading the Senate’s effort tooverhaul
the nation’s main federal education law, committed something of an
education-reform faux pas Wednesday morning when he pushed back against the
suggestion that all charter schools are public schools.
“There are some private charter schools, are there not?”
Alexander said, speaking at the Brookings
Institution during an event about school choice.
Charter schools are publicly funded but run independently
by nonprofits or for-profit companies. They enjoy strong bipartisan support in
Washington, and the federal education department treats them as public schools,
but whether they should be called public or private is still a matter
of debate. In calling them private, Alexander — a champion of charters and
school choice — crossed a semantic battle line.
"But as she learned more about the
organization, Ms. Duncan lost faith in its short training and grew skeptical of
its ties to certain donors, including the Walton Family Foundation, a philanthropic
group governed by the family that founded Walmart. She decided she needed
to go to a teachers’ college after graduation. “I had a little too much
confidence in my ability to override my lack of experience through sheer good
will,” she said."
Fewer
Top Graduates Want to Join Teach for America
New York Times By MOTOKO RICH FEB. 5, 2015
Teach for America, the
education powerhouse that has sent thousands of handpicked college graduates to
teach in some of the nation’s most troubled schools, is suddenly having
recruitment problems. For the second
year in a row, applicants for the elite program have dropped, breaking a
15-year growth trend. Applications are down by about 10 percent from a year
earlier on college campuses around the country as of the end of last month. The group, which has sought to transform
education in close alignment with the charter school movement,
has advised schools that the size of its teacher corps this fall could be down
by as much as a quarter and has closed two of its eight national summer
training sites, in New York City and Los Angeles.
EPLC
"Focus on Education" TV Program on PCN - Sunday, February 8 at
3:00 p.m.
Panel 1: Curriculum,
Assessment and Academic Opportunities for All Students
Dr. Richard D. Nilsen, Executive
Director, Pennsylvania Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
Panel 2: Career and
Technical Education
Jackie Cullen, Executive
Director, Pennsylvania Association of Career and Technical Administrators
Dr. Clyde Hornberger, Educational Consultant and Former Director, Lehigh Career & Technical Institute
All EPLC "Focus on Education" TV shows are hosted by EPLC President Ron Cowell.
Dr. Clyde Hornberger, Educational Consultant and Former Director, Lehigh Career & Technical Institute
All EPLC "Focus on Education" TV shows are hosted by EPLC President Ron Cowell.
Campaign for Fair Education
Funding Seeks Campaign Manager
Campaign for Fair Education Funding February 2, 2015
The Campaign for Fair Education Funding seeks a campaign
manager who is a strategic thinker and an operational leader. This position
could be filled by an individual or firm. The manager will lead the day-to-day
operations of the campaign and its government relations, communications,
mobilization and research committees and work in partnership with the campaign
governing board to set and implement the campaign’s strategic direction.
Sign-up for weekly email updates from the
Campaign
The Campaign for Fair
Education Funding website
PA Basic Education Funding
Commission website
Thorough and Efficient: Pennsylvania
Education Funding Lawsuit website
Arguing that our state has failed to ensure that essential
resources are available for all of our public school students to meet state
academic standards.
Sign up for National School Boards Association’s Advocacy Network
Friends of
Public Education http://p2a.co/nsbac
Register
Now! EPLC 2015 Regional Workshops for School Board Candidates and Others
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 2015
Pennsylvania School Board Candidates. Incumbents,
non-incumbents, campaign supporters and all interested voters are invited to
participate in these workshops.
Pittsburgh Region Saturday, February 21, 2015 – 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Allegheny Intermediate Unit, 475 East Waterfront Drive, Homestead, PA 15120
Allegheny Intermediate Unit, 475 East Waterfront Drive, Homestead, PA 15120
Harrisburg Region Saturday, March 7, 2015– 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
Philadelphia Region Saturday, March 14, 2015 – 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, 2 W. Lafayette Street, Norristown, PA 19401
Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, 2 W. Lafayette Street, Norristown, PA 19401
PILCOP: Children with
Emotional Problems: Avoiding the Juvenile Justice System, and What Does Real
Help Look Like?
This session will help you navigate special education in order
to assist children at home not receiving services, those in the foster care
system or those in the juvenile court system. CLE and Act 48 credit is available. This session is co-sponsored by the
University of Pennsylvania School of Policy and Practice, a Pre-approved
Provider of Continuing Education for Pennsylvania
licensed social workers. Click here to purchase tickets
NPE 2015 Annual Conference –
Chicago April 24 - 26 – Early Bird Special Registration Open!
January 4, 2015 NPE 2015 Annual Conference, NPE National Conference
Early-bird discounted Registration for the Network for
Public Education’s Second Annual Conference is now available at this address:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/network-for-public-education-2015-annual-conference-tickets-15118560020
These low rates will last for the month of January.
The event is being held at the Drake Hotel in downtown
Chicago, and there is a link on the registration page for special hotel
registration rates. Here are some of the event details.
There will be a welcoming social event 7 pm Friday night,
at or near the Drake Hotel — details coming soon. Featured speakers will be:
§
Jitu Brown, National Director – Journey
for Justice, Kenwood Oakland Community Organization, Network for Public
Education Board of Directors
§
Tanaisa Brown, High School Senior, with
the Newark Student Union
§
Yong Zhao, Author, “Who’s Afraid of
the Big Bad Dragon?“
§
Diane Ravitch in conversation with
§
Lily Eskelsen Garcia, NEA President and
§
Randi Weingarten, AFT President
§
Karen Lewis, President, Chicago Teachers
Union
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