Education
2025 State of Education Spending in Pennsylvania
Overview The national trends impacting education in Pennsylvania in 2025 include an impending fiscal cliff, under-enrolled schools, and population decline, all of which lead to school closures…
Read More: 2025 State of Education Spending in PennsylvaniaPennsylvania’s future is in the hands of the next generation. Parents and students—not activist agendas—should drive the Commonwealth’s education policy. While policymakers have been entrusted with ensuring the next generation receives a quality education, parents should be empowered to choose the quality education that meets their unique child’s needs. Charter schools and tax credit scholarships are integral pieces of school choice, but more reforms are needed to make school choice a reality for all Pennsylvania students.
Education
Higher Taxes and Tuition Coming for PA College Students
The Tribune Review reports Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl is continuing to threaten a tax on tuition, attempting to use a jedi mind trick to persuade universities to cough up…
Media
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The ABC’s of School Choice
The Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, a renowned advocate for school choice programs, recently published their 2009-10 edition of “The ABC’s of School Choice” in which they highlight…
Media
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Costing-Out the Price of Education
Testimony of Nathan A. Benefield, Director of Policy Research, Commonwealth Foundation for Public Policy Alternatives to the Pennsylvania Senate Education Committee December 8, 2009 Thank you, Sen. Piccola and…
Testimony
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State Report on PA’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit
The Pennsylvania Legislative Budget and Finance Committee put out a preliminary report on the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) a few months ago, but the report has been sitting…
Media
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Penn State Professor Feeling the (Metaphorical) Heat
Following the Commonwealth Foundation’s call for a legislative inquiry into use of tax dollars to stifle, rather than foster, scientific inquiry in the case of Penn State professor Michael…
Media
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Pittsburgh Tuition Tax Podcast
Elizabeth Bryan and I discuss the proposed tuition tax in Pittsburgh in a podcast. Joining us for part of the conversation is Aaron Gross, a student…
Media
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Penn State to Launch Inquiry in “Climategate”
Penn State University is going to “look into” the emails from and about university professor Michael Mann, which indicate, among other things,…
Media
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Taxing Tuition: The Future of Higher Education?
With Pittsburgh on the brink of bankruptcy thanks to its continual out-of-control spending, Mayor Ravenstahl and his allies on City Council have hatched a new scheme to collect more money…
Commentary
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Teacher Merit Pay May Come to Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh City Schools may soon finalize their second huge grant. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is granting the system $40 million over 6 and half years to improve…
Media
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Taxing Students For Past Mistakes
Pittsburgh’s financial problems are such that it gave rise to the Intergovermental Cooperation Authority(ICA) – formed by none other than, perennially in-deficit Governor, Ed Rendell. The ICA was put…
Media
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CF Facts Irk Governor Rendell
Normally I don’t respond to allegations of untrue research, but I feel compelled to do so because it is the Governor of Pennsylvania. I am not sure what the…
Media
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Privatizing School Bus Drivers
In last Tuesday’s race for Central Dauphin school board candidates clashed over the privatization of the district’s busing. The pro-privatization candidate- Chris Judd narrowly won, but that hasn’t silenced the…
Media
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Privatizing State Universities
In wake of a state budget crisis and a temporary infusion of stimulus funds, Colorado State University is considering a partial privatization of the public university. By 2011, it will…
Media
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Despite Recession, Pennsylvania College Costs Increase
On Tuesday, the College Board released their annual report on tuition and financial aid. Despite a national recession, college tuition is still rising at an alarming pace. On average,…
Media
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Misguided Efforts Fail to Make College More Affordable
Gubernatorial hopeful Jack Wagner pledged to start a scholarship program to help students who decide to stay in Pennsylvania to attend college. The proposed HOPE (Helping Our Pupils to…
Media
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Is Preschool for All a Good Idea?
Chester Finn of the Fordham Foundation has a good article in the latest Education Next on the movement for “preschool for all.” Finn is generally supportive of government…
Media
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Conservative College Professors: An Endangered Species
Robert Maranto, a former professor of political science at Villanova, recently published a new book through AEI Press, The Politically Correct University, which highlights the scarcity of conservative and…
Media
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Charter School Students Outperform Peers
The results of a recent study by a Stanford economist strengthens the case for charter schools by debunking the myth that charter school student outperform traditional students because…
Media
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Calls to Action on Protecting School Choice in Pennsylvania
As reported earlier, the tax bill put out by Pennsylvania House Democrats would cut the state’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit by…
Media
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Is Gov. Rendell “for the Kids” at All?
On Friday, the REACH Foundation hosted a rally at the state capitol in defense of Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit, which…
Media
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Will Lawmakers Put Hollywood Before School Children?
Governor Rendell and three legislative caucuses are kicking low-income children out of their classrooms to fund handout to Big Hollywood studios. This is beyond bad policy – it’s blatant…
Media
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