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Education

Old Main is pictured on the Penn State University campus in State College, Pennsylvania.

State funding for Temple, Penn State caught in Pa. budget impasse

by Samuel O’Neal for Spotlight PA

The Pennsylvania state Capitol in Harrisburg.

Pa. legislature at budget impasse as House Democrats vow to oppose $100M for private school vouchers

by Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PA and Katie Meyer of Spotlight PA

Desks inside a classroom.

Debate over publicly funded private school vouchers could push Pa. budget past June 30 deadline

by Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA and Kate Huangpu of Spotlight PA

Desks and chairs sit empty in a classroom at Loring Flemming Elementary School in Blackwood, N.J.

Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro affirms support for funding private school vouchers amid budget push

by Katie Meyer of Spotlight PA

Desks and chairs sit empty in a classroom at Loring Flemming Elementary School in Blackwood, New Jersey.

Pa. budget 2023: How a landmark school funding lawsuit is shaping negotiations

by Katie Meyer of Spotlight PA

The state Capitol building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Disputes over education spending, cash reserves emerge as Pa. budget deadline approaches

by Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA

Desks are shown in a classroom.

Pa. officials spent $12.6M on private lawyers to fight challenge to state’s education funding

by Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PA

PA uses two formulas to decide how much state money to send to each school district, one of which is seen as outdated.

Shapiro, Pa. lawmakers may face multibillion-dollar budget question after major school funding ruling

by Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA

Legislation sponsored by Republican state Sens. Ryan Aument and Scott Martin of Lancaster County would ban classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in kindergarten through fifth grade, claiming it’s not “age appropriate.”

Efforts to ban, restrict LGBTQ curriculum in Pa. schools hinge on who becomes the next governor

by Ethan Edward Coston of Spotlight PA

Pitt, Penn State, Lincoln University, and Temple University receive taxpayer dollars each year to subsidize in-state tuition.

Wolf quietly steers $40 million to Pitt, Pa.’s other state-related universities

by Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA

Empty desks and chairs are pictured in a classroom at Loring Flemming Elementary School in Blackwood, N.J., on Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020. The school is on a hybrid in-person and virtual learning model due to the coronavirus pandemic.

New Pa. budget injects $125M into private school tax credit program that lacks basic accountability

by Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PA

6 ways to engage with our new State College regional bureau

by Spotlight PA State College Staff

Wyatt Massey

Meet Wyatt Massey, Penn State investigative reporter for Spotlight PA State College

by Wyatt Massey of Spotlight PA State College

Help us monitor potential health hazards in Pennsylvania schools by filling out a short survey on the condition of your district or building.

It's hard to track the conditions of Pa. schools. Spotlight PA wants your help flagging health hazards.

by Jamie Martines of Spotlight PA

A budget report from the Independent Fiscal Office concluded that “there is little or no correlation” between spending on public schools and test scores.

Budget report on Pa. education agency provokes spat between lawmakers, watchdogs

by Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA

The tax credit program funds scholarships for students at private and parochial schools.

A massive Pa. corporate tax break lacks basic accountability, report finds

by Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA

Rampant misinformation makes vetting candidates for Pennsylvania's coming school board races especially important.

A basic guide to vetting your local candidates in Pennsylvania’s 2021 school board elections

by Ethan Edward Coston of Spotlight PA

Experts say testing is one way to verify whether mitigation efforts, like masks and social distancing, are working.

Many Pa. school districts are passing up free coronavirus testing even after a rise in cases

by Jamie Martines of Spotlight PA

Robert Heist, a board member at Milton Hershey School, sued his own board, saying it withheld financial records he wanted to fulfill his oversight duties at the wealthy private school for low-income children.

‘Have they locked the doors?’ Judge presses for details on Hershey charity spat with board member

by Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA and Bob Fernandez of The Philadelphia Inquirer

With $17.4 billion in assets, the Milton Hershey School is the wealthiest K-12 school in the U.S., endowed with the profits of the Fortune 500-ranked Hershey candy company. Its mission: to educate low-income and at-risk children, at no cost, at a residential school in central Pennsylvania.

How the state’s richest charity spends its money: The Milton Hershey School, by the numbers

by Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA

The Milton Hershey School has struggled for decades to reconcile its runaway financial growth with its founding mission to “break the cycle of poverty.”

Sold on the promise of a college education, some former Milton Hershey School students ended up with debt, hardships

by Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA and Bob Fernandez of The Philadelphia Inquirer

Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, said he believed the decades-old state education funding formula is inadequate and has historically shortchanged schools in both urban and rural districts hanging on by a financial thread.

Wolf sticks by $1 billion plan to close Pa.’s education gap, minus his proposed tax increase

by Shaniece Holmes Brown for Spotlight PA

Photo illustration by ProPublica; source image: Milton Hershey School, MHS 2018 IRS Form 990

America’s richest school serves low-income kids. But much of its Hershey-funded fortune isn’t being spent.

by Bob Fernandez of The Inquirer and Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA

Chancellor Daniel Greenstein said the plan will involve the creation of “precise goals, action steps, and evaluation measures.”

Pa.’s state university system adopts strategy to address campus racism

by Colin Deppen of Spotlight PA

Robert Heist, a board member at Milton Hershey School, sued his own board, saying it withheld financial records he wanted to fulfill his oversight duties at the wealthy private school for low-income children.

Board member sues powerful Hershey School, claims he’s being denied financial records

by Bob Fernandez of The Inquirer and Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA

Only a fraction of state education funding actually goes through a far funding formula, designed to help poor and underfunded districts.

The $1 billion plan to close the gap between growing and shrinking Pa. school districts

by Cynthia Fernandez of Spotlight PA

PASSHE Chancellor Daniel Greenstein said he was committed to eliminating racism and the achievement gap on campus, but offered few specific new initiatives beyond what the university system has done in the past.

Head of Pa.’s public university system to examine historic roots of racism in state schools

by Jamie Martines of Spotlight PA

The Milton Hershey School.

Did you go to Milton Hershey School? Tell us about your experience.

by Charlotte Keith of Spotlight PA, Bob Fernandez of The Philadelphia Inquirer, Beena Raghavendran of ProPublica, and Zipporah Osei of ProPublica

The report was prepared for a Commonwealth Court judge as part of an ongoing suit that contends Pennsylvania is failing to provide a “thorough and efficient” system of education.

See how much funding your Pa. school district is owed, according to a new report

by Spotlight PA Staff

In this file photo, a student walks into a classroom at Jay Cooke Elementary in North Philadelphia. Philadelphia is among the school districts most shortchanged by the way Pennsylvania funds public education, according to a new analysis in a lawsuit challenging the system.

Pa. schools need an additional $4.6 billion to close education gaps, new analysis finds

by Cynthia Fernandez of Spotlight PA and Maddie Hanna of The Philadelphia Inquirer

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