News

Education Alert! The following open letter signed by 79 school board members from across the state shows the high stakes in the November 8 election. If the R candidate, Doug Mastriano, becomes Governor, his plan is to slash already insufficient state support for public education, thereby precipitating a crisis in both education and property taxes. The D candidate, Josh Shapiro, on the other hand, promises to “fully fund our schools—especially those that have been chronically underfunded— and make critical investments we need like attracting and retaining quality teachers, repairing old and dangerously unhealthy buildings, and keeping pace with changing technology so our students are prepared for the future.”

Read on for the views of public officials whose job is to ensure the future of our community, state and country by educating tomorrow’s adults:

We, the undersigned, are elected School Board Directors tasked with ensuring that students across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania have access to a world-class public education that prepares them for life-long success. We are Democrats and Republicans, parents, grandparents, educators, students, from all walks of life, from all races and religions, and from all corners of Pennsylvania. But we have one thing in common – we all support the fair funding of public education. 

We strive to put our responsibilities as stewards of the public education systems in our respective school districts ahead of politics. We will work with anyone from any party if they share our goal of strengthening public education in Pennsylvania. 

Unfortunately, it has become clear to us that one of the candidates seeking the office of Governor of Pennsylvania not only disagrees with our goal of a strong public education system, he has publicly committed to destroying it. Doug Mastriano’s statements about making historic cuts to public education – pledging to cut more than 50% of state funding – are dangerously out of touch with the vast majority of Pennsylvania families. Moreover, his cuts threaten our children’s well-being, our financial well-being, and the overall well-being of communities across the Commonwealth.

Beyond the devastating impact to our students, these cuts would cause immediate mass layoffs of hardworking teachers and staff, from classroom aides to bus drivers to janitors to cafeteria workers. It would force massive property tax increases and have a ripple effect hurting businesses across Pennsylvania. There is no justification for such extreme measures and we are shocked that a major party candidate would even consider them, much less make them a central tenet of his campaign.

While there are many issues on which we are divided in this election, there is one that should unite us all: the funding of our public education system is not a political pawn. As schools start and students from Easton to Erie gear up for another year of learning, we urge all Pennsylvanians to support a candidate who believes education is central to a bright future. In this election, that candidate is Josh Shapiro. 

With best wishes for a fulfilling school year,