With students soon due to head back to school, the House Education Committee convened a two-day hearing to gather testimony from a variety of education advocates and organizations about the challenges of safely reopening schools this fall. The hearing was held on August 4th and 5th.
Among the many issues discussed during the hearing were access to sufficient supplies of personal protective equipment for teachers and staff to change frequently throughout the day; availability of school nurses; liability protections; increased demand for cyber schooling; and ensuring the safety and quality of education for students with special needs.
The committee also heard suggestions for policies to support public schools and students, such as permanent mandate waivers, improved broadband internet access, increased funding for transportation, postponing new state graduation requirements, and requiring clear and detailed quarantine protocols and contact tracing in the event a student or staff member tests positive.
The hearing featured testifiers from the Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools, Alliance of Approved Private Schools, PA Cyber Charter School, Agora Cyber Charter School, the ARC of PA, the Association of School Nurses and Practitioners, Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA), PA Association of School Administrators (PASA), PA Association of School Business Officials (PASBO), and PA State Education Association (PSEA).
The hearing can be watched in its entirety by clicking here.

On August 5, 2020, outgoing Secretary of Education Pedro A. Rivera released a PennLink titled Pennsylvania’s Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part B 2020 – Determinations Notification. That communiqué stated that on June 25, 2020, Pennsylvania received notification from the U.S. Department of Education’s (USDE) Office of Special Education Programs that the commonwealth received the highest level of determination – “Meets Requirements” – that the federal government awards to states under Part B of the IDEA. Pennsylvania was one of 22 states and territories to receive the distinction this year. The commonwealth’s excellent work has been recognized with the “Meets Requirements” designation for 13 of the 14 years that USDE has been issuing its determinations.

This determination is based on the totality of the Commonwealth’s special education data and information, including the federal fiscal year 2018 State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR), other state-reported data, and additional publicly available information. Consistent with USDE’s Results Driven Accountability, 2020 determinations were based on the commonwealth’s compliance with the regulatory requirements of the IDEA as well as the positive outcomes being achieved for students. In making Part B determinations in 2020, the Office of Special Education Programs considered the following data for students with disabilities:

*Participation on regular statewide assessments;

*Participation and performance on the most recently administered (school year 2018-19) National Assessment of Educational Progress;

*Graduation with a regular high school diploma; and

*Dropout rates.

Pennsylvania’s Part B SPP/APR is available on the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) website or the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network website. The USDE has developed state profiles as a resource for IDEA-related, state-specific information. Persons interested in reviewing that information may visit the Office of Special Education Program’s GRADS360 website and click on Pennsylvania.

Questions regarding this information may be directed to Amy Pastorak, Assistant Director of the PDE’s Bureau of Special Education, at [email protected] or 717 772-3500.

On August 5, 2020, Carole L. Clancy, Director of the PDE Bureau of Special Education, issued a PennLink message titled 2020-21 Special Education Compliance Monitoring Schedule. The message states that PDE has the responsibility to ensure that all local educational agencies (LEAs) providing services, whether directly or by contractual arrangements, administer special education services and programs that are compliant with applicable state and federal laws and regulations. In order to fulfill this responsibility, PDE has established administrative procedures for monitoring program implementation, including evaluating the appropriateness, effectiveness, and accountability of special education services and programs.

 To that end, PDE has developed the schedule for compliance monitoring for the 2020-21 school year, in which 125 school districts or charter schools of varying sizes across the commonwealth will be monitored. Additional monitoring reviews, if deemed appropriate, may be designated as the 2020-21 school year progresses. 

 The Cyclical Monitoring for Continuous Improvement usually includes a Facilitated Self-Assessment completed by the LEA and an onsite PDE review. This year, due to health and safety concerns for school personnel as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the onsite PDE review will be replaced by a virtual review. This process will largely mirror the onsite process, with some modifications. The virtual monitoring process will include a review of the Facilitated Self-Assessment submitted by the LEA; interviews with administrators, teachers, parents and students; and verification activities of the information reported in the Facilitated Self-Assessment. Verification activities include digital file reviews of student documents; studies of service delivery; and analysis of policies, procedures, and outcomes. 

Personnel from school districts, charter schools, and intermediate units undergoing monitoring are required to participate in the web-based monitoring training modules to familiarize themselves with the monitoring instrument and web-based process. District superintendents, charter school chief executive officers, special education directors, and additional appropriate personnel should view the web-based monitoring training. This training will review the virtual monitoring process, Facilitated Self-Assessment submission, documents to be submitted; and provide resources to assist LEA personnel to prepare for the monitoring process. 

The web-based training modules will be disseminated no later than August 14, 2020. LEAs must complete the trainings by September 4, 2020 and report to the chairperson, the date all relevant personnel completed the training. 

Questions regarding the 2020-21 monitoring schedule should go to Kelli Franklin at [email protected].

PA Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera has announced his intent to leave his position. He will assume the presidency of the of Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology in Lancaster on October 1, 2020.

Secretary Rivera served as PA’s education secretary for five years. He was recognized by Governor Tom Wolf for his work towards a new basic education funding formula; developing the Future Ready PA Index; and a school improvement strategy to assist struggling schools.

In support of PAPSA, Secretary Rivera visited the 2019 annual conference, providing an update from PDE and holding a lively Q&A session. His session proved to be wildly popular.

In response to Sec. Rivera’s resignation, Governor Wolf stated his intention to nominate PDEs Deputy Secretary of Postsecondary and Higher Education Noe Ortega fill the vacancy.

To read more, visit PennLive by clicking here.