Category: Government Actions

LEAs Reminded of Act 55 Requirements (August 31, 2022)

On August 29, 2022, Amy Lena, PDE Division Chief of Planning and Professional Development, sent a memo to all LEAS title One-year Extension of Continuing Professional Education Requirements. The memo states that, enacted July 8, Act 55 of 2022 provides professional educators, school administrators, and paraprofessionals one (1) additional year to complete their continuing professional education requirements. Recipients were asked to share the following information with staff.

Professional educators and school administrators with an active certification and current compliance period as of July 8, 2022, now have until July 8, 2023, to complete the requirements under 24 P.S. §12-1205.2 and 1205.5, respectively. These requirements are commonly referred to as Act 48 and Act 45 continuing professional education.

Paraprofessionals employed by a school entity as of March 13, 2020, have until June 30, 2023, to satisfy staff development activity hour requirements under 22 Pa. Code § 14.105 (relating to personnel). 

For more information, please visit the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s website to review Act 55 of 2022 Continuing Education Status Extension’s Frequently Asked Questions.

To view the memo, click here.

USDE Releases Back-to-School Checklist for Parents (August 30, 2022)

On August 25, 2022, the U.S Department of Education (USDE) released a back-to-school checklist for parents and families. The checklist, part of the USDE’s updated back-to-school resource site, will help parents, caregivers, and families engage with local school and district leaders about how they are supporting students as they recover from the impacts of the pandemic. This checklist elevates key evidence-based practices for supporting students’ learning and mental health, and ensuring the safety of students and staff, which districts are encouraged to implement using American Rescue Plan and other COVID relief funds.

This back-to-school ARP checklist also recognizes 15 promising examples of how states and school districts across the country are already using federal ARP funds to support students and to staff schools. Through the ARP, the Biden-Harris Administration provided states and school districts with $130 billion to help students recover, succeed, and thrive. The checklist will serve as a resource for parents, caregivers, and families to have an open dialogue with their school community about these critical funds. To foster transparency and community engagement, the ARP requires states, local districts, and public charter schools to have meaningful stakeholder engagement and publicly post their planned use of ARP dollars. This checklist can support those efforts.

“A new school year brings new beginnings, and today I am encouraging schools and families to reach a new level of communication and transparency to make sure our students and educators are getting the supports they need,” said Secretary Miguel Cardona. “The checklist offers a starting point for parents, caregivers, and families to have meaningful discussions with school leaders about how they are supporting students, including with American Rescue Plan funds. The checklist can kickstart conversations about the services and supports that children can benefit from in this new academic year and beyond.”

Secretary Cardona joined a press call with White House officials, members of Congress, and local educators whose districts are among those being featured in order to encourage parents and families to use this checklist and discuss how the ARP is providing unprecedented resources for a successful and safe school year.

The checklist is broken into four categories:
-Student learning
-Addressing the needs of the whole child
-COVID-19 health and safety
-Engaging families

To access the checklist, check here.

PDE Pennlink Reminds LEAs of Fiscal Training for IDEA-B 611 Funding and Other Fiscal Items (August 30, 2022)

On August 29, 2022, PDE BSE Director Carole L. Clancy sent a PennLink to all LEAs titled Fiscal Training for IDEA-B 611 Funding and Other Fiscal Items. The memo states that the U.S. Department of Education (USDE), Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) has oversight of states’ compliance with federal special education laws, regulations, and requirements.  OSEP has incorporated a component of its compliance monitoring verification visits to include a fiscal verification review.  Some components of its fiscal verification review will include a review of the use of funds for coordinated early intervening services, maintenance of effort, and general use of federal, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part B (IDEA-B) funds.

To assist the local educational agencies in working with these components of the federal on-site visits, the Pennsylvania Department of Education is providing training to familiarize special education directors and business administrators with clarifying information. This training will address the following topics: IDEA-B, 611; Contingency Funding; ACT 16; Maintenance of Effort; and Approved Private School Electronic Management System, including 4010 and 4011 students.

It is required that each school district and charter school send participants to this training. Because the training is highlighting the fiscal program data verifications associated with the IDEA-B fiscal reporting requirements, it is strongly recommended that the participants attending this training are the special education director and business administrator. Also, if a school district or charter school contracts for business services, its contracted business representative should attend.

In-person training sessions will be held on the following dates at these locations:

Northwest Tri-County IU 5     Thursday September 8, 2022               9:00 – 12:00
PaTTAN Harrisburg            Wednesday September 14, 2022               9:00 – 12:00
PaTTAN East                          Tuesday October 4, 2022                            9:00 – 12:00
Luzerne IU 18                        Thursday October 6, 2022                          9:00 – 12:00
PaTTAN Pittsburgh              Wednesday October 12, 2022                   9:00 – 12:00
ARIN IU 28                           Tuesday October 18, 2022                            9:00 – 12:00

Any questions regarding the fiscal training should be directed to Dr. Del Hart, Chief, Division of Analysis & Financial Reporting, at 717.772.1114 or [email protected]v

PDE Reminds LEAs of Basic Education Circular – Educational Programs for Students in Non-Educational Placements (August 30, 2022)

On August 29, 2022, Bureau of Special Education Director Carole L. Clancy sent a PennLink memo to all LEAs titled Basic Education Circular – Educational Programs for Students in Non-Educational Placements Date of Issue:  September 1, 1997 Date of Review:  May 2010, January 2018. It states that “By way of this communication, the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s (PDE) Bureau of Special Education (BSE) is reminding school districts of their duty to educate students with disabilities who reside in residential facilities within their boundaries.  In addition, this communication serves as a reminder of the joint policy of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) and PDE prohibiting the bundling of education and non-educational services in DHS-licensed facilities.  For more information on these topics, review PDE’s Basic Education Circular (BEC), titled Educational Programs for Students in Non-Educational Placements.  This BEC does not apply to children who are placed in an educational program directly by their resident school district, charter school, or cyber charter school. A copy of this BEC can be found on PDE’s website under the Policy and Funding and then BECs drop-down menus and by accessing the following link: Educational Programs for Students in Non-Educational Placements (pa.gov).”

Interested parties are advised to contact Tim Krushinski at 717.329.4029 or [email protected]  with any questions regarding this information.

PDE Sends Memo to LEAs on the Provision of Certified School Nurse Services to Pennsylvania School Students (August 30, 2022)

On August 30, 2022, PDE Bureau of Career and Technical Education Director  Lee Burket, Ed.D. sent a Penn*Link Message to all LEAs titled Provision of Certified School Nurse Services to Pennsylvania School Students. The memo is a reminder that all public school entities, including school districts, charter schools, area career-technical schools and intermediate units, are responsible to provide school health services, specifically nursing services provided by certified school nurses.

Section 1402(a.1) of the Public School Code (24 P.S. § 14-1402(a.1)) requires that every child of school age be provided with school nurse services. Pursuant to Section 1402(a.1), the number of pupils under the care of each school nurse must not exceed 1,500. Section 1410 (24 P.S. § 14-1410) provides that all school districts alone or jointly with other districts or joint school boards must employ one or more school nurses. Section 1402(a) provides that “[e]ach child of school age shall be given by methods established by the Advisory Health Board, (1) a vision test by a school nurse, medical technician or teacher, (2) a hearing test by a school nurse or medical technician, (3) a measurement of height and weight by a school nurse or teacher, who shall use the measurement to compute a child’s weight-for-height ratio, (4) tests for tuberculosis under medical supervision, and (5) such other tests as the Advisory Health Board may deem advisable to protect the health of the child. Vision tests shall be given at least annually and other tests at intervals established by the Advisory Health Board.”

Pennsylvania Department of Health (PDH) regulations (28 Pa. Code § 23.51) provide that “[a] child in private, parochial and public schools shall be provided with school nurse services in the school which the child attends.” 28 Pa. Code Chapter 23 lists required school health services and required school health personnel. These regulations may be accessed at: http://www.pacode.com/secure/data/028/chapter23/chap23toc.html.

Duties of school nurses must be those assigned by the school district or joint school board which are exclusively connected with medical and dental school health activities. (28 Pa. Code § 23.34) PDH determines the technical content of the school nurses’ duties.

School nurses must have the proper certification issued by PDE.(28 Pa. Code § 23.54) Chapter 49 of Title 22 of the Pennsylvania Code (22 Pa. Code § 49.1) defines an Educational Specialist as “[p]rofessional certified personnel whose primary responsibility is to render professional service other than classroom teachers, such as…[a] school nurse…”

Teachers and other professional personnel may not perform professional duties or services in the schools of this Commonwealth in any area for which they have not been properly certified or permitted. 22 Pa. Code § 49.11(b). An individual who holds a teaching certificate may teach but cannot concomitantly provide the school health services that are to be provided by a certified school nurse, even if that individual is a licensed health professional, including health occupations and protective services instructors.

Section 1410 of the School Code (24 P.S. § 14-1410), however, provides that “[a]ny school district alone or jointly with other districts or joint school boards may employ dental hygienists and such other technical and clerical personnel as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this article.” Section 1410 permits schools to employ a licensed registered nurse (RN) or a licensed practical nurse (LPN) to assist a certified school nurse. Although schools are permitted to enter into an agreement with a supplemental RN or LPN to assist a certified school nurse, a supplemental nurse may not be assigned a student case load.

With respect to emergencies, 28 Pa. Code 23.79 provides that “[s]chool nurses shall plan for first aid services and instruct personnel responsible for giving first aid.” In the event of an emergency, any trained individual at the scene may render appropriate first aid procedures, including CPR and AED, prior to the arrival of EMS.

Comprehensive career and technical centers (CTC) are required to have a full-time certified school nurse on staff. Part-time CTCs can meet this requirement in one of three ways: (1) Hire a certified school nurse; (2) Develop an agreement with the school district in which the CTC building is located for school health services; or (3) Hire an RN or LPN to provide first aid care and medications while serving as a supplemental school nurse under the supervision of one of the school district’s certified school nurse.

Further clarification can be found on PDE’s website at http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/schools/14130/what%27s_new_with_school_health/556690.

Questions about 28 Pa. Code Chapter 23 may be directed to the Pennsylvania Department of Health Bureau of School Health at 717-787-2390. Questions about 22 Pa. Code Chapter 49 may be directed PDE’s Bureau of School Leadership and Teacher Quality at 717-787-3356.