Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposed state budget includes an additional $526 million to close the education funding gap between poorer and wealthier school districts. It also calls for capping cyber charter tuition at $8,000 per student.
Pennsylvania Department of Education issued a scathing rejection of Unbound Academy, an AI-powered cyber charter school. However, the state’s charter school laws will allow the school to reapply in the future.
Education Voters of Pennsylvania released a new report this week detailing wasteful spending by the state’s largest cyber charter school. The expenses include over $400,000 at entertainment venues and brand new SUVs.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education has until Wednesday to approve an application for the state’s first AI-powered cyber charter school. Education advocates see it as a crash grab.
“When we invest in afterschool programs, we’re being smart about safety, and we’re saving lives. There’s no more important metric, when we talk about getting stuff done, for the good people of Pennsylvania,” Lt. Gov. Austin Davis said.
Education advocates called on Pa lawmakers to close the $4 billion funding gap between poorer and wealthier school districts over the next four years. A 2023 report found that 387 of Pennsylvania’s 500 school districts have inadequate funding gaps.
Former Dauphin County Commissioner Jeff Haste has been removed from Commonwealth Charter Academy’s website. Haste was previously listed as Vice Chair of the commonwealth’s largest cyber charter school.
Pennsylvania has some of the oldest school buildings in the country and cleaning toxic schools will cost billions of dollars. A new round of funding will help restart the cleaning process.
Close to one-third of Pennsylvania college students know someone who dropped out of school due to food insecurity. The PA Hunger-Free Grant aims to fund programs on campuses throughout the commonwealth to alleviate hunger.
Pennridge School Board members overturned a controversial ban on pride flags and a policy that barred teachers from discussing LGBTQ+ issues with students.
