Pa's right-wing governor drains public schools of basic funds --the sickening details will shock you

[DonViejo]

“Indescribably insane”: A public school system from hell

Pennsylvania's right-wing governor drains public schools of basic funds -- and the sickening details will shock you

BY AARON KASE

Want to see a public school system in its death throes? Look no further than Philadelphia. There, the school district is facing end times, with teachers, parents and students staring into the abyss created by a state intent on destroying public education.

On Thursday the city of Philadelphia announced that it would be borrowing $50 million to give the district, just so it can open schools as planned on Sept. 9, after Superintendent William Hite threatened to keep the doors closed without a cash infusion. The schools may open without counselors, administrative staff, noon aids, nurses, librarians or even pens and paper, but hey, kids will have a place to go and sit.

The $50 million fix is just the latest band-aid for a district that is beginning to resemble a rotting bike tube, covered in old patches applied to keep it functioning just a little while longer. At some point, the entire system fails.

Things have gotten so bad that at least one school has asked parents to chip in $613 per student just so they can open with adequate services, which, if it becomes the norm, effectively defeats the purpose of equitable public education, and is entirely unreasonable to expect from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.

full article:
http://www.salon.com/2013/08/19/indescribably_insane%E2%80%9D_philadelphias_public_school_nightmare/

[life long demo]

1. This is so sad. We have to get Corbett and his rethug friends out

They are destroying PA from the ground up.

[atreides1]

9. Not all their fault

Let's take a step down the rung of this Republican ladder! The voters share in this attack, it was the voters who gave control to the Republicans!

And if anyone seriously thinks that these very same voters are going to vote differently in November, I believe you're wrong!

[BillStein]

10. pennsyltucky voters

They don't care about the schools in Philadelphia

[aggiesal]

12. The city of Philadelphia . . .

voted for this governor?

[BlueDemKev]

24. No, but many Philadelphians NEVER BOTHERED TO VOTE IN 2010!

Which is why Corbett was elected along with Toomey! When Democrats get out and vote, we win. When they don't bother to vote, we lose. It's that simple.

[aggiesal]

25. OK, I'll agree with . . .

your statement that it was the non-voters of Philadelphia that
allowed Corbett to get elected.

I original reply was that, I didn't believe the citizens of Philadelphia would
elect a Republican governor.

[BlueDemKev]

28. Not Voting = Voting Republican

If, on average, there are 6 Democratic voters for every 5 Republican voters, and 2 of those Democratic voters do not vote, the Republican candidate will win by a 55.5% to 44.4% margin.

[Mnemosyne]

19. We have cross-filing in Pa., unaware voters have voted for R's without realizing it for years. nt

[enough]

2. Sickening is right. (nt)

[BumRushDaShow]

3. Elections have consequences

and this whole situation is disgusting. The man HAS to go! GOTV in PA 2014!

[jpak]

4. The ALEC/Koch plan to destroy pubic education so they can privatize it

yup

[DebJ]

5. 442 days until I get to vote against him. Can't wait.

[UCmeNdc]

6. The GOP is set on making sure you do not succeed in life

Every American should look at this as an example of the GOP's policies and their contempt for the middle class.
Without education the GOP and their corporate masters know they can enslave you.

[Thav]

7. I have been lobbying hard to keep charters from expanding in my state.

My state rep is ranking member on education. I constantly send her stuff. Thanks for this.

Education no longer serves children when they are turned into profit centers.

[msanthrope]

13. In Philly, the charters are granted by the school district. So, in typical Philly fashion, we only

get excellent, or corrupt shitholes of charters.

[cstanleytech]

32. Whats the % of charter schools that do better than the public ones they replaced? nt

[msanthrope]

33. I have no idea. It would be difficult to quantify because so many charters aren't one to

one replacements.

[Iliyah]

8. Have you noticed that majority

of the goper run states with goper control legislation are ruining their states all for the Almighty profit and privatization crap.

[aggiesal]

11. This has got to be . . .

against the state constitution in some way.

The city of Philadelphia should sue if it is,
otherwise in a couple of years they'll be
the next Detroit.

Thiz is just the GOP drowning the baby
in the bath.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. Detroit was a 1-industry town

and Philly isn't, so it's a different set of circumstances (i.e., different type and amount of tax base regardless of any state funding or lack thereof). Detroit lost its main source of jobs and then lost a huge chunk of population (that ended up eroding the tax revenue), where Philly is finally actually gaining some population after a 50 year slide, and the market here is more diversified.

However the danger here is what could ultimately amount to the elimination of the PFT (which I expect is the GOP goal). Corbett is trying to extract a 10% paycut (and other things) from the union to generate $130 million in concessions, which is huge.

[aggiesal]

22. I agree about Detroit being a 1-industry town, . . .

but the city having to borrow $50 million just for schools is not
a good sign.

What next? Not pay for city services, like 1st responders, so the
city would have to borrow more money?
Or stop paying into the pension fund?

The GOP'ers will force these urban areas to start borrowing
beyond their means, and eventually they'll be left with no
other option then to declare bankruptcy.

Then watch the GOP'ers have a field day.

[BumRushDaShow]

30. "but the city having to borrow $50 million just for schools"

that was the Mayor's decision to do that and that was not supported by the City Council. They really haven't finalized what they are going to use to fund other than the city is going to "front" the district money to get the opening happening on time. The city actually has a rainy day surplus with enough to cover it and alternately, the City Council President as well as the rest of Council wants to sell the older shuttered school buildings that are sitting empty. to developers for a good chunk of change.

The issue is going to be GOTV to either take back the governorship and/or one of the legislative chambers and start reversing the draconian practices coming out of Harrisburg.

[Snake Plissken]

15. If I was a republican governor I'd be doing the same thing

I'd send my kids to private schools and private universities, and ensure nobody else's kid get an education, this way I'd have a base of uninformed and uneducated voters to scare into electing me.

Seriously, how else can the GOP survive? There just aren't enough billionaires to keep the party viable.

[Cryptoad]

17. Yep,,,,,

that low education tactic is working out well in Texas.

[KansDem]

16. "...but hey, kids will have a place to go and sit."

Later, it will be (private) prisons...

[Cryptoad]

18. Private Prison

are quite numerous across the Red South!

[Indydem]

20. $16,718.50 Per pupil - $6500 more than the national average (before the 50 million)

A student to teacher ratio of 15 to 1 - Right at the national average

And yet their academic achievement is abysmal.

Sounds like an administration problem, not a money problem.

[lcordero2]

21. okay what is the deal

These people are disgusting and malicious.

1. Denying food to starve people to death.

2. Murdering people overseas with fake "intelligence" with flying drones.

3. Manipulating the system to put people into indentured servitude (medical bills and college)

4. Using something like No Child Left Behind to take pensions away and to deny education services.

These people want to actually turn a significant portion of the population to the stone age.

[LiberalFighter]

23. I'm wondering how much reliance schools have on the state for finances

when in the past it was local government?

[MyOwnPeace]

27. Pennsylvania

is required to provide 50% funding to schools. They've not come close to that in years (the closest was with Ed Rendell, and that wasn't all THAT close!). Tom Corporate is out to punish/destroy all blocks of voters that voted against him.
You don't even need a high school education to see what he's up to!

[Turbineguy]

26. Less education is what made

Reaganomics work so well.

[MH1]

29. Fucking Corbett not wanting to tax Marcellus Shale.

Separate from the pollution issues and all the other reasons not to get too frack-happy too quick, fucking ASSHOLES in Harrisburg just GAVE AWAY Pennsylvania's resources. For nothing. And now they can't pay the bills. And are trying to force the teachers' union into concessions. ASSHOLES.

Meanwhile what's been Corbett's legislative "priorities" all year? Privatizing the lottery* and the liquor stores.

(* PA's lottery is one of the best run and most profitable in the country.)

Pennsylvanians should be so proud to have elected this yahoo governor.

[blue neen]

34. 1,814,788 (46%) Pennsylvanians did not elect this yahoo governor.

It's a shame the rest of us have to suffer for the 54% who did elect Corbett. He has damaged Pennsylvania in ways that no other governor ever has, or hopefully, ever will again.

We're not proud at all.

P.S. You're absolutely right---we wouldn't have this problem if Corbett would have taxed Marcellus Shale, a tax that the drillers were ready and willing to pay (and do pay in other states)!

[Fire Walk With Me]

31. As in Chicago, de-funding and closings are to privatize. n/t