Bucks Co. Superintendents Press Lawmakers To 'Fund Our Schools'

WARMINSTER, PA —With Bucks County school districts awaiting word about state funding, several superintendents will join forces Thursday to ask the Legislature to invest in education.

Centennial Schools District Schools Superintendent Dana Bedden —along with two other Bucks County schools superintendents —and local advocates will call on lawmakers to "fulfill their constitutional obligation" and invest some of this year’s $12 billion surplus in education.

The forum, sponsored by Children First, is entitled "Superintendents to Legislature: Support Our Students, Fund Our Schools." The forum takes place at 11 a.m. Thursday, June 1, at William Tennent High School, 333 Centennial Rd.

Bedden is among the panelists along with Bensalem School District Superintendent Samuel Lee and Charles Lentz, superintendent of the New Hope-Solebury School District.

Also participating are Donna Cooper, executive director of Children First; Karen Downer, president of the NAACP Bucks County, and Rabbi Anna Boswell-Levy, Congregation Kol Emet/POWER Bucks.

Children First said that Bucks County's public schools are still waiting for their fair share of state funding while lawmakers in Harrisburg negotiate next year’s education budget.

Despite the Commonwealth Court ruling that the state's education funding system is unconstitutional, there is little indication that legislators are planning a significant investment in public education, Children First organizers said.

The organization said Gov. Josh Shapiro’s budget plan also falls short in "seriously addressing the $4.6 billion education funding shortfall."

Children First is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that improves the lives of children in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties by developing initiatives and advocating for quality health care, child care, public education, and family stability. Learn more about the organization here.