NEWS
Harrisburg is steamrolling harmful PA public university consolidation
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) is made up of fourteen public universities located in communities throughout the commonwealth.When PASSHE was established in 1982, its purpose was to provide a high quality education at the lowest...
Would you help with our to-do list?
We don’t ask for money enough. There—I said it. Education Voters is a go-to resource for information, for advocacy, and for following what is happening in Harrisburg. And we have been a leading force in Pennsylvania’s education advocacy and policy community. We...
It’s time to Level Up school funding in Pennsylvania!
Pennsylvania has among the widest funding gaps in the country between high-wealth and low-wealth school districts. The severe underfunding for students in less affluent districts is the reason behind the school funding lawsuit, which is set to go to trial in September...
What the American Rescue Plan means for PA schools
Pennsylvania will receive nearly $5 billion in one-time federal funding for K-12 schools in the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021 through the Elementary and Secondary School Relief Fund (ESSER). Ninety percent of the ARP ESSER funding, or $4,372,333,875, will...
Underfunded: Inside the Fight to Fairly Fund Public Schools in Pennsylvania
PA’s General Assembly has no goal to fully fund public schools. That, plus an unfair system for splitting a pot that’s too small, pits districts against each other. It’s time to end the hunger games and #FundOurSchoolsPA
Learn more on Underfunded, episode 1, a new podcast focused on the fight to fairly fund Pennsylvania’s public schools.
BREAKING: Trial in PA school funding lawsuit on track to begin in September
For a generation, Pennsylvania’s legislative leaders have refused to live up to their constitutional responsibility to fairly fund public schools so that all students, not just those from certain zip codes, are equipped with the tools and skills they need. A group of...
The per horse subsidy through the Race Horse Development Fund is nearly three times the per student state subsidy for students in the State System of Higher Education!!
Paying for college is one of the biggest worries facing Pennsylvania families - especially now. Governor Wolf wants to create a new program - the Nellie Bly Scholarships - for 44,000 students attending PASSHE schools so more students can attend college and...
Join our special guests to learn about charter school special education funding
Special education funding for charter schools is a hot topic in Harrisburg. For the first time ever, we have a real chance to fix Pennsylvania's charter school law to eliminate profits that charter schools reap off of special education tuition payments and to increase...
Proposed Charter School Reforms are Welcome, Necessary, and Long Overdue
February 26, 2021 HARRISBURG, PA (February 26, 2021) – Susan Spicka the executive director of Education Voters of PA, a nonpartisan, nonprofit, statewide public education policy and advocacy organization issued the following statement in response to Governor Wolf’s...
PA to allow the delay of standardized testing until the fall
Many families, school officials, and advocates had hoped that the Biden Administration would grant waivers that would allow states to cancel standardized tests this year because of the extraordinary challenges the pandemic has created for students and schools. But...
Pass a Resolution in Support of Pennsylvania’s School Funding Lawsuit
This year Pennsylvania's historic school funding lawsuit will go to trial. Every child in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has the right to an education that prepares them for college or career. In fact, the Pennsylvania Constitution speaks to the right of a “thorough...
Gift cards, cell phones, cash payments for families, $1000/student in advertising costs & real estate development: It’s time to audit PA’s cyber charter schools
Recent reporting in the Scranton Times-Tribune revealed a stunning of state oversight over billions of taxpayer dollars that have been poured into cyber charters over the past two decades. Half of Pennsylvania’s cyber charter schools have never been...
Governor Wolf Proposes a Bold, Historic Investment in Public Education (and a lot more!!)
On Wednesday, February 5th, Governor Wolf gave his budget address. Gov. Wolf's proposed state budget for 2021-2022 demonstrates his understanding of the extensive unmet needs in Pennsylvania's public schools and his commitment to fixing the unfairness of our current...
$2.2 billion in federal aid headed to PA’s public schools
On Friday, the Wolf administration announced that Pennsylvania’s $2.2 billion share of federal ESSER II (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) emergency funding for public K-12 schools will be allocated to school districts and charter...
$2.2 billion in federal aid headed to PA’s public schools
On Friday, the Wolf administration announced that Pennsylvania's $2.2 billion share of federal ESSER II (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) emergency funding for public K-12 schools will be allocated to school districts and charter schools based on the...
How does your school district measure up? Don’t miss this new tool and report
If you want to learn about how state funding issues impact your own school district, you are in for a treat with the Tools for Education Advocates Webinar that is being hosted by PA Schools work.On Thursday, January 21st at noon data experts (rock stars in their...
How does your school district measure up? Don’t miss this new tool and report!
If you want to learn about how state funding issues impact your own school district, you are in for a treat with the Tools for Education Advocates Webinar that is being hosted by PA Schools work.On Thursday, January 21st at noon data experts (rock stars in their...
Help us support and defend public education
What a year of challenges 2020 has been! We have struggled with the severe disruptions of COVID-19, witnessed nationwide protests against systemic racism, and faced profound economic, ideological, and political gulfs in American society. And throughout all of this,...
Help us support and defend public education
What a year of challenges 2020 has been! We have struggled with the severe disruptions of COVID-19, witnessed nationwide protests against systemic racism, and faced profound economic, ideological, and political gulfs in American society. And throughout all of...
REJECTED! Doomed-to-fail cyber charter application denied by PDE
The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) delivered an early holiday gift to Pennsylvanians. On Monday, November 30th, PDE denied the revised application of the Virtual Preparatory Academy of Pennsylvania (VPAP) Cyber Charter School. VPAP is a new project of Ron...