Carbon County school officials weighed in on new state requirements and what they are doing to make sure students get the best education possible.

During the Carbon County Child and Family Collaborative meeting on Wednesday, Scot Engler, superintendent of Palmerton Area School District; Dr. Barbara Conway, superintendent of Jim Thorpe Area School District; and Brent Borzak, principal at Carbon Career & Technical Institute in Jim Thorpe; sat in on a panel discussion to answer questions members of the collaborative may have.Jeanne Miller, co-chair of the collaborative, explained that the discussion was meant to help agencies involved in the collaborative understand the procedures at the schools and find ways to better serve the students."One of the things that is really important to the collaborative is the relationship with the school districts, because we all know there is a lot of interaction between agencies and school districts and policymakers," she said. "We're all a team trying to work to improve the quality of life in Carbon County."Topics included the new Pennsylvania Performance Profile, which evaluates a school's performance on multiple levels; Pennsylvania Common Core; initiatives at the schools; and struggles that the schools face.PennsylvaniaPerformance ProfileWith regard to the performance profiles, Borzak explained that it is a way to show where schools need improvement; as well as work to make themselves as good as they can be. With the profiles being online, it also allows parents to compare schools when deciding on education for their student.Borzak noted that CCTI had the highest score using 2011-2012 PSSA data out of all career and technical schools last year. This year, CCTI is second highest.Conway said that she looks at the profile as a measuring tool to see what areas need more work. The profile looks at not only PSSA scores, but also departments, initiatives and programs at the school to give a more comprehensive look overall.Engler said Palmerton is also using it as a measuring tool to see where they can improve. But, he noted that the school is also using it to see money lost to cyber and charter schools, which may not be performing as high as Palmerton."We're losing students and funds to schools that are performing 25 percent lower than we are," Engler said, noting that the administration will be looking at ways to bring students back to the school instead of attending cyber or charter schools.Common CoreWhen asked about the Pennsylvania Common Core initiative, the teachers said it has its pros and cons."In theory it's good, but we weren't given the resources or training," Engler said, adding that the school is slightly behind in preparations, being that the staff had not been prepared for it and is currently in the process of getting trained.Conway said she believes the misconception that Common Core is an attempt by state and federal government to take away local control is untrue."You still have local control," she said, adding that there are not a set of textbooks that schools must purchase; rather there are guidelines that must be followed.Conway said that one thing she likes about this new way of learning is that it includes a lot of self discovery, provides student inquiry and higher level thinking; and allows students who are moving in or out of the school district to be on the same level.Both Conway and Engler credited the Carbon-Lehigh Intermediate Unit for its help with getting teachers trained.Borzak said that CCTI has been preparing teachers and has mapped out three key subjects algebra 1, biology and literature based on Keystone exams.He agreed that Common Core provides schools with consistency."Of the 500 school districts, everyone should be getting taught the same course materials," Borzak said. "It gets everyone moving toward a common goal and is fair to everyone."Options and issuesIn addition to Common Core, the schools have been working on creating more options for students.CCTI will now start offering AP literature and calculus beginning next school year, as well as building articulation agreements with schools and the state. They have also adapted the areas of study to help better prepare the students to enter a workforce after graduation or go on to a post-secondary school.At Jim Thorpe, the school is adding European world history and chemistry to its AP courses.Conway noted that the state has kept schools busy because of mandates it is requiring.Engler agreed, saying that the state requirements continue to come in almost daily.He added that Palmerton is also adding to its AP courses next year, including an economics course.The problem, Engler pointed out, was "where do you fit all this in?"Engler, Conway and Borzak commended the collaborative and the county agencies for taking the initiative and looking at ways to make programs better for students.They highlighted the SHINE Afterschool program, which touches the lives of students at each school."SHINE is second to none," Borzak said, adding that it helps expose students to possible career opportunities at a young age.They also agreed that the main issue schools wish they could fix was financing."The common thing is the financial struggle," Engler said. "If I could snap my fingers, we would have the financial resources needed to get to the vision we have for the school.""The burden in Pennsylvania has for too long been on the taxpayers for school taxes to support the schools," Conway added.