NEWS
Take action now to support charter school reform in PA!
We have helped build a movement to fix Pennsylvania's worst charter school law in the nation in every corner of the commonwealth. Now it is time to take this movement to Harrisburg! Please click HERE and sign a letter to your state representative and senator...
What Gov. Wolf’s budget proposal means for your schools.
Yesterday, Governor Wolf gave his budget address and outlined his priorities for 2020-2021. His budget proposal is welcome and reflects Governor Wolf’s continued support for public education. It also reflects the cold, hard reality that the Republican-controlled...
Education Voters of PA : Governor Wolf’s budget proposal to increase state funding for public education and rightsize tuition payments to charters is worthy of support
For Immediate Release February 2, 2020 Education Voters of PA Media contacts: Susan Spicka ...
An unprecedented and powerful statewide movement is building in PA.
We are seeing an unprecedented and powerful movement to reform Pennsylvania’s charter school law.
We just paid a cyber charter school $250.00
On Christmas Eve we mailed a check for $250.00 to Commonwealth Charter Academy (CCA), one of Pennsylvania’s largest cyber charter schools. We filed a Right to Know request in September to learn how much taxpayer money CCA spent on advertising during a three-year...
Thank Governor Wolf for working to fix the worst charter school law in the nation!
As we head into Thanksgiving weekend, at Education Voters of PA we are thankful for you—the parents and community members who support public education, stay informed, and take action when it is needed. You make a difference and help achieve important wins for public...
PA School Voucher Vote Scheduled for Monday, November 18
State Representative Mike Turzai, Betsy DeVos’ ideological soul mate, recently introduced a school voucher bill (House Bill 1800) that would create a costly school voucher experiment in the Harrisburg School District, just when the district is beginning to...
In Pennsylvania, property taxes pay for cyber charter school “trade secrets”
On Tuesday, October 22nd, the PA Senate Education Committee held a public hearing on charter school entities. The CEOs of charter and cyber charter schools were invited to testify along with representatives from the School District of Philadelphia, the...
Education Voters of PA testimony for the Pennsylvania Senate Education Committee Public Hearing on Charter School Entities
Susan Spicka, Executive Director, Education Voters of PA, delivered this testimony to the PA Senate Education Committee on Tuesday, October 22, 2019. Thank you very much for inviting me to testify today. I am Susan Spicka, the executive director of Education Voters of...
Betsy DeVos and Mike Turzai meet up in Harrisburg
Yesterday, Betsy DeVos visited a Catholic school in Harrisburg to promote her proposed federal school voucher program that would funnel $5 billion in taxpayer money into private and religious schools. PA House Speaker Mike Turzai, DeVos’s ideological soul mate, joined...
New Report: Cyber Charter Waste Grows to $290 Million in Taxpayer Money Annually
Education Voters of PA issued this press release about the cyber charter school funding report we released on Monday, September 16. The report has been updated with 2017-2018 cyber charter school expenditure data. Click HERE to read one-page summary of the report....
Buckle up—we are building momentum for charter school reform in PA!
It is an exciting time for public education advocates who support charter and cyber charter school reforms that will benefit students and taxpayers in Pennsylvania. In mid-August, Governor Wolf put forward strong proposals to improve the quality, transparency, and...
Do your lawmakers support cyber charter school funding reform?
Would you take a few minutes to ask your state lawmakers about their positions on cyber charter school funding and accountability reforms? Right now, lawmakers are in their districts enjoying summer vacations. They are away from Harrisburg and have time to reflect on...
The Good, Bad, Ugly & Unconscionable in the 2019-2020 PA Budget
The state budget is done and a last-ditch effort made by anti-public education lawmakers to include harmful charter school legislation in the school code bill was defeated. Governor Wolf stood strong with our public schools and House Bill 357, which would have...
PA Republicans advance massive charter school & school voucher expansion
Dear Republicans hold majorities the House and Senate in Harrisburg, so their priorities receive a vote. They have ignored pleas from their constituents to address the urgent need for cyber charter school funding reform to reduce enormous overpayments for failure in...
New report finds overwhelmingly negative results for students in cyber charter schools & mixed results for brick-and-mortar charter schools.
MEMO To: Interested Parties From: Susan Spicka, Executive Director, Education Voters of PA Date: June 4, 2019 Re: CREDO’s Charter School Performance in Pennsylvania (2019) report finds overwhelmingly negative results for students in cyber charter schools and mixed...
Stop the Charter School Expansion Bills
Last week Republican members of the House Education Committee advanced two charter school expansion bills that deliver the charter school industry’s wish list. We anticipate that the House will vote on these bills in early June. Click HERE to send a letter to your...
$100 million more for PA’s “secret school tax”
The PA House Education Committee passed what appears to be a top education priority for many lawmakers this year: a massive increase in taxpayer-funded school vouchers that benefit wealthy families. These lawmakers are not prioritizing an additional $100 million to...
Help end Tom Corbett’s influence over education in PA
Tom Corbett was voted out of office more than four years ago, yet his appointees continue to control the Charter School Appeal Board (CAB), a powerful body that can overturn school board decisions to deny charter school applications and strip communities of control...
State funding system leaves career tech students behind
High quality career and technical education (CTE) programs can equip students with skills, certifications, and higher-education credits that will allow them to graduate from high school ready to enter the workforce in a field they love and in a job that pays a...