In honor of the achievement, this billboard will occupy a place of honor at the top of this blog. Keep up the good work!
Monday, November 24, 2008
Student Achievement Billboard
Thanks to the anonymous photographer who provided the picture of the student achievement billboard. The remarkable thing is that it was done without the active support of our elected school board. When it says congratulations to the "superintendent, principals, teachers, staff, and parents" who made it possible, it was not an unintentional error.
In honor of the achievement, this billboard will occupy a place of honor at the top of this blog. Keep up the good work!
In honor of the achievement, this billboard will occupy a place of honor at the top of this blog. Keep up the good work!
Setting An Example: Legislative Pay Raise Next Week
From the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. Should our elected representatives show some restraint, or do they deserve their raise?
Legislative pay cut in Florida won't fly in Pennsylvania
By Eric Heyl TRIBUNE-REVIEW, Sunday, November 23, 2008
The hogs of Harrisburg appear to be recession-proof.
The nation is experiencing its worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Pennsylvania is facing a potential deficit of as much as $2 billion, leading Gov. Ed Rendell to slash spending on many programs and hint strongly that a tax hike is in the offing.
Amid this hurricane-force economic storm, your state legislators should be quickly boarding up some windows. Instead, they are breaking out the tanning lotion while cheerfully whistling "Happy Days Are Here Again."
On Dec. 1, General Assembly members are scheduled to receive their annual cost-of-living adjustment. Their base salaries will jump 2.8 percent to $78,315; those in leadership positions will make as much as $122,000.
That's a bit more than most families bring in annually in the Keystone State. According to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau statistics, the median household income in Pennsylvania is $43,714.
State lawmakers never have been particularly sensitive to the dramatic income disparity that exists between them and the people they are elected to pickpocket -- er, I mean represent.
But given the state's dwindling coffers, state Senate President Pro Tempore and Lt. Gov. Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, suggested Thursday that lawmakers should consider forgoing this year's pay increase.
Expect that to happen when pigs fly. And last time I checked, Senate Minority Leader Robert Mellow, D-Lackawanna, wasn't sporting a pair of wings.
Mellow conveyed a counterpoint to Scarnati's proposal that almost certainly will prevail in any legislative debate over the raises. He defended the increase as "modest and the right thing to do."
On Friday, Mellow told The Philadelphia Inquirer, "Our members have the same family responsibilities as others."
So do state legislators in Florida. Yet in June, those lawmakers did something that probably left their Pennsylvania counterparts aghast and apoplectic over the terrible example they set.
With the Sunshine State facing a $3 billion revenue shortfall, lawmakers not only eschewed a raise -- they reduced their salaries by 5 percent.
That action is even more impressive when you consider that Florida legislators make about $31,000 annually -- less than half of what your average Pennsylvania porker takes home.
I wanted to ask Mellow why the family needs of Pennsylvania lawmakers seem to be substantially greater than those of their Florida brethren, but calls to his office were not immediately returned Friday.
Perhaps he was getting a jump on his Christmas shopping.
From his remarks, however, Mellow obviously believes state lawmakers should continue indulging their insatiable appetites at the public trough regardless of whether the public can afford it.
Is he right? In a pig's eye.
Legislative pay cut in Florida won't fly in Pennsylvania
By Eric Heyl TRIBUNE-REVIEW, Sunday, November 23, 2008
The hogs of Harrisburg appear to be recession-proof.
The nation is experiencing its worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Pennsylvania is facing a potential deficit of as much as $2 billion, leading Gov. Ed Rendell to slash spending on many programs and hint strongly that a tax hike is in the offing.
Amid this hurricane-force economic storm, your state legislators should be quickly boarding up some windows. Instead, they are breaking out the tanning lotion while cheerfully whistling "Happy Days Are Here Again."
On Dec. 1, General Assembly members are scheduled to receive their annual cost-of-living adjustment. Their base salaries will jump 2.8 percent to $78,315; those in leadership positions will make as much as $122,000.
That's a bit more than most families bring in annually in the Keystone State. According to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau statistics, the median household income in Pennsylvania is $43,714.
State lawmakers never have been particularly sensitive to the dramatic income disparity that exists between them and the people they are elected to pickpocket -- er, I mean represent.
But given the state's dwindling coffers, state Senate President Pro Tempore and Lt. Gov. Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, suggested Thursday that lawmakers should consider forgoing this year's pay increase.
Expect that to happen when pigs fly. And last time I checked, Senate Minority Leader Robert Mellow, D-Lackawanna, wasn't sporting a pair of wings.
Mellow conveyed a counterpoint to Scarnati's proposal that almost certainly will prevail in any legislative debate over the raises. He defended the increase as "modest and the right thing to do."
On Friday, Mellow told The Philadelphia Inquirer, "Our members have the same family responsibilities as others."
So do state legislators in Florida. Yet in June, those lawmakers did something that probably left their Pennsylvania counterparts aghast and apoplectic over the terrible example they set.
With the Sunshine State facing a $3 billion revenue shortfall, lawmakers not only eschewed a raise -- they reduced their salaries by 5 percent.
That action is even more impressive when you consider that Florida legislators make about $31,000 annually -- less than half of what your average Pennsylvania porker takes home.
I wanted to ask Mellow why the family needs of Pennsylvania lawmakers seem to be substantially greater than those of their Florida brethren, but calls to his office were not immediately returned Friday.
Perhaps he was getting a jump on his Christmas shopping.
From his remarks, however, Mellow obviously believes state lawmakers should continue indulging their insatiable appetites at the public trough regardless of whether the public can afford it.
Is he right? In a pig's eye.
The Next Generation
From the (Tucson) Arizona Daily Star. The immediate focus is, not surprisingly, Arizona. The concepts are applicable worldwide. Quotes like, "...infrastructure is what we build today for our children and grandchildren..." and "Are we going to make investments to secure the well-being, quality of life and competitiveness of our children and grandchildren?" need serious consideration.
The Center for Competitiveness and Prosperity Research has the full series of reports available.
Investing in the future of our children
By Michael M. Crow
Special to the Arizona Daily Star, Tucson, Arizona | Published: 11.24.2008
With demographic projections suggesting the likelihood that within the next quarter-century more than 10 million Americans will call Arizona home, our state must confront unprecedented challenges as it matures and in terms of population becomes one of the 10 largest states in the union — larger than New Jersey, Michigan, Illinois and probably Pennsylvania.
Chief among these challenges is adequate investment in infrastructure — roads, transit, electricity, drinking water, telecommunications, but also health care and public safety and the educational infrastructure of our public schools and the three state universities.
Last Monday Arizona State University was honored to welcome elected policy-makers and prominent leaders from the public and private sectors to the forum "Preparing for an Arizona of 10 Million People: Meeting the Infrastructure Challenges of Growth." The purpose of the gathering, tagged "Arizona 2030," was to address some of the major challenges facing the state's public and private sectors as a result of rapid growth.
While there was broad agreement that our success is contingent on an optimal infrastructure, I would argue that when it comes to reaching the consensus required for policy to advance and investment to be made, Arizonans still lack a sufficient sense of clarity and urgency.
Despite chronic underinvestment in our state's infrastructure, contentious debate over whether or not we should commit to meet the infrastructure needs of the present and future prevents us from acting in our own self- interest.
Perhaps some perspective may be required: Put simply, infrastructure is what we build today for our children and grandchildren. If we look back across the generations who came before us, most were generally well-served by an infrastructure commensurate with the population and needs of the era.
One need only consider the tens of thousands of public schools and the hundreds of great universities that have been built across the country. Railroads operating in the private sector were given massive land grants by the federal government, and canals were advanced through government investment succeeded by private-sector operation.
Throughout our history our success stories have been made possible by government helping to lay down the foundation of the infrastructure and then bridging to the private sector that in turn found some way to prosper.
At the epicenter of our national future — that is the American West — critical decisions regarding the course we take must be made:
● Should we invest in an enhanced quality of life with some sense of collective identity as fellow citizens, or is everybody just out for themselves?
● Can we fathom the extent of our interrelatedness in the global economy and the mounting ferocity of competition from abroad?
● Will we continue to deliberate over infrastructure while most economies in the developed world simply move forward with investments required for success and then engage the private sector?
● Can we find a way to destigmatize and depoliticize concepts like planning and market-driven solutions, and practices like tolls and user fees?
● Can we grasp that infrastructure is not an expense but the basis from which we will attain economic competitiveness?
While the implementation of infrastructure projects may prove challenging, our decision to make a commitment need not be so very complicated after all: Are we going to make investments to secure the well-being, quality of life and competitiveness of our children and grandchildren? Will we lay down the infrastructure they will need so that their market-driven private-sector ambitions can be erected on a platform equal to or greater than that which we enjoyed?
Such deliberation should transcend partisanship. We need to make a decision about whether or not we can find a way to meet today's needs and still invest for tomorrow — for the future of our children and grandchildren.
On StarNet: "Preparing for an Arizona of 10 Million People: Meeting the Infrastructure Challenges of Growth," a study, was done by the Center for Competitiveness and Prosperity Research at the W.P. Carey School of Business and is available in a database that aggregates growth analysis, opinion and documents. The report is available at: azstarnet.com/special/growthresources
The Arizona State University Office of the President Web site is http://president.asu.edu/
The Center for Competitiveness and Prosperity Research has the full series of reports available.
Investing in the future of our children
By Michael M. Crow
Special to the Arizona Daily Star, Tucson, Arizona | Published: 11.24.2008
With demographic projections suggesting the likelihood that within the next quarter-century more than 10 million Americans will call Arizona home, our state must confront unprecedented challenges as it matures and in terms of population becomes one of the 10 largest states in the union — larger than New Jersey, Michigan, Illinois and probably Pennsylvania.
Chief among these challenges is adequate investment in infrastructure — roads, transit, electricity, drinking water, telecommunications, but also health care and public safety and the educational infrastructure of our public schools and the three state universities.
Last Monday Arizona State University was honored to welcome elected policy-makers and prominent leaders from the public and private sectors to the forum "Preparing for an Arizona of 10 Million People: Meeting the Infrastructure Challenges of Growth." The purpose of the gathering, tagged "Arizona 2030," was to address some of the major challenges facing the state's public and private sectors as a result of rapid growth.
While there was broad agreement that our success is contingent on an optimal infrastructure, I would argue that when it comes to reaching the consensus required for policy to advance and investment to be made, Arizonans still lack a sufficient sense of clarity and urgency.
Despite chronic underinvestment in our state's infrastructure, contentious debate over whether or not we should commit to meet the infrastructure needs of the present and future prevents us from acting in our own self- interest.
Perhaps some perspective may be required: Put simply, infrastructure is what we build today for our children and grandchildren. If we look back across the generations who came before us, most were generally well-served by an infrastructure commensurate with the population and needs of the era.
One need only consider the tens of thousands of public schools and the hundreds of great universities that have been built across the country. Railroads operating in the private sector were given massive land grants by the federal government, and canals were advanced through government investment succeeded by private-sector operation.
Throughout our history our success stories have been made possible by government helping to lay down the foundation of the infrastructure and then bridging to the private sector that in turn found some way to prosper.
At the epicenter of our national future — that is the American West — critical decisions regarding the course we take must be made:
● Should we invest in an enhanced quality of life with some sense of collective identity as fellow citizens, or is everybody just out for themselves?
● Can we fathom the extent of our interrelatedness in the global economy and the mounting ferocity of competition from abroad?
● Will we continue to deliberate over infrastructure while most economies in the developed world simply move forward with investments required for success and then engage the private sector?
● Can we find a way to destigmatize and depoliticize concepts like planning and market-driven solutions, and practices like tolls and user fees?
● Can we grasp that infrastructure is not an expense but the basis from which we will attain economic competitiveness?
While the implementation of infrastructure projects may prove challenging, our decision to make a commitment need not be so very complicated after all: Are we going to make investments to secure the well-being, quality of life and competitiveness of our children and grandchildren? Will we lay down the infrastructure they will need so that their market-driven private-sector ambitions can be erected on a platform equal to or greater than that which we enjoyed?
Such deliberation should transcend partisanship. We need to make a decision about whether or not we can find a way to meet today's needs and still invest for tomorrow — for the future of our children and grandchildren.
On StarNet: "Preparing for an Arizona of 10 Million People: Meeting the Infrastructure Challenges of Growth," a study, was done by the Center for Competitiveness and Prosperity Research at the W.P. Carey School of Business and is available in a database that aggregates growth analysis, opinion and documents. The report is available at: azstarnet.com/special/growthresources
The Arizona State University Office of the President Web site is http://president.asu.edu/
Group seeks financial help for district
From the BCCT
Group seeks financial help for district
Donations to the education foundation are tax-deductible.
By MANASEE WAGH
It costs more to educate one child in the Morrisville School District than it does in any other district in Lower Bucks County — including Bristol, Council Rock and Neshaminy.
For that reason, Morrisville’s new Opportunity Educational Foundation is finally taking wing to narrow the gap.
The nonprofit group wants businesses and individuals to help the district financially. While potential donors have already expressed serious interest, the organization’s committee needs more interested participants, said Mark Coassolo at the school board’s Wednesday meeting.
“We’re looking for more people to be on the board of trustees. We’re looking for doers and people who are going to bring money,” he said.
In particular, the group is seeking corporate representation, he said.
At least nine people are necessary to form the board of trustees, which will include a board member, likely Marlys Mihok, a member of the teachers union, the business manager and district Superintendent Elizabeth Yonson.
Funding from the foundation would allow students to participate in more educational opportunities by fostering business partnerships with companies. Mini-grants and other donations would pay for field trips, classroom tools, scholastic projects, or other learning experiences without dipping into tax money.
Pennsbury, Centennial, Neshaminy, Bristol, Bristol Township, Council Rock and Bensalem all benefit from fundraising foundations that bring in many thousands of dollars for educational projects that might otherwise be too expensive.
The average cost of educating a high school student in Morrisville is $14,214, as compared to $10,866 in Bristol, another small district, and $11,711 in the larger district of Bristol Township. Elementary costs are higher, too.
The numbers reflect the fact that Morrisville has about 1,000 students and a little more than 70 teachers, as well as support staff including gifted/instructional support aides and guidance counselors. The average teacher salary last year was $69,000. Teacher contracts are locked in until 2012.
In general, the smaller the district, the higher the cost per pupil because class sizes tend to be smaller, said William Ferrara, the high school principal.
“We’re a small district and we’re not the wealthiest district, so it can only help. Everybody wins, because donations are tax-deductible,” said Coassolo.
If you are interested in joining the future board of trustees, helping financially or would like more information, please contact Mark Coassolo at 215-428-9657 or at markdc32@verizon.net.
Alternatively, call the district business office at 215-736-5933.
Group seeks financial help for district
Donations to the education foundation are tax-deductible.
By MANASEE WAGH
It costs more to educate one child in the Morrisville School District than it does in any other district in Lower Bucks County — including Bristol, Council Rock and Neshaminy.
For that reason, Morrisville’s new Opportunity Educational Foundation is finally taking wing to narrow the gap.
The nonprofit group wants businesses and individuals to help the district financially. While potential donors have already expressed serious interest, the organization’s committee needs more interested participants, said Mark Coassolo at the school board’s Wednesday meeting.
“We’re looking for more people to be on the board of trustees. We’re looking for doers and people who are going to bring money,” he said.
In particular, the group is seeking corporate representation, he said.
At least nine people are necessary to form the board of trustees, which will include a board member, likely Marlys Mihok, a member of the teachers union, the business manager and district Superintendent Elizabeth Yonson.
Funding from the foundation would allow students to participate in more educational opportunities by fostering business partnerships with companies. Mini-grants and other donations would pay for field trips, classroom tools, scholastic projects, or other learning experiences without dipping into tax money.
Pennsbury, Centennial, Neshaminy, Bristol, Bristol Township, Council Rock and Bensalem all benefit from fundraising foundations that bring in many thousands of dollars for educational projects that might otherwise be too expensive.
The average cost of educating a high school student in Morrisville is $14,214, as compared to $10,866 in Bristol, another small district, and $11,711 in the larger district of Bristol Township. Elementary costs are higher, too.
The numbers reflect the fact that Morrisville has about 1,000 students and a little more than 70 teachers, as well as support staff including gifted/instructional support aides and guidance counselors. The average teacher salary last year was $69,000. Teacher contracts are locked in until 2012.
In general, the smaller the district, the higher the cost per pupil because class sizes tend to be smaller, said William Ferrara, the high school principal.
“We’re a small district and we’re not the wealthiest district, so it can only help. Everybody wins, because donations are tax-deductible,” said Coassolo.
If you are interested in joining the future board of trustees, helping financially or would like more information, please contact Mark Coassolo at 215-428-9657 or at markdc32@verizon.net.
Alternatively, call the district business office at 215-736-5933.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)