Parent Control of Sexually Explicit Content in Schools
The Senate passed Senate Bill 7; a bipartisan effort aimed at allowing parents to have more control over their children’s exposure to sexually explicit content in schools. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Ryan Aument, provides parents with information about such content and allows them to limit their child’s access to it. Critics argue that the bill is a form of book banning and targets LGBTQ materials, but Sen. Aument denies these claims, asserting that the bill only identifies sexually explicit content and allows parents to decide if it’s suitable for their children, without removing any books from school libraries. The bill will now proceed to the House of Representatives for consideration.
Mandating Armed Security Officers in Schools
The Senate Education Committee recently approved Senate Bill 907, which would enhance student safety by mandating armed security officers in schools. This decision comes after extensive discussions on school safety, where various stakeholders stressed the importance of increased protection for students. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Mike Regan, requires every public school building to have an armed, trained, and vetted school security officer.
Career & Technical Instructional I Certification Adjustment
Currently, individuals can earn a Career and Technical Instructional I Certificate by demonstrating 8,000 hours (equivalent to 4 years of full-time work) of relevant wage-earning experience and passing a basic skills assessment. Senate Bill 700 aims to streamline the certification process by granting instructors a Career and Technical Instructional I Certificate if they have a minimum of 8,000 hours (equivalent to 4 years of full-time work) in relevant wage-earning experience, as a volunteer firefighter or public safety officer in the field they intend to teach, or experience teaching post-secondary courses in that field.
Annual Instructional Time Modification
House Bill 1507 was passed by the Senate Education Committee on October 24, 2023, and was subsequently referred to the Senate Appropriations Committee on October 25, 2023. The bill aims to provide greater flexibility in scheduling instructional time for school districts, intermediate units, and career and technical centers. This change is intended to enable more personalized education, enhanced student support, and a stronger focus on workforce development. Currently, the law mandates that all public kindergartens, elementary and secondary schools must remain open for a minimum of 180 days and provide 900/990 hours of instruction each school year. However, this legislation seeks to modify the requirement to either 180 days or 900/990 hours of instruction per year, offering more options for educational institutions.
Public Hearing Held on School Bus Driver Shortage
On October 30, the Pennsylvania House Education Committee conducted a public hearing to address the ongoing school bus driver shortage, which has led to longer bus rides and disrupted schedules for students and parents. Suggestions to combat the shortage from testifiers was the full implementation of a school-bus-only commercial driver’s license. Earlier in the year, PennDOT temporarily waived the “under the hood” training requirement for CDLs to mitigate the shortage, but there is uncertainty about what will happen when the waiver is lifted.
The committee also discussed the Pupil Transportation Subsidy formula, which determines the state’s financial support to school districts for transportation costs. Benjamin Handft from the Pennsylvania Department of Education revealed that there hasn’t been a substantial update to this formula in over 20 years.
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