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House Bills 1057 (P.N. 1294)

House Education Committee
May 30, 2007

Roberta M. Marcus, PSBA Second Vice-President
and Parkland school director

Good afternoon my name is Roberta Marcus. I am a board member with the Parkland School District where I have served in that capacity for 12 years.1 I am also serving as the 2007 Second Vice President of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association. I would like to thank Chairmen Roebuck and Stairs for convening this hearing and allowing me to make comments on House Bill 1057 (P.N. 1294). Investments aimed at closing the achievement gaps and enhancing student success continue to be priorities for school districts, especially since the enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) in 2002. The Accountability Block Grant (ABG) program is one of the most important programs initiated by the Commonwealth, because it enables school districts to invest in a variety of student achievement strategies that their school boards and administrators believe are necessary to meet the benchmarks established by NCLB. There is little doubt within the education community that the ABG program has been a huge success for students, districts and taxpayers. The governor, General Assembly and school leaders all deserve credit for implementing a program that targets money where it is most needed for student achievement purposes.

The Parkland School District has received over $1 million dollars in ABG funds since the program's inception. These funds have been used in three categories: class-size reduction, academic performance/student achievement, and professional development. First, Parkland School District has always been committed to providing a classroom environment with a teacher/student ratio of less than 22:1 in our primary grades. ABG funds have supported this endeavor by offsetting an average of a 3% growth in enrollment.

Second, the initiation of a district wide data team along with specific building based data teams has significantly impacted growth in the areas of student data analysis, refinement of instructional best practice, and differentiation of instruction. ABG funds have supported ongoing opportunities for teams of teachers to meet by grade level and content area to analyze test data, and classroom performance indicators and to provide relevant information for teachers to refine classroom delivery of instruction. All student subgroups (socio-economic status, Individualized Education Program (IEP), English as a Second Language (ESL)) are addressed to assure quality instruction focused on student specific needs. Best practice teaching strategies are shared and become part of the repertoire of skills for teachers as we continue to provide a highly qualified staff.

Finally, the Parkland School District has always provided quality professional development for all staff members. The Parkland Professional Academy is a yearlong venue that provides a systemic delivery of research based instructional best practices. The ABG funds have provided a structure that has refined our needs assessment tool that assures the focus needed to capitalize on our student data analysis findings. The end result of this process and structure has been a significant increase in student achievement across all levels.

It is obvious that the ABG program is vitally important to Parkland School District as it is to all school districts in the Commonwealth. While we applaud the continued support that the program receives from the General Assembly and the administration, there are two key components of House Bill 1057 that greatly concern PSBA and the Parkland School District . First, the legislation proposes that all new money for the ABG program in the 2007-08 budget and in the future be used to establish or expand full-day kindergarten or pre-kindergarten programs only. Districts such as Parkland that used ABG funds to create other allowable programs would receive no new or additional funds from the state to grow or expand those programs. Consequently if we want to continue in the direction we've established, we will have to further burden our local taxpayers or make cuts which affect the continued success of the programs we've initiated. Since 2002-2003, Parkland School District has offset $300,000 in the cost of the class size reduction, data analysis and professional development programs. Without the benefit of new dollars, the additional cost to Parkland 's taxpayers to sustain our programs will be $150,000 in the 2007-2008 school year.

This situation is not germane to Parkland . According to the Department of Education's (PDE's) own statistics, there are 682 programs that are funded with ABG monies that are not full-day or pre-kindergarten programs and these programs serve over one million students. All of these programs would not qualify for additional ABG monies and would have to be funded through local taxes or other program cuts.

Moreover, many school districts that targeted their initial ABG funding to create full-day or pre-kindergarten programs are also shortchanged. Those districts that established programs three years ago and have enrolled close to 100% of eligible children would have the least ability to expand. Consequently, the districts and their taxpayers are effectively penalized by not having access to new ABG funding.

Additionally, House Bill 1057 introduces a competitive grant process into a program that was meant to provide allocations to school districts. The $75 million earmarked for pre-kindergarten programs requires school districts to compete with Head Start program, nursery school and other approved child daycare or group daycare providers. School districts and other pre-kindergarten providers area already competing for these funds as final applications were due to PDE on April 30, 2007.

I want to be clear on this important point: PSBA supports efforts aimed at increasing students' access to early childhood education programs. The research on the effects of early childhood education programs is overwhelmingly positive. Many districts have implemented pre-kindergarten and full-day kindergarten programs in their districts and board members monitor and acknowledge positive differences. PSBA has actively disseminated information to our members and urged them to consider early child education programs as they have made decisions about the use of ABG funds. In April 2006, PSBA devoted an entire issue of its bi-monthly magazine, The Bulletin , to the importance of early childhood education. The association does not oppose dedicated categorical funding for early childhood programs. PSBA, however, does not support limiting the use of new funds for the ABG program to just two programs. We would rather see the funds for new and expanded pre-kindergarten and full-day kindergarten in a separate line item. The current ABG program should be left intact and there should be an inflationary increase in funding to help districts grow and expand the programs they initiated with program funding three years ago.

PSBA also believes that available new dollars for pre-kindergarten or full-day kindergarten should go to school districts. As they do now, districts can exercise the option to contract these services to a private provider. In that manner, school districts are able to provide a level of local oversight that would be missing if the funds went directly to the private provider. The association maintains that House Bill 1057 would set a dangerous precedent, one that a future administration could expand in almost any program, not just the ABG program, if the General Assembly allows private entities to access funds that historically have been restricted to school districts.

In conclusion, all education investments, whether it is in ABG program or early childhood education, are investments in the Commonwealth's future. The Commonwealth has seen the impressive results of its commitment to student achievement through the many effective school district programs begun by ABG funds, and it has seen the benefits of early childhood education. Both are critically important, both deserved to be supported, both should be funded in separate line-items. Thank you for your consideration of PSBA's concerns and recommendations. I'd be happy to answer any questions at this time.

Parkland School District encompasses 72 square miles in Lehigh County in the townships of North Whitehall, South Whitehall, and Upper Macungie . As of May 2007, the district serves approximately 9,115 students. Student enrollment is expected to increase 28% by the 2010-2011 school year. In 2005-06, Parkland School District 's average SAT scores in writing, math and critical reading were all above the state averages. Since the 2002-03 school year, Parkland School District has met the requirements of adequate yearly progress (AYP) each year.