Monday, April 7, 2014

 The EPLC Education Notebook (current and past editions) also is available by visiting the EPLC website at www.eplc.org/category/education-notebook/.

• On March 12, the House unanimously adopted House Resolution 627, sponsored by Rep. Mike Turzai (R-28), by a vote of 191-0. HR 627 condemns the Academic Studies Association's academic boycott against Israel and calls upon the Department of Education, the State System of Higher Education, each of the state-related universities, and all of Pennsylvania's independent colleges and universities to reject anti-Semitism and not participate in the academic boycott.  

• On March 17, the House Education Committee held a hearing on House Bill 1013, sponsored by Rep. Mark Gillen (R-128), which would amend the Public School Code to require that each year documentation must be provided from a home school supervisor to the superintendent of the school district of residence stating that an appropriate education is being met in the home education program. HB 1013 would provide for a process if the supervisor were to fail to send the certification, or if the superintendent has a reasonable belief at any time that an appropriate education may not be occurring. The bill would also allow for the supervisor to issue a diploma that would hold all rights and privileges of a high school diploma awarded by the Commonwealth.
  
  Click here to watch a video recording of the hearing. View online the written testimony provided to the Committee: 

• Dr. Eric Eshbach, Superintendent, Northern York School District; Legislative Committee Chair, Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators
• Dr. Bruce Eagleson, Board Chairman, Christian Homeschool Association of Pennsylvania; Board Chairman, National Alliance of Christian Home Education Leadership
• Bradley Bastedo, Vice President, Christian Homeschool Association
• Davis Younts, Home School Parent
• Mark Moore, Home School Parent
• Dewitt Black, Senior Counsel, Home School Legal Defense Association
• John Callahan, Senior Director of Government Affairs, Pennsylvania School Boards Association
• Marci Bressler, Home School Parent
• Pennsylvania Department of Education

• On March 18, the House unanimously adopted House Resolution 683, sponsored by Rep. Dan Frankel (D-23), which honors Chancellor Mark Nordenberg for his many years of service to the University of Pittsburgh and the Greater Pittsburgh region.
  
  Nordenberg announced in June 2013 that he will step down from the post effective August 1, 2014. In February, the Pitt Board of Trustees elected Patrick Gallagher to become the University's 18th chancellor.  

• On March 19, the House Education Committee reported the following legislation:
  
  House Bill 1931, sponsored by Rep. Joseph Hackett (R-161), would amend the Public School Code to provide for a Commonwealth secondary school diploma. The Department of Education (PDE) would be required to solicit at least two testing programs under which individuals who do not possess a high school diploma and are not currently enrolled in a public or nonpublic school may obtain a Commonwealth secondary school diploma. The testing program to be established, implemented, and maintained by PDE shall be aligned with the rigor of the state academic standards; be available in both paper- and computer-based format; and include multiple testing sections that may be taken on separate dates. HB 1931 was unanimously reported as amended.
  
  The amendment, sponsored by Rep. Hal English (R-30), removes the reference to "testing program" and replaces it with "high equivalency assessment," and inserts other clarifying definitions.
  
  House Bill 2005, sponsored by Rep. Michael Hanna (D-76), would amend the Public School Code further providing for the sale of unused and unnecessary lands and buildings. The bill would add municipal authorities to the scope of administrative divisions to which a school district may convey unused and unnecessary lands and buildings. HB 2005 was unanimously reported as committed.
  
  House Bill 1930, sponsored by Rep. Hal English (R-30), would amend the Public School Code to provide for the grandfathering of 2002 Series GED test scores toward obtaining a Commonwealth secondary school diploma. In order to receive a secondary school diploma without having to begin the 2014 GED test from scratch, individuals with incomplete scores who successfully completed at least one section of the 2002 Series GED test before January 1, 2014 would have 18 months to complete the remaining parts through a testing program to be developed by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. The Committee adopted a technical amendment and then HB 1930 was unanimously reported as amended. 

   
• On March 19, the House Appropriations Committee unanimously reported as committed Senate Bill 31, sponsored by Sen. Wayne Fontana (D-42), which would amend the Child Services Law of Title 23 (Domestic Relations) to eliminate separate standards for school employees and staff in regard to reporting suspected child abuse.
  
  Click here to read the Committee's fiscal note, which encompasses changes made to the bill by an amendment, sponsored by Rep. Katharine Watson (R-144) and adopted in the House Children and Youth Committee on March 12, and an amendment sponsored by Rep. Todd Stephens (R-151) and adopted on the floor of the House on March 18. The amendment adopted in the Children and Youth Committee gives county Children and Youth Services (CYS) agencies the option of releasing certain information to the public concerning a child who died or nearly died as a result of suspected or substantiated child abuse, prior to completing its child fatality/near fatality report. The amendment adopted on the floor clarifies that a child's identity may be released by the CYS agency prior to completing its report only in the case of a child's fatality.  

• On March 25, the House Republican Policy Committee held a hearing on the accessibility and affordability of higher education. Click here to watch a video recording of the hearing. Click here to read the written testimony provided to the Committee from the Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges, Juniata College, Penn Highlands Community College, and the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.  

• Adds reference to "area technical schools" and removes "cyber schools" from the definition of "school entity";
• Provides a range of $20,000 to $200,000 for each grant awarded by PDE; and
• Replaces a "$10 million appropriation" with "an annual appropriation." This assumes any necessary appropriation will be included in the 2014-2015 state budget.

House Bill 2013, sponsored by Rep. Jerry Stern (R-80), would amend the Public School Code to allow a school board vacancy to be temporarily filled when a school board member is called to active duty in the military or naval forces of the United States. HB 2013 was unanimously reported as committed.

 

House Resolution 637, sponsored by Rep. Ed Neilson (D-169), urges the Congress of the United States to support the adoption of H.Res. 456 relating to dyslexia. H.Res. 456 calls on schools and state and local educational agencies to recognize that dyslexia has significant implications that must be addressed. HR 637 was unanimously reported as committed. 

• On March 12, the Senate Aging and Youth Committee unanimously reported as amended House Bill 434, sponsored by Rep. David Maloney (R-130). HB 434 is a part of a child protection legislative package introduced last year by several lawmakers to address the deficiencies identified by the Pennsylvania Task Force on Child Protection in a report published in November 2012. HB 434 eliminates separate standards for school employees so that school employees are subject to the same investigations and standards as other persons "responsible for a child's welfare." 

The amendment offered by Sen. Bob Mensch (R-24) and unanimously adopted:   

Makes various changes to definitions;

Removes the Child Abuse Clearance exception for student teachers; 

Increases the penalty for willfully failing to cooperate with a child abuse investigation; and

Changes the effective date to December 31, 2014. 

HB 434 was then reported as committed from the Senate Appropriations Committee on March 17. Click here to read the Appropriations Committee's fiscal note.

• During the week of March 17, the Senate acted on the following legislation:
  
  Senate Bill 874, sponsored by Sen. Pat Vance (R-31), would amend the Public School Code to provide for community college funding flexibility plans. SB 874 would allow a local sponsor of a community college that meets certain criteria to negotiate the amount the sponsor contributes on behalf of the community college's annual operating and capital expenses. As proposed, the criteria a community college must meet to be eligible for local sponsor negotiations are as follows: Must be sponsored by one or more school districts; must have an enrollment head count in excess of 20,000; and must have more than four campuses that are approved by both the Department of Education and the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. With this definition, the only community college the legislation pertains to currently is the Harrisburg Area Community College. SB 874 passed the Senate on March 17 by a vote of 46-0. 
  
  Senate Bill 1205, sponsored by Sen. Mike Folmer (R-48), would amend the Public School Code to simplify the process a college must follow in order to become a university. SB 1205 was amended on the floor March 17, and then passed on March 19 by a vote of 46-0.
  
  SB 1205 would allow a college that is authorized to confer bachelor's degrees to be designated a university if the institution submits a notarized affidavit to the Department of Education. The bill provides for the contents and submission of the affidavit, and the review process for the Department.
  
  An amendment, sponsored by Senator Folmer and adopted by the Senate on March 17, gives seminaries the same authority as private, nonprofit colleges or universities to offer additional degrees, programs, or majors given certain criteria are met and approved by the Department of Education. An amendment, sponsored by Sen. Dominic Pileggi (R-9), inserts a section providing for an accredited trade school conferring a minimum of associate degrees in specialized technology to be designated as a college.  

Senate Bill 1000, sponsored by Sen. Joseph Scarnati (R-25) would amend the Public School Code to establish a rural regional community college for underserved counties. The legislation provides for the powers and duties of the Secretary of Education, a board of trustees, and partner institutions. SB 1000 was amended on the floor March 18, and then passed on March 19 by a vote of 42-4.

  

The amendment sponsored by Senator Scarnati and adopted:

• Clarifies definitions, membership terms for the initial board of trustees, and financial aid eligibility during the initial partnership period and the post-transition period;
• Requires an audit be filed annually, rather than biannually;
• Expands the degree granting ability of the rural regional community college to include technical or career training certificates or associate degrees in the technologies or general education, in addition to the arts or sciences; and
• Provides for the transfers of credits attained at the regional community college. 

SB 1000 now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration.

 

Senate Resolution 322, sponsored by Sen. Joseph Scarnati (R-25), designated March 18, 2014 as "Pitt Day" in Pennsylvania, and commends Chancellor Nordenberg for his leadership of the University of Pittsburgh. SR 322 was adopted on March 18.

Senate Bill 1281, sponsored by Sen. Jake Corman (R-34), would amend the Public School Code to provide public schools with additional options to make up snow days during the 2013-14 school year. School entities may calculate the school year on an hourly basis rather than a daily basis. By calculating number of hours, a school may add time before or after school or on one Saturday per month in order to meet the required amount of instruction. SB 1281 passed the Senate on March 19 by a vote of 46-0. 

SB 1281 had been reported as committed from the Senate Education Committee on March 12, and reported as committed from the Senate Appropriations Committee on March 17. Click here to read the Senate Appropriations' fiscal note. SB 1281 now goes to the House for consideration.

• On March 31, the Senate Education Committee held a hearing on House Bill 2124, sponsored by Rep. Seth Grove (R-196), which would amend the Public School Code to provide for changes in the Planning and Construction Workbook (PlanCon) school construction reimbursement process. The bill would set a ceiling for an appropriation of an additional $100 million for school construction reimbursement; require the Department of Education to establish a public database for information on school construction projects; and establish a simplified process for school districts to apply for construction reimbursement, to be known as Accountability and Reducing Costs in Construction Process (ArcCon).
  
  View online the written testimony provided to the Committee: 

• Carolyn Dumaresq, Acting Secretary, Department of Education
• Dr. Wayne McCullough, Chief Financial and Operations Officer for Southern York County School District
• Shawn Sampson, Business Manager, Titusville Area School District
• Jay Himes, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials
• Stephen Swarney, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, (AIA PA)
• Vern McKissick, III, President, McKissick Associate Architects, speaking on behalf of AIA PA
• Richard Karcher, Executive Vice President, McKissick Associates Architects, speaking on behalf of AIA PA
• Dr. Joseph Roy, Superintendent, Bethlehem Area School District
• John Callahan, Senior Director of Government Affairs, Pennsylvania School Boards Association
• James Gaffney, Goshen Mechanical Inc. and speaking on behalf of the Concerned Contractors of Pennsylvania
• Chad Harvey, Executive Director, Mid Atlantic BX
• Terrence McDonough, Executive Director, General Contractors Association of Pennsylvania  

• During the week of March 31, the Senate passed the following legislation:
  
  Senate Resolution 250, sponsored by Sen. David Argall (R-29), would direct the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee (LBFC) to conduct a study relating to the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of merging public school health care plans. The bill presents 11 factors to be studied by the LBFC. The Senate adopted a clarifying amendment that also changed the due date of the LBFC's findings and recommendations from no later than June 30, 2014 to no later than November 30, 2014. SR 250 was unanimously adopted.
  
  House Bill 974, sponsored by Rep. Rosemary Brown (R-189), would amend the Public School Code to further provide for automatic external defibrillators (AEDs). Prior to being considered in the Senate, HB 974 would have required that the governing body of each school entity convene a public hearing every five years to consider whether the district will acquire AEDs for each school building. On March 18, the Senate Education Committee adopted an amendment sponsored by Sen. Mike Folmer (R-48) that replaced the original language with language establishing a program to assist school entities and nonpublic schools in making AEDs available in school buildings. The Department of Education, in consultation with the Department of Health and Department of General Services, would be required to biennially issue an invitation to bid for the cost of AEDs and other equipment necessary for the proper operation of the device. On March 19, the Senate Appropriations Committee adopted a technical amendment. Click here to read the Senate Appropriations' fiscal note. 
  
  HB 974 passed the Senate on April 2 by a vote of 46-0. Having passed the Senate in the amended form, the bill now goes back to the House for a vote on concurrence with the Senate amendments. 

• On April 2, the Senate Finance Committee unanimously reported as committed Senate Bill 1169, sponsored by Sen. Mike Folmer (R-48), which would remove from the Public School Employees Retirement System (PSERS) all future employees of an association authorized to receive membership dues from a public school entity.  This would restrict the future employees of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) from being eligible for public pension benefits.  PSBA is in support of this proposal, as stated in a letter from PSBA to the Senate Finance Committee.

• The March episode of Focus on Education - EPLC's monthly education program on PCN - discussed the quality and access to early education in Pennsylvania. Guests on the program were Tracey Campanini, director, Bureau of Early Learning Services, Office of Child Development & Early Learning, Pennsylvania Department of Education; Michelle Figlar, executive director, Pittsburgh Association for the Education of Young Children; Blair Hyatt, executive director, Pennsylvania Head Start Association; and Philip Peterson, FSA, partner at Aon Hewitt and co-creator of the Aon/United Way of Southeastern PA Hand-in-Hand Award for quality child care in the business community, and former co-chair of the Early Learning Investment Commission. Click here to watch the episode when it is made available.
  
  The April episode will discuss libraries and will air on PCN on Sunday, April 13 at 3:00 p.m. Past shows are archived and available "on demand" on PCN's Focus on Education website.
  
  The monthly show is an opportunity to get the name of your organization or cause in front of a statewide audience that has an interest in education issues. Introductory rates are available for a limited time now for sponsorships for one-month, three-months, or six-months. For more details, and to subscribe to your sponsorship for one or more monthly shows, please email Ron Cowell at [email protected]. 

• You can find on the EPLC website a list of confirmed 2014 gubernatorial candidates, and links to information about their plans, if elected, for education and arts and culture in Pennsylvania. The list continues to be updated as more information becomes available. Click here to visit the resource page.