| Weekly Wrap Up: Pa. School Funding Campaign |
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Recent editorials by the Washington Observer-Reporter, Allentown Morning Call and Harrisburg Patriot-News argue that fixing Pennsylvania's broken system of funding and supporting public education is a priority issue. And as election day in Pennsylvania approaches, we think there is no more important issue on which to gauge candidates than their commitment to public education. View the results of the campaign's recently-released candidate survey on education issues. Did the candidates vying for your vote respond? If not, make sure they hear from you! You can use our website to contact your legislators. It's harder to reach the challengers because their email addresses aren't readily available, but you can access this spreadsheet to contact them. Request their positions on these important issues and help us spread the word that the time is now for education reform.
Whether you represent an organization, school, faith community or just yourself, be sure to visit the website to sign on to the campaign and work with us to make sure this is the year we finally achieve our goal of a quality education for every Pennsylvania student. |
| State Senate Candidates Tested on Education |
 "If elected, what would you do to address Pennsylvania's school funding problem?" That was just one of the pressing questions asked of candidates running for the 13th District state Senate seat in Lancaster and York Counties. Republican Paul Thibault and Democrat Jose Urdaneta attended the education forum hosted by Good Schools Pennsylvania, where community and business leaders, educators and administrators, and parents and students sought more information about positions, platforms and plans from the candidates seeking retiring State Senator Gib Armstrong's seat. ... MORE |
| Good Reads |
 Here are our top picks for the latest research and conferences affirming the importance of public education not only to the success of students, but also to our citizens and communities.
Maryland examines impact of school funding reform
Our neighbor to the south, Maryland, was a pioneer in using a costing-out study to achieve school funding reform. In 2001, after learning that the state's share of education funding should be increased from 41 to 49 percent, the Thornton Commission formed to structure and implement a new school funding mechanism. A new report has recently been released to measure its effectiveness and impact on student achievement.
S ince the passage of the Bridge to Excellence plan, local school districts have focused on closing achievement gaps, and the results show it is working: While schools have demonstrated substantial improvements among students who were already proficient in reading and math, they have also showed great gains in closing the achievement gaps for students who still need to demonstrate proficiency. Maryland schools were especially strong in closing gaps among students in grades 3-5 with limited English proficiency. ... MORE
PolicyLink examines school funding and regional equity
The notion that school funding is much more than just a one-note issue is gaining consensus. At the Regional Equity Summit hosted by PolicyLink in New Orleans in early March, leaders from the health, housing, smart growth, and education sectors joined forces to address common issues and craft multi-faceted approaches to restoring prosperity and competitiveness. As Michael Rebell from New York's Campaign for Educational Equity said, "Just as development is not confined to one area, education is affected by many different factors as well." ... MORE |
| Stay Connected |
Our website is updated frequently with news, opportunities and links to keep you informed about our work to change public education funding in Pennsylvania. Be sure to add the Good Schools Pennsylvania homepage to your favorites and check back often.
If you're not on our mailing list, be sure to click the Join Our Mailing List! button in the top left column of this E-Update to receive all of our organization's communications. |
| Good Schools Pennsylvania |
Good Schools Pennsylvania is a statewide network of citizens who are informed and mobilized in support of public education. We believe that we can improve our schools when we join together in calling for adequate funds that are equitably distributed, proven educational practices to meet a standard of excellence, and effective accountability measures. Visit our website. |
