Monday, May 21, 2012
 

THIS IS EDUCATION FUNDING ADVOCACY WEEK

MAY 21-25

For more information about some events and activities occurring this week, CLICK HERE 

The EPLC Education Notebook (current and past editions) also is available by visiting the EPLC web site at http://www.eplc.org/publications-reports/weekly-policy-notebook/
 

The Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) received notice from the State Board of Education that Regulation No. 2928 State Board of Education #6-325: Safe Schools (final omit regulation) has been formally withdrawn.  The regulation has been removed from the agenda of the May 17, 2012, public meeting.  The State Board of Education anticipates resubmitting a Safe Schools regulation in the future.

ANNOUNCEMENTS
 

• EPLC will hold a community forum on May 22 at the University of the Arts (Connelly Hall, 8^th Floor) in Philadelphia from 6:30 PM- 8:30 PM as part of the Arts and Education Initiative (AEI).  Registration and light refreshments will be available starting at 6:00 PM.  Learn more about the recommendations in "Creating Pennsylvania's Future through the Arts and Education" and how through your participation you can help build a public policy agenda for the arts and arts education.  Please plan to join a discussion about policies, priorities, and next steps for effective advocacy for the arts and arts education.  Visit www.aei-pa.org for more details and registration information.
   
• The Center on Reinventing Public Education, in partnership with theU.S. Department of Education's National School Choice Resource Center, will hold the third in a six-part webinar series on Strategies to Expand School Choice on Thursday, May 24 from 2:30 PM - 3:30 PM.  CRPE Senior Research Analyst Christine Campbell will highlight the importance of supporting choice to provide for diverse educational choices.  Click here to register.  Information on other upcoming webinars in the series can be found here.
   
• Philadelphia Public School The Notebook will hold will hold their end-of-the-year annual event, "Turning the Page for Change" on Tuesday, June 12, from 4:30PM - 7:00 PM at the University of the Arts.  The event will celebrate Strength in Community -the history of education activism, the city's best in student journalism, and growing partnerships throughout Philadelphia.  For more details, click here.
   
• The first public draft of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) is available from May 11 to June 1.  The NGSS have been written as student performance expectations grouped by topics (Earth and Space Sciences; Engineering, Technology and Application of Science; Life Sciences; and Physical Sciences).  These draft performance expectations describe how students will demonstrate their understanding in the various topics.  The NGSS are building upon the Framework for K-12 Science Education developed by the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academy of Sciences, which was released in July 2011.
   
• On May 16, the College Board announced that David Coleman will become the president of the College Board starting in October.  Coleman will succeed Governor Gaston Caperton who has served 13 years as president.  Coleman is known as an architect of the Common Core Standards and is a founding partner of Student Achievement Partners, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the successful implementation of the Standards.

DATEBOOK
 

• The House Finance Committee is holding a public hearing on HB 1776 (Property Tax Independence Act) in Harrisburg on Monday, May 21, at 10:00 AM.  For more information, contact the office of Representative Kerry Benninghoff, Majority Chairman of the Finance Committee at (717) 783-1918.
   
• The Pennsylvania Association of College Admission Counselors (PACAC) will be holding 2012 College Access Forum and Walk the Hill in Harrisburg on May 21-22.  Click here for details.
   
• The Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (PASA) and the Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials (PASBO) will hold a press conference to release the results of a statewide survey on the impact of funding cuts to school districts on Tuesday, May 22 at 2:30 PM in the Capitol Rotunda.
   
• A Day on the Hill will be held at the State Capitol on Tuesday, May 22 sponsored by the Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools and PA Families for Public Cyber Schools.  For more, go to http://pacharters.org/.
   
• Education Voters PA will be holding a "Call to Action for Public Education Day" on May 23.  For more information on how you can participate, please visit www.educationvoterspa.org.
   
• The House Education Committee will hold a meeting to consider SB 1406 (amends Title 24 to allow private, nonprofit colleges or universities to offer additional programs and majors without approval of the PDE) on Wednesday, May 23 at 9:00 AM.
   
• The Legislative Budget and Finance Committee will release a report on the financial and academic status of the Duquesne City School District on Wednesday, May 23 at 10:00 AM.
    
• The Media Area NAACP and CU Keystone Honors Program will host 2012 Conference on the State of Education in Pennsylvania "Calling for a Trauma Informed Education System" at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania (Marcus Foster Student Union, 2^nd floor) on Friday, May 25 from 9:00 AM - 3:30 PM.  For agenda and registration details, click here.  
   

SAVE the DATE:
 

• The Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials (PASBO) will hold its 58th Annual Conference and Exhibits March 19 - 22, 2013 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Pittsburgh.
   
• EPLC's Arts and Education Symposium will be held on Thursday, October 11 in Harrisburg.
   
• EPLC's Annual Education Finance Symposium will be held on Friday, November 16 in Harrisburg.