Education
Commonwealth Court ruling is a massive win for education choice advocates
Originally published in The Philadelphia Inquirer After a more than eight-year slog, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court affirmed what the Pennsylvania Constitution has said all…
Read More: Commonwealth Court ruling is a massive win for education choice advocatesEducation is the first stepping-stone on the path to success, but Pennsylvania students face severe inequality among public school districts. Thousands who can’t afford private school are trapped in failing schools or situations that aren’t the right fit. The solution to this crisis is school choice. By offering families options outside their zip code-assigned district schools, students are better able to find their path to success. Charter schools, tax credit scholarships, education savings accounts (ESAs), homeschooling, and other types of education choice must become a priority in Pennsylvania.
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Education
Podcast: Teachers Opt Out of Union Membership
As part of National Employee Freedom Week, we sat down with two western Pennsylvania teachers who successfully left their teachers’ unions last year. John Cress is a middle school…
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School Reserves Offer Pension Reform Opportunity
Despite the rhetoric of “billions of dollars” in cuts from education, school districts across Pennsylvania have been able to increase their reserve funds. School districts had a combined reserve fund…
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More on Philadelphia School Trends
Philadelphia-based Research for Action (RFA) took issue with CF’s Policy Points on spending, enrollment, and staffing trends in the School District of Philadelphia. The…
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Teachers Call for More Freedom, Choices
Heather Lister and Joe Connolly are both Pennsylvania educators, and they couldn’t be more different. Heather is a 25-year-old library media specialist and a registered Democrat. Joe is a veteran…
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For Teachers, Knowledge is Power
Like any other group of professionals, teachers are a diverse lot, holding vastly differing social, cultural, and political views. So why is it that they’re lumped together and forced to…
Commentary
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Seniority Reform is Pro-Child, not Anti-Teacher
It seems clear that there is widespread agreement—across party lines and ideological barriers—that we must address school seniority rules and tenure reform. Check out this stunning video from MSNBC’s Morning…
Media
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Funding Advance Band-Aid Won’t Stop Philly Schools’ Bleeding
Commonwealth Foundation Contact: 717-671-1901 Short Term Funding Solution Ignores Structural Problems Philadelphia Schools Need Fundamental Reform to End Education Crisis With 80 percent of students failing to make…
Press Release
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Protecting Children Should Trump Politics
A harrowing study shows that sexual misconduct by teachers is becoming more prevalent in the commonwealth. Since January, there have been 24 reported cases of sexual abuse by Pennsylvania teachers.
Media
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Audio: Will a Cigarette Tax Really Save Philly Schools?
Yesterday, radio talk show host Dom Giordano talked to CF’s Nathan Benefield about the proposed cigarette tax to fund Philadelphia schools. Dom asked why we care so much about whether…
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A Note on Philadelphia School Spending
Last week, we released a summary of spending, enrollment and staffing trends in the Philadelphia School District over the past decade. After this release,…
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Cigarette Tax Won’t Save Philly Students
For Immediate Release Commonwealth Foundation Contact: 717-671-1901 Threatened Cuts Exaggerated, Quick-Fix Measures Not the Answer Trends Show More Funding Won’t Fix Philadelphia Schools August 1,…
Press Release
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Philadelphia School Trends, 2002-03 to 2012-13
The School District of Philadelphia is in desperate need of reform, but its many problems cannot be solved by simply raising taxes and increasing spending.
Fact Sheet
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Teacher Evaluation System to Continue in Pittsburgh
Good news from the Pittsburgh School District, where the Pennsylvania Department of Education granted three year approval of Pittsburgh’s new teacher evaluation system. This despite the Pittsburgh Federation…
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PSEA Spokesman Wins the Pinocchio Award
Readers of PolicyBlog already know that Pennsylvania education spending is at a record high, that state funding to school districts for…
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Study: Charter Schools More Efficient
It is impossible to do more with less, they say; you cannot expect schools to achieve better results without increasing spending. Yet an essential new report from the University…
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Taxing Business Won’t Save Students
Paul Battista told a Congressional subcommittee last year: “We can now pay a higher family-sustaining wage! We have people working for us that are the primary breadwinners of their household.”…
Commentary
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Is There a Pension Crisis?
PolicyBlog readers will be well-familiar with the fact that Pennsyvlania state funding for public schools is at a record high. So why do government union leaders and some…
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Will Higher Taxes and Funding Save Students?
Philadelphia is in the midst of a crisis. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 80 percent of 4th and 8th grade students did not reach proficiency in math and…
Media
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Hope and Success in Opportunity Scholarship Program
James Cromartie is a 7th grader at the School of Church Farm in Exton, Pa. His mom, Lynne, is grateful for the school’s challenging academics, art, music and athletic programs.
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State Education Spending at Record High
The recently passed Pennsylvania state budget sets a new record for state funding for public schools. The chart below illustrates this growth over the years. The total budgeted for the…
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Teachers’ Views Matter
From my vantage point on the frontlines of Pennsylvania’s public schools, I see teachers’ unions with money to spend and power to wield who are unresponsive to the very people…
Commentary
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