Keystone State Education Coalition: Parent trigger? How about ...

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Parent trigger? How about parents as the citizen owners-managers of a public education system that is a central institution of democratic civic life?

Our failing public schools: 104 of 141 members of JPL?s Curiosity mission to Mars team graduated from public schoolsDaily postings from the Keystone State Education Coalition now reach more than 1650 Pennsylvania education policymakers ? school directors, administrators, legislators, legislative and congressional staffers, members of the press and a broad array of education advocacy organizations via emails, website, Facebook and Twitter.Follow us on Twitter at @lfeinbergPosted at 11:36 PM ET, 09/06/2012Yinzercation Blog by Jessie Ramey ??SEPTEMBER 6, 2012An Open Letter to Roberto Rodriguez, Special Assistant to the President for Education PolicyAs you will no doubt recall, last week when I was invited to the White House as one of 40 education leaders from Pennsylvania I stood before you and pleaded for an end to the national narrative of ?failing public schools.? I am writing to let you know about the national conversation that that meeting has sparked ? and the overwhelming sense of disappointment, despair and frustration it has evoked. You asked for a dialogue and feedback, so please allow me to tell you what people are saying.Corbett's aggressive charter push could cost PA money ? and oversightBy DanielDenvirCity Paper Posted:?Thu, Sep. 6, 2012, 12:00 AMGov. Tom Corbett has cut $860 million from the state?s public schools; now, he seeks to remake them. Into what is increasingly evident: an ever-growing number of charter schools.?With newly legislated authority to install (pro-charter) district leadership, a freshly expanded tax credit for donations to private schools and a strongly pro-charter legislative agenda set for this fall, the governor could soon preside over an unprecedented expansion of privately managed education across the state ? particularly in struggling districts like Philadelphia. But that pro-charter agenda has stirred controversy, thanks to charters? mixed performance and frequent corruption scandals. And an aggressive shift to privatization could prove more costly than advocates would like us to believe.?One key avenue for charter expansion, enacted this summer as Act 141, authorizes the governor to declare a school district ?financially distressed? and appoint a chief recovery officer empowered to close schools, cancel union contracts and hand over school management to private entities. The law, says Pennsylvania Department of Education spokesman Tim Eller, ?put into place measures to ensure that quality educational programs are provided, and that the education of students continues to take place.?But public-education activists say a larger agenda to undermine public schools in favor of charter operators ? at a large cost to fiscally distraught districts ? is evident.How the Charter Formula Games Special EducationPublic InterestLawCenter of Philadelphia, September 6, 2012While the Charter formula for regular education students is relatively straightforward, the formula for special education students has several provisions that cause unintended consequences which are extremely detrimental to districts and which give charters unexpected windfalls, entirely unrelated to reimbursing them for their costs.The current Charter formula is based on equalizing the playing field with the district from which the student comes, rather than on a basis of reimbursing the charter for its actual cost. But on that basis?equalizing funding with that of the District?the charter/special education funding interaction is especially deficient, for it in fact gives the charter school a large bonus over what is available for the district special education student.Judge allows more time for 'complex' charter school fraud caseBy?Martha Woodall Inquirer Staff Writer Posted:?Fri, Sep. 7, 2012, 3:01 AMA U.S. district judge has ruled that a fraud case against charter school mogul Dorothy June Brown and four codefendants is so complex that he will allow more time to begin the criminal trial.In a decision signed Thursday, R. Barclay Surrick said that because of the multiple charges, number of defendants, and volume of evidence, additional time was needed so attorneys could prepare.? No trial date has been set.Parent trigger?? How about parents as the citizen owners-managers of a public education system that is a central institution of democratic civic life?During his speech at the Democratic Convention this week, Gov. Deval Patrick praised the seemingly miraculous one-year turnaround of Boston?s OrchardGardens school?actually, the OrchardGardensPilotSchool. Gov. Patrick?s choice of OrchardGardens was striking for two reasons: First, it fit the mainstream education-reform narrative, which disproportionately scapegoats teachers for educational failure and argues that the best way to turnaround schools is to fire teachers. And,? second, because of the remarkable?and much more proven?Mass. turnaround story that he failed to mention at all.The Orchard Gardens story?is one of housecleaning and modest gains.? Two years ago, a new principal fired 80 percent of the teachers, replacing them with teachers who?know how to use data. He also introduced other reforms, including an extended school day. While the firings suggest that the key problem with the school was the teachers, OrchardGardens, which was founded in 2003, also had?six principals in seven years.As appealing as miracle turnarounds may be, the school?s still-low test scores suggest that it is way too soon to declare victory at OrchardGardens. Which raises the question: Why didn?t Gov. Patrick reference what is probably the?greatest turnaround in Mass., a success story that has been praised by?Harvard researchers, among others, and?one that he knows well?that of Brockton High, the largest school in the state, where most kids are poor, African-American or Latino and where an obsessive focus on literacy has sustained a decade-long transformation??Huffington Post 09/06/20128:35 amUnder a new?D.C. Public Schools ?career ladder? initiative, high-performing teachers in low-income schools will see a streamlined process to salary raises and more leadership opportunities, the Washington Post reports.? According to Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson, the goal of the Leadership Initiative for Teachers (LIFT) is to attract educators to the District and encourage them to remain in the city?s classrooms.The career ladder features five rungs, with the ?teacher? designation at the bottom denoting someone who receives normal pay and is subject to four formal classroom observations annually, the?Post?reports. To climb the ladder, an educator must earn ?effective? and ?highly effective? ratings on yearly evaluations. Reaching the top rung -- labeled ?expert teacher? -- requires at least six years? experience.NEW: PSBA Leadership Institute Oct 16^th?at the PASA-PSBASchool Leadership Conference in HersheyOpportunities for engagement in your association at the regional and state levelsTarget audience:?PSBA liaisons, assistant regional directors, regional directors, and all school board members who want to learn, network, and get more involved in public education leadership locally, regionally and at the state level.?When and where:?Tues., Oct. 16, 2- 3:30 p.m. in Trinidad Room at the PASA-PSBASchool Leadership Conference in Hershey, PAPanel of speakers:?PSBA members currently serving in leadership roles at the local, region and state level.Facilitator:?Tom Gentzel, PSBA executive directorWhy attend??Make the most of your membership by learning about the current and proposed governance structure of your state association and the many ways in which you can become more involved in public education leadership locally, regionally and at the state level. If you are already engaged in the work of the association, learn more about how you can enhance your role and make it most meaningful for you, your local board, region, and at the state level.?You will be hearing from a panel of ?experts? who are already serving in various governance positions for the association.?Regional Cabinet Meetings/ Region ?Meet and Greets??are being held in the Trinidad Room and Wild Rose A&B following the institute from 4-5:30 p.m.Refreshments will be served and registration is free!?To register?for the Leadership Institute and Region Meetings, contact?Becky?Mehringer?atrebecca.mehringer@psba.org?by Oct. 9.?Contact?Karen Devine at?karen.devine@psba.org?for further information about the institute and region meetings.If you have received an absentee ballot it must be postmarked by September 10thBios of candidates slated for 2013 PSBA offices 8/15/2012At its May 19 meeting at PSBAConferenceCenter, the PSBA Nominating Committee interviewed and selected a slate of candidates for officers of the association in 2013.

Published: Tuesday, September 04, 2012, 1:01 AM

Harrisburg Patriot News By?Letters to the Editor?
The Patriot-News is holding a community forum focused on education on Sept. 13 at the Grace Milliman Pollock Performing Arts Center in Camp Hill to address these big questions.
Pennsylvania Education Secretary Ron Tomalis will join a panel that includes Mechanicsburg Area School District Superintendent Dr. Mark Leidy, InfinityCharterSchool founder Nancy Hall and Patriot-News Capitol bureau chief and longtime education reporter Jan Murphy.
We also have interviewed numerous teachers, students, administrators, school board members and parents about what's working and what isn't in our current system. Their voices will play a role in the forum as well.
http://www.pennlive.com/letters/index.ssf/2012/09/education_2020--forum_will_foc.htmlEducation Voters PA Statewide Advocate Leadership Session Sept. 22ndEducation Voters of Pennsylvania will be holding a day-long summit for public education advocates across the state on Saturday September 22 in Harrisburg, PA.?With public education coming under attack on multiple levels, the goal of this event is to bring together community members who are standing up for public schools in their own communities for training, planning and coordinating statewide efforts to maximize the impact that we all have.? We'll have a chance to brush up on and learn more about key policy issues, get training on effective advocacy tools and techniques and share stories and idea about local effort and how we bring this work together in a unified way.??Breakfast and lunch will be provided.Click?HERE?for more details on parking, directions, etc.Upcoming PSBA Professional Development OpportunitiesNSBA Federal Relations Network seeking new members for 2013-14School directors are invited to advocate for public education at the federal level through the National School Boards Association?s Federal Relations Network. The?National School Boards Association?is seeking school directors interested in serving on the Federal Relations Network (FRN), its grass roots advocacy program that brings local board members on the front line of pending issues before Congress. If you are a school director and willing to carry the public education message to Washington, D.C., FRN membership is a good place to start.?

Source: http://keystonestateeducationcoalition.blogspot.com/2012/09/parent-trigger-how-about-parents-as.html

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