At a recent public hearing held by the Pennsylvania House Appropriations and Education Committees, Montgomery County school officials implored the committee to increase state funding for schools, writes John Worthington for MediaNews Group.
The hearing was a part of a statewide tour on the state of education in Pennsylvania.
“Ultimately, thousands of Pennsylvania students are not being adequately served due to funding issues,” said Brittany Lourea-Waddell, director of student services at the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit.
According to the Public Interest Law Center, Pennsylvania’s public schools are underfunded by $4.6 billion.
A recent Commonwealth Court ruling called Pennsylvania’s public education funding system which is based on outdated enrollment data and a reliance on property taxes unconstitutional.
At the public hearing, Souderton Area School District Superintendent Frank Gallagher requested the state use the new 2016 funding formula which would allocate $4.6 billion in education funding.
“Most of the school funding is run through an antiquated system that doesn’t take into consideration the factors that drive up our costs,” he said.
Gallagher and North Penn School District Superintendent Todd Bauer described some of those factors including much-needed building renovations and infrastructure projects and the rising costs of mental health and special education services.
Read more about the state of education in Pennsylvania and the testimony of Montgomery County school officials in Main Line Times & Suburban.
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