Public Education

The proposed state budget unveiled by Gov. Corbett would allow for some increase in basic education aid, more funding for early childhood education, and a new block grant program that hinges on privatizing alcohol sales. "My budget works to provide our public schools with enrichment funding to help them achieve academic excellence at all grade levels," Corbett said in his address. Legislative Democrats, union leaders, and some education advocates said the new spending plan would not undo the damage done by previous cuts - nearly $1 billion two years ago. Some accused the governor of using education to try to unload the State Store system and get pension reform.

During a recent School Reform Commission meeting, Commissioner Joseph Dworetzky decried the cost of independent charter school expansion under the Philadelphia School District's reform plan, saying district Renaissance Schools have been less costly. We at the Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools disagree with the commissioner's math as well as his philosophy on education reform. Dworetzky and others are overlooking the fact that the costs of any reforms have been exacerbated by the inability or refusal of previous commissioners to "rightsize" the district.

KANSAS CITY, Mo., is on track to close 29 schools due to declining enrollment, and many other school districts are verging on similar action, so it wouldn't be illogical to predict a major overhaul of every phase of America's system of public education. I believe a major reduction in salaries, pensions and other benefits will be necessary to correct a dire situation. Politicians and school administrators can make speeches and promises, but money is the final arbiter. Ephraim Levin, Philadelphia

IF THE EVENTS of the past few weeks have taught us nothing, we have learned that we Americans, including Pennsylvanians, are capable of great acts of heroism and generosity. We have a deep reservoir of compassion when we see innocents suffering through no fault of their own. Even those of us who have no connection to New York City or Washington couldn't wait to donate our blood, sweat, tears and hard-earned money toward their rescue. It's enough to make me believe that we in Pennsylvania really do have the heart and will to rescue our own innocents.

Calling him "the education candidate," a public-school advocacy group endorsed Democrat Dan Onorato for governor Wednesday afternoon. Education Voters of Pennsylvania, a nonpartisan, nonprofit group based in Philadelphia, said it preferred Onorato over Republican Tom Corbett because of his support for gradually raising state funding for most school districts according to a formula first approved by the legislature in 2008. Corbett has said he does not support increased funding because of budget crises that the state faces in the next few years.

AMERICA IS now in the process of dismantling its public-school system. This is the result of indulging in expensive school contracts, lowering standards for teachers and pupils and a funding system that is both archaic and unworkable. All of the foregoing, tolerated by political know-nothings and exacerbated by tens of thousands of drones, has managed to wreck America's infrastructure of learning. What solutions now, disgusting, disingenuous politicians? Ephraim Levin, Philadelphia

If the School Reform Commission and Chief Recovery Officer Thomas Knudsen have their way, we may witness the end of public education in Philadelphia. A five-year plan proposed by Philadelphia School District officials calls for the overhaul of virtually every element of the system — from finances to academics to central management. These drastic changes suggest to many that the district is intent on expediting the privatization of its schools, despite its promises to stay the traditional route and invest in neighborhoods and communities.

Nationwide she may be known as the founder of the American Red Cross, but in Burlington County, Clara Barton will be remembered for promoting public education. At Burlington and Crosswicks Streets in Bordentown is a one-room brick schoolhouse, believed to be the first public school in the county, which Barton, then 30, started in 1852 as part of her goal to overcome a bias in the community against "pauper schools. " "Something drew me to the State of New Jersey," Barton wrote in her memoirs.

The most encouraging news about the plan for Philadelphia's public schools announced last week is that, at last, the key players are singing from the same hymnal. When Mayor Rendell, City Council President John Street, and the school board president, Rotan Lee, presented a list of ideas to prevent $29 million in cuts from the school district's budget, they talked more than economics. They talked about addressing the severe credibility problem of the district, the continuing perception that it just sucks up public money to support a "bloated, inefficient and topheavy bureaucracy.

QUICK RECAP: A few weeks ago, Philadelphia School District CEO Paul Vallas all but canned two principals who had allowed students to get a bit out of hand at their high schools. The crackdown was controversial, but few could debate its symbolic value. High school principals were on notice that a higher standard will be enforced. But a district doesn't survive on symbolism alone. Vallas has now followed up with a bold and substantial plan to overhaul nearly all Philadelphia high schools.

Tough little Union City's public school test scores and graduation rates rival those of comfortable suburbs. But in the late 1980s, the only schools with which Union City could be said to "compete" were in troubled Camden. While public education in Camden has won a sad race to the bottom - Trenton is taking over the city's schools - the success of Union City has inspired a laudatory new book. Improbable Scholars (Oxford University Press) offers something of a guide for Camden and struggling school districts nationwide.

By Rebecca Poyourow Over the past four years, my children have attended their neighborhood school in Philadelphia. My husband and I were attracted to Cook-Wissahickon Elementary School in Roxborough because of its dedicated teaching staff, its vibrant parent community, and its academic strength and diversity. However, little did we imagine when we enrolled our oldest in kindergarten in 2009 that support for public education would be so severely cut in the following years, with the largest cuts falling on the poorest districts.

The Pennsylvania Constitution says the state must "provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education to serve the needs of the Commonwealth. " And yet, for the third year in a row, we look to the Corbett administration to help us fill a sizable hole in the School District of Philadelphia budget. The district's "ask" is $120 million from Harrisburg and $60 million from the city to prevent the elimination of art, music, sports, school nurses, guidance counselors, assistant principals, all after-school activities, and more.

By Raymond Lamboy Gov. Christie has set the stage, and Mayor Dana L. Redd has cleared the path for a grand experiment in urban public education that will unfold in Camden. As with every well-thought-out experiment, a thesis or hypothesis statement is presented to measure success or failure. In this instance, the thesis seems to be this: The introduction and expansion of alternative-education models will lead to a functioning education system that will provide the children of Camden with an education on par with their suburban neighbors and will result in greatly increased student achievement.

I WONDER if you remember these words: "If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war. As it stands, we have allowed it to happen to ourselves. " I remember this startling quote from "A Nation at Risk," a report issued by Bill Bennett's Education Department during the Reagan Administration. We just passed the 30th anniversary of this report last week, and I think it should be renamed "A Nation in Crisis.

We are delighted that the Coalition for Effective Teaching (CET) in Philadelphia wants to improve public education. However, we think a more responsible approach would have been to consult with teacher leaders before publishing a position statement. As practicing teachers, we have a few suggestions about how CET can truly enrich public education: First, change the group's name to Coalition for Effective Education, as the current title implicates teachers. Philadelphia has thousands of effective teachers who struggle with ineffective working conditions and who passionately support children who are not necessarily "learning-ready.

The unprecedented cheating scandal now unfolding in Atlanta reveals a danger of the increased emphasis on standardized testing. But that does not excuse the alleged misbehavior of educators there and elsewhere, including Philadelphia. Adults who cheat children out of an education must be held accountable. Former Atlanta schools Superintendent Beverly Hall is one of an astounding 35 educators who surrendered to authorities last week on conspiracy, theft, and racketeering charges more commonly used to prosecute organized-crime figures.

Flower Show retail less of a draw I beg to differ with reports blaming bad weather for attendance at the Philadelphia Flower Show ("Flower show has a decline in visitors," March 11). My husband attended the Flower Show some 20 years ago, and he raved about it when we moved to this area five years ago. A couple of years ago, we attended. For more than $30 a ticket, we got to see wilting displays of flowers. (This was toward the end of the show.) There were too many people, and half the show was devoted to sellers' booths.

America's public schools have played a role in reducing inequality and increasing the bonds between people of diverse backgrounds. Yet, as we struggle through a particularly partisan era, a period in which the middle class is shrinking and income inequality is increasing, there is a growing movement to privatize public schools. Earlier this month, the Philadelphia School District announced that even more of the city's public schools will be given to charter organizations this fall, even though only 29 percent of the 80 charter schools met benchmarks.

HARRISBURG - The budget ax might not land on public schools after all. For weeks, Gov. Corbett and members of his administration have sent strong signals that they would likely look to education funding for budget cuts if the legislature did not act to rein in the state's skyrocketing public-employee pension costs. But on Tuesday, the governor softened his stance. Surrounded by school administrators at a news conference in the Capitol, he said it was the legislature that would ultimately have to choose where to cut in order to recoup dollars for the state's two major pension funds.