Democratic leader Jay Costa organized a press event to “announce and acknowledge that some of the issues that Senate Democrats believe are very, very important for Pennsylvania.” No matter how pressing these issues may have been, they were definitely not the event’s priority or focus. Democrats seemed far more concerned with censuring Republicans with repulsive rhetoric. Senator Costa condemned Governor Corbett’s priorities as “out of whack” and accused him of failing to invest in Pennsylvania. Senator Hughes expounded that several administration policies, such as education cuts, are downright criminal and serve to exemplify how the administration puts Pennsylvanians last. It is time to refute all the misleading information surrounding education within the Commonwealth.
The Democrats collectively concede that Pennsylvania needs a strong public education system and that investing in education is vital. There is no disputing the fact that education must be a priority. Education costs consist of more than 70 percent of the General Fund, or approximately $20 billion. Since 1980, education funding has increased by more than 133 percent after adjusting for inflation. The expenditure explosion can be seen in the hiring of more than 32,000 public school employees while student enrollment has dropped by more than 26,000 between 2000 and 2009. On average, school districts spend more than $13,000 per student. The Democratic argument, which implies that Corbett and the Commonwealth fail to invest in education, is a fallacy.
Senator Costa cites that the Keystone state has a tremendous track record of successful investments in education. After examining the immense funding increases granted to public schools, one would tend to agree with Senator Costa. Unfortunately, despite this increased investment, Pennsylvania public school students continue to show little to no improvement in educational performance based on the National Assessment of Education Progress. The Commonwealth ranks a disappointing 43rd in the nation for combined SAT scores. In contrast to what Democrats claim, studies continually reveal that there is no correlation between performance and class size, teacher salaries, or per-pupil expenditures.
It is becoming abundantly clear that pouring more resources into the current public school system is not the solution. Taxpayers are not receiving a positive return on their investment and more importantly, students are not receiving an adequate education. Fortunately, there is an alternative that will advance education in Pennsylvania. Research has shown that programs such as school choice are increasing academic achievement amongst students. School choice allows students the benefit of attending private or charter schools. Public school students have benefitted as well by increased competition and accountability across the spectrum of education. School choice will also save taxpayers money as private and charter schools spend significantly less money per student compared to public schools. The Pennsylvania State Senate passed SB 1, which provides vouchers to more than 100,000 students who are trapped in pubilc schools where less than half of students are proficient. The House must now make the same commitment to pass school choice in order to advance the quality of education in the state.
Senate Democratic criticisms that Pennsylvania is failing to invest in public education are inaccurate. Pennsylvania has been increasingly allocating more resources for education for decades. Democrats erroneously report that the Commonwealth’s commitment to funding pubic education has yielded tremendous results. Academic acheivement has remained relatively unchanged. Democrats are staying focused on a campaign strategy based on outrageous attacks and incendiary statements. It is crucial that Republicans thoroughly scrutinize Pennsylvania’s education system in order to enact meaningful reforms such as school choice, merit pay for public school teachers and more.
