See this link:
http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/The-Pittsburgh-Promise-Board-prnews-1825794155.html?x=0
The link is a "press release" style announcement that the Promise board has approved doubling the original 20k scholarship to 40k contingent on certain requirements. However, the increase to 40k was announced some time back, and the Promise website just lists the requirement for receiving 40k rather than 20k as passing the state graduation exam.
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The PG's news update goes right along with the idea that the increase in Promise money to $40k is something new and just now being offered contingent on the Advanced PSSA/ 600 SAT requirement.
But, even now the Promise website says "Once Pittsburgh Public Schools implements such an exam, the maximum scholarship award from The Pittsburgh Promise will increase to $10,000 each year for students who pass the graduation exam."
http://pittsburghpromise.org/faq.html
This website puts the distribution of students receiving an 1800 on the SAT as the top 17% of test takers:
http://www.manhattanreview.com/sat/take-the-sat/scores-faq/
The distribution may well similar for Advanced PSSA's.
Gotta believe that the change in requirements is in direct response to problems raising funds. Look for an announcement of a contribution by a foundation, now that requirements have been increased.
Bait & Switch/ Smoke & Mirrors
KDKA radio news also make it sound like the additional dollars are new. Has anyone heard an explanation of the 600 SAT number? Is it an either/or kind of thing with critical reading and math?
Were teachers and counselors, (the ones responsible for getting kids Promise Ready) as blindsided by the new guidelines as parents and some kids were? Keeping teachers and counselors informed, especially ahead of time would be the right thing to do since they are charged with convincing kids attaining readiness is possible.
At the information session I went to the amount was going up to 10 thousand a year starting in 2012. Nothing about PSSA.
To get the full amount they need an advanced or 600 in each of the 3areas: reading, writing and math.
The marketing strategy once again is to take a difficult piece of information (new demanding Promise requirements) and package it as good news (the scholarship amount is doubling!).
From a December 2009 Tribune article- the increase to 10k/year had already been announced by the time of this article over a year ago- the only thing that is new are the new requirements:
"The Promise provides up to $5,000 annually in scholarship money to city school graduates who have at least a 2.5 grade-point average and 90 percent attendance. The annual scholarship will increase to $10,000 per year in 2012. Students can choose to attend any private or public school in Pennsylvania."
Read more: BNY Mellon makes $500K gift to Pittsburgh Promise - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/breaking/s_658940.html#ixzz1E4DSyVNs
please folks understand i seen this coming down the pike when you talk about additional dollars soon or later there would be some restriction as the Promise Scholarship continue to rise you will see even more of a restriction
it is called accountability now they are really just coming out the gate the PARTY is over this is where the rubber meets the road so just buckle your seat belt and go for the ride enclosing even when you go to borrow that kind of money for college there is restriction also nothing new under the sun soon or later you have to draw the line!!!!! somewhere instead of kicking the CAN down the
ROAD
PG article:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11047/1125652-53.stm
The article explains that this year's 11th graders, who take the PSSA's on March 14, actually need to score Advanced to receive the full $10k a year. If they score proficient in reading they receive $1k; proficient in writing they receive $1k; or proficient in math they receive $2k. The announcement has been made just in time to warn students of the new requirements.
Teaching to the test just became even more pressing.
That's probably the point. If the foundations are going to contribute all this money they want something to show for it- something that can be clearly calculated. But it's too bad they didn't realize that when the program began, before publicizing the limited eligibility requirements.
We must continue to document that $10,000 per year was what was promised. If this program is ultimately for the purpose of attracting upper income families back to the City of Pittsburgh, that is a worthy goal. Yet, that was not it stated goal. There are many regular working folks who give to the promise through the United Way. It is quite possible that there individuals and businesses who might look at the program differently if it is a program primarily for upper income families.
We must be diligent that this program gives those families who need the"promise" the support they need to realize the dreams they have for their child. Please, recall the discussion a few years ago about increasing the grade point requirement.
I believe that the financial needs of the Promise are not obtainable in Pittsburgh at this time. I once heard Mark Roosevelt remark that the total yearly amount could be 27 million when fully up and funding.
If it can not keep the $40,000 per year promise, that is understandable. But, We must prioritize those who may not realize their dreams of a college education without "the Promise."
I'm not sure if anyone is aware of this, but the 9th graders were promised $40,000 at the beginning of this year for getting a 2.5 and having 90% attendance. They were ALREADY promised it! Teachers have been using that to motivate students. Now, teachers are made to look like liars again. They first looked like liars when they told the 9th graders this year that they would be with them for two years to watch over them. What else can we lie to the kids about? Does no one else realize that this puts teachers at an even greater disadvantage for making change and getting kids to see that they need to succeed?
I'd love to have a week where parents, Bellefield employees and other community members who are making these decisions come teach a class for a week to see what teachers really have to deal with in the day.
**Clarification**
I believe I heard Mark Roosevelt say 27 million dollars A YEAR. I omitted he 27 mil was anually.
Realistically, the only college where 5k/year really makes a dent in tuition is CCAC (see http://www.ccac.edu/default.aspx?id=147459), where the money would go far in covering tuition, books and more. So the whole idea that "From here you can go anywhere" on posters for the Promise is rather misleading. Especially because when today's 6th graders attend college 7 to 11 years from now, 5k will be worth even less. Families need to be encouraged to continue saving as much as possible for college despite the Promise.
For the 2010-11 school year, Penn State tuition (main campus), room, and board is about $24,000- not including books and everyday expenses. the $5000 is a nice amount, since the school does not have financial aid for middle class families. It certainly can not be considered reachable for many students without other financial aid.
So the question is, would the average lower income student (ie, a student not qualifying for the honors college) be given 20k/year or so in financial aid by Penn State?
One thing I just thought about is how achieving advanced proficiency can discriminate against students with IEP's, typical students who may have met the previous grade point average but only scores basic or proficient.
As with so many other decisions, it would be good to know the thinking behind the eligibility requirement and how it relates to special ed students. Did the Promise board consider this issue?
http://www.pittsburghpa.gov/mayor/files/2-15-11_pghpromise.pdf
or
http://www.pittsburghpa.gov/mayor/files/2-15-11_pghpromise.pdf
Mayor's press release.
The press release shows that the mayor's office is also portraying the change as an "opportunity."
It also clarifies that for this year's 11th graders who score only proficient- the 4k is awarded over 4 years not per year. So for a proficient student the maximum award over 4 years is $24k.
It is interesting that the Tribune is apparently not reporting on this "increased scholarship amount" at all. If it was a real increase in scholarship opportunities a Tribune article would be expected.
Does this new opportunity indicate that upward achievement criteria can be met by students through more 'effort' on the part of the student WITHOUT a corresponding educational process that advances achievement by high quality instruction and curricula?
I'd just like to see one of the two newspapers report it accurately. You know, perhaps by using their own archives!
There were always going to be limits on the additional money, that's true, but what they've come up with now is not comparable to what they talked about when it was first announced.
If the HS exit exams are going to be the equivalent of getting 600s on SATs, while the average SAT score (nationwide and not all kids take them) is 500, graduation rates are going to plummet!
Another voice:
http://alleghenyinstitute.org/component/content/article/630-promise-program-sends-a-better-message.html
The Allegheny post applauds the higher standards, but the fact is that all Advanced/ 600's are going to be out of reach for a lot of students no matter how hard they study. 500 w/ special provisions for special ed would be more realistic.
The Allegheny post like newspapers also refers to a $145M endowment- but can all the money really be counted as endowed if it is contingent on matching funds of 150% being raised? The actual amount received at this point seems to be around $65M. The plan was for a $250M endowment.
Just for kicks I pulled my kid's SAT results and PSSA results out of my file. I wanted to see what she'd get if she were just now a junior. She scored Advanced on all PSSA areas (except Science, but don't mention that discipline to the PP Board or they will again revise the qualifying process, lol). She did not exceed the 600 mark for Math on the SAT.
Any freshman parent seeing the end of the first year is grateful to all the Promise contributors. The latest developments in qualifying reminded me of the discussion among parents during the very first intro to the Promise night presentation from Mr. Ghubril. There was a thought that it was a pity there was not an added merit based award imbeded in the promise plan. What we see now are the merit based portions of the Promise.
At meetings when the Promise was being planned (5 years ago?), they presented a two tier system: 5K/year for 2.5/90% attendance, then, beginning in 2012, 10K/year if you passed the graduation exams the state was going to have in place by 2012.
So this is not a change in policy, this is how the program has been designed from its inception. Now, they are replacing state graduation exams with PSSA or SATs scores. I called the PP office and asked if the SAT/PSSA requirement *replaced* the state exams permanently. The woman I spoke to said it is only until the Keystone exams are being used, then the additional money is award based on passing the Keystone exams.
The Promise website still states:
Following the lead of many high-achieving states, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is considering requiring a high school graduation exam. Once Pittsburgh Public Schools implements such an exam, the maximum scholarship award from The Pittsburgh Promise will increase to $10,000 each year for students who pass the graduation exam. Given the opportunity to double the annual scholarship award from $5,000 to $10,000 each year, the Pittsburgh Public Schools will work collaboratively with the State to implement a graduation exam for the Class of 2012. Students who do not pass the graduation exam but fulfill all other eligibility requirements will continue to be eligible to earn a scholarship award of up to $5,000 annually.
If the problem is Keystone exams not being ready, it would make sense to use a comparable substitute. Advanced PSSA's seem much more difficult than Keystone exams are likely to be. Certainly graduation exams will not be the equivalent of 600 SAT's. So there does seem to be a change in the level of achievement required to earn the full scholarship amount for the class of 2012 on until there is a Keystone exam.
Mark,
What does the word "promise" mean? I recall reading articles about familes moving to PPS due to the "Pittsburgh Promise".
Families with B students that invested in the "Promise" got hosed.
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