Along with the other bills that comprise a completed state spending plan, the General Assembly sent the Governor a bill amending the Public School Code. In addition to funding basic and special education for the upcoming fiscal year, H.B. 1642 (White, R-Philadelphia):

  • Provides for an industry-recognized credential attained by a student to be included on the student’s transcript.
  • Provides an alternative for a student to be deemed proficient for purposes of the Keystone Exam graduation requirement.
  • Reconstitutes the Special Education Funding Commission in 2024.
  • Establishes the Commission on Education and Economic Competitiveness.
  • Extends the Plancon moratorium through the 2022-23 fiscal year.
  • Provides for school mental health specialists and behavioral specialists working under the supervision on a certified school social worker.
  • Provides for the certification of out-of-state applicants for career and technical education certification.
  • Extends the continuing education compliance period deadline for professional educators.
  • Suspends continuing professional education requirements for school or system leaders for one year.
  • Establishes a structured literacy program for school-personnel.
  • Allows the Department of Education to issue a comparable certification to an out-of-state applicant.
  • Establishes a home education program.
  • Allows a student who attended school in the 2021-22 school year to request a diploma from the school they attended or a prior school or request a Keystone Diploma retroactive to the 2021-22 school year.
  • Raises the threshold amount for a student to be eligible for the nonprofit school food program.
  • Compiles information in order to issue a report on expenditures relating to exceptional students.
  • Extends the age for special education students to enroll due to COVID-19.
  • Establishes the terms for the School Safety and Security Committee.
  • Requires a survey of school mental health services.
  • Appropriates funds from the School Safety and Security Fund.
  • Ensures a school has appointed a school safety and security coordinator.
  • Provides school safety and security training.
  • Provides for school safety and security grants.
  • Provides for school mental health grants.
  • Provides for a school-based mental health internship grant program. 
  • Changes the Drug and Alcohol Recovery High School Pilot Program to a permanent program.
  • Requires high schools to enter into an agreement with an institution of higher education to allow students to attend the institution while they are enrolled in high school.
  • Establishes a Committee on Education Talent Recruitment.
  • Establishes an educational and professional development online course initiative.
  • Abolishes the Wolf Administration’s charter school regulations.
  • Establishes a disability inclusive curriculum.
  • Establishes a cosmetology and barber training through career and technical center pilot program.
  • Provides for a community college funding formula.
  • Requires the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to issue a report on the Rural Regional Community College.
  • Provides for the Councils of Trustees of the State System of Higher Education universities.
  • Makes changes to the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC), including increasing the total amount of tax credits available.
  • Allows for a Cambridge advanced exam to count towards credit for prior learning for college-level credits.
  • Provides for sexual violence, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking education prevention and response at institutions of higher education.
  • Requires the Public Higher Education Funding Commission to develop a performance-based funding model by June 2023.
  • Prohibits scholarship displacement at public institutions of higher education.
  • Increases the maximum household income for the Ready to Succeed Scholarship Program.
  • Provides funding for libraries.
  • Provides for the distribution of career and technical education funding.
  • Provides for the distribution of basic education funding.
  • Provides for the distribution of Level-Up funding for low performing schools.
  • Provides for the distribution of funding for intermediate units.
  • Provides for the distribution of funding for special education.
  • Provides assistance to school districts in financial recovery or financial watch status.
  • Provides for Ready-to-Learn Block Grant funding.