Category: State Government Actions

Governor Shapiro Delivers New Blueprint for Higher Education, Focused on Competitiveness and Workforce Development & Grounded in Access and Affordability (January 26, 2024)

On January  Governor Josh Shapiro released a new blueprint for higher education in Pennsylvania, focused on competitiveness and workforce development, and grounded in access and affordability. Much of the governor’s blueprint is based on the work of the Higher Education Working Group – a group of higher education leaders from across Pennsylvania appointed by him to develop a series of recommendations for improving higher education in the Commonwealth. The result is a three-part blueprint for higher education:

First, the plan will build a new system for higher education that unites PASSHE universities and 15 community colleges under a new governance system, preserving local leadership while uniting both types of institutions behind the goal of educating Pennsylvania.

Once that new system is in place, the plan will make significant investments to ensure higher education is both affordable and accessible for all, because any Pennsylvanian who wants to pursue a higher education should have the opportunity to do so – no matter where they come from or how much money their family makes.

Under the new system created the plan, Pennsylvanians making up to the median income will pay no more than $1,000 in tuition and fees per semester at state-owned universities and community colleges. To help students attending state-related universities and independent colleges, Governor Shapiro’s plan will increase PHEAA grants for all students by $1,000.

The governor is also proposing that direct appropriations to publicly funded colleges and universities be distributed on the basis of a predictable, transparent, outcomes-focused formula that will incentivize colleges and universities to focus on what’s most important to the Commonwealth. A performance-based funding model has already been embraced by higher education leaders across the Commonwealth, including Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi.

Pennsylvania currently ranks 48th for affordability and 49th for state investment in higher education.

To view the press release, click here.

Judge Rules Provision of PA Ed. Law is Unconstitutional (January 26, 2024)

A ruling by a federal judge avers that a PA law’s confidentiality provision that makes it a misdemeanor to disclose the existence of a state complaint or any information about it unless and until discipline is imposed is an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment. The ruling is a result of the plaintiff, a school board member who is also the parent of disabled children, seeking to publicize a misconduct allegation against the school psychologist who has worked with his sons. The parent also criticized the PA Department of Education’s (PDE) dismissal of his case.

The Educator Discipline Act is a state law that controls how PDE addresses misconduct complaints against school staff.

PDE has yet to decide whether it will appeal the ruling.

For more details on the case, visit 10 Philadelphia by clicking here.

PA Navigate Unveiled: A New Online Tool To Better Connect Pennsylvanians With Food, Housing, Childcare And More (January 23, 2024)

On January 23, 2024, PA Department of Human Services (DHS) Secretary Dr. Val Arkoosh, findhelp Founder & CEO Erine Gray, and Community Action Partnership (CAP) Lancaster CEO Vanessa Philbert announced the launch of PA Navigate, an online tool that connects Pennsylvanians with community-based organizations, county and state agencies, and healthcare providers, for referrals to community resources that help them meet their most basic needs like food, shelter, transportation, and more. PA Navigate also allows individuals to refer themselves for services and facilitates greater connection and communication between healthcare providers and organizations that serve shared populations.

PA Navigate’s primary goal is to boost communication between health care and social services to improve follow-through on referrals, as well as to act as a support finder for citizens. 

A person’s overall health and wellness are influenced by far more than just their physical health. Socioeconomic, environmental, and behavioral factors shape our present and long-term health outcomes. The National Academy of Medicine estimates that social determinants of health like income, access to essential resources, education and employment, social supports, and physical environment contribute up to 90 percent of health outcomes. Despite this, health care providers and social service and community-based organizations that can help people experiencing barriers to essential needs and economic stability are not always closely linked.

PA Navigate bridges these systems through a shared platform where health care providers and social services organizations can track client referrals and better understand and assist with a client’s individual needs, helping them access services and supports. The system will also allow health care and service providers to assess an individual’s needs during a physician’s office or emergency department visit, when receiving case management services, or seeking assistance from a community-based organization, among others.

“CAP is thrilled to host the Department of Human Services and Secretary Arkoosh for the launch of PA Navigate, a platform we are looking forward to engaging with in order to positively impact individual and community outcomes around social determinants of health,” said CAP Lancaster CEO Vanessa Philbert. “We believe this platform has the opportunity to bring increased resourcing to individuals living with low incomes here in Lancaster, and we congratulate Pennsylvania for its leadership in this space.” 

The tool also will gather data that can help the Commonwealth and its partners better understand health and social services needs of Pennsylvanians and identify service gaps or opportunities for better support across the state. By looking at critical social determinants of health, including employment, child care, transportation, food security, access to health care, and housing stability, Commonwealth agencies and partners at the county and local level can help Pennsylvanians achieve better long-term health outcomes. 

PA Navigate is a collaborative effort among health information organizations (HIOs) and brings together multiple state agencies, counties, local non-profits and community organizations, health care entities, and social services providers. HIOs participating in the project include ClinicalConnect Health Information Exchange, Central PA Connect Health Information Exchange, HealthShare Exchange, and the Keystone Health Information Exchange. In September 2023, findhelp was chosen as the PA Navigate platform.  

For more information and to find resources in your community, visit pa-navigate.org.

Act 56 Changes Instructional Time Requirements for Public School Entities (January 21, 2024)

On December 14, 2023, Governor Shapiro signed into law HB 1507 amending the School Code to allow public school entities to adopt a school term consisting of either (a)180 days or (b) 900 hours at the elementary level or 990 hours at the secondary level. Now Act 56 of 2023, the bill reads as follows:

“Public School Code of 1949 is amended by adding a section to read:
Section 130. Minimum Number of Days or Hours.–(a) Notwithstanding section 520.1 or 1501 or other provision of law to the contrary, beginning in the 2023-2024 school year and continuing each school year thereafter, a school entity shall provide within the school year:
(1) a minimum of one hundred eighty (180) days of instruction; or
(2) nine hundred (900) hours of instruction at the elementary level or nine hundred ninety (990) hours
of instruction at the secondary level.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede or preempt a provision of a collective bargaining agreement entered into between a school employer and an exclusive representative of the employees under the act of July 23, 1970 (P.L.563, No.195), known as the “Public Employe Relations Act,” prior to the effective date of this section.
(c) As used in this section, the term “school entity” shall mean a school district, intermediate unit or area career and technical school. “

Upon passage, Act 56 took effect immediately.

The change in law now allows public school entities to adopt a school term consisting of either (a)180 days or (b) 900 hours at the elementary level or 990 hours at the secondary level.  Prior to the change, the PA School Code required that public school entity school terms satisfy both the day and hour minimums, unless the school entity was granted approval by the PA Secretary of Education that allowed for a term to be based on one or the other. Thus, school entities may now increase or decrease the number of days in a school year by creating schedules that meet the hours requirement only.

PDE Releases Indicator 14 Reporting Requirement Info to LEAs (January 16, 2024)

On January 16, 2024, PDE Bureau of Special Education Director Dr. Carole L. Clancy, sent a PENN*LINK message to LEAs titled State Performance Plan Data Requirements – Postsecondary School Survey (Cohort 4 Exit). In the meme, she explains that the accountability requirement under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA) mandates that each state determines the extent to which students are achieving transition outcomes (State Performance Plan – Indicator 14). To meet the federal reporting requirement, each local educational agency (LEA) is mandated to administer an Exit Process and Post-School Surveys to students (who have graduated, dropped out or reached the maximum age) with individualized education programs (IEPs) once over a five-year period, based on the LEA’s assignment to a targeted sampling year.

For the 2023-2024 school year, LEAs assigned to target sampling Cohort 4 are required to administer the My Plan for Success (MP4S) Exit Process. During 2024-2025 these same LEAs will be required to complete the Post-School Surveys.

The following information specifically addresses the Exit Process administration for 2023-24. LEAs assigned to target sampling Cohort 4, as listed below, are required to address the following:

  • Administer the Exit Process for all student leavers (graduates, dropouts, and students who reach maximum age) who have IEPs. To access information from the September 21, 2023 webinar regarding the administration of the Exit Process, including a Frequently Asked Questions document and supporting handouts from the training, visit the webpage at PaTTAN – My Plan for Success (MP4S) Exit Process Overview and Procedural Training.
  • Participate in the My Plan for Success (MP4S) Cohort 4 – The Exit Process Overview and Procedural Training Webinar scheduled for February 21, 2024, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Registration is required and may be accessed directly at https://www.pattan.net/Events/Webinar/Course-1838/Events/Session-38480. Please note if you registered for the September 21, 2023, training, you are already registered.

For questions about the MP4S Exit Process or Indicator 14, please contact PaTTAN Educational Consultant, Hillary Mangis, [email protected].