The following are several key pieces of legislative or funding events that the Malady & Wooten team has accomplished in the education arena.

• Spearheaded the lobbying effort to secure a legislative override of Governor Rendell’s veto of the 2010 omnibus school code bill, which banned the assessment of taxes to charter schools.  This historic override was the first in Pennsylvania since 1993.

• Led the successful effort to ban capping enrollment in Pennsylvania charter schools.  This statutory change was upheld by the Commonwealth Court.

• Defeated,many times over, several years of intense lobbying efforts by educational establishment interest groups and unions to cut funding for cyber charter schools.

• Led the effort to amend the charter school law to enable charters to borrow for capital improvements.

• Successfully persuaded the Department of Education to revamp the early education assessment system to provide a choice in vendors.

• Helped one charter school gain approval in three municipalities in the Commonwealth.

• Assisted in the creation and subsequent expansion of the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program.  The EITC enables the business community to direct their tax dollars towards non-public school scholarships and innovative programs in public (including charter) schools.

• Led the effort in 2006 to obtain a $12 million federal grant for Pennsylvania to dedicate to expanding charter schools.

• Secured $500,000 in annual funding to provide school-based mentoring services to more than 1,000 additional children.

• Secured $500,000 in capital funding for a western Pennsylvania performing arts center that houses a large charter school.

• Led the effort to include the Pennsylvania Chartered Schools for the Deaf and Blind to be eligible for School Safety and Security grant funding.

• Secured over $3 million in capital funding dollars for the Pennsylvania Chartered Schools for the Deaf and Blind

• Developed a successful strategy for the Commonwealth to fund a portion of the PSERS employer contributions for the Pennsylvania Chartered Schools for the Deaf and Blind

• Successfully advocated for an amendment to the school code to enable charter school students to participate in Pennsylvania’s dual enrollment program.