Two items from the BCCT, an article and an editorial. Perhaps we should be asking the Emperor for a special state of the school district's finances report at the next business meeting.
Massive Pa. deficit projected
Two senior legislators foresee a tax hike.
By MARC LEVY\ASSOCIATED PRESS
HARRISBURG — The deteriorating economy and rising costs for such bigticket items as health care and prisons is leading the state government on a path to a massive deficit that will require a tax increase to erase, two senior state legislators said Monday.
The two state senators, Democrat Vincent J. Fumo of Philadelphia and Republican Gibson E. Armstrong of Lancaster County, said the deficit they are projecting will be larger than any one in the past three decades.
They also said that it will be difficult, if not impossible, to make up the difference by cutting costs alone, either because legislators are unwilling to take money out of programs and services or because state government is already squeezed.
“I honestly don’t know where you cut,” Fumo told reporters after a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the state budget. “We’re down to the bone.”
Armstrong, the committee chairman, added: “I don’t know of any program up here that we can get going the other way.”
Legislative action will have to wait until next spring, after a new legislature is seated in January. The last scheduled voting days in the fall legislative session are this week, not nearly enough time to make substantial changes, they said.
In July, Gov. Ed Rendell signed the $28.3 billion budget for the 2008-09 fiscal year that ends June 30. Revenue collections through Sept. 30 were behind the official expectation by $281 million, or 4.7 percent, leaving the state with its biggest first-quarter shortfall in at least three decades.
That 4.7 percent shortfall projected over the entire July-June fiscal year would tear a $1.3 billion hole in the budget.
Worse, the economy is deteriorating far more than Fumo, Armstrong or the state’s economic forecasters anticipated just three months ago. Another problem is that the budget relies on at least $500 million in one-time cash freed up by postponing payments and tapping surpluses, putting that much more distance between rising costs and dropping revenues.
The free fall of the stock market also means the state treasury is losing money on its investments, instead of contributing hundreds of millions to the state’s bank account, Armstrong said. An expected spike in pension costs in 2012 could be much bigger, too, he said.
If spending is not cut and taxes not increased, the state will be left with a deficit of at least $2.5 billion when the next fiscal year ends in June 2010, Fumo said.
Armstrong said that assessment is optimistic.
Rendell’s top budget adviser, Mary Soderberg, appeared before the committee, but said it is too early to say how the governor will respond beyond the steps he already took, or how the wider economic malaise will continue to affect the state’s revenue collections.
Citing the weakening economy, Rendell last month said he would hold back $200 million in reserve by freezing hiring, banning out-of-state travel by employees and ordering state agency heads to find places to cut.
---------------------------------------------------
A crisis here, too
The state faces a serious budget shortfall and painful decisions are just ahead about taxes and spending.
While the federal government goes merrily on its way, continuing to spend money it doesn’t have, the state of Pennsylvania enjoys no such luxury. By law, the commonwealth’s budget must be balanced. The economy, however, so far is not cooperating in fiscal 2008-09.
For the first quarter, July-September, state revenue collection is short of official estimates by 4.7 percent, or some $281 million. Projected over the entire fiscal year, such a budget gap would total $1.3 billion. While accurately predicting deficits can be as much of a guessing game as predicting surpluses, it’s probably safe to assume there will be no economic up-tick in the immediate future that will bring the budget back into balance.
So state officials are faced with these choices: Dip into reserves; cut programs; raise taxes; or some combination of all three.
Pennsylvania is fortunate to be sitting on a substantial budget reserve. There’s more than $700 million in the so-called “rainy day” fund. As one lawmaker noted, it is raining, so prudent tapping of the reserves is appropriate. That’s what the fund is for.
But that’s only part of the solution. Raising taxes, never a popular option, would seem to be a nonstarter at this particular time of national financial crisis.
That leaves cutting programs. There’s no stomach for that, either, but Harrisburg may be forced to go in that direction. Cuts can be painful. Enforced fiscal discipline can be a good thing, however.
We’ve been talking to state House candidates over the past few weeks, and they seem to be of a single mind that budget cuts are possible, not only by scaling back programs but by trimming non-essential discretionary spending and eliminating waste. The cost of running the government itself might be a good place to start the chopping process.
Last month, Gov. Rendell froze hiring and banned out-of-state travel among other expense cuts. He probably can and should do more. For its part, the Legislature should resolve to run a tighter fiscal ship, with spending limited to essential functions and more accountability for what is spent.
Naturally, every program that receives state funding will plead its case for continued support and warn of dire consequences if cuts are implemented. Some programs, including those that involve public health and safety, have a legitimate argument. Every program is beneficial in some way to some constituent group. But not every program is necessary, and there are many that could get by with reduced funding, at least temporarily. Government likes to think it can be all things to all people, but it cannot — even in good economic times. And these certainly are not good economic times.
The silver lining in the present cloud could be that state government is forced to be more responsible when it comes to spending our money.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Difficult choices
From the Pottstown Mercury.
Difficult choices 10/05/2008
The Pottstown School Board is feeling the pain — the pain of a downtrodden economy, diminished tax base, and a neighborhood school system in need of an overhaul.
That pain came into focus Thursday night when a consultant's analysis put a pricetag on plans for renovating the elementary school buildings.
Over the course of the next five years, the cost to the average property owner in the borough may add up to $1,460 in additional taxes.
The costs can vary, depending on whether the board decides to renovate all five school buildings or to renovate some and close others.
Another factor is whether the plan adds more classrooms — and more teachers — to keep class size below 21 students, as the board has previously discussed.
Those variables and others could bring the tax costs over five years down to $850 — a number that many in Pottstown will still find difficult.
The analysis offered Thursday was presented by Business Manager Linda Adams as prepared by a consultant who was basing calculations on a study by the architectural firm of Crabtree and Rohrbaugh.
The architect's study has its own variables, and at least one board member is asking for more information to better determine if the amount of new construction included in cost estimates is too high.
"In many of these estimates, what I put forward is a worst-case scenario that doesn't include any savings you might realize from economies of scale if, say, you decided to go to three schools," Adams told the board.
This board clearly has its work cut out.
The majority of members were elected last year on a platform of support for neighborhood schools, a mandate which they have taken seriously.
On the other hand, the same citizens who took that stand a year ago at the polls face school tax bills among the highest in Pennsylvania.
The board members are well aware of that burden, too, and know they can not make decisions that pile on more than people can bear.
The board on Thursday made a tentative decision to take a vote on which option to choose at the next meeting, scheduled for Oct. 16.
There are many factors to consider, and looming over every scenario is the cloud of economic uncertainty — a cloud that doesn't just hang over Pottstown.
In mapping their course, the board members can not ignore the costs of these options, and for every scenario, questions must be asked to peel away things that may be nice, but not necessary.
Are cafeteria additions built into these projections, and are they needed, or just desired? Are larger libraries or more classrooms going to have the benefit that is intended for children? Or, will the detrimental effect of the tax burden drive people from town and force a further downward spiral in property values?
Every projection must be analyzed and every notion challenged, not because the plans have been ill-prepared but because the outcomes are so important.
These are the most important decisions any area school board has had to make in recent years. They can not be postponed, brushed aside or ignored. Some aspects of decisions may require the courage to be unpopular and the strength to be wise.
The board has a leadership role, and the future of Pottstown depends on it.
Difficult choices 10/05/2008
The Pottstown School Board is feeling the pain — the pain of a downtrodden economy, diminished tax base, and a neighborhood school system in need of an overhaul.
That pain came into focus Thursday night when a consultant's analysis put a pricetag on plans for renovating the elementary school buildings.
Over the course of the next five years, the cost to the average property owner in the borough may add up to $1,460 in additional taxes.
The costs can vary, depending on whether the board decides to renovate all five school buildings or to renovate some and close others.
Another factor is whether the plan adds more classrooms — and more teachers — to keep class size below 21 students, as the board has previously discussed.
Those variables and others could bring the tax costs over five years down to $850 — a number that many in Pottstown will still find difficult.
The analysis offered Thursday was presented by Business Manager Linda Adams as prepared by a consultant who was basing calculations on a study by the architectural firm of Crabtree and Rohrbaugh.
The architect's study has its own variables, and at least one board member is asking for more information to better determine if the amount of new construction included in cost estimates is too high.
"In many of these estimates, what I put forward is a worst-case scenario that doesn't include any savings you might realize from economies of scale if, say, you decided to go to three schools," Adams told the board.
This board clearly has its work cut out.
The majority of members were elected last year on a platform of support for neighborhood schools, a mandate which they have taken seriously.
On the other hand, the same citizens who took that stand a year ago at the polls face school tax bills among the highest in Pennsylvania.
The board members are well aware of that burden, too, and know they can not make decisions that pile on more than people can bear.
The board on Thursday made a tentative decision to take a vote on which option to choose at the next meeting, scheduled for Oct. 16.
There are many factors to consider, and looming over every scenario is the cloud of economic uncertainty — a cloud that doesn't just hang over Pottstown.
In mapping their course, the board members can not ignore the costs of these options, and for every scenario, questions must be asked to peel away things that may be nice, but not necessary.
Are cafeteria additions built into these projections, and are they needed, or just desired? Are larger libraries or more classrooms going to have the benefit that is intended for children? Or, will the detrimental effect of the tax burden drive people from town and force a further downward spiral in property values?
Every projection must be analyzed and every notion challenged, not because the plans have been ill-prepared but because the outcomes are so important.
These are the most important decisions any area school board has had to make in recent years. They can not be postponed, brushed aside or ignored. Some aspects of decisions may require the courage to be unpopular and the strength to be wise.
The board has a leadership role, and the future of Pottstown depends on it.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Citizens Action Plan Committee TONIGHT
From the BCCT.
Remember, your voice cannot be heard if you do not attend.
Calendar of Bucks meetings today
EDUCATION
Morrisville Citizens Action Plan Committee: 7 p.m., Large Group Instruction Room of the Middle/Senior High School, 550 W. Palmer St. Agenda: To discuss finances of the district and make recommendations to the school board. 215-736-2681.
Remember, your voice cannot be heard if you do not attend.
Calendar of Bucks meetings today
EDUCATION
Morrisville Citizens Action Plan Committee: 7 p.m., Large Group Instruction Room of the Middle/Senior High School, 550 W. Palmer St. Agenda: To discuss finances of the district and make recommendations to the school board. 215-736-2681.
Bethlehem district losing on money deal
From the Allentown Morning Call
Bethlehem district losing on money deal
Bad bet? Interest rate swaps are costly, at least temporarily.
By Steve Esack | Of The Morning Call October 5, 2008
Several years ago, Bethlehem Area school officials knew they had to borrow money to renovate and expand the district's two high schools. They didn't know that decision would lead to a chain of events that would cost the district plenty and threaten its financial stability.
At the time, the board turned to business manager Stanley. J. Majewski Jr., about how to pay for the high school projects. Majewski then sought the advice of Les Bear, the district's longtime financial consultant, who was working at the time for the investment firm Arthurs LeStrange & Co.
In 2003, Bear suggested a bond swap, which the state Legislature had made legal that year. The swap is a risky, unconventional transaction that involves a partnership with the banking industry.
The district would swap the construction bonds' fixed-rate interest, which never changes, for investment banks' adjustable weekly rates, which fluctuate. That way, the district could pay less in interest over the life of the bonds because short-term rates historically perform better than fixed rates of about 5 percent or higher.
The school board listened as Bear explained in technical financial terms how a swap worked. Some members expressed confusion, but the board agreed to do the swap. This same scene would play out nine times between 2003 and 2007 as Bear sold the board on more swaps. The board seemed happy with the results, too. Liberty and Freedom were finished and the district was able to start constructing a new Broughal Middle school using the same financing.
But now the debt from those projects threatens to crush taxpayers and diminish educational services because the swaps have gone sour in the mortgage crisis. And while bond swapping has become popular among governments across the country, it also has become the focus of FBI, Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission probes and civil lawsuits and led to the recent default of more than $1 billion in bonds for Jefferson County, Alabama.
Skyrocketing short-term interest rates more than quadrupled last month, costing Bethlehem Area School District taxpayers an extra $1 million that month on the swap deals and solidifying that 2008 has become the worst short-term credit market in the history of the United States.
However, even before interest rates climbed from 1.9 percent to 8.5 percent in September, the swaps were not working as advertised, a Morning Call review of records shows.
''These [swaps] are very complicated and the board that accepted this made it fairly clear it did not understand all the mechanisms behind it,'' said School Board President Loretta Leeson. ''I feel the board, myself in particular, asked some meaningful questions like, is this a safe investment?''
The school board will hold a meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at the Education Center to discuss the swaps.
''We'd better be prepared to adjust very quickly to this dramatic increase in interest expense,'' School Director Gene McKeon said. ''The money has to come from some place.''
Hundreds of other school districts, municipalities and counties have entered into swaps since the financial transaction became legal in 2003, state records show.
In the Lehigh Valley region, at least seven school districts -- Allentown, Parkland, Easton, Bangor, Quakertown, Souderton and Nazareth -- took on these risky loans.
So did four counties -- Northampton, Berks, Bucks and Montgomery, according to Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development records.
But no other government agency in Pennsylvania -- except for the Philadelphia School District -- has more money tied into swap agreements than the Bethlehem Area School District.
And no other local government agency has entered into more swaps than Bethlehem, which accepted nine of the risky loans involving four existing bonds.
Northampton County Controller Stephen Barron said he does not understand how the school district could have done so many swaps.
Since he was elected last year, Barron said, he has come to realize the county's one swap was bad for taxpayers.
Barron said school officials should seek help from the federal government or outside legal experts to investigate the district's swaps to see if they got fair deals. Other school districts and municipalities have taken this step in recent months.
''They do need to be open and honest with the taxpayers,'' said Barron, who lives in Bethlehem Township. ''They owe it to the taxpayers, but most importantly they owe it to the children of Bethlehem.''
Majewski stands by the decision to use swaps and contends the district will save about $55 million over the 15-30-year terms of the bonds.
If he is wrong, Majewski said, then so is most of corporate America and other municipal finance leaders who entered into the same sort of short-term swap deals with good intentions.
''I know it will save taxpayers many millions of dollars,'' Majewski said.
The school district paid more than $2 million in fees before the new firm Bear was working for, Ferris Baker Watts, was purchased in July by RBC Capital Markets, which has offices in Philadelphia and Scranton.
Bear said last week the swaps were performing badly only because the country had entered a financial nightmare.
''There's good days and bad days,'' said Bear. ''Now we are in unusual times and it will be corrected.''
Lehigh University finance professor James A. Greenleaf said the district's debt structure is like most of corporate America, with more money hedged into short-term than into long term bond rates.
''It's a calculated risk,'' Greenleaf said.
A month after acquiring Bear's firm, RBC warned the district the risk wasn't working and that it may have to budget an additional $1 million a year to cover the swaps. Two RBC employees told the school board Finance Committee in August the swaps caused the district's debt to be out of whack. The district now had more than three quarters of its entire debt ($285.5 million) tied into adjustable rates.
Last month, interest rates spiked and by the end of September, the district had lost $1 million.
Now, several new school board members, including Benjamin M. Tenaglia III, an investment banker, are questioning the financing.
''The projection of our debt in these swap exposures is much too high,'' Tenaglia said.
In June, when interest rates were low, taxpayers paid about $1.2 million in interest to bond holders and the banks -- nearly 30 percent more than if the district had used a fixed-rate bond of 5 percent, district records show. The payment was high because that month the district was hit with a semi-annual payment of $317,000 on top of monthly payments.
In August, without the semi-annual payment in play, the deals saved taxpayers $387,426 in monthly interest costs. But to get that interest savings the district shelled out $539,678 to bond holders and investment banks, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley, who handled the swaps.
A partial list of September's bills shows that when interest rates spiked on Sept. 25, the district paid $963,914 in interest costs -- or 78 percent more than in June.
Bethlehem is not alone, said Tom Doe, founder and CEO of Municipal Market Advisors, in Concord, Mass. Many other local and state governments across the country are discovering the same problems.
But that does not make the school district the victim, he said.
''Both parties are guilty,'' Doe said. ''They entered into something with certain assumptions and ... no one in the transaction effectively outlined the potential risk.''
Now, there are real consequences for taxpayers, he said.
Bethlehem district losing on money deal
Bad bet? Interest rate swaps are costly, at least temporarily.
By Steve Esack | Of The Morning Call October 5, 2008
Several years ago, Bethlehem Area school officials knew they had to borrow money to renovate and expand the district's two high schools. They didn't know that decision would lead to a chain of events that would cost the district plenty and threaten its financial stability.
At the time, the board turned to business manager Stanley. J. Majewski Jr., about how to pay for the high school projects. Majewski then sought the advice of Les Bear, the district's longtime financial consultant, who was working at the time for the investment firm Arthurs LeStrange & Co.
In 2003, Bear suggested a bond swap, which the state Legislature had made legal that year. The swap is a risky, unconventional transaction that involves a partnership with the banking industry.
The district would swap the construction bonds' fixed-rate interest, which never changes, for investment banks' adjustable weekly rates, which fluctuate. That way, the district could pay less in interest over the life of the bonds because short-term rates historically perform better than fixed rates of about 5 percent or higher.
The school board listened as Bear explained in technical financial terms how a swap worked. Some members expressed confusion, but the board agreed to do the swap. This same scene would play out nine times between 2003 and 2007 as Bear sold the board on more swaps. The board seemed happy with the results, too. Liberty and Freedom were finished and the district was able to start constructing a new Broughal Middle school using the same financing.
But now the debt from those projects threatens to crush taxpayers and diminish educational services because the swaps have gone sour in the mortgage crisis. And while bond swapping has become popular among governments across the country, it also has become the focus of FBI, Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission probes and civil lawsuits and led to the recent default of more than $1 billion in bonds for Jefferson County, Alabama.
Skyrocketing short-term interest rates more than quadrupled last month, costing Bethlehem Area School District taxpayers an extra $1 million that month on the swap deals and solidifying that 2008 has become the worst short-term credit market in the history of the United States.
However, even before interest rates climbed from 1.9 percent to 8.5 percent in September, the swaps were not working as advertised, a Morning Call review of records shows.
''These [swaps] are very complicated and the board that accepted this made it fairly clear it did not understand all the mechanisms behind it,'' said School Board President Loretta Leeson. ''I feel the board, myself in particular, asked some meaningful questions like, is this a safe investment?''
The school board will hold a meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at the Education Center to discuss the swaps.
''We'd better be prepared to adjust very quickly to this dramatic increase in interest expense,'' School Director Gene McKeon said. ''The money has to come from some place.''
Hundreds of other school districts, municipalities and counties have entered into swaps since the financial transaction became legal in 2003, state records show.
In the Lehigh Valley region, at least seven school districts -- Allentown, Parkland, Easton, Bangor, Quakertown, Souderton and Nazareth -- took on these risky loans.
So did four counties -- Northampton, Berks, Bucks and Montgomery, according to Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development records.
But no other government agency in Pennsylvania -- except for the Philadelphia School District -- has more money tied into swap agreements than the Bethlehem Area School District.
And no other local government agency has entered into more swaps than Bethlehem, which accepted nine of the risky loans involving four existing bonds.
Northampton County Controller Stephen Barron said he does not understand how the school district could have done so many swaps.
Since he was elected last year, Barron said, he has come to realize the county's one swap was bad for taxpayers.
Barron said school officials should seek help from the federal government or outside legal experts to investigate the district's swaps to see if they got fair deals. Other school districts and municipalities have taken this step in recent months.
''They do need to be open and honest with the taxpayers,'' said Barron, who lives in Bethlehem Township. ''They owe it to the taxpayers, but most importantly they owe it to the children of Bethlehem.''
Majewski stands by the decision to use swaps and contends the district will save about $55 million over the 15-30-year terms of the bonds.
If he is wrong, Majewski said, then so is most of corporate America and other municipal finance leaders who entered into the same sort of short-term swap deals with good intentions.
''I know it will save taxpayers many millions of dollars,'' Majewski said.
The school district paid more than $2 million in fees before the new firm Bear was working for, Ferris Baker Watts, was purchased in July by RBC Capital Markets, which has offices in Philadelphia and Scranton.
Bear said last week the swaps were performing badly only because the country had entered a financial nightmare.
''There's good days and bad days,'' said Bear. ''Now we are in unusual times and it will be corrected.''
Lehigh University finance professor James A. Greenleaf said the district's debt structure is like most of corporate America, with more money hedged into short-term than into long term bond rates.
''It's a calculated risk,'' Greenleaf said.
A month after acquiring Bear's firm, RBC warned the district the risk wasn't working and that it may have to budget an additional $1 million a year to cover the swaps. Two RBC employees told the school board Finance Committee in August the swaps caused the district's debt to be out of whack. The district now had more than three quarters of its entire debt ($285.5 million) tied into adjustable rates.
Last month, interest rates spiked and by the end of September, the district had lost $1 million.
Now, several new school board members, including Benjamin M. Tenaglia III, an investment banker, are questioning the financing.
''The projection of our debt in these swap exposures is much too high,'' Tenaglia said.
In June, when interest rates were low, taxpayers paid about $1.2 million in interest to bond holders and the banks -- nearly 30 percent more than if the district had used a fixed-rate bond of 5 percent, district records show. The payment was high because that month the district was hit with a semi-annual payment of $317,000 on top of monthly payments.
In August, without the semi-annual payment in play, the deals saved taxpayers $387,426 in monthly interest costs. But to get that interest savings the district shelled out $539,678 to bond holders and investment banks, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley, who handled the swaps.
A partial list of September's bills shows that when interest rates spiked on Sept. 25, the district paid $963,914 in interest costs -- or 78 percent more than in June.
Bethlehem is not alone, said Tom Doe, founder and CEO of Municipal Market Advisors, in Concord, Mass. Many other local and state governments across the country are discovering the same problems.
But that does not make the school district the victim, he said.
''Both parties are guilty,'' Doe said. ''They entered into something with certain assumptions and ... no one in the transaction effectively outlined the potential risk.''
Now, there are real consequences for taxpayers, he said.
Testimonies recommend special-needs legislation
From dailylocal.com
Testimonies recommend special-needs legislation
By DANIELLE LYNCH, Staff Writer 10/05/2008
WEST CHESTER — Lawmakers listened to testimony about two bills that would address special-education issues at a legislative hearing Thursday morning.
State House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, R-169th, of Philadelphia, the prime sponsor of the two bills, opened the hearing at West Chester University. House Bill 2438 would return the burden of proof to school districts in special-education disputes.
"Those who see our kids hold the cards," O'Brien said, referring to placing the burden of proof back on local education agencies, which include school districts, charter schools and intermediate units.
When parents of special-needs children and school districts cannot work out issues through mediation, the next step is generally due process. When due process is held pursuant to the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the burden of proof is currently placed on the parents of special-needs children.
Previously, the burden of proof had been on the school district. But in the 2005 "Scaffer v Weast," the United States Supreme Court placed the burden of proof on parents.
In addition to House Bill 2438, state Rep.
Barbara McIlvaine Smith, D-156th, of West Chester, introduced her own legislation, known as House Bill 2718, to turn the burden of proof back to the school districts. She said her bill mirrors a piece of New Jersey legislation and is not meant to be in competition with O'Brien's bill, which she also co-sponsors.
The second bill introduced by O'Brien that was discussed at the hearing was House Bill 2536, which, if approved, would create a Board of Dispute Resolution independent of the Pennsylvania Department of Education for special-education matters.
Special-education Attorney Dennis McAndrews, of McAndrews Law Offices, who represents families, testified he did not believe there was a logical basis to place the burden of proof upon families of special-needs children. He also recommended an independent oversight board for Office of Dispute Resolution.
Jerry Oleksiak, treasurer for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, who is a special-education teacher, said in his testimony that PSEA's position is that it would be in opposition to legislation to place the burden of proof back on local education agencies.
Attorney Andria B. Saia of the Levin Legal Group, who represents school districts and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association, said she's also against changing the burden of proof back to school districts. She said she was also not in favor of creating an independent Board of Dispute Resolution that would take the place of the current Office of Dispute Resolution.
Ken Oakes, chairman of early childhood and education committees for the Arc of Pennsylvania, said the Arc supported placing the burden of proof back on the local education agencies. He said that at this time, Arc officials have not made a position on the other bill.
Felicia Hurewitz, a developmental psychologist at Drexel University who was a representative of the government workgroup of the Autism Society of America's Pennsylvania Chapters, said she supported the efforts in both bills.
Testimonies recommend special-needs legislation
By DANIELLE LYNCH, Staff Writer 10/05/2008
WEST CHESTER — Lawmakers listened to testimony about two bills that would address special-education issues at a legislative hearing Thursday morning.
State House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, R-169th, of Philadelphia, the prime sponsor of the two bills, opened the hearing at West Chester University. House Bill 2438 would return the burden of proof to school districts in special-education disputes.
"Those who see our kids hold the cards," O'Brien said, referring to placing the burden of proof back on local education agencies, which include school districts, charter schools and intermediate units.
When parents of special-needs children and school districts cannot work out issues through mediation, the next step is generally due process. When due process is held pursuant to the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the burden of proof is currently placed on the parents of special-needs children.
Previously, the burden of proof had been on the school district. But in the 2005 "Scaffer v Weast," the United States Supreme Court placed the burden of proof on parents.
In addition to House Bill 2438, state Rep.
Barbara McIlvaine Smith, D-156th, of West Chester, introduced her own legislation, known as House Bill 2718, to turn the burden of proof back to the school districts. She said her bill mirrors a piece of New Jersey legislation and is not meant to be in competition with O'Brien's bill, which she also co-sponsors.
The second bill introduced by O'Brien that was discussed at the hearing was House Bill 2536, which, if approved, would create a Board of Dispute Resolution independent of the Pennsylvania Department of Education for special-education matters.
Special-education Attorney Dennis McAndrews, of McAndrews Law Offices, who represents families, testified he did not believe there was a logical basis to place the burden of proof upon families of special-needs children. He also recommended an independent oversight board for Office of Dispute Resolution.
Jerry Oleksiak, treasurer for the Pennsylvania State Education Association, who is a special-education teacher, said in his testimony that PSEA's position is that it would be in opposition to legislation to place the burden of proof back on local education agencies.
Attorney Andria B. Saia of the Levin Legal Group, who represents school districts and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association, said she's also against changing the burden of proof back to school districts. She said she was also not in favor of creating an independent Board of Dispute Resolution that would take the place of the current Office of Dispute Resolution.
Ken Oakes, chairman of early childhood and education committees for the Arc of Pennsylvania, said the Arc supported placing the burden of proof back on the local education agencies. He said that at this time, Arc officials have not made a position on the other bill.
Felicia Hurewitz, a developmental psychologist at Drexel University who was a representative of the government workgroup of the Autism Society of America's Pennsylvania Chapters, said she supported the efforts in both bills.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Shortfall at Corner of Main and Wall
From the BCCT. The place where Main Street and Wall Street meet runs right through the suburban kitchen and the familiar table strewn with bills that outpace the checkbook balance. It turns out that our elected officials are sitting around conference tables performing the same financial ballet.
You thought budgets were tight before? You'll fondly remember them as the good old days.
Towns anticipate budget shortfalls
By FREDA R. SAVANA
Bucks County Courier Times
The burst of the housing bubble hasn't just decimated the stock market — it's put a few holes in municipal budgets, too.
Several communities across the area are anticipating shortfalls they attribute to nearly nonexistent housing sales and an overall slowdown in development.
In Solebury, the $14.7 million budget has a deficit that could reach some $500,000, said Manager John Granger.
“It surprised me,” he said recently. Although aware the township was susceptible to the housing slump, Granger said he didn't anticipate the “depth of it.”
The real estate transfer tax, money generated when properties are bought and sold, brought in $800,000 in 2007. Anticipating some decline, this year the township had budgeted revenue from that tax at $700,000 but now expects to see closer to $500,000.
Solebury's earned income tax, which is based on each taxpayer's earnings, is off, too. Granger said he budgeted $3.2 million from that revenue source this year but as of July it had only reached $1.9 million. He expects to collect $2.8 million by the end of the year — $400,000 less than budget.
Solebury isn't alone.
Bristol Township Manager Jeff Bartlett said it will be a challenge to balance his municipality's 2009 budget, particularly since elected officials want to avoid a tax increase.
“Balancing the budget will require dipping into reserve accounts and generally watching expenses very closely and hoping for a mild winter,” Bartlett said.
Bristol Township businesses are showing lower profits, which affects mercantile tax collections, he said.
“The earned income tax is lower due to people losing jobs and not receiving pay raises. Property tax values are also lower in general due to the depressed housing market. We have seen a large drop-off in building-permit applications for home additions, etc.,” he said. “Again this is a sign that the economy in general is flat and people aren't spending as freely as usual.”
Perkasie, a small Upper Bucks borough with a $13.5 million budget, is finding itself swimming upstream, too.
Revenue from the real estate transfer tax is anticipated to come in some $65,000 short of the projected $145,000 for the year, said Borough Manger Dan Olpere. A self-imposed spending freeze is in place and borough staff has been told to keep a lid on all spending.
In 2007, before the economy began unraveling, the numbers told a different story. Officials had budgeted $169,500 but received $182,000 from the transfer tax.
Olpere said slow housing sales are the culprit; what few borough homes are on the market are staying there longer.
“The revenue just isn't there,” he said.
To make up the difference, Olpere said, residents can expect their electric rates to go up next year. Unlike many other communities, Perkasie has that funding stream to draw from since it buys electricity at a wholesale price and then distributes it to home and business owners.
Bucks County's seat is also facing a tax-revenue decline, said Doylestown Manager John Davis.
“The real estate transfer is the key,” he said.
According to the numbers, the tax earnings have been on a steady slide since 2006, when, with a large housing development going up, it generated $560,000. This year it's expected to bring in $290,000 of the borough's $4.9 million budget. Davis said he's budgeting $240,000 for 2009.
“The housing decline is driving our revenue loss,” he said. “There was close to a half million dollars in revenue that was there in 2006 that's not there today.”
Although Davis said the borough planned for the drop, it's been “enhanced and exacerbated” by today's dismal housing market.
On the plus side for Doylestown is a steady earned income tax stream — a fund that is enriched not just by more people moving into a community but also when the people who live in a town increase their earnings. Davis said revenue has gone from about $1.4 million to $1.475 million over the past two years and is budgeted for $1.5 million in 2009.
“That's helping cushion the blow a bit.”
Elam Herr, assistant executive director of Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors, sympathizes with the marked revenue shortfalls. He said municipalities are limited in what they can do — and what they can tax.
“Anytime there's a downturn in the housing market — and in this case much more than a slowdown — municipalities do feel the pinch. It plays havoc with their budgets.”
With fixed costs such as salaries and utilities, all they can do, said Herr, is look for places to cut and “adjust their assumptions based on the economy.”
You thought budgets were tight before? You'll fondly remember them as the good old days.
Towns anticipate budget shortfalls
By FREDA R. SAVANA
Bucks County Courier Times
The burst of the housing bubble hasn't just decimated the stock market — it's put a few holes in municipal budgets, too.
Several communities across the area are anticipating shortfalls they attribute to nearly nonexistent housing sales and an overall slowdown in development.
In Solebury, the $14.7 million budget has a deficit that could reach some $500,000, said Manager John Granger.
“It surprised me,” he said recently. Although aware the township was susceptible to the housing slump, Granger said he didn't anticipate the “depth of it.”
The real estate transfer tax, money generated when properties are bought and sold, brought in $800,000 in 2007. Anticipating some decline, this year the township had budgeted revenue from that tax at $700,000 but now expects to see closer to $500,000.
Solebury's earned income tax, which is based on each taxpayer's earnings, is off, too. Granger said he budgeted $3.2 million from that revenue source this year but as of July it had only reached $1.9 million. He expects to collect $2.8 million by the end of the year — $400,000 less than budget.
Solebury isn't alone.
Bristol Township Manager Jeff Bartlett said it will be a challenge to balance his municipality's 2009 budget, particularly since elected officials want to avoid a tax increase.
“Balancing the budget will require dipping into reserve accounts and generally watching expenses very closely and hoping for a mild winter,” Bartlett said.
Bristol Township businesses are showing lower profits, which affects mercantile tax collections, he said.
“The earned income tax is lower due to people losing jobs and not receiving pay raises. Property tax values are also lower in general due to the depressed housing market. We have seen a large drop-off in building-permit applications for home additions, etc.,” he said. “Again this is a sign that the economy in general is flat and people aren't spending as freely as usual.”
Perkasie, a small Upper Bucks borough with a $13.5 million budget, is finding itself swimming upstream, too.
Revenue from the real estate transfer tax is anticipated to come in some $65,000 short of the projected $145,000 for the year, said Borough Manger Dan Olpere. A self-imposed spending freeze is in place and borough staff has been told to keep a lid on all spending.
In 2007, before the economy began unraveling, the numbers told a different story. Officials had budgeted $169,500 but received $182,000 from the transfer tax.
Olpere said slow housing sales are the culprit; what few borough homes are on the market are staying there longer.
“The revenue just isn't there,” he said.
To make up the difference, Olpere said, residents can expect their electric rates to go up next year. Unlike many other communities, Perkasie has that funding stream to draw from since it buys electricity at a wholesale price and then distributes it to home and business owners.
Bucks County's seat is also facing a tax-revenue decline, said Doylestown Manager John Davis.
“The real estate transfer is the key,” he said.
According to the numbers, the tax earnings have been on a steady slide since 2006, when, with a large housing development going up, it generated $560,000. This year it's expected to bring in $290,000 of the borough's $4.9 million budget. Davis said he's budgeting $240,000 for 2009.
“The housing decline is driving our revenue loss,” he said. “There was close to a half million dollars in revenue that was there in 2006 that's not there today.”
Although Davis said the borough planned for the drop, it's been “enhanced and exacerbated” by today's dismal housing market.
On the plus side for Doylestown is a steady earned income tax stream — a fund that is enriched not just by more people moving into a community but also when the people who live in a town increase their earnings. Davis said revenue has gone from about $1.4 million to $1.475 million over the past two years and is budgeted for $1.5 million in 2009.
“That's helping cushion the blow a bit.”
Elam Herr, assistant executive director of Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors, sympathizes with the marked revenue shortfalls. He said municipalities are limited in what they can do — and what they can tax.
“Anytime there's a downturn in the housing market — and in this case much more than a slowdown — municipalities do feel the pinch. It plays havoc with their budgets.”
With fixed costs such as salaries and utilities, all they can do, said Herr, is look for places to cut and “adjust their assumptions based on the economy.”
Title IX Violation Alleged in Bristol Borough
From the BCCT. We do not really follow the Bristol schools here, so it's hard to say what the true back story is. If this were Morrisville, these lines would be laughable. "School board members voiced frustration during their last meeting that the people who lodged the complaint did not first go to them to discuss their concerns. 'Now it’s going to cost taxpayers money [to respond to the allegations] when it could have been resolved with dialogue.'"
The Emperor has made it clear that for Morrisville citizens, dialogue is irrelevant and resistance is futile. The only way they will listen to opposing points of view is for both sides to lawyer up.
Complaint alleges district violating Title IX
The federal education department has asked for information ranging from booster club financial records to an inventory of district athletic equipment in its inquiry.
By JOAN HELLYER
STAFF WRITER
The federal government is trying to determine if the Bristol Borough school district discriminated against high school female athletes, according to the United States Department of Education. The accusations stem from the recent establishment of a football boosters club, according to a letter of inquiry sent to Bristol Superintendent Broadus Davis from the department’s Office of Civil Rights.
“The complaint alleges that the district is discriminating against high school female athletes on the basis of sex by using funds from booster clubs to provide male athletes with benefits that are greater than those the district provides to female athletes,” said David Blom, in the letter.
The fear, according to Blom, is that it would result in various inequities including equipment and supplies, game and practice schedules, locker rooms, and practice and competitive facilities.
The civil rights office is investigating whether the school district is in violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Blom said in the letter. Title IX protects people from sexual discrimination in education programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance.
Blom’s five-page letter includes requests for information about: all high school teams; 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 athletic budgets and schedules; booster club financial records; district athletic equipment; award ceremonies; 2007-2008 teams in post-season events; 2007-2008 team participation in exhibition or scrimmage games; high school coaching staff members; complaints received last school year about athletic program conditions; and various district policies.
Those policies include guidelines about booster clubs, publicity services for boys and girls athletic programs, locker rooms, competitive and practice schedules and facilities, and coaching staffs.
School board members voiced frustration during their last meeting that the people who lodged the complaint did not first go to them to discuss their concerns.
“Now it’s going to cost taxpayers money [to respond to the allegations] when it could have been resolved with dialogue,” Vice President John D’Angelo said.
Davis is working with board solicitor Anthony Mandio and district administrators to gather the requested information. They have until Friday to submit the responses to the department, the superintendent said.
The education department did not name the people who lodged the allegations against the district in its inquiry letter.
Department officials did not respond to the paper’s request to identify the people who complained. However, a spokesman said opening an investigation does not mean the district is guilty as charged.
The civil rights office generally completes its investigations within six months time, said Jim Bradshaw, the education department spokesman.
If investigators determine the district has not complied with civil rights laws, it will be asked to negotiate a voluntary resolution agreement, according to the department’s Web site. If the district does not voluntarily try to resolve the concerns, the agency can take various steps to ensure an agreement is implemented.
The Emperor has made it clear that for Morrisville citizens, dialogue is irrelevant and resistance is futile. The only way they will listen to opposing points of view is for both sides to lawyer up.
Complaint alleges district violating Title IX
The federal education department has asked for information ranging from booster club financial records to an inventory of district athletic equipment in its inquiry.
By JOAN HELLYER
STAFF WRITER
The federal government is trying to determine if the Bristol Borough school district discriminated against high school female athletes, according to the United States Department of Education. The accusations stem from the recent establishment of a football boosters club, according to a letter of inquiry sent to Bristol Superintendent Broadus Davis from the department’s Office of Civil Rights.
“The complaint alleges that the district is discriminating against high school female athletes on the basis of sex by using funds from booster clubs to provide male athletes with benefits that are greater than those the district provides to female athletes,” said David Blom, in the letter.
The fear, according to Blom, is that it would result in various inequities including equipment and supplies, game and practice schedules, locker rooms, and practice and competitive facilities.
The civil rights office is investigating whether the school district is in violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Blom said in the letter. Title IX protects people from sexual discrimination in education programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance.
Blom’s five-page letter includes requests for information about: all high school teams; 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 athletic budgets and schedules; booster club financial records; district athletic equipment; award ceremonies; 2007-2008 teams in post-season events; 2007-2008 team participation in exhibition or scrimmage games; high school coaching staff members; complaints received last school year about athletic program conditions; and various district policies.
Those policies include guidelines about booster clubs, publicity services for boys and girls athletic programs, locker rooms, competitive and practice schedules and facilities, and coaching staffs.
School board members voiced frustration during their last meeting that the people who lodged the complaint did not first go to them to discuss their concerns.
“Now it’s going to cost taxpayers money [to respond to the allegations] when it could have been resolved with dialogue,” Vice President John D’Angelo said.
Davis is working with board solicitor Anthony Mandio and district administrators to gather the requested information. They have until Friday to submit the responses to the department, the superintendent said.
The education department did not name the people who lodged the allegations against the district in its inquiry letter.
Department officials did not respond to the paper’s request to identify the people who complained. However, a spokesman said opening an investigation does not mean the district is guilty as charged.
The civil rights office generally completes its investigations within six months time, said Jim Bradshaw, the education department spokesman.
If investigators determine the district has not complied with civil rights laws, it will be asked to negotiate a voluntary resolution agreement, according to the department’s Web site. If the district does not voluntarily try to resolve the concerns, the agency can take various steps to ensure an agreement is implemented.
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
Bush Official Seeks Renewed Support for 'No Child'
By Washington Post Published Today Daily EdNews , K-12 , No Child Left Behind Rating:
Education Secretary Margaret Spellings today sought to reinvigorate support for the No Child Left Behind law even as the two major-party presidential candidates have distanced themselves from it. She contended the law has helped improve public education and should be strengthened.
On Obama: Why the Democratic Candidate Is Right About Education
New York Times
By BRUCE FULLER
Barack Obama understands that top-down government regulation is strangling innovation inside schools.
http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/18/on-obama-why-the-democratic-candidate-is-wrong-to-blindly-throw-money-into-schools/index.html?ref=opinion
New York Times
By LANCE T. IZUMI
Common wisdom is that technology in the classroom improves student learning and achievement. But the evidence is far from clear.
District spent $1,116,000 on attorney fees!
School Board Settles Lawsuit Brought by Family of Autistic Student
The Ledger
For the past four years, Bill and Janie Sammons have fought the Polk County School District, contending that their autistic son, Drew, was never given a proper education
New Effort Aims to Test Theories of Education
New York Times
By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ
A $44 million program called the Educational Innovation Laboratory is intended to infuse education with the data-driven approach that is common in science and business
Denver PS takes hit on bond refinance
Denver Post
Denver Public Schools' pension plan was pulled into the financial crisis on Wall Street this week when a dearth of buyers at a bond sale cost the fund "hundreds of thousands" of dollars in increased interest payments. The DPS fund has reserves to cover the increased interest and neither taxpayers nor pensioners are likely to notice. But the fund's inability to find investors for a week is just one example of how the tightening of credit markets could impact local governments should it continue or worsen
By Washington Post Published Today Daily EdNews , K-12 , No Child Left Behind Rating:
Education Secretary Margaret Spellings today sought to reinvigorate support for the No Child Left Behind law even as the two major-party presidential candidates have distanced themselves from it. She contended the law has helped improve public education and should be strengthened.
On Obama: Why the Democratic Candidate Is Right About Education
New York Times
By BRUCE FULLER
Barack Obama understands that top-down government regulation is strangling innovation inside schools.
http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/18/on-obama-why-the-democratic-candidate-is-wrong-to-blindly-throw-money-into-schools/index.html?ref=opinion
New York Times
By LANCE T. IZUMI
Common wisdom is that technology in the classroom improves student learning and achievement. But the evidence is far from clear.
District spent $1,116,000 on attorney fees!
School Board Settles Lawsuit Brought by Family of Autistic Student
The Ledger
For the past four years, Bill and Janie Sammons have fought the Polk County School District, contending that their autistic son, Drew, was never given a proper education
New Effort Aims to Test Theories of Education
New York Times
By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ
A $44 million program called the Educational Innovation Laboratory is intended to infuse education with the data-driven approach that is common in science and business
Denver PS takes hit on bond refinance
Denver Post
Denver Public Schools' pension plan was pulled into the financial crisis on Wall Street this week when a dearth of buyers at a bond sale cost the fund "hundreds of thousands" of dollars in increased interest payments. The DPS fund has reserves to cover the increased interest and neither taxpayers nor pensioners are likely to notice. But the fund's inability to find investors for a week is just one example of how the tightening of credit markets could impact local governments should it continue or worsen
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Don't forget Octoberfest
From the Trentonian. Don't forget Octoberfest, now through Sunday at Williamson Park.
Octoberfest in Mo'ville
By STAFF REPORT
10/03/2008
MORRISVILLE, Pa. - Morrisville's four day Octoberfest and Carnival, which started yesterday, is open to everyone, not just borough residents, a key organizer said yesterday.
Kimberly Kane, the Morrisville YMCA events director and an Octoberfest coordinator, said any talk about non-residents being banned is wrong.
The world is welcome, including Trentonians.
"As we handed out flyers at the local shopping center near the Calhoun Street Bridge several people said things along the line of 'oh, I heard about this, but I live in Trenton. I heard we aren't allowed to go.'
"I'm not sure why people would think that or who might have told them that, but several people said things along the same lines,'' Kane said. "It just baffles me and I am concerned.
"We would never exclude anyone. It is a community event that is open to the entire public. I would like to officially invite your New Jersey customers and all New Jersey residents to please, join us at the carnival over the next 4 days.''
The events are set for Williamson Park, just on the other side of the "Trenton Makes'' bridge.
Octoberfest in Mo'ville
By STAFF REPORT
10/03/2008
MORRISVILLE, Pa. - Morrisville's four day Octoberfest and Carnival, which started yesterday, is open to everyone, not just borough residents, a key organizer said yesterday.
Kimberly Kane, the Morrisville YMCA events director and an Octoberfest coordinator, said any talk about non-residents being banned is wrong.
The world is welcome, including Trentonians.
"As we handed out flyers at the local shopping center near the Calhoun Street Bridge several people said things along the line of 'oh, I heard about this, but I live in Trenton. I heard we aren't allowed to go.'
"I'm not sure why people would think that or who might have told them that, but several people said things along the same lines,'' Kane said. "It just baffles me and I am concerned.
"We would never exclude anyone. It is a community event that is open to the entire public. I would like to officially invite your New Jersey customers and all New Jersey residents to please, join us at the carnival over the next 4 days.''
The events are set for Williamson Park, just on the other side of the "Trenton Makes'' bridge.
The Principle Police
From North Dakota's in-forum.com.
If you ever want to figure out why regular people get so ticked off with the behavior of elected officials, here's the perfect example.
It's all about a non-issue: Writing a letter of support from one governmental body to another. It just wasn't listed on the agenda as an action item for the meeting, so a community gadfly files an open meetings violation suit.
Now the state attorney general will begin a 17- to 23-week review process. Here's the kicker: Even if board members are found to have violated the open meetings laws, it doesn’t change, overrule or void any action.
There's absolutely no oversight provided. And no matter how anyone feels about the letter, yes, there are openness and fairness principles involved. That's why people get ticked off with unadvertised meetings and decisions shrouded in secrecy.
What a waste of time all around.
Open meetings laws at issue in investigation
Kelly Smith, The Forum
Published Friday, October 03, 2008
A week after the state attorney general decided that the Grand Forks School Board violated open meetings laws, the Fargo School Board is under review for a similar issue.
Fargo School Board members say their approval last week to draft a letter isn’t a big deal. But Fargo resident Dave Engebretson – who filed the complaint with the state – disagrees, arguing it’s more about the principle of government transparency.
“They do things without public input,” he said. “I’m hoping it stops; bottom line.”
School Board member Jim Johnson told other board members Sept. 23 that the city wanted the board’s support for the city’s Southside Flood Control Project.
Johnson made a motion during board reports directing administrators to draft a letter of support.
“We have at least four (school) buildings in the flood plain, so it makes sense for us to support the flood plan,” board President Dan Fremling said this week.
Board member John Strand expressed concern about taking action on an issue not listed on the board’s agenda.
“And that’s a big issue,” he said. “It’s a taxpayer issue, it’s a policy issue.”
A motion failed 5-3 to table the discussion.
Johnson clarified that the motion was for Superintendent Rick Buresh to draft a letter that could be approved at the Oct. 14 meeting. All eight board members present then approved the motion.
“We didn’t take any action to do anything,” Fremling said. Whether the board did anything wrong, he added: “Not a thing.”
“In this situation, you’re talking about drafting a letter,” Fremling said. “It’s ridiculous.”
For Engebretson, though, the issue is about principle. “It’s a poor excuse,” he said. “It’s not just a letter of support.”
He filed the complaint with the North Dakota attorney general Sept. 24, and contacted the Cass County attorney this week.
Engebretson, 50, has been a longtime vocal critic of Fargo public entities and is a frequent writer of letters to the editor in The Forum, advocating lower property taxes and special assessments. The insurance loss-prevention consultant has also twice run unsuccessfully for City Commission.
Engebretson worked on Strand’s School Board campaign this year and considers him a friend. He added, though, that he didn’t contact Strand until after he filed the complaint with the state – which Strand reaffirmed.
“I don’t go back and get somebody to write a letter to the editor,” Strand said in response to his connection with Engebretson.
Bismarck attorney Jack McDonald, who represents the North Dakota Newspaper Association, said it’s not illegal for public entities to add issues to their agendas to discuss or take action on. He said they aren’t required to publish agendas – just minutes.
Just months ago, though, a similar incident happened in Grand Forks when a complaint was filed against the School Board for discussing and acting on an issue – the reassignment of a principal – not listed in the agenda.
Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem wrote on Sept. 19 that the Grand Forks agenda “did not sufficiently describe the staff change contemplated and was, therefore, not in substantial compliance with (open meeting laws).”
As for the Fargo School Board, Liz Brocker of the state attorney general’s office said the assistant attorney general is in the beginning of what is typically a 17- to 23-week review process to examine information provided by the board.
Even if board members are found to have violated the open meetings laws, she said, it doesn’t change, overrule or void any action taken last week.
Strand said he hopes it shows transparency is necessary.
“I’m not criticizing my own board,” he said. “I hope we all are held vigil to doing our public business in the public day.”
If you ever want to figure out why regular people get so ticked off with the behavior of elected officials, here's the perfect example.
It's all about a non-issue: Writing a letter of support from one governmental body to another. It just wasn't listed on the agenda as an action item for the meeting, so a community gadfly files an open meetings violation suit.
Now the state attorney general will begin a 17- to 23-week review process. Here's the kicker: Even if board members are found to have violated the open meetings laws, it doesn’t change, overrule or void any action.
There's absolutely no oversight provided. And no matter how anyone feels about the letter, yes, there are openness and fairness principles involved. That's why people get ticked off with unadvertised meetings and decisions shrouded in secrecy.
What a waste of time all around.
Open meetings laws at issue in investigation
Kelly Smith, The Forum
Published Friday, October 03, 2008
A week after the state attorney general decided that the Grand Forks School Board violated open meetings laws, the Fargo School Board is under review for a similar issue.
Fargo School Board members say their approval last week to draft a letter isn’t a big deal. But Fargo resident Dave Engebretson – who filed the complaint with the state – disagrees, arguing it’s more about the principle of government transparency.
“They do things without public input,” he said. “I’m hoping it stops; bottom line.”
School Board member Jim Johnson told other board members Sept. 23 that the city wanted the board’s support for the city’s Southside Flood Control Project.
Johnson made a motion during board reports directing administrators to draft a letter of support.
“We have at least four (school) buildings in the flood plain, so it makes sense for us to support the flood plan,” board President Dan Fremling said this week.
Board member John Strand expressed concern about taking action on an issue not listed on the board’s agenda.
“And that’s a big issue,” he said. “It’s a taxpayer issue, it’s a policy issue.”
A motion failed 5-3 to table the discussion.
Johnson clarified that the motion was for Superintendent Rick Buresh to draft a letter that could be approved at the Oct. 14 meeting. All eight board members present then approved the motion.
“We didn’t take any action to do anything,” Fremling said. Whether the board did anything wrong, he added: “Not a thing.”
“In this situation, you’re talking about drafting a letter,” Fremling said. “It’s ridiculous.”
For Engebretson, though, the issue is about principle. “It’s a poor excuse,” he said. “It’s not just a letter of support.”
He filed the complaint with the North Dakota attorney general Sept. 24, and contacted the Cass County attorney this week.
Engebretson, 50, has been a longtime vocal critic of Fargo public entities and is a frequent writer of letters to the editor in The Forum, advocating lower property taxes and special assessments. The insurance loss-prevention consultant has also twice run unsuccessfully for City Commission.
Engebretson worked on Strand’s School Board campaign this year and considers him a friend. He added, though, that he didn’t contact Strand until after he filed the complaint with the state – which Strand reaffirmed.
“I don’t go back and get somebody to write a letter to the editor,” Strand said in response to his connection with Engebretson.
Bismarck attorney Jack McDonald, who represents the North Dakota Newspaper Association, said it’s not illegal for public entities to add issues to their agendas to discuss or take action on. He said they aren’t required to publish agendas – just minutes.
Just months ago, though, a similar incident happened in Grand Forks when a complaint was filed against the School Board for discussing and acting on an issue – the reassignment of a principal – not listed in the agenda.
Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem wrote on Sept. 19 that the Grand Forks agenda “did not sufficiently describe the staff change contemplated and was, therefore, not in substantial compliance with (open meeting laws).”
As for the Fargo School Board, Liz Brocker of the state attorney general’s office said the assistant attorney general is in the beginning of what is typically a 17- to 23-week review process to examine information provided by the board.
Even if board members are found to have violated the open meetings laws, she said, it doesn’t change, overrule or void any action taken last week.
Strand said he hopes it shows transparency is necessary.
“I’m not criticizing my own board,” he said. “I hope we all are held vigil to doing our public business in the public day.”
Mentors needed for Morrisville schools
From the BCCT.
Mentors needed for Morrisville schools
Posted in News on Friday, October 3rd, 2008 at 4:10 pm by Courier Times reporter Manasee Wagh
Morrisville School District 21st Century Community Learning Centers is looking for people to volunteer as mentors for an in-school program called Generations Educating Morrisville, or GEM. Mentors would need to volunteer for just one hour a week for third and fourth grade students in Morrisville schools.
Currently, the district is looking for people to give their time on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday, from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. at Grandview Elementary School.
Training for volunteers will be provided.
For more information please contact Kathy at 215-428-0500 ext. 204.
Mentors needed for Morrisville schools
Posted in News on Friday, October 3rd, 2008 at 4:10 pm by Courier Times reporter Manasee Wagh
Morrisville School District 21st Century Community Learning Centers is looking for people to volunteer as mentors for an in-school program called Generations Educating Morrisville, or GEM. Mentors would need to volunteer for just one hour a week for third and fourth grade students in Morrisville schools.
Currently, the district is looking for people to give their time on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday, from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. at Grandview Elementary School.
Training for volunteers will be provided.
For more information please contact Kathy at 215-428-0500 ext. 204.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Big Brother Goes Yellow
From the Hanover Evening Sun.
Maybe we can find out if Billy really likes Mary [giggle], but Mary really likes Joey [OMG! No Way!...Way!] and if Mrs. Jones really is the toughest teacher in the school.
Pa. lawmakers weigh audio school bus surveillance
By DAN NEPHIN Associated Press Writer
Article Launched: 09/30/2008 08:26:21 AM EDT
PITTSBURGH—Bus companies and school districts would be allowed to record audio on school buses under legislation that would modify the state's wiretapping and surveillance law and, supporters say, help deter unruly student behavior.
Some buses already use silent video cameras, but questions have arisen about whether recording sound violates the law, which requires the consent of the person being recorded.
State Rep. Don Walko, D-Allegheny, said his legislation would allow school boards to authorize audio taping while requiring notification of students and parents and placing signs on buses stating audio taping is taking place.
"There is a lack of consistency among district attorneys throughout Pennsylvania, so again what we are doing is clarifying what we believe should be the law and putting in the safeguards," Walko said at a House judiciary committee hearing Tuesday in Pittsburgh.
Supporters, including the Pennsylvania School Bus Association, say audio recordings can help reduce bullying and sexual harassment and give a more complete account of an incident than video alone.
In 2006, state police asked Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. to determine whether Laidlaw Transit Inc. had illegally audio taped students on buses in two districts. Zappala found Laidlaw had no intent to break the law, and said he wouldn't prosecute bus audio taping cases if they followed the requirements now part of Walko's legislation.
The issue has cropped up elsewhere, with some prosecutors finding audio recordings were illegal.
A suburban Philadelphia district decided against using the audio-recording feature of its school bus cameras because of confusion over its legality.
The Pennsylvania State Police, which conducts annual school bus inspections and unannounced spot checks, also supports the legislation, saying audio and video recording deters unruly behavior.
The state School Boards Association supports the legislation's intent, but not Walko's bill, according to written testimony presented Tuesday.
Instead, it supports modifying the existing wiretap law to say that people cannot have an expectation of privacy in places that aren't typically private if plainly visible video and audio recording equipment is in use, along with signs indicating such use.
Walko said he's unaware of any opposition. The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania said it has not taken a position on the bill.
The legislation is being offered both as a bill and as an amendment to another bill, but Walko noted the Legislature only has three session days remaining. If it doesn't move this session, Walko said he would reintroduce it.
Maybe we can find out if Billy really likes Mary [giggle], but Mary really likes Joey [OMG! No Way!...Way!] and if Mrs. Jones really is the toughest teacher in the school.
Pa. lawmakers weigh audio school bus surveillance
By DAN NEPHIN Associated Press Writer
Article Launched: 09/30/2008 08:26:21 AM EDT
PITTSBURGH—Bus companies and school districts would be allowed to record audio on school buses under legislation that would modify the state's wiretapping and surveillance law and, supporters say, help deter unruly student behavior.
Some buses already use silent video cameras, but questions have arisen about whether recording sound violates the law, which requires the consent of the person being recorded.
State Rep. Don Walko, D-Allegheny, said his legislation would allow school boards to authorize audio taping while requiring notification of students and parents and placing signs on buses stating audio taping is taking place.
"There is a lack of consistency among district attorneys throughout Pennsylvania, so again what we are doing is clarifying what we believe should be the law and putting in the safeguards," Walko said at a House judiciary committee hearing Tuesday in Pittsburgh.
Supporters, including the Pennsylvania School Bus Association, say audio recordings can help reduce bullying and sexual harassment and give a more complete account of an incident than video alone.
In 2006, state police asked Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. to determine whether Laidlaw Transit Inc. had illegally audio taped students on buses in two districts. Zappala found Laidlaw had no intent to break the law, and said he wouldn't prosecute bus audio taping cases if they followed the requirements now part of Walko's legislation.
The issue has cropped up elsewhere, with some prosecutors finding audio recordings were illegal.
A suburban Philadelphia district decided against using the audio-recording feature of its school bus cameras because of confusion over its legality.
The Pennsylvania State Police, which conducts annual school bus inspections and unannounced spot checks, also supports the legislation, saying audio and video recording deters unruly behavior.
The state School Boards Association supports the legislation's intent, but not Walko's bill, according to written testimony presented Tuesday.
Instead, it supports modifying the existing wiretap law to say that people cannot have an expectation of privacy in places that aren't typically private if plainly visible video and audio recording equipment is in use, along with signs indicating such use.
Walko said he's unaware of any opposition. The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania said it has not taken a position on the bill.
The legislation is being offered both as a bill and as an amendment to another bill, but Walko noted the Legislature only has three session days remaining. If it doesn't move this session, Walko said he would reintroduce it.
These Boots Were Made For Walking
From the BCCT. Go take a hike with the Friends of the Delaware Canal. The Morrisville leg of the walk is on Saturday, October 25, from the waterworks to Bristol.
Walks along canal begin Saturday
By DANNY ADLER
One step at a time, the Friends of the Delaware Canal and others will walk about 32.5 miles of the Delaware Canal trail this month.
They’ll meet up four Saturdays in a row for the 21st annual Canal Walk, which starts this week and will cover more than half of the 60-mile towpath trail.
Normally, the annual walk covers the entire length of the historic waterway, but repair work in numerous sections of the canal will limit the trek this year to 32.5 miles.
The walk gives participants a chance to learn about the canal’s past — and future — while taking in the autumn scenery along the canal and Delaware River corridor. Susan Taylor, executive director of the group, local historians and conservationists will show where mule-drawn boats once transported coal and other goods while pointing out the significant historical and environmental areas along the route.
The walks, which are free and open to the public, begin at 9 a.m. each of the following Saturdays.
• This Saturday: a 9-mile walk begins at the Delaware Canal State Park office complex in Upper Black Eddy and ends in Point Pleasant.
• Oct. 11: A 5-mile trek from the Virginia Forrest Recreation Area north of Centre Bridge in Solebury to Odette’s Restaurant in New Hope.
• Oct. 18: 8 miles from Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve in Upper Makefield to the Afton Avenue aqueduct in Yardley.
• Oct. 25: 10 miles from the Morrisville waterworks complex on Delmorr Avenue to Bristol’s Lions Park.
For more info, call 215-862-2021, e-mail friends@fodc.org or visit www.fodc.org. The Friends of the Delaware Canal is a nonprofit organization working to preserve and improve the canal and its surroundings.
September 30, 2008 1:21 PM
Walks along canal begin Saturday
By DANNY ADLER
One step at a time, the Friends of the Delaware Canal and others will walk about 32.5 miles of the Delaware Canal trail this month.
They’ll meet up four Saturdays in a row for the 21st annual Canal Walk, which starts this week and will cover more than half of the 60-mile towpath trail.
Normally, the annual walk covers the entire length of the historic waterway, but repair work in numerous sections of the canal will limit the trek this year to 32.5 miles.
The walk gives participants a chance to learn about the canal’s past — and future — while taking in the autumn scenery along the canal and Delaware River corridor. Susan Taylor, executive director of the group, local historians and conservationists will show where mule-drawn boats once transported coal and other goods while pointing out the significant historical and environmental areas along the route.
The walks, which are free and open to the public, begin at 9 a.m. each of the following Saturdays.
• This Saturday: a 9-mile walk begins at the Delaware Canal State Park office complex in Upper Black Eddy and ends in Point Pleasant.
• Oct. 11: A 5-mile trek from the Virginia Forrest Recreation Area north of Centre Bridge in Solebury to Odette’s Restaurant in New Hope.
• Oct. 18: 8 miles from Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve in Upper Makefield to the Afton Avenue aqueduct in Yardley.
• Oct. 25: 10 miles from the Morrisville waterworks complex on Delmorr Avenue to Bristol’s Lions Park.
For more info, call 215-862-2021, e-mail friends@fodc.org or visit www.fodc.org. The Friends of the Delaware Canal is a nonprofit organization working to preserve and improve the canal and its surroundings.
September 30, 2008 1:21 PM
Officials cut public comment time
From the BCCT. The Emperor's three minute egg timer has been passed to a new group of elected officials.
A time rule is reasonable. No member of the public can expect to monopolize ten or fifteen minutes of air time. Multiply that out for each citizen in attendance and the meetings will adjourn next week, just in time for the next one to begin.
Being reasonable is the key. Most people can make their point in three minutes. What's the harm in letting some go over into [gasp] four to even [horror of horrors] FIVE minutes occasionally, especially if they are making fair arguments. The bedrock of the republic will not split asunder.
Having Betty Crocker stand there with her cake timer to promptly whack your hands with a wooden spoon at the stroke of three minutes is overboard.
No. That was not a suggestion. Marlys cannot use the petty cash fund for a shopping trip to Oxford Valley Mall. Williams-Sonoma is off limits.
How the three minutes is used is more important. At most elected board meetings I've seen from sewer commissions to the United States Senate, the elected officials are studiously and intently...not listening. They are off on their latest diversion, well meaning or not, important or not. They leave the unmistakable impression that they do not care what the voters have to say.
Except, of course, on one day, Election Day.
Officials cut public comment time
The supervisors’ Sept. 24 meeting ended at 10:50 p.m., more than two hours earlier than the Sept. 10 meeting, which ended at 1:33 a.m.
By DANNY ADLER
If you want to address public officials in Northampton, you better make your point quick.
Antonio Albano, chairman of the Northampton Bucks County Municipal Authority, invoked a three-minute rule for public comment Wednesday night, a week after supervisors Chairman George Komelasky did the same to avoid meetings lasting into the wee hours of the morning.
Both chairmen denied residents’ requests to cede their time to other people who wanting to speak longer.
Komelasky, a Republican, said some residents have used the “Citizens Concerns” portion of its meetings to engage in a dialogue with the board, and make statements and accusations “that aren’t citizens’ concerns.”
Meetings over the past few months have grown tense with heckling, insults, interruptions and board members raising their voices toward each other and residents. Much of the discussion has spawned from the controversial multimillion-dollar western end sewer project, which calls for about 300 residences and an industrial park to be hooked up to public sewers. The project could cost homeowners at least $20,000 apiece.
But the three-minute limit could be seen as successful. The supervisors’ Sept. 24 meeting ended at 10:50 p.m. That was more than two hours earlier than the board’s Sept. 10 meeting ended, at 1:33 a.m. Sept. 11. Eight of the supervisors 15 meetings this year ended after 11 p.m.; five of those meetings lasted at least until 12:20 a.m.
“This is in the best interest of the township,” Komelasky said. He later added “We’re trying to get business done for the township,” noting that some meetings didn’t get past public comment until hours into the session.
Albano, of the water and sewer board, said three minutes is adequate time for residents to voice their concerns. He said: “The three-minute rule is something that I’ve adopted from observing Council Rock School District board meetings” which leads to a “reasonable hour for adjournment.”
Resident Christine Mecutchen understands that the board can’t let people grandstand for an hour, but said the newly imposed time limit restricts freedom of speech and is “an extreme reaction to one late meeting.” She said: “It’s beyond outrageous. … We’re allowed to have a say in what’s occurring.”
Democratic Supervisor Jim Cunningham said a time limit “in and of itself is not an unreasonable thing,” but the board shouldn’t have changed the rules in mid-stream, he said.
Cunningham said the supervisors should have adopted those rules at the board’s reorganization meeting at the beginning of the year, not now. He also said details need to be worked out, such as can residents yield their time to another person? Who is the timekeeper?
“A set of guidelines needs be formally adopted by the board,” Cunningham said. “On the face of it, I don’t think it’s wholly unreasonable to do it.”
While possibly irritating to those who want to speak, numerous Bucks County municipalities have established time restrictions and regulations regarding public comment.
A Pennsylvania Governor’s Center for Local Government Services publication titled “Open Meetings/Open Records” states, “A governing body may still adopt reasonable rules for the comment period. … A time limit may also be placed on an individual’s presentation and any resulting discussion.”
A time rule is reasonable. No member of the public can expect to monopolize ten or fifteen minutes of air time. Multiply that out for each citizen in attendance and the meetings will adjourn next week, just in time for the next one to begin.
Being reasonable is the key. Most people can make their point in three minutes. What's the harm in letting some go over into [gasp] four to even [horror of horrors] FIVE minutes occasionally, especially if they are making fair arguments. The bedrock of the republic will not split asunder.
Having Betty Crocker stand there with her cake timer to promptly whack your hands with a wooden spoon at the stroke of three minutes is overboard.
No. That was not a suggestion. Marlys cannot use the petty cash fund for a shopping trip to Oxford Valley Mall. Williams-Sonoma is off limits.
How the three minutes is used is more important. At most elected board meetings I've seen from sewer commissions to the United States Senate, the elected officials are studiously and intently...not listening. They are off on their latest diversion, well meaning or not, important or not. They leave the unmistakable impression that they do not care what the voters have to say.
Except, of course, on one day, Election Day.
Officials cut public comment time
The supervisors’ Sept. 24 meeting ended at 10:50 p.m., more than two hours earlier than the Sept. 10 meeting, which ended at 1:33 a.m.
By DANNY ADLER
If you want to address public officials in Northampton, you better make your point quick.
Antonio Albano, chairman of the Northampton Bucks County Municipal Authority, invoked a three-minute rule for public comment Wednesday night, a week after supervisors Chairman George Komelasky did the same to avoid meetings lasting into the wee hours of the morning.
Both chairmen denied residents’ requests to cede their time to other people who wanting to speak longer.
Komelasky, a Republican, said some residents have used the “Citizens Concerns” portion of its meetings to engage in a dialogue with the board, and make statements and accusations “that aren’t citizens’ concerns.”
Meetings over the past few months have grown tense with heckling, insults, interruptions and board members raising their voices toward each other and residents. Much of the discussion has spawned from the controversial multimillion-dollar western end sewer project, which calls for about 300 residences and an industrial park to be hooked up to public sewers. The project could cost homeowners at least $20,000 apiece.
But the three-minute limit could be seen as successful. The supervisors’ Sept. 24 meeting ended at 10:50 p.m. That was more than two hours earlier than the board’s Sept. 10 meeting ended, at 1:33 a.m. Sept. 11. Eight of the supervisors 15 meetings this year ended after 11 p.m.; five of those meetings lasted at least until 12:20 a.m.
“This is in the best interest of the township,” Komelasky said. He later added “We’re trying to get business done for the township,” noting that some meetings didn’t get past public comment until hours into the session.
Albano, of the water and sewer board, said three minutes is adequate time for residents to voice their concerns. He said: “The three-minute rule is something that I’ve adopted from observing Council Rock School District board meetings” which leads to a “reasonable hour for adjournment.”
Resident Christine Mecutchen understands that the board can’t let people grandstand for an hour, but said the newly imposed time limit restricts freedom of speech and is “an extreme reaction to one late meeting.” She said: “It’s beyond outrageous. … We’re allowed to have a say in what’s occurring.”
Democratic Supervisor Jim Cunningham said a time limit “in and of itself is not an unreasonable thing,” but the board shouldn’t have changed the rules in mid-stream, he said.
Cunningham said the supervisors should have adopted those rules at the board’s reorganization meeting at the beginning of the year, not now. He also said details need to be worked out, such as can residents yield their time to another person? Who is the timekeeper?
“A set of guidelines needs be formally adopted by the board,” Cunningham said. “On the face of it, I don’t think it’s wholly unreasonable to do it.”
While possibly irritating to those who want to speak, numerous Bucks County municipalities have established time restrictions and regulations regarding public comment.
A Pennsylvania Governor’s Center for Local Government Services publication titled “Open Meetings/Open Records” states, “A governing body may still adopt reasonable rules for the comment period. … A time limit may also be placed on an individual’s presentation and any resulting discussion.”
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Special Ed Costs: “It’s a moving and evolving target”
From the BCCT.
Changes costly for districts
One of the biggest mandates — and likely costliest — establishes training requirements for special education support staff.
By THERESA HEGEL
State special education regulations that went into effect in July will require some costly adjustments from school districts, according to a longtime education lawyer.
Andrew Faust, whose New Britain law firm represents about 200 school districts and intermediate units in Pennsylvania, outlined some of those mandates at Wednesday night’s meeting of the Bucks County Right to Education Task Force.
One of the biggest — and likely costliest — establishes training requirements for special education support staff.
By July 2010, instructional aides and other “paraprofessionals” must have completed at least two years of college or pass rigor ous state or local assessments, he said.
Effective this year, staff must have 20 hours of relevant training for each year of employment. And districts must be able to document that such training has taken place by the end of the school year.
“It’s a pretty big deal,” Faust said, because the rules were put into place after districts had finalized their current budgets.
He said he believes most districts will open up teacher training to the support staff to meet the requirements.
Another pricey piece of the law involves providing alternative print forms to the learning disabled simultaneously with traditional texts — “no excuses, no delays,” he said.
In the past, there has often been a lag between distribution of conventional materials and availability of, for example, audio recordings for special needs students.
Now all texts and workbooks that districts purchase must include a universal file format that allows easy conversion to Braille, computer-based reading software or digital audio recordings.
Though Faust outlined some rather extensive changes to the system, he was quick to point out the fluidity of education law and noted that parents and educators could expect more adjustments in the future.
“It’s a moving and evolving target,” he said.
Changes costly for districts
One of the biggest mandates — and likely costliest — establishes training requirements for special education support staff.
By THERESA HEGEL
State special education regulations that went into effect in July will require some costly adjustments from school districts, according to a longtime education lawyer.
Andrew Faust, whose New Britain law firm represents about 200 school districts and intermediate units in Pennsylvania, outlined some of those mandates at Wednesday night’s meeting of the Bucks County Right to Education Task Force.
One of the biggest — and likely costliest — establishes training requirements for special education support staff.
By July 2010, instructional aides and other “paraprofessionals” must have completed at least two years of college or pass rigor ous state or local assessments, he said.
Effective this year, staff must have 20 hours of relevant training for each year of employment. And districts must be able to document that such training has taken place by the end of the school year.
“It’s a pretty big deal,” Faust said, because the rules were put into place after districts had finalized their current budgets.
He said he believes most districts will open up teacher training to the support staff to meet the requirements.
Another pricey piece of the law involves providing alternative print forms to the learning disabled simultaneously with traditional texts — “no excuses, no delays,” he said.
In the past, there has often been a lag between distribution of conventional materials and availability of, for example, audio recordings for special needs students.
Now all texts and workbooks that districts purchase must include a universal file format that allows easy conversion to Braille, computer-based reading software or digital audio recordings.
Though Faust outlined some rather extensive changes to the system, he was quick to point out the fluidity of education law and noted that parents and educators could expect more adjustments in the future.
“It’s a moving and evolving target,” he said.
School Board Meeting Recap
From the BCCT
PUBLIC MEETING WRAP
Morrisville school board
215-736-2681
When: Wed, Sept. 24
Issue: Agreement to have the administration look for qualified candidates for the position aide to the school nurse for two hours per day.
Vote: Approved 7-0 by William Hellmann, Alfred A. Radosti, Joseph Kemp, William M. Farrell, John Buckman, Gloria Heater and Marlys Mihok. Robin M. Reithmeyer and Brenda Worob were absent.
Issue: Consider administration’s proposal to hire an assistant principal for the middle/senior high school.
Vote: 1-6, with Kemp supporting the hiring. The board argued that one principal is enough to administrate 435 students. Former principal Melanie Gehrens has left the district, and former assistant principal William Ferrara has taken her place.
Issue: Agreement to hire Tom Padden as interim business manager for three days per week, effective Oct. 13, at an hourly rate of $75.
Vote: Approved 7-0.
Issue: Acceptance of Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities grant for 2008-09. Grant is $3,294.
Vote: Approved 7-0.
Issue: Agreement to pay bills in the amount of $917,339.65.
Vote: Approved 7-0.
PUBLIC MEETING WRAP
Morrisville school board
215-736-2681
When: Wed, Sept. 24
Issue: Agreement to have the administration look for qualified candidates for the position aide to the school nurse for two hours per day.
Vote: Approved 7-0 by William Hellmann, Alfred A. Radosti, Joseph Kemp, William M. Farrell, John Buckman, Gloria Heater and Marlys Mihok. Robin M. Reithmeyer and Brenda Worob were absent.
Issue: Consider administration’s proposal to hire an assistant principal for the middle/senior high school.
Vote: 1-6, with Kemp supporting the hiring. The board argued that one principal is enough to administrate 435 students. Former principal Melanie Gehrens has left the district, and former assistant principal William Ferrara has taken her place.
Issue: Agreement to hire Tom Padden as interim business manager for three days per week, effective Oct. 13, at an hourly rate of $75.
Vote: Approved 7-0.
Issue: Acceptance of Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities grant for 2008-09. Grant is $3,294.
Vote: Approved 7-0.
Issue: Agreement to pay bills in the amount of $917,339.65.
Vote: Approved 7-0.
Council Meeting Recap
From the BCCT
PUBLIC MEETING WRAP
Morrisville Council
215-295-8181
When: Monday, Sept. 15.
Issue: Resolution to adopt the comprehensive plan created by the Morrisville and Bucks County planning commissions.
Vote: Approved 8-0 by Nancy Sherlock, Kathryn Panzitta, George Bolos, Jane Burger, Eileen Dreisbach, Rita Ledger, David Rivella, Stephen Worob.
Impact: The plan serves as a roadmap for future physical development in the borough.
Issue: Accept the resignation of Bolos from the borough council and the Morrisville Municipal Authority.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Authorize borough staff to enforce procedures under the dangerous structures ordinance regarding 37 Harrison Ave.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Resolution for Morrisville to adopt the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s NIMS concept for emergency planning.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Approve a planting project and support the TreeVitalize grant application as requested by the Morrisville environmental advisory council.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Extend Williamson Park hours to accommodate the Morrisville Rotary’s carnival from Oct. 2 through Oct. 4.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Ratify grant application to the PA Council on the Arts.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Appoint Panzitta to the cable advisory board; Pat Wilcox to the recreation advisory board; Andrew Redmond to the zoning hearing board; Don Diretto to the Morrisville economic development corporation.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Appoint Judith Frigerio to the Morrisville economic development corporation.
Vote: Approved 7-1. Worob voted against.
Issue: Appoint Marc Neglia to the economic development corporation.
Vote: Approved 5-3. Sherlock, Panzitta and Rivella voted against.
Issue: Resolution to apply for Bucks County Community Development Block Grant program. Vote: Approved unanimously.
Impact: Borough Manager George Mount recommended the council use any grant money to put an emergency generator at borough hall, which serves as Morrisville’s emergency command center.
Issue: Pay bills; renew borough’s membership with the Friends of the Delaware Canal for $100; pay A.M. Mechanical Contracting Inc. $7,758 for Morrisville Library boiler replacement; pay L.C.Costa Contractors Inc. $266,107.17 for West Bridge Street curb and sidewalk replacement.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Accept July 21 meeting minutes.
Vote: Approved 7-0-1. Ledger abstained.
Issue: Accept Aug. 12 public hearing minutes.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
PUBLIC MEETING WRAP
Morrisville Council
215-295-8181
When: Monday, Sept. 15.
Issue: Resolution to adopt the comprehensive plan created by the Morrisville and Bucks County planning commissions.
Vote: Approved 8-0 by Nancy Sherlock, Kathryn Panzitta, George Bolos, Jane Burger, Eileen Dreisbach, Rita Ledger, David Rivella, Stephen Worob.
Impact: The plan serves as a roadmap for future physical development in the borough.
Issue: Accept the resignation of Bolos from the borough council and the Morrisville Municipal Authority.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Authorize borough staff to enforce procedures under the dangerous structures ordinance regarding 37 Harrison Ave.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Resolution for Morrisville to adopt the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s NIMS concept for emergency planning.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Approve a planting project and support the TreeVitalize grant application as requested by the Morrisville environmental advisory council.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Extend Williamson Park hours to accommodate the Morrisville Rotary’s carnival from Oct. 2 through Oct. 4.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Ratify grant application to the PA Council on the Arts.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Appoint Panzitta to the cable advisory board; Pat Wilcox to the recreation advisory board; Andrew Redmond to the zoning hearing board; Don Diretto to the Morrisville economic development corporation.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Appoint Judith Frigerio to the Morrisville economic development corporation.
Vote: Approved 7-1. Worob voted against.
Issue: Appoint Marc Neglia to the economic development corporation.
Vote: Approved 5-3. Sherlock, Panzitta and Rivella voted against.
Issue: Resolution to apply for Bucks County Community Development Block Grant program. Vote: Approved unanimously.
Impact: Borough Manager George Mount recommended the council use any grant money to put an emergency generator at borough hall, which serves as Morrisville’s emergency command center.
Issue: Pay bills; renew borough’s membership with the Friends of the Delaware Canal for $100; pay A.M. Mechanical Contracting Inc. $7,758 for Morrisville Library boiler replacement; pay L.C.Costa Contractors Inc. $266,107.17 for West Bridge Street curb and sidewalk replacement.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Issue: Accept July 21 meeting minutes.
Vote: Approved 7-0-1. Ledger abstained.
Issue: Accept Aug. 12 public hearing minutes.
Vote: Approved unanimously.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Wish List or Pipe Dream?
From the BCCT. Check out the implication of what Jack Buckman is saying: Talk all you want, but we do not have to listen.
Part of the reason for that is that there's not enough people talking. The Emperor can ignore everyone who doesn't show up.
Citizens group makes wish list
Morrisville residents are encouraged to attend the Monday’s meeting.
By MANASEE WAGH
The citizens of Morrisville want to see the district shape a master renovation strategy for its school district’s middle/senior high school and two elementary schools.
That’s one conclusion several residents reached after volunteering to help sketch out the future of the town’s 1,037 school children.
Anywhere from 10 to 35 borough residents calling themselves the Citizens Action Plan committee have met three times to discuss what they feel are key issues: finances, facilities and quality of education.
The committee’s goal is to function as a mouthpiece for the borough and formulate recommendations for the school board to consider.
JoAnn Perotti, the facilitator at meetings, said the committee would like to have a good working partnership with the school board. Perotti is the director of strategic planning for Bucks County Intermediate Unit No. 22, which supplies special education resources to Bucks schools.
To that end, at least one school board member and a minimum of one district administrator attend each meeting, bringing their own points of view and expertise to discussions.
The committee has made several suggestions, subject to modification, depending on how practical they turn out to be:
School board member John Buckman, who attends the meetings, said structured dialogue among residents, board members and administrators is a step in the right direction.
However, the board may or may not be able to fulfill a community wish list, he warned.
“As a board member you have to look at those things realistically. How much is the board going to follow along with what the committee wants?” he said.
Residents should make their voices heard by actively participating, said resident Damon Miller. He has been attending the meetings, but the inconsistent turnout worries him, especially in light of how vociferously borough residents have made their opinions known in the past.
“I think it’s going well. We’re able to have actual conversations between board members and community members that attend. But not a lot of people show up. It’s important that the community comes together. To not see that happen now is disappointing,” he said.
Morrisville has seen much contention in the past two years relating to the previous board’s decision to take out loans for constructing a $30 million consolidated school building housing every grade. The decision brought deeply divided opinions to the forefront in a town that struggles financially to support students and keep taxes low.
The current board cancelled the construction plan. A few months ago, the board suggested looking into sending children to neighboring districts on a tuition basis, a suggestion met with disapproval by many. Throughout these events, residents have protested that the board fails to take their opinions seriously.
Perotti, who spent the last school year helping the district develop its six-year strategic plan, expressed confidence in the committee’s abilities to affect change.
“From a facilitator’s standpoint it’s been a very positive experience to see the dialogue between all the different groups. That it will be productive is the hope of the committee,” said Perotti.
Part of the reason for that is that there's not enough people talking. The Emperor can ignore everyone who doesn't show up.
Citizens group makes wish list
Morrisville residents are encouraged to attend the Monday’s meeting.
By MANASEE WAGH
The citizens of Morrisville want to see the district shape a master renovation strategy for its school district’s middle/senior high school and two elementary schools.
That’s one conclusion several residents reached after volunteering to help sketch out the future of the town’s 1,037 school children.
Anywhere from 10 to 35 borough residents calling themselves the Citizens Action Plan committee have met three times to discuss what they feel are key issues: finances, facilities and quality of education.
The committee’s goal is to function as a mouthpiece for the borough and formulate recommendations for the school board to consider.
JoAnn Perotti, the facilitator at meetings, said the committee would like to have a good working partnership with the school board. Perotti is the director of strategic planning for Bucks County Intermediate Unit No. 22, which supplies special education resources to Bucks schools.
To that end, at least one school board member and a minimum of one district administrator attend each meeting, bringing their own points of view and expertise to discussions.
The committee has made several suggestions, subject to modification, depending on how practical they turn out to be:
- Do not send students to other districts on a tuition basis. If the board decides to consider this option, let board members also consider the financial costs.
- Do not house all grades in one building.
- Study mechanical systems of all three school buildings.
- Ask the district to provide the committee with school information: floor plans, class size, which rooms are being utilized and a cost analysis of renovating or closing schools.
- Formulate a master plan to renovate the high school building, including a detailed facility study.
- Perform an analysis of both elementary schools to determine which is in better shape. Consider renovating it and selling the other one for needed funds. M. R. Reiter Elementary may be a better candidate for renovation, as it is more centrally located.
- Consider constructing a new elementary school on Reiter’s playground.
- Come up with a preventative maintenance plan to head off future problems.
- Replace school staff that have retired or left, and keep looking for quality administration applications.
- Keep increasing test scores.
School board member John Buckman, who attends the meetings, said structured dialogue among residents, board members and administrators is a step in the right direction.
However, the board may or may not be able to fulfill a community wish list, he warned.
“As a board member you have to look at those things realistically. How much is the board going to follow along with what the committee wants?” he said.
Residents should make their voices heard by actively participating, said resident Damon Miller. He has been attending the meetings, but the inconsistent turnout worries him, especially in light of how vociferously borough residents have made their opinions known in the past.
“I think it’s going well. We’re able to have actual conversations between board members and community members that attend. But not a lot of people show up. It’s important that the community comes together. To not see that happen now is disappointing,” he said.
Morrisville has seen much contention in the past two years relating to the previous board’s decision to take out loans for constructing a $30 million consolidated school building housing every grade. The decision brought deeply divided opinions to the forefront in a town that struggles financially to support students and keep taxes low.
The current board cancelled the construction plan. A few months ago, the board suggested looking into sending children to neighboring districts on a tuition basis, a suggestion met with disapproval by many. Throughout these events, residents have protested that the board fails to take their opinions seriously.
Perotti, who spent the last school year helping the district develop its six-year strategic plan, expressed confidence in the committee’s abilities to affect change.
“From a facilitator’s standpoint it’s been a very positive experience to see the dialogue between all the different groups. That it will be productive is the hope of the committee,” said Perotti.
Our Principal Teacher Will Be...
From Framingham (MA) MetroWest Daily News.
Dear Bill: Do more with less. I want to see three classes on your schedule ASAP. Everyone said at the last meeting how talented you are. Signed: William Hellmann, Emperor of Education.
P.S. Find four more people on the staff who can teach and get them in classrooms. Save money. Reduce headcount. Get it done!
Ashland High principal teaching English this year
By David Riley/Daily News staff
The MetroWest Daily News, Posted Sep 30, 2008 @ 10:00 AM
ASHLAND —High school Principal Michael Tempesta's days are filled with much more than crunching budgets and supervising staff and students.
This fall, his responsibilities include explaining iambic pentameter, similes and stanzas, and a little bit of Kurt Vonnegut's prose.
Tempesta, a former English teacher, has stepped back into the classroom this year, co-teaching a level one English course for juniors with special education teacher Charlene Miller.
He said he took on the course largely because the class otherwise would have had nearly 30 students in it - far more than is ideal, especially for teens who need some extra attention from their teacher.
"Do you step in and take half of it, or you stick one teacher with this huge, really demanding class?" Tempesta said.
Although the course presents some scheduling challenges for the principal, the answer was clear. "The secret for our success is definitely the small class sizes," he said yesterday.
Tempesta said this is only one example of how high school staff is adapting to keep programs strong as resources shrink and enrollment grows. As of earlier this month, the high school had 18 more students than last year, with a total of nearly 750 teens.
Ashland High is still doing well, Tempesta said, and is proud to offer 15 Advanced Placement classes and a host of honors courses that he believes offer students a better chance of being accepted to competitive colleges.
"We've done incredibly well," he said, noting Ashland was named among the country's best high schools last year by U.S. News and World Report. "In fact, we're doing better."
But with tightening staff levels, Tempesta said he worries about how long his school can keep doing that.
During budget season, Tempesta had requested three additional teachers for the fall. As the district grappled with cuts and a deficit, the new positions were not approved. With some departures, the school lost the full-time equivalent of 1.8 teachers, Tempesta said.
The school cut a gym/wellness teacher position to free up hours for math and science, he said. Teacher Chris Beaton gave up managing the virtual high school program, through which students can take high-level courses online, to teach an additional class. Guidance Director Brian Garrigan has taken on coordinating virtual high school instead.
The school has restructured other positions and added responsibilities to existing ones, Tempesta said. Still, the school has more class sizes reaching 25 or 30 students, he said.
For now, some of the school's creative efforts to keep class sizes in check have their benefits. Getting in the classroom, Tempesta said, helps him connect with students and his staff.
An English teacher at Ashland High for about seven years before he left to become an assistant principal in Sharon, Tempesta developed some of the same materials he is teaching today. He returned to Ashland High five years later to take the helm.
Still, "I love to teach," he said.
There are more English sections than teachers this year, department Chairwoman Sue Bronstein said.
"I think he has enjoyed it," she said of Tempesta. "At the bottom line, the teachers will teach their best regardless of what they are given."
Students said yesterday having the principal teach about American literature is a little unusual, but they had no complaints, at least not to a reporter.
"If I'm getting the material, then he's doing pretty good," junior Naomi Ehrens said.
"It's different," said student Matt Bradshaw. "It's hard to slack off."
Although he is no fan of literature, "it's better than the other English classes I've had so far," Bradshaw said.
Through creative efforts, Tempesta said, "I think we have the most diverse course of study in Massachusetts for a school our size."
He hopes to keep it that way. "I feel a sense of responsibility," he said. "You do what you can administratively."
Dear Bill: Do more with less. I want to see three classes on your schedule ASAP. Everyone said at the last meeting how talented you are. Signed: William Hellmann, Emperor of Education.
P.S. Find four more people on the staff who can teach and get them in classrooms. Save money. Reduce headcount. Get it done!
Ashland High principal teaching English this year
By David Riley/Daily News staff
The MetroWest Daily News, Posted Sep 30, 2008 @ 10:00 AM
ASHLAND —High school Principal Michael Tempesta's days are filled with much more than crunching budgets and supervising staff and students.
This fall, his responsibilities include explaining iambic pentameter, similes and stanzas, and a little bit of Kurt Vonnegut's prose.
Tempesta, a former English teacher, has stepped back into the classroom this year, co-teaching a level one English course for juniors with special education teacher Charlene Miller.
He said he took on the course largely because the class otherwise would have had nearly 30 students in it - far more than is ideal, especially for teens who need some extra attention from their teacher.
"Do you step in and take half of it, or you stick one teacher with this huge, really demanding class?" Tempesta said.
Although the course presents some scheduling challenges for the principal, the answer was clear. "The secret for our success is definitely the small class sizes," he said yesterday.
Tempesta said this is only one example of how high school staff is adapting to keep programs strong as resources shrink and enrollment grows. As of earlier this month, the high school had 18 more students than last year, with a total of nearly 750 teens.
Ashland High is still doing well, Tempesta said, and is proud to offer 15 Advanced Placement classes and a host of honors courses that he believes offer students a better chance of being accepted to competitive colleges.
"We've done incredibly well," he said, noting Ashland was named among the country's best high schools last year by U.S. News and World Report. "In fact, we're doing better."
But with tightening staff levels, Tempesta said he worries about how long his school can keep doing that.
During budget season, Tempesta had requested three additional teachers for the fall. As the district grappled with cuts and a deficit, the new positions were not approved. With some departures, the school lost the full-time equivalent of 1.8 teachers, Tempesta said.
The school cut a gym/wellness teacher position to free up hours for math and science, he said. Teacher Chris Beaton gave up managing the virtual high school program, through which students can take high-level courses online, to teach an additional class. Guidance Director Brian Garrigan has taken on coordinating virtual high school instead.
The school has restructured other positions and added responsibilities to existing ones, Tempesta said. Still, the school has more class sizes reaching 25 or 30 students, he said.
For now, some of the school's creative efforts to keep class sizes in check have their benefits. Getting in the classroom, Tempesta said, helps him connect with students and his staff.
An English teacher at Ashland High for about seven years before he left to become an assistant principal in Sharon, Tempesta developed some of the same materials he is teaching today. He returned to Ashland High five years later to take the helm.
Still, "I love to teach," he said.
There are more English sections than teachers this year, department Chairwoman Sue Bronstein said.
"I think he has enjoyed it," she said of Tempesta. "At the bottom line, the teachers will teach their best regardless of what they are given."
Students said yesterday having the principal teach about American literature is a little unusual, but they had no complaints, at least not to a reporter.
"If I'm getting the material, then he's doing pretty good," junior Naomi Ehrens said.
"It's different," said student Matt Bradshaw. "It's hard to slack off."
Although he is no fan of literature, "it's better than the other English classes I've had so far," Bradshaw said.
Through creative efforts, Tempesta said, "I think we have the most diverse course of study in Massachusetts for a school our size."
He hopes to keep it that way. "I feel a sense of responsibility," he said. "You do what you can administratively."
iPod Education
From the Inquirer.
Education attuned to times
Colleges make offerings available online through iTunes U.
By Elizabeth Fox Posted on Wed, Oct. 1, 2008
At the University of Michigan, Rachel Frank doesn't use her iPod only to listen to her latest rock music download. The junior and Mount Airy native also reviews recent lectures and participates in virtual review sessions. Her younger sister is getting firsthand knowledge about college admissions by listening to her MP3 player.
They both are taking advantage of the latest development in the merger of education and technology. To keep up with the growing presence of all things online, universities are now aiming to reach students, prospective students, and anyone else with a love of learning through a forum that is both popular and recognizable. In other words, they're looking to iTunes.
Conceived as a collaboration between Apple and various universities in 2004, iTunes U launched in the spring of 2006. Existing as one section of the iTunes store - generally known for television and, as of this past April, the No. 1 music retailer in the U.S. - iTunes U allows users to download free content from top-flight universities and museums, including Stanford, MIT and UC Berkeley. The offerings include lectures from faculty, remarks by visiting speakers, advice from admissions officers, and music, dance and theater performances.
The site, which began with only 16 institutions, has ballooned in recent months as more schools join up to post their content. Usage, too, is growing quickly. Villanova, which launched its iTunes U site almost eight months ago, already has about 70,000 individual subscriptions to its iTunes U podcasts.
Universities say it's a convenient way to boost their popularity and prestige, as well as rack up a few karma points for delivering education to the masses. For the general public, it's an easy way to sample the best of the best at many institutions.
Just a quick scroll through the iTunes U homepage will reveal the wide range of material available. A list of the most popular downloads includes a talk on the digital future by Apple's Steve Jobs at the Wharton School and the lectures given in MIT's freshman physics course. Lehigh University posted material from the Dalai Lama's summer visit, including videos of the making of a sand mandala and special faculty lectures on Tibet and Buddhism. And for those who weren't in California to hear Oprah deliver Stanford's commencement speech this June, you can hear her words of wisdom on your iPod.
Many schools also have posted promotional information to attract prospective students. Some offer traditional admission and financial aid information. Others, such as the New Jersey Institute of Technology, showcase campus tour videos and student presentations on campus life. Still others encourage prospective students to listen to lectures to get a sense of the class environment and course material. Last semester, Villanova created a group of podcasts for incoming students, which included an interview with men's basketball coach Jay Wright.
"It shows what a tight-knit community we are, that our basketball coach is giving advice to new students," says Ashish Desai, iTunes U administrator at Villanova University.
Universities are dividing their iTunes U sites into two sections, one public and one private. The public section is open to everyone, but in order to access the private side, users need a student ID and password. It is in this section that professors post course material specifically for their students, including lecture recaps and virtual review sessions.
"The majority of what's on our site is private," says Cole Camplese, a professor and the director of education technology services at Pennsylvania State University. Last spring, the faculty there posted more than 3,000 podcasts for students.
This is what students want. In fact, 82 percent of undergraduates polled in a recent study by the University of Wisconsin E-Business Institute say they prefer courses that record and stream lectures online as opposed to courses that feature only in-room instruction.
For some professors, offering podcasts of content keeps everyone caught up on the course material. "Mine is a commuter campus, and I hate for students to be penalized every time there's an accident on the Blue Route or a bus is delayed," says Laura Guertin, associate professor of earth systems at Penn State Brandywine. "I audio-record my lectures so that students can download them and listen during their commutes. That way, if they miss a class, it's not the end of the world, and they can continue learning even after they leave the lecture."
The system also ends up helping athletes whose sports schedules may prevent them from attending class.
"These students are able to listen to class lectures on Friday, Saturday or Sunday and then step back into class on Monday without having only secondhand information," Desai says. The same is true for those students on medical leave or with a work conflict.
So much convenience might lead to abuses on the part of students. After all, with lectures so easily available online, won't students simply take the opportunity to sleep through class?
"That's a concern for everybody," says Ilena Key, instructional technology consultant at Lehigh University. "But I think schools are finding that students are happy to come to lectures knowing that they don't have to frantically take notes, and can review concepts outside of class."
Frank, for example, uses the online material to review information but is quick to point out that, "unless I were sick or had a serious conflict, I would go to the lecture."
Still, some professors are combating the threat by putting extra work into their class presentations. "I make an effort to keep my lectures engaging," Guertin says. "If the classroom experience is not interesting, then students will probably skip it."
"Those that aren't going to come to class aren't going to come to class anyway, no matter what you do," Desai says. "Most students still see a need for hearing the professor and interacting with other students. This is just a great tool to give students access to information wherever they are, whenever they want."
Education attuned to times
Colleges make offerings available online through iTunes U.
By Elizabeth Fox Posted on Wed, Oct. 1, 2008
At the University of Michigan, Rachel Frank doesn't use her iPod only to listen to her latest rock music download. The junior and Mount Airy native also reviews recent lectures and participates in virtual review sessions. Her younger sister is getting firsthand knowledge about college admissions by listening to her MP3 player.
They both are taking advantage of the latest development in the merger of education and technology. To keep up with the growing presence of all things online, universities are now aiming to reach students, prospective students, and anyone else with a love of learning through a forum that is both popular and recognizable. In other words, they're looking to iTunes.
Conceived as a collaboration between Apple and various universities in 2004, iTunes U launched in the spring of 2006. Existing as one section of the iTunes store - generally known for television and, as of this past April, the No. 1 music retailer in the U.S. - iTunes U allows users to download free content from top-flight universities and museums, including Stanford, MIT and UC Berkeley. The offerings include lectures from faculty, remarks by visiting speakers, advice from admissions officers, and music, dance and theater performances.
The site, which began with only 16 institutions, has ballooned in recent months as more schools join up to post their content. Usage, too, is growing quickly. Villanova, which launched its iTunes U site almost eight months ago, already has about 70,000 individual subscriptions to its iTunes U podcasts.
Universities say it's a convenient way to boost their popularity and prestige, as well as rack up a few karma points for delivering education to the masses. For the general public, it's an easy way to sample the best of the best at many institutions.
Just a quick scroll through the iTunes U homepage will reveal the wide range of material available. A list of the most popular downloads includes a talk on the digital future by Apple's Steve Jobs at the Wharton School and the lectures given in MIT's freshman physics course. Lehigh University posted material from the Dalai Lama's summer visit, including videos of the making of a sand mandala and special faculty lectures on Tibet and Buddhism. And for those who weren't in California to hear Oprah deliver Stanford's commencement speech this June, you can hear her words of wisdom on your iPod.
Many schools also have posted promotional information to attract prospective students. Some offer traditional admission and financial aid information. Others, such as the New Jersey Institute of Technology, showcase campus tour videos and student presentations on campus life. Still others encourage prospective students to listen to lectures to get a sense of the class environment and course material. Last semester, Villanova created a group of podcasts for incoming students, which included an interview with men's basketball coach Jay Wright.
"It shows what a tight-knit community we are, that our basketball coach is giving advice to new students," says Ashish Desai, iTunes U administrator at Villanova University.
Universities are dividing their iTunes U sites into two sections, one public and one private. The public section is open to everyone, but in order to access the private side, users need a student ID and password. It is in this section that professors post course material specifically for their students, including lecture recaps and virtual review sessions.
"The majority of what's on our site is private," says Cole Camplese, a professor and the director of education technology services at Pennsylvania State University. Last spring, the faculty there posted more than 3,000 podcasts for students.
This is what students want. In fact, 82 percent of undergraduates polled in a recent study by the University of Wisconsin E-Business Institute say they prefer courses that record and stream lectures online as opposed to courses that feature only in-room instruction.
For some professors, offering podcasts of content keeps everyone caught up on the course material. "Mine is a commuter campus, and I hate for students to be penalized every time there's an accident on the Blue Route or a bus is delayed," says Laura Guertin, associate professor of earth systems at Penn State Brandywine. "I audio-record my lectures so that students can download them and listen during their commutes. That way, if they miss a class, it's not the end of the world, and they can continue learning even after they leave the lecture."
The system also ends up helping athletes whose sports schedules may prevent them from attending class.
"These students are able to listen to class lectures on Friday, Saturday or Sunday and then step back into class on Monday without having only secondhand information," Desai says. The same is true for those students on medical leave or with a work conflict.
So much convenience might lead to abuses on the part of students. After all, with lectures so easily available online, won't students simply take the opportunity to sleep through class?
"That's a concern for everybody," says Ilena Key, instructional technology consultant at Lehigh University. "But I think schools are finding that students are happy to come to lectures knowing that they don't have to frantically take notes, and can review concepts outside of class."
Frank, for example, uses the online material to review information but is quick to point out that, "unless I were sick or had a serious conflict, I would go to the lecture."
Still, some professors are combating the threat by putting extra work into their class presentations. "I make an effort to keep my lectures engaging," Guertin says. "If the classroom experience is not interesting, then students will probably skip it."
"Those that aren't going to come to class aren't going to come to class anyway, no matter what you do," Desai says. "Most students still see a need for hearing the professor and interacting with other students. This is just a great tool to give students access to information wherever they are, whenever they want."
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Calhoun Street Bridge Rehab Planned
From the Trenton Times.
Now it's the DRJTBA who is doing it wrong. Stop with all the wasted money on feasibility studies and overall plans. Just do it. You people gotta understand!
Bridge to past also has a future
No need to replace 124-year-old span
Tuesday, September 30, 2008, CURT YESKE
LAMBERTVILLE -- There will be no wrecking ball for the Calhoun Street Bridge between Trenton and Morrisville, Pa., at least in the foreseeable future. Instead, renovations are planned for the 124-year-old span.
The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission, meeting in temporary quarters while its administration building in New Hope, Pa. is undergoing an expansion, yesterday disclosed the result of a study of the span while announcing it also plans a major renovation of the Washington Crossing Bridge.
A structural analysis of the Calhoun Street Bridge completed during the past year pointed toward a renovation program rather than re placing the bridge, said George G. Alexandridis, the chief engineer for the bi-state agency.
Alexandridis said the renovation would likely start in late 2009 after the design phase has been completed for the project.
"It's the oldest of our (13 toll- free) bridges, and we had the assessment done to see whether it had to be rehabilitated. It's a wonderful structure, being made of wrought iron, but it does carry a heavy load," said Alexandridis.
A year ago when the contract for a structural analysis of the bridge was awarded, Frank G. McCartney, the agency's executive director, did not predict a recommendation for a replacement structure, but said it was a possibility.
McCartney said it would be a "standard rehabilitation" much like those the commission has been carrying out on many of its bridges within its responsibility between Trenton and the border of New York state. The Calhoun Street Bridge records more than 18,000 crossings a day even though it is weight-restricted to cars and small trucks.
Alexandridis said a standard renovation project would include structural repairs, work on the sidewalks, a review of the coatings on the metal superstructure and repairs to the supporting piers.
When the study was initiated, McCartney said the analysis was critical because the bridge was made of wrought iron. Although it is a sturdy material, the bridge was erected without manufacturing standards. He said steel has manufacturing standards and is rated, but wrought iron is not.
The study was done by Lichten stein Consulting Engineers of Paramus for $342,712.
The commission yesterday awarded a contract for an $895,120 study to develop repair details and renovation concepts for the Washington Crossing Bridge. The study will address short- and long-term improvement strategies for the narrow two-lane toll-free span.
The Washington Crossing Bridge between Upper Makefield, Pa., and Hopewell Township, averages 6,900 crossings a day.
The project includes a major in- depth inspection and load-rating analysis of its underwater features and portions of the approaches to the bridge. The contract was awarded to Dewberry-Goodking Inc. of Carlisle, Pa.
The 877-foot-long bridge last underwent an extensive structural renovations in the fall of 1994. At that time, some trusses were replaced by new fabricated galvanized steel and the steel grid deck, originally installed in 1951, was replaced at each end of the span.
A new wood sidewalk was installed and the structure was sand- blasted and painted.
The bridge about five years ago was restricted to 15 miles per hour with a three-ton weight limit.
Now it's the DRJTBA who is doing it wrong. Stop with all the wasted money on feasibility studies and overall plans. Just do it. You people gotta understand!
Bridge to past also has a future
No need to replace 124-year-old span
Tuesday, September 30, 2008, CURT YESKE
LAMBERTVILLE -- There will be no wrecking ball for the Calhoun Street Bridge between Trenton and Morrisville, Pa., at least in the foreseeable future. Instead, renovations are planned for the 124-year-old span.
The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission, meeting in temporary quarters while its administration building in New Hope, Pa. is undergoing an expansion, yesterday disclosed the result of a study of the span while announcing it also plans a major renovation of the Washington Crossing Bridge.
A structural analysis of the Calhoun Street Bridge completed during the past year pointed toward a renovation program rather than re placing the bridge, said George G. Alexandridis, the chief engineer for the bi-state agency.
Alexandridis said the renovation would likely start in late 2009 after the design phase has been completed for the project.
"It's the oldest of our (13 toll- free) bridges, and we had the assessment done to see whether it had to be rehabilitated. It's a wonderful structure, being made of wrought iron, but it does carry a heavy load," said Alexandridis.
A year ago when the contract for a structural analysis of the bridge was awarded, Frank G. McCartney, the agency's executive director, did not predict a recommendation for a replacement structure, but said it was a possibility.
McCartney said it would be a "standard rehabilitation" much like those the commission has been carrying out on many of its bridges within its responsibility between Trenton and the border of New York state. The Calhoun Street Bridge records more than 18,000 crossings a day even though it is weight-restricted to cars and small trucks.
Alexandridis said a standard renovation project would include structural repairs, work on the sidewalks, a review of the coatings on the metal superstructure and repairs to the supporting piers.
When the study was initiated, McCartney said the analysis was critical because the bridge was made of wrought iron. Although it is a sturdy material, the bridge was erected without manufacturing standards. He said steel has manufacturing standards and is rated, but wrought iron is not.
The study was done by Lichten stein Consulting Engineers of Paramus for $342,712.
The commission yesterday awarded a contract for an $895,120 study to develop repair details and renovation concepts for the Washington Crossing Bridge. The study will address short- and long-term improvement strategies for the narrow two-lane toll-free span.
The Washington Crossing Bridge between Upper Makefield, Pa., and Hopewell Township, averages 6,900 crossings a day.
The project includes a major in- depth inspection and load-rating analysis of its underwater features and portions of the approaches to the bridge. The contract was awarded to Dewberry-Goodking Inc. of Carlisle, Pa.
The 877-foot-long bridge last underwent an extensive structural renovations in the fall of 1994. At that time, some trusses were replaced by new fabricated galvanized steel and the steel grid deck, originally installed in 1951, was replaced at each end of the span.
A new wood sidewalk was installed and the structure was sand- blasted and painted.
The bridge about five years ago was restricted to 15 miles per hour with a three-ton weight limit.
Voter Registration Closes October 6
Monday, October 6, 2008 is the Last Day to Register to Vote in the November 4, 2008 General Election.
[Moderator note: All links in the article are live at the Bucks County website]
Be a Protector of Democracy!
Do you need to know where your polling place is located. Click here, and enter your address.
Not sure if you are registered, or do you need to modify your registration: Click here to login to PAPowerPort, or to create an account. Once you are logged on, you will be able to check your voter registration status and change it if necessary.
Register to Vote!
Where to Register:
At the Registration Office in the Bucks County Courthouse, Doylestown, or pick up a Voter Registration Application at any Post Office, Wine & Spirit Shoppe, Municipal Building or Library, or Download and complete a Voter Registration Application. In addition, the Department of Transportation provides for voter registration with their driver's license application, renewal or change of name or address.
To register, you must:
* Be a citizen of the United States for at least one month before the next election;
* Be a resident of Pennsylvania and of your election district for at least 30 days before the next election; and
* Be eighteen (18) years of age on the day of the next election.
Voter Registration Application must be received via US mail.
Download a Voter Registration Application
Print out the application and mail it to:
Bucks County Voter Registration
55 E. Court St.
Doylestown, PA 18901
Phone: 215-348-6166
The following Voter Registration Application must be downloaded and mailed to the appropriate office. The county must have an original copy in its files. Faxed copies are not permitted by law.
Note: On December 26, 2000, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ordered the removal of the felony conviction prohibition as a qualification for voter registration. When completing the Voter Registration Mail Application (VRMA), a convicted felon who is released from prison may make application to register to vote by striking through the felony conviction line at Section 9(2) on the VRMA and signing his or her name. (New VRMA forms have eliminated the reference to felony conviction). VRMA forms are available from county voter registration offices as well as state offices that provide public assistance and services to persons with disabilities.
Important New Information for All Absentee Voters
With the exception of absentee voters who have a disability or who are overseas, all Absentee Ballots must be delivered to the County Board of Elections either in person or through the U. S. Postal Service. Absentee Ballots delivered by any other means for absentee voters who do not have a disability will not be accepted or counted by the County Board of Elections. Absentee Ballots and Alternative Ballots delivered for voters who do have a disability may be delivered by a third party who has written authorization from the disabled absentee or alternative ballot voter. Absentee Ballots delivered for an absentee voter who is overseas on Election Day may be made by an overnight delivery service. For more information on Absentee Voting, go to the Voting By Absentee Ballot page of the PA Department of State.
Download and print an Application for Absentee Ballot or send a request with the following information:
* Name of Registered Voter
* Bucks County Street Address
* Address where to mail absentee ballot
* Date of Birth
* Reason for request for absentee ballot
* Signature of registered voter requesting ballot
Bucks County Courthouse
55 E. Court St, 2nd Floor
Doylestown, PA 18901
Monday through Friday
8:00 am to 5:00 pm
Monday October 6, 2008 Only:
8:00 am to 9:00 pm
Lower Bucks Government Services Center
7321 New Falls Road
Levittown
Monday, October 6, 2008
Only: 8:30 am to 9:00 pm
[Moderator note: All links in the article are live at the Bucks County website]
Be a Protector of Democracy!
Do you need to know where your polling place is located. Click here, and enter your address.
Not sure if you are registered, or do you need to modify your registration: Click here to login to PAPowerPort, or to create an account. Once you are logged on, you will be able to check your voter registration status and change it if necessary.
Register to Vote!
Where to Register:
At the Registration Office in the Bucks County Courthouse, Doylestown, or pick up a Voter Registration Application at any Post Office, Wine & Spirit Shoppe, Municipal Building or Library, or Download and complete a Voter Registration Application. In addition, the Department of Transportation provides for voter registration with their driver's license application, renewal or change of name or address.
To register, you must:
* Be a citizen of the United States for at least one month before the next election;
* Be a resident of Pennsylvania and of your election district for at least 30 days before the next election; and
* Be eighteen (18) years of age on the day of the next election.
Voter Registration Application must be received via US mail.
Download a Voter Registration Application
Print out the application and mail it to:
Bucks County Voter Registration
55 E. Court St.
Doylestown, PA 18901
Phone: 215-348-6166
The following Voter Registration Application must be downloaded and mailed to the appropriate office. The county must have an original copy in its files. Faxed copies are not permitted by law.
Note: On December 26, 2000, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ordered the removal of the felony conviction prohibition as a qualification for voter registration. When completing the Voter Registration Mail Application (VRMA), a convicted felon who is released from prison may make application to register to vote by striking through the felony conviction line at Section 9(2) on the VRMA and signing his or her name. (New VRMA forms have eliminated the reference to felony conviction). VRMA forms are available from county voter registration offices as well as state offices that provide public assistance and services to persons with disabilities.
Important New Information for All Absentee Voters
With the exception of absentee voters who have a disability or who are overseas, all Absentee Ballots must be delivered to the County Board of Elections either in person or through the U. S. Postal Service. Absentee Ballots delivered by any other means for absentee voters who do not have a disability will not be accepted or counted by the County Board of Elections. Absentee Ballots and Alternative Ballots delivered for voters who do have a disability may be delivered by a third party who has written authorization from the disabled absentee or alternative ballot voter. Absentee Ballots delivered for an absentee voter who is overseas on Election Day may be made by an overnight delivery service. For more information on Absentee Voting, go to the Voting By Absentee Ballot page of the PA Department of State.
Download and print an Application for Absentee Ballot or send a request with the following information:
* Name of Registered Voter
* Bucks County Street Address
* Address where to mail absentee ballot
* Date of Birth
* Reason for request for absentee ballot
* Signature of registered voter requesting ballot
Bucks County Courthouse
55 E. Court St, 2nd Floor
Doylestown, PA 18901
Monday through Friday
8:00 am to 5:00 pm
Monday October 6, 2008 Only:
8:00 am to 9:00 pm
Lower Bucks Government Services Center
7321 New Falls Road
Levittown
Monday, October 6, 2008
Only: 8:30 am to 9:00 pm
The Retirees are Revolting!
OK, maybe not personally, but financially.
Maybe they shouldn't be watching the market today...
Pension Beneficiaries Revolt, Call on IL & PA Fund Trustees to Stop Gambling with Retirement Assets
Activists Challenge Pension Plan Trustees During their Monthly Meeting
to Carry Out Fiduciary Duty by Holding Outside Fund Managers Accountable
for Mistakes
WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Pension fund
beneficiaries called on the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) and
Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System (PSERS) boards of
trustees to take their fiduciary responsibilities more seriously and
protect retirement assets from bad investments inside their monthly
meetings today. Specifically, they are concerned about IMRF and PSERS
involvement with a Lazard-affiliated private equity fund that has lost
millions of pension dollars.
Maybe they shouldn't be watching the market today...
Pension Beneficiaries Revolt, Call on IL & PA Fund Trustees to Stop Gambling with Retirement Assets
Activists Challenge Pension Plan Trustees During their Monthly Meeting
to Carry Out Fiduciary Duty by Holding Outside Fund Managers Accountable
for Mistakes
WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Pension fund
beneficiaries called on the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF) and
Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System (PSERS) boards of
trustees to take their fiduciary responsibilities more seriously and
protect retirement assets from bad investments inside their monthly
meetings today. Specifically, they are concerned about IMRF and PSERS
involvement with a Lazard-affiliated private equity fund that has lost
millions of pension dollars.
Octoberfest on the Delaware
Octoberfest on the Delaware
The Majestic Midway Carnival is in Morrisville Thursday through Sunday in Williamson Park along the Delaware River. Themed entertainment and food will be available, along with Arts in the Park, Rockin' to the Golden Oldies, bingo, crafts, and more. For more information and event times, call 215-428-2598.
The Majestic Midway Carnival is in Morrisville Thursday through Sunday in Williamson Park along the Delaware River. Themed entertainment and food will be available, along with Arts in the Park, Rockin' to the Golden Oldies, bingo, crafts, and more. For more information and event times, call 215-428-2598.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Planting Earworms
Courtesy of Pearls Before Swine today, in honor of our lyrical quotation masters.
Any special earworms to plant today?
Any special earworms to plant today?
First Suburbs: "Pursuing an agenda of change"
From the Norristown Times Herald
Pursuing an agenda of change
MELISSA BROOKS, Times Herald Staff 09/29/2008
A common interest in revitalizing Philadelphia's oldest suburbs brought hundreds of people to St. Patrick's R.C. Church in Norristown on Sunday in an event that ended with Gov. Ed Rendell leading attendees in a rendition of the Philadelphia Eagles' fight song.
More than 500 community leaders representing more than 100 organizations from established suburbs of four Southeastern Pennsylvania counties attempted to shift the focus "from Wall Street to Main Street" as the Southeastern Pennsylvania First Suburbs Project, a nonpartisan, regional coalition of community leaders, unveiled its regional agenda and asked elected officials to join their cause.
Through out the past 18 months community leaders committed to reviving the older suburbs of Montgomery, Chester, Bucks and Delaware counties met in working groups to study and identify issues that most affect the health and prosperity of their communities.
"We are united in this place pursuing an agenda of change," Father William Murphy, pastor of St. Patrick's Church said at the start of the program.
A First Suburbs Project founding member and Yeadon Borough Councilwoman Jacquelynn Puriefoy-Brinkley explained "first suburbs" is a term used to describe communities like Norristown, Ambler, Upper Darby and Lansdowne, older towns that are now "victims of suburban sprawl."
"They're viable, pedestrian friendly communities with parks, trees, churches and synagogues and public transit access," she said, "with problems bigger than we can solve on our own."
A couple of gatherings between community leaders in the past year - a December 2007 summit at Bryn Mawr College and a May 2008 issues convention at Bishop McDevitt High School in Glenside - helped the coalition identify common challenges their towns face: Struggling school districts, diminishing economic development and declining infrastructure.
The DeKalb Street church was packed as First Suburbs Project representatives unveiled their "agenda for change" centered on three policy areas aimed at revitalizing the region, issues that Norristown Councilman Bill Caldwell said are vital to the economic redevelopment of many towns. "We speak with one voice," he said.
Norristown Municipal Administrator David Forrest addressed Montgomery County Commissioner Joseph M. Hoeffel III regarding housing issues.
Hoeffel and other elected officials were asked to seek housing policies and funding streams that help promote greater socioeconomic balance and diversity throughout southeastern Pennsylvania.
First Suburbs also called on Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission to create a comprehensive regional housing plan in the next year. Hoeffel committed to the coalition's housing requests and said DVRPC "has not focused on housing, and it is time for us to do so."
John McKelligot, former President of William Penn School District, said schools in first suburbs are inadequately funded, despite the fact that such communities "shoulder the highest tax burden."
He asked state Rep. Nicholas A. Micozzie, R-163rd Dist., and state Rep. Josh Shapiro, D- 153rd Dist., to back a state formula for financing public education that guarantees every school district has adequate resources to provide quality education to students, without overtaxing local residents "to provide what is ultimately a statewide responsibility."
Introducing the third action issue, Jenkintown Borough Councilman Michael Golden said first suburbs can no longer afford to carry the burden of managing water flowing downstream from newer communities into their towns' older systems.
He asked elected officials promote reinvesting in the region's deteriorating storm water and sanitary sewer systems before committing to new investments.
After the issues were revealed, Puriefoy-Brinkley said the First Suburbs Project seeks to "build powerful alliances with state and national government.
"This year is different," she said. "We will not be taken for granted. Because this year we're organized."
Rendell congratulated coalition members for their civic involvement and told them not to become discouraged if initially their goals are not realized. "Civic action is a marathon, not a sprint," he said.
He encouraged First Suburbs volunteers to contact their legislators daily and agreed to set up a meeting between the coalition's leadership and the National Governor's Association. "Your cause is right and just," he said.
There were a few elected officials who called the coalition's agenda items "too general," among them, Rep. Greg S. Vitali, D-166th Dist. and Sen. Anthony H. Williams.
"What are we saying yes to?" Williams asked. "For us to say yes to spending money is, frankly, bogus. We need to talk about how we're spending money."
Puriefoy-Brinkley said the First Suburbs Project's purpose is to make education finance, housing and infrastructure issues a priority now and in coming years. "We depend on the people we elect to serve us to fight on our behalf," she said.
The 600 people who filled the church, according to Puriefoy-Brinkley, represented thousands of active citizens across the region. "When we send you to represent us, we want you to be willing to listen to us. That's what we're asking for; that's what we're insisting upon." The crowd stood and applauded.
Lansdowne Borough Mayor Jayne Young also drew applause when she said, "This is a crisis of Main Street America, not Wall Street.
"Established communities must be supported," Young continued. "They are our most economically and racially diverse neighborhoods.
"A comprehensive regional approach makes the best use of tax dollars, reduces disparities, promotes diversity and ensures good schools. It's about fairness for Main Street, because we are just as valuable as Wall Street."
Pursuing an agenda of change
MELISSA BROOKS, Times Herald Staff 09/29/2008
A common interest in revitalizing Philadelphia's oldest suburbs brought hundreds of people to St. Patrick's R.C. Church in Norristown on Sunday in an event that ended with Gov. Ed Rendell leading attendees in a rendition of the Philadelphia Eagles' fight song.
More than 500 community leaders representing more than 100 organizations from established suburbs of four Southeastern Pennsylvania counties attempted to shift the focus "from Wall Street to Main Street" as the Southeastern Pennsylvania First Suburbs Project, a nonpartisan, regional coalition of community leaders, unveiled its regional agenda and asked elected officials to join their cause.
Through out the past 18 months community leaders committed to reviving the older suburbs of Montgomery, Chester, Bucks and Delaware counties met in working groups to study and identify issues that most affect the health and prosperity of their communities.
"We are united in this place pursuing an agenda of change," Father William Murphy, pastor of St. Patrick's Church said at the start of the program.
A First Suburbs Project founding member and Yeadon Borough Councilwoman Jacquelynn Puriefoy-Brinkley explained "first suburbs" is a term used to describe communities like Norristown, Ambler, Upper Darby and Lansdowne, older towns that are now "victims of suburban sprawl."
"They're viable, pedestrian friendly communities with parks, trees, churches and synagogues and public transit access," she said, "with problems bigger than we can solve on our own."
A couple of gatherings between community leaders in the past year - a December 2007 summit at Bryn Mawr College and a May 2008 issues convention at Bishop McDevitt High School in Glenside - helped the coalition identify common challenges their towns face: Struggling school districts, diminishing economic development and declining infrastructure.
The DeKalb Street church was packed as First Suburbs Project representatives unveiled their "agenda for change" centered on three policy areas aimed at revitalizing the region, issues that Norristown Councilman Bill Caldwell said are vital to the economic redevelopment of many towns. "We speak with one voice," he said.
Norristown Municipal Administrator David Forrest addressed Montgomery County Commissioner Joseph M. Hoeffel III regarding housing issues.
Hoeffel and other elected officials were asked to seek housing policies and funding streams that help promote greater socioeconomic balance and diversity throughout southeastern Pennsylvania.
First Suburbs also called on Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission to create a comprehensive regional housing plan in the next year. Hoeffel committed to the coalition's housing requests and said DVRPC "has not focused on housing, and it is time for us to do so."
John McKelligot, former President of William Penn School District, said schools in first suburbs are inadequately funded, despite the fact that such communities "shoulder the highest tax burden."
He asked state Rep. Nicholas A. Micozzie, R-163rd Dist., and state Rep. Josh Shapiro, D- 153rd Dist., to back a state formula for financing public education that guarantees every school district has adequate resources to provide quality education to students, without overtaxing local residents "to provide what is ultimately a statewide responsibility."
Introducing the third action issue, Jenkintown Borough Councilman Michael Golden said first suburbs can no longer afford to carry the burden of managing water flowing downstream from newer communities into their towns' older systems.
He asked elected officials promote reinvesting in the region's deteriorating storm water and sanitary sewer systems before committing to new investments.
After the issues were revealed, Puriefoy-Brinkley said the First Suburbs Project seeks to "build powerful alliances with state and national government.
"This year is different," she said. "We will not be taken for granted. Because this year we're organized."
Rendell congratulated coalition members for their civic involvement and told them not to become discouraged if initially their goals are not realized. "Civic action is a marathon, not a sprint," he said.
He encouraged First Suburbs volunteers to contact their legislators daily and agreed to set up a meeting between the coalition's leadership and the National Governor's Association. "Your cause is right and just," he said.
There were a few elected officials who called the coalition's agenda items "too general," among them, Rep. Greg S. Vitali, D-166th Dist. and Sen. Anthony H. Williams.
"What are we saying yes to?" Williams asked. "For us to say yes to spending money is, frankly, bogus. We need to talk about how we're spending money."
Puriefoy-Brinkley said the First Suburbs Project's purpose is to make education finance, housing and infrastructure issues a priority now and in coming years. "We depend on the people we elect to serve us to fight on our behalf," she said.
The 600 people who filled the church, according to Puriefoy-Brinkley, represented thousands of active citizens across the region. "When we send you to represent us, we want you to be willing to listen to us. That's what we're asking for; that's what we're insisting upon." The crowd stood and applauded.
Lansdowne Borough Mayor Jayne Young also drew applause when she said, "This is a crisis of Main Street America, not Wall Street.
"Established communities must be supported," Young continued. "They are our most economically and racially diverse neighborhoods.
"A comprehensive regional approach makes the best use of tax dollars, reduces disparities, promotes diversity and ensures good schools. It's about fairness for Main Street, because we are just as valuable as Wall Street."
Student Privacy Spotlighted in Va.
From the Washington Post. Imagine this excerpt being said in a Morrisville context: "This was all a bold statement by the city and schools that 'we can do what we want to do, when we want to do it, and you have to deal with it,' " Ramon Rodriguez, a plaintiff in the suit said about the release of the information. "All over the fact that my name is Hispanic. That was it."
This is what privacy laws are meant to protect against.
Student Privacy Spotlighted in Va.
Manassas School Board, City Pay in Discrimination Suit; Policies Tightened
School officials in the City of Manassas admitted this week that they skirted federal privacy laws when they divulged personal information about a number of Hispanic students to city inspectors investigating anonymous complaints about overcrowded housing.
The 2005 disclosures -- school officials were looking for Hispanic students with different last names living at the same address -- led to late-night and often intrusive inspections. City zoning officials measured bedroom space, counted windows and electrical outlets, and quizzed occupants about their relationships to one another, according to a lawsuit filed by some of the victims.
More than 90 percent of the inspections were of Hispanic homes. Most of the inspections found no violations, City Manager Larry Hughes said.
This week, city and School Board officials agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by 11 Hispanic residents charging officials with targeting and discriminating against Hispanics. Together, the city and school system will pay $775,000 to cover plaintiff damages and attorneys' fees.
School officials apologized for the disclosure of confidential information. They said they have tightened internal policies for safeguarding private information and have begun to better educate staff members about federal privacy laws. "We've taken steps to make sure that something like this will never happen again," Superintendent Gail Pope said. "And in the future, if there's ever a question, we'll err on the side of being conservative and not release information."
ad_icon
The students' personal information was released with the approval of the School Board's attorney, according to the lawyer and board members. The lawyer declined to comment.
The 30-year-old law that protects students' educational information such as grades, special education status and classes allows the disclosure of such information as a student's name, phone number and address to a third party when a student has given prior consent or is aware that the system considers it public information.
The School Board maintains that "very few" students' information was turned over to city officials. The lawsuit included three plaintiffs suing the School Board over released private data. However, attorneys for the plaintiffs, the Washington Lawyers Committee, said they have evidence through Freedom of Information Act requests of many more cases. "But many people, for whatever reason, were too afraid to be part of the lawsuit," attorney Laura Varela said.
Although city officials admitted no wrongdoing, as part of the settlement they have created a new position for a bilingual housing advocate to handle discrimination complaints. An anonymous hotline to report overcrowding has been shut down. And the city will no longer send inspectors out solely on the basis of an anonymous call. Now, a caller must be an "identifiable and reliable witness" to overcrowding. And inspectors must have "credible and reliable" information to suspect a violation before knocking on anyone's door.
The hotline received thousands of complaints about overcrowding over the course of a few years, city officials said. Nearly all the complaints were about newly arrived Hispanic families, records show.
As a result of the settlement, the Department of Justice and the Department of Housing and Urban Development have agreed to drop investigations into the city's actions.
The employee who released the information was fired in 2006.
On Dec. 5, 2005, the City Council adopted a law that allowed families to live in one house only if they were "related to the second degree of consanguinity," meaning children or grandparents. Some plaintiffs were forced to evict nieces and nephews to comply with the law. After national public outcry, the law was suspended Dec. 27. The move was one of a number of efforts by city and county leaders to crack down on overcrowding and illegal immigrants in the area.
This Story
"This was all a bold statement by the city and schools that 'we can do what we want to do, when we want to do it, and you have to deal with it,' " Ramon Rodriguez, a plaintiff in the suit said about the release of the information. "All over the fact that my name is Hispanic. That was it."
Rodriguez was born in Manassas and attended Manassas public schools. And until recently, he worked for the city's school system as a community liaison, reporting directly to the superintendent. His mother is African American, and his father is Puerto Rican.
In fall 2005, he had just sold his townhouse, and the home he was building in Fauquier County was not finished. So he and his school-age daughter moved into the basement apartment of Paul and Debra Odems, relatives on his mother's side. That's when his problems began.
According to the lawsuit, a school employee who directed the system's triennial census began demanding proof of residency not only from him but also from the Odemses. Although they complied, they said, the employee demanded more information, including the Odemses' deed to their house, the suit said. After several "harassing" phone calls, they said the employee threatened to begin charging Rodriguez out-of-city tuition for his daughter.
ad_icon
Not long after that, one November evening, Paul Odems was in front of his house, grilling steaks and hamburgers for dinner, when a city inspector showed up, saying he had a right to come in and inspect the house. He said the city had received a complaint that the house was overcrowded. Odems said that, absent a warrant, they did not have the right to enter. "But I had nothing to hide," he said, "so I let them in."
Inspectors questioned the Odemses about why they lived in the house with their four grandchildren. The children's mother is dead. And they checked whether Rodriguez did indeed live in the basement apartment.
What Rodriguez did not know was that the school employee had gone into his daughter's private file and forwarded personal information about him, his employment, address, the family's living arrangement and the Odemses' deed to city inspectors.
Likewise, the lawsuit said, the employee sent zoning inspectors information collected on Ana Taylor, a legal resident who has lived in the United States since she left El Salvador in 1984. Taylor lived in a townhouse she owned with her three children, her niece and her niece's five children. When the employee discovered children with different last names at the same address, that information was forwarded, along with details of who owned the home and all the people who lived there, to city inspectors. Inspectors came to Taylor's home late one night in December 2005 and inspected it when the only person present was her 15-year-old daughter. They gave Taylor 30 days to evict her niece or be found in violation of the city's overcrowding ordinance.
Taylor did so in December 2005, turning her niece's family into the street just days before Christmas. On Dec. 25, Taylor's extended family gathered for Christmas dinner. Distraught after bouncing from relative to relative for weeks, her niece begged Taylor to let her stay at her home for just one night.
"I had to say no. I was afraid they would come back," Taylor said in Spanish. "That was the most difficult moment. Your family is your family. But I had to say no."
Rodriguez, who now lives in Fauquier County, has resigned from his position with the school system. Taylor, without the income from her niece's family, lost her home and now lives in an apartment.
Manassas School Board Chairman Arthur Bushnell said the system's tighter privacy policy is important for restoring confidence. Much of the information the employee released came from the triennial census, which is designed to help the school system track the number of school-age children for planning purposes. The census materials include a promise that the information will be kept strictly confidential. "If people don't trust that that info was only going to be used for educational planning purposes only, we were concerned people wouldn't give us that information," he said.
Although Bushnell said he did not "condone" the disclosures of personal information, he said they might have fallen into a gray area under federal privacy law.
But Barmak Nassirian, a federal privacy law expert with the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers in Washington, said the employee's release of lease or homeownership information, employment status and living arrangements clearly crossed a line.
"That's a clear violation of federal privacy laws," he said. "I find it more than a little ironic that law enforcement officials, purportedly trying to catch lawbreakers, broke the law themselves. That is shocking to me."
This is what privacy laws are meant to protect against.
Student Privacy Spotlighted in Va.
Manassas School Board, City Pay in Discrimination Suit; Policies Tightened
School officials in the City of Manassas admitted this week that they skirted federal privacy laws when they divulged personal information about a number of Hispanic students to city inspectors investigating anonymous complaints about overcrowded housing.
The 2005 disclosures -- school officials were looking for Hispanic students with different last names living at the same address -- led to late-night and often intrusive inspections. City zoning officials measured bedroom space, counted windows and electrical outlets, and quizzed occupants about their relationships to one another, according to a lawsuit filed by some of the victims.
More than 90 percent of the inspections were of Hispanic homes. Most of the inspections found no violations, City Manager Larry Hughes said.
This week, city and School Board officials agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by 11 Hispanic residents charging officials with targeting and discriminating against Hispanics. Together, the city and school system will pay $775,000 to cover plaintiff damages and attorneys' fees.
School officials apologized for the disclosure of confidential information. They said they have tightened internal policies for safeguarding private information and have begun to better educate staff members about federal privacy laws. "We've taken steps to make sure that something like this will never happen again," Superintendent Gail Pope said. "And in the future, if there's ever a question, we'll err on the side of being conservative and not release information."
ad_icon
The students' personal information was released with the approval of the School Board's attorney, according to the lawyer and board members. The lawyer declined to comment.
The 30-year-old law that protects students' educational information such as grades, special education status and classes allows the disclosure of such information as a student's name, phone number and address to a third party when a student has given prior consent or is aware that the system considers it public information.
The School Board maintains that "very few" students' information was turned over to city officials. The lawsuit included three plaintiffs suing the School Board over released private data. However, attorneys for the plaintiffs, the Washington Lawyers Committee, said they have evidence through Freedom of Information Act requests of many more cases. "But many people, for whatever reason, were too afraid to be part of the lawsuit," attorney Laura Varela said.
Although city officials admitted no wrongdoing, as part of the settlement they have created a new position for a bilingual housing advocate to handle discrimination complaints. An anonymous hotline to report overcrowding has been shut down. And the city will no longer send inspectors out solely on the basis of an anonymous call. Now, a caller must be an "identifiable and reliable witness" to overcrowding. And inspectors must have "credible and reliable" information to suspect a violation before knocking on anyone's door.
The hotline received thousands of complaints about overcrowding over the course of a few years, city officials said. Nearly all the complaints were about newly arrived Hispanic families, records show.
As a result of the settlement, the Department of Justice and the Department of Housing and Urban Development have agreed to drop investigations into the city's actions.
The employee who released the information was fired in 2006.
On Dec. 5, 2005, the City Council adopted a law that allowed families to live in one house only if they were "related to the second degree of consanguinity," meaning children or grandparents. Some plaintiffs were forced to evict nieces and nephews to comply with the law. After national public outcry, the law was suspended Dec. 27. The move was one of a number of efforts by city and county leaders to crack down on overcrowding and illegal immigrants in the area.
This Story
"This was all a bold statement by the city and schools that 'we can do what we want to do, when we want to do it, and you have to deal with it,' " Ramon Rodriguez, a plaintiff in the suit said about the release of the information. "All over the fact that my name is Hispanic. That was it."
Rodriguez was born in Manassas and attended Manassas public schools. And until recently, he worked for the city's school system as a community liaison, reporting directly to the superintendent. His mother is African American, and his father is Puerto Rican.
In fall 2005, he had just sold his townhouse, and the home he was building in Fauquier County was not finished. So he and his school-age daughter moved into the basement apartment of Paul and Debra Odems, relatives on his mother's side. That's when his problems began.
According to the lawsuit, a school employee who directed the system's triennial census began demanding proof of residency not only from him but also from the Odemses. Although they complied, they said, the employee demanded more information, including the Odemses' deed to their house, the suit said. After several "harassing" phone calls, they said the employee threatened to begin charging Rodriguez out-of-city tuition for his daughter.
ad_icon
Not long after that, one November evening, Paul Odems was in front of his house, grilling steaks and hamburgers for dinner, when a city inspector showed up, saying he had a right to come in and inspect the house. He said the city had received a complaint that the house was overcrowded. Odems said that, absent a warrant, they did not have the right to enter. "But I had nothing to hide," he said, "so I let them in."
Inspectors questioned the Odemses about why they lived in the house with their four grandchildren. The children's mother is dead. And they checked whether Rodriguez did indeed live in the basement apartment.
What Rodriguez did not know was that the school employee had gone into his daughter's private file and forwarded personal information about him, his employment, address, the family's living arrangement and the Odemses' deed to city inspectors.
Likewise, the lawsuit said, the employee sent zoning inspectors information collected on Ana Taylor, a legal resident who has lived in the United States since she left El Salvador in 1984. Taylor lived in a townhouse she owned with her three children, her niece and her niece's five children. When the employee discovered children with different last names at the same address, that information was forwarded, along with details of who owned the home and all the people who lived there, to city inspectors. Inspectors came to Taylor's home late one night in December 2005 and inspected it when the only person present was her 15-year-old daughter. They gave Taylor 30 days to evict her niece or be found in violation of the city's overcrowding ordinance.
Taylor did so in December 2005, turning her niece's family into the street just days before Christmas. On Dec. 25, Taylor's extended family gathered for Christmas dinner. Distraught after bouncing from relative to relative for weeks, her niece begged Taylor to let her stay at her home for just one night.
"I had to say no. I was afraid they would come back," Taylor said in Spanish. "That was the most difficult moment. Your family is your family. But I had to say no."
Rodriguez, who now lives in Fauquier County, has resigned from his position with the school system. Taylor, without the income from her niece's family, lost her home and now lives in an apartment.
Manassas School Board Chairman Arthur Bushnell said the system's tighter privacy policy is important for restoring confidence. Much of the information the employee released came from the triennial census, which is designed to help the school system track the number of school-age children for planning purposes. The census materials include a promise that the information will be kept strictly confidential. "If people don't trust that that info was only going to be used for educational planning purposes only, we were concerned people wouldn't give us that information," he said.
Although Bushnell said he did not "condone" the disclosures of personal information, he said they might have fallen into a gray area under federal privacy law.
But Barmak Nassirian, a federal privacy law expert with the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers in Washington, said the employee's release of lease or homeownership information, employment status and living arrangements clearly crossed a line.
"That's a clear violation of federal privacy laws," he said. "I find it more than a little ironic that law enforcement officials, purportedly trying to catch lawbreakers, broke the law themselves. That is shocking to me."
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