Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski (D-Luzerne) and House Education Minority Chairman Rep. James Roebuck (D-Philadelphia) delivered 15,000 statements and petitions to the Governor’s Office to request restoration of public school funding in the state budget. The lawmakers met with Education Secretary Ronald Tomalis outside the Governor’s Reception Room, and the Secretary received the petitions on behalf of Gov. Corbett.

The impromptu meeting focused on cuts to public education programs; Rep. Pashinski expressed the necessity of those programs for students, as it aids them to achieving Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). “To eliminate those programs, and expect the public schools to perform is just incomprehensible — it doesn’t work,” he said.

Rep. Pashinski called for $300 million to help school districts pay for basic public education and their programs.

Sec. Tomalis noted that the “biggest cuts” to public education occurred in 2008-09, and that the prior administration used federal stimulus money to augment that loss. Given that the federal stimulus money has now diminished, the Secretary stated that Governor’s administration has been increasing state funding for public education over the 2008-09 level. “There are more state dollars going into public education than ever before,” Sec. Tomalis said.

Sec. Tomalis stated that the Department of Education’s budget has increased. “The taxpayer dollars that have gone into public education has gone from $13 billion a year to $26 a year,” he said.

The debate touched on other avenues to improve funding to the 500 struggling school districts in the Commonwealth. Rep. Pashinski acknowledged that cyber charter schools are being overpaid by $100 million to an estimated $300 million. 

Sec. Tomalis noted that every child has different needs, and some of those needs are met at charter schools. He stated that as charter schools are considered to be the alternate to public schools, it remains in the public school code as public schools.

Source: myPLS, The Eye Opener, June 26, 2012.