PA Senate Democrats

FOR EVERY PENNSYLVANIAN

Education

Education

We have accomplished a lot toward providing more funding to public school over the past eight years, But, as the Fair Funding court case rightly points out, we have a lot more to do. Educational opportunities should not be determined by a zip code – ALL students deserve access to high-quality education regardless of where they live, what they look like, or how they learn. PA Senate Dems are focused on removing roadblocks and providing robust, fair, and equitable educational opportunities for all Pennsylvania’s students.

  • Commit to fund schools at the state level
    • Provide funding fairly across districts – based on need and size of district
    • Utilize the Fair Funding Formula
  • Address the teacher and school personnel shortage by providing school district with the resources to retrain and recruit staff to ensure a high quality education.
  • Ensure that children are prepared for school, including access to the technology they need to succeed in the classrooms and the meals they need before and during the school day
  • Make higher education accessible to students of all socio-economic backgrounds by adopting and strengthen PASSHE schools and community colleges
  • Ensure that school buildings are free of lead, mold, and any contamination that may have adverse health impacts and provide state funding for remediation
  • Expand career and technical training
  • Nurture a strong education system creates a strong workforce and strong economy
    • CTE and job training programs will meet demands of new economy (including the post-COVID, technology-related job losses)
    • Expand access to and funding for apprenticeships and union partnerships that are imperative to workforce needs
    • Use state and community colleges for job training purposes
    • Work with the private sector to design customized job training opportunities
  • Reform charter schools so that they meet the same rigorous standards that our traditional public school districts must attain
  • Aid struggling schools so that all students may have the same opportunity to succeed regardless of their zip code
  • Recent studies have shown that there remain systemic racism within our state’s system of higher education. We need to root out racism at every level, but we can not tolerate it within our state institutions.
  • Retain highly skilled and experienced educators by requiring public schools to pay a minimum base salary that reflects the important work our teachers do
  • Address equity and racism in our education systems
  • Provide mental and behavioral health treatment access, especially as we exit the pandemic