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Rural and Small Schools
October 2001 |
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Page Index:
GOVERNOR
MARK SCHWEIKER
EXPRESSIONS OF GRIEF AND SORROW
STATE BUDGET
JOE SAYS
RURAL FINANCE FACT
THE UN CYBER SCHOOL
PARSS INSTITUTES
THE CLIFF
COURT DOWNS A CYBER SCHOOL |
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| GOVERNOR
MARK SCHWEIKER... |
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On October 5, 2001 Lt. Governor Mark Schweiker was sworn in as Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He will fill out the term of Governor Tom Ridge who was appointed Director of Home Security in Washington. The new Governor is a graduate of Bishop Egan High School in Levittown, PA, of Bloomsburg University and has a Master’s Degree from Rider College in New Jersey. He has been an
executive with Merrill Lynch, |
McGraw
Hill and his own management firm. In 1980 he became a supervisor in
Middle- town Township in Bucks County. He was elected as County
Commissioner in 1987 and served in that capacity until
1994. Mr. Schweiker is married and has three children. According to the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, at this time Senator Robert Jubelirer will become the Lt. Governor. There is some thought that although he is Lt. Governor, he may be able to hold on to his seat as Senator.
Mr. Schweiker has told the Republication Party that he has no intention of running in 2002. He would like to spend more time with his family. |
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| EXPRESSIONS OF GRIEF AND SORROW... |
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| The events of September 11, 2001 will be stamped indelibly on the minds of most of the people in the United States. Phone calls and e-mails from many rural schools told us that the catastrophe and aftermath were handled in many different ways across the Commonwealth. |
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For younger children, the portrayals on television, when they returned from school, put a great burden on parents and then teachers to help each child understand what had happened. Reminiscent of the 1963 assassination of President Kennedy, the resultant aftermath is still with us today. The events of September 11, 2001 will affect our society forever. We can only hope to be able to help our children understand and be comforted.
PARSS thoughts and prayers go with the families of those who were killed, injured or affected by the tragedy. We also thank those heroic people who performed the rescue services and honor those who tried to subdue the hijackers on the plane that went down in
Shanksville. |
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| STATE BUDGET... |
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The state budget is created by the Governor’s staff in the Fall of the year. In past administrations, Departments of State presented their budgets to the Governor by November 1. With certain alterations, that budget becomes the Governor’s budget by beginning of February, when it is announced publicly.
In recent years, the Governor’s chair also controls both houses making it easier to get things through. This makes it difficult to add or subtract anything once past the February announcement. Last year, only a few things were added, small district assistance and growing school district funding, vocational equipment and a few others such as the Science in Motion program.
Some lobbyists have had some success working with the Governor’s office in inserting their priorities prior to the budget submission. The swearing in of Mark Schweiker on October 5, 2001 may have changed some of the processes. We will only know in February. |
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| JOE
SAYS. . . Our Civic Responsibility |
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There is always a risk in writing about current affairs in this column, as happenings in the weeks that intervene between my putting thoughts on paper and their eventual publication can make them obsolete. So, I have no idea what may occur to either mitigate, or exacerbate, the horror of September 11th before you read this.
With that as apologia, I think it is fair to assume that we have been made a part of, and will experience for a long time, one of those epochal events like the Great Depression, World Wars I and II, President Kennedy’s Assassination, the Vietnam War, or Watergate, that create a different mindset, a new prism through which we will all view the world. What we think and feel about almost everything is changed to greater, or lesser, degree by this tragedy and its implications for the future. As with most things in the world of the 21st century, the paradigm shifted with stunning speed as events took place within all of our sight and hearing.
I have no easy answer to the question of what this means to us as educators of children, as I have no certainty what it means to my own family and me. But I know that if we are not thinking about it, beyond dealing with the immediate trauma, pain, fear and anger, we are guilty of as great a lapse as would be failing to improve the security of air travel.
At this point my thoughts run as follows: The students in our schools at this moment will very rapidly be actors on this historical stage. The values and attitudes they bring to their roles as citizens, soldiers, politicians, clerics or parents, have been, and will be, greatly affected by these acts of terror, and our responses to them. As educators, we must help equip them to analyze, evaluate and give appropriate weight to the words and behaviors of those in their community, the nation and the world.
We are a country formed by the diversity of our people, and their cultures and religions. Over the centuries we have prospered and grown powerful through the strength created by that diversity. It is easy to celebrate that fact in easy times. A look at the past tells a different story of our response in times of crisis. The most vicious civil disturbance in our history, the draft riots of the Civil War, were inspired by
anit-Irish, anti-immigrant sentiments. The unjust internment of United States citizens of Japanese heritage during World Ware II was caused by the racial fears and hostility of the majority. I am sure you are aware of these and other instances of display of the dark side of our national character.
There are also many instances in reverse. There is no nation in recorded history that has worked more diligently to provide fair and equal treatment to all its people than the United States. We must present both the positive and the negative, if civic values are to be grounded in truth.
To be specific about my concern: there are more than 7 million Muslim Americans. There are many more who are here in temporary, or permanent resident status. They come from all ethnic and racial backgrounds. They were, as a group and as individuals, as stricken as anyone else by those awful acts of September 11. While the perpetrators may have been Muslim, there were also Muslim victims, and Muslim families suffering as a result.
As an American, and a veteran, I take second place to no one in my love of country, but history, and my own experience, tells me that a byproduct of unfettered patriotic emotion can be demagoguery and the disappearance of tolerance. To let a founding principle and freedom of our nation be trampled out of fear, anger and ignorance, would be a travesty and a more complete victory for the evil of terrorism than any would wish to contemplate.
These matters need to be talked about with our students. The civic values we want to see this country guided by must be discussed and modeled. To let that guidance be left to those motivated solely by the need for revenge is, to my mind, a dishonor to the memory of the hundreds of firefighters, policemen and ordinary citizens, who stayed, or rushed into, harms way, so that others might live. |
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| RURAL FINANCE FACT... |
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| (from Rural Policy Matters) |
| Rural Schools represented 22 percent of all public schools in the U.S. in 1997, yet they received 12.5 percent all federal funding, 14 percent of all state funding, and 11 percent of all local funding. Source: (U.S. Department of Education Digest of Education Statistics, 2000) |
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| THE UN CYBER SCHOOL... |
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| At this time, Cyber Schools are: |
Unstudied
Untested
Unmeasurable
Unsupervised
Unaccountable
Uncontrolled
Unwise
Stuart Knade, Esq., Chief Counsel, PA School Boards Association |
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| PARSS INSTITUTES... |
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As a result of the many inquiries to PARSS about current happenings in education in Pennsylvania, PARSS will be offering a series of workshops across the state over the next two months. These programs will be two way communications between you and
PARSS. The topics will range from school funding to cyber schools to teacher testing to the next election. PARSS is particularly pleased to respond to requests from its membership. Since PARSS is an organization composed of school districts, attenders could be superintendents, staff members, board members or other school district personnel.
1. October 23, 2001 Chambersburg Administration Building Chambersburg,
PA
2. October 25, 2001 Central Susquehanna I.U. 16 Lewisburg, PA
3. November 15, 2001 Riverview Intermediate Unit 6 Clarion, PA
4. November 16, 2001 Sheraton Inn Warrendale, PA
5. November 19, 2001 Days Inn New Stanton, PA
6. November 20, 2001 Everett Administration Building Everett, PA
7. November 28, 2001 Bald Eagle S.D. Administration Bldg. Wingate, PA
8. November 29, 2001 Towanda High School Room 230 Towanda, PA
The Institutes will be conducted by Mr. Joseph Bard, former Commissioner of Education and presently Executive Director of
PARSS, Dr. Arnold Hillman, consultant to PARSS and Dr. Woody Sites, former Superintendent of Donegal School District and consultant on school business functions, construction and transportation. As usual there will be ample time to discuss individual district problems.
The programs will begin at 9:30 a.m. and we should have you on your way by 2:30 p.m. You may register by mail using the tear-off below, e-mail the information needed below to
arnold@parss.org, or fax to 717-731-0191. Registration fee will be $15 for members of PARSS and $25 for non-members. There will be a limited number of registrations at the door.
(Name of Registrant) (Name of Registrant)
(Name of Registrant) (Name of Registrant)
Total Fee ($15 or $25 x # of Registrants)
(School District)
Registration for the following Institute (Please Circle) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
For further information contact Dr. Arnold Hillman at 717-731-6220
Please send this coupon to: Dr. Arnold Hillman, 233 Creekwood Drive, Camp Hill, PA 17011 |
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| THE CLIFF... |
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The consideration of House Resolution 42 could not come at a better time for the small and rural school districts in the state of Pennsylvania. Our school is reflective of the vulgarities of the non system of state funding that generates decisions by the “cliff effect”.
In the past three years, our school district has had to increase taxes by almost forty mills, while at the same time depleting our fund balance from one million dollars to less than $300,000. I am sure that some sage from the political establishment will say that we must tighten our belts or be more creative in our budgetary process. However, as a reflection of the difficulties that we have I note the following points of interest: 1. Our current school budget is $200,000 less than the previous school year’s budget. 2. We spend less money per pupil than any other school district in our three county region . 3. While decreasing the budget we raised local property taxes 8 mills.
I often try to reflect upon how this is happening to our school district. Some things seem evident to me regarding the funding process: 1. Even though the state purports to provide “savings” for school districts, these savings are more than offset by other “hidden” expenses (see
PURTA, etc.); 2. The cliff effect (that processes of having sharp lines of distinction where none really exist) causes us not to get small school assistance (less than 1500 pupils, we have 1550), the .70 aid ratio that causes neighboring schools to get $300,000 increases while we (at .68) get $70,000 increases, the lack of grants and awards because we are not small enough, poor enough, or whatever enough; and 3. The lack of accounting for the economic sustenance that a community can provide, or not provide. Some nearby local districts have dollar amounts in mills that are triple ours, yet we are considered “like” school districts to those with superior business and economic bases. This especially rings true because we are a county seat and thus are overrun with both state and local agencies throughout our district - CYS,
MHMR, prisons, Domestic Relations, etc.
I do not know the plight of every school in the Commonwealth, nor would I assume that we are the most negatively affected by the budgetary process, however, I do know that we are not alone in this crisis. From my perspective, the non-system is not only broke, but has been broken for the past twenty years. This has obviously compounded the economic gap. As a result, the local schools “like” us, but a little smaller and a little poorer are now able to spend many more dollars per year on their children’s’ education. Our children have fewer books and computers, and less of everything money can buy. We are proud that our scores on state and national tests are all above average and take some solace in the fact that our children are being successful. However, I wait each year for the other shoe to drop - for our students to be identified as being underprivileged because they cannot compete with the students from other schools because they did not have the tools necessary to be competitive in today’s society.
We all need to stand up and be counted regarding adequate school funding. I know my problems are not reflective of all schools, but I also know from talking with hundreds of superintendents that most schools have major funding issues. I also know that I am frustrated with a state government where millions of dollars go to wealthy school districts so that they may create “models” for how technology can be used in school - a moot point for those of us who have to cut textbooks to make ends meet. Moreover, a tragedy considering that these same millions could be funneled into districts that are two, three, or four times poorer than the districts receiving the digital school grants. Our school has not received any technology funding for three years, we have fewer computers per pupil than any school in a four county region, yet our requests for grants are denied while grants are awarded to those with excess funding and funding adequate to hire grant writers.
Lets stick together and help each other create a system that provides “Quality Education for ALL Children in Pennsylvania.” |
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| COURT DOWNS A CYBER SCHOOL... |
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Butler County Common Pleas Court Judge William Shaffer issued a decision on the Butler Area School District challenge of the legality of the Einstein Cyber Charter School (TEACH). Three other districts - Karns City, Mars Area and South Butler School District were intervenors in the court action. Judge Shaffer said that “The harm to Einstein by preventing it from providing an education of the Butler Area School District and Interveners is outweighed by Einstein’s violation of its Charter Agreement and its apparent inability to provide education to the students of the school districts of Butler County involved herein.”
The case did not rest on the money damages that the school districts might suffer, but the inability of the Einstein Cyber School from providing the proper education that it promised in its charter. “Plaintiff’s expert, Mr. (Joe) Bard; testified that Einstein cannot deliver the education program it says it can. Testimony established that Einstein has only seven certified teachers. As noted above, Einstein is in serious breach of its Charter Agreement. Only three of the students registered for Einstein in the BASD are home-schooled.. . .Irreparable harm would result if Einstein is permitted to begin classes as scheduled on September 11, 2001, because it cannot provide a viable educational program to students currently enrolled.”
“The Court found persuasive the testimony of Joseph F. Bard, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools
(PARSS), who testified that cyber schools, in general, and Einstein, in particular, are merely home schooling by another name and are not entitled to public money as charter schools.”
The injunction against Einstein is therefore continued. |
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