Tuesday, July 16, 2019

PA Ed Policy Roundup July 16, 2019 Follow the Money: Campaign Contributions by Vahan Gureghian 2013-2019; the intersection of money, politics, government and schools


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PA Ed Policy Roundup July 16, 2019


Blogger commentary: In an effort to gain a better understanding of the dynamics in Harrisburg, from time to time over the years we have published “Follow the Money” charts using data from the PA Department of State’s Campaign Finance Reporting website:

We’ll leave it up to our readers to draw their own conclusions regarding how such contributions may or may not influence policymakers as they go about the people’s business in Harrisburg.

The chart below lists over $470,000 in campaign contributions made by Mr. and Mrs. Gureghian for PA state offices from 2013 through 2019.

Highlights include $205,000 to the House Republican Campaign Committee, $37,000 to the Senate Republican Campaign Committee, $30,000 to House Speaker Mike Turzai, $82,000 to Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman’s Build PA PAC, $85,000 to Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati and$16,000 to House Majority Leader Bryan Cutler.

While school district budgets, check registers and salaries are public information, charter school management companies like Gureghian’s CSMI are not required to provide any details on how they spend taxpayers dollars. CSMI runs Chester Community Charter School, the state’s largest brick and mortar charter. CSMI's founder and CEO is Vahan H. Gureghian of Gladwyne, a lawyer, entrepreneur and major Republican donor –the largest individual contributor to former Gov. Tom Corbett. And though CSMI's books are not public – the for-profit firm has never disclosed its profits and won't discuss its management fee – running the school appears to be a lucrative business. State records show that Gureghian's company collected nearly $17 million in taxpayer funds just in 2014-15, when only 2,900 students were enrolled.”

Over the years, Gureghian has spent well over $1 million on political contributions in Pennsylvania.

“As previously reported by the (Palm Beach) Daily News, the buyers in this week’s sale are Philadelphia attorney and businessman Vahan Gureghian and his attorney wife, Danielle. Two weeks ago, they sold their never-lived-in oceanfront mansion on 2 acres at 1071 N. Ocean Blvd. for more than $40 million. That 35,992-square-foot mansion had been on the market for about four years. ….Vahan Gureghian is involved in a number of businesses, he said, including management and consulting in the charter-school industry through a company he founded, CSMI Education Management. His wife provides legal counsel for his business ventures, he said.”
Exclusive: Palm Beach mansion lost by developer in bankruptcy sells for $30.275M
Palm Beach Daily news By Darrell Hofheinz  July 12 Posted at 5:46 PM Updated at 6:32 PM
Mortgage-holder sells former home of Robert V. Matthews to couple who just sold a Palm Beach mansion for more than $40 million. As developer Robert V. Matthews awaits sentencing on felony conspiracy and money-laundering charges in Connecticut, the Palm Beach seaside mansion he completed in 2006 has changed hands for a recorded $30.275 million. The deed recorded today shows the house at 101 Casa Bendita was sold by Singer Island Tower Suite LLC, which took title in April via a bankruptcy judge’s order in Matthews’ Chapter 11 case. The seller is identified in court documents as an “assignee” of a Deutsche Bank affiliate owed $31 million from a mortgage it held on the property. Matthews moved out of the mansion with his wife, Mia, shortly after the bankruptcy court’s March 31 order. Matthews developed the long-troubled, never-finished — and since-sold — Palm House hotel-condominium at 160 Royal Palm Way, which is a focus of his federal criminal case in Connecticut. The six-bedroom, two-story residence on Casa Bendita has 15,849 square feet of living space, inside and out, on nearly an acre. With about 188 feet of beachfront, the property lies about a three-quarters of a mile north of Royal Palm way.

Following data is from the Pennsylvania Department of State Campaign Finance website: http://www.campaignfinance.state.pa.us/ContributionSearch.aspx
Selected State Level Campaign Contributions by Vahan Gureghian 2013 - 2019

Recipient
Date
Amount
TURZAI, MIKE FRIENDS OF 
9/5/2013
$10,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
3/18/2014
$75,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
9/16/2014
$27,500.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
10/31/2014
$25,000.00
TURZAI, MIKE LEADERSHIP FUND 
10/4/2014
$10,000.00
SENATE REP CAMPAIGN COM 
4/14/2015
$25,000.00
SENATE REP CAMPAIGN COM 
3/10/2015
$12,727.91
SCARNATI, JOSEPH FRIENDS OF 
10/31/2016
$25,000.00
SCARNATI, JOSEPH FRIENDS OF 
10/31/2016
$25,000.00
BUILD PA PAC
6/15/2016
$10,000.00
CORMAN, JAKE FRIENDS OF 
10/26/2016
$10,000.00
SCARNATI, JOSEPH FRIENDS OF 
11/9/2017
$10,000.00
BUILD PA PAC
6/22/2017
$10,000.00
CORMAN, JAKE FRIENDS OF 
10/16/2017
$2,500.00
FUND FOR A BETTER PENNSYLVANIA 
6/8/2017
$5,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
8/29/2017
$2,750.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
11/2/2017
$3,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
11/2/2017
$2,000.00
CUTLER, BRYAN FRIENDS OF 
6/15/2018
$5,000.00
SCARNATI, JOSEPH FRIENDS OF 
10/31/2018
$25,000.00
TURZAI, MIKE FRIENDS OF 
9/12/2018
$10,000.00
BUILD PA PAC
6/4/2018
$25,000.00
BUILD PA PAC
7/25/2018
$25,000.00
BUILD PA PAC
10/17/2018
$10,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
4/24/2018
$5,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
5/1/2018
$20,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
7/20/2018
$10,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
9/18/2018
$10,000.00
HOUSE REP CAMPAIGN COM 2004, INC 
10/26/2018
$25,000.00
SAYLOR, STAN CITIZENS FOR 
5/29/2018
$5,000.00
BUILD PA PAC
3/29/2019
$2,000.00
CUTLER, BRYAN FRIENDS OF 
4/3/2019
$1,000.00
CUTLER, BRYAN FRIENDS OF 
5/28/2019
$10,000.00


$478,477.91


Mansion of embattled Palm Beach developer sells for $30M (Photos)
By Brian Bandell  – Senior Reporter, South Florida Business Journal Jul 15, 2019, 12:31pm EDT Updated Jul 15, 2019, 12:44pm EDT
Philadelphia businessman Vahan H. Gureghian paid $30.275 million for the Palm Beach mansion that belonged to embattled Palm Beach developer Robert V. Matthews. Singer Island Tower Suite LLC, part of DB Private Wealth Mortgage, sold the nearly 16,000-square-foot home at 101 Casa Bendita to Gureghian. The lender seized the home in April under orders of U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Matthew’s personal Chapter 11 filing. DB Private Wealth Mortgage, part of Deutsche Bank, had a $27.4 million loan on the property. The bank provided a $25.67 million mortgage to Gureghian to help him buy the property. Matthews built the oceanfront home on the 0.88-acre site in 2006. The mansion has six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, two half bathrooms and a pool. Gureghian, the founder and CEO of CSMI, which invests in the charter school industry, can immediately occupy the home.

“The decision means staff and parents at the state's largest bricks-and-mortar charter – already slated to receive more than $55 million in taxpayer funds this school year – won't have to worry about its fate for nearly a decade, even if its test scores continue to fall far short of state benchmarks. It also guarantees that CSMI LLC, a for-profit education management company that operates the K-8 school with 4,200 students, will receive millions of dollars in revenue for nine more years. Chester Community's extension comes as school districts across the commonwealth and nation are wrestling with the growth of charter schools, more privatization in education and the impact on traditional public schools. It also renews lingering questions about the intersection of politics, government and schools.
Reprise Dec. 2017: How Chester Community Charter School got a 9-year deal
Inquirer by Martha Woodall, Posted: December 22, 2017
For years, charter school proponents have been trying to change Pennsylvania law so that operating agreement renewals could be extended from five years to 10. They haven't succeeded in Harrisburg. But that didn't deter Chester Community Charter School. One year into Chester Community's latest five-year agreement, Peter R. Barsz, the court-appointed receiver who oversees the financially distressed Chester Upland School District and wields nearly all the powers of a school board, took the unprecedented step of extending the Delaware County school's term for five more years to 2026. Barsz contends that the move was designed to protect Chester High School: In return, Chester Community, which already enrolls about 70 percent of the primary grade students in the struggling district, agreed not to open a high school.

“The Pennsylvania Department of Education is questioning the Chester Upland School District's decision to renew its operating agreement with the state's largest brick-and-mortar charter school through 2026 while the school was just one year into its current five-year term.”
Reprise April 2018: Judge, state question quick renewal for Chester charter school
Inquirer by Maddie Hanna, Posted: April 20, 2018
The Pennsylvania Department of Education is questioning the Chester Upland School District's decision to renew its operating agreement with the state's largest brick-and-mortar charter school through 2026 while the school was just one year into its current five-year term. "If charters are going to be renewed right out of the chute, … they've already been approved before they've even performed," said James Flandreau, a lawyer for the department, at hearings this week ordered by a Delaware County Court judge. "Certainly, one year is way too early to evaluate any charter's performance." Kevin Kent, a lawyer for Chester Community Charter School, said the court-appointed receiver and school district could reevaluate the charter school at any point. "Nothing's been compromised," he said. Peter Barsz, the receiver for the financially distressed district, testified on Thursday that he had reviewed audits and school performance records and had support from the district's school board before approving the renewal request last year that allowed the charter school to operate through 2026.

Philly charter founded by indicted labor leader plans new school at slain developer’s South Kensington site
Inquirer by Jacob Adelman, Updated: July 15, 2019- 11:00 AM
A charter high school co-founded by indicted labor leader John J. Dougherty plans a new $21.1 million academic building on a South Kensington lot where developer Sean Schellenger had planned apartments with co-working offices for local entrepreneurs before his stabbing death near Rittenhouse Square. The board of the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a bond issue of up to $30 million to finance the Philadelphia Electrical and Technology Charter High School (PETCHS) project at 1525 N. American St. The tax-exempt financing would pay for the $3.6 million acquisition of the half-acre site, along with the school’s construction costs and other expenses related to the deal, said John Grady, president of the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp., which oversees the authority. The authority’s board approved $22 million in bonds for the project in April, but the larger issue was now being sought “due to higher-than-expected construction costs,” according to the resolution on the agency’s website. The school, which currently occupies the upper stories of a historic Center City office building, was founded in 2002 by Dougherty, business manager of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; Michael Neill, director of Local 98′s apprentice training program; and Dougherty’s daughter, Erin Dougherty, who serves as the school’s chief executive.

Editorial: Property tax hikes a sign of what's to come
Delco Times Editorial Jul 14, 2019
Property tax bills have arrived in homeowners’ mailboxes, and for many, this year’s sticker shock has gone up despite an increase in state funding for schools and despite local school boards weighing program cuts. That squeeze -- weighing students’ needs against taxpayer resources -- is about to get worse with a divide that threatens more than half the 500 school districts in Pennsylvania with financial crisis in five years. In the next five years, 60 percent or more of school districts in Pennsylvania will be in fiscal distress, according to a June 28 report by MediaNews Group staff writer Evan Brandt. Brandt’s report detailed the findings of a study, “A Tale of Haves and Have-Nots," released earlier this year by the Temple University Center on Regional Politics. Study authors William Hartman and Timothy J. Shrom illustrate how unfunded mandated costs — retirement and charter school tuition in particular — will soon exceed the amount of state aid many districts receive. Districts are left with no choice but to raise local property taxes to balance their budgets. With the Act 1 Index tax cap on those increases, it may still not be enough, and many will have to resort to cutting programs to balance their budgets, Brandt reported. .

“And then there’s the item on our 2019 wish list that just sits there, the ignored elephant in the room. We wrote of the urgent need “for our state lawmakers to work hard and swiftly on Pennsylvania’s intertwined broken systems of educational funding and local property taxes. There must be an aggressive timetable to fully implement the bipartisan fair funding formula for all school districts. And, regarding property taxes, there must be relief for all (especially senior citizens) who receive these oft-crippling annual bills.”
Editorial: Harrisburg must not wait any longer on school property tax reform [opinion]
THE LNP EDITORIAL BOARD July 15, 2019
THE ISSUE: With school officials citing the costs associated with special education, pensions, charter schools, health insurance and construction projects, LNP’s Alex Geli reported July 6 that all but one of the county’s 17 school districts are raising property taxes for 2019-20. The increases range from 1.22% in Octorara Area (which straddles Lancaster and Chester counties) to 3.54% in Penn Manor. Warwick is the only school district that is not hiking taxes. Just past the halfway point of 2019, it’s a good time to look back on the LNP Editorial Board’s wish list for this year. We are pleased to see progress on numerous items, such as state and local efforts in battling the opioid crisisfinancial help for Pennsylvania’s volunteer fire companies; assistance for our state’s farmers; and fast-tracked legislation that allows Lancaster County municipalities to bar video gambling machines from truck stops within their borders. We are less pleased at the lack of progress toward a retroactive window to allow survivors of child sexual abuse to seek justice in Pennsylvania civil court. And we are appalled that the climate crisis remains more of a political football than a nonpartisan legislative priority. Our leaders and lawmakers must come together without haste to enact and support strong initiatives to protect our environment.

“The school, which currently occupies the upper stories of a historic Center City office building, was founded in 2002 by Dougherty, business manager of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; Michael Neill, director of Local 98′s apprentice training program; and Dougherty’s daughter, Erin Dougherty, who serves as the school’s chief executive.”
Philly charter founded by indicted labor leader plans new school at slain developer’s South Kensington site
Inquirer by Jacob Adelman, Updated: July 15, 2019- 11:00 AM
A charter high school cofounded by indicted labor leader John J. Dougherty plans a new $21.1 million academic building on a South Kensington lot where developer Sean Schellenger had planned apartments with co-working offices for local entrepreneurs before his stabbing death near Rittenhouse Square. The board of the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a bond issue of up to $30 million to finance the Philadelphia Electrical and Technology Charter High School (PETCHS) project at 1525 N. American St. The tax-exempt financing would pay for the $3.6 million acquisition of the half-acre site, along with the school’s construction costs and other expenses related to the deal, said John Grady, president of the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp., which oversees the authority. The authority’s board approved $22 million in bonds for the project in April, but the larger issue was now being sought “due to higher-than-expected construction costs,” according to the resolution on the agency’s website.

Readers React: Put charter school funding misconceptions to rest
THE MORNING CALL | Letter by Terry E. Richwine JUL 14, 2019 | 10:30 AM
The recent Town Square op-ed by Ana Meyers concerning charter schools perpetuated several myths about school funding. The first myth is that public school districts are funded on a per pupil basis, which they are not. While charter schools are funded based on the per pupil cost at the sending districts, districts receive funding from several sources, but none on a per pupil basis. The second myth is that charter school funding is 75% of the sending schools’ per pupil cost, implying that charter schools are forced to provide the same services with less funding. The funding formula, as outlined in the law, removes expenses that are not incurred by charter schools, such as student transportation as well as special education, which is subject to a separate calculation. It should be noted that the special education funding formula has resulted in charter schools receiving more for special education than their actual costs. These myths have existed since the introduction of charter schools. It is time that they be put to rest.

Should Pa. dump its Keystone Exams for high school students and save millions? One state official thinks so.
Inquirer by Kristen A. Graham, Updated: July 15, 2019- 5:19 AM
Every spring, thousands of Pennsylvania high school students take the Keystone Exams, standardized tests given at public schools in the commonwealth. The tests come with a hefty price tag: Over the last decade, the state has paid a Minnesota company $425 million for the Keystones and for a second test, the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) exams, administered to third through eighth graders. Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene A. DePasquale thinks that the state should scrap the Keystones and replace them “with a different standardized test statistically proven to help students realize their potential for higher education, careers or other callings.” DePasquale, a Democrat preparing to run for Congress, suggests that Pennsylvania pivot to using the SAT or ACT — the exams accepted or required by many colleges. He was joined at a recent news conference on the topic by State Sen. Andy Dinniman (D., Chester), a longtime critic of the Keystone Exams.

PA Officials Want to Replace Bad Keystone Exams with Bad College Entrance Exams
Gadfly on the Wall Blog by Steven Singer July 15, 2019 
Pennsylvania officials are scandalized that the Commonwealth is wasting more than $100 million on unnecessary and unfair Keystone Exams. They’d rather the state spend slightly less on biased college entrance exams. State Auditor General Eugene DePasquale and State Sen. Andy Dinniman held a joint press conference last week to introduce a new report compiled by DePasquale’s office on the subject which concludes with this recommendation. Replacing bad with bad will somehow equal good? Under the proposal, elementary and middle school students would still take the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) tests. However, instead of requiring all high school students to take the Keystone Exams in Algebra I, Literature and Science, the report proposes the same students be required to take the SAT or ACT test at state expense. This is certainly an improvement over what the state demands now, but it’s really just replacing one faulty test with another – albeit at about a $1 million annual cost savings to taxpayers. The report does a good job of outlining the fiscal waste, lack of accountability and dubious academic merits of the Keystone Exams, but it fails to note similar qualities in its own proposal.

Report urges improvements in policies for pregnant and parenting teens
The Education Law Center found that more academic supports are needed. It wants the Board of Ed to review the District's policy, even though it was revised last year.
The notebook by Dale Mezzacappa July 15 — 3:24 pm, 2019
A new report from the Education Law Center says the School District of Philadelphia and many charters need to alter their policies and practices for pregnant and parenting teens in order to help them persist and succeed in school. While teen pregnancy rates have declined nationally, Philadelphia’s rate has remained stubbornly high. At 35.2 per 1,000 teens, it is higher than the national rate of 22.3 per 1,000 and nearly twice the Pennsylvania rate of 17.7 per 1,000 15- through 19-year-olds, the report said. It is highest among African American and Latinx teens; higher pregnancy rates are strongly correlated with higher poverty rates. The report, called “Clearing the Path: Creating School Success for Pregnant and Parenting Students and Their Children,” is based on a survey of students and stakeholders, interviews, and focus groups conducted over the last two years. Young women who were pregnant while in school said they were not accommodated and were often stigmatized, the report found, with consequences that perpetuate multi-generational poverty and squander human potential. The young women reported that they received inadequate supports from schools while pregnant and that they lacked any connection with school for four to six weeks after giving birth; 88 percent reported that they received no homebound instruction or other academic support during that time. As a result, when they returned to school, they lagged far behind their peers.

Harrisburg School District can find hope for revival in Reading: 7 lessons
Penn Live By Ron Southwick | rsouthwick@pennlive.com Updated 12:31 PM; Today 5:00 AM
Chris Celmer knows what it’s like to come into a failing school district and try to make sense of the finances. Celmer, the new chief operating officer in the Harrisburg School District, served as an assistant superintendent in the Reading School District for five years. “There’s financial unrest in Harrisburg that’s very similar to what we walked into in Reading in 2014,” Celmer said. “Our first week in Reading we were worried about even making payroll.” Celmer said they were able to cut checks for the staff in Reading and he doesn’t foresee a problem with paying Harrisburg’s staff. But he sees a host of problems in Harrisburg that won’t be solved quickly. A blistering audit of the Harrisburg school district revealed $5 million in questionable costs. His experiences in Reading have prepared him for what’s to come. Over the past five years, the Reading school district has earned praise for improved academics and more stable finances under its current leadership team. Celmer hopes to be part of a similar turnaround in the Harrisburg School District, which is now under state oversight. The state Department of Education won approval to take over Harrisburg’s school system, mired in years of poor academic performance and financial woes. Celmer joins John George, the director of Harrisburg’s financial recovery plan, as part of the district’s new leadership team. George, the executive director of the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, helped stabilize the Reading school system and position it for its comeback.

Citing technicality, central Pa. school district scraps first-of-kind policy to arm teachers
Tamaqua was the first school district in Pennsylvania to pass a policy to let teachers carry guns, but a school board has recommended the board scrap the policy.
Penn Live By Avi Wolfman-Arent | PA Post July 15, 2019 Updated 12:40 PM; Today 11:53 AM
The Tamaqua Area School District in Schuylkill County will scrap a groundbreaking policy that would have allowed teachers and staff to carry weapons anonymously on school grounds. The school board’s Security Committee recommended the policy be rescinded at a meeting last week. School board president Larry Wittig confirmed that the board will heed that recommendation and overturn the policy. “The old policy is dead,” Wittig said. Tamaqua Area was the first school district in Pennsylvania to create a rule that would have allowed staff members to carry guns, and the policy’s passage last fall triggered debates and legal challenges. But Wittig said a change in state law ultimately scuttled the proposal and sent local officials back to the drawing board. That new law, Senate Bill 621, inspired its own controversy because some advocates thought its vagaries would ultimately permit school districts to arm teachers. The bill’s sponsor said that wasn’t the intent, and Governor Tom Wolf even argued that the bill would explicitly bar staff members from carrying weapons in school.

States are ratcheting up reading expectations for 3rd-graders
WHYY By Alexandra Starr July 14, 2019
Changes in education policy often emanate from the federal government. Think Common Core, the set of standards established in 2010 for what U.S. students should know. But one policy that has spread across the country came not from Washington, D.C., but from Florida. “Mandatory retention” requires that third-graders who do not show sufficient proficiency in reading repeat the grade. It was part of a broader packet of reforms proposed by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in 2002. Now 19 states have adopted the policy, in part because Bush has pushed hard for it. Not all children who perform poorly on reading tests are retained: Generally students with special needs and kids who have been in the country less than two years are exempted. And studies have shown that a child’s early literacy skills can have long-term implications. One out of six students who are not reading proficiently by fourth grade, according to a study by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, don’t graduate from high school on time. That rate is four times greater than that of proficient readers. At the same time, forcing children to repeat a grade is stigmatizing and can damage their self-esteem. Multiple studies have found that flunking a grade makes it much more likely students will fail to graduate from high school. Some parents and educators have organized against mandatory retention and advocate for children to sit out high-stakes exams. A group of parents in Florida unsuccessfully challenged the policy in court.

Smucker, Toomey among few Republicans to criticize Trump's 'racially-motivated statements'
Lancaster Online by GILLIAN McGOLDRICK | Staff Writer July 15, 2019
Pennsylvania Republicans are among the first and few criticizing President Donald Trump’s attacks on four Democratic congresswomen to “go back to where they came from.” Lancaster’s Rep. Lloyd Smucker, R-Pa., criticized President Donald Trump -- without mentioning him by name -- for “racially-motivated comments or behavior” regarding his tweets about four Democratic congresswomen.  A spokesperson confirmed on Monday that Smucker was referencing Trump’s comments. Smucker added that he disagrees with his Democratic colleagues in the House for their “veer toward socialism and recent left-wing approach on national security, immigration and health care.”  Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., was one of the very first to condemn the president, doing so during the lunch hour. Since then, few Republicans have issued statements regarding Trump’s statements -- varying from his most conservative followers saying his comments were not racist, to other Republicans calling for him to apologize.  “President Trump was wrong to suggest that four left-wing congresswomen should go back to where they came from,” Toomey said. “Three of the four were born in America, and the citizenship of all four is as valid as mine."

Republican Pat Toomey: Trump tweet attacking Democratic congresswomen ‘was wrong’
Inquirer by Jonathan Tamari, Updated: July 15, 2019- 1:00 PM
WASHINGTON — Pennsylvania U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey became one of the few Republicans to criticize President Donald J. Trump’s tweets assailing four Democratic members of Congress — all women of color — and urging them to “go back” to the countries they came from. “Three of the four were born in America and the citizenship of all four is as valid as mine,” Toomey said in a statement Monday afternoon. "I couldn’t disagree more with these congresswomen’s views on immigration, socialism, national security, and virtually every policy issue. But they are entitled to their opinions, however misguided they may be. We should defeat their ideas on the merits, not on the basis of their ancestry.” Few Republicans have spoken out against tweets that have been widely condemned as racist. Toomey did not directly touch on the racial implications of Trump’s comments, though other lawmakers (almost entirely Democrats) have. One exception, Rep. Will Hurd (R., Texas) called Trump’s tweets “racist” and “xenophobic” and described the president’s behavior as "unbecoming of the leader of the free world.”

2 Indiana virtual schools received lots of public money. Now, the state wants $40 million of it back.
Washington Post Answer Sheet By Valerie Strauss July 15 at 12:29 PM
Indiana state investigators said two virtual charter schools took up to $40 million in public money based on highly exaggerated enrollments — and now officials want the money back. A student who died in 2016 appeared on an enrollment list a year later, according to the State Board of Accounts audit led by State Examiner Paul Joyce. The review also determined that a majority of students at both schools were not in any class for at least half of 2017 and that a number of students who left the school were not removed from enrollment records. Percy Clark Jr., superintendent of Indiana Virtual School and Indiana Virtual Pathways Academy, said in a July 5 letter to the State Board of Education that the findings were inaccurate and challenged the method investigators used to reach their conclusions, saying investigators did not look at enough student records. Joyce said in an affidavit: “I believe that it is reasonable to conclude that the schools reported at least two times as many students as they should have based on their student engagement policies and applicable statutory standards.” And he told the State Board of Education at its Wednesday meeting that such actions could be considered criminal, according to the Indianapolis Star. “How did we miss this?” State Board of Education Chairman B.J. Watts asked during the meeting, the Associated Press reported. The investigators’ findings mark the latest controversy surrounding charter schools and virtual schools, some of which are charters, including the ones in Indiana. About 6 percent of American schoolchildren attend charter schools, which operate in most states and are publicly funded but privately operated. California has the most charters and the most charter school students.

Dems’ busing debate puts a spotlight on increasing segregation in America’s schools
Post-Gazette by SEEMA MEHTA AND MICHAEL FINNEGAN Los Angeles Times JUL 16, 2019
Nearly 50 years have passed since Kamala Harris joined the legions of children bused to schools in distant neighborhoods as the United States attempted to integrate its racially segregated public schools. Yet the consequences of racial and economic segregation remain a fact of daily life for millions of black and Latino children. Ms. Harris’ attack on her Democratic rival Joe Biden over his opposition to federally mandated busing in the 1970s was a rare case of school segregation emerging as a flashpoint in a recent presidential race. The emotionally raw clash on a Miami debate stage between a black U.S. senator of California and a white former vice president raised the question of what, if anything, the Democratic candidates would do to promote racial integration of America’s schools. In the aftermath of the social upheaval wrought by the forced busing of the 1970s, the federal government all but walked away from school desegregation, with only lax enforcement of court-ordered integration and token programs to encourage voluntary desegregation. “For more than a generation, little has been done to address the issue,” said Gary Orfield, the co-director of the Civil Rights Project at UCLA. “It is crucial that we act.”

Where's the Senate's Education Spending Bill? Will the Holdup Affect Schools?
Education Week Politics K12 Blog By Andrew Ujifusa on July 14, 2019 9:11 AM
The House spending bills, including an all-time high for federal education aid, have generated a great deal of interest this year. It's the first time in a decade Democrats control the chamber, and they want to draw sharp distinctions between their priorities and the Trump administration's. But with all that done and dusted weeks ago, you might be wondering: Where's the Senate school funding bill for fiscal 2020? Good question. By late June last year, the Senate appropriations committee had already passed its legislation to fund the U.S. Department of Education, along with other agencies, for fiscal 2019. Fast forward to today, and we don't even have an education spending bill for the Senate subcommittee that handles K-12 funding to consider. If you're looking at Washington politics from the outside, it might seem odd. So what's the holdup? In plain English, the problem lies with figuring out caps on federal spending. That's the legacy of a 2011 deal in Congress that applies automatic spending cuts to both defense and non-defense programs, unless lawmakers can agree to new limits on both types of federal spending. (Here's some background on that issue from early 2018.) The deals have lifted these caps over time; the last deal covered fiscal years 2018 and 2019.


PCCY: 2 seconds for $200,000 and a game-changing opportunity for kids
PCCY needs your votes!  We are in the running for a $200,000 Key to the Community Grant from the Philadelphia Foundation! Our idea is simple – give more parents in the Greater Philadelphia region tools, resources and networks to amplify their voices in advocacy and policy impacting our children. To launch the Parent Advocacy Accelerator, we need your help.  The Philadelphia Foundation is running an on-line voting contest. The idea that gets the most votes in a category, wins the grant. Voting is quick and easy at  https://www.philafound.org/vote/. Just scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page and vote for the project listed as the Parent Advocacy Accelerator under the “Community and Civic Engagement" category, Every vote, every day counts. VOTE EVERY DAY UNTIL JULY 26! Share with your networks in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, or Delaware and ask them to vote every day, too.
Thank you for your votes and support!

In November, many boards will be preparing to welcome new directors to their governance Team of Ten. This event will help attendees create a full year on-boarding schedule based on best practices and thoughtful prioritization. Register now:
PSBA: Start Strong: Developing a District On-Boarding Plan for New Directors
SEP 11, 2019 • 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
In November, many boards will be faced with a significant transition as they prepare to welcome new directors to their governance Team of Ten. This single-day program facilitated by PSBA trainers and an experienced PA board president will guide attendees to creating a strong, full year on-boarding schedule based on best practices and thoughtful prioritization. Grounded in PSBA’s Principles for Governance and Leadership, attendees will hear best practices from their colleagues and leave with a full year’s schedule, a jump drive of resources, ideas for effective local training, and a plan to start strong.
Register online at MyPSBA: www.psba.org and click on “MyPSBA” in the upper right corner.

The deadline to submit a cover letter, resume and application is August 19, 2019.
Become a 2019-2020 PSBA Advocacy Ambassador
PSBA is seeking applications for two open Advocacy Ambassador positions. Candidates should have experience in day-to-day functions of a school district, on the school board, or in a school leadership position. The purpose of the PSBA Advocacy Ambassador program is to facilitate the education and engagement of local school directors and public education stakeholders through the advocacy leadership of the ambassadors. Each Advocacy Ambassador will be responsible for assisting PSBA in achieving its advocacy goals. To achieve their mission, ambassadors will be kept up to date on current legislation and PSBA positions on legislation. The current open positions will cover PSBA Sections 3 and 4, and Section 7.
PSBA Advocacy Ambassadors are independent contractors representing PSBA and serve as liaisons between PSBA and their local elected officials. Advocacy Ambassadors also commit to building strong relationships with PSBA members with the purpose of engaging the designated members to be active and committed grassroots advocates for PSBA’s legislative priorities. 

PSBA: Nominations for The Allwein Society are open!
This award program recognizes school directors who are outstanding leaders & advocates on behalf of public schools & students. Nominations are accepted year-round with selections announced early fall: http://ow.ly/CchG50uDoxq 

EPLC is accepting applications for the 2019-20 PA Education Policy Fellowship Program
Education Policy & Leadership Center
PA's premier education policy leadership program for education, policy & community leaders with 582 alumni since 1999. Application with program schedule & agenda are at http://www.eplc.org 

2019 PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference Oct. 16-18, 2019
WHERE: Hershey Lodge and Convention Center 325 University Drive, Hershey, PA
WHEN: Wednesday, October 16 to Friday, October 18, 201
Registration is now open!
Growth from knowledge acquired. Vision inspired by innovation. Impact created by a synergized leadership community. You are called upon to be the drivers of a thriving public education system. It’s a complex and challenging role. Expand your skillset and give yourself the tools needed for the challenge. Packed into two and a half daysꟷꟷgain access to top-notch education and insights, dynamic speakers, peer learning opportunities and the latest product and service innovations. Come to the PASA-PSBA School Leadership Conference to grow!

NPE Action National Conference - Save the Date - March 28-29, 2020 in Philadelphia, PA.
The window is now open for workshop proposals for the Network for Public Education conference, March 28-29, 2020, in Philadelphia. I hope you all sign on to present on a panel and certainly we want all to attend. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NBCNDKK

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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