Past Events:
Pennsylvania Education Policy Forums:
March 28, 2017 – Lehigh Valley (Schnecksville)
Subject: Governor Wolf’s Proposed Education Budget for 2017-2018
Speakers: Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center (PowerPoint PDF)
Dr. Elaine E. Eib, Executive Director, Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit #21
Dr. Randy Ziegenfuss, Superintendent, Salisbury Township School District
Sean Crampsie, Lobbyist/Social Media Information Specialist, Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PowerPoint PDF)
Jay D. Himes, CAE, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials (PowerPoint PDF)
March 2, 2017 – Philadelphia
Subject: Governor Wolf’s Proposed Education Budget for 2017-2018
Speakers: Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Donna Cooper, Executive Director, Public Citizens for Children and Youth
Deborah Gordon Klehr, Executive Director, Education Law Center
Sean Crampsie, Lobbyist/Social Media Information Specialist, Pennsylvania School Boards Association
Samuel Lee, Ed.D., Superintendent, Bensalem Township School District
February 28, 2017 – Harrisburg Area (Enola)
Subject: Governor Wolf’s Proposed Education Budget for 2017-2018
Speakers: Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center (PowerPoint PDF)
Mark D. DiRocco, Ph.D., Executive Director, Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (PowerPoint PDF)
Ashley Lenker White, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PowerPoint PDF)
Jodi Askins, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children (PowerPoint PDF)
Jeffrey S. Ammerman, Director of Member Assistance, Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials (PowerPoint PDF)
February 23, 2017 – Pittsburgh
Subject: Governor Wolf’s Proposed Education Budget for 2017-2018
Speakers: Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Dr. Linda B. Hippert, Executive Director, Allegheny Intermediate Unit #3
Cheryl Kleiman, Staff Attorney, Education Law Center
Ashley Lenker White, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PowerPoint PDF)
Patrick T. O’Toole, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, Upper St. Clair School District
Brett Lago, Director of Business Affairs, Penn-Trafford School District (PowerPoint PDF)
February 11, 2016 – Harrisburg
Subject: Governor Wolf’s Proposed Education Budget for 2016-2017
Speakers: Beth Olanoff, Director of Policy, Pennsylvania Department of Education (PowerPoint PDF)
Marc Stier, Director, Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (Policy Brief PDF)
Dr. Brian Barnhart, Executive Director, Lancaster-Lebanon IU #13
John Callahan, Asst. Exec. Director for Public Policy/Chief Lobbyist, Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PowerPoint PDF)
Thomas Gluck, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units
Jodi Askins, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children
February 17, 2016 – Philadelphia
Subject: Governor Wolf’s Proposed Education Budget for 2016-2017
Speakers: Beth Olanoff, Director of Policy, Pennsylvania Department of Education (PowerPoint PDF)
Marc Stier, Director, Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (Policy Brief PDF)
Donna Cooper, Executive Director, Public Citizens for Children and Youth
Deborah Gordon Klehr, Executive Director, Education Law Center
Mark B. Miller, President-Elect, Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PowerPoint PDF and Op-Ed PDF)
Annual Arts and Education Symposium
The first Arts and Education Symposium was held in October 0f 2011. EPLC hosted a second Arts and Education Symposium in October of 2012. Keynote presentations from the first two Symposia were delivered by Dr. Jonathan Katz, CEO, National Assembly of State Arts Agencies; Dr. Mary Ann Stankiewicz, professor of art education, Pennsylvania State University; Sandra Ruppert, director, Arts Education Partnership; and Ayanna Hudson, director of arts education, National Endowments of the Arts.
A third Arts and Education Symposium was held in October of 2013. Available at ArtsEducationPA.org is video of the keynote presentation given by Ian David Moss, founder, Createquity and research director, Fractured Atlas; the student performance of “Pieces” by M-Uth Theatre of Millersville University; the awards presentation; and the policy leader panel. Audio is also available for three select sessions regarding Student Learning Objectives, gathering and analyzing data of learning in the arts, and the new National Core Arts Standards.
The fourth Arts and Education Symposium took place Thursday, October 2, 2014 at the State Museum of Pennsylvania. The symposium featured keynote speaker Dennis Inhulsen, the President of the National Art Education Association and Principal of Patterson Elementary School in Holly, Michigan; student performances of Enough! and Inventors’ Fantasy by the IUP Dance Theater of the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Followed by an awards presentation and select sessions on topics including: Building Capacity for Grassroots Arts Education Advocacy, New National Arts Standards? Now What?, and Building a Statewide Arts Education Data System.
Pennsylvania Education Policy Forum
Information on past Pennsylvania Education Policy Forums can be viewed following the link above.
At our Pennsylvania Education Policy Forums, EPLC provides an overview of the Governor’s proposed budget for early education, K-12 and higher education. An overview is provided of the state’s fiscal situation and key issues that will affect the year’s budget discussion. The overviews are followed by remarks from a panel representing statewide and regional perspectives concerning state funding for education and education related items. These speakers discuss the impact of the Governor’s proposals and identify the key issues that will likely be considered during this year’s budget debate.
2012 Pennsylvania Education Finance Symposium
The 2012 Pennsylvania Education Finance Symposium was held on Friday, November 16, 2012 in Harrisburg. The program included the following presentations:
Pennsylvania Update
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC)
A Growing Challenge: Pennsylvania Public School Employee Pension Update
Jeffrey Clay, Executive Director, Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS)
Panel Discussion: PASA – PASBO Survey on the Impact of Funding Cuts
Wanda M. Erb, Business Manager, Northern Tioga School District
Jay D. Himes, CAE, Executive Director, PA Association of School Business Officials
Robert A. Schoch, PRSBA, Director of Business Administration, North Penn School District
Panel Discussion: Property Tax Reform Efforts in Pennsylvania
David Davare, Director of Research Services, Pennsylvania School Boards Association
Matthew Knittel, Director, Independent Fiscal Office
Pennsylvania Budget and Finance Review
Sharon Ward, Executive Director, PA Budget and Policy Center
Panel Discussion: School District Financial Recovery (Implementation of Act 141 of 2012)
Michael Churchill, Of Counsel, Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia
Karen Molchanow, Executive Director, State Board of Education
The 2012 Education Finance Symposium was supported by grants from William Penn Foundation, Falk Foundation, and the Fulfilling the Dream Fund.
School Choices Forum in State College
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
State College, PA
Introduction – EPLC’s PA School Choices Project
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Panel: Vision for School Choices in Pennsylvania
Erica Frankenberg, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Education Policy Studies, College of
Education, Penn State University
Panel: Public School Choices in Pennsylvania
Richard Daubert, Executive Director, Tuscarora Intermediate Unit
Mark D. DiRocco, Superintendent, Lewisburg Area School District
Bob O’Donnell, Superintendent, State College Area School District
Jennifer Donohue, Education Director, Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools
Panel: What Parents Want to Know About School Choices in Pennsylvania
Bonita Allen, Former Chair, Title I State Parent Advisory Council
Tara Purcell, Legislation and Advocacy Chair, Pennsylvania PTA
Nina Jenkins, Parent, Nittany Valley Charter School
The School Choices Project of EPLC is supported by a generous grant from the Heinz Endowments.
School Choices Forum in Pittsburgh
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Pittsburgh, PA
Introduction – EPLC’s PA School Choices Project
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Panel Discussion: Vision for School Choices in Pennsylvania
Stanley W. Thompson, Director of The Heinz Endowments’ Education
Program
Jeremy Resnick, Executive Director and Founder, Propel Schools
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Panel Discussion: Public School Choices in Pennsylvania
Jennifer R. Beagan, Senior Program Director, Educational Services, Allegheny
Intermediate Unit
Robert Fayfich, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools
Dr. Lawrence C. Korchnak, Superintendent, Baldwin-Whitehall School District
Marianne LeDonne, Director, Regional Choice Initiative, Beaver Valley
Intermediate Unit
Dr. Patrick O’Toole, Superintendent, Upper St. Clair School District
Panel Discussion: What Parents Want to Know About School Choices in Pennsylvania?
Bonita Allen, Former Chair, Title I State Parent Advisory Council
Tara Purcell, Legislation and Advocacy Chair, Pennsylvania PTA
Mark Conner, Former Director of Family and Community Engagement, Pittsburgh Public Schools
Cindy Duch, Director of Parent Advising, PEAL Center
School Choices Forum in Harrisburg
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Harrisburg, PA
Introduction – EPLC’s PA School Choices Project
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Panel Discussion: Vision for School Choices in Pennsylvania
Senator Jeffrey Piccola, Chairman of the Senate Education Committee
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Panel Discussion: Public School Choices in Pennsylvania
Marianne LeDonne, Director, Regional Choice Initiative, Beaver County Intermediate Unit
Brian Griffith, Director of Curriculum Services, Capital Area Intermediate Unit
Mark D. DiRocco, Superintendent, Lewisburg Area School District
Oscar Rossum, Sr., Past President and Co-Founder, Lincoln Charter School (York County) and CEO of Full Circle Inc. (Charter School Management Company)
Martin J. Hudacs, Superintendent, Solanco School District
Panel Discussion: What Parents Want to Know About School Choices in Pennsylvania?
Bonita Allen, Former Chair, Title I State Parent Advisory Council
Quibila Divine, Former Director, Parent and Family Engagement, The School District of Philadelphia; and President and Founder,The Educational Advocates Reaching Today’s Hardworking Students
Tara Purcell, Legislation and Advocacy Chair, Pennsylvania PTA
Annie Clark, Chairperson, Parent Advisory Committee, Lincoln Charter School
2011 Pennsylvania Education Finance Symposium
The 2011 Pennsylvania Education Finance Symposium was held on Thursday, November 17, 2011. The program included the following presentations:
“Promoting Student Achievement in Tough Budget Times” – Allan Odden, Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, School of Education at University of Wisconsin; Co-Director, Consortium for Policy Research in Education at Wisconsin Center for Education Research, University of Wisconsin; Co-Director at Strategic Management of Human Capital
Panel Discussion – “Effects of 2011-2012 State Budget”
Jim Buckheit, Executive Director, Pennsylvania School Boards Association
Jim Estep, Superintendent, Mifflin County School District
Wayne McCullough, Director of Administrative Services, Southern York County School District
“A National Perspective: Education Finance in the States and the National Equity and Excellence Commission” – Michael Rebell, Professor and Executive Director of The Campaign for Educational Equity, at Teachers College, Columbia University
Legislative Panel: “Significant Education Funding Issues Looking Forward to the 2012-2013 State Budget”
Jeffrey Miller, Budget Analyst (R), House Appropriations Committee, Office of Representative Adolph
Debbie Reeves, Senior Budget Analyst (D), House Appropriations Committee, Office of
The 2011 Education Finance Symposium was supported by grants from William Penn Foundation, Falk Foundation, and the Fulfilling the Dream Fund.
2010 Pennsylvania Education Finance Symposium
EPLC’s annual Education Finance Symposium was held on November 18, 2010 at Wildwood Conference Center on the campus of Harrisburg Area Community College. Please see below for agenda information, and presenter names and links to their PowerPoint presentations.
Pennsylvania Update: Status Report on PA K-12 Funding Reform; Impact of 2010-11 State Budget; and Fiscal Forecasting for 2011-12 Budget
Ron Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center
Sharon Ward, Executive Director, PA Budget and Policy Center
National Perspective: “Is School Funding Fair: A National Report Card” from the Education Law Center (New Jersey)
David G. Sciarra, Esq., Executive Director, Education Law Center (New Jersey)
Panel Discussion: Building on Recent Progress: Where Can We Go with K-12 Funding Issues in Context of New PA Political Fiscal Conditions?
Jay D. Himes, CAE, Executive Director, PA Association of School Business Officials
Susan Gobreski, Executive Director, Education Voters PA
The Old and the New: Remarks by Governors’ Policy Leaders
Donna Cooper, Former PA Secretary of Policy and Planning, Office of Governor Rendell
Dr. Paula Hess, Senior Advisor to the Republican Leader, PA House of Representatives
Panel Discussion: A Broader View of the “Education” Budget – Let’s Not Forget Early Education, Higher Education, Libraries, Arts, Museums, and more
Dr. Winston Cleland, Policy Analyst, PA Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development
Barbara Franco, Executive Director, PA Historical and Museum Commission
Carol Obando-Derstine, Executive Director, Children’s Coalition of the Lehigh Valley
Rep. Steve Samuelson, Chairman, PA House of Representatives Committee on Aging and Older Adult Services, Subcommittee on Care and Services and Vice Chairman, Committee on Children and Youth
Carrie Wissler-Thomas, President, Art Association of Harrisburg
Past EPLC Conferences:
