Governance
Many regulations and programs regarding elementary, secondary, and higher education are administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, which is led by the Secretary of Education appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the State Senate.
The current Secretary of Education is Ron Tomalis was confirmed on April 26, 2011 by the Pennsylvania Senate. The vote was unanimous. Dr. Gerald L. Zahorchak was nominated by Governor Edward Rendell and confirmed by the Senate on February 7, 2006 He served until. Dr. Zahorchak, a career educator, previously served as the deputy secretary for elementary and secondary education, and as the superintendent of the Greater Johnstown School District. He stepped down in May 2010 to take the position of Superintendent of the Allentown School District.
The State Board of Education is the principal administrative regulatory body for elementary, secondary, and higher education in the state. It has numerous responsibilities, including approving or disapproving an application for the creation of a new school district, or change in the boundaries of an existing school district; applying for and administering federal grants for education; adopting master plans for basic and higher education; and adopting policies for the Secretary of Education to apply in regulating schools and universities.
The State Board of Education has 22 members, ten of whom serve as the Board’s Council of Basic Education and ten of whom serve on the Board’s Council of Higher Education. Seventeen members are appointed by the Governor, with the approval of the Senate, and each serves a six-year term. Four members of the Board are members of the General Assembly who serve as long as they hold majority and minority chairs of the House and Senate Education Committees. The current chairperson of the State Board of Education, also appointed by the Governor, is Joe Torsella. The Secretary of Education serves as the chief executive officer of the Board and does not vote as a member of the Board.
The state is divided into 29 intermediate units, which provide services to the 500 public school districts and 2,400 non-public institutions.
Read more about this topic: Education In Pennsylvania
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—Geoffrey Chaucer (1340?–1400)