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
HOUSE EDUCATION COMMITTEE
MEETING
Monday, May 13,
2019 11:30 AM Room 205 Ryan Office
Voting meeting on
HB 355, HB 356, HB 357, HB 358 and any other business that may come before the committee.
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 House Ed Committee
member Mark Gillen’s school districts in Lancaster and Berks Counties had to
send over $4.3 million to chronically underperforming cybers that they never
authorized. #SB34
(Schwank) or #HB526 (Sonney) could change that.
Data source: PDE via .@PSBA
|
Eastern
Lancaster County SD
|
$704,642.48
|
|
Exeter
Township SD
|
$951,270.29
|
|
Governor
Mifflin SD
|
$922,173.52
|
|
Twin
Valley SD
|
$794,636.99
|
|
Wilson SD
|
$681,027.28
|
|
Wyomissing
Area SD
|
$267,293.44
|
|
|
$4,321,044.00
|
Has your state
representative cosponsored HB526?
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
HB800: Pa. private school tax credit may get boost after
two-day debate
WHYY By Katie Meyer, WITF May 8, 2019
The state House has
passed a contentious proposal that would boost scholarships for private school
students. The amount of money up for debate wasn’t huge by the Capitol’s
standards. But lawmakers saw the bill as a symbol of the tension between
funding public and private schools. The measure would increase funds for the
Education Improvement Tax Credit by $100 million — nearly doubling the amount
available —and include an automatic 10% increase if it’s all used. The
money goes to businesses that donate to scholarships and similar programs for
private school students. Floor debate stretched over two days. Opponents, like
Luzerne County Democratic Representative Jim Carroll, said it’s unfair to put
so much money toward private schools when the proposed increase for public
schools is relatively small. “I’m hopeful the supporters of this proposal are
equally supportive of additional funds beyond $200 million for basic
education,” he said. “How about special ed?” The proposal would also increase
the salary cap for recipients’ parents, from $85,000 to $95,000 annually. It’s
sponsored by Republican House Speaker Mike Turzai, who argued it’s about school
choice. “There’s only one monopolistic school system that should be allowed in
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania?” he asked sarcastically. “Oh, there’s freedom.”
The plan passed on a mostly party-line vote and now goes to the Senate.
Letter: ELC Opposes PA House Bill 800, Funding Private
School Vouchers
Education Law
Center Website
April 26, 2019
Democratic Chairman James R. Roebuck, Jr. House Education Committee 209 Irvis
Office Building Harrisburg, PA 17120
Dear Chairman
Roebuck: As advocates for high-quality public education for all children in
Pennsylvania, we write with grave concerns about House Bill 800, an
ill-conceived funding plan for private school vouchers that would also benefit
religious schools. The bill would provide a massive funding increase for the
Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) this year, nearly doubling the
current allocation for the program and automatically increasing annual funding
by 10% each year thereafter. By increasing the business tax reductions that can
be diverted to private/religious schools and lowering General Fund revenue
available to support public education, the bill would take the Legislature
further from its constitutional obligation to support and fund the
Commonwealth’s public schools.
We advocate on
behalf of the students most in need of quality educational options in their
communities – children living in poverty, children of color, children in the
foster care and juvenile justice systems, children with disabilities, English
learners, LGBTQ students, and children experiencing homelessness. These students
are the most harmed by the inadequate state funding of our public schools.
Existing tax credit programs provide millions of dollars in tuition assistance
for families whose children attend elite, expensive private schools and private
religious schools, and HB 800 would increase the income limit for families to
qualify to as high as $125,000 for a family with two children. In addition,
Pennsylvania law allows private schools to discriminate against students,
including for their disability, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and
gender identity/expression, leaving marginalized students shut out with limited
protections should they attend these schools.
With public schools
so inadequately and inequitably funded that rich districts with their own
resources have a third more funding per student than poor districts, we urge
the Legislature to focus attention on fixing our public education funding,
rather than further devastating it through tax credit vouchers. We strongly
urge you to oppose HB 800.
Respectfully
submitted, Deborah Gordon Klehr, Executive Director Reynelle Brown Staley,
Policy Director
Who should pay for Pa. students to attend cyber charter
schools? SCASD board weighs in
Centre Daily Times BY
DAVID KAPLAN May 7, 2019
The State College
Area School District wants to stop paying money to cyber charter schools within
the district’s borders, but some local parents say that will hurt more students
than it will help. On Monday, SCASD’s Board of Directors unanimously approved a
resolution to support Senate Bill 34 and House Bill 526, which would end public
school district payments to cyber charter schools.
Parents of students at cyber charter schools concerned
they'll have to pay
WTAJ By: David Kaplan Posted: May 07, 2019 12:02 AM EDT
Monday night, the
State College Area School District voted on a resolution that will go to state
legislature. The State College Area School District wants to stop paying money
to cyber charter schools within the district's borders, but some local parents
say that will hurt more students than it will help. Monday night, the State
College Area school district unanimously approved a resolution to support
senate bill 34 and house bill 526, which would end public school district
payments to cyber charter schools. The district says right now they're required
to pay 14,000 per student to cyber charter schools to cover costs for students
that live in the district, but don't attend public school. They also have to
pay 29,000 per year for special needs students attending cyber charter schools.
In all, that's costing the public schools about $800,000 every year. Randy
Brown, Finance and Operations Manager, for the State College Area School
District, says if the bills pass and they don't have to pay cyber charter
schools, they could use that money for needed areas in their schools. "Additional
psychologists, some counselors, some social workers, as well as expanding some
additional technology opportunities," Brown said.
The struggles in Harrisburg’s public schools are a
symptom of Pa.’s neglect for education |
Opinion By Capital-Star Op-Ed
Contributor Jill Sunday
Bartoli May 10, 2019
Jill Sunday
Bartoli, a longtime substitute teacher in the Harrisburg schools, is a former
professor at Elizabethtown College. She writes from Carlisle, Pa.
It’s been with
great sadness recently that I’ve read arguments that the Harrisburg School
District is dragging down the rest of Pennsylvania’s capital city. I’ve spent
the last six years as a substitute teacher at Harrisburg High School. And
I have had the opportunity to meet so many excellent, dedicated teachers and
talented, creative students at both the John Harris and SciTech campus. Their
successes and achievement have been in spite of our legislators’ refusal to
fully fund their schools, and in spite of the racially tinged negative
portrayals of their schools by the media and the public. The research is clear
that economic factors affect student achievement on standardized tests. It is
equally clear that that poverty and homelessness drive failure rates and
produce lower grades. The quality and existence of affordable housing, family
sustaining jobs, transportation, good healthcare, healthy food, opportunities
for high quality early childhood education and after school programs, mental
health supports for children and parents all affect school achievement.
Letter: Poorer school districts are underfunded in
Pennsylvania
Pottstown Mercury
Letter May 8, 2019
Signed by The Spiritual and Faith Leaders in and around Pottstown: Laura
Johnson, Proximity Church; Tim Doering, Netzer; Bishop Michael Anthony, Heart
of God Family Worship Center; Rev. Dr. Vernon Ross Jr., Bethel Community Church
of Pottstown; Rev. Patricia Gosher, First United Methodist Church; Rev. Dr.
Marcia B. Bailey, First Baptist Church; Julia Katz, president, Congregation
Hesed Shel Emet, Pottstown; Rev. Mary Etta Mest, Visitation Pastor with First
Baptist, Pottstown and Falkner Swamp UCC, Gilbertsville; Sharon L. Smith, St.
James Lutheran Church; Rev. Frances Chester, Falkner Swamp Reformed United
Church of Christ, Gilbertsville; David Hakes, Daybreak Community Church;
Jessica Clemmer, Proximity Church; Rev. Garrison R. Lockley, Bethel AME Church,
Pottstown; Pastor Kork Moyer, Still Waters Grace Brethren Church and The
Ministries at Main Street Homeless Ministries; Rev. Joshua M. Caler, Christ
Episcopal Church; Josh Detweiler, Morning Star Pottstown; Rev. David Castro
Jr., Casa de Oracion A/G (House of Prayer Church); Pastor Joseph J. Terreri,
Connection Church; Lisa Heverly, Operation Backpack; Pastor Joseph L. Maloney,
Saint Aloysius Roman Catholic Parish; Pastor Reggie Brooks, Victory Christian
Life Center.
This is a letter to
be sent to Pennsylvania Legislators.
As faith leaders in
the Pottstown borough and surrounding area, we care deeply about the well-being
of our community. We recognize that while all people have been created equal,
they don’t all receive equal opportunities to succeed. Often, issues of
multi-generational poverty, systemic racism and political indifference toward
these communities mean that some children grow up with a significant lack of
opportunities. This has certainly been the case for the children in Pottstown,
which has struggled for years with a number of socio-economic challenges.
Notably among these challenges has been the issue of school funding. Recognizing
that while Pennsylvania has a formula to direct state education funds to local
school districts in an equitable way, the formula is only applied to a small
fraction of the education budget. This has resulted in the Pottstown School
District being underfunded by over $13 million every year. To add insult
to injury, the way in which the non-formula funds are dispersed significantly
favors majority white schools over schools with a greater minority population
such as Pottstown. This is deeply troubling and we believe it must be
addressed. With this in mind, we call on our state leaders to apply the Fair
Funding Formula to the entire basic education budget. The children of
Pottstown, along with the rest of the 52 percent of Pennsylvania children who
live in underfunded districts, deserve to be supported with an equitable
investment that accounts for their needs. When we invest in kids’ lives and
their education, the payoff is tremendous for decades to come. We will see more
hopeful communities, spiritually and physically healthier individuals, a
prepared workforce and reduced crime and incarceration.
State ed board backs changes to school start, dropout
ages
Penn Live By The Associated Press Posted May 9, 4:06 PM
HARRISBURG, Pa.
(AP) — Pennsylvania’s State Board of Education is giving its support to
proposals by Gov. Tom Wolf to require students start schooling by age 6 and
continue until they’re at least 18. The board voted unanimously Wednesday for
the Democratic governor's proposals that he unveiled in February. The
Republican-controlled Legislature still must approve the proposals for them to
take effect. The Wolf administration says lowering the mandatory start age from
8 to 6 would affect about 3,300 children. Officials say only one other state
allows parents to keep children out of school until age 8, a policy Pennsylvania
adopted in the late 19th century. Pennsylvania’s
minimum age to drop out of school is currently 17. The administration says
nearly 14,000 students drop out without graduating every year in Pennsylvania.
https://www.pennlive.com/news/2019/05/state-ed-board-backs-changes-to-school-start-dropout-ages.html
“The audit began with a check of each
school’s website, DePasquale said. None had their child abuse reporting
policies posted online, not even the cyber schools, he said. Auditors then
called each school, DePasquale said, to determine how they could contact each
CEO or school board president. Some schools were reluctant to provide auditors
with email addresses for top officials and some administrative staff members
refused to provide their names to auditors, DePasquale said, noting the stark
difference between the difficulty of reaching those officials and public school
district officials.”
Majority of cyber and charter schools lacked updated
child abuse reporting policies: Auditor General
Penn Live By Christine Vendel |
cvendel@pennlive.com Updated May
9, 3:05 PM; Posted May 9, 11:01 AM
A review of 179
cyber and charter schools found most of them did not have updated policies on
reporting child abuse, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale announced Thursday. “Protecting
children from abuse is among the highest priorities and a critical function of
state government,” DePasquale said at a 10 a.m. news conference at the Capitol.
“I want to make sure every school does their part to stop abuse when and where
they can.” The audit found the majority of public charter and cyber schools did
not have updated policies until DePasquale’s team contacted the schools. Many
of those schools then updated their policies but 26 schools had not by the
Auditor General’s timeline. Nine schools flatly ignored the auditor general,
DePasquale said. Cyber and charter schools educate 140,000 students each year. The
Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools greatly assisted with the
audit, DePasquale said. Ana Meyers, executive director of the coalition, said
the group encourages charter schools to follow the law and “most of them are
doing a great job at it.” Meyers said most schools responded to auditors and 80
percent eventually showed they had the appropriate policies in place. “I also
believe this audit has been an important reminder for 100 percent compliance,
which is what our schools always strive to reach,” she said.
Pottstown schools looking at music cuts to balance budget
Pottstown Mercury
by Evan Brandt
ebrandt@21st-centurymedia.com @PottstownNews on Twitter 23 hrs ago
POTTSTOWN —
The state's chronic under-funding of the Pottstown School District may soon
force some unpopular decisions by the school board. According to Pennsylvania's
Fair Funding Formula, Pennsylvania should be providing $13 million more than it
currently does each year to the Pottstown School District. The
reasons state lawmakers do not have more to do with politics than policy. As a result of that, and the
pledge the school board made in December to stay within the 3.3 percent tax
hike allowed this year under state law, the district administration has been struggling to close a projected
$244,000 deficit. Until now, according to Superintendent Stephen Rodriguez, the
district has used every trick it can think of to avoid making cuts to programs.
But this may be the year it can no longer be avoided as the district tries to
balance a $63 million proposed budget. And the cuts may include the district's
award-winning music program.
Ways to combat Philly’s punishing teacher turnover
Teachers and
readers send solutions after The Inquirer’s “turnstile teaching” investigation
Inquirer by Jessica Calefati, Kristen A. Graham and Dylan Purcell, May 10, 2019- 5:00 AM
Our recent
investigation, Turnstile Teaching, found 26 Philadelphia district schools where teachers churned through
jobs at an alarming rate, hindering some of the city’s most vulnerable
children. The story touched a nerve, and teachers and readers shared their
experiences as well as ways to fix this chronic problem. Their comments have
been edited for length and clarity.
Long held up as a model, N.J. school funding system
facing legal challenge
Inquirer by Maddie Hanna, Updated: May 9, 2019
New Jersey’s
school-funding formula is held up as a model by education advocates. But the
state is confronting a new legal challenge from a district that says the Garden
State isn’t sending it enough money. In this case, the Jersey City school board
has sued the state over its plan to cut $27 million in aid to the district in
the next fiscal year. Eight other districts, including one in Atlantic County
and another in Ocean County, previously filed suit over cuts. The suits take
aim at a complicated system, and beyond the details, they underscore the messy
realities of paying for public education: How should the state balance the need
to fund school districts with unequal tax burdens among communities? While the
specifics vary, school funding has been contentious across the country,
including in Pennsylvania, where a landmark suit is scheduled
to go to trial next year. In New
Jersey’s case, the legal challenges stem from a
recent update to the school funding law, which was adopted a decade ago but never fully enacted. It was aimed at
funding districts based on their needs, but the state stipulated that no
district would lose money. As a result, some are receiving aid above what the
formula intended. Other districts haven’t received the additional money they
were supposed to get.
Paul Muschick on Allentown School District: When you’re
in a financial hole, stop digging!
By PAUL MUSCHICK | THE MORNING CALL | MAY 09, 2019 | 7:00 AM
It’s time for
Allentown school officials to stop blaming the district’s financial problems on
the past and on factors outside of their control. Tuesday night’s decision
to borrow
$10 million —
through a bond that will cost taxpayers $14 million to pay off — just digs the
hole deeper. Borrowing money to pay routine expenses — in this case pension
obligations — shouldn’t be done by anyone, whether a school district, a
business or a household. If this was a one-time blip, perhaps an exception
could be made. But it’s no blip. The Allentown School District repeatedly
scrounges and begs for money. Last year, the state bailed it out with a $10 million, no-strings-attached handout. What is the
district going to do next year if it finds itself in the same position? Borrow
more? It may not have other options. The projected deficit for the 2019-20
fiscal year is $18 million, even after Tuesday’s borrowing.
Greensburg Salem School Board mulls another tax increase
Trib Live by JACOB TIERNEY | Wednesday, May 8, 2019 10:22 p.m.
There’s a lot yet
to be determined about the Greensburg Salem School District’s 2019-20 budget,
but most of the school board agrees on one point: “I think we’re going to have
some sort of tax increase,” board member Nicholas Rullo said. The board will
vote next week on a proposed budget with a 1.5-mill tax increase, which will be
subject to change until a final vote in June. Board members Jeff Metrosky and
Robin Savage opposed the increase, saying the district should do more to cut
costs and protect taxpayers. “It’s going to make a difference to (residents),”
Savage said. “If they can’t afford it, they are going to leave the district.” Most
board members, however, said a tax increase is necessary to pay for repairs and
renovations at district buildings.
‘Threatening the Future’: The
High Stakes of Deepening School Segregation
The New York Times By Dana Goldstein May 10, 2019
The 65th
anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education approaches on May 17, but fights
over school segregation, rather than decreasing, are becoming more common.
Cities like New York and San Francisco are debating how to assign students to schools in ways that foster
classroom diversity, and school secession movements — in which parents seek to
form their own, majority-white districts — are accelerating. A
new report from
U.C.L.A. and Penn State outlines the changes in school segregation since the
landmark Supreme Court ruling named after Oliver Brown, a black father who sued
to enroll his daughter, Linda, in an all-white elementary school blocks from
their home in Topeka, Kan. The court’s unanimous 1954 ruling declared separate
educational facilities “inherently unequal.” But the case is one of several
major civil rights rulings, alongside those on voting rights and housing
discrimination, that have been substantially
weakened by
more recent decisions. Today, the decreasing white share of the public school
population across the country may lead some to believe that schools are
becoming more integrated. But the reverse is true, according to the report. The
percentage of intensely segregated schools, defined as those where less than 10
percent of the student body is white, tripled between 1988 and 2016, from 6 to
18 percent.
More states moving toward teaching Scripture in public
schools
Inquirer by Julie
Zauzmer, Washington Post, Updated: May 8, 2019
GLASGOW, Ky. — Todd
Steenbergen leads worship services in church sometimes, but today he was
preaching in a different venue: the public-school classroom where he teaches. "A
lot of people will look at the Beatitudes and glean some wisdom from
them," he told the roomful of students, pointing toward the famous
blessings he had posted on the board, some of the best-known verses in the
Bible. "I want you to think about what kind of wisdom we can get from
these today."While Steenbergen was urging students to draw lessons from
the Bible here in southern Kentucky, students in Paducah — halfway across the
state — were reading from the Gospels as well, in a classroom where they drew
pictures of the cross and of Adam and Eve walking with dinosaurs, hanging them
on the walls. Scenes of Bible classes in public school could become
increasingly common across the United States if other states follow Kentucky's
lead in passing legislation that encourages high schools to teach the Bible.
PA Schools Work Capitol Caravan Days Wed. June 5th
and Tues. June 18th
If you couldn’t
make it to Harrisburg last week, it’s not too late. We are getting down to the
wire. In a few short weeks, the budget will likely be passed. Collectively, our
voices have a larger impact to get more funding for Pennsylvania’s students.
Legislators need to hear from you!
Public Citizens for
Children and Youth (PCCY) will be at the Capitol on Wednesday, June 5th and
Tuesday, June 18th for our next PA Schools
Work caravan days. We’d love to have you join us on these
legislative visits. For more details about the caravans and to sign up, go to: www.pccy.org/k12caravan . Please call Tomea Sippio-Smith at (O) 215-563-5848, ext. 36
or (C) 215-667-9421 or Shirlee Howe at (O) 215-563-5848, ext. 34 or (C)
215-888-8297 with any questions or specific requests for legislative meetings.
PCCY Annual Celebration Wednesday, May 15 at Franklin
Institute in Philly
PCCY would also
love to have you join us at our annual celebration on Wednesday, May
15, 2019 at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. PCCY’s
Celebration is a fun way to network with colleagues, make new friends and learn
more about the important role PCCY plays in the lives of children in our
region. Tickets are on sale NOW for the 2019
Celebration of the Public Citizens Of The Year honoring Chuck
Pennoni and the Penonni team and our regional Advocates of the Year. Come out
for a phenomenal evening of food, drinks, entertainment, auction and a
spirited celebration. Buy tickets and learn more at: https://www.pccy.org/event/celebration-2019-public-citizen-children-youth/
School Funding Briefing Thursday, May 23, 2019 6:30 –
8:00 PM
Drexel Hill Middle School, 3001 State Road,
Drexel Hill, PA 19026
In 2019, the Public
Interest Law Center is celebrating 50 years of fighting for justice, and
preparing for 50 more, through a series of 50th anniversary events.
As part of this
series, the Upper Darby School Board is pleased to host the Public Interest Law
Center at Drexel Hill Middle School on Thursday, May 23rd, for a School Funding
Briefing.
Pennsylvania has
the largest funding gap in the country between low-wealth and high-wealth
school districts. Pennsylvania is also ranked 46th in the share of funding that
comes from the state, leaving local taxpayers to take on rising costs. How did
we get here? At the briefing, you will learn the basics of education funding
and how it works in Pennsylvania, as well as ways you can get involved in
advocacy for fully funded public education. You will also learn about the
latest developments in the Law Center's school
funding lawsuit.
Afterward, you will
have a chance to meet Law Center attorneys working on this landmark case, as
well as mingle with other interested in Pennsylvania education.
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)
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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