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, Wolf education transition team members, 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
Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinberg
In 2016-17, taxpayers in Senate President Pro
Tempore .@SenatorScarnati’s school districts in Bradford, Clarion, Clearfield,
Clinton, Elk, Forest, Jefferson, Lycoming, McKean, Potter & Tioga Counties had
to send over $10.7 million to chronically underperforming cybers that they never
authorized.
Berks
County Intermediate Unit 1111 Commons Boulevard Reading, PA 19605
PA Schools Work is organizing in Berks County. We
are looking for advocates to fight for more funding for our students. Agenda
will include detailed information about individual school districts, meeting
with local Berks representatives to share your stories, statewide support for
your efforts and much more. We want to work together to make a difference.
School leaders, parents, community members and local citizens that care about
education are all welcome. Registration starts at 6 with meeting beginning at
6:30. Networking available so bring material to share about your organization
too. If you have any questions, please contact Sandra at smiller@circuitriderforpaschools.org.
Blogger note: Total cyber charter tuition
paid by PA taxpayers from 500 school districts for 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016
was over $1.6 billion; $393.5 million, $398.8 million, $436.1 million and
$454.7 million respectively. We
will continue rolling out cyber charter tuition expenses for taxpayers in
education committee members, legislative leadership and various other
districts.
In 2016-17, taxpayers
in Senate President Pro Tempore .@SenatorScarnati’s school districts in Bradford,
Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, Forest, Jefferson, Lycoming, McKean, Potter and
Tioga Counties had to send over $10.7 million to chronically underperforming
cybers that they never authorized. #SB34 (Schwank) or #HB526 (Sonney) could
change that. Data source: PDE via .@PSBA
Links to additional bill information and several resources have been
moved to the end of today’s postings
|
Austin
Area SD
|
$2,875.00
|
|
Bradford
Area SD
|
$416,092.34
|
|
Brockway
Area SD
|
$149,942.34
|
|
Brookville
Area SD
|
$248,130.96
|
|
Cameron
County SD
|
$467,303.38
|
|
Canton
Area SD
|
$219,358.83
|
|
Clarion-Limestone
Area SD
|
$274,246.66
|
|
Clearfield
Area SD
|
$847,317.65
|
|
Coudersport
Area SD
|
$261,597.67
|
|
Dubois
Area SD
|
$781,498.59
|
|
Forest
Area SD
|
$326,168.02
|
|
Galeton
Area SD
|
$367,370.95
|
|
Jersey
Shore Area SD
|
$729,876.96
|
|
Johnsonburg
Area SD
|
$259,139.74
|
|
Kane
Area SD
|
$146,979.43
|
|
Keystone
Central SD
|
$1,077,260.40
|
|
Northern
Potter SD
|
$67,549.21
|
|
Northern
Tioga SD
|
$423,039.27
|
|
Oswayo
Valley SD
|
$75,472.38
|
|
Otto-Eldred
SD
|
$170,310.95
|
|
Port
Allegany SD
|
$140,633.48
|
|
Punxsutawney
Area SD
|
$1,066,764.18
|
|
Ridgway
Area SD
|
$223,709.93
|
|
Smethport
Area SD
|
$337,873.37
|
|
Southern
Tioga SD
|
$650,426.40
|
|
Saint
Marys Area SD
|
$256,147.70
|
|
Wellsboro
Area SD
|
$472,963.79
|
|
West
Branch Area SD
|
$323,061.45
|
|
Total:
|
$10,783,111.03
|
Has your state
senator cosponsored SB34?
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2019&sind=0&body=S&type=B&bn=34
Has your state
representative cosponsored HB526?
This new Josh Shapiro email speaks volumes about his
future plans | Thursday Morning Coffee
PA Capital Star By John L. Micek April 11, 2019
Good Thursday Morning, Fellow Seekers.
Any interview
with Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro follows a
pretty predictable playbook: There’s a couple of questions about his plethora
of lawsuits against the Trump administration; his ongoing efforts
to implement the reforms included in last year’s bombshell grand jury report
about sexual abuse in six of Pennsylvania’s Roman Catholic dioceses, and,
inevitably, some question about his plans for the future. The last one is
largely pro forma. There isn’t anyone in Pennsylvania politics who
expects that Shapiro, who is 45, and has energy and ambition to
spare, isn’t going to run for something in 2022, when the terms of both
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf and Republican U.S.
Sen. Pat Toomey will be up. Shapiro, who was elected in 2016, is also widely expected to run for a second term in 2020. The smart
money for the future seems to be on Shapiro making a bid
for Wolf’s open seat. Unless Toomey does something
catastrophically stupid between now and 2022, there’s every reason to expect
he’ll run, and probably get re-elected to a third, six-year term (Unless, of
course, current LG John Fetterman gets a case of happy feet,
in which case, all bets are off.).
Is Your School Year Over Already?
Forbes by Peter Greene Contributor Apr 10, 2019, 01:39pm
Depending on which
state you live in, your schools are now, or are about to be, entering testing
season. It's the magical time of year when your schools must subject students
to the annual Big Standardized Test, a narrow slice of testing aimed at reading
and math skills. In most states, the stakes are high, including the rating of
the school itself as well as the professional ratings for the teachers who work
there. And so every spring, schools turn their attention to preparing students
for that test. Fans of the modern test like to argue that these tests are
impervious to test prep, which is true if you think that test prep refers only
to memorizing the specific answers that will be on the test. And it's true that
classic rote memorization is of very little use on these tests. But modern test
prep is not about rote memorization. Test prep involves teaching students to
think like the people who manufacture these tests. Test prep involves learning
the kinds of wrong answers (distractors) that these test manufacturers favor.
In a multiple choice test, distractors are the whole game, the little traps and
tricks that test writers include to "catch" students in particular
sorts of mistakes, so students need to learn what sorts of enticing traps to
recognize and avoid. And while students can't memorize specific answers to
specific questions, they can expect certain types of questions, and so benefit
from practicing those types of questions.
Thaddeus Stevens College celebrates opening of new $23.9M
Greiner Campus, touts impact on local workforce
Lancaster Online by
ALEX GELI | Staff
Writer April 10,
2019
For 19-year-old
Dawson Good, job offers are already flooding in.
Good, a freshman
studying computer integrated machining, is part of the first batch of students
attending Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology’s new 60,000 square-foot,
$23.9 million Advanced Manufacturing Center, also called the Greiner
Campus, in
southeast Lancaster city. School and community leaders from across the county
and state gathered together Wednesday to celebrate the building’s dedication —
and what students, like Good, mean for the skilled worker shortage plaguing the
county, state and nation. “The new center is a model of collaboration between
bipartisan government, industry, and the community coming together to address
an urgent and growing need to meet a labor skills gap … in the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania and across the country,” college President William Griscom said
during the ceremony. Accompanying Griscom on the stage were state Department of
General Services Secretary Curtis Topper, state Sen. Scott Martin
(R-Marticville), state Rep. Mike Sturla (D-Lancaster), former Lancaster Mayor
Rick Gray and major donors Frank and Sharon Greiner, among others, who praised
Thaddeus Stevens’ role in boosting the state’s economy and advocated for
continued state funding.
Penn Hills School District financial recovery plan nearly
complete, details not released
Trib Live by MICHAEL DIVITTORIO | Wednesday, April 10, 2019 11:36 p.m.
A financial plan to
bring the financially struggling Penn Hills School District back in the black
is nearing completion. State financial recovery officer Daniel Matsook has been
working with a special
advisory committee to
craft the extensive plan the past few weeks. It is expected to be submitted to
the state Department of Education by Tuesday, April 23 and approved by the
district at a meeting Monday, April 29. A draft of the plan was submitted to
the school board earlier this month. It includes roughly 70 initiatives designed
to streamline operations, increase revenues and reduce expenses. Board
President Erin Vecchio said officials were instructed not to discuss the
details until its finalized. “Nothing’s going to be finalized until we make
sure the impact of this recovery is not going to hurt the kids in this
district,” Vecchio said. “If it does get to that point, I will make sure we get
a meeting with the (state) secretary of Education. I still believe the state is
responsible for this whole mess.”
ACLU sues McKeesport schools for thwarting Black Student
Union
PITTSBURGH
POST-GAZETTE APR 10, 2019
Students from
McKeesport Area High School have filed a civil rights lawsuit against the
McKeesport Area School District and its superintendent, saying it has denied
them permission to form a club they dubbed the Black Student Union, the
American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania announced Wednesday. According
to the ACLU's release, school administrators "diverted the students by
requiring new conditions and eventually by refusing to approve the club,"
because they objected to its name. The administrators had proposed instead an
alternative club, the McKeesport Student Union, the ACLU wrote, citing a press
report. The students, through the ACLU, said in the statement that they had
"concerns about the way students of color are treated at McKeesport. ...
We feel that the club, which would be open to all students, will be a space for
us to discuss our concerns and then plan to constructively address those
concerns in the broader school community, including with adult leaders.
Unfortunately, administrators keep shutting us down.” The ACLU claims that
state data show that in McKeesport schools, students of color are more likely
to be disciplined than white students.
Princeton report shows correlation between higher black
student discipline and implicit bias
Researchers
combined federal Department of Education records with data collected from 1.6
million visitors to the Project Implicit website to reach their conclusions.
The notebook by Naomi
Elegant April 9 — 11:44 am, 2019
In public schools
across the country, black students experience higher rates of disciplinary
action compared to their white classmates. According to a new report from Princeton University researchers, this disparity is greater in
counties that demonstrate higher levels of racial bias as shown by an ongoing
data-gathering effort called Project Implicit. The report’s authors, Stacey
Sinclair and Travis Riddle, combined federal data from the Department of
Education with data from Project Implicit. The project is run by a nonprofit
organization that collects information about people’s biases by having them
take tests online. The researchers analyzed more than 3,100 counties in the
United States and, using a statistical model, they found a correlation between
higher recorded levels of racial bias and higher disciplinary disparities
between black and white students. “Our research joins a wealth of other
findings suggesting that racial bias is contributing to disciplinary
disparities,” said Sinclair, a professor of psychology and public affairs at
Princeton. “In terms of a policy fix, it’s hard to say what that would be. Our
particular research identifies a relationship between racial bias and
disciplinary disparities, but does not specify the reasons for this
relationship.”
Fox Chapel student one of two in the world to receive
perfect AP statistics score
ELIZABETH BEHRMAN Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette Lbehrman@post-gazette.com APR 10, 2019
A Fox Chapel Area
High School student was one of two in the world to receive a perfect score on
his Advanced Placement Statistics exam last year. Rajeev Godse, a junior,
earned every point possible on the May 2018 test, which is scored on a scale of
1 to 5. He was only one of two students out of more than 222,000 globally who
took the exam to do so. Last month, he received a letter from the College
Board’s senior vice president for AP and Instruction praising his work. “Rajeev
is an incredibly intelligent and talented young man,” said Antoinette Payner,
his AP statistics teacher, in a press release. “Not surprisingly, he picked up
the material quickly, was helpful to his peers and has a natural curiosity for
learning. I am thrilled this amazing feat happened to such a nice student.”
Northampton schools shave $600K off budget, but 2.7% tax
hike persists
By SARAH M. WOJCIK | THE MORNING CALL | APR 10, 2019 | 4:19 PM
Administrators in
Northampton went back to the drawing board after unveiling a 2019-20 school
district budget that would hike taxes by about 4%. Since January, district
officials have carved $653,257 out of the $110 million budget. But judging by
the reaction of Northampton Area School Board members on Monday, there is still
more work to do.
What it means for your taxes
First and foremost
is the issue of taxes. The first draft of the budget included a 3.79% tax
increase, but that’s lower now. Superintendent Joseph Kovalchik on Monday
unveiled a 2.69% tax increase instead. This lower tax hike comes with a 1.45
millage increase, which raises the average borough tax bill by $86.19.
What did they cut?
The lower tax
increase was made possible by a few things:
- About $411,000 in local increases for real
estate taxes and access funds.
- About $389,000 in savings from 10 staff
retirements, which were replaced.
- About $356,400 in savings from reducing
administrative building and department budgets by roughly 10%.
LA teachers join WE caucus convention to talk about
contract negotiations
The caucus plans
to deliver 3,300 signatures to City Council demanding an end to the 10-year tax
abatement.
The notebook by Greg Windle April 10 — 4:14 pm, 2019
Protesters from the
Working Educator's fifth annual convention in 2019 (Photo: WE Caucus)
Fresh off a
successful six-day strike in January, Los Angeles teachers strategized Saturday
with their Philadelphia counterparts, who will soon begin negotiations on a new
contract. The Los Angeles teachers were in town for the fifth annual convention
hosted by the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers’ progressive caucus, called
the Working Educators. The caucus plans to present union leadership with
contract demands of their own. They expect negotiations to begin this fall; the
current contract expires at the end of August 2020. The Working Educators are a
sister caucus of the Power Caucus, which won leadership elections for the
United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) in 2014. “Our strike in LA is part of the
growing movement of educators standing up for our children and fighting back
against the racism of public funding and privatization of education,” said
Georgia Flowers Lee of UTLA. “We learned through our work in LA that when the
community comes together with the union, we are unstoppable.”
DeVos Defends School Choice as Democrats Demand Answers
on Arming Teachers
Education Week
Politics K12 Blog By Andrew Ujifusa on April 10, 2019 3:46 PM
Washington House Democrats who focus on education peppered U.S. Secretary of
Education Betsy DeVos with questions about her vision for school choice, arming
teachers, and federal education law during a lengthy, often confrontational hearing
here Wednesday. Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., the committee chairman, set the
tone when he highlighted the Education Department's core mission of ensuring
equitable opportunities for all students. "Unfortunately under the
president's fiscal 2020 budget, it would be nearly impossible to meet that
challenge," he said. That budget request would cut 10 percent from the
department's $71 billion budget and eliminate 29 programs covering literacy,
educator training, and more, but is highly unlikely to pass Congress. DeVos,
meanwhile, repeatedly stressed that her vision and plans focused on students
not systems, citing the proposed $5 billion Education Freedom Scholarships that
would provide tax credits to support private school tuition, transportation,
after-school tutoring, and other educational services.
Testing Resistance & Reform News: April 3 - 9, 2019
FairTest Submitted
by fairtest on April 9, 2019 - 1:30pm
As annual school
tests get underway in more states, the pace of assessment reform action -- from
opting out to pressing for legislation to roll back testing overkill --
continues to escalate. Add in the fallout from the "Varsity
Blues" college admissions scandal plus renewed interest in overhauling
teacher licensing exam requirements and it's not surprising that the resources
on www.fairtest.org are hosting record visitor volume. Please take advantage of these
free tools, and remember to sign-up allies for weekly news updates at http://www.fairtest.org/weekly-news-signup
Berks County
Intermediate Unit 1111 Commons Boulevard Reading, PA 19605
PA Schools Work is organizing in Berks County. We are looking for
advocates to fight for more funding for our students. Agenda will include
detailed information about individual school districts, meeting with local
Berks representatives to share your stories, statewide support for your efforts
and much more. We want to work together to make a difference. School leaders,
parents, community members and local citizens that care about education are all
welcome. Registration starts at 6 with meeting beginning at 6:30. Networking
available so bring material to share about your organization too. If you have
any questions, please contact Sandra at smiller@circuitriderforpaschools.org.
Electing PSBA Officers – Application Deadline is May 31st
Do you have strong
communication and leadership skills and a vision for PSBA? Members interested
in becoming the next leaders of PSBA are encouraged to submit
an Application for Nomination no later than May 31 to PSBA's Leadership Development
Committee (LDC).
The nomination
process: All persons seeking nomination for elected positions of the
Association shall file with the Leadership Development Committee chairperson
an Application
for Nomination (.PDF) on a form to be provided by the Association expressing interest in the
office sought. The Application for nomination shall be marked received at PSBA
Headquarters or mailed first class and postmarked no later than the application
deadline specified in the timeline established by the Governing Board to be
considered timely-filed.” (PSBA Bylaws, Article IV, Section 6.E.). Application Deadline: May 31, 2019
Open positions are:
- 2020 President-Elect (one-year term)
- 2020 Vice President (one-year term)
- 2020-22 Central At-Large
Representative – includes Sections 2, 3, 6, and 7 (three-year
term)
- 2020-21 Sectional Advisors – includes Sections
1, 3, 5 and 7 (two-year term)
Success Starts Here is a multi-year public awareness campaign
sharing positive news in PA public education.
.@PSBA .@PasaSupts .@PAIU .@PenSPRA1 .@PSEA .@PAPRINCIPALS .@SuccessStartsPA Read more stories and share your own on http://www.SuccessStartsHere.org .
Together we can harness the power of all to make a difference in our schools and communities! Hear from the experts and learn how to advocate! Free breakfast & givewaways. Don't miss out!
Sponsored by Norristown Men of Excellence, The Urban League of Philadelphia & PA Schools Work.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/norristown-parents-students-for-education-tickets-59590097586
PSBA: Nominations for
the Allwein Society are welcome!
The Allwein Society is an award program recognizing school directors who
are outstanding leaders and advocates on behalf of public schools and students.
This prestigious honor was created in 2011 in memory of Timothy M. Allwein, a
former PSBA staff member who exemplified the integrity and commitment to
advance political action for the benefit of public education. Nominations are
accepted year-round and inductees will be recognized at the PASA-PSBA
School Leadership Conference, among other honors.
PSBA: 2019 State of
Education report now online
PSBA Website February 19, 2019
The 2019 State of Education report is
now available on PSBA.org in PDF format. The report is a barometer of not only
the key indicators of public school performance, but also the challenges
schools face and how they are coping with them. Data reported comes from
publicly available sources and from a survey to chief school administrators,
which had a 66% response rate. Print copies of the report will be mailed to
members soon.
All
PSBA-members are invited to attend Advocacy Day on Monday, April
29, 2019 at the state Capitol in Harrisburg. In addition, this year PSBA
will be partnering with the Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units
(PAIU) and Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (PASA) to
strengthen our advocacy impact. The focus for the day will be meetings with
legislators to discuss critical issues affecting public education. There is no
cost to attend, and PSBA will assist in scheduling appointments with legislators
once your registration is received. The day will begin with a continental
breakfast and issue briefings prior to the legislator visits. Registrants will
receive talking points, materials and leave-behinds to use with their meetings.
PSBA staff will be stationed at a table in the main Rotunda during the day to
answer questions and provide assistance. The day’s agenda and other
details will be available soon. If you have questions about Advocacy Day,
legislative appointments or need additional information, contact Jamie.Zuvich@psba.org Register for
Advocacy Day now at http://www.mypsba.org/
PSBA members can register online now by logging in to myPSBA. If you
need assistance logging in and registering contact Alysha Newingham, Member
Data System Administrator at alysha.newingham@psba.org or call her at (717)
506-2450, ext. 3420
Join A Movement that Supports our Schools & Communities
PA Schools Work website
Our students are in classrooms that are underfunded and overcrowded. Teachers are paying out of pocket and picking up the slack. And public education is suffering. Each child in Pennsylvania has a right to an excellent public education. Every child, regardless of zip code, deserves access to a full curriculum, art and music classes, technical opportunities and a safe, clean, stable environment. All children must be provided a level chance to succeed. PA Schools Work is fighting for equitable, adequate funding necessary to support educational excellence. Investing in public education excellence is the path to thriving communities, a stable economy and successful students.
http://paschoolswork.org/
Save the Date: PARSS Annual Conference May 1-3, 2019
Wyndham Garden Hotel, Mountainview Country Club
Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools
https://www.parss.org/Annual_Conference
PSBA Tweet March
12, 2019 Video Runtime: 6:40
In this installment of #VideoEDition, learn about legislation
introduced in the PA Senate & House of Representatives that would save millions
of dollars for school districts that make tuition payments for their students
to attend cyber charter schools.http://ow.ly/RyIM50n1uHi
PSBA Summaries of Senate Bill 34 and House Bill 526
PSBA Sample Board Resolution in Support of Statewide
Cyber Charter School Funding Reform
PSBA Sample Board Resolution in Support of Senate Bill 34
and House Bill 256
How much could your school district and taxpayers save if
there were statewide flat tuition rates of $5000 for regular ed students and
$8865 for special ed.? See the estimated savings by school district here.
Education Voters PA
Website February 14, 2019
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billInfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2019&sind=0&body=S&type=B&bn=34
Has your state representative cosponsored HB526?
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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