PA Schools Work Commends Governor and State Legislature on Protecting Schools from State Funding Cuts
Calls for Continued Bipartisan Federal and State Action to Keep Students on Track
HARRISBURG, PA (May 28, 2020) — The statewide education advocacy campaign PA Schools Work issued the following statement on passage of a stop-gap state budget for 2020-21:
We commend the state legislature and the governor for prioritizing Pennsylvania students and protecting our schools by providing flat funding for public education for the entire school year. It is a recognition that our schools are essential to our communities and the foundation for our economic recovery.
School districts are projected to experience massive local revenue losses of as much as $1 billion, while dealing with increased demands associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, such as additional cleaning, food services, health and mental health services, technology needs, and measures to provide safe social distancing when the schools reopen.
This crisis will have an indelible, negative impact on public schools for years to come. State leaders making Pennsylvania’s students a priority is honorable, and we urge them to continue to do so as the full impact of the coronavirus and resulting economic downturn becomes clearer. The inequities of our school funding system are being amplified during this crisis and more will need to be done to address them when the state emerges from the pandemic.
We will continue to work with local lawmakers to urge Congress to provide additional emergency funding for public schools in Pennsylvania and across the nation in the next federal stimulus package. Additional federal funding is critical to helping close the wide gap in local revenues and ensure that our children do not fall behind academically.
PA Schools Work is a non-partisan coalition of organizations from across Pennsylvania representing teachers and other educators; urban, suburban and rural communities; and parents and community members working together to advocate for PA public schools, their students and the communities they serve. For more information on PA Schools Work, visit paschoolswork.org.
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