Thursday, January 21, 2021

PA Ed Policy Roundup for January 21, 2021: Why are public schools footing the bill for substandard cyber-charter education?

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, 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.

 

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Keystone State Education Coalition

PA Ed Policy Roundup for January 21, 2021

Why are public schools footing the bill for substandard cyber-charter education?

 

 

Inaugural poet Amanda Gorman delivers a poem at Joe Biden's inauguration

YouTube 1,186,759 views Jan 20, 2021 Runtime 5:57

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp9pyMqnBzk

 

 

“In order to right the ship, comprehensive charter-school reform is essential. We know that the current charter funding mechanism forces school districts to overpay cyber-charter schools and overpay for charter special education costs by hundreds of millions of dollars each school year. Until there is a change to the underlying policy, school districts and taxpayers will continue to ultimately foot the bill no matter how you slice it.”

Why are public schools footing the bill for substandard cyber-charter education?

PA Capital Star by Art Levinowitz  Capital-Star Op-Ed Contributor January 21, 2021

Art Levinowitz is president of the Pennsylvania School Board Association and a school director in the Upper Dublin School District in Montgomery County.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States, school districts across the nation saw a  huge increase in cyber- charter school enrollment, including right here in Pennsylvania where cyber charter school  enrollment is up by 63 percent to 62,000 students as of Oct. 1, 2020.< This trend should have Pennsylvania parents and taxpayers extremely concerned because of the immediate as well as long-lasting financial and academic implications this enrollment increase will have on school districts and their students. Looking first at the financial concern; school districts can expect as much as a $350 million increase in their cyber- charter tuition bills this year alone, due to the pandemic-generated cyber charter school enrollment increases. It’s important to keep in mind that this massive sum is only part of the overall $475 million overall charter school tuition increase for this school year that school districts are facing in addition to navigating through a global pandemic. The $475 million increase in charter school tuition this school year effectively nullifies the majority of the federal funds public schools received under the CARES Act. This means most of those funds will not have their intended impact – to aid our public schools in a time of crisis.

https://www.penncapital-star.com/commentary/why-are-public-schools-footing-the-bill-for-substandard-cyber-charter-education/

 

GASD Recognizes Board, Voices Concern over Charter School Costs

Gettysburg Connection January 20, 2021 by Charles Stangor

Noting that January is School Director Recognition Month, Gettysburg Area School District (GASD) Superintendent Jason Perrin recognized board members for their service. “This is a time for us to celebrate and recognize the challenging and vital work boards do on behalf of our students, schools, and families,” said Perrin. Perrin said the impact of the coronavirus epidemic had added an extra challenge, saying “board members are tasked with making critical decisions quickly with the best information available.” Perrin noted that board positions are unpaid and the majority of school directors cite their desire to give back to their communities and contribute to public education as their main motivation for their work. “School directors are invested engaged in their communities. They are our neighbors, friends, local leaders, parents, and engaged citizens. The job they do ensures all our schools continue to provide opportunities for success for every student,” said Perrin. Perrin noted the substantial work board members do outside of meetings, saying their “service goes way beyond what people realize.” Board member Carrie Soliday noted GASD had spent over $150,000 on charter schools, and particularly cyber charter schools, in December. “It’s a significant amount,” said Soliday. Soliday asked the board to consider talking about a strategic plan to help families choose to move back GASD offerings, saying the cyber charter schools “are the worst performing in the state.”

https://gettysburgconnection.org/gasd-recognizes-board-voices-concern-over-charter-school-costs/

 

Blogger note: Mr. McAllister previously worked for the Commonwealth Foundation

End the Blame Game: Officials should embrace, not attack, public cyber charter schools

NorthCentralPA Letter by Lenny McAllister, CEO, Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools Submitted January 19, 2021

In March 2020, Gov. Tom Wolf closed Pennsylvania schools because of the pandemic. Ever since, many school districts have struggled with providing effective virtual learning platforms. Some had issues getting students online due to internet accessibility problems and technology deficiencies. Others struggled with gauging academic progress and attendance. Many students missed key tests, with some receiving blanket passing grades.  Recent studies show that some 3 million students nationally may have dropped out of “school learning” due to these shortcomings. A report showed that roughly one-fourth of the third through eighth grade cohort, including a disproportionate amount of socioeconomically challenged students, did not take specific annual academic assessments. In Pennsylvania, these issues have cropped up for months in school districts despite district officials telling lawmakers for years that they could provide online academic instruction better and cheaper than public cyber charter schools. The pandemic has proven otherwise – here at home and around America. In contrast, public cyber charter families didn't miss a beat. Pennsylvania's cyber charters have been teaching online for more than 20 years. These schools know how to use technology to educate large numbers of students at home. As a result, thousands of families exercised their right under Pennsylvania law to choose a public cyber charter school for their children. 

https://www.northcentralpa.com/education/end-the-blame-game-officials-should-embrace-not-attack-public-cyber-charter-schools/article_e1974e10-5ad6-11eb-8dc4-83f310439751.html

 

Starts Today! All School Directors: Monthly Exchange (Zoom)

JAN 21, 2021 • 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM

Join other PSBA-member school directors for cross-district networking and discussion on education hot topics, legislative updates and advocacy strategies. All School Directors: Monthly Exchange will be held via Zoom at 12:30 p.m. every third Thursday of the month, January through June. Geographic-based breakout rooms will be utilized to allow for discussion among school directors in the same regions of the state. Register here.

 

PPS board may extend remote instruction into April

ANDREW GOLDSTEIN Pittsburgh Post-Gazette agoldstein@post-gazette.com JAN 20, 2021 5:30 PM

The Pittsburgh Public Schools board may extend the district’s fully remote instruction model until early April as the school system continues to deal with challenges posed by COVID-19. A resolution put before the board Wednesday would delay the return of students until at least April 6, the beginning of the 2020-21 school year’s fourth quarter. Now, the district plans on having teachers return Feb. 1, and students would be phased in beginning a week later. “We have people who have very strong feelings on both sides of the issues. There was a lot of discussion among board members as well,” board President Sylvia Wilson said while introducing the resolution. “But — as it turns out — this seems to be in the best interest overall in terms of health not only of the students, but for their families as well as for the employees.” The board will accept public comment on the plan Monday and vote on the resolution Jan. 27. Most students in the city have not been in a classroom since schools closed in March in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19.

https://www.post-gazette.com/news/education/2021/01/20/Pittsburgh-Public-Schools-board-may-extend-remote-instruction-April-coronavirus/stories/202101200161

 

Spring-Ford School Board votes to return to in-person learning Feb. 4

Pottstown Mercury by Evan Brandt ebrandt@21st-centurymedia.com @PottstownNews on Twitter January 21, 2021

ROYERSFORD — For the families who want it, Spring-Ford School District's upper grades will return to in-person education four days a week starting Feb. 4. The decision was unanimous and made Tuesday night by the school board during a special meeting called to consider the question. The district already offers all-day instruction in the lower grades for those families that want it, but the upper grades have had to choose between all-virtual online instruction and hybrid instruction with two days in-person and three days virtual. Robert Rizzo, Spring-Ford's assistant superintendent, outlined the results of a survey sent out to district families — a survey to which just over 46 percent responded. About 44 percent of those who responded to last week's survey indicated they prefer in-person education to virtual. The results showed that a majority would prefer the four-day option, even though the six-foot social distance could not be guaranteed in all classrooms, and definitely not in the hallways.

https://www.pottsmerc.com/news/spring-ford-school-board-votes-to-return-to-in-person-learning-feb-4/article_c818d552-5b5e-11eb-827c-9300434787e6.html

 

Two Lancaster County school districts eyeing property tax increase

Lancaster Online by ENELLY BETANCOURT | La Voz Editor and Staff Writer January 21, 2021

Two Lancaster County school districts plan to seek exceptions that would allow them to exceed the maximum property tax increase permitted for the 2021-22 school year. The Pennsylvania Department of Education each year sets limits on how much school districts can raise property taxes without either an exemption from the state or approval in a voter referendum. The percentage, known as the Act 1 index, is calculated by averaging the percent increases in the Pennsylvania statewide average weekly worker wage and federal employment cost index for schools. Columbia Borough has the most flexibility, with a 4.5% maximum increase, while Conestoga Valley, Eastern Lancaster County, Manheim Central, Manheim Township and Pequea Valley have the lowest allowable increase at 3.0%. Most districts contacted by LNP | LancasterOnline earlier this week said they are considering not exceeding their index cap for next school year, with the exception of Conestoga Valley and Hempfield.

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/two-lancaster-county-school-districts-eyeing-property-tax-increase/article_973ec33e-5b67-11eb-8daa-f7dbb55cdbf0.html

 

What Biden’s ‘American Rescue Plan’ Would Do for Schools and Students, in One Chart

Education Week By Andrew Ujifusa — January 20, 2021

PresidentJoe Biden’s COVID-19 recovery plan includes more than double the aid for K-12 schools that Congress approved in its last coronavirus relief plan, but how much of it appeals to lawmakers responsible for passing any such blueprint remains to be seen. The Biden team unveiled the plan, which has a $1.9 trillion price tag, roughly a week before his Jan. 20 inauguration. It got a warm reception from many education groups. The last aid plan signed by former President Donald Trump in December included $54.3 billion in direct aid for K-12 public schools. Yet many officials said that amount isn’t sufficient for the various and acute needs of educators and students, especially since that December package doesn’t include aid for state and local governments, much of which could ultimately help local school budgets.

Learn more about Biden’s pitch in our chart below:

https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/what-bidens-american-rescue-plan-would-do-for-schools-and-students-in-one-chart/2021/01

 

Amanda Gorman Captures the Moment, in Verse

The youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history will read “The Hill We Climb,” which she finished after the riot at the Capitol. “I’m not going to in any way gloss over what we’ve seen,” she says.

New York Times By Alexandra Alter Published Jan. 19, 2021Updated Jan. 20, 2021, 1:08 p.m. ET

About two weeks ago, the poet Amanda Gorman was struggling to finish a new work titled “The Hill We Climb.” She was feeling exhausted, and she worried she wasn’t up to the monumental task she faced: composing a poem about national unity to recite at President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s inauguration. “I had this huge thing, probably one of the most important things I’ll ever do in my career,” she said in an interview. “It was like, if I try to climb this mountain all at once, I’m just going to pass out.” Gorman managed to write a few lines a day and was about halfway through the poem on Jan. 6, when pro-Trump rioters stormed into the halls of Congress, some bearing weapons and Confederate flags. She stayed awake late into the night and finished the poem, adding verses about the apocalyptic scene that unfolded at the Capitol that day:

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/19/books/amanda-gorman-inauguration-hill-we-climb.html

 

In inaugural address, Biden says it is possible to teach children ‘in safe schools’

Californians may be touched by executive orders he plans to sign

EdSource by LOUIS FREEDBERG JANUARY 20, 2021

While President Joseph Biden spent most of his inaugural address pleading for unity, he also touched on an issue of deep importance to many American families: getting children back to school during the pandemic. “We can teach our children in safe schools,” Biden said in his address. He was alluding to his pledge to make it possible for most elementary school children to return to school for in-person instruction at least by the end of his first 100 days in office. It was the only direct reference in his address to his expansive education agenda. Just how many children could return to their classrooms, and when, could be affected by what happens to the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan Biden proposed last week in which he called for $130 billion in additional funds for schools to spend on costs related to reopening. What will happen to the plan is uncertain. Much will depend on his ability to get Senate Republicans to back it, unless Democrats are able to approve at least portions of it through a process called budget reconciliation, which requires only a majority vote in the Senate. The fact that he pointed to it in an inaugural address very short on policy pronouncements, as is the case in most inaugural addresses, underscored the importance he is placing on the issue.

https://edsource.org/2021/in-inaugural-address-biden-says-it-is-possible-to-teach-children-in-safe-schools/647306

 

13,000 School Districts, 13,000 Approaches to Teaching During Covid

To assess how public schools have navigated the pandemic and the impact on students, The Times examined seven representative districts. The answers were strikingly different.

New York Times By Kate Taylor Jan. 21, 2021

What does it mean to go to public school in the United States during the pandemic? The answer looks so different in different parts of the country, it is hard to tell that we are one nation. In some rural and suburban areas, especially in the South, Midwest and Great Plains, almost all students began the 2020-21 academic year attending school in person, and they have continued to do so, except for temporary closures during outbreaks. In many cities, the bulk of students haven’t been in a classroom since March. And in some districts, like New York City, only younger students have the option of going to school in person, with many attending only part-time. With little guidance from the federal government, the nation’s 13,000 districts have largely come up with their own standards for when it is safe to open schools and what virus mitigation measures to use. Those decisions have often been based as much on politics as on public health data.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/21/us/schools-coronavirus.html

 

Do you know someone who is interested in learning more about the role of a school board director?

PSBA will host free sessions covering the core considerations for candidates who are contemplating running for school board:

http://ow.ly/eCSl50D7ABH

 

PSBA: Upcoming PA budget recap webinar Feb. 3rd

POSTED ON JANUARY 15, 2021 IN PSBA NEWS

On Tuesday, February 2, Gov. Tom Wolf will present his 2021-22 state budget proposal before a joint meeting of the Senate and House of Representatives. Following the governor’s budget address, the Senate and House appropriations committees will convene hearings beginning March 15 on specific components of the proposal. The PSBA Government Affairs team will be providing members with complete coverage of the governor’s budget proposal, budget details and resources for school boards on February 3 from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Claim your spot for the budget recap here.

https://www.psba.org/2021/01/gov-wolf-to-present-budget-address-february-2/

 

PA SCHOOLS WORK: New Tools for Public Education Advocates in PA

Thu, Jan 21, 2021 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM EST

PA Schools Work partner Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials will hold a digital workshop to roll out their new suite of tools on their Data Dive website to show parents, educators, and public education advocates how they can use the site (including interactive data maps and graphic visualizations) when talking to other members of their community, legislators, media, etc. Don't miss this first-look at these innovative tools for PA public school advocates!

Register here: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register

 

Attend the NSBA 2021 Online Experience April 8-10

NSBA is pleased to announce the transformation of its in-person NSBA 2021 Annual Conference & Exposition to the NSBA 2021 Online Experience. This experience will bring world-class programming, inspirational keynotes, top education solution providers, and plentiful networking opportunities. Join us on April 8-10, 2021, for a fully transformed and memorable event!

https://www.nsba.org/Events/NSBA-2021-Online-Experience

 

PSBA Spring Virtual Advocacy Day - MAR 22, 2021

PSBA Website January 2021

All public school leaders are invited to join us for our spring Virtual Advocacy Day on Monday, March 22, 2021, via Zoom. We need all of you to help strengthen our advocacy impact. The day will center around contacting legislators to discuss critical issues affecting public education. Registrants will receive the meeting invitation with a link to our spring Virtual Advocacy Day website that contains talking points, a link to locate contact information for your legislator and additional information to help you have a successful day.

Cost: Complimentary for members

Registration: Registration is available under Event Registration on myPSBA.org.

https://www.psba.org/event/psba-spring-virtual-advocacy-day/

 

Adopt the 2020 PSBA resolution for charter school funding reform

In this legislative session, PSBA has been leading the charge with the Senate, House of Representatives and the Governor’s Administration to push for positive charter reform. We’re now asking you to join the campaign: Adopt the resolution: We’re asking all school boards to adopt the 2020 resolution for charter school funding reform at your next board meeting and submit it to your legislators and to PSBA.

Resolution for charter funding reform (pdf)

Link to submit your adopted resolution to PSBA

 

342 PA school boards have adopted charter reform resolutions

Charter school funding reform continues to be a concern as over 330 school boards across the state have adopted a resolution calling for legislators to enact significant reforms to the Charter School Law to provide funding relief and ensure all schools are held to the same quality and ethics standards. Now more than ever, there is a growing momentum from school officials across the state to call for charter school funding reform. Legislators are hearing loud and clear that school districts need relief from the unfair funding system that results in school districts overpaying millions of dollars to charter schools.

The school boards from the following districts have adopted resolutions calling for charter funding reform. 

https://www.psba.org/2020/03/adopted-charter-reform-resolutions/

 

Know Your Facts on Funding and Charter Performance. Then Call for Charter Change!

PSBA Charter Change Website:

https://www.pacharterchange.org/

 

The Network for Public Education Action Conference has been rescheduled to April 24-25, 2021 at the Philadelphia Doubletree Hotel

 

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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