Education 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.

Education

DC Vouchers Boost High School Graduation Rates

  • June 24, 2010

University of Arkansas professor Patrick Wolf recently concluded a study of the voucher program in D.C. The study concludes that this simple, six-year program was able to increase graduation…

Media

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Education

A Taxpayer’s Budget 2010: Responsible Spending for Pennsylvania

  • June 23, 2010

A Taxpayer's Budget 2010: Responsible Spending for Pennsylvania identifies opportunities to cut over $4 billion in wasteful state spending in Gov. Rendell's proposed FY 2010-11 budget.  The report also offers…

Report

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Education

The True Beneficiaries of Education Subsidies

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 21, 2010

Gov. Rendell's budget once again demands significant increases in public school spending.  Ostensibly, these increases are "for the children," but a close examination of education spending and policy proposals reveals…

Commentary

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Education

Government Preschool Delivers Few Results

  • Nathan Benefield
  • June 10, 2010

State Sen. Pat Browne is quoted on John Micek’s blog Wednesday, citing an oft-repeated claim that government funding for preschool is one of the “best investments” of taxpayer money:…

Media

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Education

Monitoring Charter Schools

  • May 25, 2010

Last month, PA Independent highlighted Senate Bill 1156, which would create a committee to monitor Pennsylvania charter schools. This was in response to the mismanagement of a number of…

Media

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Education

PA School Districts Have $2.5 Billion in Reserves

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 10, 2010

PA Independent highlights the $2.5 billion school districts have in reserve accounts – $1.8 billion in “undesignated reserves.” To put that it lay terms – it’s a lot of…

Media

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Education

Celebrating School Choice

  • Nathan Benefield
  • May 5, 2010

Yesterday the REACH Alliance held the 9th annual birthday party for Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit – see story here – in which hundreds of students and parents showed…

Media

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Education

Some Educating Research on Education

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 23, 2010

I’m a little behind on my reading – hence I am going through two editions of the quarterly journal Education Next. Nonetheless, there are a number of interesting and informative…

Media

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Education

Are Pittsburgh Public Schools Among the Nation’s Best?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 15, 2010

A recent national ranking said the Pittsburgh Public Schools were 7th best among large cities in the nation. (HT Grassroots PA). This was quite surprising, as the Pittsburgh…

Media

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Education

Cyber School Stardom

  • April 14, 2010

Participating in PA Cyber Charter School won’t guarantee a student’s stardom but it did make it possible for Aaron Kelly, an 2010 American Idol finalist. Kelly, a 17 year…

Media

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Education

PA Public School Staff Grows As Enrollment Declines

  • April 14, 2010

Despite stagnation in qualitative measures of school performance, cries for additional spending in public schools have not subsided. In fact, Gov. Rendell says…

Media

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Education

Race to the Bottom

  • April 12, 2010

Is a lack of funding the problem with Pennsylvania’s education system? Lincoln Institute’s Lowman Henry answers this question with a resounding no, in his recent article, Race to the…

Media

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Education

Ten Tips to Balance the Budget

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • April 8, 2010

Contrary to Gov. Rendell's rhetoric, there are a plethora of reforms and cuts that can balance the budget without taking more from the pockets of Pennsylvania taxpayers. Here are ten…

Commentary

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Education

Gov. Rendell Learned His Lesson

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 6, 2010

Last year, Gov. Rendell went on a bus tour across Pennsylvania, at taxpayer expense, to lobby for more education spending. Rendell was…

Media

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Education

Is Choice Harming Public Schools?

  • Nathan Benefield
  • April 2, 2010

The Philadelphia Inquirer ran a story this week about the number of students (314,000 over nine years) served by Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC). The EITC provides tax…

Media

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Education

Operation Restore Launched to Preserve School Choice in PA

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 31, 2010

The REACH Alliance launched Operation Restore, a campaign to restore the funding for Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) Program to $75 million.  The EITC, which before…

Media

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Education

College Just Got Cheaper, for Government Workers

  • March 31, 2010

When the Obama Administration couldn’t get the Student Loan Overhaul through the Senate last year, they created a scheme to tacking it onto the unrelated healthcare bill. This bill…

Media

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Education

Rhetoric vs. Reality on Higher Ed

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 29, 2010

I got an email alert from Student PIRGs with the lead in, “College just got less expensive.” Really, that happened? Did anyone notice? Uh no. What they meant is…

Media

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Education

Some Facts About School Choice for Joe Hoeffel

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 26, 2010

In the Democrat contest for Pennsylvania Governor, Joe Hoeffel came out swinging, attacking Anthony Williams for supporting school choice. Apparently, Hoeffel thinks the…

Media

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Education

Establishment Continues to Attack Cyber Schools

  • Nathan Benefield
  • March 18, 2010

At a hearing yesterday, Pennsylvania School Boards Association touted additional proposals to cut off funding for cyber charter schools. One of these proposals would be that cyber schools would…

Media

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Education

The Green Schools Ruse

  • Elizabeth Stelle
  • March 16, 2010

Yesterday the House passed Rep. Drucker’s bill to exclude any costs associated with making a school building LEED certified from a possible…

Media

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