Category: State Government Actions

State Board of Higher Ed. Holds Inaugural Meeting, Aims to Increase Competitiveness, Accessibility, and Affordability (September 30, 2024)

On September 27, 2024, the newly-established State Board of Higher Education (SBHE) held its inaugural meeting. The Board was established by the 2024 Public PA School Code and is tasked with re-envisioning public higher education in the Commonwealth and increasing access and affordability for Pennsylvania’s postsecondary students. 

Established under revisions made to the PA Public School Code this year, SBHE will provide the capacity and the support that higher education leaders need to develop a statewide strategic plan for the sector and work together to achieve goals critical to the Commonwealth. To support these efforts, the Board will create a new postsecondary data system, provide guidance and capacity to institutions facing fiscal challenges, and create stronger and more affordable pathways to postsecondary credentials and degrees.   

Governor Josh Shapiro’s appointments to SBHE consist of leaders from higher education, the business community, labor, students, legislators, and members of the Shapiro Administration. 

The 2024-25 budget has invested heavily in higher ed. with an additional $60 million in community colleges and the Pennsylvania State System universities, and an additional $143 million to PHEAA to make college more affordable for PA students, including: a $54 million increase for student grants, a $5 million increase for disadvantaged students’ scholarships, a $36 million increase for the Ready to Succeed Scholarship and expanded criteria to increase the number of eligible students, and $25 million for the new Grow PA Scholarship Program.

See Board materials by clicking to access the Pennsylvania State Board of Higher Education website.     

For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Education, please click here to visit the PDE website.

PDE Creates Information Literacy Toolkit for Educators Preparing PA’s Next Generation of News Consumers (September 25, 2024)

On September 23, 2024, the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) unveiled a comprehensive toolkit to develop the information literacy skills of educators, students, and families to help the next generation of Pennsylvanians learn how to discern fact from fiction online.  

As children find misinformation online and bring it into the classroom, educators are forced to confront it. According to Governor Shapiro, the first step is giving teachers and parents more tools in their toolbox to help teach kids how to think critically about what they find online. Thus, PDE has developed a toolkit for teachers and parents on digital literacy and critical thinking.

The toolkit, which is available to the public on PDE’s website, is designed to help Pennsylvania’s educators incorporate age-appropriate media literacy into their lesson plans and their conversations with students and offers resources about how to recognize biases, distinguish between credible information and misinformation, and create and share content responsibly. Through a collection of evidence-based resources, the toolkit encourages critical thinking, active participation in society, and contextual understanding of past and current events. 

Resources in the toolkit are primarily geared toward educators, but there are also tools to help families and their children navigate the media landscape.  

Click here  to access the information literacy toolkit.

Click here to access the press release.

PDH Health Alert Notice: Kids’ Gardening Lead Paint Recall (September 19, 2024)

The Pennsylvania Department of Health is alerting parents and caregivers about the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s recall of Stanley Jr. Kids Wheelbarrow and 7-piece Garden Sets because the paint on the hoe and rake contains lead levels that exceed the federal content ban.

Approximately 459,200 garden sets were sold in the U.S. from February 2024 through June 2024. They were sold exclusively at Costco stores nationwide and online at Costco.com for approximately $35.

This recall involves the long hoe and rake in the Stanley Jr. Kids Wheelbarrow and 7-piece Garden Set, model number 1662178. The wheelbarrow has a white label on the bottom labeled “Red Toolbox” and a manufacturing date of December 2023. The recalled hoe and rake have a yellow-painted long wooden handle with the words “Stanley Jr.” painted in black. The hoe and rake are black-painted metal.

Consumers should immediately stop using the hoe and rake in the garden set. Visit Red Toolbox’s recall website for information on obtaining a free replacement hoe and rake. Consumers must fill out a form and upload photos of disposing of these items, as well as the white label on the bottom of the wheelbarrow showing the December 2023 manufacturing date. Costco is attempting to contact all known purchasers directly.

According to CDC recommendations, all young children should be tested for lead exposure at least once, and when elevated levels are detected, the tests should be repeated. Early identification of elevated lead levels can prevent the most serious effects so that all children can reach their full potential.

The Department maintains a toll-free lead information hotline (1-800-440-LEAD) to provide information about lead poisoning prevention, testing, follow-up, and local resources.

Lead information can also be found on the Department of Health’s website. 

Parents and caregivers of children who may have used the recalled garden set should contact their child’s health care provider about getting a blood lead test.

The Department of Health has shared a health alert notice to further communicate this recall among state and local public health agencies, health care providers, hospitals, and emergency management officials.

DHS Recognizes Suicide Prevention Month, Discusses Multi-Agency Approach to Strengthen Behavioral Health Supports and Save Lives (September 16, 2024)

On September 16, 2024, Department of Human Services (DHS) Secretary Dr. Val Arkoosh joined leaders from multiple state agencies, the Governor’s Advisory Commissions on LGBTQ Affairs and African American Affairs, and suicide prevention advocacy groups, to recognize September as Suicide Prevention Month. Although behavioral health and suicide prevention are important to address year-round, this month provides a dedicated time to offer resources, information, and support to those who have been affected by suicide and honor survivors and lives lost to suicide.

To access the DHS press release, including resources, click here.

Shapiro Administration Delivers Funding for Free Period Products to all PA Brick& Mortar LEAS (September 13, 2024)

All school districts, intermediate units, career and technical centers, and brick-and-mortar charter schools will receive funding to provide free period products to students. 

Governor Josh Shapiro’s 2024-25 budget includes $3 million to provide period products in schools to help close a gap in women’s health care. The funding enables schools to provide access to period products at no cost to students and complements the efforts undertaken by the Shapiro Administration to improve health equity. 

Applications and reimbursement requests will not be required. All school districts, intermediate units, career and technical centers, and brick-and-mortar charter schools will receive funding. Funding is proportional to the total number of students enrolled in a school and based on a rate of $1.75 per student. Schools may use the funding for period product purchases made between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025.  

Funding allocations for the 2024-25 Feminine Hygiene Product Grant Program’s non-competitive, non-solicitation grants can be found on the Pennsylvania Department of Health website. Schools have the option to opt out of receiving grant funding. Any remaining funds following the first round of grant funding will be dispersed in a second round.  Schools should consider privacy, responsiveness, access, and education when developing and implementing strategies to make period products available to their students. Additional guidance and suggestions are available in the Menstrual Equity for Pennsylvania Students – Guidance for School Entities.