A number of readers have asked about the latest Pennsylvania Department of Education’s assessment of the public school districts in Delaware County. The 2011 – 2012 PA DOE Report Card for the 13 public school districts in Delaware County is available online and can be accessed by clicking on the top link under “Education” to the right.
These report cards are an important source of information about performance and accountability, and they allow districts to compare data in a consistent way and highlight opportunities for improvement. The School Report Cards will show not only the achievement of students overall, but also the progress that disaggregated groups are making in closing achievement gaps. Report card data help Pennsylvania school districts and the Pennsylvania Department of Education focus on specific groups of students who are currently not meeting academic standards.
Each District Report Card includes:
• Attendance and Graduation data for the previous school year.
• An Accountability Report showing the district’s performance compared with the goals set by No Child Left Behind. Student results from the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment PSSA).
• Assessment Report compares two years of PSSA academic performance and participation data for this district. These results are displayed by grade, subject, and disaggregated group.
• Adequate Yearly Progress Status showing the schools in the district and AYP status of each.
• Teacher Qualifications includes both numbers and percentages of teachers in the school who are highly qualified.
7 of Delaware County’s 13 school districts met the Department of Education’s Annual Yearly Progress targets in 2012. Report Cards for each school are also available on this site.
MADE AYP
• Garnet Valley School District 4 of 5 schools made AYP
• Haverford Township School District 6 of 7 schools made AYP
• Interboro School District 2 of 5 schools made AYP
• Penn-Delco School District 4 of 6 schools made AYP
• Radnor School District 5 of 5 schools made AYP
• Rose Tree Media School District 6 of 6 schools made AYP
• Wallingford-Swarthmore School District 3 of 5 schools made AYP
FAILED TO MAKE AYP - Status
• Chichester School District Warning 2 of 6 schools made AYP
• Marple Newtown School District Warning 5 of 6 schools made AYP
• Springfield School District Warning 4 of 5 schools made AYP
• William Penn School District Warning 0 of 11 schools made AYP
• Upper Darby School District District Improvement I 2 of 13 schools made AYP
• Chester-Upland School District Corrective Action II - 6th Year 1 of 9 schools made AYP
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
It's not rocket science
A recurring theme of this blog has been … “Successful education, broadly defined as the preparation of our children to compete in the world, is dependent on three systems: Family, Community, and School.” All three of these elements of successful education are facing unprecedented financial challenges, with many facing huge deficits. The sooner we realize that there are no easy answers, the sooner we can start to look for long-term solutions. Viable options will not require rocket science, as some would have us believe, but will require an honest assessment of options. Reversing deficits will require either additional income or lower expenses or a combination of both.
Family. By and large, family income is earned through employment, and the current state of our economy has hit families hard. Across the country, in almost every demographic, Americans earn less today than they did 3 years ago. Since 2009, median household income has dropped 4.8 or about $2,500, and many families in Delaware County have been hit much harder. Many of our neighbors are having trouble making ends meet, and are not in a position to pay any additional taxes.
Community. 26 cities across the commonwealth that are stuck in the state's Act 47 program for financially strapped municipalities. These cities include: Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Reading, Scranton as well as Chester and Millbourne here in Delaware County. Many more cities are likely to join them in the near future. The Pennsylvania Public Employee Retirement Commission reported last year that local government pension plans owe more than $7 billion in unfunded liabilities. Cities across the state are struggling to keep their pension funds solvent and make required payments to retirees.
Schools. After months of anxiety about local school districts budgets and what budget items could be pared, schools are back in session. However the educational funding crisis is far from over. Local school districts did what they had to do to open the schools get the kids back in the classrooms, but the really hard decisions were not made. Educating our children is a very labor-intensive proposition. Personnel costs (salaries and benefits) account for about 70% of most school district budgets. Maintaining buildings, transportation, utilities, books, computers and consumable supplies are about 20% with the remainder paying off loans incurred to build the schools. Projected taxpayer contributions for the Public School Education Retirement System and the State Employees Retirement System will increase from $1.7 billion in 2011-12 to more than $6.2 billion in 2016-17—a 263% increase. The increase breaks down to more than $1,050 in additional tax payments per household/homeowner.
With the current local economies being what they are, the logical direction would seem to demand that cities and school districts cut their spending. Raising taxes and borrowing more money will only exacerbate the problem. Real solutions will require the state legislature and local officials to work together and change state laws to give municipalities the ability to control unaffordable and unsustainable personnel costs. Rather than voting for a candidate based on his or her party, we should make sure that our elected leaders are willing to roll up their sleeves and make the hard decisions that we need. That's the all important first step towards educational success.
Family. By and large, family income is earned through employment, and the current state of our economy has hit families hard. Across the country, in almost every demographic, Americans earn less today than they did 3 years ago. Since 2009, median household income has dropped 4.8 or about $2,500, and many families in Delaware County have been hit much harder. Many of our neighbors are having trouble making ends meet, and are not in a position to pay any additional taxes.
Community. 26 cities across the commonwealth that are stuck in the state's Act 47 program for financially strapped municipalities. These cities include: Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Reading, Scranton as well as Chester and Millbourne here in Delaware County. Many more cities are likely to join them in the near future. The Pennsylvania Public Employee Retirement Commission reported last year that local government pension plans owe more than $7 billion in unfunded liabilities. Cities across the state are struggling to keep their pension funds solvent and make required payments to retirees.
Schools. After months of anxiety about local school districts budgets and what budget items could be pared, schools are back in session. However the educational funding crisis is far from over. Local school districts did what they had to do to open the schools get the kids back in the classrooms, but the really hard decisions were not made. Educating our children is a very labor-intensive proposition. Personnel costs (salaries and benefits) account for about 70% of most school district budgets. Maintaining buildings, transportation, utilities, books, computers and consumable supplies are about 20% with the remainder paying off loans incurred to build the schools. Projected taxpayer contributions for the Public School Education Retirement System and the State Employees Retirement System will increase from $1.7 billion in 2011-12 to more than $6.2 billion in 2016-17—a 263% increase. The increase breaks down to more than $1,050 in additional tax payments per household/homeowner.
With the current local economies being what they are, the logical direction would seem to demand that cities and school districts cut their spending. Raising taxes and borrowing more money will only exacerbate the problem. Real solutions will require the state legislature and local officials to work together and change state laws to give municipalities the ability to control unaffordable and unsustainable personnel costs. Rather than voting for a candidate based on his or her party, we should make sure that our elected leaders are willing to roll up their sleeves and make the hard decisions that we need. That's the all important first step towards educational success.
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