Our schools need more funding
The budget Gov. Josh Shapiro has unveiled has both political parties starting their arguments. The left wants greater increases in funding than we have had in a long time. The right says they would have to cut services and raise the state income tax or sales taxes.
Last year, Shapiro asked for more funding for districts like those in Fayette and Greene counties that have a lower property tax base than more affluent areas. Students in those counties deserve the same opportunities as those in Peters Township, Upper St Clair, Fox Chapel and Hempfield. But we can’t offer them that opportunity because of the difference in tax bases. The courts have ruled we deserve more. Republican legislators have said no, but they do want to give more money in vouchers to nonpublic schools and not properly fund cyber schools.
Our public school districts and state universities are in dire need of more funding.
Why does Pennsylvania have some of the highest tuition for in-state students of any colleges in the country? The University of Pittsburgh has the second-highest tuition rate at nearly $20,000 per year, and Penn State comes in around $19,000. Add room, board, and fees and you are over $30,000 per year in a state school.
How can a few states, such as Florida and North Carolina, offer tuitions in the range of $7,000 per year? It’s simple. They are funded at a much higher rate than Pennsylvania. We have students leaving our colleges with debt they will be paying back for at least 20 years. But our legislators say that we would have to raise taxes in order to lower tuition. It still comes back to families and all property owners paying more, but legislators don’t want to raise taxes which is good for their election prospects.
Our public schools and many districts throughout Pennsylvania are surviving right now on federal COVID-19 money, and will be for the next two years. Once that is exhausted, we will be in millions of dollars in debt. Come visit Connellsville schools and check our class sizes. Our elementary classrooms are pushing their limits. We couldn’t get rid of one elementary teacher in any grade without having class sizes jump from 25 to 38. The same goes for the local county schools.
Our legislators are depriving our students of the most valuable asset they could receive, a quality education. So please stop playing the tax card and make an investment in our future.
Stop using our children’s education as a political football
Bob Renzi
Connellsville
Bob Renzi is a member of the Connellsville Area School Board.