(The Center Square) – House representatives showed a wide range of interests as they questioned Acting Secretary of Education Dr. Carrie Rowe during her department’s testimony before the body’s Appropriations Committee.
Legislators voiced their concerns about everything from violence in schools to financial planning, often making agreements to return to the department and their colleagues with proposals to take action on each of the perceived problems.
For some, the breadth of issues facing Pennsylvania’s students is indicative of a larger societal failing, while others implied that the failure rests squarely on the shoulders of the legislature itself, which holds legal responsibility for a “thorough and efficient public education system.”
“The decline of the nuclear family has resulted in a lack of learning in our homes,” said Rep. Jamie Barton, R-Tamaqua, specifically calling out single parent homes and foster homes in that failure. “So we can argue that our schools aren’t failing our children, but our families are failing our children and specifically in things like work ethic and finance and discipline and chores and leadership and kindness.”
Barton posed several school-based solutions to this problem, including incorporating religious education.
“If children aren’t attending a worship service, should we continue to keep God out of our schools?” he said. Such a change would be unconstitutional, however.
Others posed answers like a stronger emphasis on civics throughout a public school education. Rep. Tim Brennan, D-Doylestown, noted that 57% of 18 to 24-year-olds say they are losing faith in democracy and asked if Act 35, which requires schools to assess students in civics, government, and U.S. history, goes far enough toward its goal.
“I think civic education is an integral part of what we do in the K-12 system. I think it is not just a high school thing or just a middle school thing but it has to be something that’s incorporated throughout the schooling,” said Rowe.
She was open to discussing incentivization like a recognition on students’ diplomas who meet certain benchmarks in civic education.
Rep. Eric Nelson, R-Greensburg, cited surveys indicating that 77% of teachers responded that they were subject to violence, with over 4,000 reporting having experienced violence in their classrooms. He described a teacher spitting blood into the trash can throughout a class period after being punched by a student in the previous class.
Violence in schools is a major deterrent for college students considering the profession. Beyond the mass shootings that draw national attention, everyday violence has taken a toll on the already stretched-thin numbers of teachers in the state. This mirrors a troubling pattern of violence against medical professionals, another industry experiencing staffing shortages.
Nelson voiced concern that the state’s restrictive policies make it too difficult for school districts to manage these incidents in-house. Rowe said the department was in alignment with Nelson in wanting to prevent this kind of problem and agreed to work with the legislature toward policies that support teachers.
Another concern brought to light was antisemitism. The problem, along with Islamophobia, has seen a national surge as tensions over the Israel-Hamas war have fanned the flames of discord through the misidentification of entire religious groups with the two primary combatants in the conflict.
In schools, the result has been an uptick in antisemitic gestures, rhetoric, and behavior. The Office of Civil Rights resolved a complaint about Philadelphia’s school district in December, about which Rep. Kristin Marcell, R-Richboro, inquired of the department’s involvement.
While the department does not handle Office for Civil Rights complaints, Rowe noted that the system had recently updated training materials for teachers on the Holocaust. Advocacy groups continue to push the state to update curriculum to reflect historical and ongoing ethnic cleansing campaigns throughout the Global South.
Legislators also spoke of initiatives they’ve seen have a positive impact on their districts, and in some cases, their own education.
Rep. Joshua Siegel, D-Allentown, expressed his appreciation for being asked to learn both sides of an argument during debate and asked how the legislature could support extracurricular development.
“Those types of experiences are not only formative for students, but they are helping them to get through their schooling career and to reinforce some of the standards that they’re exposed to,” said Rowe. Funding and staffing for extracurriculars is often largely reliant on grants, donations, and volunteers.
Rep. Thomas Kutz, R-Mechanicsburg, spoke about mobile science and math programs and asked why funding has been discontinued from this year’s budget. Rowe said she understood the initiatives to be led by the legislature and would be welcome additions to the budget when proposed.
Both universal free breakfast and the state’s initiative to provide period products in schools have been celebrated as successes, while the demand for career and technical education remains high.
