SCHOOL ISSUES
Follow the progress of the 100,000,000 addition
https://www.abington.k12.pa.us/construction/
The
Abington School District Website
including
Facebook and Twitter
The
School Channel Comcast 968 and
Verizon 34 - includes School Board Meetings
Plays at different time slots weekly ie Friday 6 am to 9am
(see schedule )
or at
http://www.abington.k12.pa.us/about-asd/amp-tv/
Wednesday Morning The
email Newsletter of Highlights from the Tuesday Board Meeting
Send an email to
SR-subscribe@lists.Abington.k12.pa.us & it will come right
to your email box
THE FORMER SUPERINTENDENT'S SALARY
of over $ 350,000
still affects us in her retirement
THINGS
THAT OTHERS WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS/ KNOW MORE ABOUT OR CHANGE
RYDAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PTO PRESIDENT
CHARGED WITH STEALING $19,000
Not the first time an
Abington School District parent teacher group has
faced such difficulties.
Yet it doesn't look like regular oversight
has been made a priority
. Regular audits and very open books are snot necessarily
in play in this district.
Please take the initiative to find out and ask that your PTO's
practices include the audits and regular reports at
monthly meetings and that the books are fully available to any
parent who asks to see them. Then designate
volunteers to do this at least every other month or once a
quarter.
http://www.timesherald.com/general-news/20150723/former-abington-pto-president-charged-with-stealing-19k
ENFORCING SCHOOL POLICIES ( please
contact us to join in the conversation )
ie: Is cell phone use allowed in certain areas and
tolerated throughout the building even during class
ACADEMIC STANDARDS
ie: Are
academic standards for the “college prep” classes high enough ?
NEWS THAT GETS BACK TO PARENTS
ie: Are parents or the community receiving all positive news,
leaving out for instance any mention of fights
or the need to call police , etc. Is the news we're getting
the whole news? Is it "balanced?
CLASSROOM AND BEHAVIOR STANDARDS
ie: In some classes , are students drowning out the teacher.
Are respect standards always in place
with some uniformity?
WHAT OTHER ISSUES WOULD BENEFIT FROM A HEALTHY DISCUSSION OR REVIEW?
contact
us and share your ideas....
GREAT
PLACE TO SEE SCHOOL PERFORMANCE AND TAXES
http://www.openpagov.org/school_taxes/sdefault.asp
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Our Educational Access Channel
6-09 Comcast Channel 938 and Verizon Channel 34
are the Education Access Channels. On Comcast few are likely to bump into it by "surfing "--
and some homes do not get those high numbers . Besides working
to get Comcast on a lower # channel, the school meetings that we
need to see should be shown in more week day hours & evening hours
to increase their viewing and get more awareness and involvement of
the Community. The Township channel should now just feature
highlights of the school's offerings and directions on how to get to
that channel.
See the
School's TV Schedule is how to find when it is
on. If you are interested in seeing improved content that is
NOT COMMERCIAL FOR EITHER FOR PROFIT OR NON-PROFIT please
contact us
___________________________
Help Ensure Use of School Facilities for Community
purposes :
When Community members seek space to discuss either
School District or Township issues, how their dollars are spent,
how programs are administered, etc the facilities that are
paid for with tax dollars should be available to them without
charge. It is important to foster the discussions that lead
to oversight of our programs and budgets. Instead we see
accommodations made for non-profit groups or others . Citizens
should not have to "form a non-profit" or be a member of one
to have a say in how their dollars are used . Please help us
work towards getting accommodation by any requesting resident for
discussions about the issues that affect the township and school.
Using School Facilities for Political Purposes
Despite a policy directing no use of School property for political
purposes, this policy was put aside by School board members to allow
multiple political addresses in 2008. While all of us recognize
the value of our children's involvement in the political process,
there is a strong sentiment by many about the putting aside of
policies in such a fashion. Some have expressed that, just as
policies should not be created without ample input and discussion by
& with residents, they also should not be changed without the
same due process. However much may be gained from the
experience for our young people, the question has been asked if the
same gain could have been realized had the students attended
at another local venue, such as at a local college, without the
negative precedent of our schools being used for political purposes
and of policies being put aside without due process.
COMMUNICATIONS POLICY
Does someone have a 2013 update on this issue?
On 8-12-08 at the School Board
meeting the new policy changes were discussed. Of particular concern
was the portion below - this portion was subsequently removed from
the policy before it passed and slated for further discussion. We
were assured we would be alerted when the policy discussion came up
again. This was the objectionable wording :
1. All contacts and communications
between the District Board of Directors and District personnel and
staff related to District operations shall be channeled through the
Superintendent.
2. In order to facilitate compliance
with this policy, District employees shall be advised that they
shall not contact or communicate with District Board members
directly without specific direction and permission from the
Superintendent.
(The above text may have been
amended at that meeting where the policy was approved.)
At the Aug 26th, 2008 meeting there will be a second reading
of the policy and it is possible there will be an attempt to pass
this policy among the many that were changed. We hope
this does not happen as this would be a terrible set-back to the
free communication that is necessary to a good system that has
as many checks and balances as possible in place. This would
tie the hands of the School Board members and put District
personnel is a place where they had only one person to
work with to make changes ----- and what if suggestions about THAT
one person were in order? How would that work?
Update:
We understand the policy was passed but do not have the final
wording .
Limiting the communication to and from the School
Board Members is not a good day for transparency.
I had asked to be alerted when the meeting was continued, so I could
comment before the vote & I
was assured by President McGarry I would be, but the vote came &
went without my knowledge.
______________
Advertising On Our Channel
Allowing any kind of advertising at all on
your access channel can be a very slippery slope. In 2008
our educational channel aired an RTI segment which did less to
explain what was happening in Abington Schools ( an interview
with staff or other Abington personnel would have been much more
informative ) and more to just promote RTI like any typical
commercial. In 2008 or early 2009 a "Commercial " for one of the
elementary schools was made. Is that really how we want
educational dollars spent? Do we want to know about the
real progress and challenges - or do we want PR? In 2009
a local bank who is a generous sponsor of local activities was
allowed air time that really can only be viewed, in my opinion,
as advertising. ALL sponsors - large & small - should
get equal billing in alphabetical order - or you create a
situation where dollars make the difference about who is on the air.
This is an educational channel . It is important that we guard
against such use. The struggle to get our meetings aired went
on for years. If commercial interests ( and yes - non-profits
are businesses, too) are allowed access in any way to our channel,
it will not be possible for our voices to be heard. We have no way
of competing with that. Without hearing the information from
meetings or other important presentations, we have no way to really
know whom to vote in or out. Far fewer people will see the
finances or know the issues. We have no forum to hear each other's
voices. We have 900 other channels for "entertainment" and
commercial use. It is important to safeguard the few "channels
of communication" that we have where our individual voices can
be heard and some oversight of our processes can be had.
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How many millions are being held in the Fund Balance?
6-10-09 As reported in the Times Chronicle the
School will be able to reduce millage this year rather than
increasing it. The millage rate will go from 27.29 to 27.09,
saving the average taxpayer $28.23 There is
an estimated $1.6 million coming from Stimulus money --- but
funds used to "balance" the budget included $8.4 million
from the Fund Balance . It was reported that
approximately $31.5 million would be left in the Fund Balance
---- so the amount that our School had in the Fund Balance
would appear to be near $40 million . This amount held is in
addition to the $10 million plus or minus in the Township Fund Balance
each year. (The required Township buffer is $2.5 million.) It
would appear that balancing our budget was possible because of funds
that were over-taxed in prior years. With 21,000 households in the
Township, as much as 2000 or more per household would
represent a figure of $40-$50 million. Some of the monies are
possibly being held for projects in the budget awaiting payment -
but what amount exactly falls under that category. When as
much as 10 million is readily accessible to balance a budget ( or
for other unspecified purposes) some questions arise. Is this an appropriate amount
to be holding and what was the stated purpose of these funds when
taxes were being raised to acquire them ?
In the article in the Times Chronicle one Board member
suggests that other districts will have to pass on to their
taxpayers major increases to support the "massive increases in
pension costs" . Our Fund Balance, he says, leaves us
prepared, he hopes to avoid that . OK - so if you over
tax early and hold on to our money, then you won't have to tax
us when a problem arises....? In Abington, as many as 12%
qualify for the school lunch program. I'm not sure how many
families overall are families struggling in these economic times
among those in the community this Board member serves, but
personally I believe that Abington residents would prefer to
have had their taxes reduced early on, and increased only as
serious, specified need arose.
What amount do we anticipate might be used for pension costs ? And
what amount is stated by law, or by policy or other decree, if any, to be held as a buffer?
These are additional questions still to answer.
SHARE OR CORRECT
Please feel free to
send your information to us and please be sure
to
contact us
About any information you believe to be
incorrect. Please verify info with your Township or School
authorities
before relying on
what you read here.
We do our best to get things right but we may
misunderstand or
miss a correction .......
This site is a forum for information sharing and idea sharing.
Please feel free to contact
us .
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